CFR Senior Fellow, WSJ Columnist. Author of My Friend the Fanatic and Tinderbox.
Washington, DC
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Bigoted attacks on Indian-Americans by a section of MAGA signal a deeper problem for the GOP. The multiracial coalition that powered Trump to victory in 2024 is collapsing. [My take]
wsj.com/opinion/some-republi…
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This is what real journalism looks like. Take a bow @RitikaChopra__ and The Indian Express.
The Election Commission of India is under fire like never before.
The SIR has struck 13 crore names off draft rolls, putting the EC at the centre of intense public debate over its role in deciding who gets to vote — and who doesn’t.
HOWEVER, what nobody knew: through that same period, some of the sharpest questions were being asked from inside.
Out today, after months of work. Our #ExpressInvestigation 🧵
(1/10)
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Sadanand Dhume retweeted
Some Republicans don’t want Indian-American votes. The multiracial coalition that elected Trump in 2024 may fracture because of bigotry within the party, writes @dhume
on.wsj.com/3V8SmIY
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A student who cheats in an exam should be suspended or expelled. A professor who uses casteist slurs should be sacked. Sad to see India’s skewed political discourse struggle to accommodate both these commonsense positions.
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I view this differently. Rahul Gandhi does not grasp that what works with people who loathe Modi may not work with those who are fence-sitters or have mixed feelings about the PM. A smarter politician would figure out how to appeal to both kinds of voters. RG struggles with this.
The BJP is right to be upset. A smart leader like the PM knows that politicians should expect to be attacked. But when they become figures of fun and are regularly lampooned it becomes much more difficult to recover
It’s taken Rahul Gandhi a decade to win back his stature & credibility
Narendra Modi knows that jokes are the Opposition’s most powerful weapon
ndtv.com/india-news/uncouth-…
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“Today’s far-right nativists claim to defend American identity, but they’re importing the European blood-and-soil politics that America has rejected.” [Good @anangbhai essay on the recent upsurge of attacks on Indian-Americans.]
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Over the past seven years, #GrandTamasha has become essential listening for anyone interested in India. Congrats to @MilanV @CarnegieEndow and @htTweets for this milestone.
Today, we celebrate the release of our 300th episode of #GrandTamasha. To discuss the latest on policy & politics from India--plus what has changed (and what hasn't) since we began the show in 2019--I'm joined by regular guests @dhume & @tanvi_madan piped.video/watch?v=PXSSDRqy…
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Sadanand Dhume retweeted
An India-China rapprochement isn’t in the cards. Xi Jinping’s visit to the Brics summit in New Delhi is progress, but relations ruptured by 2020 border clashes remain fragile, writes @dhume
on.wsj.com/4r4bxzl
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A Xi Jinping visit to New Delhi over the weekend would cap Indian and Chinese efforts to heal ties ruptured by a bloody 2020 clash in the Himalayas. But nobody should expect a sweeping rapprochement between the world’s two most populous nations. [My take]
wsj.com/opinion/an-india-chi…
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Guess we’ll find out soon enough if the Saudi-Pakistan defense agreement and the Mecca Pact are worth the paper they’re printed on.
The gloves are off. Saudi Arabia will finish the job against the Iranian-backed Houthi militia.
Saudi Ministry of Defense: "73 civilians, including women and children, were injured in attacks by the Houthi militia on civilian and economic facilities in southern Saudi Arabia."
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There’s no exact parallel, but what’s happening in Germany with the AFD looks remarkably similar to Indian politics in the early 1990s: the old order crumbling, a new challenger on the right espousing a form of ethnic nationalism, a desperate attempt by established parties to build a firewall against the threat, the firewall quickly collapsing.
One big difference: A first past the post system like India’s is much friendlier to insurgent parties than a proportional representation system. In a first past the post election, AFD could have easily won a two-thirds majority in Saxony-Anhalt.
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The strange beauty of British democracy on full display: Here’s an ordinary voter (a geography teacher) cross-examining a sitting prime minister on live television about a decision to sink an enemy ship in wartime.
"I think it could only be in Britain that a Prime Minister was accused of sinking an enemy ship that was a danger to our navy when my main motive was to protect the boys in our navy."
–Margaret Thatcher to Diana Gould questioning the sinking of the Belgrano, one of the key turning points in the Falklands War, in 1983
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Upon a long established foundation of condescension, younger Chinese researchers on India now encounter a country much poorer and less militarily capable, but which likes to talk a big game. No wonder they are dismissive of India’s ambitions. economist.com/asia/2026/09/0…
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What India is putting its people through in the name of revising electoral rolls is objectively insane. Nobody appears to have considered the consequences if large numbers of people begin to mistrust elections, which have long been the crowning achievement of Indian democracy.
I thought I had done everything required under Karnataka’s SIR
After online/offline detective work, helped by neighbours on WhatsApp, I tracked down 2002 voting details for myself & my mother Both our names appeared on the draft roll on 24 Aug
I heaved a sigh of relief
🧵 1/12
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Sadanand Dhume retweeted
@RichardHanania: “It’s not news that stupid people are stupid. But one feature of populist movements is that the attitudes, beliefs, and aesthetics of more excitable and less thoughtful members of the public end up in control.” [On the failure of the tech right.]
richardhanania.com/p/why-the…
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Dignity is one of those strange things that are hard to define, but that people instinctively recognize when they encounter it. In the cacophony of Indian TV news, Naghma Sahar stood out for her calm professionalism and quiet dignity. She will be missed.
It’s finally goodbye to NDTV.
I spent 23 years with the NDTV I knew, and somehow the last three with the “new” NDTV.
But there comes a moment when you realise that a chapter has simply run its course. No grand conclusions. Just the quiet relief of knowing it is time to move on. Some chapters need to be closed
So for now It is what it is.
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Fine to make this point, @ConstantinoX. But India’s image problem is not confined to America. In 2011, 71% of Australians had a favorable view of India. It’s now down to 44%.
A lot of folks have responded to my piece with some version of “we don’t care” or “public opinion doesn’t matter.” The first response is perfectly valid. It’s fine if Indians (or Americans, Nigerians or Peruvians) choose not to care about how the world sees their country. Nobody is forcing you to read Pew surveys or articles about them.
The “public opinion doesn’t matter” argument is a little trickier. It’s true that opinion polls are rarely the most important determinant of foreign policy. India-Australia ties have deepened considerably even as India’s favorability ratings among Australians have plummeted over the past 15 years. The U.S. has close ties with many countries whose publics loathe America. (Hello Pakistan.)
Nonetheless, public opinion does matter, at least at the margins. As a diplomat, your work is much easier when the public in the country where you’re posted is favorably disposed toward your home country. This is especially true of democracies. I don’t see how any reasonable person can disagree with this.
Much discussion about this piece by @dhume, whose writings always provoke thought.
Worth considering an alternative:
America has a global perspective problem.
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Sadanand Dhume retweeted
From @WSJopinion: India has a global image problem. Less than half of Americans view New Delhi favorably today, down from nearly two-thirds in 2008. That could influence foreign policy, writes @dhume.
on.wsj.com/4wVSl8d
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Mounds of rotting garbage, trains overflowing with commuters, half-drowned school buses on flooded roads. The age of social media has been brutal for India’s global image. [My take]
wsj.com/opinion/indias-globa…
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