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Rights and wrongs can come later. Nearing half its term, UPA-II has been heaping upon itself a series of governance failures topped by an array of corrupt deals under its watch, directly accountable for most of them, and the one-sided policies and posturings have bordered on arrogance, however much at the head Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh has the reputation of both humility and integrity.

KOLKATA: For the CPI(M) , it has been a Hobson’s choice, whether to support ex Minister Sushanta Ghosh now under arrest for involvement in mass murder, or to abandon him.

Sounds odd, but India Inc. is on sale, literally. Come-and-grab-it is the message of the proposed set of guidelines lately unveiled by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). Suffice it to say, the new business or corporate takeover policy is not a handiwork of SEBI alone. Several connected government departments and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) are believed to have actively contributed to the thought. The idea is to make it easy for foreign investors to take over good listed and widely-held Indian companies. Although this has not been said in so many words, but the targeted companies make it loud and clear. The policy is expected to lead a spate of FDI-led M&A deals.

New Delhi: The name of Justice Soumitra Sen of the Calcutta High Court is likely to be recorded as the first judge in the country to be removed by Parliament, with the Rajya Sabha taking the first step on Thursday by overwhelmingly approving the impeachment motion against him.

If anyone is to be blamed for the sudden larger than life figure of the civil society leader Anna Hazard, the government should introspect because part of the blame goes to the government in making him assume such a role. Four months ago, Anna was not as popular as he is today. He was not known beyond Maharashtra. He had no team. The problem for the Congress is that Anna had seized the same issue of “ Aam admi” on whose plank the Congress came to power in 2004 and 2009. It was difficult for the government to be seen fighting the cause as it can take on anyone but not the ‘ Aam admi.”

New York: Omar Saleh was leading a peaceful and comfortable life as a trauma surgeon and university lecturer in Egypt when the call came from the United Nations health agency: surgeons urgently needed in war-torn Somalia. He didn’t have to think twice.

New York: Although compliance by Cambodian exporting garment factories with national and international labour standards is generally good, areas such as discrimination and occupational safety and health remain a concern, according to a new United Nations report.

New York: With noisy human activity on the world's oceans possibly disrupting the well-being of marine creatures, perhaps reducing their ability to find food, seek out mates or avoid predators, the United Nations is hosting a meeting to launch a decade-long investigation into the problem.

New York: The United Nations is temporarily withdrawing some staff from Syria amid mounting international concern about the violent crackdown by Government forces against civilian demonstrators.

New York: The United Nations health agency and its partners have launched a guide to help fieldworkers provide vital psychological support to people affected by humanitarian emergencies.