Amidst the pandemonium arisen due to the notoriety of the COVID–19 virus, we cannot afford to be lost on the significance of how there continue to be deep-rooted pernicious influences that plague the lesser privileged strata of Indian and Nepalese societies. “Witch hunting” is one of such numerous influences and has persisted through the centuries, [...]

Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro announced on Friday that natural gas company Range Resources pleaded no contest to criminal charges for negligent oversight of the Brownlee and Yeager well sites in Washington County, Pennsylvania. For two years, Shapiro led investigations to uncover potential environmental crimes in the fracking industry. The Forty-Third Statewide Investigating Grand Jury [...]

Systems of government procurement are instrumental in mitigating the effects of the public health crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. First of all, well-organized cooperation between the government and the private sector can help address the most urgent problems, such as shortages of personal protective equipment and ventilators. Second, contracting out research and development projects [...]

The Prime Minister (PM) is the Chairman ex-officio of both the Prime Minister National Relief Fund (PMNRF) and the PM-CARES Fund, constituted to deal with disaster situations, like COVID-19 (which is also a “notified disaster”). Notably, the Disaster Management Act, 2005 (‘2005 Act,’ for short), pregnant with the statutory Fund, having all the trappings of [...]

According to a draft resolution revealed Tuesday, African countries are urging the UN Human Rights Council to investigate systemic racism and police violence in the US. Diplomats received the resolution ahead of a debate at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva that will be held on Wednesday regarding this topic. The debate is a [...]

The US Supreme court declined on Monday to hear 10 cases seeking to overturn restrictions on gun ownership, disappointing some conservative critics. The 10 cases, spanning six circuits, five states and the District of Columbia, all sought to expand gun owners’ rights under the Second Amendment. The denial may signal a reluctance by the conservative [...]

The US Supreme Court granted certiorari in two cases on Monday: Albence v. Chavez and Henry Schein v. Archer & White Sales. These cases are scheduled to be heard during the next term. The Albence v. Chavez case centers on the question of whether a non-citizen who is both set to be removed from the country and [...]

The Burundi constitutional court ruled Monday that president-elect Evariste Ndayishimiye should be sworn in “as soon as possible,” following the death of President Pierre Nkurunziza on June 8. Ndayishimiye was originally scheduled to be sworn in on August 20. However, because of Nkurunziza’s unexpected death, the court had to choose between an interim president or [...]

A Manila court convicted Philippines journalist, Maria Ressa, Monday on charges of cyber libel following her publication of an eight–year–old story tying businessman Wilfredo Keng to illicit drug and human trafficking activity. The court sentenced Ressa to a “minimum of six months and one day,” and a “maximum of six years” in prison, imposing fines [...]

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Monday revoked the Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) that allowed for chloroquine phosphate (CQ) and hydroxychloroquine sulfate (HCQ) to be used to treat certain hospitalized patients with COVID-19. Under § 564 of the federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, the authorization of a product for emergency use may [...]