Shekhar Gupta

Time for selectors and coach to go as Indian cricket made to grovel at home

The India-South Africa series-defining fact is the catastrophic decline of Indian red ball cricket, where a visiting team can mock us with the 'grovel' word

Bihar: The first republic, the lost republic, thanks to political obsession

Bihar is blessed with a land more fertile for revolutions than any in India. Why has it fallen so far behind then? Constant obsession with politics is at the root of its destruction

New currency of hard power: How Trump turned US imports into an asset

If China is an exporting superpower, America is an importing one. Mr Trump has turned what would usually be a liability into an asset

Joys of Trumplomacy: Public, loud, and focused on American supremacy

Public, loud, upfront, filled with impropriety and high praise, sometimes laced with insults. This is what we call Trumplomacy. But the larger objective is the same: American supremacy

Two fronts & The King's Gambit: China uses Pakistan to triangulate India

It is safer to presume that the Chinese now see Pakistan as an extension of their Western Theatre Command

Operation Sindoor mix: Surprise, optics and audacity define Indian strikes

Everybody in Pakistan, and indeed in India, knew strikes were a matter of not 'whether' but 'when'. The Modi govt utilised these 14 days after Pahalgam to build an impression that there was no hurry

A leader & 19 months: Lal Bahadur Shastri's legacy beyond Tashkent peace

Among Shastri's contributions were the Green Revolution, appointing C Subramaniam as his food minister, and recognising the talent of M S Swaminathan

Socialist delivery, a nuclear promise: Hoping the Budget meets its goals

Those of us who were so excited by that flurry of reforms and hailed it as a true and virtuous example of not wasting a crisis are now chastened

RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat's call for unity: A shift in Hindutva discourse?

The calling for halt to rash of 'masjids built over mandirs' claims could stem from realisation that it will be impossible for BJP government to maintain order if the issue spirals out of control

Modi 3.0, T&C apply

A changed reality for Modi govt in its 3rd innings is by no means rise of a new phenomenon. It's a return to old normal where even majorities had to routinely wrestle with storied million mutinies

Populism, not politics, missing in Budget

Read this Budget, therefore, as a declaration of victory a month before the Lok Sabha elections are announced

Mission Punjab, not Pannun

There is a need to focus back on Punjab. Working with credible political forces there, even adversaries, would serve the national interest better than fighting in the courtrooms of New York

Islam's struggle with nationalism

By reigniting West Asia just when we had begun to believe it had gone into deep sleep, Hamas has underlined the many contradictions within, and questions about, the Islamic world

No, we don't really care about Manipur

For most of us, the Manipur crisis is out of sight, out of mind. The story in a state so small and so far out is a 'Big Yawn' for many. I try to persuade you to wake up

Why the Sikhs are hurting

The causes of anger are broadly four: Existential threat, incarceration of Bandi Singhs, those accused of sacrilege not being caught, and a rhetorical one, what's wrong with a Sikh Rashtra?

Conglomerates, cronyism, brandless growth

It's good that cronyism is being debated robustly. But the much bigger failure of incredibly powerful, rich and successful conglomerates - Adani, Ambani, Tata- lies in India's fully brand-free growth

Finding Nellie's smoking gun

How a policeman's wireless message that could have saved 3,000 lives, but was ignored and covered up, was uncovered

RSS, power & pitfalls

The Sangh is the most powerful it's ever been in its history. At the same time, one could also argue that it has never been so weak. How do we resolve that contradiction?

How Roys walked the talk

As the Roys have shown, dignity in the newsroom and respect for facts are the best equity in today's news bazaar. It's with this satisfaction that they must walk away, leaving NDTV in new hands

Territory China is after

The issue isn't land. But the pity is that the larger political, strategic and geopolitical debate India needs, its broken democracy isn't ready for