Faith, Fear, and Misuse of Anti-Conversion Statutes

THE recent conviction of six pastors and an accomplice in Madhya Pradesh’s Dindori district, who were sentenced to five years of rigorous imprisonment, marks a deeply troubling moment for religious freedom in India. The men were arrested in April 2024 following a complaint filed by an uninvited neighbour during a private gathering held for a child’s fifth birthday. Local authorities subsequently charged them under the state’s stringent anti-conversion legislation, alleging the use of hate speech, material inducements, and fraudulent tactics to allure villagers into changing their faith. However, the host of the event explicitly testified in …
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Seeking Peace Through Political Self-Determination

FOR more than three years, the devastating ethnic violence between the majority Meiteis and minority Kuki-Zo communities in Manipur has left an indelible mark of human tragedy across the state. Over 300 Kuki-Zo lives have been lost, 7,000 houses burnt, and over 360 churches and synagogues destroyed, leaving over 41,425 Kuki-Zo people displaced. What began as a tragic cycle of destruction has gradually evolved into a total political deadlock that the central government can no longer afford to ignore. On September 21, 2026, a momentous joint public meeting took place in Lamka, bringing together an unprecedented array of Kuki-Zo tribal bodies a…
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Gari nungak khat phu in, taisan

Miss Chingzoukim d/o Pu Thangkhanlian, Chief of M Saljang Village, tusun Lanva junction ah tata tawh ki phukha in gimsia mah mah hi. Tun district hospital ah emergency a et kol ahi.
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Generosity or Influence? The ₹1.1 Crore Judicial Donation

JUSTICE Avanindra Kumar Singh, who recently retired from the Madhya Pradesh High Court after an illustrious legal career spanning over three decades, has left an indelible mark on judicial service. Born in Etah, Uttar Pradesh, in September 1964, Justice Singh held degrees in science and law before entering the judicial service as a Civil Judge Class II in May 1990. Raised by his maternal uncle and aunt following the early loss of his mother in infancy, he carried strong personal values of hard work and integrity into his long public career. Serving across numerous districts in Madhya Pradesh in roles ranging from Family Court Judge to Princi…
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Why Legal Clearance Does Not Ensure Real Fairness

DEMOCRACY thrives not merely on strict adherence to written rules, but on the deep trust citizens place in public processes. Delivering the inaugural Prof. Jagdeep Singh Chhokar Memorial Lecture organised by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) in New Delhi on 3 September 2026, former Election Commissioner Ashok Lavasa, a retired 1980-batch IAS officer and former Union Finance Secretary who later served at the Asian Development Bank, raised fundamental questions regarding the ongoing Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls. His assertion that an exercise is not automatically fair simply because it carries judicial backing or go…
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Kuki-Zo Groups Demand Union Territory With Legislature Today

LAMKA — Key tribal bodies and representative organisations of the Kuki-Zo community convened for a joint public meeting organised by the Kuki National Organisation (KNO) and the United People’s Front (UPF) on September 21, 2026 . The gathering was attended by leadership and frontal organisations representing the Kuki-Zo Council, Kuki Inpi Manipur, Vaiphei People’s Council, United Zou Organisation, Kuki Inpi Churachandpur, Mate Tribe Council, Gangte Tribe Union, Any Kuki Tribe, Thadou Inpi, and the Kuki Chief Association, Churachandpur . Following extensive deliberations, the participating bodies unanimously concurred and passed the following res…
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