With the return of the Congress government to power and with Dr. Manmohan Singh set to continue as Prime Minister, corporate India is likely to witness a series of reforms in the near future. Unlike …
Continue readingMonth: May 2009
Should Manmohan Singh seek a vote of confidence?
Well, the latest results suggest that the UPA may end up with 260 seats. Important Congress leaders like Kamal Nath have declared on television that the party is averse to seeking support from post-poll allies …
Continue readingElection Outcome: Likely Scenario
Even as exit poll projections revise their estimates of outcome in Tamil Nadu, I depend on my understanding of the state’s voting behaviour in the past. As this is one state which can decide who …
Continue readingOptions before the President
With a hung Parliament being forecast by all the exit polls, the focus is now on the President, Pratibha Patil. There is a consensus veering around among the observers that she must ask for letters …
Continue readingEC pats itself on the successful completion of elections
The E.C. has generally received praise from the media as well as the political parties for its reasonable success in completing the 15th General Elections satisfactorily. Here, in this press release, the E.C. congratulates itself, …
Continue readingLandmark Death Penalty case: Santosh Bariyar v State of Maharashtra
Update: I have been asked why the case is a landmark. I realise now that in my excitement, I failed to highlight the implications of the case properly. There is hardly any DP case where …
Continue readingTwo important judgments
Supreme Court yesterday delivered two important judgments. In Union of India vs. Ramesh Ram, the Bench referred the matter to the Constitution Bench. In this case, the question was whether the candidates of the reserved …
Continue readingIncreasing religiosity, materialism and elections
Meera Nanda, in her forthcoming book, God Market: How Globalization is Making India More Hindu, is developing an interesting thesis. It is that the BJP is creating a huge Hindu vote bank. In itself, it …
Continue readingLaw Commission’s report on extreme poverty
Law Commission’s 223rd Report on the need for ameliorating the lot of the have-nots has a chapter on the pending petition in the Supreme Court on beggars’ human rights. This petition is coming up for …
Continue readingElection Commission’s power to countermand elections
The power to countermand elections is an extreme weapon in the hands of the Election Commission to ensure free and fair elections. The ongoing Lok Sabha election has so far not witnessed any countermanding by …
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