The Barmer incident where students were detained after calling the District Collector a “reel star” should have ended as a minor footnote in local administration. Instead, it has exposed an uncomfortable truth about India’s bureaucracy in 2025. This was not about an insult. It was about power
When Shivangi Goel cleared the UPSC exams in 2022 and joined the Indian Police Service, she was celebrated as a symbol of resilience. Her story—of battling domestic violence, raising a daughter as a single mother, and overcoming adversity to enter the civil services—was widely reported with admiration. But three years later, that story has taken […]














