-The Hindu   By filing a Special Leave Petition against the Karnataka High Court order directing payment of statutory minimum wages to workers under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), the United Progressive Alliance government has betrayed its insensitivity to the rights of the poor. The courts have ruled that payment below minimum wage amounts to “forced labour”, which is constitutionally prohibited. The Centre's implacable stand that workers employed...

Bench refuses to stay Karnataka High Court order In a major setback to the UPA government at the Centre, the Supreme Court on Monday refused to stay the Karnataka High Court order for payment of minimum wages to the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) workers and suggested that the government, instead of appearing adversarial, should resolve the issue through a consultative process. The only relief the government secured was...

-The Economic Times   The Supreme Court has refused to stay a recent Karnataka High Court verdict that has said the central government is liable to pay higher wages under the country's flagship rural employment programme in tandem with that of the state minimum wage rate. It has further asked the government to find a way to end the disparity between the wages paid under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Act (MGNREGA)...

-CNN-IBN The Centre on Monday filed a petition in the Supreme Court challenging the Karnataka High Court order on minimum wages in National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme. The Centre told the Supreme Court that if the Karnataka High Court judgment is not set aside it will impose a burden of Rs 7,500 crore on the Government and cites lack of fund. The Karnataka government has fixed a minimum wage of Rs 145...

-The Times of India   The Karnataka High Court on Friday allowed investigation against external affairs minister SM Krishna and JD(S) leader HD Kumaraswamy responding to a private complaint about illegal mining. Partly allowing their petitions seeking the quashing of the complaint, Justice N Ananda ordered the continuation of Lokayukta investigations in respect of Krishna dereserving forest land for mining and Kumaraswamy favouring a firm. The judge observed: "The dereservation was in contravention of...