Tag Archives: George Soros

Teflon Trump 2.0 & Its Implications for India

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Reuters reported that ‘a convicted felon is elected as the 47th President of the USA.’ Yes, convicted on 34 felony counts. The only US President with 2 Impeachment trials against him. Acquitted for abuse of power and obstruction and later for the incitement of the 6th of January Insurrection and attack on the Capitol. A corrupt, venal person, a bankrupt billionaire and 78, the oldest person to stand for the Presidential elections. A true democracy would have barred him from contesting for the highest office in the land. He has brushed aside everything for a second term at the White House. Truly remarkable. Nothing sticks to him. Teflon Trump.

What has shocked the left-liberal elite is that Trump has rallied against the odds and won the mandate emphatically in a democratic way. He has won the popular vote against VP Kamala Harris by almost 5 million votes. His electoral college votes stack up to 312 vs 226 for Harris. 46% of women voters have supported him despite his anti-abortion stance and misogynist comments; Latino votes surged to 45%; young blacks signed up for him, and Evangelicals thronged up in large numbers. Many of the latter viewed the failed assassination attempts as a Divine Call of Destiny.

The Liberal/Woke meltdown is a seminal lesson for those living in a bubble; it’s also a wake-up call for genuine liberals as their potent ideology has been diluted and contaminated by an influential coterie of self-serving people.  Elite Hysteria- we have been betrayed by the people. The educated elite cannot believe that everyone doesn’t share their beliefs and views. They have created a partisan and ideological echo chamber – an environment where they encounter only opinions and thoughts that coincide with their own, and alternative ideas are simply shrugged away. Their take on Identity Politics is that minorities and ethnic groups will only vote their way; their condescending attitude referring to Latinos as Latin X; the gender quotient with women voters inevitably lining up for Kamala Harris; that nationalism and patriotic politics are past tense. That it remained a potent force manifested in the fear of unchecked immigration. Legacy media houses have shown their total disconnect from ground realities. One cannot find a more liberal person than Senator Bernie Sanders who lashed out at the Democrats after the defeat saying that ‘they abandoned the working class which led to the working class abandoning them.’ He acidly pointed out that 60 % of the American workforce lived from paycheck to paycheck and that 20 million workers did not get even a livable minimum wage. It all boils down to the quote: “It’s the economy, stupid.’  Trump said that He would Fix It. A big takeaway for the Indian Government also. Focus on Development & the Greater Good. In the visceral hatred that was shown to Trump by the mainstream media, it was conveniently ignored that in the first term of the Trump Presidency, the USA was not involved in or did not instigate any wars. Strange for the military-industrial complex that is the USA; strange that the leftist, liberal Dems have been pro-war when it suits their agenda; strange that a liberal, woke party has abandoned the working class. Selective Agenda. Selective Narrative. Selective Outrage. We also see this being played out in India. With our Left, Liberal brigade and their colonial and ideological hangovers- for whom the BBC remains the Voice of Truth, the New York Times as the Words of Truth.

The USA has been revealed as a polarised and flawed democracy. Indian democracy and institutions come off better in comparison. Please watch the National Geographic documentary- The Great Indian Election, to appreciate the sheer magnitude and scale of the democratic exercise and how effectively it is conducted by The Election Commission of India. The Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) work effectively with Opposition protests only when they lose the election. Another pillar, the Supreme Court of India, shines when compared to SCOTUS, a rigged, corrupt institution where appointees have lifetime tenures. Kamala Harris could not become the first US women President; India already had 2 women Presidents and a strong Prime Minister in the late Mrs. Indira Gandhi, who held office for almost 16 years. It’s high time for us to shed our mongrel attitude-constantly deriding and undermining ourselves as Indians.

Millions of Indians are rejoicing at Trump’s phenomenal come-back. CAUTION. One cannot project one’s preferred outcomes on such an unpredictable personality. Trump 2.0 will disrupt the Global Order. His protectionist economic policies with higher tariffs will adversely impact Indian exports. Hopefully, things will turn out well for Indian-born green card aspirants. It is highly likely that Indian students will continue to be welcomed at US colleges, and so will be skilled Indian professionals. Trump is also expected to pull back on global commitments, and we don’t know how this will play out. However, a Trump Administration can ease things for India regarding national security, national interests, and strategic autonomy. Also, India and its companies may not be sanctioned for buying oil or armaments from Russia or doing business with them.

