Voting Out Democracy

The military junta in Thailand gets yet another Constitution passed through a “referendum” which effectively prevents any single party from gaining a majority in Parliament. BY JOHN CHERIAN

Acid Victims

A spurt in acid attacks against women has become a cause for concern in rural and urban West Bengal. BY Suhrid Sankar Chattopadhyay.

Syrian File

Caught between Turkey’s demands and Kurdish ambitions, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has an impossible mission in Syria in which he is both the peacemaker and the war maker.

Jayalalithaa, The Film Star Turned Politician Leaves Behind A Party And State At A Crossroads

The AIADMK supremo won the hearts of millions, especially women, with a slew of welfare measures though she was strongly criticised for her imperious style of functioning. Her death has left her party and government at a crossroads.

Bigger Bomb

North Korea conducts another nuclear test, which helps it gain the capability to produce “standardised and minimised” nuclear warheads, and the U.S. presses for more sanctions on the country.

Reluctant Rebel

O. Panneerselvam, the man whose most notable quality was his unswerving loyalty to Jayalalithaa, reveals a steely side by challenging the leadership of V.K. Sasikala. Whoever wins this contest, it is clear that Tamil Nadu is heading for political uncertainty.

The World In The Time Of Trump

Donald Trump feels he has to undo a great deal from the eight years of Barack Obama’s presidency, and he is in a hurry. Obamacare has been ordered out and a “Muslim Ban” is signed in. His deregulation orders are just what the corporate sector wants. All this to “Make America Great Again”!

UP Elections 2017: Advantage Akhilesh

The S.P.-Congress combine appears to be on a strong wicket in Uttar Pradesh in an atmosphere of disenchantment with demonetisation and reduced communal polarisation.

Mission Dalit Gone Awry

Attacks on Dalits in several parts of the country by vigilante gau rakshaks spoil the BJP’s carefully crafted plan to retain Dalit support for the forthcoming Assembly elections in key States.

Message From 'The Marina'

The jallikattu ban was only a trigger for the protest around Pongal on Chennai’s Marina beach. Lakhs of people, most of them youths, gathered spontaneously on the sands in a carnival atmosphere as a collective response to the anti-people policies of the state.

Cry for Kambala

Following the jallikattu protests, people in the coastal districts of Karnataka take up the cause of kambala, a buffalo racing event that is going through a difficult phase of transition.

Whose Development Is It Anyway?

The Assembly elections have put under intense scrutiny Narendra Modi’s Gujarat model of development which is touted as worthy of replication throughout the country. Audit reports of the CAG provide ample evidence of it being inefficient, corrupt and not beneficial to the common people.

Online Shopping Frenzy

The Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba creates a startling sales  record on this year’s Singles’ Day, tapping into the rising consumerism of the upper middle class. The surge may not yield the home market growth needed to rebalance the country’s growth.

World Affairs Saudi Intrigues

The purge of the Saudi royal family, camouflaged as an anti-corruption drive, has torn apart its erstwhile unity, while the forced resignation of the Lebanese Prime Minister has reinforced the battle lines in the volatile neighbourhood.

Show Of Solidarity

An international conference held in Yalta highlights how Crimea has been subjected to harsh sanctions by the West since it conducted a constitutionally valid referendum to secede from Ukraine in 2014.

Ruined Infrastructure And A Refugee Crisis

Two months after two hurricanes hit Puerto Rico, the island nation continues to be plagued by collapsed infrastructure, widespread power failure and fears of a health crisis, even as residents leave en masse for the U.S. mainland.

Mandir Manoeuvres

Not much is actually happening in Ayodhya, but the fact that the BJP is now in power in Uttar Pradesh stokes the hopes of those seeking to build a Ram temple there.

Debt Of Honour

The Maharashtra government comes through on its promise of loan waiver to farmers, but many other issues remain unresolved.

Crisis Of Confidence

The threat from within to the integrity and impartiality of the Supreme Court that four seniormost judges of the court highlighted at an extraordinary press conference has profound implications for India’s democracy.

Question Of Conduct

The complaint filed by the Campaign for Judicial Accountability and Reforms against the Chief Justice of India serves as the latest reminder of the urgent need for reform in the Supreme Court.

The Crisis In Context

The crisis in the judiciary is symptomatic of a wider crisis being felt in all significant constitutional institutions and requires introspection on a far wider scale than is assumed.

Political Roots

The silence of the government on the memorandum of procedures finalised by the Supreme Court and the alleged arbitrary assignment of cases is at the core of the controversy dogging the judiciary.

Window Dressing The Budget

Budget 2018-19 will feature a window dressed Revised Estimate to ensure that the fiscal deficit is on target. The government’s decision to sell its stake in HPCL to ONGC is only one more step in that direction.

Oil Shock And Surprise

How the Indira Gandhi government dealt with the oil price hike of 1973 by signing beneficial agreements with Iraq and Iran.

Climate Of Fear

The Christian community has been at the receiving end of rising persecution at the hands of Hindu right-wing elements aiming to polarise society along religious lines.

One-­Horse Race

With most leaders of the opposition parties either in jail or in exile, President Abdulla Yameen appears set to win the approaching presidential election.

Sleight Of Hand

The striking aspect of the NDA government’s last full Budget is a lack of clarity on policy measures and the absence of commitment of resources to back them up.

Back To Ballot

Nagaland is poised for a fight between the NPF and the NDPP-BJP as the political parties go back on their decision to boycott elections until a solution to the Naga issue was found. 

Crisis Of Justice In India

India is caught between two conflicting visions of the nation—a progressive constitutional one and a conservative one—each with its own view of the role of the judiciary. The fundamental struggle between these has profound implications for the country’s judicial system. 

The Hamburg Fiasco

There is no sign of any consensus coming out of the G20 on the need for a mix of globally coordinated policies and a fiscal push to pull the world economy out of recession. What we have once again is a set of statements that says everything and therefore nothing.