Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday asserted that Article 370, which granted special status to Jammu and Kashmir, will not be restored even if Congress stalwart and late PM Indira Gandhi comes down from heaven.

1. Even if Indira Gandhi returns from heaven, Article 370 will not be restored: Amit Shah  Greater Kashmir
2. 'Even if Indira Gandhi returns from heaven ... ': What Amit Shah said on Article 370 and Muslim reservati  The Times of India
3. Article 370 won’t be restored even if Indira Gandhi returns from heaven: Amit Shah  India Today
4. Maharashtra Assembly elections 2024: ‘Language of Pakistan’: Modi, Shah criticise Congress push to reinstate Article 370  The Hindu
5. UP CM Yogi Adityanath: 'Even 4th generation of Congress will not be able to restore Article 370 in Kashmir'  India.com

"Even If Indira Gandhi Returns From Heaven...": Amit Shah On Article 370  NDTVView Full coverage on Google News

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday asserted that Article 370, which granted special status to Jammu and Kashmir, will not be restored even if Congress stalwart and late PM Indira Gandhi comes...

Describing the Opposition's Maha Vikas Aghadi grouping in Maharashtra as the Aurangzeb Fan Club, Union Minister Amit Shah said the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance abides by the ideals of Shivaji Maharaj and Veer Savarkar.

This is the 20th installment of The Rationalist, my column for the Times of India.

Amit Shah’s induction into the union cabinet is such an interesting moment. Even partisans who oppose the BJP, as I do, would admit that Shah is a political genius. Under his leadership, the BJP has become an electoral behemoth in the most complicated political landscape in the world. The big question that now arises is this: can Shah do for India what he did for the BJP?

This raises a perplexing question: in the last five years, as the BJP has flourished, India has languished. And yet, the leadership of both the party and the nation are more or less the same. Then why hasn’t the ability to manage the party translated to governing the country?

I would argue that there are two reasons for this. One, the skills required in those two tasks are different. Two, so are the incentives in play.

Let’s look at the skills first. Managing a party like the BJP is, in some ways, like managing a large multinational company. Shah is a master at top-down planning and micro-management. How he went about winning the 2014 elections, described in detail in Prashant Jha’s book How the BJP Wins, should be a Harvard Business School case study. The book describes how he fixed the BJP’s ground game in Uttar Pradesh, picking teams for 147,000 booths in Uttar Pradesh, monitoring them, and keeping them accountable.

Shah looked at the market segmentation in UP, and hit upon his now famous “60% formula”. He realised he could not deliver the votes of Muslims, Yadavs and Jatavs, who were 40% of the population. So he focussed on wooing the other 60%, including non-Yadav OBCs and non-Jatav Dalits. He carried out versions of these caste reconfigurations across states, and according to Jha, covered “over 5 lakh kilometres” between 2014 and 2017, consolidating market share in every state in this country. He nurtured “a pool of a thousand new OBC and Dalit leaders”, going well beyond the posturing of other parties.

That so many Dalits and OBCs voted for the BJP in 2019 is astonishing. Shah went past Mandal politics, managing to subsume previously antagonistic castes and sub-castes into a broad Hindutva identity. And as the BJP increased its depth, it expanded its breadth as well. What it has done in West Bengal, wiping out the Left and weakening Mamata Banerjee, is jaw-dropping. With hindsight, it may one day seem inevitable, but only a madman could have conceived it, and only a genius could have executed it.

Good man to be Home Minister then, eh? Not quite. A country is not like a large company or even a political party. It is much too complex to be managed from the top down, and a control freak is bound to flounder. The approach needed is very different.

Some tasks of governance, it is true, are tailor-made for efficient managers. Building infrastructure, taking care of roads and power, building toilets (even without an underlying drainage system) and PR campaigns can all be executed by good managers. But the deeper tasks of making an economy flourish require a different approach. They need a light touch, not a heavy hand.

The 20th century is full of cautionary tales that show that economies cannot be centrally planned from the top down. Examples of that ‘fatal conceit’, to use my hero Friedrich Hayek’s term, include the Soviet Union, Mao’s China, and even the lady Modi most reminds me of, Indira Gandhi.

The task of the state, when it comes to the economy, is to administer a strong rule of law, and to make sure it is applied equally. No special favours to cronies or special interest groups. Just unleash the natural creativity of the people, and don’t try to micro-manage.

Sadly, the BJP’s impulse, like that of most governments of the past, is a statist one. India should have a small state that does a few things well. Instead, we have a large state that does many things badly, and acts as a parasite on its people.

