LS CLEARS CRIMINAL PROCEDURE BILL, OPPN DUBS IT 'DRACONIAN'

There is no intention to misuse the provisions of Criminal Procedure (Identification) Bill, which is meant to ensure that police and investigators are two steps ahead of criminals, Home Minister Amit Shah told Lok Sabha, which passed the draft legislation on Monday.

Shah said it is about safeguarding “human rights of the victims of crimes, and not just criminals”.

“Next-generation crimes cannot be tackled with old techniques; we have to try to take criminal justice system to the next era,” said Shah.

Taking part in the debate on the Bill, Opposition MPs called its provisions “draconian” and demanded that it be referred to a Parliamentary standing committee.

Several Opposition members raised concern over the broad provisions in the Bill that empowers head constable of a police station or head warden of a jail to take “measurements” of convicts and those in preventive detention.

Calling it “draconian and against civil liberties”, Congress’s Manish Tewari said it is against the spirit of Articles 14, 19 and 21 of the Constitution, dealing with human rights and civil liberties. “It is also against the widely accepted dictum that everyone should be treated innocent unless proven guilty. The provisions of the Bill are very wide and ambiguous, and can be misused by the state and the police,” he said. The Bill will pave the way for India to become a surveillance state, Tewari said.

Dayanadhi Maran of DMK accused the govt of trying to establish a surveillance state. He said, “It is open-ended and infringes on privacy of individuals.”

TMC’s Mahua Moitra said the Bill seeks to replace the Identification of Prisoners Act, 1920, but the proposed law has fewer safeguards than the law enacted by the British. In the absence of a data protection law, Moitra said, the proposed measure lacks safeguards to ensure that the information collected is protected well, and could lead to violation of the privacy of an individual who has not been convicted.

Referring to concerns raised by the Opposition, Shah said such provisions exist in countries such as the UK, South Africa and others, where the rate of prosecution of criminals is much higher than in India. “Don’t be scared of database…the whole world is using database,” he said. The database has been in use for two-and-a-half years to solve crimes, including automobile thefts, he said.

INDIA HIGHEST FDI RECEIVER, INFLOWS REMAIN UNABATED: FM NIRMALA SITHARAMAN

Foreign direct investment inflows into India have remained unabated before and during Covid and India remains the highest FDI receiver, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in Lok Sabha on Monday.

She was responding to concerns of Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, who earlier flagged the withdrawal of FIIs from India for the sixth straight month and asked her what the govt was doing to arrest the decline.

"Investments will have to be gauged not just by looking at Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) and Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) which by their very nature depend on the interest rates and keep fluctuating. I am sure the MP who has held positions abroad will understand that FIIs and FPIs can be very tempted by interest rates elsewhere and prospects anywhere else. What is to be looked at with fairness and objectivity is the inflow of FDIs which is unabated and India is the highest receiver since before Covid. It continues significantly during Covid and subsequently also. It is that which indicates if the money coming in is staying invested thereby creating jobs and prospects for us and not by indicating only FIIs and FPIs," Sitharaman said.

She said the FIIS and FPIs may come and go but today the Indian retail investors have proven that even if they come and go, any shock that may come is taken care of due to the shock-absorbing capacity the Indian retailer has brought into the Indian market. "We as a house should stand up and appreciate the Indian retailer who has invested a lot of confidence in the stock market today in India," the FM said.

HDFC ‘FINDS A HOME’ IN HDFC BANK

India’s largest housing finance company, HDFC Ltd, will merge with the largest private sector bank in the country, HDFC Bank, to create an entity with a combined balance sheet of ₹17.87-lakh crore and net worth of ₹3.3-lakh crore.

While HDFC Bank will continue to be the second-largest lender in the country after State Bank of India, its size following the merger would be twice that of ICICI Bank, the third largest lender.

The closing of the deal is expected to be achieved within 18 months, subject to regulatory approvals.

The equity shares held by HDFC in HDFC Bank will be extinguished as per the scheme. the share swap ratio has been fixed at 1.68 shares of HDFC Bank for every share of HDFC.

