Expectations of changes resulting from a movement bereft of a clear political and ideological thrust would be far-fetched. FROM the vacuum left by mainstream politics to the confusions of ideology and practice emerging out of half-baked socio-political engagement – the political trajectory of Anna Hazare's “anti-corruption” satyagraha movement demanding early introduction of the Lokpal Bill in Parliament can well be summed up thus. The wide support that the movement received from...

Campaign against Bhushans seen as a bid to scuttle the formulation of the same Even as the Finance Minister and chairman of the joint drafting committee on Lokpal Bill, Pranab Mukherjee, said on Friday that the controversy surrounding some panel members would not impact the formulation of the Bill, several civil society groups and organisations condemned the smear campaign as an attempt to scuttle the proposed Bill. The National Alliance of People's...

Janata Party president Subramanian Swamy on Thursday called upon anti-corruption campaigner Anna Hazare to distance himself from Congress president Sonia Gandhi who, he said, faced allegations of involvement in Scams. It was ironical that Ms. Gandhi should express support for Mr. Hazare's fight against corruption, Dr. Swamy told journalists here. Pointing out that Mr. Hazare wanted Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar to quit the committee formed to draft the Lokpal Bill because...

UPA wants JPC to do the job BJP feels it has a better chance of indicting the government Congress men realise that a JPC report will be more to their advantage After a three-hour-long discussion here on Thursday, the Public Accounts Committee remained a divided house on the question whether it should finalise its findings in a report on the 2G spectrum allocation or leave the entire issue to the Joint Parliamentary Committee...

When it comes to individuals getting land allotted from the government much below market rates and without any lottery or auction, the Bhushans have always claimed to hold high standards of probity — for others. The Indian Express reported today how Shanti Bhushan and son Jayant Bhushan applied and got two 10,000 square metre Noida farmhouse plots from the Mayawati government via a process they themselves go on to question. But on...