M.J. Akbar, Author at The Sunday Guardian Live

At the drop of a tear

Tears are a fragile weapon in public life. Their success rate is so low that it is rarely wise to display them. People check what...

At the drop of a tear

Tears are a fragile weapon in public life. Their success rate is so low that it is rarely wise to display them. People check what...

The spice is missing

There is one exit poll which no Indian election commissioner can ban. It is called word-of-mouth. This word does not come out of the mouth...

The spice is missing

There is one exit poll which no Indian election commissioner can ban. It is called word-of-mouth. This word does not come out of the mouth...

The spice is missing

There is one exit poll which no Indian election commissioner can ban. It is called word-of-mouth. This word does not come out of the mouth...

Salt of the Earth

The virtues of salt are infinite, both in diet and language. Salt was a symbol of the honour code in the institution that heldtogether...

Salt of the Earth

The virtues of salt are infinite, both in diet and language. Salt was a symbol of the honour code in the institution that heldtogether...

Salt of the Earth

The virtues of salt are infinite, both in diet and language. Salt was a symbol of the honour code in the institution that heldtogether...

The art of the jostle

Which of the two is more difficult to deal with in the political style of South Asia: affection or anger? In physical terms, the...

The art of the jostle

Which of the two is more difficult to deal with in the political style of South Asia: affection or anger? In physical terms, the...

The art of the jostle

Which of the two is more difficult to deal with in the political style of South Asia: affection or anger? In physical terms, the...

Toxic circle in deadly triangle

Pakistan's first coup was led by a civilian. When the bureaucrat-turned-Governor General Ghulam Mohammad arbitrarily dismissed Prime Minister Khwaja Nazimuddin on 17 April 1953...

Toxic circle in deadly triangle

Pakistan's first coup was led by a civilian. When the bureaucrat-turned-Governor General Ghulam Mohammad arbitrarily dismissed Prime Minister Khwaja Nazimuddin on 17 April 1953...

Toxic circle in deadly triangle

Pakistan's first coup was led by a civilian. When the bureaucrat-turned-Governor General Ghulam Mohammad arbitrarily dismissed Prime Minister Khwaja Nazimuddin on 17 April 1953...

Overtake, and die happily ever after

Philosophers use deconstruction as an academic tool to understand intention or deceit behind words. In India, deconstruction is a highway epidemic. We construct a beautiful...

Overtake, and die happily ever after

Philosophers use deconstruction as an academic tool to understand intention or deceit behind words. In India, deconstruction is a highway epidemic. We construct a beautiful...

Overtake, and die happily ever after

Philosophers use deconstruction as an academic tool to understand intention or deceit behind words. In India, deconstruction is a highway epidemic. We construct a beautiful...

On the Record

The principal difference between an "off the record" and "on the record" conversation with a politician is that the former is likely to be much...

On the Record

The principal difference between an "off the record" and "on the record" conversation with a politician is that the former is likely to be much...

On the Record

The principal difference between an "off the record" and "on the record" conversation with a politician is that the former is likely to be much...

The world of Maya

That formidable number cruncher of the Mayan civilisation who, 5,125 years ago, initiated a calendar which decided, without much by way of explanation, that...

The world of Maya

That formidable number cruncher of the Mayan civilisation who, 5,125 years ago, initiated a calendar which decided, without much by way of explanation, that...

The world of Maya

That formidable number cruncher of the Mayan civilisation who, 5,125 years ago, initiated a calendar which decided, without much by way of explanation, that...

Gathering power of moral snowflakes

You can create a Lokpal, but how do you change India?Anna Hazare's movement has been among the most important developments since Jayaprakash Narayan's stirring...

Gathering power of moral snowflakes

You can create a Lokpal, but how do you change India?Anna Hazare's movement has been among the most important developments since Jayaprakash Narayan's stirring...

Gathering power of moral snowflakes

You can create a Lokpal, but how do you change India?Anna Hazare's movement has been among the most important developments since Jayaprakash Narayan's stirring...

