Southern drawl in the courtroom

A federal court in Alabama delivered an unexpected rebuff to Republican mapmakers on Tuesday, blocking a congressional redistricting plan that would have pared back Black electoral influence in a state long defined by its racial and partisan divides. The unanimous…

India’s Sacred Cows and Shifting Sensitivities

As Eid-ul-Azha approaches, a festival centred on sacrifice and submission to God, Muslim leaders in several Indian states have issued an unusual plea: forgo the cow. The All India Pasmanda Ulema Board has advised the community to choose other permissible…

Modi’s call for sacrifice

With crude oil prices elevated above $105 a barrel amid disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, Narendra Modi has asked his 1.4bn fellow citizens to consume less. In a speech on May 10th, the prime minister urged Indians to revive…

India’s parliamentary revolution

In the world’s largest democracy, where women make up half the electorate but have long been sidelined in the halls of power, a quiet constitutional revolution is under way. Next week, from April 16th to 18th, India’s parliament will hold…