MS Shanker Politics is often judged by promises made during election campaigns, but history remembers governments for the promises they actually fulfil. If one were to view recent developments in West Bengal through that prism, the decision to rename Kolkata’s Suhrawardy Avenue as Gopal Mukherjee Road can be seen as more than a routine administrative…
Politics is no longer public service. It is a profession. MS Shanker There was a time when entering politics was considered an act of public service. Today, it has become one of the most lucrative professions in Bharat. That single transformation perhaps explains why political parties are breaking up at an unprecedented pace across the…
MS Shanker Politics can be unforgiving, especially for regional parties that once appeared invincible under charismatic leaders. Maharashtra today seems to be witnessing precisely such a churn. The developments unfolding within the factions led by Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar raise an important question: Is Maharashtra heading down a path similar to what befell regional…
MS Shanker Prime Minister Narendra Modi today enters the record books as Bharat’s longest-serving continuously elected Prime Minister, completing 4,399 uninterrupted days in office and surpassing the tenure record of Bharat’s first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, after the advent of electoral democracy. The milestone is more than a personal achievement. It marks the culmination of…
MS Shanker The political landscape of West Bengal is witnessing tremors that few would have imagined even a couple of years ago. The latest signs of unease within the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) emerged after reports that nearly 20 of the party’s 29 Lok Sabha MPs met Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and sought separate…
MS Shanker The departure of K. Annamalai from the Tamil Nadu BJP has triggered intense speculation about his future political course. While the separation between the party and the present state chief appears cordial, the larger question remains: has Annamalai become overconfident about his political prospects, or is he positioning himself for a bigger role…
MS Shanker Tamil Nadu BJP leader K. Annamalai finds himself at a crucial crossroads in his political journey. Speculation that the former state BJP president may be contemplating a departure from active party politics to launch a non-political movement has triggered concern among his supporters and well-wishers. Whether these reports are accurate or not, the…
MS Shanker The political earthquake in West Bengal has clearly left the defeated establishment rattled. The reported unrest in parts of North Asansol following discussions over regulating loudspeaker decibel levels atop mosques is not merely a law-and-order issue; it is symptomatic of a deeper crisis that has haunted the state for years — the dangerous…
MS Shanker The elevation of V. D. Satheesan as the face of the Congress-led opposition in Kerala was not merely an internal party adjustment. It was, in many ways, a reluctant acceptance of political reality by the Congress high command. The leadership in Delhi may have preferred a more loyal and centrally aligned figure such…
MS Shanker Indian politics rarely gives voters the luxury of clarity. Most elections are fought on emotion, identity, slogans, and carefully manufactured outrage. Governance usually enters the conversation only after the oath-taking ceremony — and often exits just as quickly. That is why the early signals emerging from two politically distinct corners of India —…
