opinion

Markandey Katju is a former Judge, Supreme Court of India, and former Chairman, Press Council of India. The views expressed are his own. ” Then out spake brave Horatius,The Captain of the Gate:To every man upon this earthDeath cometh soon or late.And how can man die betterThan facing fearful odds?For the ashes of his fathersAnd the temples of his gods”—Thomas Babington Macaulay: Lays of Ancient Rome I don’t wish to horrify or scare anyone, but my guess is that about 135 million Indians will perish in the coming mighty historical struggle, which may last 10-15 years or more, and will culminate in setting up of a political and social order under which India rapidly industrializes, and our people get a high standard of living and enjoy decent lives, with proper jobs, adequate incomes, nutritious food, proper healthcare, and good education, etc. …

In this crisis we can see how information and emotion outstrips any rational analysis. Much fake news was spread, mostly not malicious, as citizens needed information about what shops where open, which areas were under attack and how their communities were faring. Its still early days, and we are not in possession of all the facts, but we feel we should be talking and thinking about the following: 1. Third Force Many commentators are saying that these riots have been orchestrated and its part of a larger plot to take over the country or to ensure that those that profit from Corruption keep their noses at the trough. Those in government, police and SANDF say they didn’t have the Intel about what was going down. Please. This is not 9-11 and Weapons of Mass Destruction. The main reason Conspiracy Theories …

The balance of power in the world has been affected by the expansion of China’s economy in the last twenty years. Geographic expansion follows economic and population growth, something we know well in Africa: first as colonialism, then as asset stripping. In an effort to contain this the countries on the periphery of China’s zone of influence, Japan, India and Australia, have banded together to form the Quad Group. They have partnered with the US, who is economically threatened, to lend their weight to the alliance Balance of power in the world and region China’s growth in a generation should not be a cause for concern in itself. In fact, it should be celebrated. They suffered servitude from the Western nations who kept them down – literally addicted to opium in the nineteenth century – in order to carry off …

President Joe Biden was in an especially jovial mood this Thursday when he was introduced to Dr. Swati Mohan whose voice became permanently recognizable having led the landing of Mars probe Perseverance on live television. It is not immediately known if that audience of scientists included Dr. Vandi Verma, who led Robotic Operations or Dr. Bhavya Lal, Acting Chief of Staff at NASA; but, unofficial count of Indian origin people directly involved in the Mars project easily goes many times that. Acknowledging that, Biden went on a monologue. “Are you kidding me? What an honor this is. This is an incredible honor. And it’s amazing, Indian-descent Americans are taking over the country — you, my vice president, my speechwriter, Vinay. I tell you what, but thank you. You guys are incredible.”  Running count of the high-ranking appointees in Biden Administration …

All Indians (including South Indians) have read in their school history books of the great Mauryan Empire, the Gupta Empire, the Empire of Harshavardhan, the Mughal Empire, etc. But how many North Indians have heard of Krishnadeva Raya of the Vijayanagar Empire (whose statue, along with his two queens, still stands in the Tirupati temple ), or of the great Chola and Pandya kings? Regrettably, very few. Most Indians have read the Ramayana and Mahabharata, which were epics about North Indian kings, and most North Indians have read the works of Surdas, Tulsidas, Kabir, and in more recent times of the stories of Munshi Premchand, etc. But how many North Indians have read the great Tamil epics Silappathihaaram or Manimekalai, or the great Tamil treatise Tirukkural by Tiruvalluvar ( about whom the great Tamil poet Subramania Bharati wrote ” Tamilnadu …

South Africans mark 160 years of the Indian arrival day on November 16 2020, Rajiv Mohabir rebels against celebrating the moment here's why,

Roman Cabanac of The Morning Shot podcast show unpacks South African Indian diversity with the uncensored comedian Karou Charou.

Amin Pathan says this is the right time to break free from the shackles of false narratives made against PM Narendra Modi and India's government.

Saffiya Ismail stepped out of the matrix that we once knew as life and 5 months later she reveals valuable lessons she learnt for a COVID-19 future