Jyotiraditya Scindia: From toast of Congress to breadcrumb of BJP

We may be staring at a de-ideologised generation of politicians in whose hands neither the Constitution nor the liberal society we seek is safe

Jyotiraditya Scindia’s move to jump ship and bring down the government of his parent party in Madhya Pradesh, returns us to the recurrent question of political opportunism in Indian politics. Where indeed do Scindia’s objectives fit in the wide spectrum of political strategies that can be called opportunist?

Kanshi Ram, the founder of Bahujan Samaj Party, unabashedly advocated political opportunism as a means of capturing political power on behalf of marginalised Dalits. He did not seek wealth or power for himself. His protégé Mayawati is also schooled in the same brand of realpolitik although the distinction between her personal and