The success of the institution of Lokpal will depend on limiting its scope to the very top of the hierarchy. That will make it manageable and lead to accountability down the line. The drafting of the Lokpal bill is back in the news after the round of Assembly elections. The co-chairperson of the high-power committee involved in the drafting has said that progress is slow and that the June 30 deadline...

The Central Information Commission (CIC) has directed the Union Law Ministry to furnish details of the reply sent by Additional Solicitor-General A.S. Chandiok in response to a show-cause issued for his appearance in the Delhi High Court on behalf of the North Delhi Power Ltd. (NDPL), a private company. Rights activist Subash Chandra Agrawal, on the basis of media reports about Mr. Chandiok's appearance for a private party and the show-cause...

The Delhi High Court on Monday stayed an order that would have allowed Indians to seek information from the Supreme Court under the country’s Right-to-Information act, rather than under existing court rules, after the top court appealed the ruling. Earlier this month, the Central Information Commission, which oversees the implementation of India’s transparency law, ruled that people seeking information from the court were entitled to use the four-year-old statute if they...

In a secluded hospital bed in this bustling Indian metropolis, a woman who has lain brain dead for 37 years after a brutal sexual assault is at the centre of a national debate on mercy killing. India’s Supreme Court has ruled that Aruna Shanbaug should live, while at the same time supporting passive euthanasia - or the withholding of medical treatments that are keeping her alive. The court’s decision to rule out...

Conditional cash transfers” (CCTs) are a new buzzword in policy circles. The idea is simple: give poor people cash conditional on good behaviour such as sending children to school. This helps to score two goals in one shot: poor people get some income support, and at the same time, they take steps to lift themselves out of poverty. CCT enthusiasm, however, is often based on a superficial reading of the Latin...