The Trump win may pay other dividends for India on the geopolitics and national security front against covert, subvert warfare by foreign parties. George Soros, a hedge fund manager, played a major role in triggering the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis. He bet against the Malaysian currency and ruined the economy and also made huge profits by betting against the Thai Baht. The South Korean Won and Indonesian Rupiah were also targeted with dire results; this led to currency devaluation, large outflow of capital and years of political instability. Earlier in 1992, he became famous as the man who broke the Bank of England by betting against the British pound and making a billion dollars for himself in the process. Cut to 2023 when Hindenburg Research, a forward trading investor, made allegations about questionable financial dealings through offshore entities connected with Adani. Some months later, The Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), funded by the Soros Open Society Foundation, alleged that Adani had engaged in stock manipulation and accounting fraud and channelized large funds to fronted offshore accounts. Old habits die hard. Adani shares tanked, and about a dozen unknown entities profited from the spoils. The Soros plan was to kill two birds with one stone. Sure enough, Rahul Gandhi and the Congress started screaming about Crony Capitalism and Corruption. Name-calling and allegations of corruption are the norm -whether it is the USA or India. The 2024 elections were around the corner. It’s the insidious, clandestine foreign meddling which is deeply disturbing. The Opposition did not join the chorus as expected and for a simple reason. Adani already had a gas-line project in the DMK-led Tamil Nadu; the Communist Government in Kerala had awarded the business house the contract to manage, operate and maintain a large port; Adani had built a major port in Naveen Patnaik’s Odisha; even the Congress-led Rajasthan Government had awarded the largest hybrid power project to the Corporate.

The Hungarian American billionaire Soros has been the largest donor to the Democratic Party for many years. Suggest to please read the book ‘Shadow Party’ by David Horowitz and Richard Poe- about how the Clintons and Soros and the 60’s radicals took over control of the Democratic Party. A NYT article eulogized him as a protector of democracy, an anti-communist, an anti-nationalist, global liberal. Soros’s clandestine influence extends to liberal media, Ivy League colleges, and established Think Tanks & NGOs, which enables him to manipulate societies and even destabilise governments. Alternate media in the US have talked about his dark side- controlling society without interfering with legislation but by controlling how laws are enforced. Thus, creating chaos and undermining the power of lawful authority.

With a Trump White House, Soros and his influential minions will be on the back foot. Especially with a powerful Elon Musk to contend with. Hopefully, it will provide India with respite from malevolent foreign interference—some examples. In 2018, Soros Open Society backed NGO -Sherpa Association filed a corruption complaint with the National Financial Prosecutor in France against the 36 Rafale aircraft deal. Connect the dots. Rahul Gandhi, Congress and the Opposition screamed ‘Scam’, and this was amplified by our Left, Liberal media in the run-up to the 2019 General elections. Frustrated that his plans had not worked out, at the 2020 Davos Conference Soros openly slammed the PM Modi Government ‘as the biggest and most frightening setback for the survival of Open Societies’ specifically mentioning CAA & Kashmir. Move to the prolonged farmer’s agitation (mainly from Punjab and in part from Haryana) in 2020-21, funded by Soros and Canadian Khalistan outfits. Please recall celebrities like Rihanna and Greta Thunberg (environmental activist) and some from Bollywood butting in.

The shadowy power of Soros. Reuters Alessandra Galloni, whose quote started this blog, is on the Committee to Protect Journalists, funded by Soros—likewise, NBC’s Lester Holt & Associated Press’s Julia Pace. CNN’s Christiane Amanpour is on the Board of Centre for Public Integrity, another Open Society venture. On a prime-time TV show she spoke of PM Modi in the same breath as Xi Jinping, Putin and the Dear Leader from North Korea. Really!! The glowing tribute of a book, ‘The Philanthropy of George Soros’ is written by Chuck Sudetic, a NYT columnist who now works for the Open Society Foundation. Economist Sanjeev Sanyal hits the bulls-eye when he says that there is so much anti-India stuff around that if AI or Chat GPT had to submit an India report, our democracy , human rights record, and governance would be shown in a starkly negative light. So, to Rahul Gandhi’s Cambridge University visit a few years back. He waved a copy of ‘The Guardian’ with the headlines, ‘Indian democracy in danger.’ It’s amusing to note that after Trump’s election, The Guardian offered counselling & therapy services to its staff and reporters.

