Congress leader Rahul Gandhi alleges that the Election Commission is colluding with the BJP to manipulate elections, citing data analysis from a Karnataka constituency. He claims evidence of 'vote chori' and demands transparency from the EC.
Samariya, the first Dalit to have been appointed to the post, was working as information commissioner in the transparency panel Central Information Commission (CIC). A 1985-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of Telangana cadre, Samariya retired after serving as the labour and employment secretary in the Government of India. He was sworn in as the information commissioner on November 7, 2020.
'Rahul Gandhi is not coming to seek votes, but to reach out to people for awareness of their democratic rights.'
The Centre on Wednesday increased the Dearness Allowance (DA) by 3 percentage points effective from July 1 this year, benefitting more than 1 crore employees and pensioners ahead of the Diwali festival. The Union Cabinet has approved to increase Dearness Allowance (DA) to central government employees and Dearness Relief (DR) to pensioners by three percentage points of the basic pay/pension ahead of Diwali, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said after the Cabinet meeting.
Salient features of the National Sports Governance Bill that promise to overhaul several aspects of sports governance and the grievance redressal system for athletes and administrators alike in the country.
'...as then it brings them closer to the complaints and grievances that the public faces.'
X calls the home ministry's Sahyog portal a 'censorship portal', stating it usurps judicial functions.
In this freewheeling interview with rediff.com's Priyanka, IC Gandhi says that appellants must understand that law describes 'information' as something which 'exists', and only those can be given out.
Delhi University (DU) has informed the Delhi High Court that it is willing to show its records on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's degree to the court, but not disclose it to "strangers" under the Right to Information (RTI) Act. The university's solicitor general, Tushar Mehta, argued that the "right to privacy" superseded the "right to know" in this case, and that allowing disclosure would expose the university to RTI applications for information about lakhs of its students. The court has reserved its verdict on the matter.
Former media advisor to Prime Minister Deepak Sandhu and former secretary in the Union government Sushma Singh were sworn in, on Wednesday, as new information commissioners at the Central Information Commission.
The Delhi high court said on Friday the purpose of Right to Information (RTI) Act is to bring in transparency, and if any information has been sought, it should be made public unless exempted from disclosure under the law.
The Central Information Commission has directed the Central Bureau of Investigation to disclose proposals sent to Union home ministry seeking permission for tapping telephones.
The Karur tragedy has exposed the huge gaps in Vijay's understanding of realpolitik, elections and political administration, asserts N Sathiya Moorthy.
The CIC, which was hearing the RTI appeal of one Uma Jayaram, expressed its anguish over the 'apathetic attitude' of RPO Gloria Kumar, who in an earlier order was penalised with Rs 16,000 for failing to provide information on time.
Pakistani intelligence operatives were allegedly developing Haryana YouTuber Jyoti Malhotra, who was arrested on espionage charges, as an asset, said a senior Haryana police officer on Sunday.
Jyoti was among 12 people who have been arrested from Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh over the past two weeks on charges of espionage, with investigators pointing at an alleged Pakistan-linked spy network operating in north India.
Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said the Sports Bill is a key reform aimed at building a "transparent, accountable and world-class sports ecosystem" in India.
While six of them have been held from Punjab, five were nabbed from neighbouring Haryana, and one from Uttar Pradesh.
The order is is contrary to the Central Information Commission's directive bringing six national parties under the transparency law.
The Supreme Court will hear a plea seeking an independent selection process for the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) on March 17. The PIL, filed by the Centre for Public Interest Litigation, argues that the current system of appointment solely by the executive and the prime minister violates the Constitution and undermines the CAG's independence. The petition calls for a transparent process involving the prime minister, Leader of the Opposition, and Chief Justice of India. The PIL contends that the CAG's role as a watchdog over government finances requires a fair and non-arbitrary appointment procedure.
At the end of the discussion, the older Monpa said that if today the Chinese were to come inside India, "I will fight and kill them", prudently adding, "if they are of my age, if they are younger soldiers, I will not be able to fight". The entire village had a good laugh.
'You've got to understand it is not easy to die by suicide.' 'People commit suicide only when they lose everything and find no other way to live.'
