OPPOSITION SLAMS CEC BILL: AGAINST CONSTITUTION, SC JUDGMENT, EC FREEDOM

The Opposition in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday slammed the government’s Bill to regulate the appointment process of the Election Commission, saying it would give the executive the power to select Chief Election Commissioners and Election Commissioners who would favour the ruling party.

The Bill seeks to regulate the appointment of the Election Commission of India (ECI) by constituting a three-member selection committee comprising the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition or leader of the single largest Opposition party in the Lok Sabha and a Cabinet Minister named by the PM. According to the Opposition MPs, the Bill gives an “advantage” to the government in selecting the CEC and ECs.

Several MPs asked why the government had decided to replace the Chief Justice of India with a Cabinet Minister in the panel, as the Supreme Court in its March 2 judgment had ordered a panel of the PM, LoP and CJI to select the ECI till Parliament enacted a law.

Initiating the discussion on the Bill, Congress MP Randeep Singh Surjewala said the Bill “bulldozes” the independence of the EC and the selection committee was only a “formality”. “It militates against the very spirit of the Constitution that is enshrined in Article 14. It completely negates and subjugates the Election Commission to the authority of the executive and it does away with, willingly and maliciously, the judgment of the Supreme Court in toto,” he said.

As Surjewala continued to speak, quoting the Supreme Court’s judgment, Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar sought to “remind” him that “with highest respect to everyone, Parliament is the sole repository of lawmaking”. Dhankhar said Surjewala had focused on the Supreme Court judgment “as if the reflections therein have to bind us”.

Replying to Surjewala’s criticism, BJP MP Ghanshyam Tiwari said: “I remember clearly that once, Navin Chawla, who was Indira Gandhi’s secretary, was made an Election Commissioner. And today, they are saying the government will be making the appointments. The party that imposed Emergency is talking of democracy.”

TMC MP Jawhar Sircar termed the Bill a “charade” and said it shook the “foundations of democracy”. Opposing the Bill, DMK MP Tiruchi Siva said it was undemocratic and paved the way for appointment of “yes-men”. He called for the Bill to be sent to a select committee. Also opposing the Bill, Aam Aadmi Party MP Raghav Chadha said the Bill would destroy the institution of the EC.

“This Bill is against the basic structure of the Constitution. The basic structure of the Constitution is free and fair elections,” Chadha said.

The Upper House passed the CEC and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Bill, 2023 on Tuesday through voice vote after the Opposition staged a walkout.

LIFE TERM, DEATH FOR HATE-CRIME MURDER, MOB LYNCHING; TERROR AMBIT WIDENED

Enhancing the minimum punishment for mob lynching and hate-crime murder from seven years to life imprisonment and expanding the definition of terrorism, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday introduced revised versions of three criminal law Bills in Lok Sabha to replace the Indian Penal Code (IPC), 1860; The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (originally enacted in 1898); and the Indian Evidence Act, 1872.

The Bharatiya Nyaya (Second) Sanhita, 2023, the Bill that seeks to replace the IPC, now prescribes a punishment for mob lynching that extends from life imprisonment to death. In its earlier version, introduced in August, the Bill prescribed a punishment that extended from seven years to death.

Under the offence of terrorism, the Sanhita now includes “causing damage or destruction of property in a foreign country, intended for the defence of India or any other governmental purpose.” In the earlier version, this was only limited to damage to government or public facilities, public places, private properties within India.

Also Read | Lynching and hate crime murder in penal code: punishment 7 yrs to death

The terror provision is also expanded to include the detention, kidnapping or abduction of a person to compel the Government of India, state governments or foreign governments to do or abstain from doing any activity.

The Bill had made mob lynching and hate crime a separate category of murder for the first time. The offence deals with cases when a mob of five or more individuals commits murder based on factors such as race, caste, community, or personal belief.

The lesser sentence in the earlier version of the Bill meant that hate crimes carried a lesser sentence than murder otherwise committed which carries a life sentence. The revised version now brings it on the same footing.

