-First Post Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, in his address to the Annual Convention of Information Commissioners, in early October had  warned against the use of the Right to Information Act — one of the most popular people-oriented steps that the UPA has taken so far — to ridicule public officials and infringe on people’s privacy. The PM’s statement which expressed concern over frivolous and vexatious RTI applications, infringement of personal privacy and...

-The Indian Express Apex court is seized of the IT Act’s 66A, but tightening the law may not be sufficient to prevent its misuse Thanks to a PIL, the Supreme Court has come to grips with the controversial Article 66A of the Information Technology (Amendment) Act of 2008, which has been misused to penalise political dissent. The three clauses of the section are designed to criminalise improper communications online, ranging from menacing...

-The Times of India The UPA government has itself to blame for being red-faced over Section 66A of the Information Technology Act. Had it come down heavily on the law's repeated misuse, the Supreme Court wouldn't have had to step in. Last week, the apex court issued notices to the Centre and five states in connection with a PIL questioning the legal soundness of Section 66A. It sought explanations for arrests...

-PTI Vedanta group is likely to close its one million tonnes alumina refinery at Odisha's Lanjigarh from Wednesday, a move which would impact about 7,000 jobs in the Eastern state. The mining conglomerate, which runs the alumina refinery through an unlisted subsidiary, Vedanta Aluminium Ltd (VAL), had given a closure notice to the state government three months back citing severe shortage of bauxite as the primary reason for the shutdown. "Suspension of operations...

-The Times of India Days after a two-judge bench of the Supreme Court said it was time to revisit jurisprudence behind imposition of death penalty, the apex court asked the Union government why provisions in some laws mandating compulsory death penalty as punishment be not struck down as unconstitutional. The question from a bench of Justices Aftab Alam and Ranajana Desai put additional solicitor general Siddharth Luthra in a piquant position for...