12 PARTIES STAND UNITED AS CENTRE PUSHES THROUGH DELHI BILL

The controversial Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (Amendment) Bill, 2021, which seeks to make the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi equivalent to the Delhi government, was passed in Parliament Wednesday with the Rajya Sabha giving its nod — but not before it became a rallying point for the entire Opposition and saw regional parties uniting in a rare pushback against what they called an overweening Centre.

As many as 12 Opposition parties in Rajya Sabha and nine in Lok Sabha opposed the Bill. Outside the House, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who had slammed the Bill earlier as a move to undermine his government, described its passage as a “sad day.

In Rajya Sabha, 16 MPs from 14 parties participated in the discussion. In a show of unity, representatives from Congress, AAP, TMC, BJD, DMK, YSRCP, SP, CPI(M), Shiv Sena, SAD, TDP and NCP opposed the Bill, leaving only the BJP and ally RPI (A) in its favour. Boosting the Opposition ranks, YSRCP, which supported the Bill in the Lok Sabha, opposed it in the Upper House.

Although the Bill was passed in Rajya Sabha by 83 votes against 45, the proceedings also witnessed a walkout by the Congress, SP, YSRCP, BJD and AIADMK.

In the Lok Sabha, eight Opposition parties — AAP, BSP, Congress, IUML, NC, NCP, Shiv Sena and SP – had opposed the Bill, which was supported by BJP and YSRCP.

In all, 28 members participated in the discussions in both houses, of whom 22 supported the Bill.

INDUS COMMISSIONERS’ MEET CONCLUDES, PAKISTAN REQUESTS INFO ON HYDRO PROJECT PLANS

The two-day annual meeting between India and Pakistan under the Indus Waters Treaty concluded in New Delhi on Wednesday.

While the Indian side was led by Indus Commissioner Pradeep Kumar Saxena, the Pakistan delegation was led by its Indus Commissioner Syed Muhammad Meher Ali Shah.

“The meeting was held in a cordial manner. Both the Commissioners reaffirmed their commitment to interact more frequently in an attempt to resolve the issues by bilateral discussions under the Treaty,” the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement after the conclusion of the meeting. “It was agreed to hold the next meeting of the PIC [Permanent Indus Commission] in Pakistan on mutually convenient dates.”

According to the statement, discussions continued on designs of two Indian projects – Pakal Dul (1000 MW) and Lower Kalnai (48 MW).

“The Indian side held that these projects are fully compliant with the provisions of the Treaty and provided technical data in support of its position,” the MEA statement said. “Pakistan side requested India for sharing of information on the design of other Indian hydropower projects being planned to be developed. The Indian side assured that the information will be supplied as and when required to be supplied under the provisions of the Treaty.”

JUSTICE RAMANA LIKELY TO BE NEXT CHIEF JUSTICE OF INDIA, FROM 24th APRIL

Ahead of his retirement on April 23, Chief Justice of India SA Bobde has recommended the name of Justice NV Raman as his successor. CJI Bobde has sent a letter recommending Justice Ramana to be appointed as the 48th CJI to the Ministry of Law and Justice.

In the process, Bobde dismissed an unprecedented complaint against Ramana submitted by Andhra Pradesh chief minister Jaganmohan Reddy after an in-house investigation held the accusation to be “false, frivolous, baseless, motivated” and an attempt to “browbeat” the judiciary.

If appointed, Justice Ramana will retire on August 26, 2022.

There has been a convention of CJI recommending the senior-most judge of the Supreme Court as his successor. Only twice, it was not followed – first when Justice AN Ray was appointed as the CJI on April 25, 1973 superseding three senior-most judges and second time when Justice MH Beg was appointed the CJI on January 29, 1977 superseding Justice HR Khanna.

As per the Memorandum of Procedure governing the appointment of members of the higher judiciary, "appointment to the office of the Chief Justice of India should be of the senior-most judge of the Supreme Court considered fit to hold the office". Whenever there is any doubt about the fitness of the senior-most Judge to hold the office of the Chief Justice of India, consultation with other Judges...would be made for appointment of the next Chief Justice of India," the document reads.

‘DOUBLE MUTANT’ VARIANT FOUND, BUT NO LINK WITH SURGE

The government announced on Wednesday that a new “double mutant variant” of the novel coronavirus has been detected in the country, along with the three variants from the United Kingdom, South Africa, and Brazil. The government underlined, however, that the mutations have not been detected in numbers that would be “sufficient” to establish the rapid increase in cases in some states.

