Senior Editor Manoj Joshi with a replica of the INS DelhiPolitics in India is getting curiouser and curiouser. Uttar Pradesh - with 85 MPs the state with the most political clout - is the latest example. The circumstances surrounding the transfer of power from the BSP to the BJP is once again a reminder of manipulative doublespeak that seems to have infected politicians. As a news magazine, examining trends is part of our job; in Uttar Pradesh, however, the bizarre crosscurrents at work have left even hardened political pundits confused. But then, this is the disease that comes with coalition politics: one day, warring parties forge a cosy alliance, the next day they refuse to sit in the same room together. So it seems in Uttar Pradesh, where Chief Minister Mayawati and Kanshi Ram have suddenly decided that they will hand over the reins of the state to the BJP only if certain safeguards are given. This change of stance, this inconsistency that plagues the politics of India's most populous state, has been reason enough for us to put it on the cover. Still, it was a daunting task for our team of Associate Editor Farzand Ahmed and Principal Correspondents Saba Naqvi Bhaumik and Subhash Mishra to sift through the doublespeak and examine the method behind the Kanshi-Mayawati machinations.Meanwhile, far removed from the dust of Uttar Pradesh, Senior Editor Manoj Joshi was taking a closer look at India's new destroyer INS Delhi, the biggest warship ever built in Indian shipyards. .preferred-source-banner{ margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom:10px;}Protecting India's waters is a major concern and INS Delhi will provide the Navy a greater reach in the Indian Ocean. Says Joshi, who was granted exclusive access to the destroyer, "It is truly a sophisticated war machine." Unlike our politics, at least this is something we can be proud of.Published By: AtMigration Published On: Sep 22, 1997--- ENDS ---
