Columnist M S Shanker, Orange News 9

Taxing the Wounded?

Few decisions test a government’s moral compass more than how it treats its wounded soldiers. A video now circulating widely shows the visibly distressed wife of a former senior Indian Army officer who lost a limb during the Kargil War. Her anguish is not theatrical. It is not partisan. It is personal. She claims that…

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Columnist M S Shanker, Orange News 9

Israel Trip Triggers Congress Meltdown

There is something almost poetic about the Congress party’s latest outrage. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s scheduled visit to Israel on February 25 has sent sections of the “grand old party” into a predictable fit of moral panic. One would think the Prime Minister was planning to relocate Seva Path (new address from South Block) to…

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Columnist M S Shanker, Orange News 9

Faith, Votes, and Hard Truths

The Telangana municipal election results have triggered more than political chatter. They have sparked a raw, uncomfortable question within sections of the Hindu community — one that is being debated not just in Hyderabad drawing rooms but also among the Telugu diaspora abroad. A viral social media post, shared widely after the results, raised a…

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Columnist M S Shanker, Orange News 9

Does India Need a ‘Creamy Layer’ in SC/ST Reservations? A Supreme Court Cue to Lawmakers

The Supreme Court of India has once again put the spotlight on the principle of reservation — not by striking it down or expanding it, but by asking a fundamental question: should the benefits of caste-based reservations for Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) continue to flow unabated through generations of the same families,…

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Columnist M S Shanker, Orange News 9

Yet Another Feather in Modi’s Cap

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s two-day visit to Malaysia was not just another stop on a busy diplomatic calendar. It was a statement—quietly firm, strategically layered, and unmistakably confident—that India under Modi is no longer content reacting to global events but is actively shaping outcomes. In an increasingly fragmented world, Modi’s foreign policy is emerging…

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