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At a time when several central agencies are pursuing, in tandem with a number of television channels, the allegations of drug abuse by film stars, it might be expected that the same eagerness to unearth the truth would also be displayed by the official organizations and TV stations in nailing politicians who are facing criminal charges.

Bringing three important agriculture-related bills in Parliament at one go and getting them passed in less than a week’s time without any serious debate or special scrutiny are most unusual, if not unprecedented. On the face of it, the bills seek to double farmers’ income which the ruling BJP promised before the last Lok Sabha election. They also seek to conditionally contain retail prices of key agri products. Here lies the apprehension of both big and small farmers. Consumers are not convinced. Farmers fear a gradual extinction of the Mandis and the minimum support price (MSP) system. To prove the opposition perception wrong, the government took a highly unusual step by announcing increases in MSP of six Ravi crops — by two to six percent — months ahead of the schedule.

One can have a romantic view of something in which one visualizes everything wonderful in waiting. However, in reality things unfold differently. The centre has brought out several laws from its belly to reform the labour and the farm. These will solve the existing problems is a romantic view. The reality is that the recipes will make a deadly cocktail. We have examples of demonetization of November 2016 and lockdown of March 2020. Our romancing Prime Minister Narendra Modi had very romantic views about his decisions, but romanticizing could not help preventing disastrous consequences.

The opposition parties has been criticising the Modi government for its obsession to avoid negative news on Covid-19. But more than the parties, particularly Rahul Gandhi, trying to score brownie points, the issue has now attracted attention of global professional entities as well.

The Indian Parliament is quickly moving from being the custodian of the dignity of legislation to being a site for the acclamation of authoritarianism. Admittedly, Parliament has had an uneven history, sometimes rising to its democratic mandate; at other times, debasing itself. But if the events of the last few days are any guide, the Indian temple of democracy will continue to be ground into the dust. It is important to understand two contexts that frame the current crisis.

When the U.S. Supreme Court opens its new term on the first Monday in October, the symbol of its most important looming development will not be an individual case but an empty chair draped in black.

COVID-19 brought up a plethora of problems within society, some which surfaced with the onset of this pandemic. India’s rising number of infections, the growth rate of cases, inadequate health system, hunger crisis, the border conflict with China, our contracting economy, the future of students, suicides, the case involving Rhea Chakraborty and the sudden death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput are just a few of them.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: There is no getting away from the grim reality. Covid positive cases in the State have, for the first time, crossed the 6000- mark. And the number is all set to scale new heights in the days to come.

It’s getting to be tricky talking, writing, discussing Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (POK) and Gilgit-Baltistan (GB). The subject is so interwoven with not only Pakistan’s claim to sovereignty over the geographical spreads vis a vis India’s integral part theory, which will remain a theory unless India gathers its invisible courage and wrests control of the two territories, which brings the interloper into the picture – the Han-Chinese People’s Republic of China – which has been teaching the Islamic Republic of Pakistan a thing or two on how to deal with ‘Islam’ in a manner Pakistan can do nothing about it.

New Delhi: Ace goalkeeper Gurpreet Sandhu, and mid-fielder Sanju have been named the AIFF man and woman players of the year (2019-20) respectively.