As it happens, the few things that we should do well are all right up Shah’s managerial alley. For example, the rule of law is effectively absent in India today, especially for the poor. As Home Minister, Shah could fix this if he applied the same zeal to governing India as he did to growing the BJP. But will he?

And here we come to the question of incentives. What drives Amit Shah: maximising power, or serving the nation? What is good for the country will often coincide with what is good for the party – but not always. When they diverge, which path will Shah choose? So much rests on that.

The India Uncut Blog © 2010 Amit Varma. All rights reserved.
Follow me on Twitter.

BJP President Amit Shah infected with swine flu virus. He got admitted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) on Wednesday for treatment.

After releasing the BJP’s manifesto for the November 20 Maharashtra Assembly polls, Mr Shah also said his party will not allow religion-based reservation in the country.

The Cooperation Minister said that before the sowing operation, tur farmers can register on the portal to sell their produce to NAFED and NCCF

The ₹375 crore plant in Piplaj is set up by Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) under the PPP model with Jindal Urban Waste Management Limited

Jharkhand is the most corrupt state in the country, alleges Union Home Minister Amit Shah while releasing BJP’s manifesto for the upcoming assembly elections in the state

Union Home Minister Amit Shah made the announcement at the Flag-in ceremony of the NDRF’s Mountaineering Expedition Vijay, emphasising the crucial role NDRF plays in national and international disaster response

Modi government has ended “policy paralysis” and transformed India into an economic bright spot, says Union Home Minister Amit Shah

If A.P. CM was really concerned about what happened, he should step down by owning moral responsibility, the BJP MP said

The Union Home Minister said, “Even generations after Rahul (Gandhi) would not be able to restore it (Article 370). Elections are being held here for the first time without Article 370 and a separate flag”

Speaking at the 32nd meeting of the Kendriya Hindi Samiti, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said it was necessary to translate all education curricula into Hindi and other Indian languages

Shah said that the movement for organic farming has reached an important stage and cooperatives have an important role in making India the world’s largest organic food producing country

Amit Shah said that Madhya Pradesh contributes 12% of the nation’s forest cover and termed the State as the ‘lungs of Bharat’

Home Minister says once the new laws are completely implemented, India will be the most modernised and technological savvy criminal justice system in the world

Maha Polls: Union Home Minister Shah said that a recent memorandum submitted by the Ulema Association to the Congress sought a 10 per cent reservation in jobs and education for the Muslim community but the BJP is against religion-based reservation.

Jharkhand Vidhansabha Chunav: Amit Shah said that legislation will be brought to prevent the transfer of land to infiltrators on their marrying tribal women. 

37% polling in Srinagar ‘greatest testament to rightness of the decision’, the Union Home Minister says; there is no doubt that the NDA is on its way to 400-plus seats, he adds; says that his party has no history of misusing a majority, and it was a Congress government that had imposed the Emergency and made changes to the Constitution

The Union Home Minister accused the Trinamool Congress government of State-sponsored infiltration and referred to R.G. Kar incident, where a doctor was raped and murdered at a State health facility

Home Minister Amit Shah made politically charged statements about “parivartan in 2026” and stopping “infiltrators” during a BSF event at the India-Bangladesh border to inaugurate a passenger terminal

We understand that being the Union Home Minister, he has enormous responsibilities. He must be too hard-pressed to squeeze some time out for us during the day-long visit,” says the mother of the deceased doctor

The parents of the victim had earlier written to Mr. Shah on October 22 requesting for an appointment to guide and help them get justice

The state BJP unit claimed the West Bengal government is only interested in bringing back people from a "particular community".

The ruling TMC in West Bengal and opposition BJP on Saturday traded barbs over ferrying migrant labourers, after Union Home Minister Amit Shah flagged the issue of "non-cooperation" by the state government, leaving the Mamata Banerjee-led party fuming, which accused him of spreading lies.

Union home minister Amit Shah on Monday squelched the speculation that had swirled about his health by saying that he is fine and is free of any disease whatsoever. “I want to make it clear that I am absolutely well and am not suffering from any disease,” Shah said in a tweet, poking fun at those behind the rumours about his medical condition.

