OPPOSITION MPS TEAR INTO GOVT: DON'T HIDE FAILURES WITH DIVISIVE ISSUESAn unprecedented 431 amendments, running into 44 pages, were moved in RajyaSabha to the Motion of Thanks to the President's address by 12 MPs,including those from the Congress, TMC, Samajwadi Party, DMK, CPI and theCPM.Among the amendments are those moved by Congress's Digvijaya Singh andMadhusudan Mistry that regret the fact that the President's address fails tomention the resentment caused by the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, the NRC,and the NPR.Singh moved one on the lack of mention of the incarceration of former Jammuand Kashmir chief ministers and how "social tensions and economic policiesled to lower GDP and loss of employment". Mistry moved an amendment onfailure to recognise the plight of Muslims in India and their dismalsocioeconomic conditions.These amendments do not make any material difference to the government'sfunctioning. But it is an embarrassment for the government that Rajya Sabhaexpresses regret to the President's speech, which was drafted by thegovernment. This is a tool used by the Opposition to express strongdifferences with the ruling party.Leader of Opposition in the Upper House, Congress's Ghulam Nabi Azad,accused the government of using "divisive" issues such as CAA, triple talaqlaw and abrogation of Article 370 to steer public attention away from its"failures" to create 10 crore jobs, bringing back black money, and keepingits promise of giving Rs 15 lakh to every citizen.OPPN TALKS PREAMBLE, FORGOT TO READ UCC, COW PROTECTION, RETORTS BJPAccusing opposition parties of "engineering" the protests against CAA, NRCand NPR at Delhi's Shaheen Bagh, BJP members in Rajya Sabha, speaking duringthe discussion on the Motion of Thanks to the President's address, onTuesday said that the Opposition, in its predilection for reading thePreamble of the Constitution, had failed to read Articles that deal withimplementation of Uniform Civil Code in the country and the State'sobligation of prevent cow slaughter.Opening speaker, Union minister Bhupendra Yadav listed achievements of theNDA government over the last six years, which he said tried to "takeeveryone forward" while the Opposition created an "atmosphere ofdivisiveness". He said: "You changed the Constitution and implementedEmergency (in 1975), but now you have developed this habit of reading thePreamble. I would urge you to also read Article 44, which deals with UniformCivil Code, or Article 48 on prevention of cow slaughter. But without doingthat you are raising a hue and cry about Article 370 (which provided specialstatus to erstwhile state of J&K), which was a temporary provision.. Youprofess faith in the Constitution, yet you changed its Preamble."The BJP, Yadav said, "kept losing elections from 1950s to 1990s but we neverquestioned the electoral process. You raise questions on EVMs the moment youlose."Citing the presence of Congress leaders such as Digvijaya Singh, ShashiTharoor and AAP's local MLA Amanatullah at Shaheen Bagh, Yadav said:"Clearly you are giving moral, if not other kind of support to theprotesters. "You are free to go there but did you try to tell them that this(CAA) will not affect them?"GOVT PUTS IT ON RECORD: NO NRC DECISION YETWith protests against the CAA and proposed NRC marking two months next week,the government reiterated in Lok Sabha Tuesday that it has not taken anydecision on a countrywide NRC.It also moved to allay fears over personal data being collected for thepre-Census updation of the National Population Register (NPR) by makingclear that no document will be collected during the exercise - and thatproviding Aadhaar number would be voluntary.Replying to a written question on NRC, MoS (Home) Nityanand Rai said: "Tillnow, the government has not taken any decision to prepare the NationalRegister of Indian Citizens at the national level."Doubts have persisted given repeated references to NRC, including by AmitShah. The latest reply in House has formalised PM's assurance.On December 22, 2019, Modi had said at the Ramlila Maidan: "First, see ifanything has happened on NRC. Lies are being spread. From the time mygovernment came to power in 2014 till today, I want to tell this truth to130 crore people of this country, that there has been no discussion on NRC.No talk at all."Before this, Home Minister Amit Shah had said on multiple occasions that NRCwould be implemented across the country. Even during the debate on theCitizenship (Amendment) Bill in Lok Sabha on December 9, Shah said: "We willbring the NRC across the country. Not a single infiltrator will be spared."After Modi's assurance at the Ramlila Maidan, however, Shah said there wasno plan for a nationwide NRC yet.BALL IS NOW IN YOUR COURT: FM SITHARAMAN EXHORTS INDIA INC TO INVEST MOREFinance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday exhorted India Inc to shedits hesitation and make investments to push up economic growth, saying thegovernment had taken several pro-business measures such as reduction incorporation tax rates, removing minimum alternate tax in the new taxstructure, and scrapping dividend distribution tax."We have done whatever little we can. We are ready to do more. But I wantmeaningful interventions from the government and not the ones which areirrelevant to the ground situation. Now, we expect you to be an equal engineto pull the economy forward," she said at a post-Budget interaction,organised by the CII.Sitharaman said government spending alone could not pull the economy towardsthe growth rates that all wanted in today's conditions. "Critics say thegovernment has reduced corporation tax rates, but where are the investments?It is six months now," she said, apparently nudging the captains of industryto pump money into the economy.The FM said it was the choice of the corporate where to use the money whichit got after the government's decisions. "Each one of us has to becomeengine of growth. Enterprise spirit is yours, we are facilitators," sheadded.TURKEY, RUSSIA CAN TACKLE SYRIA ESCALATION 'WITHOUT ANGER': ERDOGANPresident Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday that Turkey and Russia shouldresolve differences over the conflict in Syria's Idlib without anger, aftera deadly flare-up in violence challenged the fragile cooperation betweenMoscow and Ankara.The two countries support opposing sides in Syria's nearly nine-year war, aswell as in Libya's escalating conflict, but have worked together to containsome of the bloodshed and have forged close defence ties in recent years.An attack by Russian-backed Syrian government forces that killed eightTurkish military personnel on Monday posed the biggest challenge toRussian-Turkish ties since their 2018 deal to stem fighting in Syria'snorthwest Idlib region.Erdogan told Russian forces on Monday there to "stand aside" while Turkeystruck dozens of targets in retaliation. Moscow and Ankara then argued aboutwhether Turkey had told Russia it was sending waves of reinforcements intoIdlib."There is no need for us to be engaged in a conflict or a seriouscontradiction with Russia at this stage," he was quoted as telling reporterson a flight from Ukraine."We will of course sit down and discuss everything. Not with anger, though.Because those who sit down with anger, get up with losses," Erdogan added.PAKISTAN WILL 'COMPENSATE' MALAYSIA BY BUYING MORE PALM OIL AFTER INDIAWITHDRAWS: IMRAN KHANPakistan will do its best to buy more palm oil from Malaysia after top buyerIndia put curbs on such imports last month amid a diplomatic row with theSoutheast Asian nation, Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Tuesday.India has put general restrictions on refined palm oil imports andinformally asked traders specifically to stop buying from Malaysia, theworld's second-biggest producer and exporter of the edible oil, inretaliation for Malaysia's accusation that recent Indian policiesdiscriminate against Muslims.Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said he discussed palm oil withMr. Khan - in Malaysia on a state visit - and that Pakistan had indicated itwould import more from Malaysia."That's right, especially since we noticedIndia threatened Malaysia for supporting the Kashmir cause, threatened tocut palm oil imports," Imran Khan told a joint news conference, referring toIndia's Muslim-majority region of Kashmir."Pakistan will do its best to compensate for that."Pakistan bought 1.1 million tonnes of palm oil from Malaysia last year,while India bought 4.4 million tonnes, according to the Malaysian Palm OilCouncil.DELHI NEEDS GOVT THAT BACKS CAA: PM MODIAddressing his second election rally in Delhi, PM Narendra Modi todayaccused AAP of stalling Centre's pro-poor works and doubting surgicalstrikes against Pakistan, even as he invoked the Batla House encounter totarget the Congress."Delhi needs a government that will not resort to appeasement but willsupport CAA, abolition of Article 370 and issues related to nationalsecurity. Remember the kind of statements made by people sitting in thisgovernment after the surgical and airstrikes? Are you not angry about that?This anger should be expressed on February 8."These people can cry for terrorists of Batla House and put security forcesin the dock to support them, but cannot develop Delhi," he said. "You mustpunish those who insulted the armed forces. You should vent your angerthrough your vote," he said. Training guns at AAP, he said Delhi needed agovernment that would give a direction.During his second rally, he made no mention of Shaheen Bagh, a major issuein the Delhi elections. but said that lies were being spread on the CAA. Heaccused CM Arvind Kejriwal of having stalled Centre's pro-poor schemes.DECLARE CM CANDIDATE BY 1PM TOMORROW': KEJRIWAL SETS DEADLINE FOR BJPWith just three days left for the Delhi Assembly elections, Aam Aadmi Party(AAP) national convener Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday challenged the BJP toannounce its chief ministerial candidate by 1 pm on Wednesday and said he isready for a public debate with the prospect.Kejriwal said if the BJP doesn't declare its candidate by then, he will meetthe press to announce his next course of action."Delhiites want the BJP to declare its chief ministerial candidate and I amready for a debate with him," he said after the AAP launched its manifestofor the February 8 elections.He said people want to know who would be the BJP's chief ministerial face,claiming people are saying why they should vote for the BJP if it does nothave the CM candidate.Kejriwal's comments on the day his party released its manifesto for theassembly polls.The AAP chief said the BJP can decide the place for the debate, adding thatin a democracy, people should have a chance to ask a question. Bywithholding the name of its chief ministerial candidate, senior BJP leaderand Union Home Minister Amit Shah is demanding a "blank cheque" from thepeople of Delhi, he said. Shah is telling people he will fill up the name ofthe chief minister on the cheque later, if the saffron party gets Delhi'smandate, Kejriwal said."In a democracy, the chief minister is chosen by people, not by Amit Shah.What if Amit Shah names some uneducated person for the CM's post, which willbe a betrayal to the people of Delhi," the AAP chief said. "I ask peopleeverywhere that your one vote will directly go to Kejriwal. People want toknow where their vote will go if they support the BJP in the election. Ifthey don't have a chief ministerial candidate, it means people's vote forBJP will go waste," he said.I-T DEPT DIGS UP DIRT AGAINST EC ASHOK LAVASACash deposits amounting to Rs 4.93 lakh after demonetisation; Rs 46.65 lakhpaid in cash for construction of a building in Gurgaon; a payment of Rs 9.57lakh to the builder routed through the bank account of a domestic help -these are the allegations in a report of the Income Tax (I-T) Department oncomplaints of tax evasion by members of the family of Election Commissioner(EC) Ashok Lavasa.In the last six months, his wife Novel Singhal Lavasa, an ex-banker, sisterShakuntala Lavasa, a paediatrician, and son Abir Lavasa have been served I-Tnotices.As one of the three ECs, Ashok Lavasa, on five occasions, opposed the cleanchit given to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and former BJP president AmitShah on charges of violating the Model Code of Conduct during the Lok Sabhaelections.POLICE SAY SHAHEEN BAGH GUNMAN HAD JOINED AAP, PARTY HITS BACKSetting off a fresh political row four days before the national capitalvotes, the Delhi Police Tuesday said the man arrested for firing twice inthe air at the Shaheen Bagh protest site on February 1 had joined the AamAadmi Party last year.The police claim drew a sharp reaction from the AAP which said Union HomeMinister Amit Shah was directly behind the "conspiracy". The Delhi Policereports to the Ministry of Home Affairs. The AAP said it plans to approachthe Election Commission against DCP (Crime Branch) Rajesh Deo who announcedthe shooter's alleged links to the party."We have recovered photos which