Amaan Asim

🎓 MPhil in Development Studies @UniofOxford @Ashokauniv Batch of ‘22 🇮🇳Former Chairperson, Research Department @nsui

[Amaan Asim @amaanasim]

Officially a matriculated student on the rolls of the @UniofOxford and @StAntsCollege!

#MatriculationDay #Oxford

[Mansoor Khan | ಮನ್ಸೂರ್ ಖಾನ್ @MansoorKhanINC]

Yesterday, I received my Certificate of Election as a Member of Parliament in the #RajyaSabha, elected by the members of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly.

This is my first public office. I do not take that lightly.

I stood outside the Vidhana Soudha with a copy of the Constitution of India in my hand and made myself a promise: everything I do from here gets measured against that book.

I have spent nearly two decades in the Indian National Congress, almost all of it behind the scenes, in the organisation. Many people outside the party and outside of Bengaluru Central Lok Sabha constituency have not heard of me. I understand the question: who is this person, and why has he been given this responsibility? I want to answer that honestly, and then tell you what I plan to do with it.

My father, @KRahmanKhan2, served as a Union Minister and a Member of Parliament. In the mid-2000s, when he was at the height of his career, I started mine. I did not start in his office or in Delhi. I started on the ground, as an ordinary party worker at the block level in the Jayanagar Assembly constituency.

That was my choice, shaped by a value system my father instilled early: that public life is earned from the ground, not inherited from an office. Over nearly two decades, I worked my way through the organisation, from a block-level KPCC worker to AICC Secretary. The party trusted me with responsibilities in Telangana and Kerala, where we were fortunate enough to help form governments.

In 2024, I was given the opportunity to contest the Bangalore Central Lok Sabha election. It was hard fought. In the course of that election, serious discrepancies in the voter rolls of my constituency came to light. Under the direction of the party leadership, we undertook a thorough investigation into these findings. Shri @RahulGandhi ji recognised their gravity, took them up at the national level, and made it the Vote Chori campaign that shook the country. What started in Bangalore Central is now a much larger reckoning with electoral integrity. That fight is far from over.

That climb, posting by posting, campaign by campaign, taught me more than any office could. And I want to be honest: this is not an arrival. This is a beginning. We are on the ground floor.

For those who do not know my style of working: I am a data-driven person. In business and in politics, my approach has been the same. I listen, I try to understand the real problem, I find the bottleneck, and I work to solve it as efficiently as I can.

I do not cut corners on policy. I am new to this role, and I know it. But the Rajya Sabha demands seriousness, and I intend to match it. What sounds good and what actually works are often different things. I care about the difference, and that will define how I work in Parliament.

Bengaluru is home to some of the finest startups in this country. The people of this city work day and night to contribute to India's growth and its GDP. The best of them build in public: they share their process, invite scrutiny, iterate in the open.

I want to take a page from that book.

I have always been a Bengaluru boy at heart. I grew up surrounded by this city's technocratic culture, and I connect with it deeply.

I will try to represent in public.

And through that, involve the people of this country in the legislative process itself.

My research, my positions on policy, my understanding of the issues will be shared openly through X, Substack, social media, long-form articles, and every other medium that helps these ideas reach the people, before they are final. Every first pass will be open to suggestions and criticism.

I will set up a web portal and as many other touchpoints as needed, online and offline, so that any citizen can reach me with policy ideas, grievances, or questions that fall within the scope of what a Rajya Sabha MP can address. These access points will grow as the feedback comes in and the needs become clearer. I will be upfront about what I can do and what I cannot, so nobody's time is wasted.

I will scale my core team and its capabilities to encompass all the new responsibilities that come with this position. That will take time, but it is the very first thing I am investing in.

I invite the media, educationists, policy specialists, and every citizen of this country to engage with this process. What I pursue, why I pursue it, and how I plan to act will be publicly documented and open for input at every stage. The goal is that no one goes unheard.

I represent Karnataka in Parliament, and this state will always be my primary focus. But I also get the opportunity to sit in the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Indian Parliament. That is a responsibility to the country. The issues I raise will serve Karnataka first, and India always. This post, and everything that follows, is addressed to every citizen of this country.

The party has entrusted me with this platform. I intend to use it to contribute to what the Indian National Congress stands for, and I will strive my very best to earn that trust every day.

I am deeply grateful to CPP Chairperson Smt. Sonia Gandhi ji, @INCIndia President Shri Mallikarjun @kharge avaru, Leader of the Opposition Shri @RahulGandhi ji, Member of Parliament and AICC General Secretary Smt. @priyankagandhi ji, AICC General Secretary (Organisation) Shri @kcvenugopalmp ji, AICC General Secretary In-charge Shri @rssurjewala ji, Karnataka Chief Minister Shri @DKShivakumar avaru, Shri @siddaramaiah avaru, @INCKarnataka President Shri @HariprasadBK2 avaru, and all @INCIndia leaders for placing their trust in me.

