Indian Holocaust My Father`s Life and Time - SIX HUNDRED NINETY
Palash Biswas
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Things are moving, not at a standstill; Cabinet expected to approve BP-RIL deal, FDI in retail , Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee claimed! Amidst Anti Corruption Drive the SCAM Hit Government of India Incs EXPEDIATES Next Generation of Reforms to Destroy us, the Excluded Communities, the Majority of Indian Population!
Govt okays $7.2 bn Reliance-BP deal
New Delhi: After nearly five months wait, the government on Friday cleared UK's BP Plc buying 30% stake in most of Reliance Industries' (RIL) oil and gas blocks, including the showpiece KG-D6 gas fields, for $7.2 billion.
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, on Friday approved BP buying staking in RIL's 21 blocks, sources said.
The CCEA could not meet on its scheduled day on Thursday as the Oil Ministry had not circulated the agenda in time.
RIL, the country's most valuable company, had on February 21 agreed to sell 30% stake in 23 out of its 29 oil and gas blocks to London-based BP Plc for $7.2 billion, and may get an additional $1.8 billion if the two explorers find more hydrocarbons.
The CCEA approved sale of stake only 21 blocks as exploration status in the two remaining blocks was in dispute.
BP will have to furnish a bank guarantee and performance guarantee as has been prescribed under the production sharing contract.
The deal, that may increase to $20 billion with future performance payments and investment, will give Reliance access to BP's expertise in deep-water drilling and accelerate development and production at its fields particularly the under-performing eastern offshore KG-D6.
For BP, which has been struggling to battle back from the disastrous Gulf of Mexico oil-spill disaster last year, the transaction is a chance to enter a market where energy demand is growing at 5-8%.
Officials said RIL had on February 25 applied for government nod for the stake sale. New Exploration Licencing Policy, under which Reliance had won the oil and gas blocks, allowed for sale or assignment of participating interest (farm-out), which is routinely approved by the Oil Ministry.
But the ministry, even though competent to approve the deal, decided to refer it to the CCEA.
Source: PTI
Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee on Thursday sought to dispel the notion that decision-making in government has virtually come to a halt.
The veteran Congressman's comments during an interaction with the media came on the eve of two crucial decisions. The Cabinet is expected to approve BP's acquisition of 30% stake in Reliance Industries' oil and gas fields deal on Friday, paving the way for the country's largest-ever foreign direct investment. The immediate inflow of $7.2 billion (over Rs 32,000 crore) will almost match FDI inflows of $7.8 billion (over Rs 35,000 crore) between April and May 2011. If everything goes as per plan, BP could end up investing up to $20 billion (around Rs 90,000 crore) over the next few years.
Hazare team initiates referendum on Lokpal Bill
PTI Jul 21, 2011, 01.28pm ISTNEW DELHI: Seeking to galvanise public opinion in favour of its version of Lokpal Bill, the Anna Hazare team today initiated a "referendum" on the law in Chandni Chowk Lok Sabha constituency represented by HRD Minister Kapil Sibal.
The volunteers of 'India Against Corruption' ( IAC) visited ten localities in Chandni Chowk and distributed a two-page questionnaire having eight questions to voters in the constituency.
The Hazare team expects to cover the entire constituency by Sunday.
Activist Arvind Kejriwal said they will be approaching around seven lakh house-holds in Chandni Chowk constituency from where Sibal had won. "He is the government's face of Lokpal. So we decided to hold the referendum in his constituency.
"Our volunteers will visit houses, leave the questionnaire and collect it two days later. There will be eight questions, including whether the Prime Minister should be brought under Lokpal," he said.
If the people, he said, votes for the civil society version, then they will ask Sibal whether he will go by the party High Command or people's wishes.
He said they expect to publish the results by July 27. Kejriwal said the survey sheets will be "optical mark recognition (OMR)" sheets which will be tabulated using computers.
Also on Friday, a committee of secretaries is scheduled to discuss allowing foreign retailers such as Wal-Mart and Carrefour to set up retail stores in India. The proposal is to allow up to 51% investment in Indian ventures with stiff riders which could include a stipulated level of investment in back-end infrastructure as well as sourcing from small scale units.
Mukherjee, who has spent the last two days meeting media persons to shore up government's faltering image, was, however, tight-lipped on both issues. All that he said was the government was discussing allowing FDI in multi-brand retail and indicated that the BP-Reliance deal could get the green light. But, he did point out that the government had cleared the Cairn-Vedanta deal, which had generated concern in the investor community.
