The demolition of the Babri Masjid and the follow-up campaign to build the Ram Mandir in its place irrevocably rent the country’s secular fabric. As the Ayodhya case goes into an endless loop of deferred hearings, it is time to ask: Is secularism permanently lost for India?

There’s never a particularly good time to be a dissenter, but the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, the death of Father Kuriakose Kattithara, the priest who tried to stand up to Bishop Francis Kurukkal, and the forced leave of CBI chief Alok Verma highlight just how dangerous it is to challenge the powers that be.

The name change proposed for some places point to a pre-election stunt. But even for an electoral tactic, imagine how yawningly empty the whiteboards in government offices must be.

The grandson of the head priest of Sabarimala Temple, Rahul Easwar has emerged as the face of the violent protests in the temple town. Who really, is Rahul Easwar? Is he merely the winner of Malyali House? Is he just Republic TV’s darling panelist? Or is he a man likely to play an active role in politics?

The idea of the CBI raiding itself might sound farcical. But to understand what prompted India’s top investigation body to score an own goal, meet CBI chief Alok Verma and the agency’s second-in-command, Rakesh Asthana, who can’t see eye to eye.

Karnataka Union Minister Anant Kumar Hegde recently claimed that his job was to do politics, not social service. Understandable. In other countries, getting into politics is not considered the rough equivalent of joining the mafia. But our politicians have long forgotten that they are put in place to serve the people, rather than the other way around.

As a freedom fighter and one-time power player, ND Tiwari’s legacy would be memorable enough by itself. Unfortunately, back-to-back scandals at the denouement of his political career have also ensured a more salacious version of Tiwari’s life will live on in public memory.

Machiavelli wrote, “Politics has nothing to do with morals.” Those waiting on the government to act against Union Minister and former editor MJ Akbar, accused of sexual harassment, look elsewhere. Politics deals with women the same way it deals with its soldiers – relevant only in the time of war and social media.

India’s farmers have grown increasingly vocal in the last year, with their protests in urban centres primed to raise awareness among city-dwellers about what goes on beyond their cushy bubbles. But their patience may not last forever.

The corrupt politician is aware of the fallacies in our public service delivery system and what makes the voter tick. He offers rice to those who struggle to earn two meals a day and electricity to those who sleep in the dark. He gives them access to a system that is out of their reach.