S&P Global Ratings said the merger will raise HDFC Bank’s loans by 42 per cent to ₹18-lakh crore, also increasing its market share to about 15 per cent, from 11 per cent at present.

Investors were clearly enthused by the announcement as HDFC scrip closed 9.3 per cent higher at ₹2,678.9 a piece on BSE while HDFC Bank ended at a gain of 9.97 per cent at ₹1,656.45 apiece.

SRI LANKA OPPN REJECTS PRESIDENT'S UNITY GOVT OFFER

Sri Lanka's opposition has dismissed President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's invitation to join a unity govt as "nonsensical" and instead demanded he resigns over the country's worsening shortages of food, fuel and medicines.

Mr Rajapaksa's overture came as armed troops looked to quell more demonstrations over what the govt acknowledges is the country's worst economic crisis since independence from Britain in 1948.

Every member of Sri Lanka's cabinet except the president and his elder brother, Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, resigned late Sunday.

COVID DASHBOARD – INDIA

As of 0800 IST / April 5

from mohfw.gov.in ,

New Cases on Monday 795

Active Cases 12,054 (-543)

Total Deaths (Deaths Yesterday) 5,21,416 (2)

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

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US REJECTS IMRAN KHAN CLAIMS, SAYS IT SUPPORTS ‘CONSTITUTIONAL PROCESS’

Accused directly by Pakistan’s PM Imran Khan of trying to oust him from power, the US on Monday rejected the charges — including Khan’s naming of a state department official who he said was trying to engineer a regime change — while expressing support for a constitutional process and rule of law in the country. “There is no truth to these allegations. We respect and support Pakistan’s constitutional process and the rule of law,” a state department spokesperson said.

Earlier, Imran Khan dropped all pretense of the US role he had alleged by euphemistically referring to a “foreign power”. In a meeting with his partymen, he directly named Donald Lu, the assistant secretary of state for South and Central Asia, as the person who had purportedly sought a regime change in Islamabad if ties between the US and Pakistan were to improve.

While Khan initially alleged there was a “letter” to this effect, it transpires that what he was referring to were minutes of a meeting Lu purportedly had with the Pakistani envoy, which Khan’s critics say could well have been the interpretation of the ambassador of Lu’s assessment of the situation. In fact, according to Pakistani analysts, the so-called “letter” from the ambassador on minutes of the meeting itself is doctored because it is dated March 7, whereas the US official’s engagement with the Pakistani envoy was on March 16, following which the ambassador even thanked him for his “perspectives”.

President Arif Alvi issued an order de-notifying Imran Khan as the prime minister of the country with immediate effect on Sunday night. Imran will continue as the PM till the appointment of a caretaker in consultation with leader of the opposition in the National Assembly (NA) Shehbaz Sharif.

Shehbaz, however, declared that he would not take part in the process and termed it “illegal”. He said that the president and the PM had broken the law.

WEST MULLS MORE SANCTIONS ON MOSCOW, POSSIBLY ON ENERGY SECTOR TOO

Global outrage spread on Monday at civilian killings in Ukraine, where a mass grave and tied bodies shot at close range were found in a town taken back from Russian troops, as Moscow shifted the focus of the fighting elsewhere. The deaths in Bucha, outside Kyiv, looked set to galvanise the US and Europe into additional sanctions against Moscow, possibly including some on the billions of dollars in energy that Europe still imports from Russia.

US President Joe Biden on Monday called for war crimes trial against Russia President Vladimir Putin and said he’d seek more sanctions.

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky lambasted the former leaders of Germany and France, Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy, in a video address released late on Sunday, seemingly blaming them for the deaths of Ukrainian civilians. “I invite Ms. Merkel and Mr. Sarkozy to visit Bucha, to see what the policy of 14 years of concessions to Russia has led to,” Zelensky said, referring to the Kyiv suburb where images surfaced of bodies lying in the streets after Russian forces withdrew. Later, he insisted that he did not blame the West or anyone else except the Russians. “But we have the right to talk about indecision. ”

Zelensky was speaking, he said, on the 14th anniversary of the 2008 Nato summit in Bucharest, Romania, where, after an internal debate, Nato members decided against offering a membership action plan to Georgia and Ukraine, but promised them membership at some point in the future.

