The reality is that communal politics of the kind played by the BJP, led by Prime Minister Modi, has stopped paying dividends of the kind that it once did. 

All in all, the issues on the agenda are very different from the issues that the BJP thought would be on the agenda. The finals could go down to the wire and there will be many lessons learned once the votes are counted and the results are declared.

Today the distance between the vision and way of life of Tagore and Gandhi and current perspectives is growing. And though the effort and work done with fervour in their names continue, most of that energy is outside India.

But wild, in-your-face violence of the kind seen in some of the crimes that continue to happen, particularly against women, indicates that the nation isn’t really progressing, never mind what the GDP numbers may say. 

Traditional Indian wisdom teaches us that we are not separate from nature, that all forms of life are connected and inseparable from the rhythm of the planet – the air, the mountains, the forests, the seas and the sun. If this thinking is allowed to take root again, sustainability is already achieved.

Despite many favourable developments, what transgenders face is systemic oppression, phobia, fear, bias and distrust. This keeps transgenders from living their simple lives as ordinary citizens