Shehla Masood had to die because the state couldn’t protect her Shehla Masood’s worst fears came to pass on August 16: she was shot dead in front of her house in Bhopal at around 11 am. An RTI activist who had taken up a variety of issues, from good governance, transparency and police reforms to tiger conservation, and who had been collecting evidence using the RTI Act since 2005, she...

-The Times of India   A day after Parliament accepted in principle the demands of anti-graft crusader Anna Hazare, some voices of dissent over the movement have surfaced. Leading civil rights organization, Peoples Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), has raised apprehensions on the ability of the Lokpal bill to tackle corruption. In a public discussion in Jaipur on Sunday, PUCL activists including its former national head Rajendra Sachar and noted activist Binayak...

-The Hindu   “Its members should not be from the government” With the impasse between the civil society and the government on the structure of the Lokpal Bill continuing, the former Chief Election Commissioner, T.N. Seshan, announced his version of the Bill on Friday, which provides for establishing an anti-graft body similar to the Election Commission. “The issue of corruption is important to the nation and this is an accepted view on all sides,”...

In a major climbdown from its stand during the opposition days, the Congress in Kerala on Wednesday decided not to evict energy major Suzlon from tribal land at ecologically-sensitive Attappadi hills, where the firm had illegally erected windmills. During the previous LDF regime, the Congress had vigorously campaigned to evict the windmill owners from tribal land and the party had even sought the intervention of the national leadership. Instead of pulling down...

The Anna Hazare fast has seen an outpouring of support across the country. The government Lokpal Bill is unacceptable. A fresh Bill is needed for an effective Lokpal. There has been an outpouring of support all over the country in favour of the fast conducted by Anna Hazare for the Jan Lokpal Bill. The agitation has found support predominantly from the urban middle classes and a substantial section of youth belonging...