CHINA EXTENDS LOCKDOWN IN SHANGHAI, SENDS IN MILITARY, DOCS

Shanghai will remain under lockdown as it reviews results of an exercise to test all of its 26 million residents for Covid-19, authorities said on Monday. The city began its two-stage lockdown on March 28, initially in Shanghai’s eastern districts, and later expanded to cover the whole city.

The curbs, which have massively disrupted daily life and business operations in China's financial hub, were initially scheduled to end at 5am local time on Tuesday.

The country sent the military and thousands of healthcare workers into Shanghai to help carry out Covid-19 tests for all of its 26 million residents on Monday.

THE REST

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RUNNING OUT OF TIME, CLIMATE ACTION FEASIBLE AND AFFORDABLE, SAYS IPCC

Stressing on stronger action in the near term, the Intergovtal Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) said that global greenhouse emissions needed to peak by 2025 “at the latest” if the world wanted to restrict temperature rise to within 1.5 degree Celsius from pre-industrial times.

Further, global emissions would have to be reduced by 43 per cent from current levels by the year 2030 in order to meet the 1.5 degree Celsius target, it said.

In its latest assessment report released on Monday, the IPCC has provided an assessment of actions that are being taken, and where they will take us in the fight against climate change.

Also, it has evaluated the different options available to achieve the global goals of keeping temperature rises within agreed levels. The IPCC pointed out that many effective methods to scale up climate actions were not only available but also “feasible” and affordable, even though these varied across sectors and regions.

VINAY MOHAN KWATRA SUCCEEDS SHRINGLA AS FOREIGN SECRETARY

The govt on Monday named Vinay Mohan Kwatra, India’s ambassador to Nepal, as the next Foreign Secretary. He succeeds Harsh Vardhan Shringla, who retires at the end of the month. Kwatra, a 1988-batch Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer, has been posted in Indian diplomatic Missions in Washington, China and Uzbekistan besides serving in the Prime Minister’s Office. Before his appointment as Ambassador to Nepal in 2020, he served as Indian envoy to France from August 2017 to February 2020. Kwatra supersedes two diplomats — High Commissioner to the UK Gaitri Issar Kumar and Ambassador to Bhutan Ruchira Kamboj.

BENGALURU OR HYDERABAD? ENTREPRENEUR’S TWEET TRIGGERS CHALLENGE OF SORTS

On March 30, Ravish Naresh, the CEO and co-founder of Khata Book, had complained about the poor basic infrastructure in Bengaluru. He had tweeted: “Startups in HSR/Koramangala (India’s Silicon Valley) are already generating billions of $ of taxes. Yet we have bad roads, almost daily power cuts, poor quality water supply, unusable footpaths. Many rural areas now have better basic infra than India’s Silicon Valley. Also the nearest airport is ~3hrs away in peak traffic.”

Responding to Naresh’s tweet, K T Rama Rao invited the entrepreneur to Telangana, whose capital Hyderabad is a major technology industry center too.

“Pack your bags & move to Hyderabad!,” the Telangana minister tweeted. “We have better physical infrastructure & equally good social infrastructure. Our airport is 1 of the best & getting in & out of the city is a breeze. More importantly our govt’s focus is on 3-i Mantra; innovation, infrastructure & inclusive growth.”

As the entrepreneur’s tweet went viral, Karnataka Congress leader D K Shivakumar, too, stepped in, replying to K T Rama Rao’s tweet: “My friend, I accept your challenge. By the end of 2023, with the Congress back in power in Karnataka, we will restore the glory of Bengaluru as India’s best city.”

Rao replied again, saying let Hyderabad and Bengaluru compete healthily. “Dear @DKShivakumar Anna, I don’t know much about politics of Karnataka & who will win but challenge accepted… Let Hyderabad & Bengaluru compete healthily on creating jobs for our youngsters & prosperity for our great nation,” he tweeted.

Defending Karnataka, BJP leader and the state’s IT and Biotechnology Minister, C N Ashwath Narayan, however, said his state is competing globally.

