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Adam Smith and David Ricardo had been haunted by the idea of capitalism ending up in a “stationary state”, by which they meant a stable state of zero growth. Marx used the term “simple reproduction” to describe such a state, where there is no net addition to production capacity and the economy just reproduces itself at the same level period after period. The Indian economy appears headed for such a state.

It starts with “Dear Congresspersons…” and doesn’t stop till the last vestiges of the Congress party’s confidence in the Gandhi family haven't been ridden to the ground, the Gandhis painted in mud colours. Who were the people behind this exercise is still not apparent to the eye, but what’s being spoken isn’t in the usual sweet tones used for the Gandhi family.

The rise in cases of COVID-19 infection in India now is the sharpest this year which may be an early warning for the fourth wave. Daily infection count in the last 24 hours has touched the figure 7,584, as per the official information available in the morning of June 10, which is the highest daily surge in 93 days, though the death count is still low at 24. It was nearly 41 per cent jump in daily cases. Fresh surge was recorded in several parts of the country, and hence putting off guard against infection will be equivalent to inviting the fourth wave of the pandemic in the country.

Union Government in the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has floated a new draft IT rules on its websites to elicit public and users’ opinion/consultation before it is finalized for notification shortly. The new draft rules following the first Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics) Rules were notified in February 2021 as part of government’s continuing control over social media to check free flow of information and to make India a full surveillance state where users will be required to use such information as the fascist government may desire, putting an end to diversity of information/opinion and critical thinking, a hallmark of democratic norms.

Jammu and Kashmir is once again at the centre of a raging political debate. In the past few weeks, several targeted killings of non-Kashmiris and Kashmiri Pundits have rocked the nation’s conscience. News reports suggest that Kashmiri Pundits are desperate to leave the valley while the government machinery is trying to prevent them from what appears to be the final exodus. Social media is flooded with desperate comments that talk about the deteriorating situation in Kashmir on the one hand and The Kashmir Files movie and similar topics on the other. No one seems to know whom to blame for the apparent anarchy in the Union Territory.

Is Section 66A of the Information Technology Act making a comeback? This at a time when restrictions on Freedom of Expression are beginning to get the upper hand over free speech. The return of Section 66A is bound to lead to further restrictions and keep people from posting critical remarks on the workings of the government, speak truth to power. The Supreme Court had knocked out Section 66A from the IT Act seven years ago.

Religious extremism is never far from religious fundamentalism. For the question that has hardly any explanation today the distance is practically nil. From religious extremism to the point of communal hatred, there is no distance to traverse. Thoughts of racial pride in its rude and primitive manner plays the guiding role behind all the manifestations of religious fundamentalism. Once it is moved into action, it is almost impossible to fathom the ramifications. They become unpredictable. It can lead to ruthless communal violence or widespread diplomatic controversies. The RSS - BJP leadership is trying hard to cover up this role of their ideology that unleashed the ongoing political cyclone in India and abroad.

The BJP and the Narendra Modi government have been hoist on their own petard. After presiding over a systematic anti-Muslim campaign and whipping up Islamophobia, the government and the ruling party are faced with a strong diplomatic backlash from most of the Muslim countries, among them the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, Indonesia, Malaysia and Turkey.

On May 25, a national Investigation Agency Court convicted Yasin Malik and sent him to two life terms. Malik is the leader of the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF), which seeks independence for J & k from India and Gilgil-Baltistan from Pakistan. Apart from the two life sentences that will run concurrently, Malik has to pay a fine of Rs 10.65 lakhs for funding terrorist acts and violating the sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and the Indian Penal Code.

Horses are noble animals. And to taint their name with the slur of horse-trading is a disgrace. The political horse-trading currently going on in Rajasthan, and possibly Maharashtra, with tentacles spread out to Delhi and Bengaluru is the pits. Udaipur, Jaipur and Mumbai are also in the news. And the horses up for auction aren’t thoroughbreds.