Alarmed by its proactive role, the three ‘pillars’ of our democracy set out to weaken the fourth estate Fundamentalisms do not necessarily announce their arrival by banging a hammer on our heads. Freedoms are often lost in little steps. The process creeps in quietly but insidiously. The path is often complex and defies a simple narrative. But here’s a straightforward fact: a concerted attempt is being made to censor, control...

Makhdumpur is a village in Uttar Pradesh's Bhadohi district. Adjoining it is a cluster of huts inhabited by people of the Nat caste, one of the lowest among Dalits. Congress party general secretary Rahul Gandhi visited a hut in the settlement just before the recent State Assembly elections. He spent some time inside the hut, interacted with the residents, shared a meal with them and then went on his way....

The permission given by the Centre for new registrations for export of cotton has brought little cheer either to cotton farmers or to the huge cotton processing industry in Adilabad district. Both the segments feel the move is too little and too late. Almost all the cotton produced in this district has arrived in the markets and no trader has Dared stocking cotton bales this season owing to its low price....

Organising a food festival can hardly be described as an act promoting hatred between students or communities. The controversy over the Beef Festival recently organised on the campus of Osmania University in Hyderabad and the threat of professors being investigated by the police for “instigating” the organisers needs to be understood in the context of the larger politics of food and policing of food practices. Across the country, different communities in different...

-The Hindu Kannada Chalavali Vatal Paksha leader and former MLA Vatal Nagaraj is all set to embark upon one more protest. He will now put up toilet equipment and accessories on display at the Kempe Gowda bus stand here on May 8 to protest against the lack of toilet facilities for rural women. Announcing this at a press conference here on Tuesday, Mr. Nagaraj said that the protest would be taken to...