IIT GRAD INJURES COPS AT GORAKHNATH TEMPLE; FATHER SAYS HE’S MENTALLY UNSTABLE

An IIT graduate attacked two policemen with a sharp-edged weapon at a gate of the famed Gorakhnath temple and tried to barge into premises before being overpowered, Uttar Pradesh officials said Monday terming it a 'terror incident'.

The attack occurred on Sunday evening at the temple which is under high security as it is frequently visited by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, who is the head seer.

The accused, identified as Murtaza Abbasi, was arrested and has been sent to judicial remand for two weeks, police said and alleged that he tried to forcibly enter the temple, which was teeming with devotees during the Navratri festival, after raising the religious slogan of 'Allahu Akbar'.

Videos shared on social media showed the man brandishing a large sickle and roaming around on the premises, as some took cover while others threw stones at him. Soon a group a devotees along with security personnel surrounded him and pinned him to the ground.

His father Munir Abbasi said Murtaza belonged to the 2015 batch of IIT-Mumbai and was a chemical engineer. Speaking to a TV channel, he claimed that his son was mentally unstable and that this should be taken into account.

MEAT SHOPS SHOULD BE SHUT DURING NAVRATRI: SOUTH, EAST DELHI MAYORS

Meat shops in Delhi should be shut during the "auspicious period of Navratri devoted to Goddess Durga", the South Delhi Municipal Corporation said Monday, adding that devotees during these nine days avoid eating meat and certain spices.

The East Delhi Municipal Corporation Mayor Shyam Sundar Agarwal made the same demand and said "closing of meat shops will make us happy during this festival".

"During Navratri days, people visit temple to pay their respect to the Goddess and to seek blessings for themselves and their families. In these days people forgo even use of onion and garllic in their diet and the sight of meat being sold in open or near temples makes them uncomfortable," South Delhi Mayor Mukkesh Suryaan said in his letter.

The Mayor said the "religious beliefs and sentiments" of devotees are also affected when they come across meat shops on their daily visits to the temple. They also have to contend with the "foul smell", he said.

The 9-day Navratri festival began on April 2.

BHARAT BIOTECH TO RECTIFY ISSUES RAISED BY WHO ON COVAXIN SOON

Bharat Biotech will rectify the issues raised by the World Health Organization regarding its COVID-19 vaccine– Covaxin– in a few days and added that the company has informed about this development to the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI).

Media reports suggest that WHO's suspension is not related to safety or efficacy issues but limited only to supply for United Nations agencies.

Bharat Biotech has further said that the company is slowing down the Covaxin production for facility optimization and the company will focus on pending facility maintenance, process and facility optimization activities. It hopes to rectify the issues pointed out by WHO in 15 to 20 days.

There is no reason to worry while undertaking international travel if one is vaccinated with Covaxin, particularly in view of the latest WHO orders suspending Covaxin purchase, a health ministry official said.

IPL MATCH 12: LSG DEFEND 169 AGAINST SRH

Avesh Khan excelled with the ball to lift Lucknow Super Giants to a thrilling 12-run victory against Sunrisers Hyderabad in their IPL 2022 match at the DY Patil stadium in Navi Mumbai on Monday.

Avesh -- the most expensive uncapped player in the history of IPL at Rs. 10 crore, bowled a fine spell in the death overs to finish with a career-best 4/24 as Sunrisers Hyderabad finished on 157/9 in their 20 overs after they were set 170 for victory.

Put into bat, Lucknow skipper KL Rahul and Deepak Hooda struck useful half-centuries to rally Lucknow Super Giants to 169 for seven after a disastrous start - they were 27/3 in 5th over.

Lucknow now have 2 wins from 3 matches while Hyderabad have lost both their matches.

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THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

There are two ways to slide easily through life: to believe everything or to doubt everything; both ways save you from thinking. – Alfred Korzybski

OFF TRACK

You can't believe how much hard work it is to con people into thinking that you're productive when you're unemployed. Always thinking up things to tell them you're going to do tomorrow, having to exaggerate every minute of your nowhere day...it's worse than having a job. At least when you're employed, when people ask about your day you can tell them to shut up and mind their own business.