This week on NL Hafta, Abhinandan Sekhri, Manisha Pande and Mehraj D Lone of Newslaundry are joined by Vivek Kaul, author and journalist.

Vivek discusses his NL Sena investigation on India’s Covid data, pointing to inefficient health systems and the suspiciously low positive case rates in states such as Uttar Pradesh.

Reflecting on the Adityanath government’s push to conduct the Kanwar Yatra amid the Covid pandemic, Abhinandan says, “Yogi, it’s clear, is not really afraid of Modi.”

Going into details, which much of the media has largely ignored, of Uttar Pradesh’s new population control bill, Manisha explains how it seeks “to promote sterilisation rather than just family planning”.

The discussion also spans speculation around election strategist Prashant Kishor's meeting with the Gandhis and what it might entail for the prospects of the Congress, the Delhi High Court pulling up the Delhi police for their shoddy investigations into the 2020 communal carnage in the capital, new books detailing Donald Trump’s last days as the American president, and much more.

Listen.

Text by Ruchi Shahagadkar.

Hafta letters: Land ownership, podcast on Indian cinema, and criticism of Rana Ayyub