And to the workers, the ones who have been with this party through every season, in the heat and in the rain, booth by booth: this seat belongs to you as much as anyone.

The certificate is in my hand. The oath, before the Vice President of India, lies ahead. But in my mind, the work has already begun.

ಕರ್ನಾಟಕಕ್ಕಾಗಿ. ಭಾರತಕ್ಕಾಗಿ. ಸಂವಿಧಾನಕ್ಕಾಗಿ. ಕೆಲಸ ಆರಂಭ.

For Karnataka. For India. For the Constitution. The work begins.

[Amaan Asim @amaanasim]

@AmartyaKalecki @advocate_tanvi @OxfordUnion In the limited time we covered judicial gender gaps, sentencing bias & executive overreach. Is that not tough enough for you? And the Union discussion was by far the most frank and honest conversation he’s had in his UK tour, guess we are living up to our credo.

[Amaan Asim @amaanasim]

Had the honour to interview the Chief Justice of India Surya Kant at the Oxford Union.

@advocate_tanvi

[Bar and Bench @barandbench]

@OxfordUnion Q&A session begins

[Bar and Bench @barandbench]

@OxfordUnion Q&A session begins

[Amaan Asim @amaanasim]

Congratulations Mansoor Sir!

From fighting #votechori in #BengaluruCentral to driving victories in Kerala & Telangana.

Your resilience & work ethic inspire me deeply. With his victory, Karnataka’s RS delegation now includes 2 Muslim voices. Well deserved! 🙌

#RSElections

[Mansoor Khan | ಮನ್ಸೂರ್ ಖಾನ್ @MansoorKhanINC]

Deeply humbled to be nominated by the Indian National Congress as its candidate for the Rajya Sabha from Karnataka.

My heartfelt gratitude to the party High Command - CPP Chairperson Smt. Sonia Gandhi ji, @INCIndia Shri Mallikarjun @kharge avaru, LOP Shri @RahulGandhi ji, MP and AICC GS Smt. @priyankagandhi ji, AICC GS Org Shri @kcvenugopalmp ji, AICC GS Incharge Shri @rssurjewala ji, Karnataka Chief Minister Shri @DKShivakumar avaru, Shri @siddaramaiah avaru, @INCKarnataka President Shri @HariprasadBK2 avaru, and all the @INCIndia leaders for placing their trust in me.

I accept this responsibility with humility. Once I get elected a Member of Parliament, I will work to uphold the highest standards of parliamentary conduct, to raise the voice of the people who are too often unheard, and to stand by the values and ideology the Congress has always represented.

I will also strive to raise the voice of Kannadigas with sincerity and conviction, and work in the best interests of Karnataka, Bengaluru and #Bengaluru Central in Parliament.

This is not a reward. It is a responsibility, and I intend to honour it.
#RajyaSabha

[Amaan Asim @amaanasim]

Analysis on point.
On the latter part, VD built up a great reputation with Muslim organisations directly and not mediated by the IUML
In addition, the Congress wave this time led to 8 Muslim MLAs in Kerala as against the relatively lower number of 3 in 2021.

[Varghese K George @vargheseKgeorge]

The rise of Satheesan: What it means for the Congress, Muslim League and Kerala State politics

@vdsatheesan has emerged as the unquestionable leader of Kerala. He has proved that he is no longer dependent on the @INCIndia; it is the Congress that is dependent on him. In the immediate term, this will mean that Congress MLAs and Ministers will have little consequence or influence. In the medium term, how his singular command over the mass politics of Kerala will play out will depend on several factors. Now that he has established that the High Command is dependent on his largesse for its own personal Lok Sabha seat in Kerala — Wayanad — the order of precedence within the Congress hierarchy has changed forever. He might continue to pay the tributes and play the act of discipline, only as long as it is convenient for him…..

….What it means for the IUML (Muslim League) is that the most popular Muslim leader in Kerala stands outside it. It appears that Mr. Satheesan does not need the IUML to connect with the Muslim masses of the State, and he does not need the Congress party to connect with the masses overall. That makes him an unprecedented and unique phenomenon in Kerala politics — the first one to harness the full potential of social media and reel politics. Only the trailer has been released; the blockbuster is awaited, with massive implications for the Congress, the IUML and State politics in general.

[Amaan Asim @amaanasim]

What struck me the most was his grasp of the states finance situation with the dependence on remittances and dismal industrial performance.

Unsure about whether he has a chance of being CM but definitely would be an asset as Finance Minister

Reposes faith in good politicians!

