Opinion

By Nikunj Trivedi In June 2020, news broke that the California Civil Rights Department (CRD) had sued technology giant Cisco Systems for alleged caste discrimination by two managers against a Dalit employee. Effectively, an American state body tried to define religious

BY GANESH IYER NEW DELHI, (IANS) - Scarcity alone doesn't seem to be the reason. Poverty, inequalities in income and power contribute primarily for this fear. But the moot point is what is the context and perspective to this looming likely

By D.C. PATHAK It is not surprising at all that militancy in the name of Khalistan is being revived in the border state of Punjab, by some groups based abroad and working under the operational guidance of Pakistan's ISI. India's intelligence set-up

By SHAKEEL SYED------------------------------------Two decades old US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003 proved to be one of the most profoundly wrong foreign policy decisions in modern times, and the subsequent war was marked by a high level of violence, instability, and

By Navneet S. Chugh The Economist refers to the United States as "an NGO with nuclear bombs". The US and state governments spend mind-boggling amounts on helping people, with one out of every two people in the United States receiving some

By Neera Kuckreja Sohoni On March 8, we, the Women of the World, are invited to join the UN to celebrate the 2023 International Women’s Year (IWY). Note, it is We Women, and not the transgenders, cross genders or men who have biologically,

The youth have rallied against drugs but the scourge encouraged over the years by cross-border traffickers and easy cash runs deep in Punjab. The youth of today need role models and could turn their thoughts to the wisdom of Guru

By D.C. PATHAK National security is about the protection of the nation's physical boundaries, its citizens, and its information assets. Our defense forces deal with any open attack or aggression of an enemy, the police machinery takes care of the safety

BY DEEPIKA BHAN NEW DELHI - The year 2023 is going to be a period of extremely intense political activity across the country. It is the springboard year for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections that will witness the BJP fighting to retain

Photo: wikipedia By NEERA KUCKREJA SOHONI In an article published in 2009, Daniel Naujoks wrote, “India has one of the world's most diverse and complex migration histories. Since the 19th century, ethnic Indians have established communities on every continent as well as on

By NAVIN DOSHI A few words on giving from the ‘Gitanjali’ by Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore:O LORD KRISHNA, YOU EMPTY THIS VESSEL AND FILL IT WITH FRESH LIFE IN PERPETUITY, YOU CARRY THIS FLUTE OVER HILLS AND DALES, AND BREATHE THROUGH IT MELODIES ETERNALLY. YOUR

By DEEPAK JOLLY Sustainable, cruelty-free, antibiotic-free, ethically produced, plant-based veganism which was a niche sector till recently is now gaining worldwide popularity. As distinct from vegetarianism, veganism seeks to avoid the unnecessary disturbing or suffering of all living beings and is

By ADITI BHADURI The re-election of Benjamin Netanyahu in Israel's recent elections has gladdened many Indians. Ignoring Israel's domestic policies, there have been breathless discussions on mostly external factors that may have given Bibi this spectacular comeback despite the many charges

By KANWAL SIBAL NEW DELHI, (IANS) - The 14th anniversary of the gruesome Mumbai terror attacks has gone by without its perpetrators being brought to justice. Those massacred belonged to many nationalities, including 6 Americans, yet Pakistan has escaped international pressure

NEW DELHI (IANS) - India will assume the Presidency of the powerful grouping from the current chair Indonesia on December 1. The G20 comprises Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Mexico,

By SANDEEP BAMZAI Protected by British power, the rulers of princely states neglected their subjects; they not only collected rent, but also various illegal levies and subjected people to forced labor while squandering away a major part of their states' revenues

By Neera Kuckreja Sohoni On October 31, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in two cases challenging the race-conscious admissions programs of Harvard and North Carolina universities. The court was requested to consider: (i) Whether it should overrule its Grutter v. Bollinger ruling and

By INGRID NEWKIRK (Founder-President PETA) In the 1960s, there was a TV show called A Man Called Shenandoah. A man with amnesia would ride into a town in the Old West, take on a problem, solve it and then leave. The townspeople

By SHAKEEL SYED Every two years our nation goes through the ritual of elections. People are reminded that voting is almost a matter of near religiosity.  Every aspirant for political office would want us to know them, but after the election,

By PETER WHITE, Ethnic Media Services On October 31, the Supreme Court will hear two cases that will determine the future of affirmative action. Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA) is suing Harvard and University of North Carolina (UNC) for considering race

By JONATHAN MEHTA STEIN, Ethnic Media Services LOS ANGELES, CA - Californians cannot wait any longer for fair representation. The horrific scandal currently unfolding in Los Angeles has unearthed the inner workings of morally bankrupt politicians who abuse our systems of