Let’s talk about the recent events in Bangladesh. Sheikh Hasina and the Awami League are overthrown in a well-orchestrated coup by so-called student leaders—an Islamist, extremist+ the Soros signature – an anarchist movement. The Chief Advisor to the interim government is none other than Muhammad Yunus- the esteemed ‘Banker to the Poor’ through the micro-finance Grameen Bank. He is also a Nobel Laureate, winning the Peace Prize in 2006. With humungous support from former President Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton and who else… George Soros. The Anti-Corruption Commission acquitted him of the graft charges of misappropriating $ 2 million from the Grameen Telecom Workers and Employees Welfare Fund. The Soros heir, Alex Soros, visited him in Dhaka on the 2nd of October to reinforce his support. In 2016, Yunus contributed generously to Hillary Clinton’s Presidential campaign fund. Trump’s upset win left him ‘shattered and barely able to speak or breathe.’ He dismissed it as a ‘solar eclipse’. Trump’s return to the White House has left him writing a long, rambling congratulatory message. This was surely not anticipated by ‘the Deep State.’  It is a relief of sorts for India with another hostile neighbour appearing on our borders. A point to ponder. Candidate Trump before the Election date condemned the attacks on Hindu places of worship in Dhaka and Chittagong. The Nobel Peace Prize winner has remained silent.

Although India and China have already entered into a border cease-fire agreement, the US election results will help in dousing the dragon fire to an extent. With economic problems and the threat of high tariffs for Made in China products, Emperor Xi Jinping and the CCP will have to reset their priorities. If nothing else, the uncertainties unleashed by Trump will keep them guessing. But you never know with Trump. The Saudi Prince made him dance with a sword and followed up by bailing out his son-in-law Jared Kushner from a financial crisis. If China confers him with the Ancient Order of the Dragon or invites him to grace a throne on the Great Wall, one never knows. It’s certainly bad news for Pakistan. They badly need bailouts from the IMF and the World Bank which are controlled by the USA. Also, Trump’s acknowledgement of India as a major power and the apparent Trump-Modi bonhomie will alarm the Pak Army-ISI Establishment.

Justin Trudeau will be unnerved by The Donald’s comeback. Trump had called him ‘two-faced’. The USA is Canada’s big brother, and 75% of the nation’s exports go there. He has called Khalistan Canadians celebrating the assassination of PM Indira Gandhi as ‘just exercising freedom of speech’. I sometimes wonder why the grandson and daughter-in-law are not up in arms as they should be. The unsubstantiated allegations against the Indian Government of killing Nijjar have taken a heavy toll on diplomatic relations. The attacks on Hindu temples and devotees have further undermined his hollow narrative and exposed his hypocrisy. It’s all vote-bank politics to secure his political future. Thus far, the Biden-Harris administration has played along, claiming that there was an imminent threat to another guy called Pannun. Knowing that his cosy days in the US are over, Pannun has moved to Canada and threatened to attack Hindu temples this month, including the Shree Ram Temple at Ayodhya on the 16th/17th of November. Justin Trudeau represents the white, woke icon who has self-destructed over the last few years. As regards the Sikhs, they are a hugely respected community in India for their contributions to society and the country. (Trivia- the convicted assassin of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman – Captain Noor Mohammad- has been enjoying the good life in Canada for the last 3 decades and more. Just so that you get the big picture.)

