-National Herald Those of us who care for integrity, principle and constitutional values as citizens of India have a huge task ahead. When Independence was dreamt of, it must have seemed impossible “Being part of a democratic government is hard. Being a citizen is hard. It is a challenge. It’s supposed to be. There’s no respite from our ideals. All of us are called to live up to our expectations for ourselves...

-The Indian Express Elections are short term contests, but the political project of democracy is a long game. Democracy is not just a set of institutions but also a set of values. The institutions are, minimally speaking, free and fair elections, an elected Parliament containing an executive and an Opposition to hold it accountable, an independent judiciary, a nonpartisan bureaucracy, a free media, and security of existence for all citizens. Democratic values...

-National Herald ‘Classic colonial excuse’, said Amartya Sen about the govt explanation of its decision of security clampdown in Jammu and Kashmir as preventive measures to prevent backlash that might cost lives Slamming the Narendra Modi government over scrapping of Article 370 from Jammu and Kashmir, Nobel laureate Dr Amartya Sen said that it only emphasised majoritarian rule "as opposed to sustaining the rights of all human beings. I don't think ultimately...

-The Times of India The middle class that led India’s nation-building project has now embraced a nationalism that has no place for diversity The “Idea of India” has always been grander in promise than in fulfilment. At Independence, the dream was that the people of a country of so much diversity — in language, religion, and tradition — would enjoy constitutionally guaranteed rights and through democratic means, build a just society. A...

-The Hindu Protesters launch mass RTI campaign, raise questions on controversial issues New Delhi: Right to Information activists attempting to deliver a petition against the RTI Amendments Bill to the President via his Secretariat were detained outside Rashtrapati Bhavan on Thursday. Later, they launched a new campaign to bombard the government with a mass RTI campaign raising queries on prickly issues of public interest, from the Unnao rape case and the Rafale defence...