The piece was originally published in The Wire. Read here. The Supreme Court must act decisively or risk communal prejudice seeping further into the judiciary and undermining the very constitution we celebrated last weekend. When a sitting high court judge uses communal slurs and advocates majoritarian dominance at a public event, it is not just an affront…
The profile was originally published in The Caravan magazine. Read here. {ONE} ON 13 MARCH 2016, the Allahabad High Court began a year-long celebration of its sesquicentennial anniversary. Among the five oldest high courts, it was established in 1866 and, today, stands as the largest, with a sanctioned strength of 160 judges. At the time, it…
The article was originally published in New York-based New Lines Magazine. Read here. An exclusive investigation reveals how the Uttar Pradesh police often exploit loopholes in the law and disregard forensic evidence in shootoutsOn Jan. 26, 2018, as India was celebrating its Republic Day (commemorating the adoption of its constitution), Mukesh Rajbhar, a 17-year-old laborer in…
The article was originally published in Article 14. Read here. Three critical cases impacting the PMLA and its use remained pending before the Supreme Court of India for the past 12 to 55 months. Despite promising to address the larger concern around the weaponization of these laws against political dissidents, Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud has…
The article was originally published in Article 14. Read here. The three new criminal laws, effective from 1 July 2024, to overhaul India’s criminal justice system have faced criticism for increasing police powers and introducing offences like terrorism without proper safeguards. Experts worry about the potential misuse of these new provisions. Right to Information requests filed…
The article was originally published in Article 14. Read here. The government of India has blocked the website and X account of Hindutva Watch, which documents hate crimes and hate speech against India’s religious minorities, latest evidence of secrecy surrounding India’s internet censorship framework. Legal experts said the current laws and rules lack transparency and appeals…
The article was originally published in Al Jazeera. Read here. India’s parliament passed controversial legislation in December that has raised concerns about civil liberties and surveillance. New Delhi, India – Late last month India’s parliament passed two sets of controversial legislation in the biggest overhaul of the criminal justice system and telecom laws that critics say could…
The article was originally published in Article 14. Read here. Nine Muslims facing charges of terrorism in the 2020 Delhi riots conspiracy case are enduring systemic failures in their judicial quest for bail. Petitions pending for between 11 and 19 months in the Delhi High Court amid administrative hurdles, changes in a special bench, and a…
The article was originally published in Article 14. Read here. An analysis of eight politically sensitive cases shows they were moved to Justice Bela M Trivedi of the Supreme Court over the past four months, even though the rules of assignment say they should remain with the senior judge or before a judge hearing a similar…
The article was originally published in Article 14. Read here. Delays, adjournments, and lengthy court proceedings are hindering India’s 17-year-old right-to-information framework, a study of 18 pending court cases shows. While cases arising out of RTI languish before the courts—16 years is the longest we found—after judges stay commission orders, frequent adjournments, and poor management by…
The original Op-Ed was published in the Deccan Herald. Read here. October 12 (today) marks 18 years since the Central Information Commission (CIC) was set up. One would think that 18 years is a good enough time to shine the light of transparency, but with more than 300,000 complaints pending and six commissions hea… Over the past few…
The article was originally published in Article 14. Read here. A September 2023 affidavit in the Supreme Court has alleged that two out of the six members of the Supreme Court-appointed expert committee investigating possible regulatory lapses in dealing with allegations against the Adani group have a “conflict of interest” and one is named in…