"I want to take the opportunity to dispel some sense of despondency, some sort of cynicism that things are not moving and there is virtual standstilla¦ No one is claiming that everything is positive. There are areas of concern, there are problems but at the same time, the overall economic performance is not bad," Mukherjee said during an interaction that lasted for over an hour.
But he sought to make a distinction between administrative and legislative decisions and blamed the absence of legal changes for holding up administrative decisions.
At the same time, he listed several moves initiated by the government which have removed hurdles. The list included deregulation of petrol prices and the hike in prices of kerosene, diesel and cooking gas, freeing up of coal blocks that were locked in the 'Go-No Go' dispute. The minister listed the new nutrient-based subsidy regime for fertilizers and the plan to start a pilot projects for cooking fuel as the other decisions.
Besides, Mukherjee said, the group of ministers on Air India had decided to meet every month to ensure that things were moving. Clearance of road projects and rules for setting up infrastructure debt funds to finance large core sector projects too appeared to be on Mukherjee's list of items with priority tag.
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Transparency International flays Infosys Chairman Narayana Murthy for backing idea of legalising bribe giving
Global anti-graft body Transparency International's India chapter on Friday slammed Infosys Chairman Narayana Murthy for supporting the idea of legalising bribe giving.
"The recent media report of Infosys Chairman Narayana Murthy supporting Chief of Economic Adviser Kaushik Basu's idea of legalising bribery in India has been criticised by the India Chapter of Transparency International," Transparency International said in a statement.
Earlier this week, Murthy had said that he fully supported Basu's idea of making payment of bribes legal, saying this would help members of the public blow the whistle on corrupt officials.
"Legalising of bribery would amount to giving free reign to business to become corrupt to obtain contracts and revenues," Chair of India Chapter of Transparency International P S Bawa said.
It is important to have a strong whistle blower protection act rather than legalising bribery to protect whistle blowers, the statement said.
Murthy in his speech in Ahmedabad had said, "If bribe giving, and not bribe taking, is made legal then the bribe giver shall indeed cooperate with the authorities to expose the bribe taker."
"This (Basu's proposal of legalising bribe giving) seems to be an interesting idea and I think it should be implemented," he had said.
Basu, in his working paper 'Why, for a Class of Bribes, the Act of Giving a Bribe Should be Treated as Legal', had argued that while the offer of a bribe by a company to influence the award of a government contract should remain illegal, the payment of "harassment bribes" should not.
Basu had argued that the policy would ensure that "the bribe giver will be willing to cooperate in getting the bribe taker caught. Knowing that this will happen, the bribe taker will be deterred from taking a bribe."
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Infosys chairman Narayana Murthy backs Kaushik Basu's proposal to make bribe-giving legal
: A pioneer of India's outsourcing industry and leader of one of country's biggest IT firms has argued that legalising paying bribes would help reduce endemic corruption in the South Asian country.
N.R. Narayana Murthy, chairman of Infosys, said he fully supported proposals from economist Kaushik Basu to make paying bribes legal because this would help members of the public blow the whistle on corrupt officials.
Under Basu's proposals receiving a bribe would remain illegal.
"If bribe giving, and not bribe taking, is made legal then the bribe giver shall indeed cooperate with the authorities to expose the bribe taker," Murthy said in a speech in the western city of Ahmedabad on Tuesday, the Press Trust of India news agency reported.
"This seems to be an interesting idea and I think it should be implemented," he added.
He said graft had damaged India's growth prospects, adding that "the double-digit growth that has eluded India could have been ours if we had combated corruption,".
Transparency International, the global anti-graft body, puts India 87th on its corruption perception index - 10 places below China - with a 3.3-point rating, out of a best possible score of 10.
India's government is currently battling a series of scandals, including a telecom scam which the national auditor said may have cost the treasury up to $40 billion in lost revenue.
But corruption is most often felt in people's everyday lives, with officials demanding bribes to secure everything from phone connections to birth certificates and driving licenses.
When the government's chief economic advisor Basu first announced his proposal to legalise bribe giving, commentators attacked his plans saying it would legitimise corruption.
Basu had argued that his policy would ensure that "the bribe giver will be willing to cooperate in getting the bribe taker caught. Knowing that this will happen, the bribe taker will be deterred from taking a bribe."
Murthy is due to retire from his position and become chairman emeritus at Infosys at the age of 65 next month.
