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Journalism of Courage
Good morning,
US President Donald Trump’s return to power came with an unlikely headline-maker: Elon Musk as the head of the newly minted Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). He was expected to sprinkle some of his tech-billionaire magic on the federal budget and reduce government spending. Did he? Critics argue that there are few measurable savings. What his team did do was ruffle quite a lot of feathers, with employee layoffs and budget cuts for critical departments. Critics also raised security concerns about allowing a private individual access to government files. Well, it turns out that DOGE, which had eight months left in its mandate, now “doesn’t exist.” The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has subsumed most of DOGE’s functions, Reuters has reported.
On that note, let’s get to the rest of the edition👇
Justice Surya Kant is set to take oath as the 53rd Chief Justice of India today. He will succeed Justice Bhushan R Gavai, who stepped down from his role on Sunday. Justice Gavai was the first Buddhist and only the second Dalit to hold the highest judicial office.
His legacy: Justice Gavai has sat on the Bench for landmark rulings such as upholding the abrogation of Article 370 and striking down the electoral bonds scheme. Just days before his retirement, a Bench led by Justice Gavai gave its opinion on the President’s reference regarding the timeline for the Governor’s assent to Bills, settling a politically sensitive matter. In his parting statement to reporters, Justice Gavai backed his Bench’s pronouncement. Read Vineet Bhalla’s report looking back on Justice Gavai’s stint as CJI.
The road ahead: Key cases await Justice Kant. For instance, on November 26, the new CJI will hear the matter of the Kerala government asking the government to postpone the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in the state. The court will also decide if a plea challenging the constitutional validity of Talaq-e-Hasan, a form of divorce practised within a section of the Muslim community, will require a five-judge Constitutional Bench.
Also read: In an “open letter” to the new CJI, C Raj Kumar, founding vice-chancellor of O P Jindal Global University, outlines a “five-point action plan for His Lordship”, including filling up vacant judges’ posts, solving pendency of cases, and protecting the independence of the judiciary.
K Durga Prasad, the former Director General of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), played a key role in shaping Andhra Pradesh’s elite anti-Maoist force, the Greyhounds. He spent a significant portion of his career at the forefront of India’s fight against Left-wing extremism. He joined us for the latest Idea Exchange session to discuss the future of Maoism in the aftermath of the killing of Madvi Hidma, one of the last remaining top commanders of the movement. Prasad says the job is far from over: “Even if you have removed the thorn it doesn’t mean that the field is ready for the seeds to be planted… The rest of the cultivation still has to happen. Which means the government and its agencies should move in.” Read.
U-turn: On Saturday, a Bill proposing to bring Chandigarh under Article 240 — empowering the President to directly legislate for the Union Territory — appeared on the tentative Lok Sabha agenda for the winter session. The listing sparked a political uproar, after which the government clarified that the proposal is “still under consideration” and won’t be introduced in the upcoming session. The Indian Express has learnt that even the Punjab BJP flagged concerns, with state unit chief Sunil Jakhar raising the issue directly with Union Home Minister Amit Shah late Saturday.
Succession: Tensions inside the Tata Trusts have been under the spotlight since Ratan Tata’s passing, with whispers of a failed “coup” by a group of trustees after a September 11 meeting blocked Vijay Singh’s nomination to the Tata Sons board. A senior Tata Group director, speaking to The Indian Express on the condition of anonymity, offered rare insight into the turmoil inside the Trusts.
At your workplace: The government’s four labour codes — Code on Wages, Code on Social Security, Industrial Relations Code, and Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions (OSH) Code — took effect on November 21. These codes promise business efficiency and aim to provide social security to workers. We explain what changes for employees and employers.
Fine print: Drugs like Wegovy, Ozempic and Mounjaro, marketed as weight-loss solutions, are exploding in popularity in India, boosted by social-media hype and rumoured celebrity endorsements. Behind the glamour, however, is a lack of real understanding about what these drugs actually do. Dr Anoop Misra, Chairman of Fortis C-DOC Hospital for Diabetes and Allied Sciences, busts the myths, lays out the side effects, and warns against misuse.
Riding high: Over the past two-and-a-half months, the Nifty midcap indices have delivered healthy returns, driving sustained inflows from retail investors. Midcap indices refer to the companies ranked 101-250 in SEBI’s market capitalisation-based categorisation. What explains the rally, and why does this warrant caution? We explain.
It’s time for the curtains to come down on the iconic 117-year-old Crime Branch building inside the Mumbai Police Headquarters premises. Manish Kumar Pathak writes of the building’s significance, given that it witnessed key episodes of India’s history, from Bal Gangadhar Tilak’s arrest by the then British government to the interrogations of Pakistani terrorist Ajmal Kasab, underworld dons Chhota Rajan, and Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt.
🎧 Before you go, tune in to the latest ‘3 things’ podcast episode. Today’s lineup: On the Governor’s powers, a student suicide case in Delhi, and the peculiar new crime wave in Maharashtra: pomegranate theft.
That’s all for today, folks! Until tomorrow!
Sonal Gupta
