-The Times of India New Delhi: More than 30% of the ministers, in the enlarged council of ministers, have criminal cases pending against them while nearly all are crorepatis, according to analysis by Association for Democratic Reforms. About 24 of the 78 have declared criminal cases while 14 (18%) have serious criminal cases like rape, attempt to murder, communal disharmony, electoral violations against them. Out of the 78 ministers, 72 (92%) are crorepatis...

-The Hindu Proponents of poll reforms see it as a ray of hope,others feel votes could be better used The 2013 Assembly Elections in five states saw the debut of the NOTA (short for the None of the Above) option that enables voters to reject all the candidates in the fray in a particular constituency. While the Supreme Court itself primarily focused on secrecy (which the earlier 49-O process compromised on as it...

-The Indian Express The reasons for TMC's confidence that their 'rice politics' in the state will surmount all other criticism are rooted firmly in history. It is hunger that dominates discussions about elections in West Bengal. Starvation doesn’t need to be imagined in Bengal, it’s not a distant memory — the word still conjures up images of gaunt ribs, filthy rags and lethargic limbs with unnerving clarity. The reasons for TMC’s confidence...

-The Hindu Business Line Ten years on, the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act endures because it provides the poor a political voice February 2016 marks a decade since India’s National Rural Employment Guarantee Act 2005 (NREGA) came into force. NREGA is both revolutionary and modest; it promises every rural household one hundred days of employment annually on public-works projects, but the labour is taxing and pays minimum wage, at best. Many charges have...

-The Indian Express Gamlina’s response is just one example of how distant this government is from the lives of the poor and how tokenistic its schemes are. Gamlina Soren, an elected panchayat member in Jharkhand, sounded upset. She had been told by a local BJP functionary that gas cylinders were going to be “gifted” to poor women by the Centre but that they must have a BPL card. “But most poor Adivasi...