-The Hindustan Times Even if opinion polls were to be curbed, the world's largest democracy would still be an exciting place for elections and psephologists alike. Only a little less Democratic. So, pollsters have balked at the Election Commission's idea of restricting pre-poll surveys. But that's not the only debate, they say. Some leading Indian pollsters are worried about losing their precious credibility because of a few rotten apples. For one, there...

-The Indian Express Those who want parties under RTI have not specified whether this advances transparency or electoral reform. It is time for a more nuanced debate. The tussle around the proposed RTI amendments to nullify the CIC order bringing the six national parties under the RTI Act is notable for many reasons: first, the amendments were sent to the standing committee for deliberation despite near political unanimity. This is significant, since...

-Institute of Economic Growth This paper focusses on two Indian laws that seek to guarantee socioeconomic rights: the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA), an important example of India's recent history of legislation of social and economic rights, and the proposed National Food Security Act (NFSA), currently in Parliament. Various means of Democratic politics, including a ten-year old public interest litigation (PIL) in the Supreme Court and public mobilisation through the...

-The Economic Times NEW DELHI: As polls to five state assemblies draw near, cash counters in political parties can look forward to a busy period if historical patterns are anything to go by. An analysis of donations shows that national parties typically collect more than 100 crore each during such periods. According to the data from think-tank Association for Democratic Reforms, six parties together received almost 2,500 crore in donations at the time...

-The Times of India Sixty-six years after independence, India has the dubious distinction of being home to half the number of modern day slaves in the world. The first Global Slavery Index has estimated that 13.3 to 14.7 million people live like slaves in the country - roughly equal to the population of Kolkata. The index, published by the Australia-based Walk Free Foundation, ranked 162 countries based on three factors that include...