Liberal philosophy is, in its essence, a progressive philosophy. But anything good, if taken to the extreme, becomes counterproductive. Unfortunately, this humane ideology, which was primarily meant to uplift the disadvantaged and focused on human welfare, rights, freedoms and values, has been hijacked to suit the personal ambitions and agendas of some powerful people. Disconnected from the problems of the common folk and from ground realities. Many, many others have been misled, lured and trapped in this Elitist bubble. India is on track as the world’s largest, functioning democracy. However, it is a work in progress with issues of criminals in politics, corruption, unemployment, long-pending structural reforms of the judiciary and police, tax reforms and societal fractures around caste, creed and community yet to be addressed effectively. The Trump re-election will put on hold the subversive warfare launched against India to halt its progress and growing global structure. It also has many lessons for our Government and political leaders- to listen to all sections of society & to focus on innovative, inclusive development for The Greater Good.

The Real Dance of Indian Democracy

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A finger of a new woman voter on the Indian flag with voting sign of India in 2019 Indian general election or Lok Sabha election at Kolkata.

The Lok Sabha elections of 2024 have been riveting. The BJP-led NDA alliance seems to have snatched defeat from the jaws of victory despite forming the government at the Centre for the third time in succession. The Congress-led INDIA bloc has transformed itself into a resurgent Opposition. Amusingly enough, there is now no talk of tampering of EVMs (Electronic Voting Machines); and no allegations that the Election Commission of India is a lackey of the Modiji government. Indeed, the fact that elections have been efficiently conducted in 7 phases with minimal disturbances and in acute heat wave conditions is a remarkable achievement—a triumph for democracy.

This election is a Reality Check for the overconfident BJP Netas and party functionaries. At 240 seats- losing a significant 63 from the 2019 tally of 303. This is a huge wake-up call for those living in the bubble-hype of ‘is baar, 400 ke paar.’ (More than 400 this time around.) However, on the other side, the entire INDIA coalition of parties secured 234 seats with the Grand Old Party at 99 seats. The BJP vote share in 2019 stood at 37.4 % and in 2024 at 37.37%. The big setbacks came in Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra. In the Hindi heartland State, the Samajwadi Party stunned Yogi Adityanath’s government by winning 37 seats. The BJP lost 29 seats from their erstwhile tally of 62 seats. The INC performed creditably with 6 seats. The party’s Ayodhya candidate (a done deal, what?) lost big by stoking fears with his irresponsible comments about changing the Constitution after the elections were over. The old Muslim-Yadav bloc which had voted in significant numbers for the BJP in 2019 consolidated into an anti-BJP force. Other local factors also created resentment. Economic corridors, highways and projects are all good to see but the affected locals did not benefit. They got a few lakhs for their lands and kutcha houses but saw the privileged stakeholders minting crores of rupees. In this era of omnipresent social media, no political party can take its eyes off the ball. In Maharashtra, the break-up of the NCP, seen to be engineered by the BJP, was regarded as an act of betrayal of their Saheb by his nephew not only by the Marathas but by many Maharashtrian voters. After 10 years in power, the BJP had lost its strongest asset- the ear-to-the-ground approach with disciplined cadres providing their leadership with critical ground information. In Delhi, the very same party swept all the 7 Lok Sabha seats even with Mr. Arvind Kejriwal playing his victim card with full support from the Opposition parties and even international media. The Delhi CM’s stint in jail was played out as the death of democracy.

The BJP’s ‘Big Brother’ persona has also cost it dearly. In Andhra Pradesh, it gained some traction because of the tie-up with Mr Chandrababu Naidu’s TDP. Likewise, if they had continued their partnership with the Akali Dal, it would have paid dividends in Punjab. If they had the sense to continue with their pact with AIADMK in Tamil Nadu at least 10 MPs would have joined their team. With Mr. Annamalai at the helm and in just 10 months their vote share in the State is more than 11%. But their obstinate refusal to play second fiddle demonstrates their short-sightedness. In the eyes of many Tamilians, the BJP remains a Hindi heartland party. They don’t have local leaders who are either well-known or well-respected to take on the DMK. A return to the healthy coalition strategy with established regional parties is the only sensible solution. Plus, the BJP national leadership seems oblivious to the fact that genuine respect and appreciation of India’s regional languages and cultures, traditions and customs is the only way to win hearts and minds across the country. For instance, if Tamil and Bengali… (Major Scheduled Languages) are taught as optional subjects in 5 years of middle school in Central and Government schools in North India it will be a game-changer and strengthen and consolidate the Union structure of India.

