SIDDARAMAIAH, KARNATAKA CHIEF MINISTER
It was unavoidable, as at stake is his chief minister’s seat. “If you want me to survive, you should give a clear lead to the Congress candidate in the Lok Sabha polls,” he pleads to the voters in Varuna, his assembly constituency. Amid rumours of him being replaced as chief minister after the Lok Sabha polls, only a good show on his home turf, Mysuru, will give him a slim chance for survival.
And helping him in the tough campaign are his son, Yathindra, who vacated his seat for his father in the last assembly polls, and a bunch of loyalists. Siddaramaiah and his crew are locked up in a room to avoid the stream of visitors to his house. He slumps into a king-size red leatherette chair in front of the television. A channel shows Union Minister Amit Shah addressing a rally in Bengaluru and accusing Siddaramaiah of playing ‘drought politics’.”
Even as the the chief minister’s media team prepares a counter, he seeks his son’s help to remove his shoes. Nursing his swollen feet, he suggests the shoe size could perhaps be wrong. Yathindra teases him saying he does not know his own shoe size as he never shops for himself.
But Siddaramaiah seems sure of improving his party’s tally in the state, winning at least 20 of the 28 seats. In an exclusive interview, he also shares his thoughts on a spectrum of issues—from the Karnataka model of development, the impact of the Congress’s five guarantees on the polls, the Centre's apathy towards the drought-hit state, and the waning Modi magic. Excerpts:
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der April 28, 2024-Ausgabe von THE WEEK India.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent ? Anmelden
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der April 28, 2024-Ausgabe von THE WEEK India.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent? Anmelden
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
What with all the apps delivering straight to one’s doorstep, the supermarkets, the food halls and even the occasional (super-expensive) pop-up thela (cart) offering the woke from field-to-fork option, the good old veggie-market/mandi has fallen off my regular beat.
Courage and conviction
Justice A.M. Ahmadi's biography by his granddaughter brings out behind-the-scenes tension in the Supreme Court as it dealt with the Babri Masjid demolition case
EPIC ENTERPRISE
Gowri Ramnarayan's translation of Ponniyin Selvan brings a fresh perspective to her grandfather's magnum opus
Upgrade your jeans
If you don’t live in the top four-five northern states of India, winter means little else than a pair of jeans. I live in Mumbai, where only mad people wear jeans throughout the year. High temperatures and extreme levels of humidity ensure we go to work in mulmul salwars, cotton pants, or, if you are lucky like me, wear shorts every day.
Garden by the sea
When Kozhikode beach became a fertile ground for ideas with Manorama Hortus
RECRUITERS SPEAK
Industry requirements and selection criteria of management graduates
MORAL COMPASS
The need to infuse ethics into India's MBA landscape
B-SCHOOLS SHOULD UNDERSTAND THAT INDIAN ECONOMY IS GOING TO WITNESS A TREMENDOUS GROWTH
INTERVIEW - Prof DEBASHIS CHATTERJEE, director, Indian Institute of Management, Kozhikode
COURSE CORRECTION
India's best b-schools are navigating tumultuous times. Hurdles include lower salaries offered to their graduates and students misusing AI
