NEW VISION: Gore at the Conclave

In January last year, we began six-monthly polls in order to track the changing fortunes of political parties and identify trends in the public mood. The India Today-ORG-MARG polls are rigorous, include a national sample and are now considered a barometer to measure shifts in public opinion. Our cover story analyses the third of our biannual polls. After the attack on Parliament and the military stand-off with Pakistan, we did expect a shift in the government's popularity. But the extent of the public's mood swing was unexpected.

Our poll indicates that India stands on the threshold of a new Hindu militancy, one which does not stop at adopting a hawkish posture on Pakistan. It extends to support for the contentious and divisive issue of the construction of the temple in Ayodhya. This growing aggressiveness will have consequences not only in elections, but also on the future course
of Indian politics.

Two weeks ago, Senior Editor Sumit Mitra and Special Correspondent Sayantan Chakravarty broke the story that a Dubai-based gangster, Aftab Ansari, transferred ransom money paid by a Kolkata businessman to Al Qaida operatives planning the WTC attacks. Their report established the link between the underworld and jehadi groups; little did we know that Ansari would claim to be the mastermind of the attack on the American Center in Kolkata.

As a logical extension of tracking the present to understand the future, we held the first-ever India Today Conclave, with the theme "India Tomorrow: Opportunities and Threats". The discussion over three days was stimulating and made news: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah called for the Line of Control to be made the international border and Home Minister L.K. Advani spoke of a possible Indo-Pak confederation.

In this issue, we have included a short account of the Conclave, which we are encouraged to make an annual event. In his address, former US vice-president Al Gore said, "This is a time of transformation. India is a rising world power, and with the US, has a common task of managing change." Let us hope the politicians are listening.

(Aroon Purie)