-IANS The Lokpal Bill, 2011, which seeks to provide for the establishment of the institution of an ombudsman to inquire into allegations of corruption against certain public functionaries, was tabled in the Rajya Sabha on Friday. BSP chief Mayawati said its party will support the Lokpal Bill. BJP Leader Arun Jaitley had alleged that the UPA government was not keen on passage of key bills including Lokpal. Leader of Opposition in the Lok...

-The Telegraph In a rare alliance, Hindu, Muslim and Christian Leaders today spoke in one voice - to welcome the Supreme Court verdict upholding a law that criminalises gay sex. "Homosexuality represents a threat to traditional Indian culture. We are very happy with the verdict as homosexuality is a mental disorder and it is against our rich culture," said Zafaryab Jilani, member of the All-India Muslim Personal Law Board. VHP general secretary Champak...

-Live Mint The national food security law is in trouble from an unlikely source The outcome of the World Trade Organization (WTO) summit at Bali has been projected as a great victory for the Indian government by its spokespersons. Nothing could be farther from the truth. In exchange for a temporary reprieve on its food support programme, India has bartered away the bargaining chip of trade facilitation, which Western negotiators demanded. The...

-PTI GANDHINAGAR: Retired Gujarat high court judge DP Buch was on Wednesday sworn in as the state's fourth Lokayukta, a post that lay vacant for a decade and over which chief minister Narendra Modi and governor Kamla Beniwal were on a collision course for three years. Justice Buch(retd) was sworn in as the anti-corruption ombudsman at a function in Raj Bhavan by governor Beniwal in the presence of Modi and assembly Speaker...

-The Telegraph New Delhi: The Supreme Court order upholding a 153-year-old law that effectively criminalises gay sex has ignored scientific evidence that homosexuality is not deviant in any sense, but merely a variation in human sexual behaviour, experts and lawyers have said. The court has virtually "brushed aside" submissions by medical experts that homosexuality is not a mental health disorder and should not be viewed as a criminal activity, said lawyers...