Firstpost Editor's Picks: Citizenship Amendment Bill, Nirmala Sitharaman on auto sales, Section 375 movie review; today's must-read stories

When we consider factors that influence buying of a car — a financial commitment stretching over several years since most vehicles for personal use are purchased through the finance-scheme route — the slowdown in economy has definitely played a part. But we must be equally aware of extraneous factors that motivate the decision to buy a car.

Many leaders of tribes and ethnic groups in North East India fear that Article 371 of the Indian Constitution would not be able to protect the tribal culture from massive immigration from Bangladesh if the Citizenship Amendment Bill is enacted. They say that not only Article 371 but also other legal and constitutional provisions to protect local tribal culture too may fall apart if the bill is passed in Parliament.

The IIP data showed a significant slowdown in the manufacturing sector, which grew at 4.2 percent in July 2019 as compared to 7 percent a year ago. Capital goods segment, which is a barometer of investment, saw a contraction of 7.1 percent in July compared to 2.3 percent rise a year ago. Mining growth was 4.9 percent in July as compared to 3.4 percent in the same month last fiscal.

The toast of India’s success in the Track Asia Cup, which took place at the Yamuna Velodrome at the Indira Gandhi Sports Complex in New Delhi, was Ronaldo Laitonjam, who accounted for four of the 10 gold medals won by the Indian riders. What also made headlines was the Manipuri rider breaking the Asian record in the men’s junior 200m time trial event. Ronaldo clocked 10.065 seconds in the qualifying round, beating the record previously held by China’s Liu Qi (10.149 seconds).

Manish Gupta’s screenplay takes flight with the courtroom drama. The verbal jousting between the opposing lawyers, tackling a high profile case that is built on a reformed investigative process and interpretation of new laws, is balanced by the two-judge bench (played astutely by Kishore Kadam and Krutika Desai) that sharply brings the lawyers back on track. Chadha and Khanna play off each other very well as off-court friends and in-court rivals in Section 375. The latter’s arrogance and confidence is offset by the former’s inexperience and idealism.