He founded the company with six other entrepreneurs in 1981 with an investment of just $250.
24 JUN, 2011, 04.14AM IST,ET BUREAU
Sectoral caps under lens in FDI reforms
NEW DELHI: Stung by a sharp fall in capital inflows, the government has set the ball rolling on policy reforms to attract more foreign direct investment.
The department of industrial policy and promotion, or DIPP, has invited suggestions on reforms in the FDI policy, with focus on the relevance of sectoral caps. Stakeholders must give their views on the discussion paper - FDI policy rationale and relevance of caps - by July 15.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee had said earlier this month that the government was thinking of further liberalising the FDI policy, after inflows in 2010-11 dropped 28% from a year ago, bucking the uptrend in other emerging economies. Experts, however, say a more comprehensive reform is needed.
"There is no reason to believe that removal of sectoral caps will lead to increase in FDI flows," said Nagesh Kumar, chief economist of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and Pacific, Bangkok .
"Just before the crisis, there was a jump in FDI flows," he added. Biswajit Dhar, director-general of think tank RIS said, "There is a big gap between what we want and our policies. We want FDI that ensures increased production, makes technology available, and brings managerial skills. Where do we see that?"
India currently allows 100% foreign investment is many sectors but has set a cap for many sectors such as 74% for telecom and banks and 26% for insurance. While claiming that these are not the government's views, the discussion paper has questioned the relevance of sectoral caps, particularly below 49%, after the revamped 2009 policy put in place new rules of what constituted foreign investments.
The policy made a distinction between ownership and control and said a company in which more than 50% beneficial equity and the right to appoint the majority of the board of directors was with resident Indians was to be considered Indian. More importantly, all downstream investments of such a company would be considered Indian even if the parent company had as much as 49% FDI.
"Therefore, there is a clear case of abolishing all caps below 49%" the paper says. The paper admits that the current sectoral limits can be breached through layers of subsidiaries and 'the caps also provide an opportunity for arbitrage to unscrupulous Indian partners'.
The paper says policy should be more concerned with 'control' and not beneficial ownership and that only sensitive sectors should have sectoral regulations. For sector such as defence manufacturing, telecommunication services and private security, the paper says sectoral conditions could be imposed.
"Such an approach would directly and explicitly secure an objective in a much better manner than caps," it notes. In cases where caps are seen as necessary, it suggests that the option of asking the multinational companies to list on Indian stock exchanges within a stipulated period could be considered. The decline in FDI has come at a time when the current account deficit is likely to have widened to 2.5% of GDP in 2010-11.
The robust portfolio flows have allowed India to bridge this deficit, but reliance of such hot money to fund current account deficit can cause problems in the event of a sudden outflow. "...rising reliance on hot money flows inevitably leaves the economy and, of course, the INR increasingly exposed to swings in global risk appetite," wrote Richard Iley and Mole Hau of BNP PARIBAS in a note. FDI by its long-term orientation is considered more stable, but experts say India's policy is not tuned to encourage investments.
"Globally, investors would still rank India as one of the top-10 destinations for FDI but the quantum does not reflect the confidence," said Sunil Sinha, senior economist, Crisil. The paper has also sought clarity on whether the caps are in respect of FDI alone or include both FDI and foreign institutional investment.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/finance/Sectoral-caps-under-lens-in-FDI-reforms/articleshow/8970466.cms
16 JUL, 2011, 06.37AM IST, SMRITI SETH,ET BUREAU
Global slump in economy a boon for India, only if it doesn't get worse: Report
NEW DELHI: The renewed crisis of confidence in the global economy could well benefit India, if it does not blow up into something bigger.
Together with China , India will stand out as an island of growth in an otherwise bleak global economic landscape, helping it attract more capital flows and investments.
"India is the fastest growing economy. Broadly, I would expect India to attract more capital flows in comparison to the rest of the world as we witness a slowdown in global recovery," said Sonal Varma, India economist, Nomura.
Recent evidence points towards a moderation in global growth as the developed world is struggling with debt and unemployment, and the emerging markets are fighting inflation by sacrificing growth. Search for returns is likely to send investors scurrying to India, expected to expand at about 8% in 2011-12 while the rest of the world sees a moderation in growth to 3.2% during 2011.
India's relative insulation from the rest of the world is another tick mark in its favour. Exports have a small 13% share in GDP, though rising fast at over 30% after the financial crisis, and its public debt is mostly internal. Public and private consumption combined has a 70% share in India's GDP.
