Author: Gautam Lahiri

RAJNATH’S RAISINA ROUTE? The race for Rashtrapati Bhavan may still be some time away, but Delhi’s rumour mills are already buzzing. Since 2014, the BJP has paired presidential choices with crafty political messaging: Dalit leader Ram Nath Kovind in 2017 and tribal leader Droupadi Murmu in 2022. With the next election due in 2027, speculation has shifted to a senior upper-caste face. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is among the names doing the rounds. As he nears the BJP’s informal retirement age of 75, Raisina Hill could prove to be the party’s most elegant farewell gift. WAIT, PM IS SPEAKING The…

A United Nations Security Council (UNSC) monitoring report has raised concerns over al-Qaeda’s attempts to exploit Bangladesh to establish terrorist cells, while warning that the group’s South Asian affiliate, al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS), has continued to evolve into a regional terrorist entity. The biannual report by the UNSC’s monitoring team for sanctions on al-Qaeda and Islamic State was made public on August 10. The report said there was concern that AQIS could seek to exploit Bangladesh to establish cells. “The attack in November 2025 on the Red Fort in Delhi was officially attributed to AQIS. There was some…

TORTOISE TROPHY Who loves giant tortoises more: Narendra Modi or Manmohan Singh? That’s the latest social media race, and the contestants aren’t exactly sprinters. Modi’s selfie-worthy encounter with Jonathan, the 198-year-old celebrity of Seychelles, quickly went viral. The Congress, however, countered with a history lesson: it was Manmohan Singh’s government that approved India’s first-ever hexagonal postage stamp in 2008, honouring Adwaita of Kolkata’s Alipore Zoo, believed to have lived around 250 years. Moral of the story? In politics, even tortoises can become campaign material. ## THE WASHINGTON WHISPER Before taking charge as India’s new High Commissioner to Bangladesh, Dinesh Trivedi…

In a rare gesture, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has invited Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman as a special guest to the 18th BRICS Summit, which is scheduled to be held at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi in September this year. Official sources in the Government of India have confirmed that the invitation has already been conveyed to the Government of Bangladesh. Bangladesh is not a member of BRICS, nor does it have observer status. The summit is scheduled to take place on September 12-13 this year. India is the current chair of BRICS. According to official sources, since this is…