-The Indian Express Section 375 of IPC, which deals with rape, makes an exception for such instances within marriages. It holds that “sexual intercourse by a man with his own wife, the wife not being under 15 years of age, is not rape”. In her first statement following her ministry’s controversial reply to Rajya Sabha on marital rape, Woman and Child Development (WCD) Minister Maneka Gandhi has said that her ministry could...

-The Telegraph New Delhi: The Supreme Court today said it was not possible on its part to order mining activities in the state's bauxite-rich Niyamgiri hills unless the gram sabhas and others likely to be affected by it were also heard in the matter. The apex court asked the Odisha Mining Corporation, which had sought fresh gram sabhas to consider the contentious Niyamgiri mining issue, to make the 14 gram sabhas, which...

-The Times of India New Delhi: The government is working on a proposal to amend the code of criminal procedure (CrPC), restricting the powers of police to arrest when a person is available for interrogation by issuing notices, barring in cases of heinous crimes. A separate 'bail act' is also under consideration that would limit the discretionary powers of courts in granting relief to an accused. The law ministry is keen to...

-The Indian Express Government privileges the private over the public, preferring trade to health In a dramatic development, US industry groups recently claimed the Indian government offered them a “private” assurance that compulsory licences will not be issued, save in emergencies and for non-commercial purposes. Needless to state, such an assurance flies in the face of the Patents Act and the public health safeguards enshrined in it. Illustratively, Section 84 mandates that...

-The Hindu The Lawyers Collective has issued a clarification on March 10 on issues relating to allegations of violating the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010. Lawyers Collective (LC) has accused the government of making a “deliberate and sustained effort to target and vilify” the 35-year-old public trust and its chief functionaries, including former Additional Solicitor General Indira Jaising, by accusing them of violations under the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) (FCRA) Act, 2010. In a...