-The Hindu The former Chief Election Commissioner on the EVM controversy, why the Supreme Court’s verdict on criminals in politics is a missed opportunity, and electoral bonds The debate on the reliability of electronic voting machines (EVMs) refuses to settle, with political parties continuing to voice their concerns about malfunctioning machines. Former Chief Election Commissioner S.Y. Quraishi explains how EVMs work, why he is disappointed with the Supreme Court for refusing to...

-The Hindu Allege harassment of those who questioned graft related to the MGNREGA scheme Patna: Noted economist and activist Jean Dreze and Right to Information activist Nikhil Dey, along with thousands of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) activists, on Friday protested against the “harassment and intimidation” of those who have raised questions of corruption related to the MGNREGA scheme in the Muzaffarpur district of north Bihar. The protest march led...

-The Hindu Lacking personnel, funds and motivation, the thana is not structured to enforce the rule of law The death of inspector Subodh Kumar Singh, shot while trying to control a mob of cow vigilantes in Bulandshahr district of Uttar Pradesh, is a vivid expression of the contempt of our ruling classes, and those aligned to them, for the rule of law. The increasing number of human sacrifices for the alleged protection...

-PTI Mumbai: Police on Sunday said two debt-ridden onion farmers from Maharashtra’s Nashik district committed suicide in the last two days, due to indebtedness and low rates commanded by the bulb in markets. The deceased were identified as Tatyabhau Khairnar, 44, and Manoj Dhondage, 33. Both of them hailed from Baglan taluka in the north Maharashtra district. Nashik accounts for 50 per cent of onion production in India. Farmers here have claimed that...

-The Hindu With farm distress becoming a major electoral issue in the run-up to the 2019 Lok Sabha election, Vikas Pathak visits two pockets of rural India, Mandsaur in Madhya Pradesh and Jodhpur district in Rajasthan, and finds that the political instincts of the rural voter are not necessarily rooted in agriculture. A few farmers sit huddled near a statue of Sardar Patel at Balaguda village in Mandsaur, Madhya Pradesh pouring out...