The other key change is that the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) 2023 reverts to using the phrase “unsound mind”, which is currently used in the IPC as defence of the accused. In the earlier version, the BNS had replaced it with “mental illness.”

BJP PICKS FIRST-TIME MLA BHAJANLAL SHARMA AS NEXT RAJASTHAN CM

The BJP yesterday pulled another surprise in the ongoing series across the Hindi heartland by picking an organisation man and first-time MLA from Sanganer in Jaipur, Bhajanlal Sharma, 56, as the chief minister of Rajasthan.

The BJP legislature party meeting held under the watch of central observer Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and two co-observers —national vice president Saroj Pandey and national general secretary Vinod Tawde —unanimously approved the name of Bhajanlal Sharma as the leader of the party MLAs in the desert state.

At the meeting, the CM-designate's name was proposed by former chief minister Vasundhara Raje, who was herself considered to be in the running for the top post.

Bhajanlal Sharma is the party’s state unit general secretary and originally hails from Bharatpur.

The legislature party also picked Vidyadhar Nagar MLA Diya Kumari and MLA from Dudu in Jaipur Premchand Bairwa as deputy chief ministers.

The BJP has thus swiftly unveiled a new set of leadership – relatively younger but not inexperienced – in two of the three heartland states and a first-time MLA in one state. The move by the BJP’s all-powerful central leadership has surprised and stunned conventional political observers.

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

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AT UN, INDIA VOTES FOR IMMEDIATE CEASEFIRE IN GAZA

India voted in favour of a draft resolution in the UN General Assembly that demanded an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas conflict as well as the unconditional release of all hostages.

The 193-member UN General Assembly adopted the draft resolution, introduced by Egypt, at an Emergency Special Session here Tuesday. The resolution was adopted with 153 votes in favour, while 23 nations abstained and 10 voted against the text.

The resolution demanded the "immediate and unconditional release of all hostages, as well as ensuring humanitarian access."

The resolution however did not name Hamas and the US proposed an amendment to the draft resolution, calling for the insertion of the paragraph: Unequivocally rejects and condemns the heinous terrorist attacks by Hamas that took place in Israel starting 7 October 2023 and the taking of hostages in the main text. India voted in favour of the amendment.

In October, India had abstained in the General Assembly on a resolution that had called for an immediate humanitarian truce in the Israel-Hamas conflict and unhindered humanitarian access in the Gaza strip.

CHANGE STANCE OR LOSE SUPPORT FOR GAZA WAR, BIDEN'S WARNING FOR NETANYAHU

US President Joe Biden warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Tuesday that the country risked losing global support for its war against Hamas because of its "indiscriminate" bombing of Gaza. In his most blunt remarks since the October 7 attack on Israel by Hamas, which provoked the current conflict, Biden told donors that Netanyahu needed to "change" his stance on a two-state solution for the Palestinians.

Netanyahu meanwhile said there was "disagreement" with Biden over how a post-conflict Gaza would be governed, reflecting a rare rift after weeks in which the US leader has strongly backed Israel.

Biden told a campaign event in Washington that Israel had "most of the world supporting it" after the Hamas attacks, in which Israel tallied 1,200 deaths, mostly civilians. Hundreds were also taken hostage. "But they're starting to lose that support by the indiscriminate bombing that takes place," Biden said.

The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza said Tuesday that more than 18,400 people -- also mostly civilians -- had been killed in Israel's retaliatory bombardment of the coastal territory.

COP28: PACT ELUSIVE AMID DEEP DIVISIONS OVER FOSSIL FUEL PHASE-OUT

Climate change conferences are quite used to stalemates, especially in the final days, and a familiar one existed at the Dubai Expo Centre, the venue of COP28, on Tuesday, as the conference went into extra-time. But never has the division been so sharp, the gap seemingly so unbridgeable. On the issue of fossil fuel phase-out, almost every country has a strong opinion, with no meeting ground currently in sight.

