-Rediff.com Today, Irom Sharmila, the Manipur civil rights activist, marks 12 years of her fast in protest against the Armed Forces Special Powers Act in the state. She remains in judicial custody where she continues to be force-fed through her nose. Deepti Priya Mehrotra, author of Burning Bright: Irom Sharmila and the Struggle for Peace in Manipur, recalls her association with the Iron Lady of Manipur. I met her initially in October 2006...

-The Hindu The Right to Information Act was a marvel in a country that boasted unbreachable barriers between the ruler and the ruled. It was outside the imagination of the ordinary folk raised in a cloistered environment of fear and secrecy that they could actually call for and obtain records of decisions that critically impacted their lives. Yet in only seven years, the RTI law has not just penetrated the fortress...

-The Business Standard The sorry implications of the LPG price rollback  Following the government’s decision to increase the price of diesel and introduce a cap on the number of subsidised gas cylinders available for household use in September, there was a reasonable amount of hope that the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) had learned some lessons. First, that it was essential to reduce the fuel subsidy bill, the most obvious component of the...

-The Times of India Congress will hold a massive rally on Sunday to defend its decision to allow FDI in multi-brand retail, in what will showcase government's new assertiveness on reforms and the backing extended by the Congress brass in the face of populist criticism that giant retailers will harm farmers' interests and pop and mom stores. The party has, especially its units in Delhi and neighbouring Haryana, have pulled out all...

-The Telegraph Shimla: The Himachal Pradesh elections appear to have turned a straight fight between the induction cooker and “pricey” LPG. The Congress, led by five-time chief minister Virbhadra Singh, was looking the clear favourite till incumbent Prem Kumar Dhumal unveiled a new voter sop in the final rounds of campaigning. The BJP chief minister offered free induction cookers to tide the people over the cooking gas price hike brought about by the...