BRS MPs moved an adjournment motion in the Parliament today, demanding the tabling and passing of the Women’s Reservation Bill. The MPs in the adjournment motion also request an all-party meeting to discuss the Women’s Reservation Bill.
MLC Kavitha from the BRS party earlier this month sat on a day-long protest at Jantar Mantar, demanding the introduction of the Women’s Reservation Bill.
Bharat Jagruthi led by MLC Kavitha organized a round table conference in New Delhi that witnessed the participation of over 15 political parties, civil society organizations, and the student community.
MLC Kavitha-led Bharat Jagruthi will also soon be launching a ‘Missed Call Campaign’ to further the demand for Women’s Reservation Bill. Along with the campaign, there will also be round table discussions in colleges and universities across India to discuss the need for tabling and passing of the Women’s Reservation Bill.
Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind president Maulana Mahmood Madani
Saharanpur: The Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind, has said that it will challenge in court the Karnataka government’s decision to remove Muslims from the 2B category of ‘Other Backward Classes’ (OBCs), which gave them 4 per cent reservation.
Maulana Mahmood Madani, president of the organisation, termed the move a “grave injustice meted out to Muslims”.
Madani told reporters in Deoband that: “The decision does not go hand-in-hand with Prime Minister Modi’s Pasmanda Muslim upliftment. The Prime Minister, on one hand, is promoting development policy for the marginalised section of Muslims, and on the other hand, his party’s government in Karnataka is snatching away the reservation from them and distributing it among other classes.”
The 4 per cent OBC Muslim quota has been divided between the Vokkaligas and Lingayats. Muslims eligible for quota have been categorised under economically weaker sections (EWS) now.
He argued that various official statistics and reports confirm the fact that the Muslims of India are economically and educationally at the lowest rung of development.
“Hence, no community deserves reservation more than the Muslims,” Madani said.
Calling the move as “the worst example of electoral opportunism and appeasement”, Madani said, “This move only aims to create discord between the two communities. We will approach the court against it.”
New Delhi: Fourteen political parties led by the Congress on Friday moved the Supreme Court against the alleged misuse of investigative agencies in arresting opposition leaders, and sought guidelines on arrest.
Senior advocate A.M. Singhvi mentioned the matter before a bench headed by Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud for early hearing.
The top court agreed to hear the matter on April 5.
The counsel clarified that they are not attempting to affect the ongoing investigations.
The political parties sought laying down guidelines for law enforcing agencies and courts on arrest, remand, and bail.
The top court was informed that a majority of cases are against the opposition leaders.
Delhi: Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday, will move the Finance Bill 2023, to give effect to the financial proposals of the central government.
This comes a day after the demand for grants was passed in Parliament.
The Finance Bill 2023, gives effect to the financial proposals of the central government for the financial year 2023-24 to be taken into consideration.
Earlier on Thursday, the Lok Sabha on passed demands for grants authorising expenditure of about Rs 45 lakh crore for 2023-24. The proposal was passed by voice vote amid protests by opposition members over their demand for a JPC probe into the Adani issue.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla applied for the Guillotine when the House met at 6 pm following two adjournments earlier. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman moved the Bill to authorise payment and appropriation of certain sums from and out of the Consolidated Fund of India for the services of the financial year 2023-24 for passage in the House amid the din.
It was passed amid the din and the House was later adjourned for the day.
The two Houses of Parliament have been witnessing adjournments over the repeated logjam. While the BJP has been demanding an apology from Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over his remarks in the United Kingdom, the opposition has been demanding a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe into the Hindenburg-Adani row.
The second half of the budget session began on March 13 and will commence on April 6.
The Finance Minister presented the Union Budget on February 1.
New Delhi: After a successful 5G rollout in the country, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday announced the Bharat 6G vision document and launched the 6G research and development (R&D) test bed.
Inaugurating the new International Telecommunication Union (ITU) area office and innovation centre during a programme at Vigyan Bhawan here, he said that the 6G R&D test bed will help faster adoption of the new technology in the country.
The government said that the Bharat 6G vision document and 6G test bed will provide an enabling environment for innovation, capacity building, and faster technology adoption in the country.
The Prime Minister emphasised that India was only a user of telecom technology before 4G, but today, it is moving towards being the biggest exporter of telecom technology in the world.
“India is working with many countries to change the work culture of the whole world with the power of 5G,” he said.
“These 100 new labs will help in developing 5G applications according to India’s unique needs. Be it 5G smart classrooms, farming, intelligent transport systems or healthcare applications, India is working fast in every direction”, the Prime Minister added.
