BJP’s Semester Test

Six political parties come together to combat the BJP in a single state. Isn’t that a bit too astounding? Well, but that’s Indian politics for you - as unpredictable as always. 

The 2014 General Elections changed the political weather in India and things have tightened to a larger extent, which can be uttered without a bone of contention. So much that 6 political parties in Bihar had to come together to battle against the BJP for the state assembly polls, scheduled for later this year. This, as many assert and agree with, is a trend-setting alliance - a merger of six political parties once rivals, coming together to fight the elections against the BJP. 

Although formidable, this alliance appears to be a replica of fright, desperation for power and a symbol of intense competition that is developing, all at one time. 

In Bihar, we see the age-old politicians fighting together, now, all of a sudden, after enough criticizing and bitching about each other in the past, with the sole purpose of coming to power and not getting swept away. This appears as if the parties in alliance only want to survive and keep their strengths on full display, especially after RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav stating he is ready to consume all kinds of poison. 

On the other hand, skepticism lies over BJP’s victory, as the alliance is really strong and is going to lead to massive polarization. But, the BJP appears to be confident, currently. Not to forget, a victory there is being eyed on for a long time, and all attempts will be done, which is for sure. The BJP has support of the former Bihar CM Jitan Ram Manjhi, whom the BJP supported while he was sidelined by the JD(U) and Ram Vilas Paswan of LJP, who is now a Union Minister in the Modi cabinet. 

BJP has already lost by a huge margin in the Delhi assembly elections and AAP’s victory had sparked a debate on the existence of “Modi wave”. Bihar elections lay ahead as a big challenge for the BJP and it’s party President Amit Shah is sure to have a hard time coming up with strategies to fight the Bihar elections. 

But unlike the other polls, this one is a semester test for the BJP, and it is indeed going to be super-fascinating to track the Bihar polls.

Tales From Shining And Sinking India by Akash Banerjee.

• Book: Tales From Shining and Sinking India
• Author: Akash Banerjee
• Genre: Current Affairs
• Publishing House: Amaryllis

Journalism is one of the busiest professions, with journalists having an action-packed and tedious schedule - consisting of reporting, tracking a story and giving a damn to the news that break any given moment. Every journalist loves being sent on the ground for reportage; interacting with people out there, analyzing the situation or instance and reporting about it from the ground.

However fascinating it may appear, it is, in reality, a tedious task, requiring a 100 percent from the person following a particular story, especially when it is crucial and highly in the public interest.  

Akash Banerjee, through his book ‘Tales From Shining and Sinking India’, narrates his experience as a reporter on the ground, doing a plethora of stories, during his stint at both – Headlines Today and Times Now. 

As a journalist Banerjee has landed himself into a fair share of soups, wriggled through enough tricky situations and has dealt with a lot of difficult people – and all of this can be felt and realized when one precisely goes through the enchanting tales that he has written about the stories that he was assigned, and the jeopardies he had to face while doing his work the best. 

Right from the Naxal-hit, Maoistan town of Dantewad, to Rollapenta, over the Nallamala forest; from the gloomy disaster-struck Bihar to the terror-hit Mumbai; from Tibet to Pakistan – Akash Banerjee, through his book, gets us the snags and odds a passionate and an ambitious journalist comes across, in a bid to achieve the developing details of an already broken and trending story, and availing latest visuals to the viewers.

The tales and the narrations are extremely gripping, enough for one’s attention to be entirely on them. The narratives mirror both – the bright as well as the dark side of the country. While reading through the tales from shining and sinking India, one feels as if one is right into the situation, along with the author, experiencing all that he did. The book states perils as well as pleasures of the profession, explicitly and honestly revealing the existing and escalating competition in the world of news and broadcast journalism.

So much do these tales fascinate one that one doesn’t feel like pausing during the course of reading them. And interestingly, the foreword of the book is written by one of Akash’s bosses, and a prominent, knowledgeable and an experienced Indian journalist, Mr Arnab Goswami. 

In my opinion, this book must be read by everyone; especially those who wish to enter in the field of journalism and showcase their talent! The tales are mesmerizing, fascinating and the book is worth a read! 

Readers can avail a copy of the book via: Amazon, Uread, Flipkart, Shimply, Infibeam.