menu_open
Sanjeev Chopra

Sanjeev Chopra

hindustantimes

We use cookies to provide some features and experiences in QOSHE

More information  .  Close

Brajesh Mishra was the most powerful principal secretary in any PMO

From overseeing planning of Pokhran tests to mending ties with the US, Pakistan and China, Brajesh Mishra implemented the foreign policy sketched out...

22.04.2024 10

ThePrint

Sanjeev Chopra

Indian economy would’ve liberalised long before 1991. But Bofors scandal stalled it

The whole truth regarding the 1991 reforms is that India was in the process of revamping its industrial and trade policies from the last years of...

21.04.2024 30

ThePrint

Sanjeev Chopra

‘Sonia wouldn’t become PM’—Congress ‘whisper campaign’ that denied PC Alexander President post

The irony with PC Alexander was that when Indira Gandhi returned to power in 1980, she handpicked him as Principal Secretary and he became her...

20.04.2024 30

ThePrint

Sanjeev Chopra

Morarji Desai, principal secretary V Shankar gave PMO its name. Then the office was downsized

The Morarji Desai PMO was divested of the IB, the R&AW, and the Foreign Investment Promotion Board. But the civil servants still looked up to V...

19.04.2024 20

ThePrint

Sanjeev Chopra

‘Coup’ against LK Jha, tussle between PN Haksar and PN Dhar—Indira Gandhi PMO was never dull

PN Haksar emerged as Indira Gandhi's ideological beacon and moral compass, playing a pivotal role in ‘Garibi Hatao’ and transformed her image from...

17.04.2024 20

ThePrint

Sanjeev Chopra

LK Jha to PN Haksar & PK Mishra, how PMO became India’s power hub

It’s ironic that the PMO, often accused of giving India a de facto presidential form of governance, was created by one of the most consultative...

16.04.2024 30

ThePrint

Sanjeev Chopra

I was an IAS officer for 36 yrs, not a dull moment. Sanjeev Sanyal got civil services wrong

I will challenge anyone and everyone who claims that the civil services don’t offer avenues for growth and innovation.

02.04.2024 20

ThePrint

Sanjeev Chopra

Ladakh protest for Sixth Schedule has hit an impasse. Govt should propose middle ground

From 1947 until now, we as a nation have accommodated democratic aspirations by making necessary adjustments in our maps, boundaries, and special...

19.03.2024 10

ThePrint

Sanjeev Chopra

Rises and falls in Lok Sabha polls of last 20 years. And a new law that matters for 2024

The last two decades of Lok Sabha elections saw UPA’s rise and fall, Left’s decimation, and BJP’s juggernaut. Now there’s a new law to choose...

09.03.2024 10

ThePrint

Sanjeev Chopra

Coalition chaos, too many PMs but the 1990s were also about election reform

Thanks to TN Seshan’s insistence, voter ID cards as well as annual electoral roll revisions became essential elements of the election process.

08.03.2024 10

ThePrint

Sanjeev Chopra

Emergency’s legacy? How Lok Sabha polls from 1977-1989 changed India’s political landscape

From Congress losing for the first time to TDP becoming India’s main opposition party, Lok Sabha elections from 1977 to 1989 brought many surprises.

07.03.2024 10

ThePrint

Sanjeev Chopra

How Indian democracy transformed between 3rd and 5th Lok Sabha elections

In an incisive analysis of the 1971 Lok Sabha election, American political scientist Myron Weiner wrote that this was the first election fought on...

06.03.2024 10

ThePrint

Sanjeev Chopra

Just how staggering is the logistic of conducting Lok Sabha election in India? 1st to 18th

Over 960 million electors, 470 million of them women, will soon elect 543 Lok Sabha MPs by casting their ballots in 1.2 million booths overseen by 15...

05.03.2024 20

ThePrint

Sanjeev Chopra

All-India Judicial Service exam will challenge dynastic sway in judiciary. But SC is silent

National Judicial Appointments Commission and All-India Judicial Service exams both strike at the very root of dynastic self-perpetuation in the...

20.02.2024 20

ThePrint

Sanjeev Chopra

India-Myanmar share an imperfect, complex history. Insurgency, drug trade led to permit system

The situation is extremely complicated, and any decision taken by the MHA is bound to be criticised by the party that considers itself ignored.

06.02.2024 20

ThePrint

Sanjeev Chopra

Toppers to ex-IAS officers are mired in ‘dark patterns’ of coaching ads. Govt is right to act

DoPT has directed candidates to terminate their existing contracts with coaching centres upon receiving an offer of appointment. It’s a move toward...

23.01.2024 10

ThePrint

Sanjeev Chopra

As J&K awaits statehood, lessons from other UTs that made the leap. Manipur is one

With the imminent reinstatement of statehood for Jammu & Kashmir on or before 30 September, it's worth revisiting other states that have ‘evolved’...

09.01.2024 10

ThePrint

Sanjeev Chopra

What’s the history of India’s Union territories? They were once among 4 types of ‘states’

At the time of the commencement of the Constitution, we had four types of states – Part A, Part B, Part C and Part D.

26.12.2023 10

ThePrint

Sanjeev Chopra

South India’s economic growth is tied to lower fertility rates. It is overhyped

The lazy argument of how the regressive North was different from the progressive South hinges on a falling fertility rate. But this was shaped by a...

12.12.2023 10

ThePrint

Sanjeev Chopra

How was BSF born? Pakistan’s plotting, Lal Bahadur Shastri’s swiftness

The limitations of guarding the international border with different state police forces became quite apparent after Pakistan’s 1965 military...

28.11.2023 50

ThePrint

Sanjeev Chopra

After calls for Muslim Ocean & Afro-Asian Ocean, Pakistan has made peace with Indian Ocean

One of the most important points in Pakistan’s National Security Policy is the grudging acceptance of the name ‘Indian Ocean’.

14.11.2023 10

ThePrint

Sanjeev Chopra

Statue of Unity isn’t the only big tribute to Sardar Patel—an IAS officer did it first

SK Das of the 1973 IAS batch never spoke about what he did, even though I worked with him for over five years in the Uttarakhand government.

31.10.2023 6

ThePrint

Sanjeev Chopra

How India’s humble Paisa came about—and what the coins tell us about sovereignty

RBI decision to not reissue copper-nickel series of Re 1 and 50 paise coins brings the end of a long coinage history that started with 'phootie...

17.10.2023 10

ThePrint

Sanjeev Chopra

Servants of People Society, organisation that made Lal Bahadur Shastri a national missionary

Shastri got the moniker ‘Little Sparrow’ at Anand Bhawan — Vijay Laxmi Pandit first called him by this name for he was quite diminutive.

02.10.2023 20

ThePrint

Sanjeev Chopra

Don’t forget Savarkar used ‘Hindustan’. ‘Bharat’ became popular with Tagore, calendars, mandirs

How did 'Hindustan' become 'India'? It's not as simple as Mughals vs British.

19.09.2023 8

ThePrint

Sanjeev Chopra

Forging a lifeline for our migrant workers

ONORC enables migrants to claim foodgrain entitlements. It has expanded to cover over 800 million beneficiaries and has had a positive impact on food...

08.09.2023 4

hindustantimes

Sanjeev Chopra

41cbc804f86bc77f6f3a56fdf6aa3b42