With the political class ranged against them, the civic representatives of the panel drafting the Lokpal bill face an uphill battle. Sheela Bhatt reports from New Delhi.
An Indian diplomat's daughter is suing the New York City government for $1.5 million for what she alleges is a wrongful arrest on the suspicion of sending threatening e-mails to teachers at her school in Queens, a New York borough.
Should Kanimozhi be spared from imprisonment in the 2G spectrum scam because she is a woman, as Sonia Gandhi implied on Tuesday? Sheela Bhatt presents the counter-argument
Sonia Gandhi kept off the media, Rahul Gandhi was basking in his UP foray, while other Congressmen showed little exuberance when they were not sniping at each other. Sheela Bhatt reports on UPA II's dinner to mark two years in office
In a case of mistaken identity, the daughter of an Indian diplomat in New York was arrested, handcuffed and put in to jail. Later the school suspended her and she had to be out of school for more than a month. When the real culprit was found, he was not criminally charged, in a show of clear cut favoritism.
In his long overdue visit to Afghanistan, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai bonded as expected, but both sides played it safe.
Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh's low-key visit to Kabul on Thursday is a visit for "reassurance", said a diplomat who is one of the most well informed officials on Afghanistan in New Delhi. "When PM Singh will meet Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai he is likely to say that India is a friend of Afghanistan and Indians are standing shoulder-to-shoulder in Afghan's endeavour for peace and development."
The cocktail of corruption and nepotism has sunk the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam coalition in Tamil Nadu, senior Rajya Sabha leader Dr V Maitreyan tells rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had a telephonic conversation with United States President Barack Obama on Monday evening.
Since Osama's end at the hands of an American special forces team, the question uppermost in New Delhi is how will it impact the ties between the US and Pakistan. A S Dulat, former chief of RAW gives his take to Sheela Bhatt
India believes that Pakistan's strategic value to United States will remain the same even though Osama bin Laden, America's number one enemy was found right under the nose of the Pakistani army. India not only ruled out the American-style aggression to hunt down enemies, but reiterated that it would continue talks with Pakistan.
The issue of corruption will be tested when the results of Tamil Nadu assembly elections would be declared on May 13.
Adrian Levy, internationally famed journalist, currently with The Guardian, and author of bestseller Deception: Pakistan, the United States, and the Global Nuclear Weapons Conspiracy, claims that the deal between Pakistan and United States is in the offing, under which Pakistan will have some role in the future government of Afghanistan
Pakistan had no option but to assist United States forces while they carried out the operation against Al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden in Abbottabad, according to a senior official in the Indian administration and a diplomat who is dealing closely with the neighbouring nation."Pakistan was told about the Abbottabad operation at the last minute by Americans, just about the time they were ready to strike. They had no option but to join in," he said.
According to a report in The Dawn, a prestigious Karachi daily, the operation that killed Osama bin Laden was carried out jointly by Pakistan's security forces and the Central Intelligence Agency.An official of the security forces, who is based in Peshawar, told the daily, "It was a joint operation between the CIA and Pakistani security forces."The Dawn quoted the official as saying, "It (operation) was carried out on very precise information."
Former NSA Brajesh Mishra told rediff.com, "One knew that the US was in Afghanistan to kill Osama. If they would get him, then their operation will be over. But, I believe the Taliban in Afghanistan is as dangerous as Osama's Al Qaeda. They are having a presence outside Afghanistan as well in Europe and even in the US."
Chief Election Commissioner Dr S Y Quraishi is not embarrassed by activist Anna Hazare's candid confession that Indian elections are corrupt and if he ever contested in one, he would end up losing his security deposit.When asked about Hazare's statement that Indian voters are not educated enough -- "they take a bottle of alcohol or Rs 500 and cast their vote" -- CEC Quraishi stated that the statement was not at all telling on his job. He argued, "Not at all, not at all."
CEC Dr S Y Quraishi in an exclusive chat explains his plans for ensuring an trouble free election in the five poll-bound states.
Indicating progress in talks with the government on the proposed formation of a committee for drafting the Lok Pak Bill, the emissaries of Anna Hazare on Friday evening said he will soon announce his decision which people would be "happy to hear."
Dinesh Trivedi, Union minister of state for health, had offered to resign in a letter written to Anna Hazare within first few hours of his fast at Jantar Mantar on April 5.
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