Left, Right & Centre

The battle between the top CBI bosses has taken an unprecedented turn with FIR filed against CBI's No 2 officer Rakesh Asthana and member of his team Devender Kumar being arrested for forging statement against CBI chief Alok Verma. The unprecedented turf war at the premier agency has become so bad that PM Narendra Modi has had to intervene and summon the warring officers. Tonight on Reality Check, we look at the implications of CBI vs CBI.

An all out political slugfest is on, days after 61 people were crushed by a speeding train in Amritsar on Dussehra. The Akali Dal has accused the Congress government led by Captain Amarinder Singh of a massive cover-up. After the FIR is filed against unknown people, the organiser of the event Saurabh Mittoo Madan, the son of the local Congress Councillor, is seen going somewhere in an SUV. He and his family have been missing since then. The spotlight is also on Punjab Minister Navjot Sidhu and his wife Navjot Kaur. Navjot Kaur was at the Dussehra event, and she says she left before the train accident but CCTV footage clearly indicates otherwise. A probe headed by a magistrate is set up by the Chief Minister. Tonight on Left Right and Centre we ask, could it bring closure for victims' families or is it just an eyewash?

On Left Right and Centre today, we discuss the Amritsar train accident in which 61 people were killed. We'll look at some of the new information that has now come up. We will also examine an alleged video in which an organizer of the event bragged to the chief guest, Congress leader and former lawmaker Navjot Kaur Sidhu, that the crowd there was so enthusiastic to see her that they would stand on the nearby railway tracks and not budge even if hundreds of trains pass by. Also on the show, we are joined by a former railway board member to throw some light on the government's claim that the railways was not fault.

From Sabarimala to the Ram Mandir, the temple makes it front and centre to the political discourse. As the RSS Chief first bats for a consensus on allowing women into Sabarimala, and then says the government should bring in a law if needed to build a Ram Temple, is this going to be the BJP's main poll plank in 2019?

On Left, Right and Centre, MJ Akbar's defamation case against journalist Priya Ramani. Today was Day One, where the court rejected Akbar's attempt to take his written statement and ordered him to appear in person instead. As the Editors' Guild urges Mr Akbar to take back his lawsuit, is criminal defamation nothing but a tool of intimidation and harassment?

Facing intense pressure, MJ Akbar finally resigns as Minister of State for External Affairs. This comes as 20 women signed a statement wanting to testify against him in court. Will these women get justice for what they have been through? Watch the debate on Left, Right and Centre.

Defying a Supreme Court order, which has thrown open the Sabarimala temple to women of all ages, protesters today resorted to violence and intimidation to prevent women devotees from going inside. They even roughed up women reporters. The protesters say this is all about preserving their tradition. But what kind of faith justifies the use of violence? And whatever happens to the rule of law?

As winter slowly sets in in North India, so is the toxic smog. The air quality in Delhi has fallen so badly already that the government's graded response action plan came into effect this week. But will this be enough? Clearly not. And what of the farm fire in Punjab and Haryana which are still a major concern. On Left, Right and Centre tonight, we have Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh answering some tough questions.

On Left, Right and Centre, we discuss the showdown likely tomorrow at the Sabarimala Temple in Kerala, where in accordance with Supreme Court orders, women of all ages are expected to be allowed in. Many are far from happy with the court's directive and are geared to protest tomorrow.

This is truly India's shame. Why did 87-year-old GD Agarwal die after he spent years fighting to save the Ganga? The veteran activist was fasting for 111 days, demanding that the government get serious about cleaning up the Ganga. His death shows that despite all the big promises and the big slogans, the effort to clean up the river has been a hollow promise.

New documents obtained by the French media says there was trade-off for Dassault to partner with Anil Ambani's Reliance for the Rafale deal. As Rahul Gandhi steps up the attack on the PM, was there really a quid pro quo?

Should union minister MJ Akbar resign after a series of sexual harassment allegations against him? It is business as usual for him right now as he tours Africa.

AAP minister Kailash Gehlot has been raided by the Income Tax department, making it another in a series of raids and cases against opposition leaders. Is that just a coincidence?

India's all powerful National Security Advisor gets even more powers with top bureaucrats now reporting directly to him. Is this centralisation of power a good idea?

An exclusive interview with Pakistani writer Fatima Bhutto, who says "Imran Khan is playing the politics of opportunism". She also talks about Muslim identity in her latest book.