NUMBERS DICTATE CHOICES. In July 2002, A.P.J. Abdul Kalam became a bipartisan choice for president as the ruling Atal Bihari Vajpayee-led National Democratic Alliance did not have enough votes to get anyone from its ideological family elected. Fifteen years later, the NDA led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi was much better placed, yet it tried for a consensus pick.
Though there was no consensus, the NDA candidate Ram Nath Kovind got the support of friendly regional parties. This year, the NDA will again need support from regional parties to get its choice elected as the 15th president of India. It may make an effort towards consensus, though it is likely to be dismissed as tokenism by the opposition.
President Kovind will complete his tenure on July 24. A president who often insisted on following constitutional morality, Kovind has had a successful and controversy-free tenure, so far. He made 29 foreign visits till December and rejected all seven mercy petitions that came before him. The official website says that he has discharged his duties with “foresight and humility”.
Kovind was a surprise pick, but fit well into the BJP’s outreach to dalits. He was only the second dalit to occupy the post after K.R. Narayanan. There is already much discussion regarding whether Kovind will get the NDA’s backing for a second term. Given Modi’s style of secrecy, no one is willing to guess. In fact, in 2017, in an informal setting, then BJP chief Amit Shah had teased journalists about how none of them could guess Kovind’s name before he was picked.
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة April 10, 2022 من THE WEEK.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة April 10, 2022 من THE WEEK.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
William Dalrymple goes further back
Indian readers have long known William Dalrymple as the chronicler nonpareil of India in the early years of the British raj. His latest book, The Golden Road, is a striking departure, since it takes him to a period from about the third century BC to the 12th-13th centuries CE.
The bleat from the street
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RECRUITERS SPEAK
Industry requirements and selection criteria of management graduates
MORAL COMPASS
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COURSE CORRECTION
India's best b-schools are navigating tumultuous times. Hurdles include lower salaries offered to their graduates and students misusing AI
