Political Punchline

Antonio Gramsci’s writings are difficult to read but can be interpreted in various ways. However, his ideas are often held in ‘developed’ capitalist societies. This makes it difficult to apply his ideas in a state like Manipur, where class analysis of society is despised, and capitalist forces have not yet materialised. The people of the state are living in a highly ethnopolitical charged time. This essay attempts to interpret Manipur’s politics regarding ongoing violence by using Gramsci-inspired theories while prioritising ‘ethnicity’ over ‘class.’  During his public speeches, the Inner Lok Sabha candidate of Manipur, Dr Bimol Akoijam (now Member of Parliament), frequently refers to ‘ Meeyamna ,’ a vague translation of ‘common people’ in Manipuri. Upon reading Gramsci, I find that he often highlights the significance of organic intellectuals in treating ordinary people holistically and elevating them. In another sense, Akoijam amplifies Gramsci’s ideas about the roles that organi...

The 2024 general election results have hit a new low for the Bhartiya Janata Party and its allies. Political analysts have hinted about the revival of India’s celebrated parliamentary democracy following the defeat of many BJP candidates, including the must-anticipated Faizabad Lok Sabha constituency in Uttar Pradesh, where Ayodhya City is located. This has put a thrust for the Indian National Congress and, more generally, the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance bloc to oust the BJP. Nevertheless, the biggest obstacle the INDIA bloc could overcome is the BJP and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh’s ideological hegemony through Hindutva in modern Indian politics. Until recently, the bloc employed Caste politics to challenge the BJP and the RSS. Where does Manipur fit in light of these political shifts in India? To be clear, Manipur still has a functioning Legislative Assembly. Despite the state being well-known for horse trading and shifting party allegiances, the five oppos...

The widening manifestations of the Manipur violence between the Meiteis and Kuki-Zo communities reveal that it will stay prolonged. It has rendered the State into administrative chaos and gruesome killings involving armed groups on both sides, which is unusual in the State’s political history. However, the violence has the feature of having a “sui generis” moment for Manipur in a way that will make the State revisit, reform, and restructure its political foundations. This will be achieved when the “other” belligerent groups stop “terrorizing” Manipuri people to obtain “separate administration” from the State of Manipur, which has remained “absolutely inseparable” since its political foundations. It would be naïve to say that the demand for a separate administration by Kuki-Zo communities employing an “armed aggression” against the State of Manipur and the Manipuri people, which is “undemocratic,” will be achieved easily. Despite the unabated violence, the State’s territorial and admi...

The Act East Policy (AEP) has long been discussed in India’s foreign policy circles; it was upgraded from the Look East Policy (LEP) shortly after Narendra Modi was elected Prime Minister in 2014. Since then, India’s engagement has expanded beyond the Southeast Asian region to include the broader Indo-Pacific region as well as with East Asian countries. The AEP is India’s ambitious strategy for countering China’s influence in the Indo-Pacific region while bringing development to the North East Region (NER).  The NER has received particular attention during the policy implementation of AEP, which has increased connectivity. Although the region is troubled by the oppressive Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA), which has undermined the region’s democracy. The region has a long history of secessionism, ethnic conflicts, and widespread illegal drug trafficking from neighbouring countries. These challenges and the Hindutva project of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Rashtri...

Described by The Wall Street Journal as the “ the man Vladimir Putin fears most ” Alexei Anatolievich Navalny is currently Russia’s most popular opposition leader. Navalny has been attacked, jailed and detained several times. He is a trained lawyer, anti-corruption activists, and blogger. His blogging has highlighted the cronyism of the Russian oligarch’s and has vehemently criticized Vladimir Putin’s authoritarian regime. After getting recovered from a nerve agent attack. Navalny returned from Germany and was again arrested by the Russian authorities. Later, he was sentenced to prison for two and a half years which ignited a nationwide protest. Source: Reuters Navalny got into politics in 2000 after joining the liberal Yabloko party , a Russian liberal and generally pro-Western political party. During the period he voiced for ideals of liberalism. However, he was expelled from the party for nationalist activities and couldn’t bring any political mileage from that time. After fai...

A person worshipped by the rights as God and ridiculed by the left as extremist. Olavo de Carvalho, a self-taught philosopher, a former journalist, and a former communist was the architect of Brazil’s far right leader Jair Bolsonaro’s victory in the 2018 presidential election. Olavo was an inspiration not only to Bolsonaro but also for his two sons Flavio and Eduardo. The political crises before the 2018 elections had already impacted the state structures of Brazil. Mistrust of its presidency and national congress was growing among the peoples, democracy was is in peril, and the crises driven by intolerance and rising social polarization. Distrust between the government and citizens was deepening. It was then the far right began to rise not only in Brazil but across Latin America, which has put Brazil under the global spotlight, of following the global lurch to the right. Source: Brazil's president Jair Messias Bolsonaro,  Rio Negro Jair Messias Bolsonaro, a se...