The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Amendment Bill, 2026, was rushed through Parliament earlier this week. Why do I say “rushed”? Twenty years ago, six out of 10 bills were referred to parliamentary committees for scrutiny. In the last few years, that figure has fallen drastically. Only two out of 10 bills are now being… Continue reading Gender identity, now to be decided by the state
After you read this column, you may want to google Article 356 (1) of the Constitution of India. To put it in a sentence, under this Article, the Union government can assume powers and responsibilities of a state legislature, take over the working of the state and govern it through the office of the President.… Continue reading ‘Undeclared Emergency’ in Bengal: Four Pieces of Proof
Parliament is in session. There is a strong buzz in the corridors of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha that a clutch of Opposition parties will soon be moving a motion of removal against the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC). If the motion to remove the CEC is filed (as I think it will be),… Continue reading Opposition is using every instrument to protect institutions
Parliament begins today. So let me begin by asking you: what do the early 17th Century Latin words for ‘out’ and ‘to prick’ have to do with Parliament? Ten points if you said ‘expunge’. The word is derived from Latin expungere, meaning ‘to underline something with points or dots, to show that it should be… Continue reading This Parliament Session, Watch What Is ‘Expunged’
A few days ago, as the Moon was sighted, text messages popped up on our overscrolled mobile phones wishing us Ramzan Mubarak. Amongst all the warm greetings were two clips that the algorithm couldn’t push down. First, the Chief Minister of Assam calling for a community to be harassed to such an extent that they… Continue reading Why BJP is trying to pit minority against minority
“Ask no questions, and you will be told no lies”, an old proverb. Last week, your columnist chose 12 questions from among the 4500 questions asked in the first half of the Budget Session. 2750 questions in Lok Sabha, 1760 questions in Rajya Sabha, were ballotted to be asked during Question Hour. The column got… Continue reading 12 More Questions Opposition Asked In Parliament To Hold Centre Accountable
Over 2400 years ago, Euripides, the last of ancient Greece’s three great tragedians argued: “Question everything. Learn something. Answer nothing”. Cut to 2026, the same words feel uncannily apt for the ongoing Budget Session of Parliament, now taking a three-week break. Of course Opposition parties, in both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, will… Continue reading 12 Questions Opposition Asked In Parliament – And Why You Should Care
This is one of the harder columns I have written. No insights on public policy. No breakdown of federal schemes. No analysis of ill-thought-out tariffs, examination of vote margins, or commentary on a session in Parliament. No, none of that noise. This column today is about silence. Silence that long existed deafeningly. Silence that was… Continue reading Years after MeToo, a silence, broken briefly, can be heard again
This fortnight’s column could have been about the historic appearance by a sitting Chief Minister in the Supreme Court. Or, a piece on the tepid Union Budget presented by the Finance Minister which even the stock markets gave a thumbs down – Sensex saw its worst Budget-day fall in six years. Or, we could have… Continue reading West Bengal Budget: Substance Over Hype
When communal violence broke out in Manipur three years ago, incidents of physical and sexual violence made their way to our news feeds. Manipur witnessed a barbarity whose effects will be suffered even decades later. Earlier this month, a 20-year-old woman who was gang-raped during the ethnic violence succumbed to her injuries. Devastating. The victim’s… Continue reading When the law fails women, violence fills the gap
