As a fiery orator, compassionate leader and a fearless parliamentarian, Sushma Swaraj won herself admirers across the political spectrum
THAT WAS HOW Sushma Swaraj, Haryana’s labour and social welfare minister in 1977 (after the Emergency), described the way she and her husband, Swaraj Kaushal, became a part of the legal team that defended Janata Party leader George Fernanades in the Baroda dynamite conspiracy. All of 25, Sushma risked taking on prime minister Indira Gandhi. It was a time when many of Sushma’s age were struggling to find jobs.
As warm, friendly and humane Sushma was, it was her fearlessness that stood out among her sterling qualities. It came to the fore again when she took on another Mrs Gandhi in 1999 in Bellary. With Swaraj as her last name, and ‘swadeshi beti versus videshi bahu’ as her theme, Sushma, who had the gift of quickly picking up new languages, sported a jasmine gajra around the neat bun at the nape of her neck, and spoke in Kannada, at rallies and to individuals. She told them why she, and not Sonia Gandhi, should be elected to the Lok Sabha from the mineral-rich constituency. Sushma did not fear that she would lose; she gave it her everything. Though she lost to Sonia, the election linked her and the BJP to Karnataka for the first time.
Denne historien er fra August 18, 2019-utgaven av THE WEEK.
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Denne historien er fra August 18, 2019-utgaven av THE WEEK.
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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
