India

Defectors & Democracy: A critique of the Tenth Schedule of the Indian Constitution

The right of voters to recall representatives who defect—as seen in West Bengal, Maharashtra, Goa and Arunachal Pradesh—and the requirement of intra-party democracy could form part of a broader institutional redesign. Such measures would deepen democratic values and, above all, signal a refusal by citizens to accept the corruption of their mandate. These may be among the reforms that India's Parliament and democracy most urgently need

97,000 persons convicted in UP under ‘operation conviction’: State Govt

Of this significant if not staggering number, 68 accused persons were sentenced to death, 8,172 received life imprisonment, 1,453 were sentenced to over 20 yrs., and 87,465 were sentenced up to 20 years’ states a report in The Hindustan Times.

Odisha: senior Bhubaneswar municipal official assaulted on duty, told to “apologise” to BJP leader

In an incident reported on June 30, the motley group of BJP supporters then allegedly started assaulting him without any provocation and demanded that he apologise to Pradhan, reports the Indian Express.

Independent experts, not government servants must be part of the CEC while deciding the challenge to Forest Conservation Act: Former bureaucrats to SC

Urging that independent experts must be part of the Central Empowered Committee (CEC) advising the SC on the impacts, adverse of otherwise of the Forest Conservation Amendment Act (FCAA), 2023 –currently under challenge-- sixty former civil servants have in an open letter warned against the possibly “comprised stand and conflict of interest of the present CEC advising the Court

Bihar 2025 Election: EC drops parental birth document requirement for 4.96 crore electors and their children in Bihar

Amidst ongoing protest, opposition and debate surrounding the hastily announced revision process in Bihar, the Election Commission of India has now taken a step back; it has uploaded the 2003 Bihar electoral rolls, exempting 4.96 crore electors, and their children born after 1987, from submitting parental birth documents; individuals not on the 2003 list can still use its extracts for parental details, directly by the voters themselves

Business requirement? Modi’s quiet push for English in Gujarat despite Sangh’s swadeshi garb

This blog is a continuation of my story "English proficiency for...

Azad Maidan erupts in protest as Maharashtra set to enact sweeping law aimed at silencing dissent

Left fronts and opposition unite in massive mobilisation as controversial law heads for tabling and passage without any heed to objections raised

Bihar: Sinister move by ECI as ‘intensive’ revision of electoral roles set to exclude vast majority of legitimate voters

Usurping the powers to test ‘Indian citizenship’, powers that do not lie with the ECI, the latest move by CEC Gyanesh Kumar is not just unlawful and hasty but violative of the Indian Constitution and the Representation of Peoples Act, 1950 and the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960

Fifty years later..another Emergency rules

It was fifty years ago! The nation will and...

India’s Gender Gap Challenge Calls for A Blueprint for Structural Change

India wants to lead the global economy by 2047—but...

Understanding the growth of European-style nationalism in India

The pages of Indian Express are carrying a very...

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Defectors & Democracy: A critique of the Tenth Schedule of the Indian Constitution

The right of voters to recall representatives who defect—as seen in West Bengal, Maharashtra, Goa and Arunachal Pradesh—and the requirement of intra-party democracy could form part of a broader institutional redesign. Such measures would deepen democratic values and, above all, signal a refusal by citizens to accept the corruption of their mandate. These may be among the reforms that India's Parliament and democracy most urgently need

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