- Featured News
Judiciary: Delay… deference… drift
In a constitutional democracy, criticism of institutions, particularly the judiciary, must be articulated with restraint, precision and fidelity to constitutional principle. Yet, restraint does not entail silence. Certain developments, when viewed cumulatively…
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Protests in India: Will the deepening dangers go away by silencing the alarm?
In contemporary India, terms such as “deshdrohi,” “urban Naxal,” “sickular” and “presstitutes” have increasingly been deployed by right-wing ideologues, not as analytical descriptors but as instruments of political delegitimisation. Their elasticity and,…
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The legal blindfold in denying Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam bail
The judgment whereby the Supreme Court denied bail to Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam in the 2020 North East Delhi riots case presents several tensions between legal doctrine, constitutional spirit, and practical…
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Vaishno Devi Institute row: From sons of soil to faith-based exclusion in India
The protests in Jammu against the admission of Muslim students to the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Institute of Medical Excellence (SMVDIME) in Jammu and Kashmir did not arise in a vacuum. They…
- Opinions
Indian minorities feel judicial space is shrinking for them
The constitutional promises of equality, liberty, and non-discrimination under Articles 14, 15, 19, 21, and 25 were designed to safeguard both the individual citizen and the institutional architecture of the Republic. Today,…
- Opinions
The Enemy Within: A manufactured foe or de facto adversary? Part Three and final
As I have argued in the past the politician’s capacity to work in the national interest or according to his conscience, is seriously compromised by the fact that democracy is a game…
- Opinions
The Enemy Within: A manufactured foe or de facto adversary? Part Two
Was this a case of judicial overreach, or a case of ensuring Governors acted within their Constitutional powers, did not abuse their powers? Two lawyers, Dushyant Dave, Supreme Court, and Shrimati Venkatachari,…
- Featured News
The Enemy Within: A manufactured foe or de facto adversary?
The enemy within is, on the one hand, a manufactured enemy, i.e., he is not really an enemy, but it suits the powers that be to label him as one. This can…
- Opinions
Gunning again… for the Shariah!
Reports say the Supreme Court sought the Union Government’s response to a petition filed by a woman, born a Muslim, now a non-believer, wanting to be governed by secular statutes rather than…
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These are stressful times, taking the nation beyond the point of no return?
I remember a movie in which the commissioner of police tells his subordinate to bash up a detainee to get him to confess. The indignant detainee, with full awareness of what the…
- Opinions
Waqf explained: Threats loom over endowed properties from various quarters—Part two and final
The report claims to highlight the need to prevent the misuse of Waqf properties for personal gain or unauthorized purposes, but that it does not. That need, need not have been highlighted.…
- Opinions
Waqf explained: Threats loom over endowed properties from various quarters—Part One
The Lok Sabha Report of the JPC Waqf Amendment, 2024 is a flawed, partisan document that claims to address various issues related to the protection, management, and governance of Waqf properties in…
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Is the Places of Worship Act under threat? Or is the judiciary on trial?
Obiter is the name of off-the-cuff or casual observations expressed by a court during the course of proceedings and, even though they sometimes can form part of the written order, are not…
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Karnataka High Court judgement is flawed; it is neither farsighted nor foresighted
I recently had the satisfaction of coming across a news item which stated that the Karnataka High Court had quashed the criminal case lodged by the police against two persons in connection…
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Judging judges: Judiciary should be seen as above reproach or else it would cause dismay
How ought judges to be judged? How ought they to be selected? Why these questions now? Well, on occasion we have learnt of judges who immediately after their retirement became members of…
