All my political columns

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Nitish Kumar’s 7 steps to come back to where he started
July 27, 2017, Sify

ICJ is no solution, India should make Pakistan bleed for Kulbhushan Jadhav
May 20, 2017, DailyO.in

7 reasons why AAP won’t survive as a political party
April 14, 2017, DailyO.in

10 reasons we should have a national ban on cow slaughter
April 10, 2017, DaylyO.in

Will Yogi Adityanath succeed Modi as prime minister of India?
March 27, 2017, DailyO.in

8 things Yogi Adityanath should do for UP, with no excuses
March 20, 2017, DailyO.in

Development politics is finally here to stay!
March 11, 2017, Sify.com

Elections were so terrible for Kejriwal, he even lost to Rahul Gandhi
March 11, 2017, DailyO.in

Modi haters must reconcile with the fact that Modi is here to stay
March 11, 2017, DailyO.in

Why Sehwag and other sportspersons went after Gurmehar
February 28, 2017, Sify.com

Reform Jallikattu, don’t ban it
January 19, 2017, DailyO.in

Seven reasons why the Samajwadi Party split was inevitable
January 5, 2017, Sify.com

All dynasties rise and fall with the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty
January 3, 2017, Sify.com

3,600cr for Shivaji statue is justified, shame on your outrage
December 27, 2016

I expect Modi to take bolder, hardline, controversial decisions in 2017
DailyO.in, December 5, 2016

10 long-term goals of #Demonetization 
November 24, 2016, Sify.com

Get Arvind Kejriwal off Twitter – he’s losing it
November 23, 2016, DailyO.in

Confessions of someone totally unaffected by #Demonetization
November 20, 2016, Sify.com

Demonetisation: So far Modi has come across as winner
November 18, 2016, DailyO.in

5 reasons why Indians shouldn’t complain about demonetisation
DailyO.in, November 11, 2016

More political violence please, we’re Indians
September 15, 2016, Sify

Rahul Gandhi’s UP dreams turned into Comedy Nightmares with Khaats
September 6, 2016, DailyO

Like pitches, you never know which way Sidhu will turn
July 27, 2016, Sify.com

Why Kashmir is in the perfect Catch-22 situation
July 12, 2016, Sify.com

7 reasons why Smriti is a ‘lambi race ka ghoda’
July 8, 2016, Sify.com

Why we should all take Subramanian Swamy seriously
June 29, 2016, Sify.com

Modi haters are only making it worse for India
June 22, 2016, DailyO.in

Is Kejriwal suffering a breakdown?
June 16, 2016, Sify.com

Ten things that define Adarsh-Liberal’s Idea of India
June 9, 2016, IndiaFacts.co.in

6 hits of Rahul Gandhi
June 8, 2016, Sify.com

Why Modi needs Swamy as much as India needs Rajan
June 7, 2016, DailyO.in

10 reasons why India will enter the fast track by 2020
June 5, 2016, YourStory.com

Why Indians mustn’t be surprised by Rajya Sabha bazaar
June 4, 2016, DailyO.in

Why India was never interested in nabbing Dawood Ibrahim
May 27, 2016, DailyO.in

Swamy vs Jaitley and other intra-party rows
May 25, 2016, Sify.com

Has Swamy replaced Jaitley as Modi’s new mukhauta?
May 13, 2016, Sify.com

Why Priyanka will be a bigger failure than Rahul Gandhi
May 12, 2016, DailyO.in

Why I totally support Uber’s surge pricing…
May 6, 2016, Sify.com

India’s grand global A to Z of scandals
May 4, 2016, Sify.com

10 reasons Congress may not last till 2019 polls
May 2, 2016, DailyO.in

Mookerjee to Kanhaiya: 10 arrests that backfired spectacularly!
May 2, 2016, Sify.com

Hasta la vista Sonia! It’s all over for her and the rest
April 30, 2016, IndiaFacts.co.in

A to Z of Sonia Gandhi’s controversies
April 27, 2016, DailyO.in

8 ways India can clear its enormous judicial backlog
April 25, 2016, DailyO.in

Modi doesn’t want India to see another Kalam for president
March 31, 2016, DailyO.in

