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The Print
an hour ago
- Politics
- The Print
Pahalgam, Pakistan generals, pitches—what readers wrote to us in May
I did think of writing about ThePrint's coverage of Operation Sindoor in this piece but decided against it since the April column had dealt with our reporting on the Pahalgam terror attack. Operation Sindoor, launched by India against terrorist targets in Pakistan on 7 May, has been the story of the month. Instead, this column will feature readers' comments that I have received over the past few months. However, before we get down to the compliments and the complaints—and even a few curses—let me just say that ThePrint spent days and several nights covering all angles of Operation Sindoor, the subsequent military battle between India and Pakistan, the 10 May ceasefire, and the domestic and international impact of these actions. Up to 14 ThePrint journalists were sent to Jammu and Kashmir, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana, and Punjab to report from the ground during the four-day conflict. In-depth analysis of India's defence capabilities, its strategic gains, and the long-term consequences of its strikes were also covered extensively. The Opinion section of the website had military and diplomatic experts explain what many consider a defining moment in India's strategy against terror, as articulated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his address to the nation, in which he outlined a 'new normal' policy. There's no space to mention all the good work done at ThePrint in May. But I would like to cite one story that best illustrates the teamwork which contributed to ThePrint's 'war' effort in significant ways. The breaking story came from ThePrint's science writer, Soumya Pillai. Her report of 9 May—'Orders for Pahalgam satellite images from US firm peaked two months before attack'—was perhaps the only story in the news media to provide proof of the planning behind the Pahalgam attack, and to link it to Pakistan. To quote from the story: 'Two months before terrorists killed 26 people in Kashmir, a top US-based space tech company saw an unprecedented spike in orders for high-resolution satellite images of Pahalgam and its surrounding areas… These high-resolution images are often used by defence agencies for monitoring troop movements, weapon installations, and infrastructure development…' Pillai wrote that the company, Maxar Technologies, first received orders for images of Pahalgam in June 2024 '…just months after Maxar acquired a new partner: a Pakistan-based geo-spatial company linked to federal crimes in the US.' That's pretty plausible evidence, right? Congratulations, Soumya Pillai. Also, while we are in a self-congratulatory mood, three journalists from ThePrint have won the Justice Media Award 2024-25. Apoorva Mandhani, Bismee Taskin, and Khadija Khan have been recognised 'for their contributions towards enhancing public understanding of justice and the legal system.' Read all about it here. Also Read: ThePrint's in-depth ground reports are now multimedia-interactive. 2025 vision board In the words of readers Right, now it's to the readers' mail. Readers had many issues on their minds, and India's conflict with Pakistan was just one of them. Articles and comments on the latter were submitted: 'Will Pakistan attack India again?' asked one reader on 15 May, adding that there was a complete blackout in his city — '…as per TV news there is a danger that Pakistan may attack India again?' he wrote. Then there was an article titled 'IMF's $2.3 billion loan to Pakistan: A history of bailouts casting shadows on the Fund's credibility in combating the financing of terrorism'. Another piece was 'How Pakistan wins the war it never fights'. One reader had a bright idea: why not collaborate on a documentary about Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, who has been very vocal in his support for the Modi government's actions. In 'Proposal to explore Shri Shashi Tharoor as a potential PM candidate', the reader said Tharoor is '…a unique and compelling leader on the national stage'. A more sombre submission was an article titled 'How the Pahalgam attack reflects India's descent into communal darkness'—and this piece, 'Faith didn't kill them. Fanaticism did' from a Class 11 student, which in his words '…emphasises the need for unity while rejecting communal narratives.' We had other submissions too on Pahalgam and Operation Sindoor, but unfortunately, we've been unable to publish them given the volume of expert views we did carry on these topics. But thank you for your interest, readers— we do appreciate it. I also received a few complaints. Some readers objected to individual opinion pieces. In response to journalist and TMC Rajya Sabha MP Sagarika Ghose's piece 'After Operation Sindoor, let's choose truth over TV theatre', a reader wrote: (she is) 'quite one-sided and full of anti BJP rhetoric without much rational thought… Is criticism the default option of Ms Ghose come what may?' Objections to tone, length, ads More criticism came our way on articles written about other subjects. I was in the firing line for recent Tele-Scope columns. One reader began gently enough: 'There are three people in total at ThePrint whom I have very high regard for: U, Mr Gupta, and Snehesh… (But) I was extremely disappointed by your article today… you sounded less like a serious journalist, more like the alleged rabid