Above the Fold: Top stories of the day
1. With Greece on the brink of default and set to hold a referendum on whether to pay back money received in European Union bailouts, markets across the world, including in India, looked weak in the face of a looming Greek exit from the euro.
2. The National Investigation Agency has arrested a top leader of the Nationalist Socialist Council of Nagaland (Khaplang), believed to have been involved in the conspiracy behind the killing of 18 soldiers in Manipur earlier this year.
3. Ajinkya Rahane has been made the captain of the Indian cricket team for its tour to Zimbabwe, with a number of the top players being rested for the upcoming three ODIs and two t20s.
The Big Story: Whither Pride?
It seemed as if all political parties had jumped on the bandwagon to support the repeal of Section 377, which criminalises homosexual sex, after the Supreme Court upheld its constitutionality two years ago. But no one has yet made a move to amend the law in the Parliament itself. Until now, it seems. In the aftermath of the landmark US Supreme Court decision to legalise gay marriage across the land, the Indian government too seems to be suggesting that it might scrap section 377.
"The mood appears to be in favour of it," said law minister Sadananda Gowda, making a classic politician's statement that doesn't actually guarantee much of anything. He went on to qualify his statement: "But it can be done only after widespread consultations and taking all views into account."
The repeal of 377 might in fact be an easy way for the government to earn goodwill at home and abroad, without causing too much consternation among its more conservative supporters. After all, it's not difficult to point to instances of homsexuality and other LGBT culture over India's past and doing away with 377 would only be remove a statute from India's criminal code that made "unnatural sex" a violation.
The Big Scroll: Scroll.in on the day's biggest story
There are a few lessons and learnings for India from the US same-sex marriage ruling. And this is why Indian opponents of same-sex marriage are so horrified at the US verdict.
To get Scroll's Daily Fix, a compendium of all you need to know for the day (and a little more) on your phone, download our Android app.
Politicking & Policying
1. The Army claims that a farmer in Assam who died while in its custody had injured himself while trying to escape, although local activists aren't buying this explanation.
2. The parliamentary committee looking into the Land Acquisition Amendment Bill has had its timeline extended by a week to July 28, giving the government barely a fortnight to try and introduce the Bill in Parliament, if at all.
3. The Congress has alleged that Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje and controversial Indian Premier League founder Lalit Modi have forcibly occupied the Dholpur Palace and planned to turn the publicly owned building into a heritage hotel.
4. The Madhya Pradesh government has rejected charges that more than 24 witnesses and accused in the multi-crore Vyapam scam have died suspiciously, saying most of the deaths were in fact, "natural".
Punditry
1. A leader in the Indian Express calls on the government to ensure its commemoration of the 1965 war doesn't turn into a hollow chest-thumping exercise.
2. When the Supreme Court hears a curative petition filed against its verdict upholding Section 377, it needs to consider the US Supreme Court's approach to gay rights, says Suhrith Parthasarthy in the Hindu.
3. India needs stringent punishment for violators and unambiguous standards to ensure food safety, writes B Sesikeren in Mint.
4. Going out for a drink in Calcutta in the early monsoon is not a task for the faint-hearted, writes Ruchir Joshi in the Telegraph.
Don't Miss
Parul Chandra calls on India to ban the feudal practice of Indian diplomats taking housekeepers abroad.
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1. With Greece on the brink of default and set to hold a referendum on whether to pay back money received in European Union bailouts, markets across the world, including in India, looked weak in the face of a looming Greek exit from the euro.
2. The National Investigation Agency has arrested a top leader of the Nationalist Socialist Council of Nagaland (Khaplang), believed to have been involved in the conspiracy behind the killing of 18 soldiers in Manipur earlier this year.
3. Ajinkya Rahane has been made the captain of the Indian cricket team for its tour to Zimbabwe, with a number of the top players being rested for the upcoming three ODIs and two t20s.
The Big Story: Whither Pride?
It seemed as if all political parties had jumped on the bandwagon to support the repeal of Section 377, which criminalises homosexual sex, after the Supreme Court upheld its constitutionality two years ago. But no one has yet made a move to amend the law in the Parliament itself. Until now, it seems. In the aftermath of the landmark US Supreme Court decision to legalise gay marriage across the land, the Indian government too seems to be suggesting that it might scrap section 377.
"The mood appears to be in favour of it," said law minister Sadananda Gowda, making a classic politician's statement that doesn't actually guarantee much of anything. He went on to qualify his statement: "But it can be done only after widespread consultations and taking all views into account."
The repeal of 377 might in fact be an easy way for the government to earn goodwill at home and abroad, without causing too much consternation among its more conservative supporters. After all, it's not difficult to point to instances of homsexuality and other LGBT culture over India's past and doing away with 377 would only be remove a statute from India's criminal code that made "unnatural sex" a violation.
The Big Scroll: Scroll.in on the day's biggest story
There are a few lessons and learnings for India from the US same-sex marriage ruling. And this is why Indian opponents of same-sex marriage are so horrified at the US verdict.
To get Scroll's Daily Fix, a compendium of all you need to know for the day (and a little more) on your phone, download our Android app.
Politicking & Policying
1. The Army claims that a farmer in Assam who died while in its custody had injured himself while trying to escape, although local activists aren't buying this explanation.
2. The parliamentary committee looking into the Land Acquisition Amendment Bill has had its timeline extended by a week to July 28, giving the government barely a fortnight to try and introduce the Bill in Parliament, if at all.
3. The Congress has alleged that Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje and controversial Indian Premier League founder Lalit Modi have forcibly occupied the Dholpur Palace and planned to turn the publicly owned building into a heritage hotel.
4. The Madhya Pradesh government has rejected charges that more than 24 witnesses and accused in the multi-crore Vyapam scam have died suspiciously, saying most of the deaths were in fact, "natural".
Punditry
1. A leader in the Indian Express calls on the government to ensure its commemoration of the 1965 war doesn't turn into a hollow chest-thumping exercise.
2. When the Supreme Court hears a curative petition filed against its verdict upholding Section 377, it needs to consider the US Supreme Court's approach to gay rights, says Suhrith Parthasarthy in the Hindu.
3. India needs stringent punishment for violators and unambiguous standards to ensure food safety, writes B Sesikeren in Mint.
4. Going out for a drink in Calcutta in the early monsoon is not a task for the faint-hearted, writes Ruchir Joshi in the Telegraph.
Don't Miss
Parul Chandra calls on India to ban the feudal practice of Indian diplomats taking housekeepers abroad.
It’s a perk considered essential for Indian diplomats to perform their duties abroad more effectively and efficiently. But the practice of allowing officers of the elite Indian Foreign Service to take along domestic workers on their postings overseas has been repeatedly landing them in unseemly trouble, while also sullying India’s reputation around the world.