-The Hindu There is no disparagement of subsidies in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh because those who attack the social welfare policies of the Congress regard them as examples of good governance by a party of the Right Three propositions dominate explanations of the Congress party's rout, the Bharatiya Janata Party's impressive victory and the Aam Aadmi Party's stunning success in Delhi in the recent Assembly elections. One, that there is a strong...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: The debate over Section 377 (unnatural sex) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) continues to dominate discussions in public forums. Author Vikram Seth, who has been vocal about his views since the Supreme Court verdict recriminalized gay sex last week, on Saturday used the platform of the Rashtrapati Bhavan to slam Section 377. In the presence of President Pranab Mukherjee on the dais and senior leaders...

-The Hindu     With the closing of relief camps in Muzaffarnagar, even the meagre food support has disappeared. As the winter cold descends this year on Muzaffarnagar and Shamli districts in Western U.P., some 20,000 people will camp in makeshift unofficial camps amidst squalor and official neglect, or survive in small rented tenements or with relatives - exiles from the villages of their birth. Three months after one of the grimmest communal outbreaks...

-The Hindu The camps were set up in the aftermath of September's communal violence MUZAFFARNAGAR: Three months after the high-profile visits of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Congress President Sonia Gandhi to various relief camps, riot-affected Muslims belonging to at least half-a-dozen villages are still to return to their native villages. Large scale violence that erupted in this sugarcane belt in August-September this year has a left deep scar on the psyche of these...

-The Telegraph In a rare alliance, Hindu, Muslim and Christian leaders today spoke in one voice - to welcome the Supreme Court verdict upholding a law that criminalises gay sex. "Homosexuality represents a threat to traditional Indian culture. We are very happy with the verdict as homosexuality is a mental disorder and it is against our rich culture," said Zafaryab Jilani, member of the All-India Muslim Personal Law Board. VHP general secretary Champak...