The breakneck speed of executions in China combined with the sparse data availability has led Amnesty International to say in its annual report on government-sanctioned killings that the “thousands of people who were believed to have been executed in China in 2011” could not be included in its study. In its report Death Sentences and Execution 2011 , Amnesty says at least 20 countries are known to have carried out executions....

-The Deccan Herald   Cover eight states, hold meetings in 87 villages   Rights groups released a report here demanding the implementation of Panchayats (Extention to Scheduled Areas) Act (PESA) and rights of the tribals in India.  The recommendations were based on the 39 days of foot march conducted by the Adivasi Janjati Adhikar Manch (AJAM), supported by ActionAid. The primary demand put forth by the tribals was implementation of PESA in Forest Rights Act, 2006...

The Supreme Court today refused to direct the Nanavati Commission to summon and question Narendra Modi about his alleged role in the 2002 riots, saying that doing so would amount to “judicial overreach”. The court’s decision followed an embarrassing gaffe it had made in the case a week ago, and would come as a relief to the Gujarat chief minister. Ironically enough, the two-judge bench had sought to issue notices on the...

The Supreme Court has handed down an extraordinary decision with some extraordinary arguments directing the central government to execute the “river interlinking project”. How could the Court which says “it can hardly take unto itself tasks of making of a policy decision or planning for the country on the need for acquisition and construction of river linking channels” then go on to actually take the very same policy decision and...

Ashish Bose is a veteran demographer whose expertise in analysing population data persuaded the former Prime Minister, the late Rajiv Gandhi to make him an advisor on issues ranging from urbanisation to poverty alleviation. He is best known for coining the term Bimaru (shorthand for Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh) for states with the worst socio-economic indicators. An author of 24 books, he is now working on a...