Mr Suresh Gopi, the National Award-winning Malayalam film actor, won BJP’s first-ever Lok Sabha seat from Thrissur- Kerala. My Malayali friends tell me that thousands of non-BJP supporters voted for him because of his humanitarian work over the years. Likewise, Dr. Manjunath, a respected cardiologist, defeated a Congress heavyweight for the Bengaluru Rural seat simply because of his reputation as a caring, soft-spoken professional. Request all political parties to throw away the oft-used Congress playbook of Money, Muscle, Caste, Creed and Political lineage whilst selecting their candidates. The BJP should also conduct an L&D workshop on Soft Skills and Communications for their Parliamentarians and Legislators. Movie Star Kangana Ranaut is going to cause unnecessary controversy with her immature remarks. The BJP candidate from Ayodhya lost simply because of reckless fear-mongering. Yes. Millions of faithful will queue up for the Divine Darshan at the Shri Ram Temple- from India and the rest of the world. But on a day-to-day basis, the average Indian citizen hopes for a glimpse of the true Ram Rajya.

After 10 years we will have a legitimate Leader of the Opposition in Mr. Rahul Gandhi. It’s also a situation of not who won (Modi 3.0 is in place) but who made the most gains. The Congress, Samajwadi Party, DMK and TMC are the big winners with Akhilesh Yadav’s party stealing the show. We all know that the new Lok Sabha bills like the Uniform Civil Code and One India and One Election will be put in a deep freeze. However, it will be interesting to see how the MPs react to a critical bill on Police Reforms which has been gathering dust despite a Supreme Court directive in 2006. Most politicians, across party lines, want the police to keep doing their bidding. Good Economics is the Best Politics. Hopefully, India’s economic growth story will continue unhindered. Not only by becoming the 3rd largest economy in the world but by getting our per-capita income to jump into the top 30 in the next 10-15 years. The Government and Opposition should also work together to ensure that India’s geo-political ascendancy remains resolute and on track, with no compromises on national interests or national security.

National Security. Mr Rahul Gandhi will become the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha. But I am very relieved that he is not the Prime Minister of the country. He will likely become a puppet in China’s hands; he will also play along with the Pakistani establishment. Few will remember that in August 2008 the INC and the Communist Party of China (CCP) signed an MOU that the 2 parties would consult each other on bilateral, regional and international matters. Really.!! Another Himalayan Blunder waiting to happen. Is this the reason why the INC (not just the Comrades) does not say a word about the cruel persecution of Uyghur Muslims and the demolition of thousands of mosques in Xinjiang province of China? Please also recall Mr. Gandhi repeatedly speaking about the Chinese Army taking over 2000 sq km of Indian land, categorically denied by India’s Generals. Foreign intelligence agencies rebutted the same and spoke about clashes where the Indian Army gave the PLA a bloody nose. Remember Mr Digvijay Singh, a senior Congress Leader, releasing a book ‘26/11 an RSS Conspiracy’ with Dr Zakir Naik just 2 years after the Mumbai terror attack orchestrated by Pakistan, which had been validated by international intelligence agencies and from Pakistan itself. Just imagine if Kasab had not been caught alive.?! Or take the case of the Khalistanis in Canada celebrating the assassination of the late PM
Mrs. Indira Gandhi. No outrage from the daughter-in-law or the grandson of one of India’s most formidable political leaders. They are happy with the Canadian PM taking potshots at the Indian PM. It’s up to the Modi government to assert before the Trudeau government that such hate speeches and demonstrations cannot be passed off as’ freedom of expression.’

