-The Times of India Union law minister Salman Khurshid on Sunday fiercely quarreled with reporters of a TV channel, disputing their claim that his NGO Zakir Hussain Memorial Trust had embezzled public funds meant for the disabled. The minister countered the allegation that his trust made fake claims of having organized camps for distribution of equipment among the differently abled. A spirited Khurshid, with wife Louise by his side, attributed motives to...

-The Hindu In the context of the ongoing debate on Kudankulam, the question of nuclear liability has come to the fore again. As a person who engaged with this question almost 50 years ago, I would like to throw some light on the subject. As a lead member of the Indian team negotiating the Tarapur contract with the Americans, it fell to my remit to address this matter. General Electric and...

-The Hindu The Finance Ministry proposal to create a National Investment Board with extraordinary authority to supersede individual ministries and decide the fate of expensive infrastructure projects is a retrograde measure that strikes at the root of democratic governance. The basic tenets of all law-making include public participation, equity and justice, more so when it comes to the environment and welfare. India’s laws on protection of the environment, forests, wildlife and...

-The Hindu Property empire was built on soft loans handed out in unusual circumstances, documents show In February, as rumours of the ambitions of Congress president Sonia Gandhi’s son-in-law swirled amidst the heat and dust of the election campaign in Uttar Pradesh, her daughter Priyanka moved to scotch speculation about Robert Vadra’s possible political future. “He’s a successful businessman,” the younger Ms. Gandhi said of her husband, “who is not interested in changing...

-The Telegraph Consensus eluded a meeting of the group of ministers (GoM) on the land acquisition bill today amid divergent views on the applicability of the proposed law to mining and coal exploration and a retrospective clause for ongoing projects. The panel will meet again in the first week of October. The revised Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bill is expected to be reintroduced in the winter session. The original bill had a...