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Throwing a casteist slur against anyone is wrong. Moreover, when a former Union Minister does it against the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the House of the People, and the Prime Minister endorses the speech containing the slur, they do inflict a personal, social and political injury not only to the opposition but to the very national fabric of the country. Leaders of the ruling establishment did this only to oppose LoP’s demand of a Caste Census, while allying themselves with the political party that got a Caste Census in their state. What a rank hypocrisy!

Swami Vivekananda would have held his head in frustration, like Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman did, when the Lok Sabha descended to the level of a caste-cauldron like Kerala used to be when Vivekananda visited God’s Own Country. But unlike Vivekananda, Prime Minister Narendra Modi thought the debate on ‘Caste’ went very well, especially for “younger colleague” Anurag Thakur, whose speech with a “perfect mix of facts and humour” was a “must-hear”.

Give a bad name to the dog and kill it. This is actually happening with the railways. Recurring train accidents are the best motives for marketing the train services to private sector. Selling a profit making organisation would invite severe public outcry and criticism. It would give a bad name to the government and turn it suspect in the eyes of the common people. Though the Narendra Modi government has handed over a chunk of railway operation and services to Adani group, it is the fear of public revolt against this move that prohibits Narendra Modi from gifting the entire railway to the private sector.

Rahul Gandhi’s speech in the Lok Sabha on the Union Budget 2024-25 on July 29, was not only an expose of the lotus trap, but also a voice given to the entrapped, the muted, and the people living constantly under fear. Avoiding jargons and the technical terms, he tried to explain the budget for the common people in the simple language they can understand, and hence was too disconcerting to the ruling benches, who intermittently disrupted his speech, and at times direct telecast was switched off lest people could get the political message of the Leader of the Opposition.

The corporate sector and the pink papers have largely welcomed the Union budget 2024–25. One can always wish for more but it is a relief if one is not hurt and there is a standstill. It was expected that after the recent election results, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government will introduce measures in the budget to bring back disaffected sections of the population into its fold. That required the budget to be pro-people— and such budgets are narrowly interpreted as anti-business by the Indian corporate sector.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: There seems to be no respite for Kerala from natural calamities. Hardly has the State recovered from the serious situation caused by reports of outbreak of Nipah virus in Kozhikode district when it has been devastated by another disaster.

Reduced to a single Lok Sabha member from West Bengal post 2024 elections, the state Congress unit is busy picking up the pieces of the jigsaw which would help it arrive at the causes of its dismal state and chart its path of revival. Apart from an organisational rejig and the search for a state unit chief, senior Congress leaders at the state and the national level are contemplating a course correction.

Only six months back, Indians, especially the bourgeoning middle class endorsing the jibes of Narendra Modi against Rahul Gandhi, who preferred to address him “Pappu”, “Shehenshah” and a “part-time politician”, are now looking towards him with hope. Not only the common people and the politically conscious, but also the policy decision-makers and politicians are increasingly not directly opposing him, instead preferring to maintain a passive silence.

If it does not arouse debate, it’s not French. Exuberant, original, inclusive – and definitely controversial – sum up the unforgettable opening ceremony of the Paris Olympic Games 2024. As it was obviously French, it held the whole world in thrall during the weekend but the naysayers.

At a time when one after another foreign firms are abandoning China in protest of repression, the Indian government is, instead of inviting these global firms to start operations in the country, freshly looking at foreign direct investments (FDIs) from China. India is believed to have decided to relax visa restrictions on Chinese citizens. The sudden shift to India’s attitude to China – strategically its most dangerous enemy – is inexplicable. India runs a massive trade deficit with China, a key reason behind its jobless economic growth for the last several years. Less-restricted FDIs from China will substantially add to its capital account deficit apart from creating more jobs for the Chinese youth.