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Rajdeep Sardesai

Rajdeep Sardesai is senior journalist, author and TV news presenter. His book 2014: The election that changed India is a national best seller that has been translated into half a dozen languages. He tweets as @sardesairajdeep

Articles by Rajdeep Sardesai

Reading continuity in a fractured verdict

In the third term, the NDA government will have to engage with multiple governance challenges and an energised Opposition

New Delhi, Jun 12 (ANI): NEET aspirants protest against the alleged irregularities in the NEET-UG examination at Jantar Mantar, in New Delhi on Wednesday. (ANI Photo/Ritik Jain) (Ritik Jain)
Published on Jun 27, 2024 08:48 PM IST

Mandate shows limits of strongman politics

The key to the next political act lies not so much with the BJP’s allies, but with the Opposition that has been hugely boosted by the mandate

TOPSHOT - India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi (2L) flashes victory sign as he arrives at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) headquarters to celebrate the party’s win in country's general election, in New Delhi on June 4, 2024. (Photo by ARUN SANKAR / AFP) (AFP)
Updated on Jun 13, 2024 09:23 PM IST

Ten key takeaways from the elections

The campaign suggests that electoral democracy is alive in India even if constitutional democracy appears weakened

Women queue up to cast their ballots at a polling station during the sixth phase of voting in India�s general election, in village Tigaon on the outskirts of Faridabad on May 25, 2024. India is voting in seven phases over six weeks to ease the immense logistical burden of staging an election in the world's most populous country. (Photo by Money SHARMA / AFP)(AFP)
Published on May 30, 2024 11:01 PM IST

M factor in the polls is the mahila voter

This general elections is likely to be won and lost by the biggest vote bank of them all, women, who constitute nearly half of the electorate

Nadia, May 13 (ANI): Women voters stand in queue to cast their votes for the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections, in Nadia on Monday. (ANI Photo) (CEOWestBengal-X)
Published on May 16, 2024 10:08 PM IST

Low polling carries message for parties

The mismatch between political rhetoric and the humdrum existence of daily life has left many voters feeling unsettled and indifferent to the election process

People from Kattunayakar tribe stand in a queue to cast their ballot at a polling station during the second phase of voting of India's general election in Wayanad district in Kerala on April 26, 2024. (Photo by R. Satish BABU / AFP)(AFP)
Published on May 03, 2024 01:15 AM IST

A referendum on Modi’s leadership

The 2024 general elections is fought in the name of the Prime Minister, for or against

Chennai: Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a roadshow ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, in Chennai, Tuesday, April 9, 2024. (PTI Photo)(PTI04_09_2024_RPT303A)(PTI)
Published on Apr 18, 2024 10:00 PM IST

Limits of Opposition’s ‘save democracy’ plank

2024 is not 1977: ‘Democracy in danger’ slogan is unlikely to help INDIA bloc challenge the dominance of the BJP

New Delhi, India - March 31, 2024: Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, NCP (Sharad) leader Sharad Pawar and AAP leader Bhagwant Mann and others during I.N.D.I.A. bloc's 'Loktantra Bachao' rally at the Ramlila ground, in New Delhi, India, on Sunday, March 31, 2024. (Photo by Sanjeev Verma/ Hindustan Times)(Hindustan Times)
Published on Apr 04, 2024 10:00 PM IST

Elections 2024 is a match of unequals

The Opposition is in disarray. However, it deserves the benefit of a level playing field at the time of elections

TOPSHOT - A college student has her face painted to spread awareness for first generation voters during an election campaign ahead of India's upcoming national elections in Chennai on March 19, 2024. (Photo by R. Satish BABU / AFP)(AFP)
Published on Mar 21, 2024 10:00 PM IST

BJP’s push to bridge the North-South gap

A breakthrough for the party in South India requires a commitment to federalism and politics that acknowledge linguistic diversity and inter-faith harmony

Thiruvananthapuram, Feb 27 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi being felicitated during a public meeting, in Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday. Union Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan and Kerala Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Chief K Surendran are also seen. (ANI Photo)(Sreeram DK)
Published on Mar 07, 2024 10:03 PM IST

Congress-mukt Bharat to Congress-yukt BJP

The belief that the Gandhis are the only glue that holds the Congress together has been shaken by high-profile departures in the last decade

Rahul Gandhi’s yatras are a good exercise in re-building a lost mass connect, but episodic journeys can’t compensate for years of organisational neglect (ANI FILE PHOTO)
Updated on Feb 22, 2024 08:37 PM IST

A Chandigarh window on Indian democracy

The mayoral polls hold a mirror to debasement of politics characterised by falling ethical standards and an ends-justify-means amoral credo

BJP mayoral candidate Manoj Sonkar won the Chandigarh mayoral elections. (HT photo)
Published on Feb 08, 2024 10:00 PM IST

The Mandir moment as the Modi moment

After Ayodhya, the Prime Minister has a legacy to build on. Delivering on promises made after the consecration ceremony can be a beginning

Ayodhya, Jan 22 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the 'Pran Pratishtha' ceremony in the sanctum sanctorum of the Ram Janmabhoomi Temple, in Ayodhya on Monday. (ANI Photo)(ANI)
Published on Jan 25, 2024 09:08 PM IST

Navigating the fault line of Ram Mandir politics

The self-appointed guardians of secularism and those who claim to be protectors of Hindutva nationalism have fed off each other for decades

Ram Mandir is ready for “pran pratishtha” (consecration ceremony) of Ram Lalla (the child Ram) on January 22. (HT Photo)
Published on Jan 11, 2024 09:54 PM IST

Chronicles foretold of our exciting times

Lessons learned from the turbulence of 2023, to engage with a no less chaotic 2024

Towards an India where Neeraj Chopra's golden glory spawns many champions of the future(PTI)
Published on Dec 28, 2023 10:13 PM IST

With no level-playing field, elections are a mismatch

The elections are a mismatch, a bit like an India versus Bangladesh cricket game, where more often than not there will be only one winner.

