-The Hindu Dalit rights groups in Bantwal attempted to stop the official celebration of Ambedkar Jayanti on Saturday citing the Government's “failure” to take action to fulfil its constitutional mandate of uplifting the conditions of the poor. Eye-witnesses said the groups initially requested the officials and guests assembled not to conduct the proceedings as planned. When they decided to go ahead ignoring the warnings, the Dalits reportedly took away the portrait of...

Amit Kumar, an Indian journalist based in the eastern state of Bihar, received a tip in 2009 from a village called Manan Bigha just two kilometers away from his home. There was a man there dying from starvation, he was told. The situation was urgent. Mr. Kumar rushed off to visit the man, Kangresh Manjhi, and exhaustively documented his story. He learned how Mr. Manjhi, a lower-caste, landless laborer, was forced...

-The Hindustan Times Police arrested Ambikesh Mahapatra, a professor of chemistry of Jadavpur University for sending e-mails that show chief minister Mamata Banerjee, former railway minister Dinesh Trivedi and railway minister Mukul Roy in a poor LIGht.   The cartoon in question has been doing the rounds in West Bengal after Mamata forced Trivedi out of the rail ministry and put Roy in his place. Apparently, the cartoon is a caricature of Satyajit Ray's...

-PTI   A Jadavpur university professor was arrested today for allegedly posting a cartoon on the internet showing West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee in poor LIGht after she forced out Dinesh Trivedi and put Mukul Roy in his place as railway minister.  The arrest of Ambikesh Mohapatra, a chemistry professor, sparked an outrage with opposition CPM and the academic community saying the police action is "highly atrocious" and a "clear assault" on...

-CNN-IBN   A Jadavpur University professor was arrested on Friday morning for allegedly spreading "anti-Mamata Banerjee" cartoons on the Internet. Ambikesh Mahapatra, a teacher with the Chemistry Department of the University, was picked up on Thursday night by the police for allegedly forwarding cartoons of the Bengal Chief Minister.   The cartoon based on Satyajit Ray's movie Sonar Kella, allegedly show Mamata and Railways Minister Mukul Roy discussing how to get rid of party...