The horrific attack by Islamic State terrorists on Kabul University is evidence, if any was needed, that the Taliban and affiliated groups see the Afghan peace talks as a sign of surrender, and have no intention of honouring any commitments. This is something the new American president must address urgently.
AG’s call for gender training for judges good step, victims can’t be told to marry rapists
AG KK Venugopal’s call for gender training for judges can’t come soon enough. Courts asking rape victims to marry or tie rakhi to rapists is spreading. This is unacceptable in 21st century India, which is trying to upgrade conversations about rape in recent years. It’s time India’s judiciary catches up.
Punjab, Rajasthan passing bills against farm reform laws all hot air, farmers won’t be fooled
After Punjab, Rajasthan assembly has introduced bills superseding Centre’s agriculture reform laws. It’s all hot air. These won’t get the President’s assent. In polarised politics, it’s futile to expect the opposition to see the merit in reforms they would have implemented themselves. Farmers won’t be fooled by this tamasha either.
This is something the new American president must address urgently.
There is nothing much US can do. It does not want body bags. Really there is no solution, unless ground reality change. Pumping billions will simply go in drain. That is there reason Trump wanted to be out of Afghanistan.
If India seize Gilgit- Baltistan only then things can change. Because then India can offer military assistance as well as peacekeeping force as India would have direct land access to Afghanistan. US in it’s self interest should encourage India to take G &B and provide US replacement in Afghanistan to prevent Taliban, Al-Qaeda or ISIS from using Afghanistan as base for their worldwide terrorist activities.
Tying a rakhi could at best be thought of as an antidote to eve teasing, not an act of violation. This is what one associates with old style politicians like MSY, not high court judges. How some of them are chosen by the Collegium is inexplicable.
India’s farmers will have to prepare for change. Less procurement of wheat and rice by the FCI, groundwater getting depleted, discoms forced to charge more for power. They are seeing the impact of climate change, an erratic monsoon, crops ready for harvest being damaged by unseasonal rain. The new Acts could have followed a more consensual path, something which can be said for the entire political process now, but they are an unavoidable milestone to that more sustainable future for agriculture.
The next US President will have to almost start from scratch on the Afghan peace process. Great pity, because delay is costing lives, impeding the process of reconstruction. Even as the rise of the Taliban threatens to undo most of the gains girls and women have made in the last 20 years. 2. The global stakes of the US election – fine column by Nic Robertson on CNN. Afghanistan is joined by North Korea, Iran, other trouble spots requiring solutions. The US can succeed only if it finds ways to work with both allies and adversaries. Hopefully India will play a meaningful role in bringing peace to Afghanistan.