When Donald Trump took the stage at the Capital One Arena in Washington, DC for a post-inaugural rally, he had an unlikely hero to thank for his victory. Not a Silicon Valley technocrat. Not a trusted DC campaign manager. Not a donor. Instead, a first-year student at New York University. Correction: His son, a first… Continue reading How to be a visible politician
Your columnist introduced a Private Member’s Bill during this session of Parliament. The proposed legislation aims at removing the provision exempting marital rape in India. Section 63 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (one of the three new criminal laws passed by this government) continues to provide a disturbing exception for marital rape, undermining the autonomy… Continue reading Who’s Afraid Of Criminalising Marital Rape?
The Budget Session of Parliament commences today. Speeches by two prominent women will dominate the news space in the next few days. First, the Honourable President will address a joint session of the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. The following day, the Union Finance Minister will read her Budget speech. Talking about prominent women, let’s… Continue reading Coldplay, Kumbh, Budget speeches & more this Parliament session
The dates for the forthcoming Budget session of Parliament have been announced. Once again, at very short notice. We did some research and here is what we found. Historically, the Indian Parliament provided ample time for preparation. The first two Lok Sabhas (1952–1962) averaged a commendable 47 days between the time the notice was given,… Continue reading It’s Time India’s Parliament Had A Calendar
The release of the draft rules for the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (DPDP Act) for public consultation, more than 16 months after the Act was passed, has restarted discussions on the importance of public participation in lawmaking, particularly for pieces of legislation that significantly impact individual rights. Given its implications for privacy and… Continue reading How laws are passed under NDA – in silence, without consultation
This is a tribute by a fanboy who would memorise and recite many poems of Pritish Nandy (Da) since the 1970s. Dada, travel well on your ‘Lonesong Street’. “When you’ve crossed the bustling mainstreets of everever landYou reach a lonesome sandstrip called the nevernever strandThen you take the turning leftAnd you take the turning rightAnd… Continue reading To Pritish Da, The Poet Who Never Stopped Loving Calcutta
“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”— Alexei Navalny, Russian opposition leader In my two decades in public life, including three terms in Parliament, I have written columns on a range of subjects, but never one on the church in India. This is a first. It… Continue reading Will the church please speak up?
When Julius Caesar’s Senate fixed January 1 as the ‘first day of the year’, the idea wasn’t only to ‘start afresh’. It was also when those in civil office were to set in motion their responsibilities. In that tradition, coming down from 45 BC, let the existing coalition government headed by Narendra Modi set out… Continue reading The Modi Government’s 25 Things-To-Do in 2025
You are reading this on the concluding day of the Winter Session of Parliament. Thoughts on the 21-day session. Five proper nouns dominated: Common nouns like price rise, inflation, federalism, and unemployment were expected to dominate the debates in this session. But instead, only these proper nouns made headlines for all the right/wrong reasons: George Soros, Gautam… Continue reading In Parliament this winter
When Parliament was reconstituted after the 2024 Lok Sabha election, your columnist had drawn up a list of eight laws that should be considered by the Union government and repealed to ensure justice, equality, liberty for all citizens. Now, with the Winter Session of Parliament halfway through, let us add four more items to that… Continue reading A list of laws that need to be repealed
