Editorial: Hits and misses
Interestingly, the shifty Bihar supremo has the distinction of changing his alliance partner five times since June 2013, and he finally bid adieu to the INDIA bloc, and returned to the NDA fold this year, much to the relief of the ruling dispensation.
CHENNAI: It’s that time of the year that mandates a quick memory jog as we take stock of the days that went by, marking the trials and tribulations that kept the news cycle alive and kicking. Politically, it was an eye-opener, as denizens of the world’s largest democracy found themselves back at the ballot box for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, with a 96.9 crore-sized electorate setting the stage for the next five years of statecraft. There were surprises to boot, as after a decade of one-party rule, the BJP came close to eating humble pie, and depended on coalition partners Chandrababu Naidu and Nitish Kumar to form the government. Interestingly, the shifty Bihar supremo has the distinction of changing his alliance partner five times since June 2013, and he finally bid adieu to the INDIA bloc, and returned to the NDA fold this year, much to the relief of the ruling dispensation.
The Pran Prathishtha of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, which was supposed to reap rich dividends for the saffron party, come election season in May, turned out to be a bummer as the BJP lost the Faizabad assembly constituency, home to the revered temple, and a subtle reminder of never underestimating the people’s mandate. While things came to a boil inside the country, our neighbourhood also threw up a slew of challenges, thanks to a milieu of all-pervasive political unrest. Sheikh Hasina, who happened to be a key ally for New Delhi in the subcontinental region, was ousted from power in Bangladesh. Up north, a spate of terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir reminded the administration of the perils of letting one’s guard down, especially in the context of a belligerent neighbour such as Islamabad.
The change of guard in Dhaka, Kathmandu and Colombo saw Beijing exerting an inordinate quantum of gravitational pull towards itself, reminiscent of the Maldives giving us the cold shoulder last year. As a portent of things to come, satellite images revealed the construction of Chinese villages on territory that Bhutan claimed to be its own. Having said that, the year was favourable to India on the diplomatic dipstick as New Delhi signed off on a power sharing agreement with Bangladesh and Nepal, while gently goading China into playing nice on the contentious LAC patrolling issue. Speaking of which, the year was also fortuitous for our limitlessly talented sportspersons, who overcame hurdles by the dozens to leave a fine footprint in the world of play.
On top of our list of achievers is D Gukesh (18), a prodigy who emerged as the world’s youngest chess champion, a record previously held by Gary Kasparov. We also saw sharpshooter Manu Bhaker making us proud by being the first Indian Olympian to bag two medals at the same Games. We also had some heartbreaking exits, such as that of Vinesh Phogat, who failed to make the cut on weight for the 50 kg women’s freestyle wrestling final at the Paris Olympics. Closer home, offspinner and matchwinner nonpareil Ravichandran Ashwin hung up his sneakers as he bid goodbye to international cricket, prompting a collective sigh from millions of cricket fanatics who looked up to Annan as the go-to man for their matches. India’s soft diplomacy earned some brownie points, with its arthouse cinema finding admirers in none other than Barack Obama, who included Payal Kapadia’s All we Imagine as Light among his favourites of the year. Not bad for a year’s work, is it?