-Express News Service   Virtually forced into drafting it, the government today introduced a bill in the Lok Sabha that aims to fight corruption via the Lokpal at the centre and Lokayuktas in the states, an unprecedented oversight body whose members are selected, and which is set to be dominated by members of the higher judiciary. The singular theme emerging from the proceedings of the house today was the unease across the political...

Last week's clash near Posco's project site in Odisha is brewing trouble for the South Korean steelmaker and the state government, with legislators demanding a probe into why the main accused in the clash has not been arrested. State legislators on Monday demanded the immediate arrest of Bapi Sarkhel, a Paradip-based contractor alleged to have masterminded Wednesday's clash, which left one dead and 25 injured. "When the police arrested local...

-The Indian Express   When it comes to Team Anna and the stage, the symbol has always signified as much as the substance. So Sunday’s gathering at New Delhi’s Jantar Mantar featuring Anna Hazare flanked by politicians from the CPM and CPI to the BJP, Samajwadi Party, JD(U), TDP, BJD and the Akali Dal, was a significant one. While this may be a shrewd self-unmasking of Team Anna’s apolitical veneer, elevating the...

From the beginning of the proceedings today, speakers from Team Anna appeared to be pressing home one point above all: they had returned to Jantar Mantar with an agenda larger than the (Jan) Lokpal. The Bill must be passed this winter session, or else there would be a “jail bharo aandolan”, said Anna. “Not a single jail will remain empty,” he promised. But the larger goal was another law, or...

Anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare made an impactful return to the "anshan-andolan (fasting-protest)" arena on Sunday, drawing an enthusiastic and youthful crowd to Jantar Mantar and rallying major non-Congress parties to his cause. Three months after his epic 13-day fast at Ramlila Maidan, the response to Anna's seven-hour protest is proof that the Gandhian has not lost traction with popular sentiment despite his now familiar anti-government announcements. He also succeeded in splitting...