False closures of corruption bleed the system. Every day has to matter. When something like the scale and violence of Bofors happens, you begin to question your own faith as a professional and a human being. When you start losing faith, you begin to lose hope. When hope is lost, everything is lost. We cannot afford to let that happen. Maybe we will get nowhere, but silence cannot be the answer&
I write this from the 2012 London conference of women lawyers organised by the International Bar Association (IBA). Here we are, 300 women serving the law, from 50 jurisdictions of the global judiciary; searching the silver bullet for challenges faced by us. Why did I realise only now: the challenges before women in law practice and judiciary are the same the world over! Confessio
It`s raining rights these days. Every government, at the centre and in the states, is passing more and more laws guaranteeing rights to the citizen. Even the judiciary has joined the race, expanding the ‘fundamental rights’ beyond what the constitution envisaged or mandated. Recall how the apex court said recently that right to sleep is also a fundamental right! Never
It’s a sign of the times that a struggling democracy like Pakistan too can offer a lesson or two to the largest and well-established one like India. The supreme court convicted prime minister Yousuf Raza Gilani of contempt of court on Thursday. Gilani was found guilty because he refused the court order to write to the Swiss authorities to reopen graft cases against preside
Knowing how little I know about the science of architecture, I was intrigued when I was invited to talk about grassroots innovations to a very interesting, intriguing and inspiring meeting of some of the world’s most famous architects. Rauzia Ally, half Kashmiri, half Keralite and Guyanese in some measure, the architect of this meeting, tried to create chemistry of Sufi traditions,
My lord, I bring this debate in your court for two reasons. First, which other judge in this country judges as a force of habit? Your honour, our judge emeritus, does. Second, you were the first to jump to former Congress spokesman Abhishek Manu Singhvi’s support after that jinxed weekend when the viewers missed watching The Dirty Picture, the screening of which was stalled even after 59-
Writing about morality and public life (or public figure or public anything) is a challenge. You need a reliable proof-reader, to begin with. One letter missing and the debate becomes more interesting than intended. Still. Singhvi’s seedy episode calls for a comment. People have survived in politics despite far more incriminating evidence against them than what is on record
If you thought the phrases like “the weakest prime minister ever”, “policy paralysis” and “United Paralysis Alliance” are the language of the political adversaries, think again. Even those closest to the prime minister, Manmohan Singh, and his government have come to the same conclusion. The language may be different but the message is equally, or even more,
India’s successful test launch of Agni V intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) has catapulted it into an elite club of nations that have the capability to field such missiles. According to defence sources quoted in the Times of India, Agni V soared from the Odisha coast and hit its designated target in the Indian Ocean. “This launch has given a message to
Where to petition for a pension With an allotment of some concern? We held grievance redress camps People came with faith, and without; In Takiyan KaleKhan: Fire burnt homes on wakf land For political fear, them no one will hear With no roof they wait for some rebate. In Savitri Nagar: People get less ration
The prime minister on Tuesday delivered a most disappointing speech at the 3rd National Ganga River Basin Authority meeting. It promises nothing, says the most discredited IIT Roorkee report (that even the Ministry of Environment and Forests’ Expert Appraisal Committee on River Valley Projects criticized and does not follow) and the report of the Wildlife Institute of India (th
The exoneration of all the accused in the Bathani Tola massacre of Bhojpur district in Bihar is a telling commentary on India’s criminal justice system. The hapless victims, a group of dalits and Muslims, were murdered in broad daylight in 1996. Unlike other cases of mass killings where the culprits were mostly unknown bands of criminals, in Batahni Tola all the assailants, belonging to u
If Monday’s annual conference of chief ministers turned into a political battlefield instead of being a meaningful dialogue between the union and the states on critical internal security issues, which it was meant to be, it is because the union government has lost its political and moral authority. The prime minister has always been seen as politically weak with UPA chairpe
“Buy land, they are not making it anymore,” Mark Twain said once. Land sharks seem to have realised it and are making all kinds of efforts to get their hands on some defence land, albeit at throwaway prices. Sadly, they are not alone in this endeavour. The president of the country, the supreme commander of the armed forces, too wants a piece of the pie. According inf
When The Hindu published a report on March 23, titled “Schools to parents: pay donation, get admission”, few found anything new in it. Parenting in India means starting to save up for the child’s school admission well before the child is born, as in most cases finding a place for a child in a decent school in the neighbourhood comes at a significant premium. The
When Kapil Sibal became HRD minister, his aim was nothing less than a thorough revamp of the entire education system. Within no time, he came up with a blueprint for reforms at all levels. He backed it up by drafting a slew of bills. But almost after three years and eight parliamentary sessions (not counting the ongoing one), the bills remain bills. No wonder he is now requesting, "
Transparency in governance and reigning in graft is at the core of the Public procurement Bill 2012 (“Procurement Bill”) cleared by the Cabinet on 12th April 2012. The Procurement Bill seeks to bring in high degree of transparency, competition and efficiency in the public procurement process alongside ensuring fair and equitable treatment to bidders. Does the Procurem
The gross enrolment ratio (GER), designates a nation’s total student enrolment at a specific level of education, regardless of age, expressed as a percentage of population in the official age group corresponding to this level. The GER in India’s higher education is merely 15%. Infrastructural facilities, competence of teachers and research activities are some other factors
Kahlil Gibran said, “All work is empty save when there is love.” The argument has also an antithesis. Too much love is a spoiler. Press Council of India chief Justice Markandey Katju suffers from this. He has made a habit out of his profession of decades. Now, he judges. And that’s become his favourite pastime. Being out of the courtroom has only worked to his advantage.
It was the dream of many contemporaries in school to work in NASA; space exploration had a glamour those days. I suspect that some of them actually made it there, going by two recent news reports: Painting asteroids and no-fly zones on the moon. It is not a line of dialogue that Brad Pitt or George Clooney might mouth with comfort. After all, when asteroids have threatened
