Politics

The Guardians of the Ballot: Supreme Court hearing the legality of executive primacy in ECI appointments

Across two days of intense legal arguments, the Supreme Court scrutinising the 2023 Act governing the appointment of Election Commissioners, as petitioners argued that replacing the Chief Justice of India with a Union Minister creates a "Home Umpire" system, while the Bench questioned the limits of parliamentary power, counsel warned that executive dominance over the "referee" of democracy threatens the basic structure of free and fair elections

Congress and Karnataka’s Muslims: Loyalty without Representation

In an era where majoritarian politics is openly dismissive of Muslim concerns, the Congress still benefits from being seen as the lesser evil. But “lesser evil” is not a sustainable political identity. For a party that speaks the language of diversity and inclusion, Karnataka’s record on Muslim representation - particularly in Parliament - stands as an uncomfortable indictment.

“Inside the SIR”: Booklet flags ‘mechanical disenfranchisement’ in electoral roll revision

CJP–VFD publication combines training manual and ground documentation to question ongoing voter verification exercise

AERO dies by suicide in Kolkata, family alleges extreme election duty pressure and humiliation

A 48-year-old Assistant Electoral Registration Officer (AERO) died by suicide in South Kolkata’s Bansdroni area after consuming pesticide, the tragic death of Malabika Roy Bhattacharyya has sparked serious concerns regarding the immense pressure placed on government officials tasked with SIR/Election duties, with her family explicitly blaming the ECI for the extreme workload

Bhagat Singh sent to gallows once again!

Repeated attempts by present day academics to whittle down the tradition followed and forged by young revolutionaries like Bhagat Singh are bound to fail; as history endures with the traditions laid by these very men

Ecology Before the Ballot Box

On March 11, 2026, a coalition of Kerala’s environmental...

Parental consent for marriage? Gujarat’s curious political consensus

The other day, a discussion broke out among ten...

Religious Freedom: How the USCIRF continues to designate India as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC)

For another year running, U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), in its 2026 Annual Report, has in strong recommendations, urged the US government to designate India as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC), “for engaging in and tolerating systematic, ongoing, and egregious religious freedom violations, as defined by the International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA)”

USCIRF’s Call for Sanctions on the RSS Is a Major Moral and Political Marker

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), in its 2026 Annual Report, has apart from continuing to designate India as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC), also recommended targeted sanctions against the RSS; this is a first.

Draconian Law!

For many in India, and particularly in Gujarat, 26...

Odisha: 18 months, 54 incidents of communal hate crimes, 7 mob lynchings

Admitting to a spiral in communally driven hate crimes in eastern state of Odisha since June 2024 when the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), a majoritarian outfit came to power, Odisha’s chief minister, Charan Majhi said on Monday, March 9 that 54 such incidents and seven mob lynchings were recorded in that state; this was in a written reply to the State Assembly

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Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj: An inclusive ruler

The far Hindutva right continues its assault on the iconic Shivaji Maharaj in their crude bid to distort history and manipulate facts

The Guardians of the Ballot: Supreme Court hearing the legality of executive primacy in ECI appointments

Across two days of intense legal arguments, the Supreme Court scrutinising the 2023 Act governing the appointment of Election Commissioners, as petitioners argued that replacing the Chief Justice of India with a Union Minister creates a "Home Umpire" system, while the Bench questioned the limits of parliamentary power, counsel warned that executive dominance over the "referee" of democracy threatens the basic structure of free and fair elections

Anticipatory Bail Denied to Nida Khan in TCS Nashik Case: Sessions Court flags “systematic plan” and stresses custodial interrogation

While emphasising gravity and custodial interrogation, Sessions Court order leans heavily on narrative of “organised influence”—raising concerns over evidentiary thresholds, criminalisation of religious interaction, and expansion of bail-stage reasoning

“Reasonable Apprehension of Bias Is Enough”: Telangana High Court orders CBCID probe into SI’s death, reasserts constitutional demand for investigative neutrality

In a sharply reasoned ruling, the Court holds that when police investigate their own, fairness cannot merely exist—it must be demonstrable, credible, and constitutionally defensible

“Obnoxious and Caste-Coloured”: Supreme Court strikes down Odisha bail orders mandating cleaning work, declares them void

Acting on suo-moto proceedings triggered by media reports, the Court condemns “degrading” bail conditions imposed on Dalit and Adivasi accused, warns against judicial overreach, and reinforces that liberty cannot be conditioned on humiliation or caste-based labour

Caged Voices, Silenced Truths: FSC’s expansive indictment of India’s press freedom crisis

On World Press Freedom Day 2026, the Free Speech Collective (FSC) assembles a powerful, deeply layered account of repression, incarceration, and systemic silencing—centring the stories of jailed journalists Rupesh Kumar Singh and Irfan Mehraj to expose the widening fault lines in India’s democratic promise

Systematic Exclusion: Caste-based atrocities across Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, MP, and UP

A spate of anti-Dalit incidents—from a youth killed over leftover food in Amreli to a suspicious death after an inter-caste relationship in Tamil Nadu, and social boycotts in Khargone—also includes temple bans and clashes over Dalit wedding processions

May Day Dramatised

When Safdar Hashmi wrote a play on the centenary of May Day, 1986.