Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi has a penchant for accumulating degrees. He has a bachelor's in law and master's degrees in business administration and political science. And now, he is pursuing a doctoral thesis on the Indian National Congress, focusing on the party’s “central organisation and electoral strategies”. The topic could not have been more apt —or, say, more ironic—considering that what Channi proposes to research is exactly what he and his party are grappling with as they endeavour to retain power in the border state.
On September 20, when Channi was sworn in as Punjab’s first dalit chief minister, it was seen as a major disruption in state politics. The mighty Captain Amarinder Singh had been dethroned and replaced by a self-proclaimed aam aadmi (common man). And the appointment of a dalit to the top post in a state where 32 per cent voters belong to the scheduled castes was expected to send the other parties back to the drawing board.
Channi, 58, has played the part of the common man’s chief minister to the hilt, attempting to come across as a leader who has empathy for the woes of citizens, is in touch with the issues that matter at the grassroots, and is willing to take people’s feedback on governance. This was seen as a welcome change from the tenure of Amarinder, who was increasingly being viewed as detached and confined to the ivory tower.
Bu hikaye THE WEEK dergisinin February 13, 2022 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye THE WEEK dergisinin February 13, 2022 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
War Over Wounded Earth
For the BJP andthe Congress, the ravaged farmlands of Vidarbha represent a cxitieal battleground in their larger struggle to win Maharashtra
Say no to continual elections
Following the recommendations of a high-level committee led by former president Ram Nath Kovind to streamline the widely scattered schedule of national, state and local elections, the Union cabinet has reportedly approved two constitutional amendment bills for likely introduction in Parliament. Predictably, the return of the ‘one nation, one election’ issue to news has set off a flurry of objections by several opposition leaders.
Fabulously, fashionably funny
The third season of the Karan Johar-produced Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives dropped on Netflix, but articles criticising the show appear in some news site or the other almost daily. If it is so bad, why keep writing about it? And if it is so bad, why would the superpowers at Netflix, who are harder to meet than the prime minister, commission the show season after season?
All in the family
The Chitaras have been passing down the secret art of Mata Ni Pachedi through generations for more than 400 years now
Raise a toast to Vidya Balan
Vidya Balan is a New Year baby. At 45, she is aglow in the most beautiful way, having won the hearts and admiration of countless fans across the world, who watched the supremely talented actor take a public tumble on stage at a high-profile promotional event recently, sharing the platform with no less a dancer than the eternally graceful Madhuri Dixit.
Death no bar
Being alive is not a legal requirement to be elected president of the United States
The Lotus POTUS
You should visit us one of these days— there is so much excitement in our USA! No, I don’t mean the famous USA—the Ulhasnagar Sindhi Association of Mumbai.
RAY OF HOPE
Actor and cancer survivor Lisa Ray talks to oncologist Dr Jame Abraham about inner strength and her surrogacy journey
LEVERAGE AI TO ENHANCE WORK
AT THE WEEK Health Summit, Siddharth Bagga, head (retail, CPG and health care), Google Cloud, elaborated on the significant work that Google has been doing in health care through artificial intelligence (AI).
PRESSURE POINTS
Author and MP Shashi Tharoor and motivational speaker Gaur Gopal Das on how to find healing and meaning in today's world