Five years after it had upheld the expulsion of 11 MPs in the cash-for-questions Scam, the Supreme Court on Monday dismissed the Delhi police's bid to prosecute the two journalists who had conducted the sting operation. As a corollary, a 2010 Delhi high court ruling that corruption can be exposed by undercover journalists without informing authorities has attained finality. A bench headed by Justice Aftab Alam dismissed the special leave petition filed...

-Express News Service   A Mumbai-based RTI activist, who had sought information on various issues including the Adarsh Society Scam, was found unconscious by roadside at Palsana in Surat district on Sunday. He later told the police that he was abducted by a gang in Mumbai. Santosh Tiwari (42), a former employee of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) who now works as a security consultant for a private firm, was found unconscious...

In the past, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee had maintained “there are no Maoists in West Bengal” and that the situation in Jangalmahal region in the State was the result of “infighting among the Marxists,” but the Chief Minister on Saturday lashed out at the rebels, without naming them outright, labelling them “supari killers,” “jungle mafia” and “cowardly goons hiding in the forests.” A little over a year ago, at a...

-The Indian Express   Amid a raging debate on RTI, Union Law Minister Salman Khurshid has made it clear that there is no proposal for a "relook" at the Act but noted that not only the government but the judiciary too had experienced "difficulties" because of it. "We are proud of RTI. We are pleased that we gave RTI to this country. Even if it causes inconvenience to this country to an extent,...

-The Times of India   Founder member of the National Campaign for People's Right to Information (NCPRI) Aruna Roy on Saturday condemned the statement of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh that the Right To Information Act was adversely affecting deliberations in the government and deterring honest officials from expressing their views on file. Roy was speaking at a seminar on 'Strengthening participatory democracy: Role of RTI' at the International Centre Goa, Dona Paula. "The Prime...