The BJP has the clear advantage of the Modi factor in the last decade. (Arun Sharma/HT)
Published on Dec 14, 2023 10:00 PM IST

Cricket to politics, a nation in awe of idols

Unwillingness to accept defeat with poise is the direct consequence of an idolatry culture that celebrates heroes but doesn’t embrace the spirit of sport

India's Virat Kohli celebrates his 50th ODI century during the semi-final match against New Zealand in the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2023.(RCB Twitter)
Published on Nov 30, 2023 10:34 PM IST

Reversal of roles for BJP, Congress in MP

If high command loomed large in the BJP campaign, state leadership was the focus of Congress outreach

 The BJP’s publicity material has Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi typically towering above all others. (ANI)
Published on Nov 16, 2023 10:54 PM IST

Maratha quota stir is a sign of a state in decline

Maharashtra is paying the price for a broken development model where a deepening agrarian crisis and brazen cash-and-carry politics have created frustration

Protesters during bandh for Maratha reservation. (HT PHOTO)
Published on Nov 02, 2023 10:35 PM IST

Avoid grandstanding on the war in Gaza

Propagandists may seek to create a black and white universe of villains and heroes but India’s approach to the Israel-Hamas war stems from a complicated history

Israel-Hamas War: A Palestinian boy sits on the rubble of the building destroyed in an Israeli airstrike in Bureij refugee camp Gaza Strip.(AP)
Published on Oct 19, 2023 10:17 PM IST

How they took away the spirit of my game

For a genuine cricket romantic, the toxic atmosphere in an India-Pakistan match has robbed the sport of its purity

Ahmedabad: (L-R) Bangladesh's captain Shakib Al Hasan, Sri Lanka's Dasun Shanaka, South Africa's Tembba Bavuma, New Zealand's Kane Williamson, India's Rohit Sharma, Pakistan's Babar Azam, England's Jos Buttler, Australia's Pat Cummins, Afghanistan's Hashmatullah Shahidi, and Netherlands' Scott Edwards pose for photos with World Cup trophy during the Captains' Day event ahead of ICC Cricket World Cup 2023, in Ahmedabad, Wednesday.(PTI)
Published on Oct 05, 2023 09:56 PM IST

A post-dated Bill of rights ahead of polls

Nari shakti sloganeering across the political spectrum over the women’s quota is hollow posturing, and a cynical attempt to woo the woman voter

Will the carrot of women’s reservations transform a patriarchal political milieu?(HT Archive)
Published on Sep 21, 2023 10:23 PM IST

Why is govt backing simultaneous polls?

The idea can help paper over the BJP’s weakness in some state polls. But a genuine democratic ethos cannot be cultivated by a single fanciful idea

Simultaneous elections were the norm until 1967, but the premature dissolution of some state assemblies in 1968 and 1969 and advancement of parliamentary polls to 1971 in the wake of the split in the Congress, disturbed the harmony. (Representational photo)
Published on Sep 07, 2023 10:12 PM IST

Can BJP’s 3-pronged attack win in 2024?

PM Modi hinted dynastic politics, corruption and appeasement will be his 3 weapons for 2024. But after nine years, will they work as well as they did in 2014?

 In 2014, Modi was the archetypal outsider (ANI)
Published on Aug 24, 2023 09:33 PM IST

Ten lessons from no-confidence motion debate

The motion sounded the bugle for the 2024 general elections. It showed us that the Opposition needs to up its game to match the government’s narrative

 This no-confidence motion was never about the numbers but a more intangible perception war(ANI)
Updated on Aug 11, 2023 11:21 PM IST

End the whataboutery around Manipur crisis

A viral video has sparked a political war; parallels are being drawn with other states. But Manipur needs accountability instead

The Manipur Students’ Union at a protest against the ongoing violence, in Imphal. (ANI)
Published on Jul 27, 2023 09:54 PM IST

In Maharashtra battle, Pawar is down but not out, yet

The crisis faced by Pawar is a consequence of the larger political dynamics. The 2024 polls will offer one final opportunity to reclaim his position

For a while, his Nationalist Congress Party’s (NCP’s) core dilemma has been — After Pawar, who?(ANI)
Published on Jul 14, 2023 09:39 PM IST

Manipur requires an urgent healing touch

The violence-hit state needs a genuine attempt at reconciling differences on the ground

Targeted violence, of the kind seen in Manipur, is not new in India ani(ANI)
Published on Jun 29, 2023 06:37 PM IST

Country above IPL: What BCCI must do to help Indian cricket

After the WTC loss, India need a long-term vision. And as guardians of the sport, BCCI needs to be accountable to the final stakeholder: the fans

Virat Kohli reacts after being dismissed by Australia's Scott Boland in the WTC Final(AP)
Published on Jun 16, 2023 11:42 AM IST

Break the silence on the wrestlers’ protest

Since 2010, India’s women athletes are shining across sports. But on-field triumphs demand greater respect off it

The protesting wrestlers need to be applauded and not demonised (Jitender Gupta)
Updated on Jun 01, 2023 07:00 PM IST

The K’taka verdict can worry the BJP

The results showed that a one-size-fits-all plan that doesn’t address local sensitivities is likely to flounder in states with robust cultural identities

PM Modi-led BJP remains a favourite to win in a national election but the aayega to Modi hi swagger may need dialling down (PTI)
Updated on May 18, 2023 09:42 PM IST
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