I am not unduly worried by the muck being hurled at non-government members of the government-notified drafting panel for the Lokpal Bill and recall the beginning of the village-based RTI movement in 1996 in Rajasthan. One of the ridiculous allegations against the agitation leaders was that they had received a hefty commission from a Japanese manufacturer of photocopiers who would profit hugely from the demand for photocopied panchayat documents if...

Amid the billowing controversies surrounding the Lokpal Bill drafting committee, senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh Saturday backed a demand for a Dalit representative on the panel while central minister Salman Khurshid ruled out any changes in the committee. Singh backed Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati's demand for a Dalit representative on the 10-member government-civil society committee, though he has been her bitter critic. "The demand is just," Singh said, adding nothing...

Home minister P Chidambaram on Saturday termed the higher judiciary "over ambitious" but applauded it for its activism which "enlarged the ambit of fundamental rights" of citizens. Delivering the inaugural K N Katju memorial lecture on 'What ails the Indian judiciary', he said that like any other institution that has reached a ripe and old age, the judiciary is under stress. ``Another cause of stress is that the judiciary, especially the higher...

After having been beaten black and blue by Team Anna, the Congress party and the government are finally waking up to take the Gandhian on even as media managers in the party have so far not come out actively against the anti-corruption crusaders. While a senior Congress leader made it clear that party chief Sonia Gandhi is unlikely to reply to the publicly distributed letter of Anna Hazare which complains against...

Ruling on RTI activist's plea No abrogation of independence of judiciary or interference in judicial proceedings Furnish details of correspondence between Balakrishnan and Ministry on Dinakaran The Central Information Commission has directed the Central Public Information Officer (CPIO), Supreme Court, to furnish information on the action taken by the court Registry pursuant to the November 26, 2010 orders for constitution of a larger Bench to hear cases on declaration of assets by judges. The...