News and Views

We usually hear about Baramulla when the stories of encounters between militants and the army occupy the national news headlines. In the light of the upcoming elections, The Quint decided to reach this side of the valley to ask its youth what impacts them as a Kashmiri voter and what are their issues? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Assam votes in the first phase of Lok Sabha Elections 2019 on 11 April. Two more phases will follow on 18 and 28 April. So, what are the big election issues in Assam? To find out, The Quint reached Assam. Through our My Vote Chaupal, we have been giving a voice to the Indian voter. Because we truly believe that elections are not about the politicians but about the voters who choose them by making...

On Wednesday, 27 March morning, Prime Minister Narendra Modi created a buzz in newsrooms across the country when he put out a tweet saying he would be addressing the nation later with an “important message”. The tweet predictably brought back memories of his last address in 2016, when he had announced the demonetisation of high-value currency notes. There was all-around anticipation about a simila...

Rahul Gandhi has pulled off an ‘Indira Gandhi’. His grandmother nationalised banks, abolished the privy purse and fought the 1971 elections on the Garibi Hatao platform. Rahul is fighting 2019 on the idea of a Minimum Income Guarantee aka NYAY. He has promised five crore poor families a minimum income of Rs 12,000 per month. That will work out to an average ‘top-up’ of Rs 6,000 per month or Rs 72,...

Manohar Parrikar, who passed away on Sunday evening after a valiant battle against cancer for a year, was unlike many of his colleagues in Bharatiya Janata Party. He was not the archetypal Sanghi who spouted Hindu nationalism by the hour or wore saffron on his sleeve, yet Parrikar’s devotion to the ideals and agenda of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) was second to none. For more podcasts fro...

What is the Model Code of Conduct? and how can it be an empowering tool in the hands of voters? In this episode of Sadda Haq, we’ll explain how you can ensure that candidates play by the book, based on a series of guidelines set by the Election Commission. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a plea filed by a former DGP of Uttar Pradesh seeking an order to the Election Commission of India to ban roadshows and bike rallies during polls. Singh, a former Director General of Police of Uttar Pradesh, said in his petition that roadshows and bike rallies violate EC's instructions and cause damage to the environment. The bench said that they wouldn’t ente...

Sharad Yadav will contest on a RJD symbol in Bihar, the RJD confirmed. On the question of seat sharing, RJD leader Manoj Jha said that the RJD would contest on 20 seats, Congress on 9, HAM on 3, RLSP on 5, VIP on 3, and CPI-1 in the RJD quota. Bahujan Samaj Party released its list of 11 candidates for the Lok Sabha Elections on 22 March. The Shiv Sena also released its first list of 21 candidates...

Kesari plays out as a cinematic tribute to the valour and sacrifice of 21 men who preferred to die on the battlefield showing exemplary courage in the face of overwhelming odds. We are first introduced to Havaldar Ishar Singh (Akshay Kumar), an upright soldier in the British Indian Army who routinely gets into trouble with his seniors for his headstrong opinion on justice and service. Upset with h...

As a part of his 'Man Bhi Chowkidar' campaign, PM Narendra Modi addressed over 25 lakhs chowkidar across the country through a conference. He told them, “Chowkidars have been called chor, that is unfortunate...We have to be vigilant and do our duties.” Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra hopped on the last boat on the last lap of her three-day election boat-rally. She got back at Modi for his ji...

“The 'mahagathbandhan' is a baseless, senseless, and visionless alliance,” said Vishlesh Godhani, an engineering student from Nagpur. Many others echoed Godhani’s thoughts as The Quint’s chaupal reached Nagpur to speak to the citizens ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What are the problems faced by farmers? Do they get a fair price for crops? Who will they vote for in the Lok Sabha elections of 2019? Bearing these questions in mind, The Quint spoke to farmers in Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, in order to get a sense of the pulse among the country’s agrarian warriors. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Once buzzing with the sound of spinning yarns, the power looms in Maharashtra’s Bhiwandi have now fallen mostly silent. First, dealing with demonetisation that forced an entire sector that had been heavily cash driven to go digital overnight and then came GST that struck a double whammy. Bhiwandi’s power loom sector no longer yields the robust business it did till about five years ago. Learn more...

