-The Indian Express Kolkata: West Bengal's notification for the panchayat elections marks a flash point in an ongoing tussle between the Mamata Banerjee government and the state election commission. The government notification, issued last week independently of the election authorities, has declared polls in two phases, on April 26 and 30. The election commission, headed by Meera Pandey, has been insisting on three phases. On Monday, the commission wrote to the government...

-The Telegraph The activists of North East Students' Organisation (Neso) today staged demonstrations in all the states demanding immediate updating of National Register of Citizens (NRC) and repeal of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act. In Guwahati, the activists of All Assam Students' Union (AASU), a constituent body of Neso, staged a demonstration in front of Raj Bhavan at Uzan Bazararmed with placards stating "Northeast cannot be dumping ground of illegal migrants,"...

-The Hindustan Times Enacted in 1958 to deal with the Naga uprising in the then composite state of Assam, the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) was reviewed by the Justice BP Jeevan Reddy Committee in 2005, which recommended that it be scrapped.   The Reddy report remains untabled in Parliament, despite the recent outcry, triggered by the Justice Verma Committee’s view that the Act needs to be reviewed (in the light...

-The Telegraph Imphal: A book on Irom Sharmila, Iron Irom: Two Journeys, was released by Bollywood actor Abhay Deol, at a function in Mumbai on Friday on International Women’s Day. The book, jointly authored by documentary filmmaker and writer Minnie Vaid and poet-activist Irom Sharmila, was released at Kitab Khana in Mumbai. Abhay, a supporter of the rights crusader, promised to continue his support of Sharmila and creating awareness about her among his...

-The Hindu Fasting Manipuri activist refuses to plead guilty to suicide attempt charge Manipur’s Irom Chanu Sharmila on Monday pleaded not guilty before a court here to the charge of “attempting to commit suicide” during a fast-unto-death she undertook at Jantar Mantar in 2006. She told the court that she would not give up her fast until the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) was repealed. Metropolitan Magistrate Akash Jain told her: “Madam,...