Yet, an agreement was being drafted, for all to agree on, because a COP has to have an outcome decision. A previous draft, that came Monday evening, had made everyone unhappy and was immediately rejected by many. A new one, possibly the final, is being worked upon and expected to be finalised today.

There are countries like Saudi Arabia that have made it clear that they would not agree to a fossil fuel phase-out in the final decision of the COP28 climate meeting. There are others like the European Union who insist that any decision that does not mention fossil fuel phase-out would be unacceptable. Then there are climate groups, activists and observers who have declared that COP28 would be a failure if it did not call for a fossil fuel phase-out.

The issue of a phase-out of fossil fuels, and the way it has been dealt with by countries over the years, broadly sums up the global response to climate change so far. Fossil fuels — oil, natural gas, coal and their derivatives – contribute about 80 per cent of all greenhouse gas emissions, and yet, have never found any mention in the hundreds of decisions that COPs have produced in the last three decades. The Paris Agreement, for example, seeks to restrict global rise in temperatures to well within 2 degrees Celsius from pre-industrial times, and calls upon countries to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, but is totally silent on fossil fuels.

THE REST

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NO GST DUES PENDING, SOME STATES HAVE NOT SUBMITTED AG REPORT, SAYS SITHARAMAN

The Centre on Tuesday said no GST dues of any state are pending before it and that some state governments have not submitted the AG’s authenticated certificate for release of their share of funds.

Replying to a supplementary question in Rajya Sabha, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the narrative that GST dues are pending from the Centre is not correct and is a misnomer as states have not submitted the AG’s report. “It is important to understand that the AG’s (accountant general) certification is (mandatory)… If the AG’s certificate does not reach us, we cannot clear… Some states, even after sending the AG’s certificate, tell us to hold on till they clear it finally,” she said.

She was responding to a question from TMC member Saket Gokhale, who asked about the GST dues of states, especially to West Bengal. He also sought a reason for which the GST dues of the states were withheld.

Sitharaman said she would specifically name some states. “Goa has not submitted AG’s certificate for 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2019-20. It is also yet to send the report for 2021-22 and the first quarter of 2022-23. For 2022-23, no state, except for Karnataka, has given AG’s certificate as yet,” she said.

West Bengal has also not submitted AG’s report from 2019-20 to the first quarter of 2022-23. “AG’s certificate has not come from West Bengal, so the amount would not be released,” she said, adding that “to call it pending… is a misnomer. Let them send AG’s certificate, we will clear it.”

9 MONTHS ON, US SAYS 'AGGRESSIVELY' PROBING KHALISTANI ATTACK ON INDIAN CONSULATE IN SAN FRANCISCO

The US on Tuesday assured that it was aggressively investigating the Khalistani attack on the Indian consulate in San Francisco which occurred in March this year.

The assurance about finalising the probe into an incident that happened almost nine months back came in a meeting between visiting FBI Director Christopher Wray and NIA Director General Dinkar Gupta.

In March, Khalistani supporters had disrupted the functioning of the Indian consulate in San Francisco with some wielding swords and demanding the release of fugitive Amritpal Singh, currently imprisoned in Dibrugarh, Assam.

Gupta and Wray also discussed terrorist-organised criminal networks, investigation of cyber-terror and cyber-crimes of various kinds.

NO ACCURATE COUNT BUT SITUATION IS GRIM, CENTRE TELLS SC ON ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION

The Centre on Tuesday told the Supreme Court that though an “accurate count” of illegal immigrants is not possible as they enter the country clandestinely, the “situation is grim” as pointed out by the petitioners who have challenged the constitutional validity of Section 6A of the Citizenship Act, 1955.

Section 6A was introduced in the Citizenship Act in 1985 following the signing of the Assam accord between the government of India and agitating groups in the state. It states that all those who entered the state on or after 1 January, 1966, but before March 25, 1971, from Bangladesh and since then are residents of Assam can register for citizenship.