The strong domestic orientation of the economy was largely the reason India managed a 6.8% growth in 2008-09, the high point of the financial crisis.
"In case of a slower recovery, FIIs to India won't be adversely affected. There is some insulation in that respect like we witnessed in the past", said Biswajit Dhar, Director General, RIS. Portfolio net inflow rose nearly 300% in 2009-10 when world economy actually contracted by 1% during 2009. FII inflow during 2011 (uptil 5th July) was already Rs 6,776 crore.
"Equity valuations and a conducive foreign investment policy environment will continue to be strong pull factors for capital inflows", says Varma. FDI inflows are also expected to recover with acquisitions as an attractive option for investors. A pick up is already evident with $ 7.79 billion inflows in first two months of 2011-12 fiscal.
Weak global demand will also keep commodity prices low, benefiting India that is exposed to imported inflation because of high reliance on imported crude and other inputs.
"This (lower commodity prices) will be good for India as it will ease inflation and help attract capital," said Saugata Bhattacharya, chief economist, Axis bank. However, a weak global demand can upset India's exports, but it does not seem to be a big worry.
"To the extent we are dependent on foreign demand, we will face lower demand from abroad. If India's domestic demand keeps up then we are safe", said Parthasarthi Shome, Director, ICRIER . Domestic consumption demand has been growing at plus 8% since 2007-08 in India.
Also, the recent diversification of export destinations to MENA (Middle- East and North African) and Latin American countries will limit the impact of a slowdown in demand from traditional markets on Indian exports. India's exports rose over 30% in 2010-11 despite softness in the world's biggest markets.
But a deep crisis will singe all, including India because of its reliance on capital inflows to fund its current account deficit, pegged at around 2% of GDP in 2010-11 and projected to rise to over 3% in 2011-12. A default by one of the vulnerable euro zone countries could be one such event.
"In case of a major risk event, the mood in the financial markets and risk appetite will worsen. Investors will rush to safe havens such as gold or the dollar, affecting fund flow into India" said Abheek Barua, chief economist, HDFC
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/indicators/Global-slump-in-economy-a-boon-for-India-only-if-it-doesnt-get-worse-Report/articleshow/9241247.cms
22 JUL, 2011, 06.59PM IST, DEEPA VENKATARAGHAVAN,
How NRI's can buy property in India
Buying a property undeniably ranks as one of the greatest Indian dreams. So it does not matter which part of the world you live in; a home in India is simply a must. And the Indian laws, over the years, have made this a fairly easy job. The Reserve Bank of India governs such transactions and they fall under the purview of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).
In this column, we give you a lowdown on all that you need to know if you are an NRI wanting to buy a property in India. To begin with, we need to understand the definition of non-resident Indian. Since property purchases are governed by FEMA, we need to go by the definition of NRI as stated in FEMA. According to FEMA, an NRI is a citizen of India who is resident outside India.
Now let us understand the rules and implications:
Can an NRI buy property in India?
Yes, a non-resident Indian can buy either a residential property or a commercial property in India. Further, there is no limit on the number of residential or commercial properties that an NRI can purchase in India.
Exception: An NRI however cannot buy agricultural land, plantation land or a farm house in India. He cannot even acquire such property as a gift.
There is however, no bar on inheriting such property.
Do you need RBI permission?
No. RBI permission is not required to buy residential or commercial property.
How to fund the purchase?
Payment for the purchase of property can be made either by way of funds remitted to India from abroad through regular banking channels or through the balance in the NRE , NRO or FCNR Account.
What income taxes are applicable on house properties in India?
According to the Indian Income Tax Act, if a person (resident or NRI) owns more than one house property, only one of them will be deemed as self-occupied. There will be no income tax on a self-occupied property. The other one, whether you rent it out or not, will be deemed to be given on rent. If you have not given the second property on rent, you will have to calculate deemed rental income on the second property (based on certain valuations prescribed by the income tax rules) and pay the tax thereof.
Now, the Income Tax Act does not specify if either or both these properties must be situated only in India. Vikas Vasal, Executive Director of KPMG India explains, "At the time of drafting the Income Tax Act, one did not envisage a situation where an Indian would own properties overseas. But now, more and more Indians are settling abroad. So from the reading of the Act, the rule of 'more than one property' will apply to global properties."
What this means is that if you are an NRI and own only one property globally and that property is in India, you would not have to pay any income tax on it in India.
