Purveyors of hate, misogyny and xenophobia have been on a boundless revelry in India, online and offline, with near total impunity and often times with support from politicians and the police. In the midst of such pervasive police apathy, the swift action by the Mumbai police in tracing and arresting three persons linked to the latest incident involving a fake online ‘auction’ of Muslim women gives hope that all is not lost. The Mumbai police action also contrasts with the inaction of the Delhi police, who come under the Union Home Ministry, and the Noida police in Uttar Pradesh, a BJP-ruled State, in a similar case last year. Whether the three arrested were indeed the creators of the app remains a question of investigation and the limited police version at the moment is that they were promoting the platform, at a minimum. The Commissioner of the Mumbai Police has said the probe is continuing and anyone involved in the crime, directly or indirectly, will be arrested and prosecuted. It
- 2hrs
India’s post-COVID economic recovery remains delicately poised at the turn of the new year — the third successive year under the shadow of the pandemic. With the Union Budget for 2022-23 less than four weeks away, the latest set of numbers capturing different aspects of the economy present a mixed picture with persistent pressure points. COVID-19 restrictions are already denting India’s services exporters’ order books, even as merchandise exports have hit a record high in December. Worryingly though, imports grew even faster last month than exports, keeping the merchandise trade deficit at an elevated $22 billion, just a tad less than the record $22.9 billion in November. The eight core sectors had a disappointing November, but GST collections from that month were reasonably healthy at around ₹1.3-lakh crore, albeit a three-month low. GST compensation cess revenues touched a record high in November, but customs duty collections dipped to a five-month low. The Purchasing Managers’
- 2hrs