Are we bashing Mallya for being rich and flashy?
March 15, 2016, DailyO.in

Don’t let Kanhaiya Kumar’s JNU speech fool you, he’s no future PM
March 4, 2016, DailyO.in

Five Reasons Why They Love Ishrat Jahan
February 15, 2016, IndiaFacts.co.in

Nehru Was Afraid, Modi Is Not-Foreign Policy Truths!
February 10, 2016, IndiaFacts.co.in

The curse of the Bengali Prime Minister
February 9, 2016, Sify.com

Why Nandita Das is the perfect liberal hypocrite
February 8, 2016, DailyO.in

7 reasons Indians are the most racist in the world
February 5, 2016, DailyO.in

Modi Haters Will Outrage And Fume Till 2019 No Matter What
February 2, 2016, IndiaFacts.co.in

How Netaji won us Independence while Nehru destroyed India
January 25, 2016, DailyO.in

7 reasons student politics should be banned in India
January 19, 2016, DailyO.in

Drama queen to Twitter troll: 10 roles Kejriwal excels at
January 15, 2016, DailyO.in

Kejriwal and Pappu: A Tale of Two Angry Old Men
January 6, 2016, IndiaFacts.co.in

Why Arun Jaitley’s exit from office is good for Modi
December 28, 2015, DailyO.in

How Modi made Pakistan irrelevant in India’s foreign policy
December 26, 2015, DailyO.in

National Herald Case: Is this the end-game for Sonia Gandhi?
December 21, 2015, Sify.com

2015: The year of the fake outrage
December 18, 2015, Sify.com

7 deadly sins of BJP that are haunting it today
December 17, 2015, DailyO.in

When Arvind Kejriwal Transformed Into ‘Abusive Troll’
December 15, 2015, SwarajyaMag.com

The climate talks fraud and why India won’t do much
December 14, 2015, Sify.com

How long will PM Modi let Legislative pandemonium rule?
December 11, 2015, Sify.com

8 reasons why #DelhiOddEvenLogic will totally fail!
December 8, 2015, Sify.com

Why Rajiv Gandhi Was The Most Communal PM In India’s History
December 8, 2015, IndiaFacts.co.in

Time to shut down the FTII?
December 4, 2015, Sify.com

Why the super intolerant are crying intolerance
December 1, 2015, Sify.com

8 reasons Modi will do absolutely nothing about Ram Mandir
November 30, 2015, DailyO.in

And you Thought Modi Was Doing Nothing?
November 30, 2015, IndiaFacts.co.in

Is Nitish legalizing prohibition or bootlegging?
November 30, 2015, Sify.com

Is Aamir a hypocrite of the highest order?
November 26, 2015, Sify.com

5 reasons why Modi doesn’t give regular interviews or press conferences
November 26, 2015, MyVoice.OpIndia.com

Acchhe Din Are Already Here
November 26, 2015, IndiaFacts.co.in

Why Kejriwal hugging Lalu is good for Aam Aadmi Party
November 23, 2015, DailyO.in

Will achhe din for Mr Modi come only in 2017?
November 16, 2015, DailyO.in

25 controversies of Narendra Modi
November 16, 2015, Sify.com

Seven reasons to fear Lalu Prasad Yadav
November 12, 2015, Sify.com

Pseudo secular India: The only country in the world with ‘super minorities’
November 10, 2015, DailyO.in

Narendra Modi: The Man Who Bounces Back
November 9, 2015, IndiaFacts.co.in

8 #BlowToModi moments in 2015
November 9, 2015, Sify.com

Tough times ahead for India, thanks to Nitish, Lalu and Modi
November 8, 2015, DailyO.in

Something Went Wrong with You? Just blame Modi
November 3, 2015, IndiaFacts.co.in

Don’t blame Modi for Godhra if you are ready to spare Gandhis
October 28, 2015, DailyO.in

10 things you didn’t know about beef bans
October 5, 2015, Sify.com

10 things about RTI Act that completes 10 years
October 5, 2015, Sify.com

Eight hits of Lal Bahadur Shastri
October 5, 2015, Sify.com

Seven reasons to be wary of Somnath Bharti
September 28, 2015, Sify.com

Bihar: The battle for Nitish 3.0
September 10, 2015, Sify.com

10 reasons why we shouldn’t have talks with Pakistan…
August 24, 2015, Sify.com

10 reasons why Kalam was the coolest President
July 28, 2015, Sify.com

Calm down, Narayana Murthy – There’s more to India than IT
July 17, 2015, Sify.com

