The opening of the Kartarpur corridor is a dream of lifetime which has come true for crores of Sikh followers and admirers of Guru Nanak. A place where Guru Nanak or Nanak Badshah, as he is lovingly called, spent last 18 years of his life, tilling the land and giving the good message of peace, […]
Asifa and anti-Gujjar racism
The horrifying Kathua episode has provoked genuine outrage. The indignation and disgust has been visible on the back and front windscreens of the cars in Kashmir in the form of Justice for Asifa posters. In addition to these posters and the widespread protests, there are online campaigns seeking sympathy and justice for the bereaved family. […]
The Pakistan phobia in India
Pakistani generals who are otherwise not shown in good light by the politicians of the country must be secretly enjoying the importance given to them by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. It is the first time in recent memory that PM of India has openly stated that Pakistan is trying to influence the elections in […]
Driving to death
The annual day function of a school was underway the past week, and a loud noise came from outside. From the sound it seemed that a vehicle had unloaded stones. With that assumption, the function continued, with students performing to their best in the presence of guests, teachers and parents. A moment later the Principal […]
Kashmir — long story short
That old cliché springs to mind. You know the one: about old wine in new bottles. At least it does when we hear that the new man appointed by New Delhi has met close to 65 delegations during his very first round of talks. With Ladakh and the youth all poised to feature in his […]
Article 35A and smiling Jinnah
If the ruling party of any country represents the will of the majority then the majority of India is interested in doing away with article 35A. And the current ruling party has made no bones about the fact that 35A is an eyesore for them. The sooner it is dispatched to the gallows the better […]
Road accident epidemic
Is there a day (or half-day) in Kashmir which passes without news of death of some people whose life has been cut short due to some fatal accident? The answer is no. There is not a single day when we do not come to know about tragic accidents on our roads. These tragedies are not […]
Amarnath Yatra and religious patriotism
There is no doubt that the Amarnath Yatra over a period of time has been converted into a march of triumph. It bears marks of a sense of victory over a defeated population. The pilgrims are charged way before the pilgrimage begins to celebrate their arrival in Kashmir both with the pleasures of pilgrimage as […]
Indo-Pak cricket rivalry and Kashmir
What is the source of this excitement, celebrations, depressions and disillusionments each time an India versus Pakistan cricket match is on the horizon? A similar set of rousing emotions is not witnessed when, for example, India plays Sri Lanka or Bangladesh. One might say that the memories of Partition are still lingering and they fuel […]
Owning up to Babri
In defence of LK Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi and Uma Bharti, what is wrong in saying that we abetted and demolished the 15th century mosque at Ayodhya? After all, the party to which these souls belong have the erection of the temple as one of the trinity points in their holy sanctum, in addition to […]