-The Hindu The apex court says police should neither interfere nor take criminal action against adult and consenting sex workers In a significant order recognising sex work as a “profession” whose practitioners are entitled to dignity and equal protection under law, the Supreme Court has directed that police should neither interfere nor take criminal action against adult and consenting sex workers. “It need not be gainsaid that notwithstanding the profession, every individual in...

-The Hindu Constitution bench had upheld the right to livelihood of those who ply their trade on the footpaths The North Delhi Municipal Corporation’s bulldozers’ show of strength against roadside stalls, and push carts in Delhi’s Jahangirpuri may face resistance from a Constitution Bench judgment of the Supreme Court which had upheld the right to livelihood of pavement dwellers who ply their trade on the footpaths out of sheer economic compulsions. Examining the...

-IdeasForIndia.in The Mandal Commission and Sachar Committee reports, among others, have indicated the existence of caste inequalities within the four major caste groups. However, data on this subject remain limited. Using data from a novel 2014-2015 survey conducted in Uttar Pradesh, this article shows that within-group inequalities among upper castes are significantly less, relative to the within-group inequalities observed among both Hindu and Muslim OBCs and Dalits. Broadly, four social groups –...

-The Hindu Union Home Minister Amit Shah reviewed the progress of rehabilitation of Kashmiri migrants, including Kashmiri Pandits, during a meeting with Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant-Governor Manoj Sinha on Friday. Mr. Shah was in Jammu to attend the 83rd Raising Day parade of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF).  According to the Union Home Ministry, only 17% of the proposed accommodation for Kashmiri Pandits has been completed in the past seven years. The Union...

-TheWire.in One of the oddities of the ongoing hijab ban case, is how a secular court has to decide whether wearing a hijab is mandated by Islam. One cannot fault the Karnataka high court beyond a point, as it is merely following ‘Essential Religious Practices Test’ laid down by the Supreme Court of India. Courts use this test to determine whether a practice is essential to the religion, in order to decide...