These variants detected in the community “have been prevalent since last 6-8 months”, the Centre said. “The occurrence of mutations is a natural process. The RNA strand of the virus will replicate and will make mistakes resulting in mutations. We should not worry about mutations,” Dr V K Paul, chairperson of India’s Covid-19 task force, said.

“However”, Dr Paul said, “the most important thing to remember is that viruses will not mutate if they are not allowed to replicate. Therefore, we have to only suppress the chain of transmission to stop mutations of the virus. Testing, quarantine, and containment will limit the spread of the virus”.

KEY COVID NUMBERS:

Current Active Cases Countrywide: 3,91,956

New Cases in last 24 hours: 53,411

Recovered in last 24 hours: 23,957

Increase in Active cases in last 24 hours: 26,575

No. of deaths in last 24 hours: 249

Most Affected States:

(S. No. / State / No. of Active Cases / New Cases in last 24 Hrs / Deaths in Last 24 Hrs)

S. No.   States  Active Cases                New Cases                   New Deaths

1          Maharashtra     2,47,299           /           ↑31,855 /           ↑95

2          Kerala              24,265  /           ↑2,456  /           ↑10

3          Punjab              20,522  /           ↑2,613  /           ↑39

4          Karnataka         16,886  /           ↑2,298  /           ↑12

5          Chhattisgarh     11,934  /           ↑2,106  /           ↑29

6          Madhya Prad    10,047  /           ↑1,712  /           ↑7

7          Tamil Nadu       9,746    /           ↑1,636  /           ↑12

8          Gujarat 8,823    /           ↑1,790  /           ↑8

9          Haryana           6,745    /           ↑981     /           ↑6

10        Delhi                4,890    /           ↑1,254  /           ↑6

11        Rajasthan         4,672    /           ↑669     /           ↑1

12        Uttar Pradesh   4,388    /           ↑734     /           ↑5

13        West Bengal     3,782    /           ↑462     /           ↑2

14        Telangana        3,352    /           ↑431     /           ↑2

15        Andhra Prad     2,946    /           ↑585     /           ↑4

16        Chandigarh       2,178    /           ↑249     /           ↑1

17        Him. Pradesh    1,654    /           ↑266     /           ↑2

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

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SUEZ CANAL BLOCKED AS HUGE VESSEL RUNS AGROUND

A huge container vessel has become grounded across Egypt's Suez Canal, blocking one of the world's busiest trade routes. Vessel's owner, Evergreen Marine said the ship was "suspected of being hit by a sudden strong wind, causing the hull to deviate... and accidentally hit the bottom and run aground".

Dozens of vessels are stuck, waiting for tugs to free the 400m-long vessel.

Egypt has reopened the canal's older channel to divert some traffic until the grounded ship can move again.

The blockage sent oil prices climbing on international markets.

The Ever Given was passing northwards through the canal on its way to the Mediterranean.

The 200,000 tonne ship, built in 2018 and operated by Taiwanese transport company Evergreen Marine, ran aground  on Tuesday.

Experts have warned that clearing the canal could take several days.

Eight tug boats are working to refloat the ship, and diggers on the ground have been removing sand from where it is wedged into the side of the canal bank.

N KOREA TESTS TWO MISSILES, BUT US PLAYS DOWN THREAT

North Korea fired two shortrange missiles at the weekend, but Washington played down the first such tests under President Joe Biden and said it was still open to dialogue with Pyongyang. The North Korean tests involved weapons systems at the low end of the spectrum that were not covered by UNSC testing bans, two US officials said. The launch marks North Korea’s first publicly known weapons test since Biden took office in January.

THE REST

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BIHAR POLICE BILL PASSED AMID PROTESTS IN HOUSE, OUTSIDE

Amid Uproarious scenes in the Assembly and heated protests outside by the Opposition against what it termed a “draconian” law, Bihar Special Armed Police Bill, 2021 was passed in the State Assembly Tuesday and will now be tabled in the Legislative Council.

As RJD legislators staged loud protests in the Assembly, even preventing the Speaker from entering the House at one point, Leader of Opposition and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, his brother and former minister Tej Pratap Yadav, and over 50 Opposition leaders, staged a protest at the busy Dak Bungalow crossing in Patna. The leaders later courted arrest after the police used water cannons to bring the situation under control.

The Bill seeks to convert the existing Bihar Military Police (BMO) into a special armed force that can be deployed to secure industrial units on the lines of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF). Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who holds the Home portfolio, has said that “a special trained force” is needed “in order to strengthen internal security”.

