Columnists | The Asian Age

All supermarkets spend literally millions of pounds on Christmas advertisements on hoardings and TV. (Photo by John MACDOUGALL / AFP)

Farrukh Dhondy | Christmas is here… It’s a time for festivity, but a holy season too

The national census tells us that Christianity is in decline in Britain.

22 Dec 2023 11:24 PM

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge with party leader Rahul Gandhi and other opposition leaders during a protest over the suspension of MPs amid the Winter session of Parliament, in New Delhi, Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2023. (PTI Photo/Vijay Verma)

Shikha Mukerjee | Will MPs’ suspensions jolt INDIA into anti-BJP unity?

Mr Kharge, groomed in the Congress culture of consensus building, is a natural for the job of convenor of the INDIA collective

22 Dec 2023 11:21 PM

Traditionally, remittances have come from the Middle East but this scenario is changing. (Photo: AFP)

Patralekha Chatterjee | Remittances at a new high, but there’s a dark side too

India’s inward remittances may account for only 3.4 per cent of the country’s GDP but it is the highest recipient of remittances globally.

21 Dec 2023 11:04 PM

Madhya Pradesh Chif Minister Dr Mohan Yadav. (File Image: PTI)

Sunanda K. Datta-Ray | Of religion, myths, food as ‘New’ India flexes muscles

Uneducated, unemployed and under-nourished folk are not alone in swallowing these tales

21 Dec 2023 12:00 AM

In the aftermath of the security breach, there was a presumption among officers across services that the executive director (security) would be promptly replaced. However, it was discovered that the vacancy had persisted since mid-November, following the departure of Raghubir Lal, a 1997-batch IPS offer to Uttar Pradesh as ADG (security) after completing an extended one-year tenure. (File Image: PTI)

Dilip Cherian | New Rajasthan CM hits the ground running

The recent security lapse at the Parliament has highlighted the inherent risks associated with prolonged vacancies in critical positions

21 Dec 2023 12:00 AM

Taliban's spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid said the Taliban will stay in power for a long time - and for as long as God wants. AP/PTI(AP08_15_2023_000484B)

Kamal Davar | Amidst global churn… India, US need a new road to Kabul

It was a matter of time before the Taliban government in Kabul would withdraw support to Kabul’s embassy in New Delhi

20 Dec 2023 12:06 AM

Free speech law stops at the gates of private spaces. (Image: Freepik)

Shashidhar Nanjundaiah | Threats to free speech rise as global conflicts intensify

In India, we have been making cautious adjustments to our understanding of free speech by watching the goings-on all around us.

20 Dec 2023 12:03 AM

We in India have equality in the sense implied in a democracy. We have periodic free and fair elections — at least reasonably free and fair, an independent media, an independent judiciary and all of us enjoy all the freedoms we believe to be essential to be a free people. (Photo: PTI/Representational Image)

Mohan Guruswamy | What ails our democracy? Power flows from the top

No party seems without some blame attached it, for this seems to have become the norm these days

19 Dec 2023 2:38 AM

Police personnel detain a man protesting outside the Parliament building carrying a can emitting a yellowish smoke during the Winter session, in New Delhi, Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2023. (PTI Photo)

Aakar Patel | Who’s a ‘terrorist’: Spraying smoke in Parliament just like Bhagat Singh?

The UAPA, under which many Indians have been charged and are in jail, does not define “terrorist” or “terrorism”

19 Dec 2023 2:26 AM

In this picture taken during a media tour organised by the Israeli military on December 15, 2023, army spokesman Daniel Hagari shows the entrance of a tunnel that Hamas reportedly used to attack Israel through the Erez border crossing on October 7. (AFP)

Saeed Naqvi | Amid differences with US on Gaza, Israeli lobby has to work overtime

The genocidal war continues but US wouldn’t like to be seen pressing for a ceasefire without terminating Hamas

18 Dec 2023 3:08 AM

COP28 President Sultan al-Jaber, right, celebrates passing the global stocktake with United Nations Climate Chief Simon Stiell, left, and COP28 CEO Adnan Amin during a plenary session at the COP28 U.N. Climate Summit, Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2023, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. (AP Photo)

Indranil Banerjie | COP28 and wages of greed: Planet is at breaking point

The urgency of action on climate control has been reiterated endlessly in recent times

18 Dec 2023 12:54 AM

Manish Tewari | Why Kissinger’s Legacy in South Asia is a Toxic One

Henry Kissinger lived to be one hundred years old

17 Dec 2023 12:08 AM

Ranjona Banerji | Hallo there! Have you all Condemned Hamas?

It’s been over two months since October 7, 2023, when Hamas rockets attacked Israel, killing 1400 people

17 Dec 2023 12:07 AM

Even Ranveer Singh pales in the rizz department when compared to our Prime Minister. (PTI Photo)

Shobhaa De | Word of Year: Where there is no fizz, there’s no ‘Rizz’…

For now, I’m stuck on the word “Rizz”, short for charisma, charm or seduction

16 Dec 2023 12:48 AM

Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. (AP)

Farrukh Dhondy | Sunak lives on the edge: Will he take the UK into icy waters?

What the country witnessed on Tuesday was the circus that this Tory government has deteriorated into

16 Dec 2023 12:32 AM

Chinese incursions in the South China Sea escalate tensions with Asian neighbors. (AFP File Image)

Debotri Dhar | Chanakya, China & diverse ideals of global friendship

Exploring Chanakya's Legacy: The Paradigm Shift in International Relations through Friendship

14 Dec 2023 10:35 PM

The only claim that the Modi government can make is that national security concern was the reason for making the drastic changes in the status of Jammu and Kashmir. (Representative Image: DC)

Parsa Venkateshwar Rao Jr | SC’s Art. 370 ruling has left key questions unanswered

Even Hindu-majority Jammu is not happy with the new UT status

14 Dec 2023 12:00 AM

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik (Photo: PTI/File)

Dilip Cherian | Odisha babus eye giant projects for economic renaissance

Whispers are gaining momentum