(The Political Line newsletter is India’s political landscape explained every week by Varghese K. George, senior editor at The Hindu . You can subscribe here to get the newsletter in your inbox every Friday.)
Where India stands on trade policies
Global trade is undergoing a fundamental change. Nationalism remains a strong a force in most countries, and protection of national markets, particularly labour markets, is a priority for many governments. The pandemic added new force to nationalism. Trade was considered a matter of national security by the Donald Trump administration, and his successor Joe Biden follows the same policy. Trade is no longer about efficiencies, but about strategic choices, and even a weapon of war, as is being used against Russia. Simultaneously, there are efforts to make new trade blocs of only friends -- a departure from the earlier logic of globalisation that trade will turn enemies into friends. Given all this background, India under Prime Minister Narendra Modi has no reason to be benign towards global trade. India is trying to protect its market from global companies that have historical advantages. Creating a robust manufacturing sector in India is a priority of the Modi government. When we take all this into account, India’s decision to stay out of the joint declaration on the trade pillar of the U.S.-led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework ministerial meet in Los Angeles makes sense -- Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal cited concerns over possible discrimination against developing economies.
India stays out of ‘trade pillar’ at Indo-Pacific meet
India is walking a tightrope between the West and the rest, in managing its global ties. Mr. Modi was in the company of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Samarkand in Uzbekistan this week at a summit meeting of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation. Western countries see all these leaders as their adversaries.
Shanghai Cooperation Organisation fights ‘anti-West dictators club’ tag
The great consensus
Chhattisgarh’s Congress Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel has an elaborate plan to portray a connect between his government and Hindu deities and symbols. The Mata Kaushalya Temple at Chandkhuri on the outskirts of Raipur, renovated by the government in 2020, is one of the many projects to that end. Mr. Baghel scored a victory as Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat visited the temple recently on his invitation. BJP leaders have even questioned the validity of the claim that Chandkhuri was the birthplace of Ma Kaushalya, the mother of Lord Ram. It can also be a seen as a victory of the RSS and Mr. Bhagwat who maintains that all parties should adopt Hindutva.
Federalism Tract
Borders, and ties across the borders
Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Bangladesh, Shahriar Alam speak during an Interview at ITC Maurya Hotel, in New Delhi on Wednesday. | Photo Credit: SHIV KUMAR PUSHPAKAR
Five Indian States —Assam, West Bengal, Mizoram, Meghalaya, and Tripura -- share India’s international border with Bangladesh. Bangladesh has invited the Chief Ministers of all the north-eastern States to Dhaka. Several projects concerning the northeast were discussed during the just concluded visit of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to India, and the visit of the CMs could take the relationship to the “second phase,” according to a senior functionary of Bangladesh.
Bangladesh invites Chief Ministers of India’s northeastern States
The development of the northeast is closely linked to India’s relations with Bangladesh and Myanmar. As this explainer points out, the region “had easy access to the seaports, specifically Chittagong, in present-day Bangladesh via the Brahmaputra and Barak river systems before independence. The Partition in 1947 did not immediately affect the transportation of tea, timber, coal and oil through these rivers and local-level border trade, helping maintain undivided Assam’s status as the State with the highest per capita income till the early 1950s.”
In 2011, when Prime Minister Manmohan Singh visited Bangladesh, the CMs of four northeastern States were part of his delegation. Here’s an article from then on how the northeastern region and Bangladesh can grow and develop together.
Northeast, gateway to Bangladesh ties
The Centre is rather accommodative towards insurgent groups in the northeast, a stark contrast with its policy towards Maoists and insurgents in Kashmir. Union Home Minister Amit Shah said it was the government’s aim to resolve inter-boundary disputes in the northeast and strike a conciliation with all armed insurgent groups in the region before 2024. He was speaking at the signing of a tripartite memorandum of settlement between the Government of India, the Assam government and eight armed Adivasi groups of Assam.
Aim is conciliation with all armed groups in northeast: Amit Shah
Caste in saffron dye
Uma Bharti was the first saffron-clad Chief Minister of the BJP. Hailing from an OBC community, she is one of the leaders that helped the Hindutva agenda percolate among the middle castes and Dalits. Secure of its popularity, the BJP has toned down its focus on subaltern segments. There is resentment in the party on this question. Ms. Bharti has openly raised the issue. “I have been telling [Chief Minister] Shivraj [Singh Chouhan] ji from the very beginning that the caste balance in governance and administration is disturbed,” she said.
Caste and regional imbalance plaguing M.P., says Uma Bharti
Weak argument
A general view of main building of the Indian Supreme court In New Delhi, India on Thursday. | Photo Credit: Getty Images
The Supreme Court is hearing arguments on the validity of the 10% quota for the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS). The EWS quota is for persons with less than ₹8 lakh gross annual family income, excluding members of Backward Classes, Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes. The 103rd Amendment, by excluding Backward Classes from the EWS quota, betrays the intent of the quota, which is for the middle class members of the forward castes, the petitioners argue.
Politics of business
The rivalry between Maharashtra and Gujarat has a long history. The decision of multinational mining company Vedanta Limited to set up a $20 billion Vedanta-Foxconn semiconductor manufacturing facility in Gujarat, changing its original plans to locate it at Talegaon near Pune, has triggered a political storm in Maharashtra. The Opposition Shiv Sena led by Uddhav Thackeray and the NCP have accused the State government of Eknath Shinde, who broke from the Thackerays, and the BJP of failing to protect the interests of Maharashtra. Rivalries between States to attract investors are not unheard of. But the Centre tilting the scale in favour of one State is perhaps something new.
After free lunch, now free breakfast in TN schools
Amid the ongoing debate over freebies, Tamil Nadu has started a new scheme to provide breakfast to school children. “It should not be counted as [a] freebie, charity or gift,” said Chief Minister M.K. Stalin. He cited the welfare thrust of all CMs who preceded him, and even the 100-year-old, pre-independence focus of the Justice Party of ensuring nutrition to children.