Islamist Rana Ayyub or the congress doormat (to quote Mr Amit Malviya) Rajdeep Sardesai… Unfortunate!!!' What had upset him so was this article. A ground report on the sex lives of college students got a lot of reader interest—and some criticism. A worried reader thought the piece was 'avoidable' as '…the publication of such report perhaps will serve as an encouragement to other young readers… and more members of other sex will be hence victimized.' My reply was that the 'secret' lives ought to brought out into the open so that the public becomes aware of the need to create a healthy environment for normal, sexual behaviour. A really angry mail came from students of the Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences regarding the article 'World's largest indigenous school in Odisha is a jail; we're all monkeys, says a tribal student'. They expressed 'immense pain' and a 'deep sense of betrayal'—'Have you ever visited our campus? Have you spoken to us, the children of KISS, before labelling our home as a 'jail'?' they wrote. 'Your article reeks of prejudice, ignorance, and insensitivity.' ThePrint replied with a point-by-point rebuttal of the allegations. For example, nowhere in the article did ThePrint claim it had entered the KISS premises—we had no permission to do so. We did speak to students, parents, and alumni, and the story cites a report by the National Human Rights Commission in 2025: 'The KIIT University and KISS have both been unable to comply with the law and failed to provide safety and security to their students.' Quite often, I receive backhanded compliments that are actually complaints. Like this one: 'I'm a long-time reader of your journal, and I find its reporting better and truer than the propaganda churned out by Godi media…' Great. But then: 'On the other hand, your journal does suffer from certain handicaps… Some of the articles are too long… they fail to hold my interest. For instance, the article by Manasi Phadake (sic), 'How big stars and bloated blockbusters are bleeding Bollywood dry', is way too long…' Finally, the reader has a word of advice: 'What you need is a good Editor who will ruthlessly trim the fat…' Personally, I found Phadke's article informative and the data it presented, persuasive. ThePrint has a very competent editing team who do 'ruthlessly trim the fat' but I have passed this on to them, nevertheless. Readers frequently complain about advertisements interrupting their reading of articles: 'I admire print journalism… it would be ideal if the articles could be printed without any ads interfering,' wrote in a reader. I wish we could all enjoy an ad-free experience but financial imperatives dictate otherwise. So, apologies, but please bear with us. Also Read: How ThePrint's small newsroom brought you Pahalgam from every angle, minus the noise Conversations—and compliments I also receive mail that is neither complimentary nor critical. Readers simply want to share their views. One reader, for example, wrote about 'When truth breaks its bones in the fall from power'—'The battle between truth and power is not new, but its stakes have never been higher…'' And this, on taxes: 'Taxed for earning. Taxed for spending. Taxed for saving'. 'You work 12 hours a day / Income Tax cuts your salary. You go shopping /GST slaps your bill. You save and invest /Capital gains eats your reward… You die. And they're considering inheritance tax next.' A very long mail arrived in the mailbox on the ruling party, titled: 'Hallo — all the Lordships of the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India: please DO NOT UNDER-ESTIMATE the RSS of BJP…' Some readers ask for our opinion — or rather that of Editor-in-Chief Shekhar Gupta: 'One thing which is not talked about a lot is that Gen. Munir is the first general of Pakistan Army who was commissioned (in 1986) when Zia was firmly in control of the army. Gen. Zia was in his conservative avatar, transforming Pakistani society… What are your thoughts on this? Would this mean the coming crop of generals from Pakistan would be more radical and conservative Islamists than their predecessors?' Finally, let me share a few compliments. The first — 'Thank you all for your reporting on the Pehalgam (sic) attack… Unlike some other channels, you guys have not tried to portray it Hindu vs Muslim. I felt that all your reports were subtly trying to tell the readers that it's a terrorist act effected by Pakistan and Indian Muslims are together in this with the rest of India.' And there's this one: 'Dear The Print (sic) team and Mr Shekhar Gupta, Thank you for doing what you are doing and please continue. I have been a big fan… of The Print. I have been diligently consuming important information pieces, and have been referring to The Print articles/videos anytime I needed a reliable source of information. Thank you for your non-hyphenated journalism.' Thank you, readers, for your continuing faith in ThePrint. Shailaja Bajpai is ThePrint's Readers' Editor. Please write in with your views and complaints to (Edited by Asavari Singh)
Indian Express
3 hours ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
What the European right can learn from India
