Javaid Iqbal Bhat

A few years ago, Nawaz Sharif had fancied himself to be a wannabe Amir-ul-Momineen. That idea did not take off; perhaps because there were too many contenders for the prestigious post. The designation itself was mocked because it came in the backdrop of almost a tattered Muslim world. Many speculated, quite rightly, that the PM […]

Until not many moons ago in India it seemed to have been established beyond any shade of doubt that a person who speaks or writes in a particular tone and manner, and uses religious signs and symbols in politics, is communal. His views were clearly in opposition to the given constitutional ideas and their interpretations. […]

Sartaj Aziz was not allowed to visit the Golden Temple. Generally, no one is disallowed from visiting and paying obeisance to the holy site of the Sikhs. Not, surely, an old man of 87 years of age. Even the British Queen came and paid her respects (though with gloves on, which did not go down […]

For reasons stupefying, the current regime in Delhi is obstinately refusing to engage with the separatists in Kashmir; Neither with the moderates, nor the extremists, and not even with the so-called mainstream. This unwillingness to enter into a dialogue is radically different from the willingness to sit down with other separatist groups and organisations in […]

Indian Defence Minister is in an urgent need of some solid defences against his overflowing froth. From day one of his assumption of office, there have been enough leaks to signal fright and apprehension. Either he has lost his marbles or is intentionally playing verbal games in the true tradition of some of the virulent […]

What does the victory of Donald Trump signify to the world and us? There will be many theories spun over the course of coming weeks to show the reasons of his success. There are already justificatory reasons being adduced, one of them being that the neo-liberal agenda spurred by the Washington Consensus is not working […]

Last week, the principal’s office in Jawahar Navodaya Vidyala at Aishmuqam went up in flames. The school is located at the foot of a mountain in the middle of a sun-beaten rocky plain. It was previously made for the Geological Survey of India for explorations in Kashmir. Later with the condition turning bad, the buildings […]

Shahid is lying flat in a place he does not recognise to be his own. For over a week in the hospital ward, he is struggling to cope with the alienness of the new surroundings. With cotton placed under the black goggles, he constantly raises his hand to feel the white strands. The only time […]

Cyril Almeida has become the tempting bone over which ravenous Indian media studios have fallen over like hungry wolves of the arctic. Each one is trying to get as much of the prize as possible. Even those who were until not long ago sober, less inclined to sensation and melodrama, had less appetite for such […]

Are we on the verge of a war? From media reports across the two sides of the border, it would seem that in spite of the peaceniks and much-maligned doves, we are told that the border is ‘live’ and can any time set the war machinery rolling. Media is charged with patriotic energy, with a […]