Another intriguing aspect of the 2024 General Election is the global dimensions it took on. China’s State media, which soft-pedals elections elsewhere for obvious reasons, waded into Indian democracy. China Daily- ‘Stunning Blow to Modi’s Image.’ Global Times- ‘Economic Reforms will slow down.’ The West also jumped onto the bandwagon with the German broadcaster DW- ‘A victory that feels like a defeat.’ Bloomberg- ‘Modi just learnt that hype can carry you so far.’ The NYT headline in the run-up to the election- ‘Modi’s Temple of Lies’ in an insidious reference to the Ayodhya Mandir. Such rantings with vitriolic Op-eds penned by Indian intellectuals and media people (you know their names) have been the norm for many years. During a talk at Cambridge, Mr Rahul Gandhi waved a newspaper whilst talking to the students. The same-day headline in The Guardian read- ‘India’s Democracy in Danger.’ Please connect the dots. Some readers may not know that Hinduism is not recognized as a religion in 24 out of 26 EU countries. Little wonder that some Ivy League college publications have dismissed this Ancient Faith with 1.2 billion followers as ‘pagans’ and ‘uncivilized.’ The fact that in the last decade, India has shed its mongrel attitude and started giving it back to the White Man is not going down well with them. Guess why Harvard has nothing to say about the brutal repression of a million Uyghur Muslims in China. The esteemed University has received $ 1 billion from China over 10 years mainly as gifts.

India’s rise as an independent global geo-political power has rocked the boat- like buying cheaper oil from Russia and Iran. How can India even think about it!! Shifting from being a major importer of military hardware to a growing exporter of arms and ammunition has rattled the military-industrial complex in Washington and other capitals. So, we have Christiane Amanpour on CNN talking about the Indian Prime Minister in the same breath as the Chinese and Russian dictators. Both of whom have anointed themselves as lifetime rulers. As for the Leader of the Free World, a convicted felon may well be the next President. The UK has seen 4 PMs in the last 8 years and is now shipping out undesirable immigrants to Rwanda and beyond.

The George Soros-affiliated Omidyar network (which has just exited India) with close links to the INC has funded money for propaganda, fake news and fear-mongering. Billionaire Soros who had publicly declared war on PM Modi at Davos many years back is known to have backed regime change in some nations. Chinese money has also poured in to boost well-known media outlets and YouTube influencers to spew a particular narrative.

The churning in Indian politics is all for the good. The strong comeback of the Congress and its Allies is welcome. With the caveat that if the Congress-led front comes to power at the Centre we will see a more competent and dependable Messrs Sachin Pilot or Shashi Tharoor or Mallikarjun Kharge as the Prime Minister. Beating the 2X anti-incumbency factor and with 292 seats in the Lok Sabha, the BJP-led NDA has to settle into its 3rd term. It will have to work and focus on The Greater Good. ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas’ (Everyone’s support, everyone’s development, everyone’s trust) cannot be an empty slogan but an inspiration for good inclusive policies and efficient governance and administration.  However, as of now Modi 3.0 has prevailed not only over a rejuvenated Opposition but over myriad forces and powers from across the world.

Buckle Up For the Great Indian Election’s Global Ride

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The 2024 General Elections will be a Great Indian Blockbuster Tamasha. The stakes couldn’t be higher: for the I.N.D.I.A bloc of 26 opposition parties, have come together solely to overthrow the Modi Sarkar; and for the BJP-led NDA coalition, which is trying for an unprecedented hat-trick of wins. The sheer scale of the elections will be breathtaking. The magnitude of efforts taken by the Election Commission, the administrative and law and order eco-system, will be awe-inspiring. The ultimate salute to democracy.

Unfortunately, the toxic side will also be on full display. The old Congress playbook with its ‘winnability’ formula – Money, Muscle, Caste, Creed – has been embraced across the entire political spectrum. Many candidates with criminal backgrounds, dubious credentials, and low merit will be voted in as our future Members of Parliament. Vitriolic language and uncouth barbs will capture our media headlines. Political families will break up, and even long-affiliated leaders will head for supposedly greener pastures. Divisive rhetoric will prevail, and even some communal and regional disturbances may be instigated or inflamed to consolidate vote banks. TV channels, print media, and social media influencers will go berserk, spewing out a lot of stuff – less real news and loads of propaganda and negativity.

However, the X factor in the 2024 election will be the global interest, and more so, the meddling and interference, and even infiltration by some governments and nations, special interest groups, and social media disruptors. Indian political parties slugging it out is all okay. When foreign money and deliberate disinformation come in to subvert the election process, it takes on a dark and troubling dimension.