Of SoniaBhakts, PappuBhakts and KejriBhakts
July 13, 2015, Sify.com

Why is Modi, media going soft on the Dynasty?
July 10, 2015, Sify.com

Vyapam: Murder is a joke in India!
July 7, 2015, Sify.com

10 Padma awardees deserving a Bharat Ratna
June 24, 2015, Sify.com

India could soon be ‘least corrupt’ nation
May 27, 2015, Sify.com

11 abysmal lows of the Aam Aadmi Party
May 12, 2015, Sify.com

The many questions over AAP’s death rally
April 25, 2015, Sify.com

4-stage rocket Pappu relaunched yet again
April 21, 2015, Sify.com

Yes Bose, not Gandhi, gave us freedom!
April 14, 2015, Sify.com

The many talents of Mr Ambedkar
April 14, 2015, Sify.com

We’ll even attack women to get at Modi!
April 14, 2015, Sify.com

9 ways in which Nehru was a bad pioneer…
April 13, 2015, Sify.com

Right to malign Modi a fundamental MSM right
April 13, 2015, Sify.com

The ugly truth: India loves its dictators!
April 4, 2015, Sify.com

Show-off New Delhi gets a show-off CM
April 2, 2015, Sify.com

Vague cocktail of woman empowerment & hypocrisy
April 1, 2015, Sify.com

Hello Kejri, what about Delhi?
March 24, 2015, Sify.com

Five duds of Kapil Sibal
March 24, 2015, Sify.com

Congress and the illusion of control
March 17, 2015, Sify.com

Why can’t we call Manmohan corrupt?
March 13, 2015, Sify.com

Why AAP = Akela Arvind Party
March 11, 2015, Sify.com

Why February Kranti is no August Kranti!
February 21, 2015, Sify.com

Why do Indians rejoice when Obama insults India?
February 16, 2015, Sify.com

How Kejriwal has become the new Lalu!
February 14, 2015, Sify.com

Bahut acchhe din! 8 reasons why BJP lost
February 12, 2015, Sify.com

Delhi polls: Modi suffers huge ‘ego’ defeat
February 10, 2015, Sify.com

6 shortages plaguing the Congress
February 2, 2015, Sify.com

Open Letter to Jayanthi Natarajan
January 31, 2015, Sify.com

AAP = Kejriwal’s I, me and myself
January 30, 2015, Sify.com

On the 4th-gen dynasty’s 40-year misrule…
January 27, 2015, Sify.com

When will media balloon around Kejriwal burst?
January 260, 2015, Sify.com

Rise of the outsiders in Indian politics
January 21, 2015, Sify.com

8 last laughs of Subramanian Swamy…
January 13, 2015, Sify.com

Goodbyes of 2014
January 1, 2015, Sify.com

International obituaries of 2014
January 1, 2015, Sify.com

A to Z of Janata Pariwar
January 1, 2015, Sify.com

7 global trends for India in 2014…
January 1, 2015, Sify.com

2015: Kashmir’s year of hope
December 24, 2014, Sify.com

10 Smriti Irani controversies in 2014
December 22, 2014, Sify.com

9 #BlowToModi moments after he became PM
December 22, 2014, Sify.com

Is 2014 the year that the Congress party died?
December 22, 2014, Sify.com

Best and worst of 2014
December 21, 2014, Sify.com

Narendra Modi’s 10 hits of 2014…
December 15, 2014, Sify.com

Saradha: A scam that covers almost every field
December 15, 2014, Sify.com

A to Z of political extinctions in 2014
December 12, 2014, Sify.com

2014: When they should’ve attacked Congress
December 11, 2014, Sify.com

31: Number of the year for Modi haters
December 10, 2014, Sify.com

Mo’ White and the 11 dwarves
November 19, 2014, Sify.com

The new politically Bimaru club
November 18, 2014, Sify.com

Meet India’s four great dictators
November 15, 2014, Sify.com

5 bad ideas for Indian elections…
November 12, 2014, Sify.com

10 pieces of Vadra notoriety
November 3, 2014, Sify.com

Pawar checkmates Sena yet again
October 28, 2014, Sify.com

7 mistakes of Uddhav Thackeray
October 21, 2014, Sify.com

100% Modi bags two hat-tricks…
October 21, 2014, Sify.com

7 points to note in the October elections…
October 20, 2014, Sify.com

10 controversies of Shashi Tharoor…
October 13, 2014, Sify.com

