SAEED NAQVI

Sino-Indian Conflict Has Its Roots in the Emergence of the Two Nations

Sino-Indian Conflict Has Its Roots in the Emergence of the Two Nations

A clue to the future of Sino-Indian relations lies in the different ways the two ancient civilizations came out of their respective cocoons into the modern world in 1947 and 1948. Indifference to the debates in British Parliament preceding the Indian Independence Act in July 1947 may lead to faulty conclusions. Prime Minister Clement Atlee’s […]

 SAEED NAQVI

Europe In Convulsions Even As Corbyn Rises In Britain

Europe In Convulsions Even As Corbyn Rises In Britain

From Rome to London the contrast was sharp – from political despair to hope.

A comprehensive conference on Afghanistan, superbly organized the NATO Foundation was the only redeeming feature in Rome. Meetings with journalists and think-tanks on the margins were depressing. The Far Right leader of the ruling coalition, Matteo Salvini of the League, whose early act as Deputy Prime Minister was to order a boat full of North […]

 SAEED NAQVI

Is the Burqa a Response to Nasty Islamophobia Or a Means of Aggravating It?

Is the Burqa a Response to Nasty Islamophobia Or a Means of Aggravating It?

Secularism and India

In normal times Britain’s former Foreign Secretary, Boris Johnson’s observation that burqa clad women resemble walking “letter boxes” and “bank robbers” would evoke laughter. But these are not normal times. Just when liberals were beginning to pelt stones at him, a startling turn to the debate was given by Taj Hargay, Imam of Oxford. “The […]

 SAEED NAQVI

Global Moments That Bind: Assam, Palestine And ‘Big Daddy’ Trump

Global Moments That Bind: Assam, Palestine And ‘Big Daddy’ Trump

Anti Semitism Rises When Populism Lurches To The Right

Call it coincidence or mysterious design, there are moments in world affairs when disparate societies have the same experience. I had barely registered that the sword of Damocles hung on the heads of over four million people, mostly Muslims, in Assam by a very Orwellian sounding National Register of Citizens, when a friend from New […]

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Afghanistan, Not India, Will Be Imran Khan’s Priority Until 2019

Afghanistan, Not India, Will Be Imran Khan’s Priority Until 2019

The new PM will be pragmatic

Even before elections in Pakistan had taken place the media which articulates the western establishment point of view, like the Economist, had already declared it a “flawed election”; it even screamed “foul play” which the “khaki umpire” (for which read the Army) had rigged. If you will stand for a mixed metaphor, the “khaki umpire” […]

 SAEED NAQVI

The Role Of The Cold War In Indira Gandhi’s Emergency

The Role Of The Cold War In Indira Gandhi’s Emergency

Leftward lurch resisted by a coalition of the Right

Indira Gandhi declared the emergency in 1975, plonk in the middle of the most intense phase of the cold war. Détente was going so badly for the Americans that stand up comedians in Washington were comparing it to a wife swapping party “from where you return alone.” After the Vietnam debacle, Washington was going to […]

 SAEED NAQVI

Kashmir Aka National Security is Essential For The 2019 Power Mix

Kashmir Aka National Security is Essential For The 2019 Power Mix

As Charlie Chaplin said, “Ladies and Gentlemen, we are stuck!”

Two policemen leading the mob which ultimately lynched a Muslim in Hapur is, ofcourse, part of familiar communalism which has to be revved upon to a higher pitch in order to prepare the ground for the General Elections in 2019. The animal to be protected is not the cow, but power. For this ultimate goal, […]

 SAEED NAQVI

‘Two Muslims Near The Very Top In British Politics’

‘Two Muslims Near The Very Top In British Politics’

High profile Mayor of London

The three column, six inch deep headline on page 1 of the Daily Telegraph caught my eye: “Doors open to thousands more skilled migrants.” Given the anti-immigrant rhetoric I had heard in Rome and elsewhere in Europe, the headline was refreshing. Even more noticeable was the name of the Home Secretary, Sajid Javid, the third […]

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After Brexit, Itexit Looms, Spanish Order Caves In: God Help Europe

After Brexit, Itexit Looms, Spanish Order Caves In: God Help Europe

‘Populism’ vs established order

Pardon the postscript first. With the appointment of Giuseppe Conte, a lawyer, as a compromise Prime Minister of Italy, the wheel has come full circle. But before the Italian see-saw could stabilize Spain’s Mariano Rajoy has thrown in his towel in the face of corruption charges that actually never left him since 2015. Establishments in […]

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Two Images: Opposition Joins Hands As RAW and ISI Doves Coo

Two Images: Opposition Joins Hands As RAW and ISI Doves Coo

The Pulley Principle

Two mutually reinforcing images from last week may well define the next phase in national affairs. It is too early to call them game changers but they have considerable potential. The most comprehensive array of opposition leaders, almost a record, who assembled in Bangaluru for H.D. Kumaraswamy’s swearing in as Chief Minister of Karnataka is […]