From Modi magic to urn politics
There is no second thought on the fact that Atal Bihari Vajpayee is single handedly responsible for the respectable position the otherwise ‘untouchable’ BJP acquired in the past to form NDA. We don’t know yet of how long Modi’s fallacy and loud politics would continue. But Vajpayee provided a solid foundation for BJP is a reality beyond any doubt. Vajpayee has a long standing political journey that begins from pre-independence days. He built BJP based on liberal values of Hindutva.
Hence, his statesmanship should mean much more to BJP over the politics of Adityanath, Amit Shah or Modi and the likes who have no value-based approach to their politics. After his death, Vajapayee’s persona is being misused. Of course, the members of BJP have all the rights to invoke the name of their leader who built the party. And if the opposition says a party should not use the name of its most significant person, it would be ridiculous.
Congress still uses the name of Indira Gandhi and Rajiv at every election it fights. Reforms such as land tenancy act, or nationalization of banks brought in by Indira Gandhi; and the computer revolution set in by Rajiv are still good calling cards of Congress around every election. So then why should the BJP not use the name of Vajpayee who just died a few days ago? In a way, BJP has a better standing when they take Vajpayee's name for the sake of their party. But then today’s BJP that is led by Modi does not want to identify itself around the statesmanship, liberal values and accomplishments of Vajpayee. They do not want to follow the values set their most revered leader either.
Everybody remembers their favourite leaders through their achievements. For instance, the country knows the contribution of Nehru, Indira Gandhi or Rajiv through the progress of the country. Similarly, Vajpayee has contributed very significantly to the country’s bilateral relations with other nations. He never assumed his ideology was bigger than the nation itself. He tried hard to control the extremist powers that had set out to destroy the interest of the country against the Hindutva they wanted to spread across the nation.
He was helpless amidst the extremist forces that had surrounded him. His efforts to improve Indo-Pak relations are highly commendable and honest to the core. To remember him, is to live the ideals he strived to introduce into the society. But when he slipped into coma, his ideals also slipped into dark alleys of this nation. Today, nobody needs the path he followed.
BJP leaders only need the ashes from his final rites. They have now filled the urns in his name and have set out to all corners of the country to achieve their goal. If there is a way he’d know about this, it would hurt Vajpayee more than anyone else.
One of the first persons who took objection to this is Vajpayee's sister Karuna Shukla. “We have completed the final rites of Vajpayeeji according to our family customs and scattered his ashes in Ganga and Yamuna as per the tradition,” she told the media. But then BJP has been filling numerous metal pots with ashes claimed to be that of Vajpayee's and distributing them to states across the nation. Their intention is to scatter the ashes in main rivers in every state. While the family members already said they didn’t hand over the ashes to anyone else, what ash is being distributed in the name of Vajpayee then? Who gave them that amount of ash? Putting aside his ideals and values, why is BJP hell bent upon only disseminating his ashes? Why has the party come down to this? BJP as it stands now, has completely ignored the ideals and values that Vajpayee stood for. They are now out to emotionally manipulate people just the way as they did with Ram Janma Bhoomi issue collecting bricks in the name of god. They are trying to cover up their misdemeanors under the guise of ashes.
In the recent times, government and Pollution control boards have been laying down strict rules against discarding remnants of corpses in rivers. Now the government itself is spearheading this scattering of ashes in rivers. How would the government then advise common people not to engage in such rituals? Now the ashes that are entering the river stream are not from Vajpayee's final rites. They are the result of reducing his thoughts to cinders. This ash is that of the person who advised his men to follow ‘Raj dharma’ after the Gujarat genocide. They are the ashes of those people who died standing in queues during demonetization. And those of the people who were killed at the hands of mobs for transporting cattle. Those who were lynched in connivance with the government have become ashes. It is also that of those babies who died under the government’s watch for lack of oxygen.
BJP leaders are scattering them in rivers. Thus insulting their own Namami Gange, in glaring day light.
