Author: Shakir Husain

Imran Khan, the hero of Pakistan’s cricket World Cup victory in 1992, is renowned for his fighting spirit, which has won him adulation across the world. He was a gritty captain who inspired his men to stage stunning comebacks in near-defeat situations, especially against archrival India. Endowed with handsome looks, he also had a large autograph-seeking female following whether they were interested in cricket or not. Celebrities and politicians wanted to be seen in his company. It would have been amiss if he had not tried to carve out a larger national role using his sports stardom. The political journey…

So much has been written in recent years about Hindutva, the separatist ideology that aims to turn India into an aggressive “Hindu nation” in which Muslims are, at best, reduced to living as second-class citizens. Hindu nationalists saw Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s election in 2014 as their historic opportunity to push their agenda without restraints. They have a make-believe world of political and religious myths to make Muslims and other religious minorities irrelevant in India. Fears of Indian Muslims about their safety, religious identity, economic well-being and participation in politics have grown as a result of various policies pursued by…

Relations between India and Canada have been in trouble for more than a year and there is little sign of things getting better as recriminations continue. At the center of their standoff is the assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a 45-year-old Sikh activist and Canadian citizen of Indian descent. Canada blames “agents of the government of India” for his killing and has demanded India’s cooperation in the investigation. New Delhi vehemently rejects the allegation and has its own set of grievances against Ottawa about Sikh diaspora politics. Sikhs comprise about 2% of Canada’s population and influence Canadian affairs. Almost 4%…