However, let us say you are an NRI resident in USA. You own and live in a house in USA. You also own a house property in India. Even if you do not give the property in India on rent, you would have to pay income tax on deemed rent in India. The deemed rent is determined by certain valuation rules prescribed in the Income Tax Act.
Remember that even if you have inherited a property in India and that is not your only property, you would have to pay tax on deemed income.
Is deemed income from house property taxed in foreign country?
You would need to look at the tax code in your country of residence. In the case of NRIs in the United States , the US tax code does not tax deemed income. However, Ganga Mukkavilli, a New York City based CPA whose firm, CPAs, Taxes & Associates PC, specialises in international accounting, taxes and small businesses says that you would still have to show the property if it is an investment property in your tax return in the US (even though you do not have any rental income ).
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/nri/nri-real-estate/how-nris-can-buy-property-in-india/articleshow/9325651.cms
FIIs net buyers of Rs 445 cr in cash mkt today
BS Reporter / Mumbai July 22, 2011, 18:09 IST
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net buyers of Rs 444.91 crore (provisional) today, according to data released by BSE.
While FIIs made gross purchases of Rs 2,718.66 crore, gross sales totalled Rs 2,273.75 crore.
Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) were net buyers of Rs 243.05 crore today. While DIIs made gross purchases of Rs 1,329.71 crore, gross sales totalled Rs 1,086.66 crore.
FIIs were net sellers of Rs 171.90 crore on Thursday, July 21, according to data released by Sebi today. While FIIs made gross purchases of Rs 1,952.90 crore, gross sales totalled Rs 2,124.90 crore.
Mutual funds (MFs) were net buyers of Rs 206.20 crore on Thursday. MFs made purchases of Rs 696.20 crore and sales of Rs 490 crore.
http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/fiis-net-buyersrs-445-cr-in-cash-mkt-today/142048/on
Sky is the limit for our powers: SC
New Delhi: Amidst criticism of judicial activism, the Supreme Court today asserted that sky is the limit for exercising its extraordinary Constitutional powers to pass any order in the interest of justice, even if it means bypassing statutory provisions.
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A bench of justices H L Dattu and H L Gokhale passed the ruling while restoring the charge under Section 489A (harassment of wife) by husband or other family members against a police officer A Subash Babu on the complaint of his second wife.
The apex court rejected the AP High Court's reasoning that since marriage of the accused with another woman during the subsistence of the first marriage was void, the second wife cannot a lodge a complaint under Section 498A.
"Article 136 is a special jurisdiction. It is residuary power. It is extraordinary in its amplitude. The limits of Supreme Court when it chases injustice, is the sky itself. Further, the powers under Article 136 can be exercised by the Supreme Court, in favour of a party even suo motu when the court is satisfied that compelling grounds for its exercise exist," Justice Panchal writing the judgement observed.
Under Article 136 the apex court can grant permission to a person to appeal against any order/judgement of the high court or any subordinate court or tribunal.
The apex court further said that in bigamy cases, the magistrate can take cognisance of the offence on the basis of a police report also and it was not necessary that there should be direct complaint from victim or some other family member.
Source: PTI
Explosion hits Norway govt. headquarters, two dead
Oslo: A powerful blast tore open several Oslo buildings including the Prime Minister's Office on Friday. Two people were reportedly killed and several were injured, as the blast shattered windows and coated the street with documents.
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Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg is safe, government spokeswoman Camilla Ryste told The Associated Press, although it was unclear whether that meant he was uninjured. Norway's public broadcaster, NRK, said two people were confirmed killed.
There was no immediate word on the cause of the blast. NRK showed video of a blackened car lying on its side amid the debris.
Most of the windows in the 20-floor highrise were blown out, and the bottom floor appeared to be gutted. Nearby offices were also heavily damaged and evacuated, including those housing some of Norway's leading newspapers and news agency NTB.
Witness Ole Tommy Pedersen was standing at a bus stop about 100m from the building at around 3.30 pm when he saw the blast shatter almost all windows of the 20-floor high-rise. He said a cloud of smoke is billowing from the bottom floors.
"I saw three or four injured people being carried out of the building a few minutes later," Mr. Pedersen told The Associated Press.
Video shown by Norwegian broadcaster NRK showed most of the windows of the building had been blown out. The bottom floor appeared to be completely gutted. Shattered glass and debris littered a square in front of the building.
