The Congress has decided to adopt a cautious approach to suggestions coming from within the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government that the Right to Information (RTI) Act be re-examined as it affects government functioning. On Friday, party spokesperson Manish Tewari — in response to a question whether changes were being contemplated in the seminal Act — stressed it was important for the ongoing debate on the issue “to play itself...

After colleague Veerappa Moily, Law Minister Salman Khurshid has expressed concern over the Right to Information (RTI) Act affecting government functioning. Advocating a re-look at RTI, Khurshid said its misuse was affecting “institutional efficacy and efficiency”, with even the bureaucracy becoming reluctant to record its opinion. A “balance” has to be maintained between transparency and accountability and institutional efficiency, he said. “There is a confidential communication between a minister and the Prime...

Proposed law against interests of displaced, say activists Civil society groups have taken exception to the exemption of Special Economic Zones (SEZs) Act from the proposed National Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (NLARR) Bill 2011, saying it would deny “whatever little benefits” assured in the Bill to those displaced by these SEZs. These groups wonder if the move to make the SEZs and 15 other laws inapplicable was deliberate, aimed at favouring...

-The Hindu In many ways, Vachathi was a test case: not so much for the judiciary as for India's social conscience. In June 1992, this tribal hamlet in northern Tamil Nadu was witness to what brutal law enforcers and callous government officials could do to the poor and the powerless. Women were raped, men were assaulted, houses were looted and destroyed, and cattle were killed, all in the name of upholding...

-The Hindu   Describing female foeticide as a grave challenge, Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad on Wednesday said information, education and communication (IEC) could play a role in building a positive environment for valuing the girl child, particularly at the grassroots level. He said the Centre had decided to provide funds to States for setting up dedicated cells to monitor the implementation of the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic...