FINMIN CLARIFIES; NO WORRY FOR SEAFARERSThe government on Sunday clarified that the proposed tax on NRIs will notapply on bonafide Indians working in tax-free foreign countries and isintended to tax only those seeking to escape tax by exploiting theirnon-resident status.Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her Budget for 2020-21 had proposedto tax NRIs who do not pay taxes in any foreign country. This provisionraised anxiety in minds of seafarers and those working in the Gulf regionwhere countries don't tax income earned by individuals.First Sitharaman clarified that only Indian income of NRIs is proposed to betaxed under the new provision, and later the tax department issued astatement to say that "the new provision is not intended to include in taxnet those Indian citizens who are bonafide workers in other countries".Revenue Secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey also said that Indians working in theMiddle East, as well as those in Merchant Navy, will not be taxed using thenew provision."Somebody who is a citizen of India and sitting in a tax haven and notpaying taxes then he has to pay tax," he said. "By issuing clarification, wehave kept them (workers in the Middle East) out. Same for merchant navybecause their income is also not arising out of India."Asked if raising the duration of overseas stay to qualify for NRI statuswould not deter Indians from making visits home, he said: "These areanti-abuse provisions. If someone faces any difficulty because of this, wewill see what can be done. The policy that you make, you have to see that alarger section of people is benefited because of this. If he is anon-resident, he has to live substantially out of India. Now, substantiallyout of India means what? Earlier it was 50:50. Now we have made 2/3rd:1/3rd."But from all indications, for seafarers, the maximum period of stay in Indiain order to qualify for NRI status in a given year, continues to be 182days. (More clarification is awaited on this.)Pandey said the new provision was brought in because people were takingadvantage of the existing one. "These are the anti-abuse provisions, and notto inconvenience any genuine persons."The Central Board of Direct Taxes in a statement said the new provision isnot intended to include those Indian citizens in the taxation net, who arebonafide workers in other countries.'TRY YOUR MAGICAL EXERCISE': RAHUL GANDHI'S ADVISE TO PM MODI ON ECONOMYContinuing his attack on the government over the Union Budget, which he hadcalled "hollow", Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday took a cheeky dig atPrime Minister Narendra Modi and tweeted a suggestion to rescue the countryfrom the economic slowdown.Tweeting a video of PM Modi doing yoga, Rahul Gandhi advised him to practicehis "magical exercise" routine to jumpstart the economy at a time when GDPgrowth is at the lowest since the 2008 economic crisis. "Dear PM, Please tryyour magical exercise routine a few more times. You never know, it mightjust start the economy," Rahul Gandhi tweeted.Former finance minister P Chidambaram said the government had junkedreforms, failed to come up with steps to create jobs and has given up onreviving the economy, fiscal consolidation, accelerating the growth rate andpromoting private investment.Chidambaram also accused the government of trying to dispose of nationalassets through a "grand clearance sale".SECOND CASE OF CORONAVIRUS REPORTED IN KERALA, BOTH FINEHours after the country airlifted the second batch of 323 people stranded inChina on Sunday, second case of Coronavirus has been detected in Alappuzha,putting the state on high alert.Three days ago, the country's first coronavirus case was reported inThrissur. Like the first patient, the second is also a medical student fromWuhan, who returned to India on January 24. His condition is stable, saidstate health minister K K Shailaja.The minister assured people that there is no need to panic and the statewill overcome the challenge like it did when nipah virus struck two yearsago. Kerala had contained Nipah virus within two weeks, but failed toprevent the death of seventeen people.The first patient, a woman, is in an isolation ward in the Thrissur medicalcollege hospital and she is responding well to the treatment, said a medicalbulletin. At least 64 persons who came in contact with the first patienthave been quarantined.NIRBHAYA: GOVT CHALLENGES STAY ON EXECUTION, HC RESERVES VERDICTThe Delhi High Court on Sunday reserved its verdict on the Centre's pleachallenging the stay on the execution of the four death row convicts in theNirbhaya gangrape and murder case.Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the high court that there was a"deliberate, calculated and well-thought-out design" by the Nirbhayagangrape and murder case convicts to "frustrate" the mandate of law bygetting their execution delayed.Mehta told Justice Suresh Kait that convict Pawan Gupta's move of not filinga curative or a mercy petition was deliberate. The four Nirbhaya caseconvicts were playing with judicial machinery and trying the patience of thenation, he said. The high court was hearing the Centre's plea challengingthe stay on the execution of the four death row convicts in the Nirbhayacase.Senior advocate Rebecca John, representing the convict Mukesh Kumar (32),raised preliminary objection to the Centre's plea, saying it was notmaintainable. She contended that the Centre was never a party in the caseproceedings before the trial court and while the government was accusing theconvict of delay, it had woken up just two days ago."It was the victim's parents who had moved the trial court for issuance ofdeath warrants against the convicts. At no point the government approachedthe trial court to get the death warrants issued immediately," Johncontended.LONDON POLICE SHOOT MAN OVER 'TERRORISM-RELATED' STABBINGSLondon police shot and killed a man during a "terrorism-related incident"Sunday that involved the stabbings of "a number of people," the Britishcapital's Metropolitan Police said.The police force said the incident happened in the Streatham neighborhood ofsouth London, a bustling residential area that doesn't boast any majorBritish landmarks like areas hit by earlier attacks.The Metropolitan Police tweeted details of the incident on Sunday afternoon,saying "The circumstances are being assessed; the incident has been declaredas terrorist-related."AS INDIA EVACUATES FROM WUHAN, PAKISTAN KEEPS ITS CITIZENS AT CORONAVIRUSGROUND ZEROSeveral videos have appeared in social media about Pakistani students inWuhan complaining about the failure of their government to evacuate themfrom ground zero of the novel coronavirus that has now infected over 14,000individuals and killed more than 300.This is happening even as India has flown out two planeloads of its citizensfrom Wuhan, and countries around the world are increasingly walling offChina to contain the spread of the infection.Pakistan says it is keeping its citizens in the danger zone out of"solidarity" with China. Pakistan also says it would be "irresponsible" totake an "emotional decision" and pull out its citizens from China.Last week, Dawn quoted a senior aide to Prime Minister Imran Khan as saying:"We believe that right now, it is in the interest of our loved ones in China[to stay there]. It is in the larger interest of the region, world, countrythat we don't evacuate them now."This is what the World Health Organisation is saying, this is China'spolicy and this is our policy as well. We stand by China in full solidarity.If we act irresponsibly and start evacuating people from there, thisepidemic will spread all over the world like wildfire."US, Australia, and Singapore, who have temporarily shut their doors tonon-citizens who have recently travelled to China. Vietnam has barred allflights to and from China, and Japan has barred foreigners who have recentlybeen to Hubei, the province at the centre of the outbreak.Mongolia and Russia have closed their land borders with China. North Koreahad been the first country to take this step.Several major businesses are temporarily cutting ties with China - Apple hasshut all 42 of its stores in the mainland, its third biggest market, whereit generates about a sixth of its global sales.But on the other hand, there are countries like Pakistan - as also southeastAsian nations such as Cambodia, Indonesia and Myanmar, where the responsehas been quieter, and where governments have, in fact, sought to downplaythe dangers of the outbreak.All these countries also have close dealings with China, and the stern gazeof Beijing is intimidating. China has been touchy about the outbreak, andhas described the US travel ban as "not in keeping with the facts" and not"in keeping with friendship".REPUBLICANS PREPARE TO DEFEND TRUMP'S EXPECTED ACQUITTALRepublicans prepared to defend their expected acquittal of President DonaldTrump, on Sunday's TV talk shows, after their Senate votes to reject witnesstestimony at his impeachment trial sparked criticism they were aiding acover-up and abdicating their duties.Criticism only intensified late Saturday after U.S. media reported that U.S.officials cited presidential privilege in redacting 24 emails related toTrump's hold on military assistance to Ukraine, an issue at the heart of hisimpeachment trial for abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.Trump on Saturday claimed his polling numbers were up after the Senate pavedthe way for his acquittal next Wednesday.BJP HAS ZERO TOLERANCE FOR TERRORISM, BUT KEJRIWAL SERVING BIRYANI INSHAHEEN BAGH: YOGI ADITYANATHShaheen Bagh, the epicentre of protests against the new Citizenship law inDelhi, was raked up by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath again onSunday at an election rally in Delhi's Badarpur. Adityanath said while BJPhad zero tolerance towards terrorism, Kejriwal was "busy sponsoring andoffering biryani in Shaheen Bagh".The UP CM, one of BJP's star campaigners, also sought to associate thescrapping of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370 withthe protests. "The Citizenship Amendment Act was only an excuse. Theprotests at Shaheen Bagh were against the abrogation of Article 370 in Jammuand Kashmir, and the construction of Lord Ram's temple in Ayodhya," he said."When provisions of Article 370 were scrapped, pain was felt in Pakistan andby Arvind Kejriwal," Adityanath further added.Kejriwal has been at the receiving end of attacks by BJP leaders, who havesought to link him to the protests at Shaheen Bagh. At all his four rallies,Adityanath had similar themes - biryani, bullets, Shaheen Bagh and Pakistan.The Aam Aadmi Party today urged the Election Commission to ban the UP CMfrom campaigning in the national capital for the upcoming elections over hisalleged provocative speeches.CONG PROMISES ALLOWANCE TO JOBLESSThe Congress on Sunday promised to implement unemployment allowance of Rs5,000-7,500 per month, cashback schemes for water and power consumers andchallenge the contentious CAA in the Supreme Court if voted to power inDelhi.The manifesto presented by Delhi Congress chief Subhash Chopra alsocommitted to spend 25 per cent Budget each year on fighting pollution andimproving transport facilities.The party has promised to provide free electricity up to 300 units permonth.He said the Congress would open 100 Indira canteens in the city to givesubsidised meals at Rs 15, Chopra said. An unemployment allowance of Rs5,000 for graduates and Rs 7,500 for post-graduates would be providedmonthly under the Yuva Swabhiman Yojana, he said.The announcements come in the backdrop of promises and initiatives by itsrivals AAP and BJP.EC MOVES OUT POLICE OFFICER IN CHARGE OF JAMIA, SHAHEEN BAGHThe Election Commission (EC) Sunday "relieved" DCP, South East Delhi,Chinmoy Biswal from his post, apparently for poor handling of incidents ofviolence near Jamia Millia Islamia and Shaheen Bagh in recent days.Additional DCP, South East, Kumar Gyanesh, will take charge, the EC said.The action followed a meeting of police officials with the EC on January 31,where the police officials are learnt to have been pulled up over handlingof the law and order situation, especially in Shaheen Bagh.Asked about the removal of Biswal, a senior EC officer admitted, "TheCommission felt that the recent situations (near Jamia Millia and ShaheenBagh) were not handled well."At the January 31 meeting, police sources said, "The Election Commissionsternly asked the Delhi Police about the first firing incident (near Jamia)and told them that it is was very shocking that someone had fired in frontof several policemen."The EC also frowned upon police not taking proactive action against AnuragThakur, Minister of State (Finance), and MP Parvesh Sahib Singh Verma forinflammatory poll speeches, putting the onus on the EC instead. "ECofficials reminded the Delhi Police that they have the power to take legalaction against anyone as per the Indian Penal Code, and they don't have towait for the Commission's directions," an officer said.LOGIC BEHIND NEW PERSONAL INCOME TAX OPTIONJustifying the introduction of new personal income tax slabs and rates,Revenue Secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey said yesterday that it was a move awayfrom an "inequitable direct tax regime" - and cited an analysis by hisdepartment that almost 92 per cent of those filing I-T returns availedexemptions of less