Courtesy: Ronnie Hall/Flickr
Liberalism is a politics of hope, mutuality, compromise and reason. If that has been replaced by a politics of fear, egotism, polarisation and unreason, it is India’s elites that are responsible. How can liberalism be made an object of mass politics in India?
Courtesy: UK Ministry of Defence/Flickr
The war on terror and the global financial crisis have tilted the balance of authority on the side of the state, which the liberating forces of cyber space have only partially counteracted. Can the forces of liberalisation prevail over the forces of incipient oppression?
Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons
Over the past 30 years, Indian liberals have shed their values of tolerance, reason and dialogue. The rise of fundamentalism, strident socio-political discourse, and post-modernist individualism also indicate the decline of the liberal ethos. This is a threat to India’s vibrant philosophical liberal tradition
Courtesy: Dipayan Bhattacharjee/Flickr
The reforms of the early 1990s did not bring economic freedom to a majority of the population. That explains a large proportion of the economic and social ills that affect India today. Why is economic life in India of the ‘Taliban type’? Why is illiberal thought still our guiding principle?
Courtesy: India Kangaroo/Flickr
India needs a new liberal party, which trusts markets rather than officials for economic outcomes, and focuses on reform of the institutions of governance. This new party must be accompanied by a recovery of the moral authority of our Constitution, and by individual engagement with everyday politics
Courtesy: Kiruba Shankar/Flickr
Education is the most in-demand commodity amongst both the rich and the poor in India. Yet, the state is unable to ride this wave to create a more liberal society. If education is the gateway to taking India’s liberal agenda forward, then educational institutions must be free to pursue their own paths
Courtesy: Sebastian Baryli/ Flickr
Inclusive growth means inclusive reforms and equity in economic freedom, which empowers the formal sector as well as the huge informal sector in India. In the social sector, the government must fund beneficiaries, while in the political domain the ‘ruled’ and the ‘rulers’ must be equal
Courtesy: bigbirdz/Flickr
We cannot have the ‘cowboy capitalism’ that almost brought down the world financial system in 2008, or the abdication of accountability by government institutions. Instead, both the private sector and the government must equally do their parts to create an equitable India to sustain economic growth for generations
Courtesy: Zeinab Mohamed/Flickr
Today, the role Wahabbism plays in geopolitics poses a severe security risk not just to the West but also to the Muslim world. The West needs to rethink its strategy of promoting Wahabbi International, and realise that Wahabbism cannot be a moderated geopolitical asset
Courtesy: GovernmentZA/Flickr
The ZANU-PF party’s recent victory in the elections in Zimbabwe is fraught with allegations of manipulation. Reactions have varied, but South African President Jacob Zuma has endorsed the outcome. How will Mugabe’s re-election impact relations with South Africa? What will be the impact on Zimbabwe’s economy?