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Iran Shocks World, Hits F-35
America's most advanced fighter jet, the F-35, was never hit in combat — not once, in its entire history. Countries spend over ₹900 crore to buy just one of these aircraft. The whole world believed this plane was untouchable. Then, on March 19, something happened over Iranian skies that shocked military experts across the globe.
Iran hit it. And nobody saw it coming.
America Was Too Confident — That Was the Problem
Before understanding how this happened, you need to understand what America believed going into this. The US had been bombing Iran since February 28. After roughly 20 days of heavy strikes, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth announced that Iran's air defences were completely destroyed — finished, flattened, gone.
US President Donald Trump even said proudly, "We can fly wherever we want, and no one is even firing at us."
Based on this confidence, America flew its prized F-35 deep into the heart of central Iran. That alone tells you how sure they were. You don't send your most expensive jet into enemy territory unless you believe there is zero danger.
But Iran, a country under heavy international sanctions, still had something left. And it used that something extremely well.
So How Did Iran Actually Hit a Stealth Jet?
Here is where it gets interesting for regular people to understand.
We have all heard the word "stealth" — it sounds like the plane is completely invisible. But India Today explained that stealth only means it is hard to detect by radar. Hard — not impossible. It does not mean the aircraft is totally invisible.
Think of it this way. Even if you cannot see someone in a dark room, you can still feel their body heat if they stand close enough. That is almost exactly what happened here.
The F-35's engines produce enormous heat. Iran's weapon likely used an infrared sensor — basically a heat-seeking system — to detect that heat, lock onto it, and follow the jet. No radar needed. The F-35's biggest advantage, its radar-invisibility, simply did not matter.
The weapon Iran likely used was the 358 missile — also called SA-67 — which is a loitering munition. Think of it as a slow, intelligent drone that flies around patiently waiting, scanning the sky for heat signals from aircraft engines. Once it finds one, it chases it down. Iran has used this exact weapon before against American MQ-9 Reaper drones — and since this war started, America has already lost more than 12 of those drones.
This Has Happened Before — In 1999
This is not the first time America's "invisible" aircraft was brought down by a smarter enemy.
In 1999, during NATO's bombing campaign over Serbia, the US flew its F-117 Nighthawk — which was then considered the world's most advanced stealth aircraft. Serbian forces shot it down using an old Soviet missile system from the 1960s. Not with new technology — with clever thinking. They briefly switched on their radar, caught the jet at the right moment when its stealth was less effective, and fired.
The lesson both then and now is the same — no aircraft is completely invincible. Smart tactics can beat expensive technology.
Why This Changes Everything in the Iran War
Here is the bigger picture that really matters.
America and Israel had told the world that Iran's air defences were basically dead. Based on that, they sent massive B-1 and B-2 bombers — aircraft that are normally used only when a country is 100% sure it controls the enemy's sky. That is a huge military risk to take.
But if an F-35 — the most advanced aircraft in the sky — can still be hit, then Iran's defences are clearly not dead. Some pieces are still very much alive and working.
This means the US and Israel may now be forced to completely rethink their war plan. Their jets may need to fly higher, use longer-range weapons, and spend far more time and money finding where Iran's remaining defence systems are hiding underground.
Around 15 countries use the F-35 today. Even India was offered this jet by Trump during PM Modi's White House visit — though India has not shown interest so far.
Geopolitical expert Adam summed it up simply — a heavily sanctioned country just tracked, chased, and hit the world's most expensive stealth jet. That is not a small thing.
Sometimes, one moment changes everything.
(Girish Linganna is an award-winning science communicator and a Defence, Aerospace & Geopolitical Analyst. He is the Managing Director of ADD Engineering Components India Pvt. Ltd., a subsidiary of ADD Engineering GmbH, Germany.)
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect the views, policies, or position of the publication, its editors, or its management. The publication is not responsible for the accuracy of any information, statements, or opinions presented in this piece.
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