-The Times of India Telecom minister Kapil Sibal says the Information Technology Act shouldn't be misused to "throttle dissent". But is he prepared to go the length to stop misuse? Consider the legal gloss Section 66A of the Act puts on assaults on free expression. Two incidents should suffice as examples. In April, a professor was arrested in Kolkata for forwarding a cartoon depicting Bengal CM MAMata Banerjee. More recently, a...
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CPM crows at MAMata isolation
-The Telegraph The CPM is visibly enjoying MAMata Banerjee’s political isolation in her push for a no-trust motion and chose to make light of her overtures today, trying to suggest she was out of her depth in national politics. “She has completely misunderstood the issue. The issue is not the government; the issue is policies. Policies have to be reversed. What do you do if another government pursues the same policies?” politburo...
More »Absurd arrests
-The Business Standard IT laws have clauses that can be too easily misused The arrest of two women in Palghar (near Mumbai) for an innocuous Facebook status update is the latest indicator of an increasing intolerance of free speech, especially online. The state has also increased its surveillance. The focus on surveillance and censorship is evident not only in specific instances but also in the statistics. In February, the government said...
More »Award-winning TN panchayat now litters on the roadside -K Manikandan
-The Hindu Chennai: Four years ago, the Vengaivaasal Village Panchayat won the Centre’s Nirmal Gram Puraskar for ensuring sanitation and awareness of hygiene. Today, the garbage dumped by the local body on a stretch of the Medavakkam – MAMbakkam Main Road is a source of major irritation to both residents of the vicinity and motorists. The Medavakkam – MAMbakkam Main Roadlinks two arterial roads – Velachery Main Road at Medavakkam and Vandalur –...
More »Chill of hike freeze-Meghdeep Bhattacharyya
-The Telegraph Kolkata: Owners of potato cold storages today announced a day’s shutdown on Monday and threatened a longer agitation to protest the MAMata Banerjee government’s refusal to allow a rent hike. Many officials termed this as another instance of the “populist” government’s reluctance to raise tariffs. “The rent is our only source of income. Overhead costs have spiralled in the past two years. But the government is not allowing us to increase...
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