Left, Right & Centre

An important verdict by the Punjab and Haryana High Court has come on whether married people facing threats for entering in a live-in outside of marriage be given protection. The ramifications of this verdict are significant. In this edition of Left, Right and Centre, we look at what does this do to the institution of marriage.

The hearing in the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital case in Supreme Court of India saw several questions come up again regarding the documentation of handling the dead body and evidence in the case. Questions about procedure and evidence tampering have been alleged in this case leading the court to seeking clarifications on the handling of the body and evidence in the case. The court also ordered doctors to return to work by Tuesday. The Supreme Court has now asked the CBI to file a fresh report in the case next Tuesday. Meanwhile, The BJP has demanded the resignation of the Kolkata police commissioner as well as the Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee. The BJP alleged that the Police Commissioner Vineet Goyal had taken a bribe and also demanded a polygraph test be conducted on Mamata Banerjee. The CM hit back saying that the allegations of bribery against Goyal were slanderous and that he had already offered his resignation, which she had declined.

The Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, HH Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi today. His visit focused on expanding the energy ties between India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and boosting the strategic equation between the two countries. The visit saw the signing of 5 key MoUs on topics such as nuclear power and gas supply.

In a public address in Dallas, Rahul Gandhi, leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha and Congress MP, hit out at the BJP and the RSS. He said that the RSS wanted to keep women in the kitchen. He also said that unlike India, China had no unemployment problem. The BJP hit back by saying that Rahul Gandhi is insulting India and batting for China. According to the BJP, Rahul Gandhi always defames India whenever he goes abroad due to his frustrations with the Congress' performance in recent elections.

The Defence Minister while reiterating the government's 'no terror for talks' stand, in a rare statement, he hinted at a conditional dialogue with Pakistan.

'Beta Padhao, Beti Bachao' - The Bombay High Court has given a twist to the government slogan in its call to stop crime against women. During a hearing in the Badlapur case where two girls, aged three and four, were sexually assaulted, the court said it was time to focus on better education and bringing up of boys to bring down crime against women. In this edition of Left, Right and Centre, we discuss how to make boys better men, who are sensitive to the other gender, see women as equals and are not a product of the all-pervasive patriarchy?

The Himachal assembly has passed a bill that says MLAs who defect and disqualified will not be entitled to any pension. While the Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu-led Congress government says the move is to discourage defections, the BJP has slammed the decision, calling it rushed and ill-thought. In this edition of Left, Right and Centre, we ask whether Mr Sukhu is doing a surgical strike on 6 Congress MLAs who recently defected to the BJP? Is this a reform or an attempt to muzzle dissenting voices? Watch former Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jairam Thakur and Himachal minister Vikramaditya Singh's exclusive interview to discuss the development.

Netflix India has updated the opening disclaimer on its 'IC 814: Kandahar Hijack" web series to include hijackers' real and code names. This came after the Netflix top management in India met with Information and Broadcasting officials and asserted that the OTT giant is "committed to showcasing stories with authentic representation.'' On the show tonight, we ask, 'Is Freedom of speech and expression being taken for granted? Are the content creators forgetting or overlooking the constitutional duty towards public order, decency, and morality? Watch Left, Right and Centre on NDTV.

On Left, Right and Centre we discuss the ongoing MUDA battle between the Congress and the BJP in Karnataka. The latest flashpoint comes over the suspension of the former MUDA commissioner who is accused of favouring the Chief Minister's family in land allotment. The BJP has called the suspension just an eyewash, while the Congress insists that it's routine. We ask, 'Is the Congress trying to make the commissioner a scapegoat?'

Two fresh developments today show how testing times for creative freedom are not over. In the midst of a massive row surrounding Netflix web series 'IC 814: The Kandahar Hijack', sources in the government have told NDTV that it is taking the matter very seriously and added that "nobody has the right to play with the sentiments of people of this country." In fact, Netflix India's content chief Monika Shergill has also been summoned by the Centre. Hundreds of social media users have accused creators of the web series of deliberately changing names of the hijackers to "Bhola" and "Shankar" and also of being sympathetic to terrorists. Meanwhile, actor and MP Kangana Ranaut faced a major setback after her much talked about film Emergency was postponed after not being able to secure a clearance from the Censor Board Of Film Certification (CBFC). The film was supposed to release on September 6. Many Sikh groups have raised questions about the content of the movie.   So, Is politics driving creativity in the country? Will such moves lead to self censorship among movie makers who might want to stay away from making films on stories that are important to be told? Can cinema have the right to offend, should there be checks, and why?