Let’s take the case of the Hungarian-American billionaire George Soros and his Open Society Policy Centre (OSPC). Ostensibly to push back against strident nationalism in any country, Soros publicly announced at the Davos Conference that he was going all out against the Modi Government. Hardly surprising! In 2018, the Sherpa Association backed by Soros filed a complaint with the financial prosecutor of France against the 36 Rafale Aircraft deals with India. The Opposition parties in India raised the decibel meter of ‘Corruption’ in the months before the 2019 elections. Is it a coincidence or is there more to it than meets the eye? Then his Organised Crime and Corrupt Repairing Project (OCCRP) targeted industrialist Adani immediately after the Hindenburg allegations (Investment firm with a focus on short selling). Are they just separate events or is there a definite pattern to it? If there is any substance in the allegations, Indian Regulatory and Investigative agencies are perfectly capable of probing into it. Period. It’s extremely likely that in the next few months, another top Indian industrialist comes on their radar, and ‘crony capitalism’ becomes the most uttered jibe by our desi politicos. Beyond this, it will lead to shocks in the stock market and jolt the Indian economy.

Generally, in conspiracy theories, there is talk of a ‘Deep State.’ Here, it is all out in the open if you know where to look. The BBC, CNN, New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Guardian, Observer… The BBC keeps talking about the instability and unrest in the Indian State of Kashmir. They have to keep the pot boiling. Remember that it was in a 2001 BBC interview that Yasin Malik (JKLF) had casually admitted to killing a judge, some unarmed Indian Air Force personnel, and some civilians. (Fact check – more than 13 million Indian tourists have visited the Valley till July this year, with another 3 months of the season to go. The hotels and guesthouses are full, and also the buses, cabs, and shikaras.)

After the inspiring success of ISRO’s Chandrayan 3 landing on the South face of the moon, a British news anchor patronizingly asked India to return 2.3 billion pounds in aid given between 2016 and 2021. The years cited are the giveaway. The British Foreign Office has formally acknowledged that no British aid has been given to India since 2015. The corpus relates to a joint investment fund for fighting challenges like climate change. Sadly, our news media did not directly rebut the fake news but instead spoke about reparations of $45 trillion dollars which the colonizers had looted from India. Remember that it was the BBC that played up the big lie about Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) to justify the invasion and destruction of Iraq by Anglo-American forces. Christiane Amanpour, in a CNN interview, spoke of the Indian PM in the same breath as Putin & Xi Jinping. The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Washington Post’s default setting on India is to showcase the country in a negative light. $2000 per Op-ed article is given to members of our very own Vodka Biryani brigade (you know the names) to highlight the slow death of democracy in India and the persecution of its minorities. Remember that our national Opposition leader brandished a copy of the Guardian paper with the same headlines as he spoke to a gathering at Cambridge. The Empire Strikes Back!!

NYT Mangalyaan Cartoon October 2014

The hypocrisy and double standards in peddling news is staggering. A few months back, an unarmed 17-year-old man of North African descent was killed by the police in a Paris suburb, sparking off weeks of violence in the city and across the country. Cut to BBC reporting on the banlieue (suburbs) where the migrant populace stays, “Is the violence the result of poverty and discrimination?” Not quite. “It’s a law and order problem. Gangs and petty criminals use anger over a tragic death to sow mayhem. Their problems have long been recognized by the authorities. But it will not be resolved anyway soon.” BBC Verify also talked about false posts and images about the French riots spreading online. Remember that Brexit happened with a 52%-48% leave vote majorly influenced by images of a wave of immigrants from Africa, the Middle East, and Asia swamping the country. These images were dropped by Putin’s army of social media manipulators sitting in St. Petersburg. Rest assured that the handlers from ISPR (Inter-Services Public Relations Unit of the Pakistani ISI) will be extremely active in fear-mongering and spreading toxic disinformation in India in the run-up to the 2024 election. Insidious versions of Chinese whispers will also pass around.

Sticking to Britain, the extradition of fugitives Nirav Modi & Vijay Mallya will be drummed up by our Opposition bloc as a major election issue. Status – Nirav Modi – his case is said to be ‘statute barred,’ indicating further pending litigation. This after he lost his final appeal in November 2022. The latest about the ‘King of Good Times’ is that he cannot be extradited till a ‘confidential legal issue’ concerning him is resolved. When our MEA tells us that the entire extradition process is tortuous, it is exactly right. No wonder that London is the haven for financial fraudsters and oligarchs.

