SELECTED WRITINGS
BACKWARD CLASSES, RESERVATIONS (AFFIRMATIVE ACTION)
1. India's religious divide. The Sunday Indian. 7 June 2012.
2 . Centre's minorities quota ploy badly backfires. DNA. 4 June 2012
3. Perpetuating the scourge of caste. The Hindu (Lead article) . 12 May 2012.
4. India's Affirmative Action Politics As Seen Through Tamil Nadu's Specious Quota Law. Countercurrents.org. 10 February 2012.
5. Quota: How Tamil Nadu is setting a bad precedent. DNA. 15 September 2011;
6. Indiscriminating ways of positive affirmation. Sahara Time. 31 July 2010;
7. ‘No’ to caste enumeration. The New Indian Express (Leader page) 26 October 2009.
8. India’s divisive backwardness politics. Asian Tribune. 5 July 2009.
9. Creamy Layer Politics. The New Indian Express (leader page), 30 October 2008.
10. Supreme Court and the SCs. The New Indian Express (Leader page) 11 March 2008.
11. Religion no bar (On the inclusion of the Dalits from other religions in the Scheduled Castes' list). DNA . 11 March 2008.
12. One forward, two back (on the reservation controversy at the Centre). DNA (Daily News & Analysis). 24 April 2007.
13. OBC Reservation and TN Model. The New Indian Express (Leader page). 8 July 2006.
14. The Reservation Rigmarole. The New Sunday Express (Magazine section). 7 May 2006.
15. Sensitising Officials. The Hindu (Leader Page). 3-4 December 2001.
16. White or Grey? (On Tamil Nadu Government’s White Paper on Reservations tabled in the Assembly on 11 May 2000). The Hindu (Leader Page). 26 July 2000.
17. Reservation Politics (In Karnataka). The Hindu (Sunday Magazine). 26 February 1995.
18. The Quota Conundrum (On the reservation politics in Tamil Nadu). The Hindu (Sunday Magazine). 19 February 1995.
19. Judicial Pragmatism, Political Opportunism (On the Supreme Court Judgments on the notifications relating to the Mandal Commission recommendations). The Hindu (Sunday Magazine). 14 March 1993.
20. Reservation in Perspective (On the emergence and history of reservation in Madras Presidency). The Hindu (Sunday Magazine). 23, 30 August; 6 September 1992.
21. The Mandal Odyssey. The Hindu (Sunday Magazine). 13 October 1991.
22. Reply to Andre Beteille: Some Issues Overlooked (On reservations). The Hindu (Leader Page). 8 November 1990.
23. Two Steps Backward (on the Mandal Commission Report). Frontline. 1-14 September 1990.
CASTE SYSTEM, WEAKER SECTIONS, EMANCIPATION POLITICS
24. Caste factor in Census 2011 will pollute India's governance. DNA (Daily News & Analysis). 12 July 2011
25. Caste Census: An Avoidable Aberration (on the proposal to include caste in the 2011 Census). Sahara Time. 1 May 2010.
26. Vanniyars and Social Mobility. The New Sunday Express (Sunday Magazine). 2 February 2003.
27. The Vanniyar Separatism. Frontline. 30 August 2002.
28. The Vanniyar Vampire (Related to the write-up Vanniyar Separatism, but confined to the importance of the Vanniyar’s numerical preponderance in socio-political affairs). The New Sunday Express (Magazine section), Cover Story. 28 July 2002.
29. Dalits and Durban (On the furor on caste-race discrimination and non-inclusion of caste in the U.N. Conference against Racism, etc., in Durban, South Africa, from 31 August to 7 September 2001.) The Hindu (Leader Page). 27-28 August 2001.
30. Cast Off Caste in Census 2001 (On the need for excluding Caste from the 2001 Census). Indian Express (Leader Page). 9 December 1999.
31. Census: A Costly Digression (on the proposal to include caste in the 2001 Census). Frontline. 18 September 1998.
32. The Dalit Controversy (On the demands of Dalit Christians for Scheduled Caste status). The Hindu (Leader Page). 9-10 January 1996.
33. Putting Society Together Again (On social exclusion and social integration). The Hindu (Sunday Magazine). 27 August 1995.
34. Manuvadis and Mayawati (On Brahmin‑Dalit politics in Uttar Pradesh). The Hindu (Leader Page). 30 June 1995.
35. Exploiting the Exploited (On Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalitha’s exploitation of the usage Pariah). The Hindu (Leader Page). 13 May 1995. 36. The Truth about Manu's Misdeeds (A fresh look at Manusmriti). The Hindu (Sunday Magazine). 8 November 1992.
37. Ambedkar on Minorities. The Hindu (Sunday Magazine). 22 September 1991.
38. Political Appropriation of Ambedkar. The Hindu (Sunday Magazine). 12 May 1991.
39. The Political Relevance of Ambedkar. The Hindu (Sunday Magazine). 5 May 1991.
40. Ambedkar’s Legacy. The Hindu (Sunday Magazine). 20 January 1991.
ABOLISHING DEATH PENALTY
41. Death becomes us. The New Indian Express on Sunday. 19 October 2006.
EDUCATION
42. Just why was that cartoon in text books? DNA. 15 May 2012
43. Reforming Indian Education (in three parts). Asian Tribune. 12, 19, 26 July 2009.
44. Right Pathway to Higher Education. Sify.com (January-March 2006); humanscape.org (January-March 2006).
45. The Great Education Muddle: State Failure and Judicial Jigsaw. http://eSocialsciences.com. 7 December 2005.
46. Education for all: A Must. Tehelka. 17 July 2004.
47. India’s Educational Backwardness. The Hindu (Sunday Magazine) (With R. Akila). 26 July 1994.