Nirmala Sitharaman’s appointment as India’s full-time Defence Minister was received with surprise, euphoria and cynicism, roughly in that order. It has been hijacked as an issue of women’s empowerment, whereas the core issue is empowerment of the armed forces. Overzealous TV anchors labelled it as the ultimate Raksha Bandhan. For the rest of us, at least we have a defence minister!

Audio: The Quint