I am absolutely well: Amit Shah on health rumours

Amit Shah, Mamata govt in spat over migrants

Amit Shah dismisses rumours about his health, says he is not suffering from any disease

1. Ahmedabad Police Detain 4 for Spreading Rumours on Amit Shah's Health  The Wire
2. I am healthy, not suffering from any disease, says Amit Shah  Times of India
3. HM Amit Shah silences all the rumour mongers, says 'No need to worry'  TIMES NOW
4. Not Allowing Migrants' Trains "Injustice": Amit Shah To Mamata Banerjee  NDTV
5. 'Not Suffering From Any Disease': Amit Shah Dismisses Rumours About His Health  Outlook India
6. View Full coverage on Google News

Bangkok/New Delhi: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday said India’s decision to not join China-backed mega Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) deal is a result of "PM Narendra Modi's strong leadership & unflinching resolve" to ensure national interest in all circumstances, adding: “it shall ensure support to our

Home Minister Amit Shah today tweeted to say he is healthy and not suffering from any disease, dismissing recent speculations on social media about his health.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a crucial meeting with home minister Amit Shah and finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman to firm up strategies for the financial sector in the aftermath of the Covid-19 outbreak.

Shah also launched a state-wide campaign, ‘Ar Noi Annay (No More Injustice)’, to take on Banerjee’s outreach programme, ‘Didi ke Bolo’.

Home Minister Amit Shah has said he is totally healthy and not suffering from any disease.

Four persons were detained by Ahmedabad police on Saturday for allegedly spreading misinformation about Union Home Minister Amit Shah's health by creating a fake Twitter account in his name.

This is the 20th installment of The Rationalist, my column for the Times of India.

Amit Shah’s induction into the union cabinet is such an interesting moment. Even partisans who oppose the BJP, as I do, would admit that Shah is a political genius. Under his leadership, the BJP has become an electoral behemoth in the most complicated political landscape in the world. The big question that now arises is this: can Shah do for India what he did for the BJP?

This raises a perplexing question: in the last five years, as the BJP has flourished, India has languished. And yet, the leadership of both the party and the nation are more or less the same. Then why hasn’t the ability to manage the party translated to governing the country?

I would argue that there are two reasons for this. One, the skills required in those two tasks are different. Two, so are the incentives in play.

Let’s look at the skills first. Managing a party like the BJP is, in some ways, like managing a large multinational company. Shah is a master at top-down planning and micro-management. How he went about winning the 2014 elections, described in detail in Prashant Jha’s book How the BJP Wins, should be a Harvard Business School case study. The book describes how he fixed the BJP’s ground game in Uttar Pradesh, picking teams for 147,000 booths in Uttar Pradesh, monitoring them, and keeping them accountable.

Shah looked at the market segmentation in UP, and hit upon his now famous “60% formula”. He realised he could not deliver the votes of Muslims, Yadavs and Jatavs, who were 40% of the population. So he focussed on wooing the other 60%, including non-Yadav OBCs and non-Jatav Dalits. He carried out versions of these caste reconfigurations across states, and according to Jha, covered “over 5 lakh kilometres” between 2014 and 2017, consolidating market share in every state in this country. He nurtured “a pool of a thousand new OBC and Dalit leaders”, going well beyond the posturing of other parties.

That so many Dalits and OBCs voted for the BJP in 2019 is astonishing. Shah went past Mandal politics, managing to subsume previously antagonistic castes and sub-castes into a broad Hindutva identity. And as the BJP increased its depth, it expanded its breadth as well. What it has done in West Bengal, wiping out the Left and weakening Mamata Banerjee, is jaw-dropping. With hindsight, it may one day seem inevitable, but only a madman could have conceived it, and only a genius could have executed it.

Good man to be Home Minister then, eh? Not quite. A country is not like a large company or even a political party. It is much too complex to be managed from the top down, and a control freak is bound to flounder. The approach needed is very different.

Some tasks of governance, it is true, are tailor-made for efficient managers. Building infrastructure, taking care of roads and power, building toilets (even without an underlying drainage system) and PR campaigns can all be executed by good managers. But the deeper tasks of making an economy flourish require a different approach. They need a light touch, not a heavy hand.

The 20th century is full of cautionary tales that show that economies cannot be centrally planned from the top down. Examples of that ‘fatal conceit’, to use my hero Friedrich Hayek’s term, include the Soviet Union, Mao’s China, and even the lady Modi most reminds me of, Indira Gandhi.

The task of the state, when it comes to the economy, is to administer a strong rule of law, and to make sure it is applied equally. No special favours to cronies or special interest groups. Just unleash the natural creativity of the people, and don’t try to micro-manage.

