Opinion

Strongman 1Opinion

Strongmen create fragile economies

Economic stability has rarely been built on the force of personality. Across eras and continents, societies that sustained growth and resilience did so by dispersing economic authority across institutions, rules and professional expertise. Yet today, economic power is again being centralised in the hands of dominant leaders who treat policy as an extension of political will rather than a product of institutional process. This return of strongman economics may project decisiveness, but it repeatedly weakens economies, erodes trust and amplifies global instability.

By Raman Singh
Prior approvalOpinion

Shielding power from inquiry

The Supreme Court’s split verdict on Section 17A of the Prevention of Corruption Act has reopened a fundamental constitutional question India has never fully resolved. Should public power be insulated from scrutiny to protect honest decision-making, or does such insulation itself undermine accountability. By disagreeing on whether prior approval is a safeguard or a shield, the Court has exposed the uneasy balance between governance confidence and the public’s right to know how power is exercised.

By Kavita Nagpal
Secrecy vs openesssOpinion

Trade secrecy vs public right

When Parliament enacted the Right to Information Act in 2005, it sought to replace a culture of official secrecy with a presumption of openness. The law did not eliminate confidentiality. Instead, it set out narrow and carefully qualified exemptions, recognising that governments must handle sensitive information even as they remain accountable to citizens. Nearly two decades later, questions are being raised about whether that balance is being adequately maintained in practice.

By Ishaan V Rao
Take this US FEDOpinion

Institutions outlast political power

The escalating confrontation between the US presidency and the country’s central bank has turned what was once a technical debate into a constitutional one. When the chair of the Federal Reserve finds it necessary to publicly restate that monetary policy is guided by statutory mandate rather than political alignment, it signals stress well beyond interest rates. The episode raises a broader question that extends to other democracies, including India. What happens when institutions charged with exercising judgment are no longer permitted the space to disagree?

By Shahid Faridi
Greenland par sankatOpinion

The perils of strategic hubris

Donald Trump’s renewed insistence that the US “needs” Greenland reflects a deeper shift in how power is being exercised and justified. Beyond the immediate shock value lies a more consequential question: what happens to international law, alliance credibility and local self-determination when strategic necessity is allowed to override restraint. The Greenland episode offers a cautionary case study in how great power hubris can erode the foundations of the order it seeks to defend.

By Rajiv Bhatia
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