-Outlook India RTI remains the only credible means left in our polity today to access the facts within government functioning, and therefore, come closer to the truth, write Aruna Roy and Rakshita Swamy. “We the people of India….adopt, enact and give to ourselves this Constitution”. The Preamble of the Indian Constitution articulated the intent of sovereignty and the status of all of us, as equal citizens. The Right to Information (RTI) Act...
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Secrets are not sacred -Sanjay Srivastava
-The Indian Express Laws like Official Secrets Act conflate the interests of particular parties, governments with the greater good. They must be contested. The greatest failing of Indian public life over the past 70 years is the manner in which the state and forms of government have become identified with the life of the people. We have come to believe that state and society are the same thing and that pronouncements...
More »SY Quraishi, former Chief Election Commissioner, interviewed by Anuradha Raman (The Hindu)
-The Hindu The former Chief Election Commissioner on the EVM controversy, why the Supreme Court’s verdict on criminals in politics is a missed opportunity, and electoral bonds The debate on the reliability of electronic voting machines (EVMs) refuses to settle, with political parties continuing to voice their concerns about malfunctioning machines. Former Chief Election Commissioner S.Y. Quraishi explains how EVMs work, why he is disappointed with the Supreme Court for refusing to...
More »Jean Dreze -- development economist -- interviewed by Jipson John and Jitheesh PM (Frontline.in)
-Frontline.inJean Dreze is a well-known Indian economist working in the field of "development economics". Born in Belgium, he studied mathematical economics at the University of Essex and completed his PhD from the Indian Statistical Institute (New Delhi) in 1982.He has taught at the London School of Economics and the Delhi School of Economics and is currently visiting professor at Ranchi University as well as honorary professor at the Delhi School...
More »Undoing a legacy of injustice -Gautam Bhatia
-The Hindu The Delhi High Court order striking down the Begging Act heeds the Constitution’s transformative nature In 1871, the colonial regime passed the notorious Criminal Tribes Act. This law was based upon the racist British belief that in India there were entire groups and communities that were criminal by birth, nature, and occupation. The Act unleashed a reign of terror, with its systems of surveillance, police reporting, the separation of families,...
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