-The Hindu Opposition parties must make a new anti-torture legislation part of their common programme Custodial torture is global, old and stubborn. Dismemberment was a method of torture practised with vigour in ancient India, crushing-by-elephant-foot another. The Arthashastra prescribes mental torture through swear-words with or without physical assaults. Death by a thousand cuts was ancient China’s speciality. The Tang Code (652 CE) describes judicial torture in detail. Ancient Japanese methods of torture...

-The Hindu Important bills were passed; but going forward there must be debate on the anti-defection law The 16th Lok Sabha had its final sitting last Wednesday, marking an end to a disappointing five-year period. This Lok Sabha was surpassed only by the preceding one in terms of the low number of hours it worked. It met for 1,615 hours, 40% lower than all full-term Parliaments. This shows a decline in the...

-TheWire.in The community has a traditional approach to sex education and finding a partner. The key is openness, conversation and guidance. Rayagada, Odisha: In his village of Singoroda, 80-year old Langi Nathika commands great respect – mostly as the husband of a bejuni, a priestess in their Kondh tribe. Like many in his community, Nathika cherishes their traditional approach to sex education and finding a partner. He may have something for us to...

-The Hindu The Act nullified the controversial March 20 apex court judgment diluting the stringent provisions of the Dalit protection law. The Supreme Court on Thursday refused to stay the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Act of 2018, which nullified the controversial March 20 apex court judgment diluting the stringent provisions of the Dalit protection law. The government had brought in the amendments, saying the Scheduled Castes and...

-The Indian Express New India cannot view empowerment of women merely as economic resource. Last month, Niti Aayog released a report on state-level progress across various indicators under the global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The comprehensive index score on gender equality (Goal 5) revealed that all Indian states, except Kerala and Sikkim, fall in the red zone, signifying low performance. Despite such worrisome findings in its own report, Niti Aayog’s almost simultaneously...