JUSTICE ADMINISTRATION
How do Bengaluru's rural courts function?

Observations from a recent study of the Bengaluru Rural Courts point to a sad reality - that many of the most basic and foundational things needed for efficient delivery of justice are missing.

#Justice System #Government
OPINION
The dichotomy in India’s rule of law

The rule of law guides our legislative, executive and judiciary and all other institutions yet our country is in chaos. Harish Narasappa analyses the role of reason in making the rule of law stronger and effective to bring order in the country.

#Laws #OP-ED #Society
WOMEN'S DAY
Revisiting the mothers who protested AFSPA

A new book tracks down the women who stripped naked 12 years ago to protest against rape and rights abuses under AFSPA. Banamallika Choudhury reviews Mothers of Manipur.

#Books #Women #MANIPUR
VIOLENCE AND ACTIVISM
Manipuri mothers want an end to the killings

The International Day of Peace, celebrated on September 21 every year, has little meaning for people living in conflict areas. Like the Manipuri women, Anjulika Thingnam talks to, who feel that decades-old violence in Manipur has not only increased but taken many different forms.

#Gender Violence #Peace #MANIPUR
REFUGEE TRAIN
How prepared are we to tackle a human crisis?

As the refugee crisis deepens in Syria, visuals of millions of people hoping to catch a train to a better life fill the media space. Shalini Bhutani reflects on the state of refugee policies in the South Asian region while remembering her own father’s experience weeks before the India-Pakistan partition.

#People #Human Rights
DNA BILL
The DNA Bill is a recipe for disaster

The Centre for Internet & Society (CIS) registers its dissent over the new Human DNA Profiling Bill draft. Sunil Abraham, Executive Director of CIS, explains how the Bill does not address the privacy concerns despite a seemingly powerful language.

#Justice System #Laws
AFSPA WITHDRAWAL
The quest for justice continues in Tripura’s dawn of hope

Tripura’s revocation of the AFSPA is certainly a positive move from a human rights perspective. But it leaves unaddressed the issue of justice for those whose lives were torn apart by the excesses under the Act, writes Anjuman Ara Begum.

#Human Rights #Laws #TRIPURA
AFSPA IN ARUNACHAL
Questions over AFSPA continue to echo in ‘disturbed’ northeastern states

The Centre may have rolled back its sudden unilateral decision to accord ‘disturbed area’ status to Arunachal Pradesh under the AFSPA 1958, but that does little to restore good faith between the northeastern states and the government. Anjuman Ara Begum analyses why.

#Government #Human Rights #Laws
JUDICIAL REFORMS
Judicial delays: Understanding the system before fixing it

On 18 March, at a discussion organised by Daksh India, Nick Robinson from the Harvard Law School explored in detail the phenomenon of judicial delays, sharing insights from his work in both India and the US. Pavan Kulkarni summarises the points raised.

#Justice System #Laws
ATTACKS ON RTI ACTIVISTS
Does the government really want to protect whistleblowers?

Around 40 RTI activists in the country have been killed in recent years, several of them after the Whistleblowers Protection Act was passed. Satarupa Sen Bhattacharya explores why the said law has been unable to achieve its stated end.

#Government #Laws #Right To Info
POWER PROJECT IMBROGLIO
What ails Sikkim’s Teesta hydropower project?

The 1200-MW Teesta III hydroelectric project has already seen years of missed deadlines and huge cost overruns, but more serious threats loom ahead as the promoter fights its own internal battles. Soumik Dutta has more on the various problems plaguing the project.

#Energy #Economy #Government #SIKKIM
CYBER CRIME
How to avert the dangers of being an Internet user

A recent UGC-sponsored seminar on the incidence of cyber crime, hosted in Kolkata, drew attention to the safeguards to be adopted as also the right procedure to be followed in order to obtain redress. Amrita Mukherjee reports.

#Laws #Media #Society #Women
COUNTERFEIT DRUGS
Why the Chhattisgarh sterilisation tragedy may happen again

With a recent drug sample report confirming the presence of rat poison in medicines administered to Chhattisgarh’s hapless tubectomy victims, it is yet another wake-up call for India to address the threats posed by its $4.25-billion fake drugs market. Tanvi Bhatikar bares some stark facts.

#Health Laws #Health
NAXALISM IN KARNATAKA
Where the fight against extremism is far from over

The Karnataka government’s attempts to reintegrate Naxals into the mainstream through the provision of a surrender and rehabilitation package have met with limited success. Akshatha M reports on the ground realities.

#Government #Human Rights #KARNATAKA
WOMEN ON TOUGH TURF
The many battles that Kashmiri female cops fight

A female police inspector from J&K, deployed in a peacekeeping mission in Afghanistan, has recently won a prestigious international award. Yet, her story holds little meaning for fellow women officers back home who fight social stigma, poor pay and gender bias at work every day. Shazia Yousuf reports.

#Women #J & K

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