Shades of Saffron



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Name : Shades of Saffron   
Author : Saba Naqvi
   Year of Publication : 2018
   Genre : Non-Fiction, Elections, Indian Politics
   Rating : **^ (2.5 stars out of 5)

The author is a journalist and a fellow-traveller who has chronicled the rise and fall (and rise) of BJP over the past 2 decades. That the author is a Muslim adds spice. The author steers clear of ideological judgements and opinionated writing. Her forte is reportage and she clearly sticks to that. The best portions cover the day-to-day functioning of the first ever non-Congress coalition government to have completed a full term. The most interesting anecdote relates to Vajpayee's strategy on handling USA's request to mobilise Indian troops for it's operations in Iraq. Editing is shoddy at places. That the author steers clear of personal predilections enhances the readability but is readability the lone motivating factor to write a book?

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