Left, Right & Centre

The murder of popular Punjabi singer Sidhu Moose Wala on Sunday is having huge political reverberations. The AAP government in Punjab is under fire for the law and order situation, particularly in a sensitive border state. Moose Wala's killing in broad daylight came a day after the Bhagwant Mann government announced it was scaling back or removing the security of over 400 individuals, including Moose Wala. However, Moose Wala did have his bulletproof car and two security men, though it's not clear why he didn't use them when he went out. It's the latest in a series of crises to hit the new AAP government. Is the trouble brewing in Mann's world?

PM Modi visited his home state Gujarat ahead of the state elections that are due in a few months and inaugurated a multi-specialty hospital built by a Patidar group. The BJP is focusing on the Patidar community that constitute 12% of Gujarat's population, and hold a sway in the state's electoral politics. During his visit, he said that in the last 8 years, he's neither allowed nor done anything that'll make anyone in India hang their heads in shame. Has PM Modi built the India that Gandhi and Patel dreamt of?

A murder case has been registered in Madhya Pradesh after 65-year-old mentally ill man was found dead and a video emerged showing him being brutally assaulted. In the video, the attacker can be seen asking the senior citizen if his "name is Mohammed", and then repeatedly thrashing him as he struggled to answer. The victim's name turned out to be Bhanwarlal Jain. The attacker has been identified as Dinesh Kushwaha - the husband of a former BJP corporator. Where does this hate story end?

 

The price of petrol will come down by Rs 9.5, while the diesel will be cheaper by Rs 7 as Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced a sharp cut in central excise duty on fuel prices amid spiralling inflation. A subsidy has been announced for Ujjwala beneficiaries as well. The While the Prime Minister says the decision will give iimpetus to "ease of living", the Congress accuses the centre of 'fooling' people.

After Gyanvapi, a lawsuit demanding the removal of a mosque in Mathura said to be built on the birthplace of Lord Krishna has been allowed by a court. Does India really need another assertion of raw majoritarian power? This development comes on a day when a set of details on apparent Hindu structures inside the Gyanvapi mosque, for the second consecutive time, have been leaked to the media before they have been considered in court. Tonight's episode of Left, Right & Centre discusses the question: Where is the process of law? Is the Babri script at play again?

The Congress has slammed the government for creating what it calls 'a situation' in court to get the Rajiv Gandhi case convict AG Perarivalan released. They say these are the BJP's "petty and cheap politics". "A terrorist is a terrorist and should be treated as one," is what they said. The party said they were pained by the Supreme Court verdict ordering the release. At the same time, the DMK, the ally of the Congress continues to celebrate the release - a sore point between the two parties in the past. On the show we ask, should convicted terrorists be spared the death penalty?

The Supreme Court passed an interim order in the Gyanvapi mosque dispute - to secure the 'shivling' area inside the mosque, but not to stop the Muslims from praying. A Varanasi court also removed the official who was leading the videography survey - this official was in charge when lawyers revealed the contents of his survey even before it has been presented in court. These developments bring the larger issue into focus: does the Hindu faith grow stronger by imposing its right on minorities? And when are we going to stop digging for old temples under pre-existing religious sites? 

The new Confederation of Indian Industry president Sanjiv Bajaj takes over at a time when there are considerable challenges afflicting our economy, even as India tries to get back on the fast-growth track. While the growth numbers in the post Covid context are encouraging, we find ourselves affected by record inflation rates, food insecurity, and foreign investors selling Indian stocks, among others. Sanjiv Bajaj joins us on tonight's episode of Left, Right & Centre to decode India's economic worries. 

"It hasn't seeped in yet," said Thomas Cup champion Kidambi Srikanth on tonight's episode of Left, Right & Centre. "I have no words to describe this feeling, it's a great win", he further added.

"We're dancing and jumping all around, we'll carry on like this for two more weeks," said Thomas Cup champion Satwiksairaj Rankireddy on tonight's episode of Left, Right & Centre. "What we did yesterday was unimaginable," said Chirag Shetty, who admitted they'd never done well in team events before.