A test for Rahul's magic wand

Rahul Gandhi has gone all out to campaign in favour of congress for this time's state election for Uthar Pradesh, so much so that he has not got much time to shave!

He has caught everyone's imagination already including the media though he has covered only one-third of the entire state...

But, will his charisma and sheer political presence be enough for congress to taste success in the elections this time around?

Nilofar Suhrawardy assesses the entire scenario...

A test for Rahul's magic wand

Who should judge the judges?

"The object of placing the power of judicial appointments in an independent body is to remove patronage from the system and ensure that judges are appointed only on the basis of their qualifications."

The process by which a judge is appointed to the High Court or the Supreme Court has been described as 'one of the best kept secrets in this country'. Choosing judges based on undisclosed criterion in largely unknown circumstances reflects an increasing democratic deficit. The Hindu : Opinion / Op-Ed : Who should judge the judges?

The rationale for the establishment of a commission must be that it will guarantee the independence from inappropriate politicisation, strengthen the quality of appointments, enhance the fairness of the selection process, promote diversity in the composition and therefore rebuild public confidence in the system.

International consensus seems to favour appointments to the higher judiciary through an independent commission.The outcome of the reforms would depend on the way in which the commission is set up and the model adopted. 

Voting: A right or a forced responsibility

Voting is every free Indian citizen's right. That is a fact for sure and there are elections held for the Mumbai Municipality on February, the 16th.

Priyanka Tendolkar, a political science student and a social worker explores if this voting right worth exercising at all...

Voting: A right or a forced responsibility

A contagious disease called dynasty politics

The sons and daughters of politically eminent people are taking the centre stage now after their elderly relatives have already stolen the show. It is happening in all the states and at all levels of politics and these "elderly and seasoned" politicians are lobbying for it.

"Dr. Ambedkar was seriously against dynasty politics and he categorically stated that the day dynasty politics sets roots in India, democracy will shrink" says Sudhir Suryawamshi in his article where he strongly opposes this phenomenon which he terms as a "contagious disease".

A contagious disease called dynasty

Freedom of Speech

On January the 26th 1950, 62 years from today, the first framework of the Indian constitution took it's shape.

One among the many fundamental rights that this largest constitution in the world gave is the right to freedom of speech.

How reasonable is this freedom of speech? Are the reasonable restrictions imposed on it in a later amendment enough? Or is it too much?

Harini Calamur debates on both sides of the coin.

(Un)reasonable curbs on free speech

Lionel Shriver questions defining women authors by their gender

Times View - Gender does matter in literature


Counter View - Writers should transcend gender

-The Times of India, January 26, 2012

Poised To Take Off

India must address its demographic issues to fulfill its enormous potential

Poised To Take Off

-The Times of India, January 26, 2012

P'chery on the cake

There's always someone you know whichever place you go

P'cherry on the cake

-The Times of India, January 26, 2012

Genius At Work

Could open-plan offices be on the way out?

Genius At Work

-The Times of India, January 26, 2012

When Hope Floats

India has momentum going, but cannot rest on its laurels


When Hope Floats

-The Times of India, January 26, 2012

A precarious Indo-Pak nuclear balance

"Pakistan has dismissed the credibility of India's declared no-first-use doctrine and has not elucidated the conditions under which it would be prompted to use its nuclear weapons."

Nothing substantial has been achieved by India & Pakistan to bring about nuclear stability in the subcontinent. This despite the fact that a nuclear war between India and Pakistan is arguably more likely than it was between the U.S. and the USSR during the Cold War. The Hindu : Opinion / Lead : A precarious Indo-Pak nuclear balance.

Pakistan has deliberately kept its ‘threshold levels' unclear, contending that this is its only possible option to prevent an Indian attack.

The existence of such doctrinal ambiguities, security dilemma and deep mistrust of each other — combined with the lack of a clear civilian control of nuclear weapons in Pakistan — means nothing short of a recipe for disaster for the people of both countries. There is, therefore, need to start talking about nuclear issues with far more seriousness and urgency along the lines enshrined in the Lahore Declaration.

NY Police official and making of The Third Jihad

"The Third Jihad was screened for more than 1,400 officers during training in 2010."

The film, says the goal of “much of Muslim leadership here in America” is to “infiltrate and dominate” the United States. The Hindu : Opinion / Op-Ed : Police official admits he abetted making of The Third Jihad. The New York City police commissioner, acknowledged that he personally cooperated with the filmmakers, a decision he now describes as a mistake.

Much about the film remains mysterious, from its financing to how it ended up in a police training centre.

This is no way, Norway

The case of Anurup and Sagarika Bhattacharya — whose young children were placed in foster care by the Child Welfare Services in the Norwegian city of Stavanger — raises disturbing questions.

"If the charges go beyond overfeeding, not using cutlery and sleeping in the same bed — “crimes” every South Asian family is guilty of — what seems odd is the extreme and irrevocable nature of the solution proposed. The Hindu : Opinion / Editorial : This is no way, Norway. Surely a ‘nanny state' which gives itself the right to send young children to foster care till they turn 18 should also provide counselling and support for those parents whose care is found wanting, establishing a clear and transparent road map for the family to be reunited as soon as possible?"

If this sad story is to have a happy ending, Stavanger authorities should consider inviting a child welfare expert from India!

Cheating science

"The number of researchers getting exposed for data falsification, fabrication, and plagiarism has been increasing. But the sobering fact is that this number is barely the tip of research misconduct. "

With the exception of plagiarism, journals are not fully geared to spot all forms of cheating prior to publication. The problem is particularly heightened in developing countries like India where no system for investigating such cases exists. The Hindu : Opinion / Editorial : Cheating science. Since research misconduct is detrimental to the development of science, it is necessary to make laws that mandate universities to investigate cases thoroughly or allow third-party investigation.

A solution has to be soon found before published journal articles lose their value and pre-eminent place in science.