Noting that India’s 5G standards are part of the global 5G systems, he said that India will also work closely with ITU for the standardisation of future technologies, underlining that the new Indian ITU area office will also help in creating the right environment for 6G.
The industry hailed the PM’s move to roll out the 6G test bed in the country.
“6G holds the possibility to provide extreme speeds with predictably low latency and a low jitter rate for high demanding scenarios and about 10Cr active 6G devices by 2030,” said Arvind Bali, CEO, Telecom Sector Skill Council (TSSC).
“By providing a platform for academic research, industry, and startups, the 6G Test Bed can pave the way for the development of skilled and innovative workforce,” he added.
In August last year, PM Modi had said that the government is preparing to launch 6G by the end of this decade.
New Delhi: Members of Congress, Bharat Rashtra Samiti (BRS) and AAP on Tuesday moved suspension of business notice in the Rajya Sabha under rule 267 demanding a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the Hindenburg-Adani row.
Congress Deputy leader in the House Pramod Tiwari, AAP MP Sanjay Singh, and BRS MP K. Keshav Rao moved suspension notice on the issue.
On Monday, the Congress alleged that the government did not want Parliament to function.
“Parliament was adjourned for the day because the Government simply didn’t want it to function. It created a completely bogus diversion to keep the attention away from the combined Opposition demand for a JPC into the PM-linked Adani Maha Mega Scam,” Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh had said.
Earlier in the day, the Opposition members had staged a march towards Vijay Chowk and Congress president and Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge said that there is no rule of law under Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Monday’s decision likely won’t be the end of the lengthy Willow dispute, as lawsuits challenging the administration’s move are almost certain.
Here’s what to know about the Willow decision:
What’s in the proposal?
The administration approved ConocoPhillips’ plans to drill in the northeast portion of the National Petroleum Reserve on Alaska’s North Slope.
The Biden administration couched its announcement Monday by stressing its approval of a scaled-back version of the drilling plan.
The Interior Department is approving three of the five drill sites proposed by ConocoPhillips. The company is also relinquishing its rights to 68,000 acres of its existing leases in the NPR-A, the administration said.
The decision comes after the project has faced years of delays, litigation and opposition from climate advocates and some Alaska Native leaders.
ConocoPhillips pitched the drilling venture as a way to strengthen domestic energy security by producing about 180,000 barrels of oil per day at its peak.
What does it mean for Alaska?
Alaska lawmakers and ConocoPhillips have been lobbying the administration to approve the massive drilling project, arguing that it bolsters domestic energy security while creating jobs and revenue for the federal government.
ConocoPhillips estimated that the project would create more than 2,500 jobs during construction, and about 300 permanent jobs after that.
The Alaska congressional delegation hailed the Willow approval as a victory Monday.
“We finally did it, Willow is finally reapproved, and we can almost literally feel Alaska’s future brightening because of it,” said Sen. Lisa Murkowsi (R-Alaska). “After years of relentless advocacy, we are now on the cusp of creating thousands of new jobs, generating billions of dollars in new revenues, improving quality of life on the North Slope and across our state, and adding vital energy to [the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System] to fuel the nation and the world,” Murkowski said.
Critics of the project warn that the development will take a toll on a pristine environment in Alaska, jeopardizing the lifestyle of local Indigenous communities and harming the habitat of polar bears and other wildlife species.
Why is it so contentious?
This issue has been thorny for the Biden administration, which has attempted to find a compromise between the vocal Alaska delegation and industry representatives pushing for the development and environmentalists who are furious about the project.
The Alaskans’ all-out push for Willow’s approval even involved a meeting between the state’s full congressional delegation and President Joe Biden during the run-up to the final announcement. Murkowski, Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan and Democratic Rep. Mary Peltola were united in their push for the administration to approve an “economically viable” version of the project.
The lawmakers have said that Alaska Natives overwhelmingly support the project. Sullivan said last week that Alaskans who support drilling in the NPR-A often refer to environmental groups in the Lower 48 as being guilty of “eco-colonialism” for trying to tell Alaskans how to live their lives.
But while the administration’s move appears to satisfy Alaskan members of Congress, it outraged environmentalists after Biden promised on the campaign trail that there would be no new drilling on federal lands.
What does it mean economically?
The Willow project is projected to deliver between $8 billion and $17 billion in new revenue for the federal government, the state of Alaska, and North Slope Borough communities, according to ConocoPhillips.
The company hailed the administration’s announcement Monday.