Why does India worship its criminals?
October 8, 2014, Sify.com

Dozens of politicians in jail soon? Possible!
October 8, 2014, Sify.com

Get Modi wrong a million times? Keep talking!
October 3, 2014, Sify.com

Mahatma Modi to Adolf Hitler
October 2, 2014, Sify.com

Panneerselvam: Why remote controls are disasters
September 29, 2014, Sify.com

BJP set to conquer Maharashtra?
September 26, 2014, Sify.com

Who is the worst CM of India?
September 14, 2014, Sify.com

7 things you should know about the Bharat Ratna
July 31, 2014, Sify.com

Sania, Saina, Sonia and silly trivia!
July 30, 2014, Sify.com

6 court cases involving the Sonia-Rahul duo
July 25, 2014, Sify.com

Bangalore rape: Go after those who cover up crime
July 24, 2014, Sify.com

The hat-trick that ruined West Bengal…
July 3, 2014, Sify.com

National Herald case: The end of Sonia Gandhi?
June 29, 2014, Sify.com

Everybody loves black money in India!
June 23, 2014, Sify.com

Yes, it’s Left wing extremism!
June 18, 2014, Sify.com

Can India become a US$10 trillion economy?
June 16, 2014, Sify.com

Seven would be PMs who died young…
June 9, 2014, Sify.com

A packed Ambassador with two girls in the boot!
June 5, 2014, Sify.com

The A to Z of the Telangana journey
June 2, 2014, Sify.com

2014: Fall of a dynasty and other lessons
June 1, 2014, Sify.com

PM Modi’s 100-hour report card
May 30, 2014, Sify.com

5 who made it big without the Lok Sabha…
May 28, 2014, Sify.com

Indian Fascism and other definitions
May 26, 2014, Sify.com

The A to Z of AAP dramas and controversies
May 24, 2014, Sify.com

6 reasons why BJP may grow even stronger
May 24, 2014, Sify.com

A chaiwallah beats all the dynasties…
May 23, 2014, Sify.com

8 things you should know about India’s Left
May 23, 2014, Sify.com

Regional players: Going, going, gone…
May 22, 2014, Sify.com

5 ways people are still rubbishing Modi’s win
May 21, 2014, Sify.com

Gujarat Model already implemented in New Delhi
May 20, 2014, Sify.com

Narendra Modi’s acceptance speech…
May 19, 2014, Sify.com

7 reasons why Modi’s campaign succeeded…
May 19, 2014, Sify.com

Arvind Kejriwal: The boy who was afraid
May 19, 2014, Sify.com

7 reasons why the AAP lost everywhere
May 19, 2014, Sify.com

Which was India’s ultimate ‘wave’ election?
May 18, 2014, Sify.com

6 reasons why the Congress may be finished
May 17, 2014, Sify.com

Now it’s Nehru, Indira and Modi!
May 16, 2014, Sify.com

Seven positives of general elections 2014
May 14, 2014, Sify.com

5 problems with the 2014 general elections…
May 11, 2014, Sify.com

This is India’s social media decade!
May 10, 2014, Sify.com

Will the Sangh Parivaar be ‘Modi-fied’ on May 16?
May 8, 2014, Sify.com

Modi versus Kejriwal: The real battle’s online!
May 5, 2014, Sify.com

7 urgent questions for Priyanka Vadra!
April 30, 2014, Sify.com

Seven reasons why Nehru was a bad first PM
April 30, 2014, Sify.com

5 things the Congress could have done differently…
April 29, 2014, Sify.com

5 possible reasons why Priyanka isn’t contesting
April 28, 2014, Sify.com

Can you rig the polls in India today?
April 27, 2014, Sify.com

Five reasons why Pappu will be a disastrous PM
April 26, 2014, Sify.com

How Modi emerged as the great unifier
April 26, 2014, Sify.com

Beware! The Fascist dictator riseth!
April 26, 2014, Sify.com

And just who is Priyanka Vadra anyway?
April 24, 2014, Sify.com

2014: The most participatory election ever!
April 23, 2014, Sify.com

The battle of status messages goes offline!
April 22, 2014, Sify.com

Six reasons for Nitish’s sudden collapse
April 22, 2014, Sify.com

AAP: Under siege from within
April 22, 2014, Sify.com

Misogynist politicians: Roll of dishonour
April 12, 2014, Sify.com

