Travelling during office hours on National Highway 24, linking Delhi and the NCR town of Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh, is a hell-like experience. The traffic moves at a snail’s pace during peak hours. Traffic snarls, 10-15 minute long traffic
Justice Kurian Joseph’s objection to the chief justice of India, HL Dattu, holding the chief justices conference on Good Friday and Easter is more than a tussle among the top judiciary on a specific issue; it has important connotations. Whil
You may have read recent news items in print and electronic media about our analysis of the trends of implementing the Right to Information Act, 2005 (RTI Act). The preliminary findings are based on a quick study of the annual report of the centra
The intention is good but the compliance seems to be skewed and defeats the purpose. In February 2014, market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) had issued a directive asking companies listed on stock exchanges to have at leas
It goes without saying that the incidents of rape, kidnapping and abduction are on the increase in our country. Delhi is often called a city where such incidents are too common. The question arises why crimes against women are growi
Something to cheer about was long overdue, but as the supreme court read out its landmark judgment, Jadavpur University Professor Ambikesh Mahapatra had the last laugh. Two years ago he forwarded a seemingly harmless caricature of Mama
Our prime minister was inspired by Benjamin Franklin as a young man. While sharing his thoughts on the Republic Day, along with American president Barack Obama in his fortnightly radio address, Mann ki Baat, prime minister Narendra Modi said what
I had grown up hearing the name Kashi frequently. Every now and then people would express their desire to settle in Kashi out of anger, disappointment, sadness, neglect but rarely for religious reasons. After every fight, my grandmother would scol
Last month while wandering through Green Park market I stopped at a magazine stall. While flipping through the pages of Readers digest a garish yellow-blue cover of a DVD on the wrought iron stand outside the shop caught my attention. The cover ha
Aaj khush toh bahut hoge tum? She stuck out like a thorn for you. She refused to take the beating and stood up for her rights. She pulled the mask down from your ugly misogynistic faces and put you in a spot. Now that she i
A young woman lost her life and a child has been orphaned because of the way Indian society treats women and the way it imposes conditions on their wants and needs. Prabha Arun Kumar, 41, was on the phone to her husband when she was
Narendra Modi and Arvind Kejriwal share many characteristics. Cult politics is one of them. However, unlike the PM, the Delhi CM is fortunate in having people who can speak out and question him. It is difficult to imagine any argume
Manoj Kumar starrer Roti Kapda Aur Makaan was set in the early seventies of Delhi. It was about a man, his family and their struggle to earn bare necessities of life. If the movie had to be remade toady it will need to change at least one thing, t
National carrier Air India is back in bad weather condition and I know why. In October last year I was looking for cheapest air tickets to Kochi for my parents’ trip. I have travelled to Kerala. I knew that that most of the fl
This is the season of arrogance. The capital’s elections were fought on the platform of arrogance and a bunch of politicians were elevated because they lacked it and others were dumped as they had too much of it. Nobody sees i
In the 2009 biographical sports drama ‘Invictus’, South Africa’s president-elect Nelson Mandela (played by Morgan Freeman) humbly accepts the reasonability of a question posed to him in a newspaper headline: `He Can Win an Electi
To, Voltaire’s disciples Why Grand Masti, (2013 adult comedy) was not targeted in the same manner. After all it too had explicit sexual content. The question was asked by a "liberal” friend i
In the ripe old middle age birthdays evoke a mix of the happy and the unhappy. Happiness comes from knowing that your family and friends love you, care for you, while the ticking clock knocking off another year of your age makes one at least a lit
The high-handedness of the government, often coming to light when it restricts movement, speech or action of the common man as suited by subjectivity, now finds a serious challenge in holding a firm ground. The spoilsport for the government has of
All through my student years while reading the NCERT (National Council of Educational Research and Training) books, two things which always fascinated me were Gandhi’s Talisman and the Preamble of India. The first dealt with t