Earlier this week, I was in Budapest to address the annual conference of the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), a prestigious US-based group. It is influential in US politics and has close links with President Donald Trump and other Republican leaders. In Europe, CPAC also has an important role in creating a unified voice for conservative parties and leaders. This year's conference attracted major right-wing leaders from various countries in Europe and Latin America. Viktor Orban, the host country's Prime Minister, was there along with the Prime Minister of Georgia, several former prime ministers — including from the UK and the Czech Republic — several serving ministers, Members of the European Parliament (MEPs), MPs and commentators. President Trump delivered a brief video message. As one of the speakers, an Arab-origin Congressman from Arizona, US, commented, the CPAC has become the Mecca of European conservatism. Through two days and dozens of speakers, the agenda of the conference revolved round the challenges faced by the European right from the opportunistic rainbow alliances that comprise traditionally centrist parties and liberal and left parties, whose sole aim is to prevent the rise of conservative politics on the continent. The last decade witnessed the unprecedented rise of right-wing parties in several European nations, including Italy, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, Austria, Slovakia and the Czech Republic. Hungary has been under the rule of Orban's right-wing Fidesz party for the past 15 years. In 2024, many political observers had predicted a right-wing-dominated European Parliament. However, the election results on June 6, 2024, did not provide that opportunity to the right-wing parties. They registered significant gains, but failed to emerge as the dominant force. They emerged as a strong voice and formed a pressure group called Patriots for Europe (PfE), which today boasts a membership of close to 100 MEPs. The rise of the right seems to have rattled the liberals who control the EU. Leaders like Orban have been subjected to severe criticism and his government was denied legitimate financial support from the EU on the flimsy grounds of citizens' rights and democratic downslide. When Orban took a firm stand against immigration, tightening borders and asylum laws, the EU leadership took the unusual measure of slapping a penalty of 1 million euros per day on his government. If the enthusiasm at the Budapest conference is any indication, such undemocratic and coercive measures by the EU, dominated by liberal groups, seemed to have had the opposite effect. A renewed vigour and determination to take on challenges like illegal immigration, radical Islam, globalism and woke forces was palpable through the conference, which had the 'Age of Patriots' as its main theme. Speaker after speaker reiterated their determination to fight back against what many described as 'liberal fascism'. Incidentally, I was the only non-Western speaker at the conference — this highlights the fact that while Western liberals have reached out systematically to all corners of the world, Western conservatives have limited their activism to Europe and the Americas. I told the conference that while our politics may not be the same, we, too, share some of the conservative values like God, religion, family, sovereignty and patriotism. Like the Western conservatives, the Indian right, too, sees illegal immigration as a threat to national sovereignty and woke liberalism as a danger to tradition and family values. Unfortunately, in India, the initial decades after Independence witnessed the dominance of Western liberal political ideas like socialism and globalism. A Nehruvian consensus was created, championing these ideas through not only state institutions but also the media and academia. Religiosity, cultural values, and national identity faced serious threats. Over several decades, a relentless battle was waged at the grassroots level to unshackle the country from left-liberal influence and build a strong cultural nationalist politics. It culminated in the election of the Narendra Modi government in 2014. In the last decade, the cultural nationalist project in India achieved significant successes. The Ram Temple in Ayodhya symbolises the defeat of pseudo-secular politics in the country, while the demise of Article 370 signified the death of liberal appeasement of separatism and radicalism. While Modi's market-friendly policies have catapulted India in just 10 years from the 11th biggest economy to the cusp of being the fourth biggest economy in the world, his zero tolerance for terror has resulted in the decimation of radical Islamist forces. The government has also clamped down on illegal immigrants. Indian media and academia, too, have turned nationalist and patriotic — substantially but not in full measure — pushing left-liberals to the fringe. In the wake of the recent terror attacks in Kashmir, Modi successfully mobilised the support of some liberals, who had been apologists for radical Islamists, in the war on terror. Understanding the nuances of India's experience in the revival of cultural nationalist politics can help the Western conservative movement in its struggle against the left liberal onslaught. The Indian right may not fully subscribe to the agenda of their counterparts in the West. European conservatives use God and religion in the singular, while Indian nationalists use them in the plural. Indian nationalists believe in values like pluralism, statism and environmental activism, which may sound very much like the liberal agenda to the right in the West. Yet, there is enough ground for engagement and dialogue. If the Western conservatives secure support from a big country like India, their power is bound to multiply manifold. Having India on their side is akin to having two Europes, four USAs or 140 Hungarys with them. The writer, president, India Foundation, is with the BJP