show that a year ago, Kapil Baisala (theshooter) and his father had joined AAP. Further investigation is on," DCPDeo said. "Photographs were deleted from his phone, but we recovered themwith help from technical experts. When we had questioned him initially, hehad told us he joined AAP in the first part of 2019. We are trying toestablish the exact date. There are photos that establish this and he hasagreed to these photos."Asked why Kapil's political links were being divulged days before the polls,Deo said, "Pictures were not released by us; several media houses hadapproached me and asked for confirmation, which I gave. I shared detailsabout him during the general briefing and will investigate all facts as itis a very sensitive matter."FACIAL RECOGNITION IN CIVIC POLLS YIELD GOOD RESULTThe Telangana State Election Commission has come out with the results of the"Facial Recognition" trials it conducted during the recently held civic bodyelections.According to the data released, the tests have yielded an accuracy of 80 percent meaning that eight in every 10 people were correctly recognised by theapplication used on a mobile phone.Telangana was the first state to use this technology on an experimentalbasis in 10 selected polling stations. Though, objected to by the All IndiaMajlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) on grounds of intrusion of privacy, thestate election commission went ahead with the pilot project and has said "itis happy with the results"."In future elections, we are likely to extend the pilot project to morepolling booths to eliminate bogus voting completely", a senior official saidadding, "Result have been very encouraging with accuracy up to 80 per centdespite the presence of adverse conditions like poor lighting. The photos ofelectors were fed into the phones and then the app compared the photo withthe real voter to verify the authenticity."The data collected in the polls on January 22 was deleted after the pollsafter tabulating the results, the official said.10% TDS ONLY ON DIVIDEND PAYMENT BY MUTUAL FUNDS, CLARIFIES CBDTMutual fund (MF) players that were expecting investor outflows overuncertainty on tax deducted at source (TDS) on capital gains were relievedafter the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) on Tuesday clarified that theproposal would only be limited to dividend payouts.The statement from the CBDT read: "A mutual fund shall be required to deductTDS at 10 per cent only on dividend payment and no tax shall be required tobe deducted on income which is in the nature of capital gains".The MF industry had sought clarification from the government on whether theproposal would apply to investor redemptions, as uncertainty could have ledto investors exiting before April 1, when the proposal came into effect.Industry players said lack of clarity on how officials would categoriseincome from MF units was the primary reason for the uncertainty. Further,experts said calculating capital gains would have been operationallychallenging.MUMBAI OPENERS TAKE INDIA TO U-19 WORLD CUP FINALSHaving been deflated with a collapse of 6 for 26, Pakistan Under-19 couldpose no challenge to the India Under-19 opening pair of Yashasvi Jaiswal andDivyaansh Saxena, who shared an unbeaten stand of 176 to lead the defendingchampions to a thumping ten-wicket win in the first semi-final of theUnder-19 World Cup in Potchefstroom. India's victory took them to theirthird straight final and closer to a fifth Under-19 World Cup title; theywill play the winner of New Zealand and Bangladesh in the final on February9. Jaiswal reached his first hundred in the tournament with a six to sealIndia's win while Saxena remained unbeaten on 59.Pakistan's collapse began in the 35th over, with the score at 146 for 4.India's chase started with caution, with Saxena and Jaiswal scoring at underfour per over for the first 15 overs. They played out the new ball underovercast conditions with a strong crosswind blowing across the ground,offering no chance for Pakistan to come back into the game via an earlywicket.The game had the best attendance of all the matches in the tournament thusfar, with Pakistan supporters twice as many as India's. Chants, both of thefriendly and not-so-friendly kind, rang through the JB Marks Oval from bothsides, the Pakistani voices diminishing as the game progressed.