Governance and Indian Nationalism (GAIN)

On February 19, 2025, Dr. Subramanian Swamy, a veteran Indian politician, economist, and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader, took to X to voice a blistering critique of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In a post that has sparked widespread discussion, Dr. Swamy declared,  This statement, reflects Dr. Swamy’s longstanding reputation as an outspoken critic, even within his own political circles, and raises questions about Modi’s leadership, India’s geopolitical stance, and economic trajectory. Dr. Swamy’s Background: A Voice of Dissent Subramanian Swamy, a Harvard-educated economist and former Cabinet Minister, i s k nown for his Hindu nationalist leanings, legal activism, anti-corruption cru sade and progre s sive economic idea s . This post is continuation of a pattern that i s con si stent with Dr. S wamy' s ultra-nationali st vie w s. It a l so reflect s failure of oppo sition to hold ruling party accountable on variou s burning i s sue s. The China Border Dispute: Fact or Fiction?...

Subramanian Swamy, known for his Hindu nationalist views, draws a parallel between Narendra Modi and Neville Chamberlain, suggesting a critique of Modi's leadership in times of national peril, similar to Chamberlain's misjudgment of Hitler before WWII. The reference to Winston Churchill implies Dr. Swamy's call for a more assertive and blunt approach from Indian leadership, akin to Churchill's stance against Hitler, highlighting a perceived need for stronger, more direct action in current geopolitical challenges. This post reflects ongoing discussions about India's national security, particularly the tensions with China and Pakistan, as highlighted in recent analyses like those from the Observer Research Foundation, suggesting Dr. Swamy's post is part of a broader discourse on India's strategic positioning. Subramanian Swamy, a prominent figure in Indian politics with a background in economics, law, and academia, has historically been known for his outspoken...

In May 2020, India and China faced the worst ever military face-off at Galwan Valley, Hot springs, Gogra and Pangong  region in Ladakh. With the loss of 20 Indian soldiers and 43 Chinese soldiers, the Galwan valley clash was the bloodiest of all.  Growing tensions between India and China not only shook the geo-political relations across the world but it also led to the build up of hostile domestic sentiment against China's arrogance. As a result, calls for #BoycottChina grew louder and louder with each passing day.      Rising anti-China public sentiment compelled government to take some policy level measures such as stricter FDI norms for countries sharing the border with India. While this may restrict Chinese investments to certain extent, it isn't enough to neutralize the influence of China in Indian market. Recently, People's Bank of China raised its stakes in HDFC bank to more than 1% and later also invested in ICICI Bank through the FPI route. Although the...

BJP leader and eminent economist, Dr Subramanian Swamy, invited as a Chief Speaker at a recent webinar of TiE on "Making India Succeed", spoke at length on India's existing challenges and viable solutions to address these challenges. However, Dr Swamy categorically focused on three major areas, which will help to improve India's world status and restore the country's past glory.  These are explained below: Improve the state of Economy Abolish income tax to boost consumption and savings among households. Bring down interest rates on business loans up to the level of 6% p.a for MSMEs. Increase interest rate on FDs to 9% per annum to facilitate higher savings from households.  Build roads to connect all villages with nearby towns. This will improve connectivity, reduce unemployment, increase purchasing power and spur demand. Social Revolution Indians must start believing in themselves as belonging to the same ancestral tree and identify themselves as prod...

Since India's independence, the Church has directly or indirectly influenced the electoral process in our country. During hey days of Congress, Church's role was relatively subtle in comparison to its present day involvement. It seems  BJP's  recent electoral successes have ruffled the ministries of Church.  Without doubt, the rise in public outcry by Church over threat to secularism and random acts of vandalism stems from growing influence of Hindutva in India. As a result, since 2014, different churches across India have been issuing letters (or fatwas) to their followers and warning them about the grave threat to secularism due to rise in Hindu nationalism. Following are some of the examples of Church's growing interference during elections: In December 2015, the Archbishop of Faridabad-Delhi Syro Malabar Church, Kuriakose Bharani Kulangara in a letter, wrote that victory of Mahagathbandhan in Bihar is a victory of secular forces over sectarian forces In November 201...

Karan Johar's latest presentation 'Gunjan Saxena' has once again reinforced the anti-national credentials of the producer. Despite Johar's declining public image, he is shamelessly pursuing the anti-national agenda with such movies. Karan Johar, it seems, has broken all barriers to achieve his avaricious goals while pleasing his masters across the border.  Bollywood has become full of trash, where producers like Karan Johar defecate their worthless ideas through movies, which is later termed as creative freedom. On several occasions, this rogue filmmaker has flamboyantly exhibited his miserable ideas on the big screen. In the movie 'Gunjan Saxena', deliberate attempts have been made to malign the reputation of prestigious institutions like Indian Air force (IAF).    A devious and dangerous game is being played to fool the audience, when a hot topic is picked up to present a theme that is anti-climax. In Gunjan Saxena too, the story of valour and patr...

Former RBI Governor, Raghuram Rajan inflicted serious damage to Indian economy due to his flawed monetary policies. Rajan's prescriptions to contain inflation hampered growth in the MSME sector.  For example, raising repo rates, to counter inflation, subjugated demand for business loans, which deteriorated the investment climate. Simultaneously, Rajan had reduced the interest rates on domestic saving schemes (such as FD, NSC etc) that led to erosion of incomes of retired personnel and low-income households. Lower interest on savings dis-incentivised households to invest in saving schemes, which dried up availability of funds for businesses, as savings are a major source of domestic loans.  Few business enterprises used interest arbitrage to earn profits. For example, they availed loans from foreign banks at lower rates and then lent money to domestic players at prevailing interest rates in the market. Therefore Rajan's monetary policy benefited foreign lenders and diminished t...

