-The Hindu The Delhi bus rape has galvanised the country on the neglected issue of women’s safety. A look at several cities shows the need for large scale reform – of the police, the law, the legal process, and security in public places. One thought, one hoped, it would not happen in this case but most unfortunately, it did. In all the outrage, the outpouring of horror, grief and anger, that devastating...

-The Telegraph Srinagar: If appetite for capital punishment has been whetted in the country, Padshah Begum’s experience today should serve as a timely note of caution. The 60-year-old lady in Srinagar received word this afternoon that Delhi High Court has taken her son off death row because “serious lapses” marked the police investigation into a blast in the capital in 1996. She is no stranger to such news: two years ago, her eldest...

-The Hoot The coverage given to Thackeray’s death by some television channels was overwhelmingly disproportionate to his contribution to people’s well-being. The comments made by the “experts” were toned by the fear of Sena reprisal, says KALPANA SHARMA. Can Indian news television plumb greater depths? The blanket coverage of Bal Thackeray’s death and funeral on some channels would make any self-respecting journalist hang her head in shame. What were they thinking?...

-Frontline There is growing violence against women and children in Haryana, aided by the apparent collusion between the State government and the upper-caste-dominated khap panchayats. THE road leading to Dabra village in Haryana’s Hisar district is not very difficult to locate. It was at Dabra, a mere 15 kilometres from the district headquarters, that a heinous crime was committed on September 9. It would have gone unnoticed had it not been accompanied...

-Economic and Political Weekly The anti-corruption movement’s antics have weakened other movements for accountability. The recent fast-unto-death by members of “Team Anna” (a self-proclaimed name which has always sounded pompous even if loved by a media looking for a catchy t­itle) thankfully ended without any calamity on the advice of a group of “eminent” citizens and with a promise to carry on the “movement” in the political sphere. Many commentators have, rightly,...