Appearing for a petitioner, Senior Advocate Shyam Divan said there is no machinery for determining the criteria laid down for grant of citizenship. “The net effect is that… when you prescribe four criteria and do not couple that with a machinery to evaluate and assess those criteria, you are in short not prescribing any criteria at all. This is fatal… So anyone over the age of 57 in Assam can claim citizenship without the requirement of establishment of ancestry or provenance…This is the grant of citizenship without scrutiny”.

BBC INDIA RESTRUCTURES TO CREATE NEW ENTITY TO COMPLY WITH FDI RULES

Four BBC staff members on Tuesday announced plans to leave the organisation and form a new entity in India named Collective Newsroom, which will provide services “as commissioned by the BBC” and in compliance with the country’s FDI rules.

According to a statement from the UK-based public service broadcaster, Collective Newsroom has been established as an Indian company that is wholly owned by Indian citizens. It replaces BBC World Service India to continue to provide language-based content.

The move follows the BBC premises in India facing “surveys” by tax authorities and an ensuing investigation by the Enforcement Directorate over alleged FDI violations earlier this year.

CBSE ANNOUNCES DATE SHEET FOR CLASSES 10, 12 BOARD EXAMS; DETAILS INSIDE

The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) on Tuesday announced date sheet for class 10 and 12 board exams with the examination for both classes beginning from February 15.

The class 10 exams will conclude on March 13 and the class 12 exams will end on April 2.

“While preparing the date sheet, the board has kept in mind that there is sufficient gap between two subjects.

Dates of competitive exams like JEE have been kept in mind while deciding schedule for class 12,” Examination Controller Sanyam Bhardwaj said.

NOZOMI OKUHARA’S NARRATES HER TRAVAILS IN INDIA

Former World champion and Olympic medallist, Japan’s Nozomi Okuhara has narrated her allegedly nightmarish experience when she arrived in India for the Odisha Open badminton Super 100, including an anxious time during the stopover in Delhi and trouble checking into a hotel in Cuttack.

This follows certain ‘problems’ foreign players posted about, at tournaments in Lucknow and Guwahati the last two weeks.

Okuhara, a former World No.1, posted about the problems she had in hailing a cab at Delhi airport and having to wait for more than four hours to check into a Cuttack hotel, on fansnet.jp. “The full story of harsh travel in India. I was prepared for it, but due to a series of problems, it was a physically and mentally demanding journey. I think I can survive somehow with the help of (PV) Sindhu and (HS) Prannoy! Well, it was the worst itinerary ever,” the post read.

Having a stranger forcibly try to put her bags on a luggage trolley at Delhi airport without her permission, Okuhara wrote next of being allegedly fleeced by a private taxi for 10 times the usual Uber fare. Made to wait in a hotel lobby for four hours till her bookings could be sorted out in Cuttack, and having to seek help from Sindhu and Prannoy because there was no shuttle bus for her 8 am practice session completed her two-day ordeal.

Okuhara had won the Super 300 in Lucknow, and was back in India after a week to play the Odisha Super 100, as she pursues a comeback and chases ranking points for Olympic qualification.

PROTEAS CRUISE TO COMFORTABLE WIN OVER INDIA

South Africa shred a pedestrian looking Indian bowing attack to pieces to script a five-wicket win in the second T20 of the three-match series in Gqeberha on Tuesday.

Rinku Singh (68 not out off 39) enhanced his credentials as a finisher with a maiden half-century while skipper Suryakumar Yadav (56 off 36) played in his inimitable way to take India to 180 for seven (in alloted 19.3 overs due to delayed start) after being put in to bat.

Set a revised a target of 152 in 15 overs due to rain, South Africa rocketed to 67 for one in five overs. They eventually cantered to win in 13.5 overs.

Both Mohammad Siraj and Arshdeep Singh were taken to the cleaners upfront.

The third and final T20 will be played in Johannesburg on Thursday. The first T20 in Durban was washed out.

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THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Fear not those who argue but those who dodge. - Marie von Ebner Eschenbach

OFF TRACK

Question in a London TV poll - Are there too many immigrants in Britain ?

17% said yes; 11% said No; 72% said "I am not understanding the question please."