Many Indian laws do not reflect modern and enlightened concepts of justice and require major revision. The recent campaign in support of Dr. Binayak Sen has received much publicity. The mainstream media has enunciated his cause and dissected the evidence, conviction and judgment. Amnesty International argued that the case violated international standards for a fair trial. While Dr. Sen's conviction has received much attention, there is a need to foreground the...

Intervention plea in High Court opposes bail to Dr. Sen At half past four in the evening on Tuesday, Justices T.P. Sharma and R.L. Jhanwal of the Chhattisgarh High Court were preparing to adjourn for the day when they were interrupted by an energetic lawyer with tousled grey hair. “Your Honour, we would like to file an intervention application to oppose bail in this case,” began Shailesh Ahuja, marking the latest...

A delegation of European Union observers was today allowed by Chhattisgarh High Court to witness proceedings on rights activist Binayak Sen’s appeal against his life term in a case of sedition, which his lawyer and BJP MP Ram Jethmalani termed “political persecution”. When Sen’s appeal came up for hearing, a division bench of Justices T.P. Sharma and R.L. Jhanwar considered the reference on the EU team’s proposal made by the state...

Protests and black flags greeted the eight-member team from the European Union who arrived in Raipur on Sunday night. The EU delegation, which include representatives of Delhi based diplomatic missions from Belgium, France, Germany, Hungary, Sweden and the UK, has come to witness human rights activist Binayak Sen's bail hearing. The hearing is scheduled to take place at the Chhattisgarh High Court in Bilaspur on Monday. They were accompanied by BJP's own...

Women in rural India continue to die because of indifference and neglect by healthcare authorities... This is a public health warning. Do not express concern for the state of healthcare in this country. Do not express anger that women die because they are either denied care or help is delayed when they have complicated pregnancies. Do not demand that healthcare is an entitlement that the poor have a right to demand...