Mr. P.K. Lakshmanan, District and Sessions Judge, to-day [February 4, Calicut] rejected the bail application filed on behalf of Miss Ajitha, said to be one of the top Naxalite leaders, now under remand in connection with the attack on Pulpally wireless station. The Judge, however, granted bail to another accused, …

Often people revisit traumatic memories only to tell journalists their stories As journalists, we are often guilty of behaving like an entitled bunch. We ask questions, demand answers, call people at odd hours with or without an apology, or trouble a friend for a phone number we have lost. It …

Rocked by protests against the Centre’s proposed Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, Assam’s Bodo-populated areas were on edge for another reason last week. Over a decade after nine serial bombs ripped through four towns, the clamour for the death penalty to be awarded to the perpetrators had put the State on alert, …

The arrest of 129 Indians on the charge of wilfully violating immigration laws to stay and work in the United States sends a stark message to youth looking for better prospects abroad: their efforts should begin with due diligence and strictly follow the letter of the law. In the sting …

In Januarys, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) called for a report from India on the deportation of a group of Rohingya refugees to Myanmar in October 2018. India’s repatriation of the refugees contravenes international principles on refugee law as well as domestic constitutional rights. Global framework Refugee law …

Interim Budget 2019 has sought to make amends for all the wrongs of almost five years of the Narendra Modi government. For example, the debilitating impact of demonetisation on the informal sector that employs nearly 90% of the workforce had long been suspected on the basis of anecdotal evidence. The …

The Remnants of an Army, a famous oil on canvas by Elizabeth Butler, is a lasting image of the First Anglo-Afghan War (1839-1842). It depicts William Brydon, a medical officer in the British Indian Army, arriving in Jalalabad from Kabul on horseback in 1842. Both Brydon, who was wounded, and …

By requiring long-term residents of Assam to prove their citizenship by negotiating a thicket made up of bewildering and opaque rules and an uncaring bureaucracy, the Indian state has for the past two decades unleashed an unrelenting nightmare of wanton injustice on a massive swathe of its most vulnerable people. …

Rising temperatures could drive some species to become sterile, making them succumb to the effects of climate change earlier than thought, says a study published in Trends in Ecology and Evolution . Researchers are trying to predict the places where species will be lost, so that suitable reserves could be …

A visitor’s book that has Jawaharlal Nehru’s signature is among its collections A rare document bearing Jawaharlal Nehru’s signature in Hindi, English and Urdu, and a priceless 1623 edition of William Shakespeare’s complete works are among thousands of historic manuscripts and unseen photographs awaiting proper preservation at IIT-Roorkee’s iconic library. …

The risk of developing obesity-related cancer is increasing in successive generations, along with increasing rates of obesity, according to a new study. Researchers studied the incidence of 30 of the most common cancers, including 12 that are obesity related, from 1995 to 2014 in people ages 25-84 — more than …

The fiscal deficit for the period April-December 2018 has touched 112.4% of the budget target of Rs. 6.24 lakh crore for the financial year 2018-19, data from the Controller General of Accounts (CGA) showed. Marginally better In absolute figures, the fiscal deficit was at Rs. 7.01 lakh crore during April-December …

The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) had said that Reliance Communications (RCom) or any third party cannot sell, transfer or alienate any of its assets (movable and immoveable) without the appellate tribunal’s or the Supreme Court’s permission. The directive came after RCom on Monday moved the NCLAT for withdrawal …

The government on Monday decided to set up a five-member working committee to look into the angel tax issue and come up with guidelines in one week. It also agreed to implement some key changes requested by start-ups regarding the issue. The ‘angel tax’, as it is commonly called, is …

The U.S. special envoy for North Korea, Stephen Biegun, on Monday briefed South Korea’s top security advisor, Chung Eui-yong, on Washington’s stance ahead of a working-level meeting with the North’s delegation on Tuesday. The meeting will discuss the agenda of the much-anticipated second summit between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un. …

Two-thirds of Himalayan glaciers, the world’s “Third Pole”, could melt by 2100 if global emissions are not reduced, scientists warned in a major new study issued on Monday. And even if the “most ambitious” Paris Agreement goal of limiting global warming to 1.5° C is achieved, one-third of the glaciers …

Officials cite Chinese intrusion into Japan’s ‘territorial waters’, but peace prevails From their forward base in Ishigaki, a part of the Okinawa chain of 150 islands, large ships of the Japanese coast guard, all gleaming white, keep a tight round- the-clock vigil on a group of islands, 170 km away. …

Britain on Monday will seek to reassure foreign investors worried about Britain leaving the EU after Japanese automaker Nissan said it was scrapping a major planned investment less than two months before Brexit. Prime Minister Theresa May was due to hold a conference call with around 55 chairmen and chief …

Move comes after an ultimatum given to President Nicolas Maduro to call fresh elections expired Eleven European nations joined the U.S. in recognising opposition leader Juan Guaido as Venezuela’s interim President on Monday, heightening a global showdown over Nicolas Maduro’s socialist rule. The EU members’ coordinated move followed the expiry …

They were categorised on the parameters of their experience and financial strength The Supreme Court on Monday upheld the Haj Policy 2019-23, which categorises the Haj Group Organisers (HGOs) on the parameters of their experience and financial strength. The court found “nothing arbitrary or unreasonable” in such a classification by …