Five reasons why opinion polls may be right in 2014
April 7, 2014, Sify.com

Six firsts if Modi becomes PM…
March 31, 2014, Sify.com

Diary of a rabid Modi hater…
March 25, 2014, Sify.com

Leadership SWOT analysis: Arvind Kejriwal
March 24, 2014, Sify.com

Leadership SWOT analysis: Rahul Gandhi
March 24, 2014, Sify.com

Leadership SWOT analysis: Narendra Modi
March 11, 2014, Sify.com

10 priceless Kejriwal U-turns
March 20, 2014, Sify.com

The Advani era ended in 2004
March 20, 2014, Sify.com

AAP, the chargesheeted party
March 19, 2014, Sify.com

How everybody really loves Modi
March 10, 2014, Sify.com

The BJP falls right into the AAP trap
When AAP attacked BJP headquarters…
March 6, 2014, Sify.com

Manmohan, the butcher of India’s national security
March 3, 2014, Sify.com

7 contradictions tearing the party AAPart
February 26, 2014, Sify.com

14 more gaffes, misses and failures of Sushilkumar Shinde
February 25, 2014, Sify.com

Any politician at fault? Just blame Modi!
February 25, 2014, Sify.com

10 reasons why Manmohan is the worst PM ever…
February 23, 2014, Sify.com

Maximize LS seats, everything else be damned
February 17, 2014, Sify.com

Seven things that went wrong for Arvind Kejriwal
February 15, 2014, Sify.com

7 reasons why AAP may yet return in Delhi
February 15, 2014, Sify.com

The Congress’s missteps in Andhra Pradesh
February 10, 2014, Sify.com

Narendra Modi in black and white
February 9, 2014, Sify.com

8 great Pappu nautankis
Rahul Gandhi and his dramatic symbolism
February 5, 2014, Sify.com

The 5 types of Narendra Modi haters
February 4, 2014, Sify.com

Sharad Pawar: The ultimate Paltiwal
February 3, 2014, Sify.com

5 fallouts of the Pappu interview
…with Arnab Goswami
February 1, 2014, Sify.com

Boy, we really hate our girls!
Why do our netas keep rubbishing women?
30 January, 2014, Sify.com

10 things propelling Modi to the top
29 January, 2014, Sify.com

What Pappu actually said in his interview…
…with Arnab Goswami
27 January, 2014, Sify.com

AAP’s 7 mistakes to cover one
The Somnath Bharti affair
15 January, 2014, Sify.com

If this is AAP education, give me illiteracy!
21 January, 2014, Sify.com

Dharnas to anarchy: AAP’s gifts to Delhi
20 January, 2014, Sify.com

Six hurdles to AAP’s Mission 2014
The Delhi scenario will not be repeated…
15 January, 2014, Sify.com

The five types of Narendra Modi supporters
Change seeker, Liberalization dude..
14 January, 2014, Sify.com

Six achievements of the UPA 2
Giving the devil its due…
14 January, 2014, Sify.com

Six things the AAP got right
Not the tariff reductions
14 January, 2014, Sify.com

AAP and the Communist Revolution of 2014!
A return to the past…
1
3 January, 2014, Sify.com

Is Kejriwal Modi’s best friend?
He’s indirectly helping him…
1
3 January, 2014, Sify.com

8 reasons why the AAP is now An Aam Party
The similarities are striking…
10 January, 2014, Sify.com

Seven myths about AAP’s Lok Sabha chances
They are a hyped up party…
09 January, 2014, Sify.com

Voila! AAP is exactly like all other parties!
So much for party with a difference…
08 January, 2014, Sify.com

Seven things to learn from the Congress
They have mastered the art of ruling…
7 January, 2014, Sify.com

2015 Columns

2014 Columns

2012-13 Columns

2011 Columns

2010 Columns

It’s still bouquets for Pak & brickbats for India
Nothing much has changed despite Obama’s visit

6 ideas to promote women’s cricket in India

silhouette-3378576_1280Had India won the 2017 Women’s World Cup, then there would have been great celebration in the nation. Social media would have been ecstatic and the prize money, sponsors and jobs would have flowed like water for our women cricketers.

