-The Hindu The government has pushed its ideological agenda even at the cost of constitutional values and welfare The Modi government has embarked on a publicity blitz to mark the first 100 days of its second term. Since even accomplished purveyors of propaganda may leave out some achievements, I write to set the record straight. The most prominent achievement of Modi 2.0 has been its emphasis on pushing through its ideological agenda, even...

-Hindustan Times The Constitution promises religion-neutral citizenship. NRC and its fallout could upend that The controversy unfolding in Assam over the National Register of Citizens (NRC), published on August 31, has brought to the fore important fault lines in the construction of citizenship in contemporary India. In particular, it places the spotlight on the role of key institutional actors – the bureaucracy and judiciary – in adjudicating citizenship. Crucially, the implementation of...

-The Telegraph Can issuing work permits and settling people outside Assam resolve the problem temporarily? In his Outlook article, (retired Union Cabinet secretary and a long-time North-east hand at the Centre) G.K. Pillai offered a temporary arrangement of granting ‘a five-year work permit’ to those not included in the final NRC, basically to maintain status quo, ‘to calm things down and allow a range of policy options to be developed carefully over...

-The Telegraph It is in the unstoppable human search for truth and justice that the right to information will continue to shine Ever since the Bharatiya Janata Party government flexed its legislative muscle, and successfully amended and diluted the Right to Information Act, many people have asked if the RTI Act has been maimed beyond repair and if its obituary should be written. While analysing the amendments, it is also necessary to...

-PTI Their pear and apple harvest rotting, ration and cash running out — people in several parts of Kashmir are facing financial hardships due to the ongoing shutdown in major parts of the Valley, say three panchayat members from the region. Hailing from Anantnag district of south Kashmir, Talib Hussain, along with fellow panchayat member Iqbal Ahmed and Mumtaz Ahmed Khan, said they were in the national capital to let the...