Time and again this question has come up among nationalists and patriots as to why Modi is not taking help from Dr Swamy to resolve the existing mess. Our country is facing crisis on multiple fronts such as Covid-19, economy and India-China face-off, however, Modi govt seems reluctant to take help of nationalistic intellectuals like Dr Swamy. PM Modi's current team is clueless about tackling the emerging challenges of the country. Whether it is economy, health, defense or foreign policy, Modi cabinet is falling short of public expectations. Even though BJP delivered on Article 370, Ram Mandir and CAA, such changes were an outcome of 30 years of physical and mental struggle of many volunteers, strongly backed by intellectual inputs of Dr Swamy and other seasoned leaders.  However unexpected events of 2020 have brought a new range of issues for the ruling dispensation. The government is traversing the unknown territory, which will be a real test of Modi’s administrative skills, innov...

On 25th Jun 1975, Indira Gandhi declared the emergency to suppress the growing voices of opposition. Several Jan Sangh stalwarts such as JP, Morarji Desai, Nanaji Deshmukh and Ashok Mehta were arrested. On that fateful night, JP, while having dinner with Dr Swamy, sounded alarm bells about a possible military rule. Dr Swamy, in his usual style, remained calm and composed.  However, JP’s premonition turned out to be true. After returning home, Dr Swamy was tipped off by an unknown police officer about his imminent arrest in the early morning hours. Dr Swamy was quick to react and left his residence to some other place in Delhi, where he could hideout.  After staying for two days at a friend’s house, Dr Swamy shifted to Rajinder Nagar to stay along with Nanaji Deshmukh till August 25, 1975. Meanwhile, senior Jan Sangh leaders such as JP Narayan and Morarji Desai were arrested and sentenced to solitary confinement with complete disregard for their age (late 70s). To make matters ...

Anti-corruption was a major plank of BJP's 2014 election pitch. It suited BJP's election agenda to speak openly against Congress scams. The strong anti-Congress sentiment due to 55 years of misrule also helped BJP to achieve record victories in 2014 and 2019. Modi's rise to centre-stage increased hopes of nationalists that finally justice will be delivered. The suffering of common Indians will be redeemed and a new age will begin. Unfortunately it was not to be so .. The party seems least bothered about bringing back black money stashed abroad. On corruption, it has not taken any definitive action against frauds perpetrated during the UPA era. In fact, the BJP government is exhibiting a high degree of indifference towards Congress scams. This particular attitude of the party is baffling to say the least, however, it does have a reason. Easy picking that BJP has missed In 2015, on Dr Swamy's complaint about Rahul Gandhi's British citizenship, parliament's ethics ...

Dr Swamy is one political figure who stands tall among BJP's current leadership. Without holding a position, Dr Swamy has been lethal against enemies of the nation. He is an intellectual giant having knowledge across diverse subjects such as economics, law, foreign affairs, defense etc. Despite his capabilities and contributions, BJP leadership has shied away from taking his help. BJP's current behaviour towards Dr Swamy has also perplexed many nationalists. Because his ideas and knowledge are significantly potent for nation's development. In an environment when the govt is seriously strained to tackle Border issues, Covid-19 threat, internal anti-national elements and economy, it makes more sense for PM Modi to utilise Dr Swamy's talent. With increasing belligerence of neighbors such as China, Pak & Nepal, growing Covid cases, mindless opposition to CAA and negative GDP growth, the govt is fighting multiple battles on different fronts. However, BJP'...

Shyama Prasad Mookerjee was a staunch nationalist and was a Minister in Nehru's cabinet. Later, SP Mookerjee left Congress due to ideological differences with Nehru. He created a nationalist party which came to be known as Bhartiya Jan Sangh (BJS).  Although many Congress nationalists were aware about Nehru's treacherous ways, it was the undemocratic introduction of article 370 that pushed SP Mookerjee away from Congress.  He was a fierce opponent of Article 370 and travelled across country to raise awareness among masses. His relentless campaign against article 370 created fear among Nehru and Sheikh Abdullah.  Both Nehru and Abdullah perceived SP Mookerjee as a political thorn in their eyes and wanted to suppress his movement. Apart from the cousins, l ate Arun Jaitley's father-in-law, GL Dogra was highly critical of SP Mookerjee's views on article 370. He was  a devoted follower of Sheikh Abdullah and a staunch Nehruvian.  SP Mookerjee decided to ...

Past I still vividly remember the political environment from 2011 onwards when Congress was facing heat due to various corruption cases. During that time, many UPA scams erupted like a wild volcano. There was 2G scam, Coalgate, Agusta Westland chopper deal, CWG scam, Irrigation scam, Aircel-Maxis scam and many others. Congress was just not able to handle the heat generated due to these cases.  Those days, Dr Swamy's legal activism created a pressure cooker situation for Congress. Apart from court activism, Dr Swamy's barbs at Congress worsened the situation for dynasts. His witty comments and cryptic messages created furore amongst nationalists. Dr Swamy actually dug out the entire history of Sonia Gandhi and placed it in public domain. Dr Swamy’s brutal exposure of Rahul Gandhi’s debilitated political acumen caused irreversible damage to his career. The blow was so lethal that the last scion of dynasty became a subject of mockery in India's political environment. ...