Jaishankar to step up diplomatic push on visit to France, Belgium

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar left on Sunday for a week-long visit to France and Belgium, where he will meet with his counterparts in both the governments and in the European Commission and European Parliament headquartered in Brussels.

Meeting interlocutors

The seven Indian delegations of mostly Members of Parliament and some former diplomats, tasked by the government to carry diplomatic messages after Operation Sindoor, have completed their travels. The 59 members visited 32 countries to convey the country's position on the outrage felt over the Pahalgam terror attack and its links to Pakistan, the restrained and precise nature of Indian strikes on Pakistan's terrorist infrastructure, and the "new normal" the government has adopted for terrorist strikes. The message was meant not just for foreign governments but also for lawmakers, the foreign media and the general public, especially in countries where New Delhi has felt it has not found the expected support. Many of the countries visited are members of the UN Security Council (UNSC), and include those which are elected non-permanent members or will join next year. This is important as India faced a diplomatic setback when Pakistan, an elected UNSC member for 2025-26, was able to amend the UNSC statement to omit references to The Resistance Front (TRF) that had claimed responsibility for the Pahalgam attack. That Pakistan managed to be chosen Chair of the Taliban Sanctions committee and Vice-Chair of the UN Counter-terrorism Committee will make India's task of holding the terrorists responsible for the attack accountable through UN designations and at the Financial Action Task Force more difficult. Another area of focus was the membership of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation that has been particularly critical of India. Finally, the focus on the U.S. was pointed, where the delegation visited New York and Washington. This may have stemmed from the appearance that ties with Washington are strained over President Donald Trump's persistent claim that he had mediated the ceasefire between India and Pakistan, using trade ties as a leverage to avert a "nuclear conflict".

Judicial sensitivity to sentiments is a sign of regression

Indian courts today are not defending free speech. They are managing it. And in this curious inversion of constitutional values, we are witnessing a quiet retreat from the principle that animated Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution: that speech, even provocative, offensive, or unsettling, is the citizen's shield against tyranny - not its tool.

Once envisioned as the counter-majoritarian bulwark of our democracy, the judiciary now increasingly resembles an arbiter of decorum, demanding apologies and deference in the name of civility, sensitivity, or national pride. But when courts focus on what was said rather than why the right to say it must be protected, the Republic is left vulnerable to a new tyranny: that of sentiment, outrage, and the lowest tolerance denominator.

Let us begin with a chillingly ordinary example: a social media post by a 24-year-old man criticising Prime Minister Narendra Modi. after the ceasefire with Pakistan following Operation Sindoor in May 2025. Was this tasteless? Perhaps. But taste is not a constitutional metric. The Allahabad High Court thought otherwise. In rejecting the plea to quash the first information report (FIR), the Bench declared that "emotions cannot be permitted to overflow to an extent that constitutional authorities of the country are dragged into disrepute". That is a remarkable formulation. It subtly inverts the constitutional design: the citizen is no longer the source of power holding the state to account, but a child to be reprimanded for speaking too freely.

Lawful measures

Ethnic conflicts, unlike other variants of strife, are more difficult to end because of the nature and the level of grievances of the communities hostile to each other. This persecution complex is fed by those who drive passions to such an extent that taking a position on reconciliation through mutual compromises and peace-building becomes difficult even if a silent majority are in favour of it. Using threats by bran-dishing arms, chauvinist sections try to drown out voices of reason by drilling in fear and ideas of further vengeance. That seems to be the case with Manipur too, where, after months of dilly-dallying over taking on the patrons of violence, the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Union government has finally decided to isolate such elements and subject them to the long arm of the law. That the Imphal valley has again erupted in protest over the arrest of leaders of the extremist identitarian outfit, Arambai Tenggol, highlights the necessity and the difficulty of implementing law enforcement measures in an ethnic conflict. This group had engaged in acts of wanton lawlessness with impunity, targeting those who did not agree with its militant agenda with violence and threats. It had also coerced MLAs into signing pledges for its chauvinist cause. Shockingly, the then BJP-led State government looked the other way - a consequence of Chief Minister N. Biren Singh's inability to rise above his partisanship. The security forces were also unable to act because of public protection for the violent offenders. Soon, such groups went to become a major threat to peace and it was only after implementing President's Rule that the government managed to get the group, among others, to return most of the weapons

looted from police constabularies.

Consultative regulation-making that should go further

In May this year, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued a policy framework for how it will publish regulations, directions, guidelines and notifications. This follows a similar move by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), in February, which published regulations setting out the procedure it would follow to issue regulations.

Decoding the Kamal-Kannada episode

Actor Kamal Haasan's remark that "Kannada was born from Tamil" has sparked several debates. But this is not a new idea; it has existed within the Tamil discourse for two centuries. Robert Caldwell and other linguists have said Dravidian languages branched off from a shared language, termed Proto-Dravidian. However, Tamil nationalists have never accepted this view. They have claimed that all Dravidian languages are offshoots of Tamil. At its peak, this belief extended to proclaiming that Tamil is the world's first language and that all other world languages were born from it.

Defence production in India receives a fillip

In the weeks following Operation Sindoor, there have been discussions on the efficacy of India's home-grown defence сараbilities, and confidence in them. As India's defence production and exports have hit record highs in the past financial year, contributions from private defence companies and MSMEs have increased.

What is the significance of the Census?

The Union Home Ministry has announced the next Census will be conducted in two phases and that the reference date for Census enumeration would be March 1, 2027.

How is India planning to localise EV manufacturing?

More than a year since it was announced, the Ministry of Heavy Industries (MHI) notified guidelines of the Scheme to Promote Manufacturing of Electric Passenger Cars in India.

What does Google plan to do about the 'online search' antitrust decision?

On May 31, Google said it will appeal an antitrust decision aimed at making competition in the online search market fair. Google's reaction to the decision comes a day after U.S. Judge Amit Mehta heard closing arguments in a trial that sought to curtail the tech giant's illegal Department of Justice (DOJ) proposed stringent remedies to bring about fair competition, Google is opposed to these measures and proposed its own tentative remedies. After considering the proposed remedies from both sides, Judge Mehta is expected to deliver his decision. These court remedies could potentially unravel Google's position as a dominant player in the online search business.

India will prioritise protecting farmers' interests during trade talks with U.S., says Union Minister

India will prioritise protecting interests of its farmers while assessing potential gains and losses in the ongoing trade negotiations with the U.S. over agricultural market access, Union Agriculture Minister Shiv-raj Singh Chouhan says.

India and Mongolia hold joint military exercise to enhance interoperability

Military contingents of India and Mongolia participating in an ongoing bilateral exercise in Ulaanbaatar are actively exchanging best practices in counter-terrorism operations and precision sniping, thereby improving interoperability, officials said on Sunday.

Bridging health cover, mental healthcare in India

Mental health is finally getting the attention it has long deserved. The post-pandemic world has not only shifted how people think about wellbeing, but sparked a deeper sense of urgency around mental health, and how to plan for it.

Globally, mental health conditions affect about one in five adults, with the World Health Organization estimating an annual productivity loss of over $1 trillion due to untreated mental health issues. In India, the conversation is gaining momentum and it's being reflected in both policy and consumer behaviour.