-The Hindustan Times In a jolt to Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi, a Supreme Court-appointed lawyer's report on the post-Godhra 2002 riots has held that he can be prosecuted for "promoting enmity among different groups". Amicus curiae (friend of the court) Raju Ramachandran's report, made public on Monday,  on a complaint by riot victim Zakia Jafri, differs from the clean chit given to Modi by the SC-appointed special investigation team (SIT) last...

-The Hindustan Times The government on Monday admitted a mismatch between wheat procurement and storage and said efforts were on to ease pressure on go-downs by encouraging exports and providing foodgrain to MNREGA workers as part of wages. Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee’s brief statement on farmers’ light in the Lok Sabha during the zero hour came in response to vociferous protests by many political parties on the plight of farmers due...

It has been a slow but steady move to make scholarship freely available Most of us spend a few hundred rupees a year on the magazines we buy for leisure reading or for keeping abreast of current affairs. But if you are a scientist, you may be shelling out a few thousand rupees for the journal your professional society publishes for its members. Of course, if you are a serious researcher,...

Alarmed by its proactive role, the three ‘pillars’ of our democracy set out to weaken the fourth estate Fundamentalisms do not necessarily announce their arrival by banging a hammer on our heads. Freedoms are often lost in little steps. The process creeps in quietly but insidiously. The path is often complex and defies a simple narrative. But here’s a straightforward fact: a concerted attempt is being made to censor, control...

-PTI The Centre's move to carve out 4.5 per cent reservation for minorities would double the job opportunities for Muslim community, Union Law Minister Salman Khurshid said. "The 4.5 per cent reservation for minorities would increase two fold the job opportunities for Muslims, who must get their rightful share in the fruits of development," Khurshid said. The demand for reservation in employment and education for Muslims was not a "bargaining tactic", but was...