A government official told The Indian Express: “Bihar is surrounded by Nepal and three states — UP, West Bengal and Jharkhand — and also has several Naxal-infested areas, which is why the state needed such a force.” He said some other states have raised similar forces, patterned on the CISF.

But the Opposition pointed to the contentious Section 7 in the Bill that empowers the newly constituted force to arrest any person and search anyone’s premises without a warrant, on the basis of suspicion. Tejashwi Yadav said: “A careful reading of the proposed Bill and opinion of legal experts show the Bill can forfeit courts’ authority to take cognizance of complainants arrested by the proposed special armed police force.

ENSURE KUMBH DOES NOT TURN INTO COVID BREEDING GROUND: UTTARAKHAND HC

The Uttarakhand High Court on Wednesday directed the state government to ensure SOPs issued by authorities are strictly implemented so that the Kumbh Mela in Haridwar does not turn into a breeding ground for the spread of Covid-19.

The bench said in its order that alarm bells are ringing in some parts of the country that the pandemic is again raising its head. Some southern and northern states, like Rajasthan, have started imposing partial lockdown, it said. “This is a clear indication that we are again entering the phase where the country will face the Covid-19 pandemic. Therefore, the state government is expected to be vigilant and to ensure that the Mahakumbh mela does not turn into the breeding ground for the spread of Covid-19 pandemic,” reads the order.

BENGAL BJP CHIEF’S ‘WEAR BERMUDAS’ REMARK AT MAMATA SPARKS OUTRAGE

West Bengal BJP chief Dilip Ghosh's frontal attack on Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for highlighting her leg injury, made huge headlines. His comment - that the Chief Minister should wear bermudas if she wanted to display her legs - was slammed vehemently by Trinamool, with one of its leaders calling him a "pervert".

At a rally in Purulia yesterday, the state BJP chief said: "The plaster was cut and then a crepe bandage was put. And now she is displaying her leg to everyone. She is dressed in a saree but one of her legs is exposed. I have never seen anyone drape a saree like that. If you want to display your legs, why a saree, wear a pair of bermudas so everyone can have a good look."

Women leaders of the ruling Trinamool Congress were vocal in their outrage. Party MP Mohua Moitra, known for her outspoken remarks, was vehement.

"BJP West Bengal President asks in public meeting why Mamatadi is wearing a saree, she should be wearing 'Bermuda' shorts to display her leg better. And these perverted depraved monkeys think they are going to win Bengal?" read her tweet.

BJP BRINGING GOONS FROM UP, IN SAFFRON CLOTHES: MAMATA BANERJEE

Continuing her jibes against the BJP of being an “outsider”, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee Wednesday accused the party of “bringing goons” to West Bengal. Speaking at a rally in Bankura, one of her three meetings there Wednesday, she said, “They are bringing goons from UP on train, buses for Bengal polls. The ones in saffron clothes with tilak on their foreheads, chewing pan masala, they all are goons who have entered Bengal to destroy its culture.”

With Prime Minister Narendra Modi, at a rally in East Midnapore on Wednesday, asking how Mamata could talk about people being “bohiragoto (outsider)” in a land that brought India together under Vande Mataram, the CM said her reference was not to those who have been settled in Bengal for long. “There are many Gujaratis, Rajasthanis staying here.”

She also called Modi “the biggest liar”. “I respected the PM earlier, I still have respect for the chair, but I have never seen a bigger liar. Under his government, tribals, minorities, farmers, everyone has suffered,” Mamata said at Bishnupur. “It is because of the syndicate of Modi, Shah and Adani. They will loot all the money.”

Referring to the injury sustained by her in Nandigram, which she has called an attack on her, Mamata said, “With one leg I will hit such a shot that the BJP will be bowled out.”

SC REFUSES TO ENTERTAIN PARAM BIR SINGH’S PLEA

Refusing to entertain former Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh’s petition seeking an "unbiased, uninfluenced, impartial and fair" CBI probe into his allegations of corruption against Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh, the Supreme Court on Wednesday asked him to approach the Bombay High Court.

A Bench headed by Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul wondered why Singh didn’t approach the Bombay High Court and why the person against whom the petition has been filed (Deshmukh) was not made a party to the case.

“This is a matter of serious public interest for the whole nation. A police officer is transferred citing administrative grounds but the Home Minister himself said on TV that it’s not an administrative transfer… The entire State is rocked. Police reforms have not taken place,” senior counsel Mukul Rohatgi submitted on behalf of Singh.

“The point is simple. He (Singh) is making some allegations and the Minister is also making some allegations. I don't see a point why you should not move the high court,” Justice Kaul said, adding high courts have wider powers under Article 226 of the constitution.

