The Supreme Court-appointed committee investigating illegal iron ore mining in Karnataka is tying up loose ends in Bellary district and will be submitting its final report early next month. The court's forest bench is to hear the case again on February 3.  The Central Empowered Committee (CEC), whose investigations prompted the Supreme Court to suspend mining in iron ore-rich areas of the state, affecting nearly a fourth of the country's production,...

The case in Norway relating to the two Indian children who were removed from their parental home raises critical concerns about what is meant by the concept of “best interest” in matters relating to children. The purported findings of the Norway child welfare services — as claimed by the parents, at any rate — that a four-year-old did not have a separate room, that the children did not have appropriate toys...

Centre favours CBI inquiry into alleged misappropriation of funds With the Congress-led Union government favouring a CBI enquiry, in its affidavit before the Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court, into embezzlement in Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme funds, trouble is apparently brewing for the BSP government under Chief Minister Mayawati, who is already bearing the brunt of the NHRM scam in poll-bound Uttar Pradesh. The Centre filed the affidavit...

-The Indian Express   Six Dalits were thrashed by three members of another community in Rethal village, about 20 kilometres from Sanand town, on Tuesday night following which one of them died in the hospital. Three others are said to be critical while one has sustained minor injuries. The reason, police said, is the two FIRs they had lodged against one Yuvrajsinh for allegedly beating up a Dalit auto-driver. According to villagers, three persons...

The role of police in the November 2007 bloodbath in Nandigram has come under the scanner with the CID looking where the Mamata Banerjee government thinks it will find the trigger behind the firing. The investigators are scanning police records to figure out how some officers allegedly took decisions to favour the ruling Left, even as they carry on with their probe on the role of CPM leaders like Lakshman Seth,...