than Rs 2 lakh.Less than 1 per cent of all tax filers, claimed deductions of over Rs 4lakh, according to the department's analysis.Pandey said the new structure addressed issues of equity, and that heexpected new entrants to the job market, small scale business owners andthose who have retired to move to the new regime."If you have a flat tax rate, it becomes inequitable in the way that you aretaxing the rich and poor. Having a few tax slabs also becomes inequitablebecause there is a sudden jump.and there will be a tendency to understateincome to get to a lower slab. Therefore, a progressive taxation system inincome tax is internationally considered to be one of the best practices.ifthe level of income inequality is high in a society, it is much more simpleand desirable to have multiple and graded income tax-structure," he said.MARKET DIP SURPRISING: NITI AAYOG VICE-CHAIRMANNiti Aayog Vice-Chairman Rajiv Kumar has expressed surprise over the stockmarket reacting negatively to the Budget proposals, saying investorsprobably expected some big bang reforms and ignored the initiatives towardsinvestment and growth.In an interview, he said the Budget had done nothing wrong, and it had"ticked all the boxes". Giving a thumbs down to the Budget, the marketbenchmark Sensex logged its biggest single-day plunge in more than a decade,wiping out Rs 3.46 lakh crore investors' wealth. "I am actually quitesurprised by the market's reactions yesterday, going down 1,000 points. Iwas trying to understand why did that happen," he said."My own thought is that market expected so-called big bang reforms and bybig bang reforms, normally everybody understands in India, a huge impetusfor consumption. And I think the best example of that was in 2008 Budgetwhich preceded the Lehman Brothers crisis," he said. Pointing out that theUPA-1 gave lot of sops in 2008 Budget because elections were due, Kumar saidit had resulted in ballooning of the fiscal deficit to 6 per cent in 2009from 2.5 per cent.DJOKOVIC IS AUS OPEN CHAMPNovak Djokovic was looking weary and worn down. He trailed Dominic Thiem inthe Australian Open final - miscues mounting, deficit growing. Djokovic didwhat he does, though. He refused to lose, waited for a chance to pounce andfound his best tennis when absolutely necessary.Regaining his stamina and strokes, Djokovic came back to edge Thiem 6-4 4-62-6 6-3 6-4 yesterday for an eighth Australian Open title, second in a row,and 17th Grand Slam trophy overall.Only Roger Federer, with 20, and Rafael Nadal, with 19, have won more men'sGrand Slam singles trophies. A little more than six months after saving apair of championship points against Federer en route to winning a five-setWimbledon final, Djokovic again showed that he can't ever be counted out.NZ WHITEWASHED 5-0 IN T20I SERIESJasprit Bumrah produced a master-class in limited-overs bowling to leadIndia to a seven-run victory over New Zealand in their fifth T20I and a 5-0sweep of the series.Bumrah had figures of 3/12 from four overs and clamped down on New Zealand'smiddle-order as they were building nicely towards India's total of 163/3.Ross Taylor (53) and Tim Seifert (50) had combined in a partnership thatlooked set to take them to a morale-boosting win before Bumrah came backinto the attack in the 12th over. The fast bowler put the hosts underimmediate pressure that dried up the runs and forced New Zealand to takerisks against the other bowlers.The hosts collapsed from 116/3 (needing 48 off 45 balls), to 133/8, whenTaylor was caught behind to effectively end their hopes. They finallyfinished their 20 overs at on 156/9.VIRAT KOHLI AND KANE WILLIAMSON'S COOL PIC GOES VIRALDespite India completing a whitewash against New Zealand, defeating theBlack Caps 5-0 in the T20I series, a moment of bonhomie between Virat Kohliand NZ skipper Kane Williamson on the sidelines at the Mount Maunganuistadium has gone viral.Both Kohli and Williamson, who did not play the fifth T20I, were resting andenjoying the game outside the boundary together along with Rishabh Pant. Asboth the skippers were seen heartily chatting while their teams battled onthe pitch, people on social media went berserk.BCCI shared the picture of both the skippers sitting by the edge of thefield along with Rishabh Pant with a hashtag 'Spirit of Cricket'.The camaraderie of the captains off the field won hearts online. While mostdubbed it as the "best picture of the series", others said it was a truedefinition of sportsman spirit.