-The Economic Times   The ninth and final session of the Lokpal Bill drafting committee dispersed with little meeting of minds between civil society representatives and their government counterparts. Forget the six points on which differences have been enumerated; the basic disagreement is on the essential nature of the proposed ombudsman. The civil society representatives seek to create a new body that is all-powerful, gets appointed with minimal participation by the...

It was the writer and activist Arundhati Roy who set foreign journalists in India busily chattering recently. In an interview with Stephen Moss in the Guardian, Ms Roy was discussing the Maoist and Adavasi “resistance” to encroachment on tribal lands. Mr Moss, asked her why, “we in the West don’t hear about these mini-wars?”. Ms Roy replied: “I have been told quite openly by several correspondents of international newspapers, that...

The murder of Mid-Day's J. Dey is only the tip of the iceberg. If violence against journalists continues unchecked, can a beleaguered press continue to report the way it should? If they are becoming fair game for everybody, it makes you wonder if the Media as a sector really has clout. The lawlessness that is currently manifest in public life is turning out to have another dimension to it. The power...

Both sides are reluctant to budge on contentious issues Reluctant to budge from their views, the government representatives and civil society members of the Joint Drafting Committee on the Lokpal Bill decided on Monday to leave the differences to be resolved at the next stage of wider consultations with political parties. The government has decided to call an all-party meeting in July to elicit their opinion on the draft Bill and...

-PTI ‘She could approach trial court for bail once charges are framed' The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed DMK Member of Parliament Kanimozhi's bail plea in the 2G spectrum allocation case and questioned the Central Bureau of Investigation for its failure to interrogate the accused for recovering certain documents. However, the court offered her some hope, saying she could approach the trial court for bail once charges are framed. It said she shall...