By NEERA KUCKREJA SOHONI In the spate of violence that followed the unforgivably savage death of Floyd George from being suffocated by a cop, not just the police but the entire American system came under fire. In addition to rioting and

By DEEPIKA BHAN It may be too early to predict whether a phoenix emerges, or the churn ends in scattering stars. The question is who will challenge Narendra Modi and does any opposition leader have an alternative to 'sabka vishwas'

By YASHWANT RAJ WASHINGTON, DC - India and the United States need to settle on a name for their relationship. Are they partners, strategic partners? Allies -- critical allies, natural allies? Good friends, best friends? Or, yes, brothers? Over the years, leaders

By Shakeel Syed Protesting is innately human. We are blessed with the gift of discerning and the ability to protest the wrong to right it. Human history invites us to celebrate their protests and learn from them. Here are some inspiring

By EDWARD KISSAM, Ethnic Media Services Recent comments by White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha point to a major shift in the administration’s approach to fighting the COVID-19 pandemic. Described by Jha as “commercialization,” the shift in strategy portends

Neera Kuckreja Sohoni, CA A glaring headline “Why I Refuse to Celebrate Independence Day” in India West has drawn much ire and attention from readers, which is not surprising given its provocative tenor. It seems especially inappropriate that the piece is authored by

BY D.C. PATHAK The contemporary national security scenario of India is conditioned by the reality of friendly relations built by this country across geopolitical boundaries on one hand and the acceleration of cross-border covert offensive of the two hostile neighbors -

Shakeel SyedI heard a sage say, “home is where my children and grandchildren are born and not where my parents and grandparents are buried.” As a hyphenated Indian-American, I often find myself questioning the idea of “home.” Although I left India

By KANWAL SIBAL As India rises and its global footprint increases, its foreign policy must keep pace. There is international acceptance that India is set to become the third largest economy possibly by 2030. With this, its political weight will also

By VIKAS DATTA LONDON - It could be called democracy's diversity, or even colonialism's counterblast. The race to succeed UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson by becoming the new leader of the Conservative Party, which espoused the Empire, imperialism, and British national

BY ASAD MIRZA The manner in which the Taliban have been able to retain power in Afghanistan and their latest decisions show that to save millions of Afghanis from impoverishment and death, international community will have to adopt a new approach. While

By DEEPIKA BHAN A sleepy and disjointed opposition may be a boon for any ruling dispensation, but for a nation and a democracy, it is a downhill moment. India has been seeing a slide in the opposition's performance for the past

By CYNTHIA CHOCKALINGAM Post-colonization, South Asia simply wanted to live up to the “standards” the West had left behind, so communities in South Asia let go of parts of their own cultures and did not keep up either with the beginning

BY KAVYA DUBEY As Nupur Sharma and Naveen Jindal were made to relinquish their BJP posts due to their comments that amount to offending socio-religious sentiments, and the salvo of diplomatic reprimands that followed, we have before us very clearly indicated

BY ATUL ANEJA NEW DELHI, (IANS) - Early on June 1, the Ministry of External Affairs made a dramatic announcement that an Indian delegation was heading to Kabul to coordinate humanitarian supplies in Afghanistan. The team led by JP Singh -- a

BY ASAD MIRZA The latest international conference to discuss the evolving situation in Afghanistan and review the response of the neighboring and regional countries to the latest Taliban decisions, took place in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, last week. National Security Advisors from Tajikistan, India,

BY YASHWANT RAJ WASHINGTON, DC - The United States needs help. It is the only country in the world that witnesses school shootings and mass shootings with such regular frequency. And it has failed to stop them. External intervention can come from

BY DEEPIKA BHAN Two days after Rahul Bhat was killed in a government office in Jammu and Kashmir on May 12, the building was reopened and all his colleagues, officers and subordinates trooped in and have been working silently since then.

By VIJAYALAKSHMI Regardless of the universal values that Mohiniyattam has to offer, I often like to pose questions like – “Why do you dance?” and “What does Indian classical dance mean to you?” to the Indian audience and Indian American youth

BY ASAD MIRZA NEW DELHI, (IANS) - Recent outreach activities by Muslim leaders across India relays very disturbing and hopeless signs, instead of formulating a strategy to unify the Indian Muslims, these leaders are hell bent on further dividing them into

BY CHAYANIKA SAXENA The fall of Afghanistan to a puritanical group, the Afghan Taliban, has brought with it a host of challenges not only for the war-ravaged country itself but for the larger geopolitical dynamics in the South Asian region. On

BY ASAD MIRZA After working on devising methods to counter move OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries), US lawmakers have at last succeeded in bringing about a legislation, which could effectively counter the OPEC hegemony and any challenge to American

BY D.C. PATHAK A nation's strategic approach is meant to take care of the security and economic interests of the country and it is truly remarkable that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's policy on international relations has stood its ground amid a

BY D.C. PATHAK The end of the Cold War marked the beginning of an era of covert offensives, externally instigated insurgencies, and proxy wars. Interestingly, even a military intrusion like the one ordered by President Putin in Ukraine two months ago,

By N.C. BIPINDRA Of late, China has raised security concerns in the Indian Ocean region with strategic military sales like submarines to Bangladesh and Pakistan. China contends to be a key defense exporter to many Asian and Southeast Asian countries in

By D.C.PATHAK The April 7 ruling of the Supreme Court of Pakistan culminating in the ouster of Prime Minister Imran Khan the subsequent election of Shehbaz Sharif as the new Prime Minister -- all significantly mark the emergence of a new

By ASAD MIRZA The regional economic and political developments may have a near-immediate effect on the Indian economy, apart from the internal pressures. The recent regional economic and political crises in south Asia, most of them in immediate neighbors of India, have

By NEERA KUCKREJA SOHONI On April 11, Biden held a virtual meeting with India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi - ostensibly to commend India’s humanitarian support to Ukraine, but subtly to put India on the spot for its reluctance to openly side

By DEEPIKA BHAN A video that went viral from the historic Jamia Masjid in Srinagar after the Friday prayers on April 8 may be a manifestation of the bitter truth that all is not hunky-dory in Kashmir. Terrorists continue to choose their

By D.C. PATHAK The ongoing Ukraine-Russia military confrontation has had the world community focus its attention on the moves of the US and Russia as the opposing powers, the role of China that remained firmly inclined towards Russia but did not

By DEEPIKA BHAN In the din surrounding 'The Kashmir Files', Kashmiri Pandits seem to be fighting a lonely battle for justice. Yes, the movie has brought out a lot of empathy for the community, but the politics being played out over

By DEEPIKA BHAN NEW DELHI (IANS) - The downfall of the administrative and political set up in Kashmir in the late 1980s and early 1990s had a direct bearing on the rise of militancy, which was fully aided and abetted by

By D.C. PATHAK In a democracy, all citizens are on the same footing in the eyes of the state in terms of freedom of religion, equality of civic rights and grant of electoral choice at the time of political contests, whether

By AMJAD AYUB MIRZA The movie released in India called 'The Kashmir Files' is a brave attempt to reveal the atrocities committed by the Pakistan sponsored Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front and other Jihadi proxies and with conformity of a significant number

By ROBINDER SACHDEV When the US National Security Advisor and his NSA counterpart from China, and their delegations met in Rome on Mar. 14, the date invoked the phrase - Beware the Ides of March. Therefore, in the spirit of a Shakespearean

By DEEPIKA BHAN, IANS As the US-EU combine came out with a slew of sanctions against Russia and big tech companies followed suit enthusiastically, the stark reality hit home. The West can use financial and social media platforms as weapons against

By AMJAD AYUB MIRZA It was a cold night with subzero temperature on Mar. 2 when a police convoy arrived outside the office of Rawalakot Commissioner in Pakistan occupied Jammu Kashmir (PoJK). More than two dozen political activists and members of

By GHULAM OSMANYAGHMA From time to time, international institutions and organizations seek access to the concentration camps to inspect the Uyghur genocide. China has thus far not granted them access, however if they did, would the truth be uncovered? These groups

By Robert Grant Deaths related to COVID-19 were more than twice as high among Black, Latino, and Native American people as among whites in 2020, according to new research out from the National Cancer Institute. It's only the latest reminder of the

By JAVED BEIGH Kashmir was once again rocked by yet another shocking case of acid attack on a young Kashmiri girl by a Kashmiri man, who was angry at the girl for refusing his advances. The girl has been admitted to

By ASAD MIRZA The Russian strategy in the ongoing Ukrainian crisis is aimed at not allowing NATO to accept Ukraine as its member. The ongoing war of nerves and escalating tensions between the US and Russia over Ukraine has entered its fourth

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky By MAJOR GENERAL S.B. ASTHANA Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky declares Feb. 16, 2022 as 'Day of Unity' apprehending Russian invasion based on US assessment, after speaking to his American counterpart Joe Biden about Russia’s military buildup along Ukraine’s

China has agreed to extend several loans to Pakistan but China will be promoting its own agenda even as the debt burden of Pakistan increases. Seen above, Prime Minister Imran Khan and Chinese President Xi Jinping. (IANS photo) By ASAD MIRZA Pakistan’s

India's ties with Central Asia can be traced back to the ancient Silk Road, along which goods, people, and ideas flowed. Geographically Central Asia has been at the intersection of crucial political and economic transformations for centuries. While the dissolution