The Star
5 hours ago
- Business
- The Star
Outrage over Leissner's ‘inadequate' sentence in 1MDB case
PETALING JAYA: Widespread criticism has emerged over the two-year sentence imposed on former Goldman Sachs banker Tim Leissner for his role in the 1MDB scandal, with many arguing it fails to reflect the gravity of the crime. Malaysian Bar president Mohamad Ezri Abdul Wahab described the punishment as inadequate and warned of its broader implications for justice and deterrence. He said while the Bar respects the independence of the US judiciary and acknowledges the court's characterisation of Leissner's actions as 'brazen and audacious,' many Malaysians reasonably view the sentence as insufficient given the scale of the wrongdoing. 'An apology cannot undo the damage. Justice in cases of this magnitude must reflect not only accountability but also deterrence. 'Lenient outcomes risk eroding public confidence and failing to prevent future abuses of financial systems,' he said when contacted yesterday. Leissner, formerly Goldman Sachs' South-East Asia chairman, had pleaded guilty in 2018 to conspiring to violate the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and participating in a money laundering scheme. He later cooperated with US prosecutors, becoming a key witness in the conviction of his former colleague Roger Ng. Ng has pleaded not guilty to charges of conspiring to launder money and violate an anti-bribery law. Ng, the former head of investment banking for Goldman in Malaysia, was convicted in Brooklyn and sentenced to 10 years in prison, but had been brought here in 2023 to assist in investigations. Too short: Mohamad Ezri (left) and Johari were among those who expressed their disappointment. US-based journalist Tom Wright, who co-authored Billion Dollar Whale detailing the 1MDB saga, also criticised the sentence. In a post on X, Wright said the outcome 'is no justice' and argued that Leissner's cooperation in Ng's prosecution did not justify such a lenient term. 'That is punching down,' he wrote. In his newsletter Whale Hunting, Wright questioned whether justice had truly been served, especially in relation to Goldman Sachs' role in raising US$6.5bil in bonds for 1MDB, a fund set up by ex- Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, with the help of fugitive financier Jho Low. 'Not by a long shot,' Wright remarked. Echoing similar concerns, Plantation and Commodities Minister Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani, who chairs Malaysia's 1MDB asset recovery task force, described the sentence as 'too short.' Speaking to Reuters, he said: 'Considering he is one of the masterminds facilitating the 1MDB scandal, he should be given the maximum jail sentence.' Centre to Combat Corruption and Cronyism (C4) founding director Cynthia Gabriel also weighed in, describing the two-year sentence as 'a light slap on the wrist' that does not match the gravity of the financial crimes committed. Gabriel stressed that the scale of theft and money laundering, involving a leading financial institution like Goldman Sachs must not be taken lightly. The 1MDB scandal, which saw billions siphoned from the Malaysian sovereign wealth fund, triggered investigations across several jurisdictions and remains one of the largest financial scandals in global history.
Time of India
6 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
PE-VC investments in May CY2025 hit hard, down to $1.5bn
Chennai: Private equity-venture capital (PE-VC) investments in May witnessed a sharp fall. It fell 48% over April (CY2025) at $2.9 billion and plunged by $2.3 billion when compared with May last year (CY2024) at $3.8 billion. The investments as on May 30, 2025, exclude those from the real estate sector. 'Buyouts have been a key driver of the value of PE investments in recent years. Even in the first quarter of 2025, global PE firms like KKR and TPG, as well as home grown firms like Multiples PE and Everstone have executed significant such control transactions. The pace of large buyout announcements have significantly slowed down in the last couple of months - contributing to the decline in PE investment value,' Arun Natarajan, founder, Venture Intelligence told TOI. Assuming the global economic turbulence settles down, we can expect more confident bets by both Indian and international investors, he added. In May, Porter, an on-demand logistics platform, raising $200 million in a Series F round led by Kedaara Capital and Wellington Management topped the PE-VC investments. It was followed by private equity fund Norwest announcing that it has led a Rs 1,465-crore investment in the non-bank lender IKF Finance. Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Dermatologista recomenda: simples truque elimina o fungo facilmente Acabe com o Fungo Undo Growth in the PE-VC investment sector was also flat during the Jan-May period of CY2025 at $13.5 billion against $13.2 billion during the corresponding period last year, data released by research firm Venture Intelligence on Friday showed. It was dominated by institutional investments in late stage companies that are more than 10 years old at $3.9 billion. Apart from global macro uncertainty, factors including shift in investors sentiment, who are being more cautious with capital deployment influenced investments, according to analysts. Ashutosh Kumar Jha- general partner at Expert Dojo, a US-based startup accelerator and VC firm said, many VC and PE funds have shifted their focus from volume to value. 