Between Populist Rhetoric: Linguistic Ingenuity and Mirage of Progress

The type of language politicians use in contemporary Indian political discourse is often fraught with rhetoric that seems to be populist but is indicative of an intentional utilization of linguistic ingenuity to serve non-populist agendas. The present paper, in this regard, provides a semiotic analysis of famous political slogans and catchphrases used by Indian political parties. It advocates that the contextual semiosis of linguistic ingenuity evident in the linguistic form and functionality of political slogans creates a mirage of progress.