The development assumes significance as Prime Minister Narendra Modi had last month announced 10 lakh government recruitments in the next 1.5 years.
Mellowing down its earlier stand that no information with the Chief Justice of India could be revealed under RTI Act, the Supreme Court agreed on Tuesday to disclose information on what action the CJI has taken on a complaint filed against a sitting Allahabad High Court Judge.
The parliamentary panel, headed by Bharatiya Janata Party's Sushil Kumar Modi, has also decided to examine remote voting and e-postal ballots for Indians residing abroad.
A nationwide strike called by trade unions to protest against the central government's labor policies had a mixed impact across India. While normal life remained largely unaffected in most parts of the country, some sectors like banking, transport, and insurance experienced disruptions. Sporadic incidents of violence were reported in West Bengal.
The high court said disclosing such information will not only compromise the functioning of the Special Branch of the Delhi police, but could also jeopardise ongoing and future investigations, adding that it falls within the scope of 'exempted information' under the RTI Act.
Mumbai police submit to the Bombay High Court that Disha Salian committed suicide, refuting claims of foul play by her father, who alleges gangrape and murder and seeks a CBI probe.
Landslides blocked arterial roads leading up to Dharali where dozens of people were trapped and many homes and cars swept away by the raging waters on Tuesday. Eleven Army personnel from the nearby camp in Harsil were among those missing.
'China has thus far been cautious, emphasising its focus on development rather than weaponising water resources.'
'Vigilance' is a dreaded term for PSB employees and there are instances where this fear is misused by the higher authorities to tame their subordinate officials. This fear always deters PSB executives from making decisions -- the fewer the decisions, the less the chance of falling into trouble, points out Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
In a letter to Information Commissioner M Sridhar Acharyulu, Kejriwal said he does not object to government records about him being made public and wondered why the commission wants to "hide" information on Modi's educational degree.
Disclosing an individual's income-tax returns is tantamount to violating the person's fundamental right to privacy as recognised by the Constitution.
The Supreme Court of India has sought the government's response on a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) that challenges the appointment process of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG), arguing it's unconstitutional. The PIL, filed by the Centre for Public Interest Litigation, claims the current process, solely through executive appointment by the Prime Minister, undermines the CAG's independence and violates constitutional principles. The court, while acknowledging the importance of institutional trust, questioned the extent to which it should intervene in the appointment process and whether this would constitute rewriting constitutional provisions. The PIL suggests the CAG's appointment should be similar to other independent bodies, with a selection committee comprising the Prime Minister, Leader of the Opposition, and Chief Justice of India. The case has implications for the independence and transparency of India's audit system.
The case lodged against him by one of the Customs officials is pending before the special judge, Thiruvananthapuram.
Former Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer M G Devasahayam, who was one of the signatories to the representation on the credibility of electronic voting machines (EVMs), voter-verifiable paper audit trail (VVPAT) and the vote-counting process, had filed an application with the poll panel under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, seeking details of the action taken on it.
'JP opened up about all the betrayals, the betrayal of the Jan Sangh and the RSS, how they ganged up with Sanjay Gandhi and pulled down the Morarji Desai government, how they destroyed the Janata Party.'
A delegation from the National Commission for Women (NCW) visited a relief camp in Malda, West Bengal, and reported that women were being harassed and threatened by police. The NCW team, led by chairperson Vijaya Rahatkar, met with those displaced by riots in Murshidabad and alleged that the women were being coerced to return home without proper safety measures. The team is scheduled to travel to Murshidabad and Kolkata to continue their investigation.
There is a great need to introduce a transparent process to select information commissioners, who are expected to oversee transparency, says former Central Information Commissioner Shailesh Gandhi.
Shakti Dubey has topped the civil services examination 2024, with Harshita Goyal and Dongre Archit Parag getting the second and third ranks, the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) announced on Tuesday. The top five successful candidates comprise three women and two men. The civil services examination is conducted annually in three stages -- preliminary, main and interview -- by the UPSC to select officers of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS) and Indian Police Service (IPS) among others. A total of 1,009 candidates -- 725 men and 284 women -- have been recommended by the UPSC for appointment to various services.