There might even have been an open bus city rally to welcome to them and the images would have been played on TV for days on end inspiring a generation of budding women cricketers. The way 1983 launched the ODI revolution and 2007 launched the T20 revolution, 2017 may have well launched the women’s cricket revolution.

But that was not to be and the opportunity seems to have been lost. But maybe not! The 2017 edition received great attention, higher TRP ratings and trended big time on Twitter. Why not take this interest and carry it forward?

Here are some ideas to make women’s cricket in India even more popular…

1. Launch a women’s IPL in 2018: Millions were glued to TV sets during the WWC and the likes of Mithali Raj and Harmanpreet Kaur became household names. In fact Harmanpreet’s semi-final knock of 171* is one of the best of all time even if you include men’s ODIs. Smriti Mandhana also caught the imagination of Twitter at the beginning of WWC.

The time is right to launch a women’s IPL in 2018. The infrastructure and format is in place and what’s the point of having the most cash-rich board in the world if you can’t launch such tournaments?

The women’s IPL would unearth greater talent and keep women cricketers in the limelight every year instead of every four years. In fact in the 2013 edition we got eliminated early and by the time most people realized a WWC was going on, India were already out.

Since the men’s IPL is in the first half, you could keep the women’s edition in the second. IPL founder Lalit Modi had visualized two IPLs a year and that can be realized in this fashion.

The T20 WWC takes place in November 2018 and it would be great if the BCCI could fit in an IPL just months before that.

2. Aggressive promotion of women’s series: Did you know there have been six women Asia Cups? Did you know that India has won all of them, giving no chance to the likes of Pakistan and Sri Lanka? We are already a colossus on the sub-continent, but just haven’t been able to translate that globally.

Did you know that 19-year-old Deepti Sharma blasted a 188 in the Quadrangular in South Africa just before WWC? The problem is that the BCCI’s efforts at promoting women’s cricket have come a cropper in the past.

We have to now increase the ad campaign budget and push for all the international series that women play aggressively. It shouldn’t just be a once in four year affair. The T20 WWC takes place in West Indies next year and that should receive great coverage.

3. A high-profile coach: Why shouldn’t a Ravi Shastri or an Anil Kumble or a Virender Sehwag coach the women’s team? What’s wrong with that? Women’s team should also have a high-profile Head Coach and a coaching staff that rivals the men’s.

4. Hike the salaries: The total prize money for the 2013 Women’s World Cup was $200,000. For the men’s version in 2015, it was 50 times more at $10 million. They rectified that a bit in 2017 and the women’s cup in 2017 had $2 million in total prize money.

Still, Yusuf Pathan, Robin Uthappa and Dinesh Karthik each got more than that for a single IPL season! While games like lawn tennis have worked out the parity between the men’s and women’s game, cricket is a long way away from that.

We need a better contract system for the women players and definitely much more money.

5. Bettering the Test-Ranji ecosystem: The men’s team has played more than 500 Tests. In contrast the number is just 36 for women! The Ranji Trophy is also a strong tournament for men’s First Class cricket. But the focus is more on the shorter formats and the three-day version for women.

Domestic cricket needs a women’s IPL and that’s for sure. However there is no harm in strengthening First Class cricket for women too. Women’s cricket in India is treated on an ad hoc basis and maybe we need a White Paper to change it through and through.

6. Many more inter-school/college tournaments: Boys start playing cricket at an early age and there’s no shortage of coaching camps and inter-school/college tournaments for them. In contrast the opportunities are limited for the girls.

The BCCI doesn’t need to for the men’s version, but maybe it should start getting into organizing inter-school and inter-college tournaments. In fact last year the then BCCI President Anurag Thakur had talked of starting something which he called the University League.

Well women’s cricket needs that more than the men’s version!

(This article appeared in Sify.com)