The government has proposed that the offence of rape be made "gender neutral" by amending the law so that sexual assault on men can also be proceeded against under the same statute. It also plans to make specific laws on stalking and acid attacks on women. The change in the rape law is being drafted by the ministry of women and child development (WCD) as part of the criminal law (amendment)...

-The Telegraph   BMW hit-and-run key accused Sanjeev Nanda, who is a free man now, today urged the Supreme Court not to use his case to settle the law on whether culpable homicide not amounting to murder or criminal negligence charges should be invoked in such cases. Those accused in hit-and-run cases are routinely slapped with IPC Section 304A (causing death by negligence), which carries a maximum jail term of two years or...

-The Hindu   Despite low literacy rates, most of the low-income single women in the country are not dependent on their families but run their households on their own, according to the findings of a study released by Union Minister for Rural Development Jairam Ramesh. However, since the government does not consider them so, they are neglected and forced to survive on less than the prescribed minimum wage. Mr. Ramesh released the study...

Judicial activism was the key in many Supreme Court observations and judgments during 2011. 2011 CVC THOMAS: A three-judge bench led by CJI SH Kapadia declared “non est” — or nonexistent — the majority recommendation of a high-powered committee for P J Thomas as Central Vigilance Commissioner. The court ruled that the Prime Minister and the Home Minister’s recommendation amounted to “official arbitrariness”, coming in spite of the dissent of the third...

-PTI   In yet another blow to 21 social networking sites including Facebook, Microsoft, Google, Yahoo and Youtube, a Delhi court on Friday issued summons to them for facing trial for allegedly webcasting objectionable contents. Metropolitan Magistrate (MM) Sudesh Kumar took cognizance on a private criminal complaint and has directed the Centre for taking "immediate appropriate steps" and also file a report in the court by January 13. The court's order came three days...