“This was the right decision for Alaska and our nation,” said Ryan Lance, ConocoPhillips’ chair and CEO. “Willow fits within the Biden Administration’s priorities on environmental and social justice, facilitating the energy transition and enhancing our energy security, all while creating good union jobs and providing benefits to Alaska Native communities.”
And Terry O’Sullivan, general president of the Laborers’ International Union of North America, cheered the decision, saying it would “benefit local communities” and create “union construction jobs with long-term, family sustaining careers.”
Why are environmentalists so mad?
In addition to local impact to wildlife habitat, environmentalists are seething about the climate impacts of the announcement.
“This is a grievous mistake. It greenlights a carbon bomb, sets back the climate fight and emboldens an industry hell-bent on destroying the planet,” said Christy Goldfuss, chief policy impact officer at the Natural Resources Defense Council and a former Obama administration White House official.
“Biden approved Willow knowing full well that it’ll cause massive and irreversible destruction, which is appalling,” said Kristen Monsell, a senior attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity.
Monsell said that people and wildlife “will suffer,” from the project, “and extracting and burning more fossil fuel will warm the climate even faster.”
How is the administration softening the blow to greens?
The administration announced major new efforts to limit drilling in Alaska lands and waters Sunday ahead of its Willow announcement.
The Interior Department said it was indefinitely withdrawing 2.8 million acres in the Arctic Ocean from future oil and gas leases, and the department announced that it’s writing new rules to limit drilling on land in Alaska.
The administration touted Biden’s conservation record as it announced the Willow approval. “In his first year, President Biden protected more lands and waters than any president since John F. Kennedy,” the Interior Department said in a statement.
What’s next?
Lawsuits are likely.
Environmentalists challenged the Trump administration’s 2020 approval of the Willow project, and they’re expected to sue over the Biden administration’s plans as well.
“Even one new oil well in the Arctic is one well too many,” said Monsell of CBD.
“The president has left us in the cold and missed a major opportunity to live up to his climate commitments,” Monsell added. “This project is on weak legal ground, and we’re gearing up for action.”
Reporter Heather Richards contributed.
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( With inputs from : www.politico.com )
Yet, McCarthy’s decision to let Carlson access thousands of hours of Capitol footage from the riot has left a lingering cloud over his own leadership team, which was repeatedly pressed about the move as Carlson continues to downplay the violence of the siege by supporters of former President Donald Trump. Senate Republicans heaped criticism Tuesday on Carlson’s portrayal of the riot, led by Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (though few directly dinged McCarthy).
“It seems like some in the press want to talk about Jan 6 every day. So do Democrats. They only want to talk about certain parts of it, though,” House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) told reporters during a press conference where every question focused on the Fox News footage.
Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.), who represents a battleground district, said that House Republicans see attention to Carlson’s portrayal of Jan. 6 as “more of a media thing.”
“In the end, everybody should get access,” Bacon added, “but literally, I don’t hear anybody back home talking about it.”
With many in the GOP eager to change the subject, McCarthy and his leadership team are slated to hold a second press conference later Wednesday, focused squarely on President Joe Biden’s budget release.
But not everyone in the party is prepared to let it go. In one sign the GOP will continue to go on the offensive: Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) are working to set up a congressional delegation to visit people jailed for alleged crimes on Jan. 6, as POLITICO first reported.
Greene, who pushed GOP leadership to commit to a probe of Jan. 6-related detention, would lead the trip.
In addition, Rep. Barry Loudermilk (R-Ga.) told reporters Wednesday that the GOP conference is starting to more closely review the work of the last Congress’ Democrat-run Jan. 6 select panel. Loudermilk recently secured the speaker’s permission to let accused Jan. 6 rioters — and eventually the public at large — access Capitol Police security footage that is in the House GOP’s possession.
“Part of it is: Why did they not address [Capitol security]?” Loudermilk asked of the select committee, which devoted one of the appendices of its final report to that issue. “And so we have [to] really pick up where they left off. And so we have the documents, we have the videos, we have a lot of information. And we’re going through that.”
While a handful of House Republicans openly criticized McCarthy’s decision to give the footage to Carlson, none mentioned the speaker by name and all pointed to the clips Fox News showed to argue that the Jan. 6 select committee only presented one side of the riot.
Since the first Jan. 6 segment aired on Monday night, several House Republicans have parried questions by claiming they did not see Carlson’s show or by otherwise avoiding the media. Others privately argued that McCarthy had made a strategic choice to engage with Carlson, one designed to appeal to the party base as he leads the GOP conference with a razor-thin majority.
