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Narendra Modi has a chance to lead, even change, the nation’s discourse. Right now, we are ripe for a thousand unspoken conversations: Secularism, inclusiveness, development, gender, poverty. But instead of a dialogue we have competitive shrillness. There is a great noise around Narendra Modi’s silence since the 60-odd days that he has been prime minister. […]

Lowering the age of juveniles will take into account the reality of a changed India where crimes against women are on the rise. It will not, however, stop them unless we first create an environment of zero-tolerance, says Namita Bhandare. Mumbai’s Juvenile Justice Board has packed off the two underage rapists of a photojournalist and

Where does the trajectory of violence begin? Perhaps it begins by grabbing someone’s arm. Perhaps it begins with a slap. Today’s stalking becomes tomorrow’s acid attack. Today’s groping becomes rape. Namita Bhandare writes. Two common friends emerge key witnesses Given the identity of the people involved — a former actor, a high-profile businessman and both

The Ambassador symbolised a time when austerity was not just a cool statement of minimalism but also a necessity… Like the shared tiffin of long train journeys, the Amby was accommodating, stretchable and comforting, writes Namita Bhandare. I doubt there was any serious lamentation over a quiet announcement last month by Hindustan Motors that it

Compared to the geeky earnestness of her brother, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is a star. Her belated entry will not stop a likely UPA defeat, but you have to credit her with putting up a fight, writes Namita Bhandare. Priyanka-Gandhi-Vadra-waves-during-her-public-meeting-for-giving-final-touch-to-Sonia-Gandhi-poll-campaign-in-Raebareli-HT-photo-Deepak-Gupta If the Congress campaign suddenly seems to have shifted to a more combative mode, it has

A slap on Arvind Kejriwal’s face or Narendra Modi’s admission of his marriage to Jashodaben attracts more attention than real issues. Has any other poll been so dominated by personalities, asks Namita Bhandare. The BJP candidate standing from my constituency has multiple criminal charges against him but my affable neighbour at the polling booth where

A slim optimism lies in the start to a conversation of a changed India, an India where women outnumbered men as voters in all five of the recently held assembly elections. HT Image A slim optimism lies in the start to a conversation of a changed India, an India where women outnumbered men as voters

With very few exceptions, politics no longer attracts the brightest and the cleanest. In an environment where we assume sab neta chor hain we opt for the least unattractive. HT Image The names have begun trickling in and speculation is rife. The BJP has announced that former Karnataka chief minister BS Yeddyurappa, forced to step

Paid news undermines democracy. Yet, as a sting operation goes public, why aren’t we more concerned? HT Image You didn’t need a survey to predict the reactions. As TV channel News Express broadcast a sting operation that showed as many as 11 polling agencies willing to tweak results for a price, the reactions by political

We attack students because they look a certain way, we hound out Africans from neighbourhoods because ‘they are not like us’, we tie up books in lengthy litigation because we find their ideas unpalatable. This has become our national sport. Namita Bhandare writes. The debris of intolerance is all around us. Not protests nor black

AAP’s failure would be a severe setback to any future would-be reformer. And any success of its increasingly visible vigilante-style politics will send absolutely the wrong signal of a ‘success formula’ to rival parties. Namita Bhandare writes. In Birbhum West Bengal, a village decides that the girl must be gang-raped as ‘punishment’ for falling in