Sadly, the BJP’s impulse, like that of most governments of the past, is a statist one. India should have a small state that does a few things well. Instead, we have a large state that does many things badly, and acts as a parasite on its people.

As it happens, the few things that we should do well are all right up Shah’s managerial alley. For example, the rule of law is effectively absent in India today, especially for the poor. As Home Minister, Shah could fix this if he applied the same zeal to governing India as he did to growing the BJP. But will he?

And here we come to the question of incentives. What drives Amit Shah: maximising power, or serving the nation? What is good for the country will often coincide with what is good for the party – but not always. When they diverge, which path will Shah choose? So much rests on that.

© 2007 IndiaUncut.com. All rights reserved.
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This is the 20th installment of The Rationalist, my column for the Times of India.

Amit Shah’s induction into the union cabinet is such an interesting moment. Even partisans who oppose the BJP, as I do, would admit that Shah is a political genius. Under his leadership, the BJP has become an electoral behemoth in the most complicated political landscape in the world. The big question that now arises is this: can Shah do for India what he did for the BJP?

This raises a perplexing question: in the last five years, as the BJP has flourished, India has languished. And yet, the leadership of both the party and the nation are more or less the same. Then why hasn’t the ability to manage the party translated to governing the country?

I would argue that there are two reasons for this. One, the skills required in those two tasks are different. Two, so are the incentives in play.

Let’s look at the skills first. Managing a party like the BJP is, in some ways, like managing a large multinational company. Shah is a master at top-down planning and micro-management. How he went about winning the 2014 elections, described in detail in Prashant Jha’s book How the BJP Wins, should be a Harvard Business School case study. The book describes how he fixed the BJP’s ground game in Uttar Pradesh, picking teams for 147,000 booths in Uttar Pradesh, monitoring them, and keeping them accountable.

Shah looked at the market segmentation in UP, and hit upon his now famous “60% formula”. He realised he could not deliver the votes of Muslims, Yadavs and Jatavs, who were 40% of the population. So he focussed on wooing the other 60%, including non-Yadav OBCs and non-Jatav Dalits. He carried out versions of these caste reconfigurations across states, and according to Jha, covered “over 5 lakh kilometres” between 2014 and 2017, consolidating market share in every state in this country. He nurtured “a pool of a thousand new OBC and Dalit leaders”, going well beyond the posturing of other parties.

That so many Dalits and OBCs voted for the BJP in 2019 is astonishing. Shah went past Mandal politics, managing to subsume previously antagonistic castes and sub-castes into a broad Hindutva identity. And as the BJP increased its depth, it expanded its breadth as well. What it has done in West Bengal, wiping out the Left and weakening Mamata Banerjee, is jaw-dropping. With hindsight, it may one day seem inevitable, but only a madman could have conceived it, and only a genius could have executed it.

Good man to be Home Minister then, eh? Not quite. A country is not like a large company or even a political party. It is much too complex to be managed from the top down, and a control freak is bound to flounder. The approach needed is very different.

Some tasks of governance, it is true, are tailor-made for efficient managers. Building infrastructure, taking care of roads and power, building toilets (even without an underlying drainage system) and PR campaigns can all be executed by good managers. But the deeper tasks of making an economy flourish require a different approach. They need a light touch, not a heavy hand.

The 20th century is full of cautionary tales that show that economies cannot be centrally planned from the top down. Examples of that ‘fatal conceit’, to use my hero Friedrich Hayek’s term, include the Soviet Union, Mao’s China, and even the lady Modi most reminds me of, Indira Gandhi.

The task of the state, when it comes to the economy, is to administer a strong rule of law, and to make sure it is applied equally. No special favours to cronies or special interest groups. Just unleash the natural creativity of the people, and don’t try to micro-manage.

Sadly, the BJP’s impulse, like that of most governments of the past, is a statist one. India should have a small state that does a few things well. Instead, we have a large state that does many things badly, and acts as a parasite on its people.

As it happens, the few things that we should do well are all right up Shah’s managerial alley. For example, the rule of law is effectively absent in India today, especially for the poor. As Home Minister, Shah could fix this if he applied the same zeal to governing India as he did to growing the BJP. But will he?

And here we come to the question of incentives. What drives Amit Shah: maximising power, or serving the nation? What is good for the country will often coincide with what is good for the party – but not always. When they diverge, which path will Shah choose? So much rests on that.

The India Uncut Blog © 2010 Amit Varma. All rights reserved.
Follow me on Twitter.