-The Hindu The conviction rate for every kind of crime is in free fall, engendering a breakdown of law that no republic can survive Even criminals, back in 1953, seemed to be soaking in the warm, hope-filled glow that suffused the newly free India. From a peak of 654,019 in 1949, the number of crimes had declined year-on-year to 601,964. Murderers and dacoits; house-breakers and robbers — all were showing declining enthusiasm...

-The Hindu Rebel IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt has secured permission from the Gujarat High Court to inspect some of the official documents relating to the 2002 communal clashes in Gujarat, before submitting his final affidavit before the G.T. Nanavati-Akshay Mehta Judicial Inquiry Commission probing into the Godhra train carnage and the subsequent violence. A Division Bench of the High Court, comprising Chief Justice Bhaskar Bhattacharya and Justice J.B. Pardiwala, has directed the...

-The Indian Express Hyderabad: Abdul Razak alias Mansoor, who police say was a Lashkar-e-Toiba member, committed suicide last Wednesday. His family intends to approach the Andhra Pradesh Human Rights Commission, saying harassment by police drove Razak to kill himself. Razak was an accused in the November 2002 blast at Sai Baba temple in Dilsukhnagar in Hyderabad that killed two persons and injured three. He was also named in the FIRs filed in...

-Outlook While some question my motives in seeking information on Rahul Gandhi's foreign trips, others say that parting with such information will jeopardize his security. Really?  I am really puzzled by some of the responses to my RTI regarding Rahul Gandhi’s foreign trips. One set of persons have echoed the arguments used by Congress spokespersons Manish Tiwari and Jayanti Natarajan questioning my motives for demanding information that “violates the privacy of Rahul Gandhi.”...

-Outlook The venom and aggression with which Congress leaders are responding to a simple question first regarding Mrs Sonia Gandhi and now regarding Mr Robert Vadra proves yet again, if any proof were required, that Congressmen and women are convinced there is a lot to hide  The venom and aggression with which Congress leaders are responding to a simple question being asked first regarding the foreign travels of Mrs Sonia Gandhi and...