[Amaan Asim @amaanasim]

In the midst of my fieldwork last year in Ernakulam I caught up with today’s man of the match for the #UDF in Kerala @vdsatheesan
And we had a very long conversation on the train ride on Kerala politics, the UDF and their chances

[Vasundhara Sirnate @vsirnate]

This not only a bloody brilliant effort by @AltNews but it should be the lead story on every Indian news portal and channel.

https://t.co/imS6M9XsVl

[Sushant Singh @SushantSin]

While the political directions to Gen Naravane - “Jo uchit samjho, woh karo” (do whatever you deem appropriate) - have garnered much attention, there are many other equally significant bits in the @thecaravanindia February cover story about Naravane's unpublished memoir. 1/N

[Amaan Asim @amaanasim]

My latest piece in The Wire investigates what the AIMIM’s advances in Mahrashtra and Bihar mean for Muslim Politics in India

https://t.co/9jQLmPbyQW

[The Wire @thewire_in]

The AIMIM’s advances in Bihar and Maharashtra owe less to the portability of the Owaisi brand than to the party’s ability to recruit locally credible leaders in regions where mainstream secular politics has hollowed out Muslim representation.

Amaan Asim✍️
https://t.co/i42Mj5DPNl

[sunetra choudhury @sunetrac]

Who doesn't love Congress bashing, n most of the time they are asking for it. However, betw BJP and the Cong election for party president, there was at least a contest betw 2 heavyweights in the latter. Here, there is no question of anyone else being nominated, forget a fight!

[Amaan Asim @amaanasim]

Are you confused about what happened over the last week at the @OxfordUnion with the #IndiaPak Debate?

Here’s my insiders take on what actually went down and why this is pure opportunism on the Pakistani side enabled by the Union

[newslaundry @newslaundry]

An Oxford Union debate.

The motion: “This House Believes India’s policy towards Pakistan is a populist strategy sold as security policy”

What unravelled: Walkouts, misinformation and manufactured claims of victory.

Read @amaanasim's insider's account.

https://t.co/CdIa1eTTiT

[Bilal Moin @TheBilalMoin]

In the latest chapter of Ink-uilab, @amaanasim and I ask, "Where is India's Mamdani Moment?"
https://t.co/3JZvnw1Qk2

[Kunal Kamra @kunalkamra88]

The centre of our conflict with America is Reliance buying cheap Russian Oil.
If companies aren’t willing to pay the 1,00,000$ for their Employees Visa then Reliance should give them a job & pay them in dollars. The country has done so much for Ambanis they should do something for the country…

[Congress @INCIndia]

𝗦𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗗𝗨, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗱 𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗱𝗲𝗽𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘃𝗼𝘁𝗲 🫵

We need young leaders who dare to voice the issues of students and stand with them against all odds.

You must choose progress over regressive policies.

Let's stand with NSUI, the only student organisation fighting for your causes.

Vote for the NSUI panel 5️⃣2️⃣2️⃣5️⃣:

5️⃣ Joslyn Nandita Choudhary – President

2️⃣ Rahul Jhansla – Vice President

2️⃣ Kabir – Secretary

5️⃣ Lavkush Bhadana – Joint Secretary

This is your campus. Your voice. Your power.

Because change begins now! ✊

[Varun Choudhary @varunchoudhary2]

Vote, Support and Elect NSUI Panel 5225 in DUSU.

[Swapnil @Brahmonaut]

Remember the Ashoka professor who had to resign after publishing a paper on possible election rigging? The same one vilified for asking uncomfortable questions?
Today’s press conference just proved him right.

[Paul Koshy @Paul_Koshy]

I feel so Happy to share the video from my young friend @amaanasim debate at the Oxford Union on the motion This House Regrets the Arab Spring, which he vehemently opposed.

This speech was made in opposition to the case made by a former UK Ambassador and a current Jordanian Minister.

Please do watch and share this special honour and privilege Amaan had.

Amaan Asim is a student at the University of Oxford, pursuing a Master's degree in Development Studies.

He is also a former Chairperson of the Research Department at NSUI, the student wing of the Indian National Congress. Additionally, he is involved in entrepreneurial ventures and has experience in business development and customer service.

Amaan Asim is currently studying at the University of Oxford, where he is enrolled in an MPhil program in Development Studies.
He is also associated with St. Antony's College at Oxford.

He previously served as the National Chairperson for the Research Department of #NSUI, the student wing of the Indian National Congress.

https://t.co/MCOJPy82gP

[The Wire @thewire_in]

It is increasingly apparent that India needs to move beyond issuing hopeful statements and develop structural protections and policy frameworks to safeguard its students’ interests.

Amaan Asim✍️ https://t.co/g48bqcjR37