This is a scene straight out of the movies. Two of Karnataka's most powerful politicians will head for Dharmasthala on June 27 for a truth test in the presence of god Manjunatha. What we can expect, if nothing else, is dialoguebaazi of the highest order.

Karnataka's citizens are gaping in disbelief, but the allies-turned-enemies are determined to prove their innocence in a temple face-off. That's a first in Indian politics, where political battles are usually fought in assembly halls, poll booths, or, in extreme situations, in law courts. Yeddyurappa is taking his family along, and will be in Dharmasthala, 300 km from Bangalore, a day ahead of the test. Kumaraswamy, not to be outdone, is also packing his bags, and as a bonus, has even offered to take a narco test.

It's obvious one of them is lying. So what happens when they go and swear in the presence of god Manjunatha, believed to be benevolent towards the truthful and wrathful towards liars?

The drama began when H D Kumaraswamy,

Karnataka's spurning of the Unsesco heritage tag for its forests shows how little its politicians care about the environment. But then, those earning fabulous riches by striking shady real estate and mining deals can hardly be expected to respond sensitively to any talk of preserving the state's natural heritage.

People who don't know about the Yeddyurappa cabinet may be puzzled why it is turning down what is widely considered an honour, but within the state, everyone knows how unscrupulous miners control the BJP government, and why a slumbering Forest Minister C H Vijayashankar has suddenly woken up to compare the Unesco to the East India Company. (India is a signatory to the World Heritage Convention, and the Unesco is not a trading body, as our learned minister thinks).

Vijayashankar has tried to raise the displacement bogey, suggesting the UN body will ask tribals to move out of forest areas, but the Unesco has clarified it will do no such thing, and that designated areas will

Should the prime minister come under the purview of the Lokpal Bill?

Yes, says Team Anna. No, says the government. That's one of the main reasons talks between the two broke down yesterday. The stand-off is also giving rise to another question: Is Anna Hazare asking for too much?

Hopes of a consensus faded when Team Anna said two separate drafts of the proposed law against corruption were likely. In any case, it would have been unrealistic to expect the talks to go on without any hitch. One side represents politicians, and the other civil society, and they are clashing interests. (Who's civil society? P Sainath offers some definitions in his article in The Hindu today).

With the government trying to dilute the law to a point where it just becomes another piece of paper, are we going to get a Jokepal Bill, as RTI activist Arvind Kejriwal quipped yesterday?

Many people are now suggesting that Anna Hazare, while being right in demanding that corruption be curbed, is being unreasonable in

Priyadarshini Basu

BBC's documentary Choosing to Die, shot by author Sir Terry Pratchett, has stirred a hornet's nest. His case is of interest in India, where the Aruna Shanbaug euthanasia case recently came up before the Supreme Court.

Pratchett followed Peter Smedley (71), who was suffering from a motor neurone disease, to Dignitas, the assisted suicide clinic in Switzerland.

The clinic has helped 1,100 people die in the last 12 years. Pratchett caught on frame Smedley's dying moments after the millionaire gulped down a glass of barbiturates.

Charlotte Moore, commissioning editor, said in The Telegraph the "raw, moving and honest" death scene could not be left out.

However, the programme sparked heated social, political and religious debates not just in the media but on the social media too.

As many as 900 people called BBC to complain while 82 supported the documentary. Most people thought the programme was just propaganda for assisted killing, which is not legal in UK.

The UK