Gangster-politician Atiq Ahmad on Wednesday claimed that he was being harassed in the Sabarmati Central Jail in Gujarat.
The government is introducing an ordinance to constitute an extraordinary anti-corruption mechanism in deference to a five-point agenda for its battle against corruption enunciated by Congress President Sonia Gandhi in her inaugural address to the All India Congress Committee plenary session in New Delhi on December 19, stressing that there should be no tolerance towards corruption or misconduct.
Another bill related to the farm sector, the Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill, was passed on Tuesday.
Infosys founder, N R Narayana Murthy, otherwise an admirer of the government, says he's unhappy at the way Sonia Gandhi and Manmohan Singh have handled the Lok Pal Bill issue.
"Fresh elections to the assembly should be held to enable people to elect a popular government in the state in accordance with law," the memorandum to the Haryana governor read.
Chief Election Commissioner S Y Quraishi on Wednesday said that the debate on Lokpal Bill does not have any link with the Election Process as the model code of conduct does not apply to Parliament.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday attacked social activist Anna Hazare for agreeing to include the father and son duo of Shashi Bhushan and Prashant Bhushan in the committee to draft an effective Lok Pal bill and questioned whether exclusion of a representative of opposition was good for democracy.
Rediff.com's Onkar Singh caught up with Swami Agnivesh as he recounted talks with the government on the drafting of the much-talked about anti-corruption bill.
The Congress has sought to politically tackle the issue of Anna Hazare holding an indefinite fast -- to demand the involvement of civil society in the formulation of the anti-graft Lok Pal bill -- with party president Sonia Gandhi stepping in to resolve the issue on the third day of the activist's fast.Gandhi has directed the government to show the same level of sincerity while forming laws to combat corruption that Hazare has exhibited while pursuing the issue.
There is also speculation within the BJP that its national president J P Nadda, whose extended tenure will end by this month and who was among the leaders meeting Modi, may also be brought back in the government.
"I think only after he quits office should the Prime Minister come under the Lok Pal bill. I have my concerns over bringing him within its purview while holding office," the AICC general secretary told media persons in Bhubaneswar.
Bhushan's claim is based on the grounds that the heart is a plant and the expenditure has been incurred on current repairs.
He said they will need to strive for excellence while personally upholding high ethical standards and values.
Even if Anna Hazare's protest is not an enduring solution, it would most certainly be a brake on the incorrigibility of the political and bureaucratic class, says Mahesh Vijapurkar.
In an interview with rediff.com's Sahim Salim, Arvind Kejriwal, who played a key role in convincing the government to allow a joint panel, consisting of government and civil society members, for the drafting of the Lok Pal bill, explains why the Anna Hazare-led movement was such a huge success.
Lok Pal Bill has some disastrous simplistic provisions that need serious repair.
Curtains were drawn on the anti-corruption campaign that drew instant nationwide support with a little girl giving the 73-year-old activist a glass of water at 10.45 am at Jantar Mantar, the nerve-centre of the agitation for a strong legislation to combat political and administrative graft.
Sahim Salim writes an eyewitness account from Jantar Mantar square, the spot which activist Anna Hazare has chosen for his hunger strike, demanding changes in the Loik Pal bill.
Speaking to rediff.com about social activist Anna Hazare's indefinite fast, Fali Nariman, constitutional expert and a former member of Rajya Sabha said that was nothing wrong in co-opting five eminent Indian citizens in drafting the Lok Pal Bill. He, however, made it clear that this does not mean the government should have people from outside to draft a bill every time.
It is important for the government to address immediately the demand for a Lok Pal and to take note of the growing public anger over the issue of corruption, says B Raman.
The SP also alleged that it was the BJP people who got Umesh Pal, a key witness in the 2005 killing of then BSP legislator Raju Pal, murdered.
Now that the crowds have gone home, Anna Hazare is back in Ralegan Siddhi, and the TV Rottweilers are looking for other ways to boost their rating points, we can have a rational debate about not just the Lok Pal but the larger issue of corruption.
Here's what your favourite celebrities are tweeting.
The announced plans of social activist Anna Hazare to go on a fast unto death from August 16 in support of the demand of the anti-corruption movement headed by him for a stronger Jan Lok Pal Bill than the one introduced by the government in Parliament poses an executive and moral dilemma to the government of Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh, says B Raman.
People in these villages routinely encounter big cats that stray into their farms from the adjoining Pilibhit Tiger Reserve, a bustling habitat for the Bengal Tiger (Panthera tigris).
The MLAs inducted into the Rajasthan cabinet are Meena, Madan Dilawar, Rathore, Gajendra Singh Khimsar, Babulal Kharadi, Jogaram Patel, Suresh Singh Rawat, Avinash Gehlot, Joraram Kumawat, Hemant Meena, Kanhaiya Lal Choudhary and Sumit Godara.
India needs to revisit governance if it wishes to reduce corruption.
Government decision-making may soon become a casualty
The Shiv Sena and the Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday came out in support of social activist Anna Hazare, on the second day of his indefinite fast in Delhi, demanding implementation of Jan Lokpal Bill
According to a statement issued by JD-U national general secretary Afaq Ahmed Khan on Tuesday, this is the party's first list of candidates for Madhya Pradesh, where voting will take place for the 230-member assembly on November 17.
This appears to be a common refrain in Uttar Pradesh's Lakhimpur Kheri Lok Sabha constituency where farmers want better prices for their produce and respite from the stray cattle menace and others want political leaders to talk about job creation instead of issues like the Ram temple and Article 370.
The Election Commission of India has set up more than 200 polling stations within housing societies in the urban areas of Uttar Pradesh to increase the voter turnout in the politically crucial state.
Defectors getting tickets is causing tremendous heartburn in the BJP, says Aditi Phadnis
Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati on Sunday declared her nephew Akash Anand as her 'uttaradhikari (heir)', a party office-bearer said.
Delhi Lt Governor V K Saxena has recommended an NIA probe against Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for allegedly receiving political funding from the banned terrorist organisation 'Sikhs for Justice', Raj Niwas sources said on Monday.
A senior SP leader requesting anonymity said that the party chief had called a meeting to brief the MLAs about the voting process of the Rajya Sabha elections.
This is the first bill passed by the Lower House of Parliament in the Winter session, which began on Monday.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi once again led the BJP's campaign holding several rallies and stepping up his attack on Opposition parties, particularly the Congress.
"Nobody is sympathising with Atiq Ahmad because a criminal should be punished. But anyone who will see this video will question if we are a democracy. Every criminal has the right to be heard in court and be convicted there. But you can see they were killed in police custody in the open," he said.
