Amnesty International's report on human rights in the US is welcome for two reasons: it confirms Amnesty's reputation for impartiality and it exposes the US's hypocrisy in claiming to be a champion...
Civil Liberties
The draconian Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act of 1958 is under review in the Ministry of Home Affairs. This review must call for a drastic amendment of Section 4 which confers extreme powers on...
When the state sanctions textbooks that are politically partisan, historically false or communally inciteful, the citizen's right to education is violated. There have been many instances of such a...
The law does not permit bans on films which hurt the feelings of worshippers of historical figures or political leaders. Unfortunately, the Supreme Court's rulings have been none too consistent.
The Constitution guarantees the freedom of expression, but on the statutes are provisions which empower the central and state governments to ban and seize books on unconstitutional grounds and to...
The gags on student politics in Kashmir University is yet another instance of the throttling of freedom of speech and association in universities across the world. Alexander Downs' book on university...
In the tension between guaranteeing fundamental freedoms and ensuring security, it devolves on the courts to maintain the balance and protect the rights of citizens. In contrast to the attitude of...
Minorities need far better representation in legislatures. A global report highlights the main issues.
The decision of the union minister for information and broadcasting, Priya Ranjan Dasmunshi to pack the advisory panels on film censorship with office-bearers of the Youth Congress undermines a quasi...
The recently tabled US Free Flow of Information Bill that seeks to balance the right to protect journalists? sources with the people?s right to free flow of information and also the state?s duty to...
Minority Rights and Human Rights The Rights of Minorities: A Commentary on the European Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities edited by Marc Weller; Oxford University Press...
The police force has been abused systematically by successive governments at the centre and in the states. Its independence has been undermined and its morale sapped. The wonder is that it is still...
Thus far, the Supreme Court's denunciations of custodial torture have had little effect. The 113th report of the Law Commission had recommended suitable amendments to the Indian Evidence Act of 1872...
It was incorrect for the government to appoint a former director of the Central Bureau of Investigation as a member of the National Human Rights Commission. The Supreme Court has dismissed a petition...
The crackdown on the press in Jammu and Kashmir, of which the harassment faced by Greater Kashmir is only an instance, makes up the latest attempt by security agencies to ?neutralise overground...
