-The Hindu In a volte-face that has created ripples in political circles here, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday said it is now a “proven” fact that it was the Maoists who were responsible for the Jnaneswari Express sabotage. She had earlier accused the Communist Party of India (Marxist) of being behind the derailment of the train in Paschim Medinipur district on May 28, 2010, in which nearly 150 people were...
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Chavan says RTI slows down decision making but brings transparency
-The Pioneer Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan said on Monday that though the decision-making process had slowed down after the RTI Act came into effect, the legislation had indeed facilitated transparency in governance. “Everybody has become extremely cautious (because of the RTI Act). There is no doubt that the decision-making has slowed down. In that transition period, we are moving towards much more transparent governance which will pay us dividends in future,”...
More »‘Justice Katju has only reiterated views (on regulating media) that were there before’ by Archna Shukla
In this Idea Exchange moderated by Senior Editor Archna Shukla, I&B minister Ambika Soni speaks about self-regulation by the media, empowering the Press Council of India and the Congress party’s stand on corruption Archna Shukla: There is a growing perception that the government is unhappy with media criticism. The editor of a leading English daily publicly claimed that government advertisements have been stopped to his publication. Is the government being vindictive? I have...
More »'Had panchayats been bolstered,naxals could have been checked'
-PTI Union Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh today said that had the Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act been implemented properly, the naxal menace would not have become so big in Chhattisgarh and other places. Talking to reporters after his tour of the naxal-affected areas of the state, Ramesh said that PESA was brought in in 1996 to strengthen panchayats of scheduled areas, but it was not enforced in the right...
More »Anti-Contempt sentiment strengthens in Kerala
-The Pioneer The imprisonment of top CPI(M) leader MV Jayarajan for six months by the Kerala High Court the other day for calling two judges nincompoops has led to reopening of debates in the State on the limits of the Judiciary’s authority to use the sword of contempt of court provisions against those who criticize it and its verdicts. A large section of lawyers in Kerala now wants the judges to stop...
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