-The Hindu     Governments have ritually abused the latitude granted by the Indian Penal Code and the Constitution to harass, intimidate and arrest scores of writers, journalists and artists It is common knowledge that Article 19 (1) (a) of the Indian Constitution lays down that "all citizens shall have the right to freedom of speech and expression"; it is also common knowledge that this fundamental right is not absolute, as the immediately following...

-The Hindu Every biomedical and health research involving human participants, whether in conventional areas, or in new evolving specialised fields, will have to be conducted in accordance with the provisions of the proposed Biomedical and Health Research Regulation Bill, 2013. Research on human subjects in the specified areas like assisted reproductive technology (ART); organ, tissue and cell therapy; genetic and genomic studies including techniques of genetic engineering and gene therapy; nano medicines;...

-Kafila.org A Preliminary Citizens' Report September 20, 2013 A. On September 17-18, 2013, an 11 member team consisting of both independent activists as well as activists affiliated with 5 organizations based in Lucknow, Chitrakoot, Muzaffarnagar and Delhi visited relief camps in two affected districts of Muzaffarnagar (3 Relief Camps - Madrasa camp at Bassi Kalan, Madrasa camp at Tawli and camp at Haji Aala's house, Shahpur) and Shamli (3 Relief Camps -...

-The Times of India Aadhaar, the 12-digit unique identification number issued to individuals, is an ambitious attempt to marry advances in technology to governance. If Aadhaar works, the state's capacity to deliver public services efficiently will increase significantly. Today, however, its efficacy stands undermined on account of the flippant attitude of the Centre and the Supreme Court's decision to venture into an area that is best left to the government. A Supreme...

-PTI NEW DELHI: An ordinance to protect convicted MPs and MLAs from facing immediate disqualification was approved on Tuesday by the Union Cabinet, in effect negating an order of the Supreme Court. Government decided to bring the ordinance after failing to get a Bill to this effect passed in Parliament during the recent monsoon session, sources said. The government's decision to take the ordinance route came against the backdrop of a Congress MP...