Recently, liberal France banned the wearing of the Islamic Abaya dress in schools. Check out the reaction from the Western media. Zilch!! Why then the uproar when the erstwhile Karnataka Government talked about standard school uniforms for all. Think about the profound disrespect shown against a Great Religion in Sweden and Denmark in recent months. Shrugged off by the Western media and channels like Fox News as mere ‘freedom of expression.’

Let’s move to Canada. Justin Trudeau openly supported the farmers’ agitation in India, which was confined to 2 States and went on for months in a heavily politicized manner. His vote bank politics led him to interfere in another sovereign country’s internal affairs. The funding for the agitation came from Khalistanis and allies in Canada, the UK, the US, and Australia. Fast Forward. How did the Canadian PM respond to the country-wide transporters’ strike in his nation relating to some Covid regulations? He went missing and underground for a week. He emerged to declare a national emergency (Fact Check – which was the party in power in India when the Khalistan crises came to a boil?).

It is an undeniable fact that the Union and State Governments in India handled the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic challenges more effectively than any advanced nation. Yet papers in the US and Europe showed photos of dead bodies at the Varanasi ghats as Covid deaths, which were being suppressed by the Indian authorities. India supplying vaccines to more than 100 countries also did not receive the media attention it deserved.

Selective Outrage. Remember that the World Health Organisation (WHO) and reputed Western virologists and bio-scientists played PR for Beijing after the Wuhan leak. China is the second-largest funder of WHO, and The Gain of Function Research which resulted in the leak has been a financial bonanza for the scientific community. Likewise, the persecution of over a million Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang province of China does not raise protests from even Islamic countries. It’s not surprising that our human-rights Comrade activists are quiet.

In the 60’s & 70’s, the KGB infiltrated the top rungs of the Indian government, public service, media, university campuses, and even the Hindi film industry (The Mitrokhin Papers). If not Ideology, Vodka, Money, or a Honey Trap did the trick. Now it is Chinese money that is funding leftist media outlets, some political parties, NGOs, and social influencers. It’s distressing to hear the complete silence from the Opposition parties and this eco-system when China recently released a map claiming Arunachal Pradesh as its territory. All political parties in the Philippines joined together to lambast China’s claims to their part of the South China Sea. A joint US-Philippines naval exercise followed. It is high time that our political parties, irrespective of ideology or political compulsions, do not undermine serious matters of National Security. Remember that ahead of the 2019 election a national political leader after meeting the Chinese Ambassador claimed that the PLA (People’s Liberation Army) had occupied 2400 sq km of Indian territory. Mocking the Indian Army just to take some political potshots.

China’s remarkable growth over the last 3 decades has been propelled by the Communist Party’s absolute dictatorship and State Controlled Capitalism. No dissent is allowed. India as the world’s largest democracy has made a more gradual but definite progress. With the additional internal challenge that some elements in the political domain and media have actively worked to undermine the national interest. Today the bottom line is that India’s growing geo-political clout and economic rise do not sit well with 2 neighbors, some Western countries, and their special interest NGOs and agenda-driven Think Tanks. It is interesting to note that Harvard has received $1 billion from China over the last decade, mainly as gifts. Show me the money. Be prepared for a lot of negative flak from Ivy League intellectuals over the next 10 months.

Cartoon from German Magazine Der Spiegel

In April 2023, a cartoon in the German magazine Der Spiegel depicted an overcrowded Indian train passing a modern Chinese bullet train on a parallel track with only 2 drivers inside. The many passengers on top of the Indian train are holding the tricolor.

‘Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. But they are not entitled to their own facts.’ Daniel P. Moynihan-US Senator and Ambassador to India. The stakes and criticality of the 2024 Lok Sabha election cannot be overstated. Please fact-check. Please don’t get misled. Please see through the clutter and noise. Then please cast your valuable vote. Once the dust has settled and the debris removed we will have our new Government per the mandate and will of the people.