Mint Views Daily Dispatch

According to the third round of YouGov-Mint Millennial Survey, pessimism grew among millennials (those aged between 23-38 years of age) between mid-September and mid-October. Surprisingly, millennials with higher educational qualifications were more pessimistic than those with lesser qualifications. Given that the economy is in a slowdown, the pessimism is perhaps understandable and maybe a temporary blip that would correct once the economy picks up pace. But could it be that there are deeper problems such as a lack of job skills or excessive mechanization that we may be ignoring? Mint Views Daily Dispatch brings you scenes from the Mint edit table where ideas are mooted, discussed and debated before they make it to the coveted editorial page of the paper.

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A five-judge bench of the Supreme Court has referred the review of its judgment in the Sabarimala case to a larger seven-judge bench. In its 2018 ruling, the top court had ordered that menstruating women must also be allowed to enter the temple. The petitioners, however, argue that this violates their freedom to religion. So are women being discriminated against or are religious practices being meddled with?

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The Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the disqualification of 17 rebel Congress and Janata Dal (Secular) legislators in Karnataka and to allow them to contest polls raises the question if the B.S. Yediyurappa government would survive. The by-polls are scheduled to be held in 15 assembly seats in the state on 5 December. For the BJP government to retain power, it must win a minimum of 6 seats. Will the voters re-elect these candidates? That could hold the key to the Karnataka government’s survival. 
Mint Views Daily Dispatch brings you clips from the Mint edit table where ideas are mooted, discussed and debated before they make it to the coveted editorial page of the paper.

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Hindutva as an ideology has aided the ruling party on its path to power, with issues such as the revocation of Article 370 of the Constitution and the Ram temple construction in Ayodhya serving as the cornerstones of the ideology. But with some of these issues now having been settled, the question is whether the political dividends of Hindutva politics are now past a peak?

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According to an analysis done by American Express, millennials account for a third of all the luxury spending done by its Indian customers, and this proportion is rising sharply. Does this suggest that the 19-39 year olds of the present times think differently from those in the previous generation? One might argue that there isn’t anything new in the upwardly mobile spending on luxuries regardless of the generation. But it may also be true that peer pressure to flaunt a certain lifestyle is driving a shift in their behaviour?

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WhatsApp downloads in India reportedly fell by a dramatic 80% to 1.8 million between October 26 and November 3 from the previous nine-day period. At the same time, rivals such as Telegram and Signal witnessed a considerable jump in their number of users. This shift could most likely have been a result of the spyware row involving WhatsApp, but do users really need to be this alarmed? Considering all messaging platforms can be vulnerable to spyware attacks, the shift might be an overreaction.

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Microsoft tested out a four-day work week in Japan and found a significant rise in the productivity of its workers by 40%. Similar studies also echo along the same lines where employees reported better work-life balance, improved focus in office among others. Sure, this has its perks but is it viable in an Indian office space is the question? Plus, there could be adverse effects too of such a practice, for instance workers might develop a more casual attitude. Perhaps this idea requires more experimentation before it can become a reality.

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Jack Dorsey, CEO of Twitter Inc, in a series of tweets announced that political advertising on the platform would be banned. The reach of the political messages, he said, should be “earned“ and not “bought”. The move is of significance given the misuse of social media to spread fake news that can influence public opinion. But it also raises the question if such a ban is justified in a democracy that swears by the principles of free speech. A middle ground is perhaps what is required.

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According to reports, the government is planning to scrap the dividend distribution tax paid by companies. One argument is that taxing dividends amounts to double taxation since the profits of the company, from which dividends are distributed, are already subjected to tax. In addition, we need more people to buy shares to expand our capital markets, and such disincentives can place hurdles. But in a country like India where there is wide inequality in the distribution of wealth, such a move might be seen as favouring capitalists, or the rich, at the cost of the middle class, which pays high income tax.

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The Shiv Sena is acting tough with its alliance partner Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Maharashtra. It wants the post of chief minister to be shared by the two parties for half of the assembly’s term each. The BJP, having emerged the largest party in the just-concluded state election, wants its leader to occupy that position all through. Some of the Sena’s posturing may be an effort to negotiate a better deal, but it may also reflect a growing concern within the party over its diminishing role in the state as the BJP expands its presence there. If the bickering continues, governance would take a hit. That is not something the electorate would want.

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