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The India-Russia bilateral summit held in Goa on October 15 along with the BRICS summit, signals a significant chapter in the evolving relationship between the two old and tested friends. The slew of agreements signed during the summit indicate that India has kept full trust again in its ally for decades for defence deals. The purchase of S-400 Triumf long rage air defence system from Russia testifies India’s recognition of Russia as a power with high tech capability.

BRICS summit at Goa made a consequential shift from an economic forum to political symposium. Terrorism was the main agenda. Till 7th BRICS summit, economic issues like financial substantiality and infrastructure development were the key issues of the forum.

Getting closer to China and also maintaining its independent voice and choice in international relations are posing to be a growing challenge before India’s external affairs ministry and PMO as China would like to befriend India only on its own terms. That is: India must follow the China camp and support its foreign policies and actions on world platforms. China is pouring money under the guise of various types of aids and project investments across the world, especially in emerging economies, to buy up friends and also expand its economic influence. In the last five years, especially after China displaced Japan as the world’s second largest economy, China’s growing economic and strategic presence in Asia, Africa and South America is leading debates in a number of countries and regions, though not all well informed.

Never before the need for judicial reforms, expeditious and affordable justice delivery was felt so much as now. People continue to be suffering and languishing in the courts for decades even in to the 70th year since the country’s Independence in 1947. The people of India continue being exploited by the cumbersome processes, procedures and expenses of litigation. This is primarily on account of outdated laws, procedures and non-accountability of various organs in the country. At it all, the continuing nexus between the Bench and the Bar is working as a spanner to expeditious and cost effective justice delivery.

PATNA: The Supreme Court had stayed Patna High Court's September 30 judgment quashing the Bihar government's first prohibition law - Bihar Excise (Amendment) Act, 2016.It might be construed as relief to the Nitish and his government, but it would not change the legal position. The Biharis in general extended their moral support to Nitish’s initiative to enforce complete prohibition, it were the draconian legal provisions of the law that the people resented.

Health of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa has been causing concern. She has been examined by best of the doctors from AIIMS and a London based medical practitioner. The hospital in which she is admitted in Chennai has not specified the magnitude of the disease, how serious it is and how long it is likely to last. One prays for her speedy recovery.

Should alcohol sales be banned at airports in India? Leading airlines of the country, including IndiGo, Jet Airways, Spicejet and Go Air which together control 80 per cent of the domestic air traffic, have written to the civil aviation ministry to stop sales of alcohol at airports. The reason: incidents of passengers getting tipsy at airports and creating scenes both on the ground and in the sky are on the increase.

In the Indian Union, elections to Vidhan Sabha and Lok Sabha elections do not happen simultaneously at present. The assembly and parliamentary elections started simultaneously in the 1951-52 period, being the first elections with universal adult franchise in the subcontinent. After the republic was inaugurated in 1950, state governments and union government with separation of powers was conceived. That is the core of federalism. Thus, the elections to Vidhan Sabha and Lok Sabha are essentially elections to representative bodies that would represent the people’s views with respect to the specific and separate powers vested in the state and union governments. In time, Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabhas in various states developed a natural time course of their own, responding to the specific realities and contexts. Thus, mid-term elections for Vidhan Sabhas as well as Lok Sabha, various periods of President’s Rule and other political contexts decoupled the Vidhan Sabha elections from the Lok Sabha and the various Vidhan Sabha elections from each other. And that continues.

BHOPAL: While the Madhya Pradesh ruling Bharatiya Janata Party is making all out efforts to sort out problems arising out factionalism no such efforts are being made by the Congress. The main opposition party is not in a position to claim that they are a united party. The worst display of deep rooted factionalism came in the open when almost all the important leaders failed to turn-up for the meeting of the executive committee of the state Congress recently held in Bhopal.

The Tamil Nadu political crisis is somewhat resolved after the Governor Vidyasagar Rao allocated the portfolios held by the ailing chief Minister Jayalalithaa to her trusted deputy O. Pannerselvam who had been the chief minister twice when Jaya had to step down after conviction. With the frequent unconfirmed rumours spreading like wildfire amid fears that the hospital was not revealing the whole truth about the condition of the chief minister, there is indeed a need for a number two.