As Rohatgi said the top court had entertained petitions under Article 32 on much lesser important issues,” the Bench shot back, “If you give a list of cases entertained under 32, I can also give cases we have relegated back to high courts.”

While agreeing with Rohatgi that it’s a serious matter, the top court said, “The high court can deal with it.”

Meanwhile, the NIA has slapped charges under the stringent UAPA against the arrested-suspended Mumbai Police Assistant Police Inspector Sachin Vaze, officials said on Wednesday.

The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad, which is probing the businessman Mansukh Hiran’s death in the same case, was planning to seek Vaze’s custody on Thursday.

Earlier this week, the ATS had announced that it had cracked the Hiran case with the arrest of two persons and was in the process of winding up the probe into the mystery death of Hiran, whose body was recovered from the Thane Creek wetlands on March 5. However, at a hearing yesterday, Thane Chief Judicial Magistrate P.P. Ingale directed the ATS to hand over to the NIA all the case papers pertaining to the Hiran death case, as per the Centre’s directives.

CCI RED-FLAGS WHATSAPP'S UPDATED PRIVACY POLICY

Fair trade regulator CCI on Wednesday directed its investigation arm to conduct a probe into WhatsApp's updated privacy policy and terms of service on prima facie finding that the firm has contravened competition law provisions through its "exploitative and exclusionary conduct" in the garb of the policy update.

A thorough and detailed investigation is required to ascertain the full extent, scope and impact of data sharing through involuntary consent of users, the regulator said.

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) directed its investigation arm to complete the investigation and submit a report within 60 days.

The order against WhatsApp LLC and parent Facebook Inc came after the Commission took suo moto cognisance of the matter on considering media reports and the potential impact of the policy and terms for WhatsApp users and the market.

On a careful and thoughtful consideration of the matter, the conduct of WhatsApp in sharing of users' personalised data with other Facebook companies, in a manner that is neither fully transparent nor based on voluntary and specific user consent, appears prima facie "unfair to users", CCI said.

DREAM11’S VALUATION NEARS $5BN ON $400MN FUND-RAISE

Dream Sports, which owns online fantasy gaming platform Dream11, has closed a $400-million funding round led by marquee global technology investors like TCV (an early investor in Netflix), D1 Capital Partners, and Falcon Edge. After this funding, Dream11’s valuation has shot up to nearly $5 billion — almost doubling in six months.

Dream11 has hit another milestone of having 100 million users — a first for a fantasy gaming firm in India, says company founder and CEO Harsh Jain . He said the latest investment is the single-largest one in the Indian online gaming ecosystem and a testimony to its growth potential.

Dream Sports has turned profitable, Jain said.  He, however, ruled out an IPO any time soon, unlike some of the other Indian startups aiming to go public in 2021 or 2022.

INDICATORS

Sensex 49,180 (-871), Nifty 14,549 (-265), Trading Value NSE (Rs.crores) 58196.14

Nasdaq 12,962 (-266) Dow 32,420 (-3), S&P 3,889 (-21)

US$-Rs. 72.78 GBP-Rs. 99.77, Euro-Rs. 86.09, UAE Dhm-Rs.19.81, Can$-Rs. 57.85, Aus$- Rs. 55.34

GBP 0.72 /US$, Euro 0.84 /US$, Jap.Yen 108.67 /US$, Aus$ 1.31 /US$, Sing 1.34 /US$, Bang Taka 83.28 /US$, Can$ 1.25 /US$, Mal Ring 4.12 /US$,

Pak Re 155.51 /US$, Phil Peso 48.61 /US$, Russian Rouble 76.33 /US$, NZ$ 1.43 /US$, Thai Baht 30.97 /US$, Ukraine Hryvnia 27.65 /US$

Bitcoin - USD 52,424

Dollar Index 92.54 Brent Crude 63.46  BDI 2,271

Gold world Spot Price USD/aoz 1,734 India (Rs. per gm 24k/22k) 4,502 / 4,402, Silver (Rs. Per KG)

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony. - Mahatma Gandhi

OFF TRACK

Jim was annoyed when his blonde wife told him that a car had backed into her, damaging a fender, and that she hadn't gotten the license number.

"What kind of car was he driving?" he asked.

"I don't know," she said. "I never can tell one car from another."

At that, Jim decided the time had come for a learning course, and for the next few days, whenever they were driving, he made her name each car they passed until he was satisfied that she could recognize every make.

It worked. About a week later she bounded in with a pleased expression on her face. "Darling," she said. "Today I hit a Toyota!"