How do you censor a teashop?

Spokesmen do not speak for themselves; they are their masters' voices, or they don't remain the voice for very long. Ministers, similarly, do not...

How do you censor a teashop?

Spokesmen do not speak for themselves; they are their masters' voices, or they don't remain the voice for very long. Ministers, similarly, do not...

How do you censor a teashop?

Spokesmen do not speak for themselves; they are their masters' voices, or they don't remain the voice for very long. Ministers, similarly, do not...

The 5-point Political Reform Programme

It is time for the father of economic reform to initiate political reform. Priority Number 1: Dr Manmohan Singh should abandon the oath of...

The 5-point Political Reform Programme

It is time for the father of economic reform to initiate political reform. Priority Number 1: Dr Manmohan Singh should abandon the oath of...

The 5-point Political Reform Programme

It is time for the father of economic reform to initiate political reform. Priority Number 1: Dr Manmohan Singh should abandon the oath of...

Charge of the old guard

If it had been only another item on the continuing agenda of economic reform, the decision to permit foreign direct investment in retail would...

Charge of the old guard

If it had been only another item on the continuing agenda of economic reform, the decision to permit foreign direct investment in retail would...

Charge of the old guard

If it had been only another item on the continuing agenda of economic reform, the decision to permit foreign direct investment in retail would...

The Curious Gamble of Rahul Gandhi

There is one question within the complicated Uttar Pradesh conundrum that has left me completely bewildered. Why on earth has Rahul Gandhi made the...

The Curious Gamble of Rahul Gandhi

There is one question within the complicated Uttar Pradesh conundrum that has left me completely bewildered. Why on earth has Rahul Gandhi made the...

The Curious Gamble of Rahul Gandhi

There is one question within the complicated Uttar Pradesh conundrum that has left me completely bewildered. Why on earth has Rahul Gandhi made the...

A soft hiss from the Mamata balloon

The chaps who wrote fables, and there was none better than Aesop the old Greek, knew what they were talking about. All those centuries...

A soft hiss from the Mamata balloon

The chaps who wrote fables, and there was none better than Aesop the old Greek, knew what they were talking about. All those centuries...

A soft hiss from the Mamata balloon

The chaps who wrote fables, and there was none better than Aesop the old Greek, knew what they were talking about. All those centuries...

Don’t tell, don’t know

Is "lower middle class" sufficient mitigation for crime? Justice Jeremy Cooke of London's Southwark Crown Court was not being unkind when he took origin...

Don’t tell, don’t know

Is "lower middle class" sufficient mitigation for crime? Justice Jeremy Cooke of London's Southwark Crown Court was not being unkind when he took origin...

Don’t tell, don’t know

Is "lower middle class" sufficient mitigation for crime? Justice Jeremy Cooke of London's Southwark Crown Court was not being unkind when he took origin...

Through the looking glass ceiling

How much anger do you need to smash a glass ceiling?A glass ceiling became the symbol of discrimination during the struggle for women's rights...

Through the looking glass ceiling

How much anger do you need to smash a glass ceiling?A glass ceiling became the symbol of discrimination during the struggle for women's rights...

Through the looking glass ceiling

How much anger do you need to smash a glass ceiling?A glass ceiling became the symbol of discrimination during the struggle for women's rights...

The Shield of Higher Cause

When Julian Assange, father of WikiLeaks, makes a viral enemy of a potential friend, he always does so in the name of a Higher...

The Shield of Higher Cause

When Julian Assange, father of WikiLeaks, makes a viral enemy of a potential friend, he always does so in the name of a Higher...

The Shield of Higher Cause

When Julian Assange, father of WikiLeaks, makes a viral enemy of a potential friend, he always does so in the name of a Higher...

39 MPs in ONOE JPC

India-China Special Representatives mechanism has lost its sheen

Political corridors abuzz with possibility of NC-BJP alignment

M.J. Akbar

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