Carlson, who has blasted McCarthy on-air in the past, stated on his show that he got no interference from the speaker’s office or his own higher-ups at Fox before broadcasting his segments. And McCarthy, for his part, has fiercely defended his decision to share material with Carlson in the face of criticism from the Senate GOP as well as Capitol Police Chief Thomas Manger.
Jordain Carney contributed to this report.
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( With inputs from : www.politico.com )
Ahmedabad: Gujarat Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Vipul Patel will on Friday move a resolution in the Assembly seeking “strong action” against the “concocted” findings shown in a BBC documentary, which he alleged “once again attempts to blame the then state government” for the 2002 post-Godhra riots.
The proposed resolution will likely say the BBC documentary was a “low-level attempt” to tarnish India’s global image.
“India is a democratic country and freedom of expression is at the core of its Constitution, but that does not mean that a news media can abuse such freedom,” according to the summary of the proposed resolution shared by the Assembly secretariat on Tuesday.
The two-part BBC documentary, titled “India: The Modi Question”, claimed it investigated certain aspects relating to the 2002 Gujarat riots when Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the chief minister of the state.
“If someone behaves or acts like this (BBC), then he cannot be taken lightly. BBC is losing its credibility and seems to be working with some hidden agenda against India and the Indian government. Hence, this House requests the Central Government to take strict action against the mind-boggling findings shown in the BBC documentary,” said a note on the resolution to be moved by Patel.
“The controversial documentary again “attempts to blame the then-state government for the 2002 Godhra riots and subsequent communal riots in Gujarat,” said the note.
The BBC documentary misrepresents the events of 2002 and is a malicious and low-level attempt to tarnish India’s global image, it said.
Through the documentary, deliberate attempts have been made to tarnish the image and popularity of Prime Minister Modi with an agenda to affect India’s goal to be in a top place in the world, said the note.
This, despite the fact that the Nanavati-Shah inquiry commission concluded after a thorough investigation that the burning of the Sabarmati Express near Godhra railway station on February 27, 2002, was a premeditated conspiracy, and the riots that followed were spontaneous, it said.
The commission found no evidence that the state government or any religious organization or political party played any role in the riots, stated the note.
The Assembly, which is having its Budget session, will meet on Friday after a two-day break.
Now, as Europe moves ahead with rules for digital assets and U.S. lawmakers remain locked in a stalemate over the need for new regulations, crypto giants are threatening to move their businesses across the Atlantic.
Gensler brushed off concerns about the plight of the U.S. industry as he faces a barrage of criticism from digital asset executives and their allies in Congress over how he’s regulating the space. House Republicans are ramping up oversight of his crypto enforcement actions and plan to scrutinize his every move, but he’s also under pressure from progressives like Sen. Elizabeth Warren to continue clamping down.
Yet Gensler said the flurry of litigation and enforcement actions hasn’t done much to convince firms to follow the law.
He said crypto businesses have eschewed what typically happens when agencies come down on bad behavior in financial markets. Rather than coming into compliance with U.S. securities, “this is a field that seems to belie that in some circumstances,” he said.
“The path to compliance is clear. It’s [that] the firms, in some regard, have generally been operating outside of those parameters,” he said.
Gensler, a Democrat who led the Commodity Futures Trading Commission during the Obama administration, has long claimed that securities laws already apply to digital asset businesses and that the agency does not need new broad authority from Congress.
Top firms like Coinbase and Ripple have resisted those claims and have lobbied lawmakers and regulators to create new rules for their industry — an effort set to soon pay off in Europe with the Markets in Crypto-Assets law, or MiCA.
Gensler is skeptical of the European law’s effectiveness.
“Do you know that MiCA doesn’t even cover Bitcoin?” he said, before adding that while the SEC often consults and talks with its international counterparties, he has “to focus on how to best help the American public.”
U.S. lawmakers, meanwhile, are still debating how to regulate the market’s exchanges and brokerages.
Crypto lobbyists have framed Gensler’s push to force their industry to comply with 90-year-old securities laws as a war against financial innovation. Whatever changes brought by crypto markets will pale compared to what could come as brokerages and financial data aggregators move to incorporate artificial intelligence into their offerings, Gensler said.
“The much more transformative technology right now of our times is predictive data analytics and everything underlying artificial intelligence,” he said, adding that he looked forward to working with lawmakers on how those tools could be regulated.
Zachary Warmbrodt contributed to this report.
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( With inputs from : www.politico.com )