Nearby offices were evacuated including those housing some of Norway's leading newspapers and news agency NTB. Some of them were also damaged.
An AP reporter who was in the NTB office said the building shook from the blast and all employees evacuated the building as the alarm went off. Down at the street he saw one person with a bleeding leg being led away from the area.
The government building houses the prime minister's office and his administration. Several Ministries are in surrounding buildings.
People trapped at bomb site
A Norwegian government official says there are people trapped in the buildings.
State Secretary Kristian Amundsen told BBC that "there are still people in the buildings" at the blast site. He declined to elaborate, saying, "I can't go into details."
He said this situation is the worst his country has seen.
Source: AP
Jamiat fears inexperienced Hina will suffer setback against 'wise' Krishna
Islamabad: The chief of Pakistan's Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam party, Maulana Fazlur Rehman, has criticised the appointment of Hina Rabbani Khar as the new Foreign Minister, saying it was not a "wise decision" to have a woman holding the post.
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Khar (34), this week became Pakistan's youngest and first woman Foreign Minister. But Rehman said the decision to give the slot to a woman cannot be called a wise decision.
"We have reservations over the decision and we do not know who she will represent (Pakistan) on the diplomatic front," he said on Thursday.
Rehman said Khar is a businesswoman and "does not have any diplomatic and political experience" and pointed out that she would now face an experienced and wise leader in S M Krishna when she travels to India for talks.
Khar was appointed by President Asif Ali Zardari on the advice of Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and both leaders praised her shortly after she took oath as the country's 26th Foreign Minister.
She will have important engagements in coming days, including ministerial-level talks in New Delhi on July 27.
Khar will travel to Indonesia this week to attend an ASEAN conference, where she is expected to meet US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and the Chinese Foreign Minister on the sidelines of the meet.
Referring to the upcoming talks with India, Rehman said Khar will face a "very senior, experienced and wise" leader when she meets Krishna on July 27.
"What priorities will our new Foreign Minister have and how will she fight Pakistan's case?" said Rehman, who heads a special parliamentary committee on Kashmir.
"I have very old relations with her family and this is a relationship of mutual respect, but that is a different thing," Rehman said.
He expressed serious concern at the arrest of Kashmiri separatist leader Ghulam Nabi Fai in the US for allegedly funnelling funds provided by Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence and said Fai had lived in America for nearly 40 years and worked for the Kashmir cause.
US authorities have said that Fai had been covertly working for the Pakistani government and intelligence agencies and had provided funds to US lawmakers to win their support on the Kashmir issue.
Source: PTI
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Assets probe: Supreme Court dismisses Jagan's plea
New Delhi: In a setback to former Congress leader Jagan Mohan Reddy, the Supreme Court on Friday refused to stay an Andhra Pradesh High Court order for a preliminary Central Bureau of Investigation enquiry to ascertain if he owns assets disproportionate to his income.
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A bench of justices Dalveer Bhandari and Deepak Verma dismissed Mr. Reddy's plea refusing to interfere with the High Court's order.
The bench said "at this stage" no interference is required into the High Court order as it is only a preliminary enquiry and the High Court can refuse to proceed against him if nothing substantial comes out against him in the probe.
The bench, however, asked the High Court to give a copy of the CBI probe report to Mr. Jagan if it decides to proceed against him on the basis of the agency's findings.
The bench turned down the plea of senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, who appearing for Mr. Jagan, tried to convince the court that there is nothing against the politician and there is a political rivalry behind this.
Mr. Jagan, son of late Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekar Reddy, had approached the apex court challenging an Andhra Pradesh High Court order for a preliminary probe by the CBI to ascertain if he owned assets far exceeding his legal income.
"Politically motivated"
Mr. Jagan's petition had sought quashing of the July 12 order, which directed the CBI to submit its report in two weeks, arguing that it was "illegal", "erroneous" and "unsustainable" and deserves to be quashed.
He had contended that the High Court did not have the jurisdiction to order a CBI probe on a "politically motivated" petition.
The High Court had passed the order on a petition by Andhra Pradesh Textiles Minister P. Shankar Rao accusing Jagan of amassing huge wealth using his late father's position as the state Chief Minister.
The High Court had said it will decide on the issue of a full-fledged inquiry on the basis of the CBI report after a preliminary probe by the agency.
Mr. Jagan, after being denied the Chief Minister's post following his father's death in a chopper crash, floated the YSR Congress Party on whose symbol he and his mother won the Kadapa Lok Sabha and Pulivendla Assembly seats respectively in recent by-polls.
