The essays in Because India Comes First discuss a range of issues that are at the heart of contemporary debates in India: democracy as the responsibility of the head of state, rule ofaw, peace and public order, Mahatma Gandhi and Gandhism, Ambedkar’s ideals, empowerment of women, Indian judiciary, the Ram Janmabhoomi case, abrogation of Article 370, theegacies of Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Arun Jaitley, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’searnings in governance.This book also delves into the decisions made by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led governmentover theast few years, diplomatic relations with India’s neighbours and the confrontations withChina. Madhav analyses India’s history of policymaking and asserts that, going ahead, it mustput India first. He calls outiberal fascism, deconstructs our understanding of terrorism in India,argues that opposition to the Citizenship (Amendment) Act is intellectually dishonest, explores howlearnings from Blackives Matter can be applied in the Indian sphere and explains why protests should be rooted in Martinuther King Jr’s non-violent approach and not anarchy. These essaysweave a broad tapestry of India’s growth into a soft power, and predict how it will shape up overthe next few decades. A must-read for those who believe in the new idea of India, and for thosewho accept that there are two sides to every debate.