The government decided to issue electoral bonds as a money bill. This was unconstitutional because electoral bonds are not covered by the definition of ‘money bill’ in the Constitution. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the sole authority to issue currency under Section 31 of the RBI Act, was approached four days before the announcement […]
Democracy cannot be used to derive private benefit at public cost
The ensuing December 5 bypolls to 15 Assembly constituencies in Karnataka are the result of defections from the then ruling coalition. The government fell, the Supreme Court was approached, and now we have 165 candidates contesting these elections. The court upheld their disqualification (of the rebels), but said they were eligible to contest again. Engineering […]
The opacity around electoral bonds
The recent disclosures that the Election Commission (EC) and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had expressed reservations about the Electoral Bonds scheme highlight the importance of this issue. In 2017, the then RBI Governor wrote to the then Finance Minister that “allowing any entity other than the central bank to issue bearer bonds, which […]
Chief Justice of India is now covered by the RTI Act. Political parties must come next
There was never any doubt that the Supreme Court of India is a “public authority” under the Right to Information Act. This story began on November 10, 2007, when the veteran RTI activist Subhash Chandra Agarwal filed an RTI application “seeking information on declaration of assets made by the judges to the Chief Justices in […]
Why Does Pizza Taste So Good?
Humans are drawn to foods that are fatty and sweet, rich and complex. Pizza has all of these components. Humans are drawn to foods that are fatty and sweet, rich and complex. Pizza has all of these components. Pizza is one of the world’s most popular foods. In the US, 350 slices are eaten every second, while 40% of […]
How candidates and political parties are using social media for electoral campaigning?
The idea of social media as a force-multiplier in politics has gained virality in our minds, especially in last four years. According to Datareportal’s Digital 2019: India report, 1 out of total population of 1.361 billion, around 41% i.e. 560 million Indians are active users of internet and total no. of active social media users […]
Crime and Money in Electoral Politics: How can this trend be reversed?
Systemic corruption and sponsored criminalization have corroded the fundamental core of elective democracy and consequently, the constitutional governance. On one hand there is a free flow of unaccounted money at the disposal of political parties during elections and on the other hand, criminal elements have been playing a major role in the electoral process in […]
Continuing Trend of Crime and Money in Electoral Politics
“The voter [in India] is subject to the law of the two ‘Ms’, money and muscle.” – Christophe Jaffrelot (2002) I sometimes wonder whether we can ever hope to realise the aspirations of our freedom fighters, who sacrificed so much to gain independence from colonial rule. Sadly, foreign domination has been replaced in some measure […]
A Common Thread in the Centre’s Plans on the Brewing Citizenship Question
From Kashmir to Assam to the halls of parliament, it is clear that one particular community has come under attack as the ruling party inches forward with its agenda. The first 100 days of the Central government have been remarkable for a number of initiatives. While these various initiatives might appear to be disparate at […]
Despite economic crunch, wealth of MPs, MLAs swells: ADR
Despite economic crunch, wealth of MPs, MLAs swells: ADR New Delhi, Sep 25 (IANS) The average wealth of an MLA in India has swollen more than ten times from USD 1.3 million in the year 2015 to a massive Rs 13.6 million in 2018, founder of the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), Prof Jagdeep […]