2018

A.K. Das has sent the following poem with a letter from Lucknow that reads: “The Supreme Court has delivered the landmark judgement upholding the right of women of all ages to worship at Sabarimala temple. Earlier I had composed a poem on the subject; it appears in my book of poetry Voyage Continues. I’m quoting below the poem. Since the matter is very relevant, you may kindly like to give it space in your weekly.”
[A poem on ban of women’s right to enter into places of worship]
She is (…)

The National Secretariat of the Communist Party of India issued the following statement on September 21, 2018 demanding resignation of Union Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
The National Secretariat of the Communist Party of India accuses Union Minister for Defence Nirmala Sitharaman of hiding facts from the general public as well as of belittling the internationally acclaimed public sector unit (PSU) engaged in defence production, namely, Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL). The party (…)

From N.C.’s Writings
The last few months have witnessed the deterioration of Indo-Pak relations to the point of almost eye-ball-to-eyeball confrontation. Tempers have been stoked high and the fiercest propaganda bombardment has been going on between two neighbours born out of the same motherland.
The measure of this high-pitched tension was provided on the one side by Pakistan Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto’s frenzied diatribe against India over the Kashmir issue, and by the disgraceful (…)

by Archishman Raju and Meghna Chandra
The External Affairs Minister, Sushma Swaraj, and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman recently concluded two-plus-two talks with US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo and Defence Secretary James Mattis resulting in the signing of the COMCASA (Communications, Compatibility, Security Agreement). This agreement will allow the two countries to share intelligence in real-time. This is one of the three “foundational agreements” that the US signs with other (…)

by Hemant Varshney and Bhavesh Yadav
Introduction
A five-judge Constitution Bench on September 27 decriminalised the 158-year-old law of adultery in Joseph Shine v. Union of India. The impugned law was mentioned under Section 497 of the Indian Penal Code 1860. The main contention of the petitioner was that since the law treats woman as chattel, therefore, the law is in violation of equality mentioned as Fundamental Right under Part III of the Constitution.
It is beyond any shadow of (…)

COMMUNICATION
By striking down IPC Section 497 as unconstitutional and declaring adultery as no offence recently on September 27, 2018, the Supreme Court will set in a highly undesirable trend in the society. The society is already tottering and withdrawal of the fear of law will give licence to amorous relationship in India. This will lead to more domestic violence, family feud, crime and break-ups. Are we going back to the wild primitive society? A law cannot be divorced of moral (…)

The following is the press statement of five eminent persons on the arrest and subsequent house confinement of five activists.
We approached the Supreme Court when five well-known lawyers, journalists and civil rights activists were arrested across the country on August 28 and charged with abetting acts of terror under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
Our intention was to draw the attention of the judiciary to what we believe is a case of gross misuse of the state’s (…)

The following is the press statement by human rights activist Gautam Navlakha after being freed of house arrest by the Delhi High Court on October 1, 2018. He was arrested with four other activists on August 28 and subsequently placed under house confinement by the Supreme Court. This is, according to Navlakha, the ‘Statement of an Urban Naxal’.
I wish to thank the majority and dissenting Justices of the Supreme Court for their judgment, which allowed us four weeks to seek relief in this (…)

One hundred years have passed since the inception of the Department of Sociology in Bombay University. Here Sociology began to be taught and studied for the first time in India at the University level. Patrick Geddes (October 2, 1854-April 17, 1932), a distinguished Scottish Biologist, Sociologist, Geographer, Philanthropist and Town Planner, took the major initiative to establish the Department.
Geddes turned his attention to Sociology after an attack of blindness while working in Mexico. (…)

COMMUNICATION
Keeping in view the extremely important role of land reforms for reducing rural poverty and ensuring sustainable food security to the most vulnerable sections, there is clearly a need for strong government action on this front but this responsibility has been completely neglected by the government in recent times. Even though the ground level action has to be taken by the State Government but a clear and strong land reform policy at the national level and policy guidelines (…)