'These dips aren't always bad news. Sometimes, they just mean investors are thinking harder about where to place their bets.' Noting that dominance of late-stage deals indicate that investors are doubling down on companies that have proven business models and closer to profitability or IPOs, he said, 'Growth looks flat, but this phase could be laying the groundwork for a healthier and more disciplined investment cycle in the second half of the year,' he added. Stay informed with the latest business news, updates on bank holidays and public holidays . AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
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Business Standard
8 hours ago
- Business
- Business Standard
Artificial intelligence watch: Tech middle managers stare at job blues
Being just a software engineer is not good enough, Nina Schick, an expert on artificial intelligence (AI) and founder and chief executive of Tamang Ventures, said last week at a packed conference in Bengaluru. 'Level up,' she said while explaining the importance of thinking about the next-generation skills. In the midst of all the upskilling talk in the AI era, middle managers in the tech sector seem to be delicately placed, analysts believe. Quite like the entry-level software roles. 'It's a matter of time before middle-management jobs will come under scrutiny, especially as AI agents get better at supervision and decision-making. A significant number of middle managers in the tech sector would need to be reskilled, repurposed or made redundant,' says Nitin Bhatt, partner and technology sector leader at EY. The fact that not only entry-level roles but also experienced positions can be impacted by automation and AI has sparked off uncertainty, nudging more people to reskill themselves. According to industry executives, jobs of mid-level managers with about 20 years of experience —essentially people managers — are at risk. This cohort, they say, must not remain just a manager but be a techie in the new AI-led universe. The way software is being written, tested, developed, and deployed is changing fast. 'AI is not taking your job but people who use AI will,' points out Praveen Neppalli Naga, chief technology officer, mobility and delivery, Uber. 'There is a difference between an engineer using Cursor and one not using it. The scale of this change is big.' Such managers are big in number across India. TeamLease, a leading staffing firm, estimates this segment at 10-15 per cent of the total technology managerial roles that are primarily support functions. According to Xpheno, a specialist staffing firm, there are about 610,000 senior talent in India, with experience between 13 and 17 years. 'There was a time not too long ago, maybe five to 10 years ago, when the concept of a manager was supposed to be a people manager. There is no people manager anymore. None of our engineering leaders are people managers because they are hardcore techies. Unless you understand technology, you cannot lead people,' says Rohit Kaila, head of technology and site leader at the India technology centre of Wayfair, a US-based ecommerce company. In line with that thinking, Zoho founder Sridhar Vembu recently cautioned software engineers that better salaries than a mechanical or civil engineer 'is not some birthright'. He posted on X: 'The productivity revolution I see coming to software development (LLMs + tooling) could destroy a lot of software jobs.' Data from Nasscom, a tech industry association, shows while more than 400,000 engineers in India are trained on AI, just 73,000 have advanced AI skilling knowledge, highlighting the skill gap. The Nasscom data also shows that India will create 2.7 million newer AI jobs by 2028. 'The ones facing challenges are those without specialised skills. For example, someone with only basic Java programming skills will struggle. GPT (generative pre-trained transformer) tools and internal LLMs (large language models) are now writing such codes and demand for routine jobs is going down,' says Aditya Narayan Mishra, managing director and CEO of Ciel HR. IT under pressure India's information technology (IT) sector has long been one of the top employment generators, absorbing thousands of students from engineering colleges every year for maintenance and support of IT systems of multinationals. And yet, that sector is poised for a tectonic shift in the face of AI, analysts say. 'Codes are increasingly being churned by machines and software testing, one of the most traditionally structured functions within the software development life cycle (SDLC), is also getting automated.' There will be entry-level roles, but what is L2 and L3 will become L1 because automation is making a lot of entry-level jobs redundant, points out Neeti Sharma, chief executive, TeamLease Digital. That has led to a drop in hiring rates of IT companies. The top-five IT companies hired just 12,718 people in the last financial year, compared to 66,500 for the financial year ended March 31, 2020. 'The real change is in IT services,' adds Mishra of Ciel HR. 'We now get a lot more requirements in AI, GenAI, Cloud, DevOps, full-stack development, product management, and cybersecurity.'
