Ruling on RTI activist's plea No abrogation of independence of judiciary or interference in judicial proceedings Furnish details of correspondence between Balakrishnan and Ministry on Dinakaran The Central Information Commission has directed the Central Public Information Officer (CPIO), Supreme Court, to furnish information on the action taken by the court Registry pursuant to the November 26, 2010 orders for constitution of a larger Bench to hear cases on declaration of assets by judges. The...

WHILE maintaining her support for a Lokpal institution, Aruna Roy, a prominent civil rights activist and a member of the National Advisory Council, took a critical position in respect of the Jan Lokpal Bill drafted by the activists of the India Against Corruption campaign. A recipient of the Ramon Magsaysay Award for community leadership in 2000, she heads the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (a trade union of workers and peasants)...

Expectations of changes resulting from a movement bereft of a clear political and ideological thrust would be far-fetched. FROM the vacuum left by mainstream politics to the confusions of ideology and practice emerging out of half-baked socio-political engagement – the political trajectory of Anna Hazare's “anti-corruption” satyagraha movement demanding early introduction of the Lokpal Bill in Parliament can well be summed up thus. The wide support that the movement received from...

When it comes to individuals getting land allotted from the government much below market rates and without any lottery or auction, the Bhushans have always claimed to hold high standards of probity — for others. The Indian Express reported today how Shanti Bhushan and son Jayant Bhushan applied and got two 10,000 square metre Noida farmhouse plots from the Mayawati government via a process they themselves go on to question. But on...

As young middle-class Indians gathered to express their anger at corrupt governance, it was a significant moment for Indian democracy. The country has witnessed many protests for wages and land, self-determination and human rights. But this campaign was different. It's decades since educated and privileged young people felt stirred enough to take to the streets, seeking hope of a better India. But this is not a one-time eruption and the...