In 2014, Gujarat unanimously voted for their Chief Minister Narendra Modi during the General Elections helping the saffron party clinch all 26 Lok Sabha seats in the state. However, in 2019, although Modi is the Prime Minister of the country, Gujaratis are visibly miffed especially in South Gujarat. South Gujarat is not only a fertile strip of land with a bi-annual yield, it’s also one of the most...

‘Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan’ was a slogan given by Lal Bahadur Shastri in 1965. Almost 55 years after that slogan and 70 years after Independence, the farmers of Maharashtra’s Vidarbha are still taking their own lives. Year after year after year, successive governments have failed to address the farmer crisis. The Quint spoke to farmers from the Akola district of the Vidarbha region, where the farmers g...

Why do Dalit women have to be a part of the 2019 elections for a better tomorrow? Why are they important? What do they want? On 18 February, over 60 Dalit women gathered in Chennai, to discuss ‘Dalit Women in Politics: Past, Present and Future,’ organised by The Blue Club and All India Dalit Mahila Adhikar Manch. The Quint, in its Chaupal series, spoke to a few of the prominent Dalit activists and...

What do the farmers in Mandsaur want? Farm loan waivers? A basic annual income? Or that they be paid the right minimum support price (MSP) for their produce? The Quint’s ‘Chaupal’ reached Mandsaur to find out the answers to these questions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Khushwant Singh donned many a cap over the course of his life. After beginning his career as a lawyer in Lahore, Singh would go on to become a journalist, a diplomat, and even a politician. While his death came at the ripe old age of 98, Singh’s acidic wit, caustic humour and skillful way with words left an impact on people that will stay beyond his time. This is a previously unpublished interview...

Chinmayi, the woman who fronted the MeToo movement in Kollywood and the rest of South India speaks exclusively to The Quint, on what issues the Pollachi sexual assault case underlines in our society; and her concerns about shaming and slandering the victims, while the perps are given a clean chit. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Congress leader Tom Vadakkan joined the Bharatiya Janata Party on 14 March, in the presence of Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad. Vadakkan was always believed to be a close aide of Sonia Gandhi. In fact, Vadakkan was once the national spokesperson of Congress and even a former secretary of the AICC. In Uttar Pradesh, SP-BSP will have joint election rallies during the ensuing Lok Sabha polls, said...

Priyanka Gandhi kept us on the hook for a while and chose to stay in the shadow even after formally joining the Congress. In fact, she delivered her first speech as an official member of the party only yesterday but it is not clear if she'll be contesting in this year's General Election at all. This update came from NDTV who quoting sources said that "Priyanka would play an active role and helping...

With the obvious exception of the ruling BJP at the Centre, most of the regional and national political parties in Jammu and Kashmir are critical of the Election Commission of India’s decision to not hold the Assembly elections concurrently with the general Lok Sabha elections. After withdrawal of support from Mehbooba Mufti-led PDP-BJP coalition in June 2018, the Assembly was placed under suspend...

Too many news updates since we’ve officially stepped into the election season! Tune in to the My Vote 2019 podcast - your one stop for the daily election-related developments. Such a long wait for Priyanka Gandhi's first speech after she joined Congress and finally it's been delivered in Ahmedabad, in PM Modi's home state Gujarat.  She was there to attend the Congress working committee which took...

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The Antarctic Treaty, first signed in 1959, now has 53 signatories who have agreed to suspend territorial claims and disputes, to forgo all military and mining activity, to protect the Antarctic environment and to preserve the continent as “a natural reserve, devoted to peace and to science”. Soon after it was signed, under the pretext of conducting scientific research, nations began to eclipse ea...