Source: PTI
Mumbai blasts: Sequence of events reconstructed
The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad and city Crime Branch probing the Mumbai serial blasts said on Friday it has reconstructed the sequence of events at two of the three sites before the blasts with the help of CCTV footages.
"The sequence of events that led to the blasts at Zaveri Bazaar and Opera House on July 13 has been reconstructed with the help of CCTV footages. We now have got the actual idea as to what had happened on that fateful day," said an IPS officer probing the blasts case.
The blast incident was not captured on the CCTV at Dadar, the official said, adding, "The investigators have possession of CCTV visuals of seven days prior to the blasts at the Opera house."
When asked how many people were involved in placing the explosives before blasts, the official said, "at least six persons may have been involved in placing the explosives at three locations. But the actual number could be known only after the accused's arrest."
Asked about the reports of getting "good leads" from Pune and Parbhani cities of the state, "We have been questioning several people for the leads from within and outside the state. We do have good leads in the case."
The ATS had taken the help of technical experts, who have worked on Hollywood movies, to get the clear picture of the grainy images in the CCTV footages and the agency got "excellent results" of the footages, the official said.
Source: PTI
Lokpal Bill to be placed before Cabinet
The Government on Friday said the Lokpal Bill is ready and will be placed before the Union Cabinet for approval in its next meeting where a decision on whether to put the Prime Minister in its purview would also be taken.
"The Lokpal Bill is now ready and it will be moved to the Cabinet. It will be placed before the Cabinet in the next meeting. As promised by UPA-II, by this government, we shall introduce this Bill as soon as possible in the Monsoon session of Parliament," Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal told reporters.
He maintained that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had made a promise to the nation on the Lokpal Bill and the government will deliver on that promise.
Asked if the Prime Minister would come within the ambit of the Lokpal as demanded by some political parties and civil society activists led by Anna Hazare, Mr. Sibal said, "Some suggestions were given during the all -- party meeting. When the matter comes up before the Cabinet, the government will decide."
He, however, clarified that the five ministers, including him, in the Joint Drafting Committee were still of the opinion that the Prime Minister should be kept out of the purview of the Lokpal.
Mr. Sibal stated that the Lokpal Bill has provisions whereby any matter not being investigated by any agency like the CBI can go to the Lokpal.
"The Lokpal Bill is coming and we all want that a strong legislation should come in Parliament so that all these issues being raised are handed over to the Lokpal. BJP also wants this and we too want it," he said.
Referundum
Asked about suggestions made by the civil society members in the Jan Lokpal Bill, Mr. Sibal said some points had been accepted and some rejected by the government.
"There is no provision for an individual to bring a Bill... If Anna Hazare wants to say something he can go to the Standing Committee later," Mr. Sibal said.
Making light of the "referendum" being conducted by the civil society activists on the Lokpal Bill, the Minister said it was neither a referendum nor a survey.
Mr. Sibal insisted that corruption was a serious issue and referred to the recent controversy over the Karnataka Lokayukta report on illegal mining which indicts Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa.
"It appears BJP will have to decide after introspection that it will have to accept the truth and whatever decision the Lokayukta has taken, BJP should take steps on it based on morality. This is a matter of corruption and is serious," he said.
The Minister evaded a question on whether Mr. Yeddyurappa should resign and maintained that what he was saying makes things obvious.
He also took digs at the BJP for demanding resignations of union ministers based on the CAG report (in the 2G spectrum scam) and disrupting functioning of Parliament while not following the same norm for its chief minister.
"I think that some national parties must move away from the amoral position that they had before and travel to the moral position that they need to take on issues like these so that the doublespeak must end," Mr. Sibal said.
He asked the BJP to stop being in "denial mode" about Mr. Yeddyurappa's involvement in corruption. He said BJP's ideology itself is one of "double-standards".
Source: PTI
Karnataka Governor to act on mining scam report
Bangalore: Karnataka Governor H.R. Bhardwaj Friday said he would act on the Lokyaukta (ombudsman) report on the mining scam after he receives it from the state government.
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"I will deal with the report under sections 12 & 13 of the Lokayukta Act after I receive it from the state government or a competent authority," Bhardwaj told reporters on the margins of a function here.
Asserting that he was the only constitutional authority in the state to take action against Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa if the report had substantial evidence of his involvement in the multi-crore mining scam, Bhardwaj said he would first study the recommendations made by ombudsman Justice Santosh N. Hegde and act accordingly.
