Gautam Bhatia – Safoora Zargar and Disha Ravi: Similar cases, (same judge), vastly different verdicts

The order granting bail to environmental activist Disha Ravi in a sedition case is remarkable not so much because of its outcome, but because of the short shrift that it gives to the state’s hysterical accusations of conspiracy-by-Google-Docs. In ordinary circumstances, this would not be remarkable either – judicial scepticism towards the state’s claims of far-reaching conspiracies… Read More Gautam Bhatia – Safoora Zargar and Disha Ravi: Similar cases, (same judge), vastly different verdicts

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Safwat Zargar: In Kashmir, a temple reopens old schism within Pandit community – and shines light on BJP's politics

On February 16, a temple in Srinagar became the subject of national news in India. Several media outlets reported that the Sheetal Nath temple in Kralkhud locality had reopened after a period of 31 years, with special prayers held on the occasion of Basant Panchami. The reports claimed the temple dedicated to Shiva had remained shut since 1989 when… Read More Safwat Zargar: In Kashmir, a temple reopens old schism within Pandit community – and shines light on BJP's politics

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Rare Mandarin duck makes appearance in Assam after nearly 120 years // Black-browed babbler found in Borneo 180 years after last sighting

Rare Mandarin duck makes appearance in Assam after nearly 120 years For the last week or so, visitors to Maguri Beel in the Dibru-Saikhowa National Park in upper Assam’s Tinsukia district have been treated to a rare sight – one that they have likely never seen before in their lives. The Mandarin duck, first spotted… Read More Rare Mandarin duck makes appearance in Assam after nearly 120 years // Black-browed babbler found in Borneo 180 years after last sighting

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Heather Hansman: Who will clean up the 'billion-dollar mess' of abandoned US oilwells?

Jill Morrison has seen how the bust of oil and gas production can permanently scar a landscape. Near her land in north-east Wyoming’s Powder River Basin, where drilling started in 1889, more than 2,000 abandoned wells are seeping brine into the groundwater and leaking potent greenhouse gasses. The problem is getting worse. As the oil… Read More Heather Hansman: Who will clean up the 'billion-dollar mess' of abandoned US oilwells?

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Arctic ice loss forces polar bears to use four times as much energy to survive – study

Polar bears and narwhals are using up to four times as much energy to survive because of major ice loss in the Arctic, according to scientists. Once perfectly evolved for polar life, apex predators are struggling as their habitats shrink and unique adaptations become less suited to an increasingly ice-free Arctic, researchers say. The mammals are… Read More Arctic ice loss forces polar bears to use four times as much energy to survive – study

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Charlie Faulkner: 'Shot at by both sides': Families flee as Taliban battles for territory in Kandahar

Qayoom and his family were among 10,000 families pushed out of their homes as government and Taliban forces battled for territory in southern Afghanistan last month. Qayoom found his new home was to be a couple of large sheets propped up over cold, bare earth, a shelter among many others in a camp for internally displaced people… Read More Charlie Faulkner: 'Shot at by both sides': Families flee as Taliban battles for territory in Kandahar

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Bethan McKernan: Turkey's mobsters step out of shadows and into public sphere

After decades in hiding, in prison or keeping low profile, players from a bloody period in the country’s history are now seen as ‘folk idols’ by the Turkish right. At first glance, the photograph of two smartly dressed older Turkish men, posing for the camera in an office filled with flags, could be of any… Read More Bethan McKernan: Turkey's mobsters step out of shadows and into public sphere

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‘Citizens can’t be jailed for disagreeing with state policies’: Top quotes from Disha Ravi’s bail order / Rajmohan Gandhi: Just Who Is Spoiling India's Image? A View From The US

NB: It comes as a relief for many Indians, not just that this innocent young woman has been granted bail, but that the judicial conscience is still alive, as evident in the appropriate remarks by this Additional Sessions Judge. What remains of deep concern is why and how our police has been allowed to get… Read More ‘Citizens can’t be jailed for disagreeing with state policies’: Top quotes from Disha Ravi’s bail order / Rajmohan Gandhi: Just Who Is Spoiling India's Image? A View From The US

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Indian Medical Association demands explanation from Union Health Minister for ‘promoting’ Patanjali’s Coronil

The Indian Medical Association (IMA) on Monday hit out at the “blatant lie of WHO certification” made by Panjali Ayurved for its Coronil tablet, which the company claims is an evidence-based medicine to fight Covid-19, and demanded an explanation from Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan, in whose presence the medicine was launched. Patanjali Ayurved Ltd founder… Read More Indian Medical Association demands explanation from Union Health Minister for ‘promoting’ Patanjali’s Coronil

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