Friday, Apr 19, 2024 | Last Update : 07:23 PM IST

Shikha Mukerjee

Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a public meeting ahead of Lok Sabha elections, at Ambasamudram, in Tirunelveli district, Monday, April 15, 2024. (PTI Photo/R Senthilkumar)

Shikha Mukerjee | Poll promises vs delivery amid rise in polarisation

As the 2024 Lok Sabha elections loom, the political landscape is rife with tension and uncertainty.

16 Apr 2024 12:05 AM

In a landscape marked by shifting alliances, the BJP asserts dominance while the INDIA coalition struggles to forge a cohesive identity. (PTI File Image)

Shikha Mukerjee | Too many mutations hurt coalition politics’ viability

As the BJP asserts dominance, INDIA coalition grapples with internal dissent & strategic uncertainties in the evolving political landscape

05 Apr 2024 12:07 AM

College students protest against CAA a day after the Ministry of Home Affairs notified the rules for implementation of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act. (Image: PTI)

Shikha Mukerjee | After CAA rules, contours of confrontation changing

Controversy surrounds India's citizenship law change, raising concerns over discrimination and political implications

14 Mar 2024 12:00 AM

Prime Minister Narendra Modi. (Image: PTI)

Shikha Mukerjee | Modi’s ‘guarantees’ on India’s growth can be a mind-bender

Examining the promises, challenges, and contradictions of India's development journey in the past decade

06 Mar 2024 12:00 AM

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. (PTI File Image)

Shikha Mukerjee | Cynicism versus principles: Will voters reward venality?

The BJP's Bihar maneuver: A testament to the triumph of political pragmatism over principles.

05 Feb 2024 11:40 PM

The temple is built on the razed site of the Babri Masjid. The January 22, 2024 consecration of the 51-inch idol christened “Balak Ram” (Image:PTI)

Shikha Mukerjee | Modi has set his target, does BJP know where it’s headed?

The Ram Janmabhoomi movement and the gruelling cross-country journey of the Ram Rath led by Lal Krishna Advani was political

26 Jan 2024 12:00 AM

Shikha Mukerjee | Congress flounders, needs a strategy to get relevant

A “Donate for Desh” fundraising campaign or a 6,200-km Bharat Nyay Yatra crossing 14 states

03 Jan 2024 12:00 AM

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

Elections are times when voters bet on future prospects. (Image:PTI)

Shikha Mukerjee | Congress Complacency Helps Modi win Back Hindi belt

In politics as in cricket, the better side wins. It is credit that must necessarily be shared between the leader/captain and members.

05 Dec 2023 12:11 AM

The EC’s responsibility or failure to fulfil its constitutional obligation is a different matter. Armed with a set of rules and the Model Code of Conduct, which is not a law. (File Photo: DC)

Shikha Mukerjee | Public discourse standards fall, distorted by EC’s bias

The EC has limited power to control the terms of public discourse

30 Nov 2023 12:00 AM

Shikha Mukerjee | Does single-minded Congress bode ill for INDIA allies?

It’s true that when votes are fractured, outcomes are unpredictable.

15 Nov 2023 12:05 AM

TMC MP Mahua Moitra speaks with the media, in Kolkata, on Tuesday. (Image: PTI)

Shikha Mukerjee | Ethics, politics and the art of lobbying, wooing voters

The tale is not the alleged cash that Mahua Moitra received; the tale is of two legislators

01 Nov 2023 12:00 AM

There are three challenges that this collection of leaders have identified as critical to the revival of the institution, which, if it is achieved in the next round of Assembly elections, will position the Congress to do the absolutely necessary heavy lifting for the INDIA alliance in 2024. (Image: PTI)

Shikha Mukerjee | Congress must forge unity out of its internal diversity

The Congress has shown unexpected focus and discipline

20 Sep 2023 12:00 AM

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge with party leaders Rahul Gandhi and K.C. Venugopal, Bihar CM Nitish Kumar and Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray during the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) meeting. (PTI Photo)

Shikha Mukerjee | INDIA gets set, preparing for liftoff; BJP gets jitters

INDIA is poised to unveil itself as a credible challenger to the hitherto invincibility of the BJP

05 Sep 2023 12:05 AM

Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses the nation from the historic Red Fort on the occasion of the 77th Independence Day, in New Delhi, Tuesday, Aug. 15, 2023. (PTI Photo/Manvender Vashist Lav)

Shikha Mukerjee | Inflation biggest challenge for Modi as 2024 gets near

Inflation prompts voters to begin listing all the things that he or she cannot afford and all the reasons why he/she cannot do so.

22 Aug 2023 12:05 AM

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Uddhav Thackeray, CPI (M) leaders Sitaram Yechury and D Raja at a joint press conference after the opposition parties meeting, in Bengaluru, Tuesday, July 18, 2023.

Shikha Mukerjee | ‘INDIA’ veterans ready to unsettle BJP’s masterplan

The assumption that INDIA would waste its time, effort and energy on achieving the impossible, is probably wrong.

22 Jul 2023 12:11 AM

Shikha Mukerjee | Diversity vs homogeneity, as Pawar play rocks Maha

The bottom line seems to be regardless of how many MLAs Ajit Pawar can parade at his meeting, he cannot afford to supplant Sharad Pawar.

07 Jul 2023 12:07 AM

File photo of Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaking during a public meeting in Rajkot. (Photo: PTI)

Shikha Mukerjee | Is India’s middle ground getting more assertive?

The ante has been upped for Narendra Modi, personally, and for his party, generally

09 Jun 2023 12:00 AM

Congress workers holding the party flag celebrate the party's win in Karnataka Assembly elections, outside Vidhana Soudha in Bengaluru, Sunday, May 14, 2023. (PTI Photo)

Shikha Mukerjee | Congress’ main challenge is burden of expectations

The victory has unsurprisingly created a dilemma that has become quite routine for the Congress

18 May 2023 12:05 AM

Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge with BRS MP K. Keshava Rao, DMK MP TR Baalu, AAP MP Sanjay Singh, RJD MP Manoj Jha and fellow opposition MPs during a joint press conference following their 'Tiranga March', in New Delhi, Thursday, April 6, 2023. (Photo: PTI)

Shikha Mukerjee | India’s political topography starts to look a bit different

Standing together in solidarity against the perceived intimidation and coercive tactics of Modi govt is reassuring for all political parties

20 Apr 2023 12:05 AM

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Mohan Guruswamy