"I cannot comment now as I am not given the report yet. I understand that the Lokayukta would submit the report to the state chief secretary (S.V. Ranganath) on Monday (July 25). The chief minister will also be given a copy of the report," Bhardwaj said.
Recalling his long association with Hegde, who was a judge of the Supreme Court and solicitor general of India before that, Bhardwaj said as the ombudsman was a competent person to deal with legal issues involved in the case, he would act on whatever he had recommended in the report.
"I have lot of respect for Hegde. I have known him for long and we have been friends since his days as solicitor general and later Supreme Court judge. I will first study the report as many ministers, legislators and officials are involved in the illegal mining activity and act on his recommendations," Bhardwaj said.
Yeddyurappa, mining barons and ministers G. Janardhan Reddy and G. Karunanakar Reddy, former chief minister H.D. Kumaraswamy and Congress Rajya Sabha member Anil Lad were named by the Lokayukta in his report on illegal mining, which was leaked to the media late Wednesday even before it was printed and submitted to the state government.
Hegde blamed Yeddyurappa and four of his ministers for illegal mining that has caused a Rs.1,827 crore loss to the exchequer in over a year.
Replying to a volley of questions about possible action against the chief minister, Bhardwaj said he would not like to comment till the report was submitted.
Source: IANS
Army orders probe into rape allegations by Kashmir woman
Srinagar: The army in Jammu and Kashmir Friday moved quickly in ordering an internal probe following allegations by a woman that two army personnel had abducted and raped her. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah also promised action, saying the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) will not be allowed to hamper investigations.
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The army also assured complete cooperation with the local police.
Rukaya Bano, a woman from south Kashmir's Kulgam district, has alleged that two army men raped her after abducting her when she came out of her home Tuesday.
"She had gone out for ablutions at about 7 p.m. July 19 and after that she did not return. She came back July 21," her relatives told police. They also said Rukaya had been forcibly detained by the two army men in a meadow hutment for two days.
Following the allegations, massive protests broke out in the area, around 65 km from here, and a complaint was registered at the Damhal Hanjipora police station Thursday.
Abdullah was quick to say the guilty would not be spared.
In a post on Twitter, he said: "The size of army unit in area less than 20 strong, so identification parade won't be a problem. Guilty won't be spared either AFSPA or no AFSPA."
The AFSPA grants immunity to the armed forces in Jammu and Kashmir from legal prosecution. But Abdullah said it would not be allowed to come in the way of legal action against the alleged rapists.
"But unlike most of you I don't have the luxury of jumping to conclusions, so will wait for the woman to make a positive identification," he tweeted.
"I want to make it clear that this is an allegation and if there is truth in it, then it is a criminal act which warrants strict action against the guilty," Lt Gen S.A. Hasnain, general officer commanding (GOC) 15th Corps, said at a press conference here Friday.
"The army is giving full cooperation to police and the state government. We have also ordered our own probe into the incident."
"There are different versions of the same situation. There are inimical forces who want to create a situation for the state government and the security forces. There are emerging versions of this. There will be many new versions which will come in the next few days. Therefore, we cannot go by a single version. We are not foreclosing any option at all.
"We are aware that not only the army, but terrorists also wear combat uniforms. We conducted an operation against terrorists a fortnight ago in the same area and the terrorists are under pressure. Therefore, this was something not unexpected at all. I was expecting it.
"The possibility of a chink in our armour cannot be ruled out. That is why we are keeping all options open," the corps commander said.
He said the guerrillas also used radio sets as was alleged by the woman. "It is impossible that two army men will remain out of their unit for 48 hours with weapons," he said.
The corps commander said certain individual elements were out to disturb peace and tranquility in the valley.
Many of Abdullah's followers on Twitter suspect the guilty will not be punished as the AFSPA would come in the way, and referred to a case in Kunonposhpora, a village in Kupwara district in north Kashmir, where soldiers were accused of committing rape in February 1992.
Some of his followers, however, responded positively and appreciated his quick response.
Valley-wide protests had also erupted in 2009 when two women drowned in a local stream in the adjacent Shopian district. Massive protests and allegations that the duo had been raped and murdered by security men paralyzed the Valley the entire summer of 2009. The CBI probe finally revealed that the duo had drowned and no rape or murder had taken place.
Source: IANS
Kaushik Basu
India
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