TOP STORIES

International Trade Fair (IITF) at New Delhi is an annual event from 14th November to 27th November. There are extra long queues of visitors first outside the gate for purchasing entry-tickets, at entry gates, and thereafter there are very long queues outside pavilions of participants. Most visitors especially children, youngsters and students want to visit as many pavilions as possible. But in such short duration with heavy rush of people on each day, it is absolutely impossible that a desiring person may be able to visit all the pavilions even if he or she visits IITF on all the days. Rather such a heavy rush prevents many desiring ones to visit IITF even for one single day. Otherwise also participants including public-authorities comprising of states, ministries and other government-...

Largest-selling foreign company Hewlett-Packard (HP) marketing computer-printers in Indian market has Maximum-Retail-Price printed on ink-cartridges exorbitantly high even though its original cartridges available in wholesale markets of Nehru place and Nai Sarak in Delhi at much-much less than printed MRP. Even wholesale price for its ink-cartridges remains much higher around rupees 3000 making some Indian manufacturers marketing re-filled cartridges at around rupees 700 or so. Even re-fill can be done at just rupees 200 or so. But using re-filled ink-cartridges result in termination of warranty. Condition should be imposed to allow manufacture of ink-cartridges in India by desiring Indian companies. Indian companies should also be authorised refill ink-cartridges without affecting warr...

Subsidy on food in Railway-run Parliamentary canteens was abolished in the year 2015 after heavy public-criticism subsequent to disclosure of an RTI response. But later it was revealed that again heavy subsidy is being provided now in Parliamentary canteens. This is despite the fact that food-items are precured for meetings from reputed private shops at full market-price. In case of prolonged Parliamentary session for some day, it is more economical to provide food free-of-cost to attending Parliamentarians rather than burdening public-exchequer with subsidy which was once abolished after strong public-criticism. Tariff-chart for Railway-run Parliamentary canteens should be equivalent to that of food provided in second-class railway-coaches. Furthermore system of procuring lavish dishes...

Our courts including Supreme Court are prompt in giving stay-orders as a normal practice when at times such stay-orders are even injurious to Justice Delivery System. But when such a stay-order was of utmost importance on the issue of Sabrimala Temple not only considering highly disturbed sentiments of majority Hindu community but also for maintaining law and order problem, Constitution Bench of Supreme Court on 14.11.2019 while referring the matter to a larger seven-member bench did not stay its earlier order. Logically also, Constitution Bench must have found at least some substance in review-petition that the matter was referred to larger seven-member bench. Such a stay-order was otherwise also necessary to maintain dignity of its own order which had posed great difficulty to authoritie...

Alliance-politics is gradually sinking in Indian politics with BJP-Shivsena pre-poll alliance not having able to form government in Maharashtra. Supreme Court has allowed 17 ousted Karnatak MLAs to contest by-polls. Also NDA ally LJP deciding to go alone in forthcoming elections to Jharkhand state-assembly. JDU also at times speaks in different tone from its main ally BJP in Bihar government. Massive and consolidated poll-reforms are only remedy for such volatile politics inducing money-game in making and breaking of governments. It is time  that BJP persuades its smaller allies to join BJP mainstream rather than giving them disproportionate share in ticket-distribution or share in power. A sitting MLA, MLC or MP must resign first from earlier seat before filing nomination for other. An...

Five-member Constitution Bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi on 13.11.2019 gave a land-mark verdict dismissing appeal by its own CPIO thus holding office of Chief Justice of India under RTI Act, thus adding yet other mile-stone in an era requiring transparency. Verdict coupled with another recent Supreme Court verdict dated 17.09.2019 declaring DAV College Trust and Management Society public-authority under RTI Act because of substantial government-funding, will have far reaching positive implications where it has set an example for bodies resisting to be under purview of RTI Act by challenging CIC-verdicts declaring them as public-authorities in the courts also succeeding to get easy stay-orders. Apex Court in other two cases has also delivered verdict totally in frame-work of R...

Supreme Court in its historic verdict on Ram-Janmbhoomi has referred and endorsed to a 1991-legislation which prohibits any further restoration of such temples built before 15.08.1947 where mosques were built after breaking of temples. But Vishwanath Temple at Kashi and Krishna-Janmbhoomi Temple at Mathura are two such more important temples which have greater significance for Hindus similar to that of Ram-Janmbhoomi Temple at Ayodhya. It is significant that non-political organizations continuously included demand for restoration of temples at Kashi and Mathura as well together with that at Ayodhya, assuring that no further demand for restoration of any other temple other than these three major ones would ever be raised. Facts made as base for Ayodhya verdict by Supreme Court are more t...

Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi has gained notoriety for regular and frequent anti-national and anti-social activities from time to time resulting in severe law and order problems. It is surprising how even teachers with political motives of a particular ideology get appointed at this institute set up and run at high public-cost as compared to other universities in the country. It was totally unjustified to continue providing costly hostel-facilities to JNU students at nominal rather negligible fees of just rupees ten per month which after decades has now been raised to only rupees 300 per month on twin-sharing basis. Agitating students unnecessarily confused public by mentioning rupees 1700 per month now imposed as service-charge for so many facilities as per actual cost as if...

I filed complaints on 05.10.2019 at various portals including CPGRAMS portal and similar portals at websites of President and Prime Minister regarding issuing of non-issuable currency-packs of rupees 100 and 50 through Dariba (Delhi) post-office. Instead of taking action against concerned ones at GPO Kashmere Gate (Delhi) and postal-treasury at Tis Hazari in Delhi for sending non-issuable, unhygienic and spoilt currency-packs giving very bad smell with many notes in two pieces, officers of the department are seeking clarification from very humbled staff presently posted at Dariba post-office in Delhi. Postal-department should grill concerned ones at Delhi GPO and postal-treasury about how and why such non-issuable currency-packs were sent to Dariba post-office for giving to account-hold...

  Present NDA-2 government centre is day-by-day making dream-come-true on its poll-promises. Next in line should be legislating Uniform Civil Code, Population-Control, Massive and consolidated poll-reforms including simultaneous elections to Lok Sabha and state-assemblies, and Women-Reservation-Bill. Vice President of India on 11.11.2019 raised his voice in support of reservation for women in legislation. Women though being 50-percent of population, get only a minute representation in law-making system. Many political parties cry for reservation on man-made aspects like religion and cast evidently for vote-bank politics, but oppose reservation to women which still remain dominated section of society created by nature in our male-dominated political system. Even Islamic world inc...