Frontline on the Indian Society - Frontline

In Koilwar town in Bihar, Hindus and Muslims have managed to live in harmony for nearly eight decades due to a truce established during Partition.

An oral pact from Partition era preserves harmony in this small Bihar town

Agreement made 75 years ago guarantees Muslims safety in exchange for refraining from cow slaughter, creating a model of peaceful coexistence.

The Union government concedes that marriage does not negate a woman’s consent and argues that violations of consent within marriage have different consequences than those outside marriage.

Supreme Court deliberations on marital rape exception could redefine consent within marriage

The Centre argues for maintaining ‘Marital Rape Exception’, but those seeking its repeal say it violates women’s rights, bodily autonomy, and dignity.

‘Genocide’ or ‘crimes against humanity’? How language shapes our view of conflict

From Orwell to modern geopolitics, terminology impacts perception. The Gaza crisis has revived the debate on language’s role in framing war.

Alice Brauer: The nightingale of Ambur

Brauer, who passed away a few days ago, spent half a century dedicated to healthcare for those trapped in poverty in villages around Ambur.

Ilangovan Rajasekaran

In 1933, Mahatma Gandhi renamed his newspaper Young India as Harijan, and asked for a message for the inaugural issue from Ambedkar.

Why Ambedkar rejected Gandhi’s idea of Dalit emancipation

He rebuffed Gandhi’s Harijan Sevak Sangh, viewing it as a paternalistic tool that reinforced caste Hindu dominance rather than empowering Dalits.

Anand Teltumbde

‘The Dystopian Times’ by Appupen

Matters of the heart: A reverie on the banks of the Jhelum

A cogitation on the meaning of love while standing under an ageing chinar in militarised Kashmir.

More stories from Society

A woman shows her inked finger after casting her vote at a polling booth during the third and final phase of the Assembly election, at Tangmarg in Baramulla district, Jammu and Kashmir, on October 1.

Jammu and Kashmir: The battle that lies beyond elections

This vote serves as a litmus test for the Centre’s commitment to restoring dignity and agency to a region long denied democratic self-determination.

Bilal Ahmad Wagay,Binish Qadri

Tamil women grieve during a ceremony commemorating those who died in the civil war at Mullivaikkal village in northern Sri Lanka on May 18, 2024.

Into the heart of Sri Lanka’s civil war

Through one Tamil family’s entanglement with the LTTE movement, V.V. Ganeshananthan’s award-winning novel traces the human cost of conflict.

The three sultans who made up the Lodi dynasty figure through much of the book, as do the structures that have immortalised them in what is now known as the Lodi Gardens in New Delhi.

Vivid portrayal of life in Mughal-era Delhi

The writer uses her deep knowledge of Dilli’s multiple pasts to best effect in this second novel in a projected quartet centred on the city.

Ranjana Sengupta

Fishermen repairing their nets at Versova in north-western Mumbai. Much of Versova, which used to be a fishing village, is now an upmarket neighbourhood.

Environmental degradation and urbanisation are pushing a 700-year-old fishing community to abandon their boats and nets

How Mumbai’s Koli fishermen swim against the tide to preserve their heritage.

Priyamvada Mangal

Jannayak Janta Party leader Dushyant Chautala with Aazad Samaj Party leader and MP Chandrashekhar Azad Ravan at a rally on September 19 in Haryana.

Haryana: Caste as the swing factor

Two new alliances are wooing the 20 per cent Dalit population, but it is the jawan, pehelwan, kisan resentment that might be the real deal-breaker.

T.K. Rajalakshmi

Yashica Dutt burst onto the scene in 2016, claiming to have “come out” as a Dalit in the wake of Rohith Vemula’s tragic suicide.

The invisible ink of Dalit literature

English-language works by Dalit authors have garnered acclaim, but systemic barriers continue to obscure their voices in India’s literary landscape.

A fisherwoman ventures into black waters of the sea in Ganjam, Odisha, to catch prawn.

A sea of memories: How sixteen fisherwomen capture their drowning world

As tides devour villages, 16 women with cameras fight to save their vanishing heritage. An exhibition in Chennai showcases their startling images.

Mridula Vijayarangakumar

A few weeks back, more than 46,000 graduates and postgraduates applied for the jobs of contractual sweepers with a State-owned corporation in Haryana. Photo for representation.

Raging unemployment crisis spells trouble for BJP in Haryana and Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections

Both regions face soaring joblessness, hitting educated youth the hardest. Winning back voters’ trust will not be an easy task for the BJP.

Mitali Mukherjee

The Dystopian Times by Appupen is about the controversy surrounding the alleged adulteration of the sacred Tirumala Laddu prasadam.

‘The Dystopian Times’ by Appupen

A bulldozer being used in Prayagraj in June 2022 to demolish the “illegally constructed” residence of Javed Ahmed, a local leader who was allegedly the key conspirator of violent protests against a BJP leaders’ remarks on Prophet Muhammad.

‘Bulldozer justice’: Iron in the nation’s soul

Supreme Court’s intervention against unlawful demolitions renews hope for constitutional values, challenging state overreach and arbitrary punishment.

Delhi Chief Minister Atishi takes charge at the Delhi Secretariat, in New Delhi on September 23. By her words, Atishi has managed to suffuse the empty chair with meanings: it is no ordinary chair of an absent Chief Minister, but a chair-in-waiting that will remind the people of its occupier.

Atishi and the empty chair of sovereignty

Mythical symbolism meets modern politics as Delhi’s new Chief Minister invokes the Ramayana to address Arvind Kejriwal’s absence.

Manash Firaq Bhattacharjee

Arvind Kejriwal at a roadshow in support of the party’s candidate Kuldeep Gadran ahead of the Haryana Assembly election, in Sirsa on September 23.

Is Kejriwal’s exit as Delhi Chief Minister a masterstroke or blunder?

The AAP’s future hangs in the balance as its founder bets on pragmatism over power.

Ashutosh Sharma

Sign in to Unlock member-only benefits!

Bookmark stories to read later.
Comment on stories to start conversations.
Subscribe to our newsletters.
Get notified about discounts and offers to our products.