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Aakar Patel
About the AuthorAakar Patel
Aakar Patel is a senior journalist and columnist
    Is Protest Only Means Left To Us To Take Back Democracy?Columnists
    Is Protest Only Means Left To Us To Take Back Democracy?

    Voting is considered to be the same thing as democracy, as if democracy vanishes between elections. For decades, the...

    19 Oct 2026 10:46 PM IST

    Despite Govt Claims, Why India Not Even ‘Partly Free’Columnists
    Despite Govt Claims, Why India Not Even ‘Partly Free’

    The Freedom House report had two parts. The first, carrying 40 per cent weightage, concerned political rights. Here...

    12 Oct 2026 9:26 PM IST

    If It Ain’t Broke, Break It: How We Ruined India We Built Over DecadesColumnists
    If It Ain’t Broke, Break It: How We Ruined India We Built Over Decades

    In 2016, crony capitalism accounted for three per cent of India’s GDP. In 2023, the last year in which this was...

    28 Sept 2026 10:04 PM IST

    Iran, Not Arch, Will Become Donald Trump’s Lasting LegacyColumnists
    Iran, Not Arch, Will Become Donald Trump’s Lasting Legacy

    America’s two parties choose their candidates based on internal elections called primaries. Individuals publicly...

    21 Sept 2026 11:38 PM IST

    Papers Missing, But Not Overly Worried About Passing SIR TestColumnists
    Papers Missing, But Not Overly Worried About Passing SIR Test

    My parents spent four days on their terrace, alone and without assistance, losing most of what they had. What else is...

    18 Sept 2026 12:50 AM IST

    This 9/11, Let’s Reflect On The US Hand In W. Asia ChaosColumnists
    This 9/11, Let’s Reflect On The US Hand In W. Asia Chaos

    This month the US announced that an American company would be given a 100-year concession over 17 oilfields in...

    8 Sept 2026 12:58 AM IST

    Hindutva, An Ideology Built On The Pain Of MinoritiesColumnists
    Hindutva, An Ideology Built On The Pain Of Minorities

    He first wanted to look at Hindutva — its origins, ideological foundations and how it differs from Hinduism as a...

    1 Sept 2026 6:06 AM IST

    Aakar Patel | Faith Vs Law & The Absurd Politics Of Ghar WapsiColumnists
    Aakar Patel | Faith Vs Law & The Absurd Politics Of Ghar Wapsi

    Conversions in India have happened historically through communities. It is difficult for an individual to change her...

    25 Aug 2026 12:10 AM IST

    Aakar Patel | Without Freedom, Does The Word ‘Independence’ Really Mean Much?Columnists
    Aakar Patel | Without Freedom, Does The Word ‘Independence’ Really...

    Reporters Without Borders is based in Paris and produces an annual World Press Freedom Index. India is ranked 157th in...

    18 Aug 2026 12:22 AM IST

    Aakar Patel | Why Indians Need To Protect, Expand The Right To Hold Peaceful ProtestsColumnists
    Aakar Patel | Why Indians Need To Protect, Expand The Right To Hold...

    The reality is that today we have no such rights. Do Indians have the right to “assemble peacefully and without arms”?...

    10 Aug 2026 11:29 PM IST

    Aakar Patel | Why India Is Now In The Race For A ‘Non-permanent’ Seat At The UNSCColumnists
    Aakar Patel | Why India Is Now In The Race For A ‘Non-permanent’ Seat...

    Elections at the UN are in June next year and there is one other candidate in the Asia-Pacific group whom we have to...

    3 Aug 2026 10:58 PM IST

    Aakar Patel | The State and the Individual: Anger Over Its Failure Led to Minister’s ExitColumnists
    Aakar Patel | The State and the Individual: Anger Over Its Failure Led...

    The elite encounter the State occasionally; for most Indians, it shapes everyday life.

    27 July 2026 11:50 PM IST

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