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MHA issues notice to Mamata Banerjee’s nephew’s wife for ‘false representation’ and not revealing her Thai citizenship

OpIndia Staff
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MHA issues notice to Mamata Banerjee’s nephew’s wife for ‘false representation’ and not revealing her Thai citizenship

The Ministry of Home Affairs has issued a show cause notice to TMC MP and Mamata Banerjee’s nephew Abhishek Banerjee’s wife, Rujira Naroola, for obtaining the OCI (Overseas Citizens of India) and PAN (Permanent Account Number) by allegedly making false representation and concealing her Thai citizenship.

As per the reports, in the notice, the MHA has mentioned that on November 14, 2009, Rujira Naroola applied for a PAN by filing the form 49A without disclosing that her status as a Thai national holding the OCI card. Naroola would have to file form 49AA and obtain the PAN by declaring she is a foreigner holding the OCI card. Instead, she obtained one as an Indian national. Thus, owing to the discrepancies, Naroola’s OCI card is liable to be cancelled in the interest of general public.

The MHA notice also sought a reply within 15 days, failing which an ‘appropriate decision’ will be taken on the basis of the merit available on record with the central government.

As per DNA, Abhishek Banerjee’s lawyer, Sanjay Basu at first said that they will respond within the stipulated time, but minutes later denied confirming the receipt of the letter claiming he had not seen the show cause notice.

Last week we had reported how the West Bengal Police had reportedly shielded Abhishek Banerjee’s wife as she was caught with 2 kg gold at Kolkata airport.

As per the report, the lady flew in on a Thai Airways flight from Bangkok and while passing through normal screening, was found carrying two kilos of gold.

When customs officials questioned her about the gold, which was approximately valued at Rs 68 lakh, she reportedly called up her husband Abhishek Banerjee, who is Lok Sabha MP from Diamond Harbour. Soon, several senior Kolkata Police officers reached the airport and tried to allegedly whisk her away.

Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorist Nisar Ahmed Tantray brought back from UAE to India, arrested by NIA

OpIndia Staff
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Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorist Nisar Ahmed Tantray brought back from UAE to India, arrested by NIA

India has achieved success in getting yet another wanted person extradited from abroad. Yesterday Jaish-e-Mohammad terrorist Nisar Ahmed Tantray was brought back from UAE by the National Investigating Agency.


Nisar Ahmed Tantray was flown in from UAE to Delhi in a special flight, and he was promptly arrested by NIA at Delhi airport. He is currently being interrogated by NIA.

Tantray is from Tral, Pulwama in Jammu and Kashmir, and he was hiding in UAE since February 1 this year. The Jaish terrorist was allegedly involved in the terror attack on CRPF in Lethpora on 30 December 2017. The attack on Lethpora CRPF Group Centre had left five soldiers dead.

NIA had achieved a breakthrough in the investigation into the case in February this year when they arrested Fayaz Ahmad Magray, who had helped three JeM terrorists in taking part in the Lethpora attack of 2017.

Nisar Ahmed Tantray is the younger brother of Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) commander-cum-recruiter Noor Mohammad Tantray. The JeM terrorist was called a 4-feet-tall merchant of death by a special court in Delhi. Noor was gunned down by security forces in December 2017.

Congress Manifesto promises to make National Security Advisor answerable to all politicians

OpIndia Staff
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Congress Manifesto promises to make National Security Advisor answerable to all politicians

Today the Congress party released its manifesto for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.  Apart from making many tall promises which are typical of any election manifesto, the party also made some promises which have raised concerns.

The party has promised that if it comes to power, it will bring a law in the first session of new Lok Sabha itself to prevent and punish hate speech. It is a clear indication that the Congress party plans to bring back a bill similar to the section 66A of IT Act and the Communal Violence Bill which could not be passed by the UPA government. The party also promised to review the AFSPA, and review of deployment of security forces in the Kashmir Valley.

In a similar proposal with far-reaching consequences, the party has promised that it will bring the National Security Advisor and National Security Council under the purview of the Parliament. The manifesto says that Congress will provide a statutory basis to the National Security Council (NSC) and the office of National Security Adviser (NSA). Their powers and functions will be defined under the law and both authorities, and the agencies under them will be accountable to Parliament.

It may be noted that the NSA and NSC were established by the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government.

National Security section of the Congress manifesto

The NSA works directly under the Prime Minister, and the NSC consists of the NSA, the Deputy NSA, The Ministers of Defence, External Affairs, Home and Finance, and the Deputy Chairman of NITI Aayog. Although bringing these institutions under the control of Parliament sounds good, there are inherent problems with the issue. The defence establishment of a country needs to have relative autonomy in taking decisions related to national security. Making the NSA answerable to Parliament will mean that the post will be subject to political interference, which is not desirable. This will mean that the top security official of the country will be answering questions of politicians.

Moreover, the NSA and NSC deal with matters of national security, and such matters can’t be discussed in public. National security issues can’t be a matter of political interference. Another fact is that the security establishments will also not be able to reveal much information to the parliament because such matters are highly confidential and can’t be disclosed in public. They may be able to provide some information to parliamentary committees, but the committee members would not be able the discuss the subject of such meetings in parliament or public. This also has the potential for compromising national security.

Therefore, the proposal of the Congress party is worrisome from the national security point of view.

After decades of minority appeasement, Rahul Gandhi raises the stakes as he contests from Hindu minority constituency

K Bhattacharjee
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After decades of minority appeasement, Rahul Gandhi raises the stakes as he contests from Hindu minority constituency

The Congress Manifesto has some pretty dangerous ideas. From the implementation of Communal Violence Bill 2.0 to the promise of a crackdown on social media and reviewing AFSPA, the signs are pretty ominous. Across all these audacious ideas, however, there is a common theme. That of the Congress President paying his obeisance to radical Islam.

The promise to implement a new law to curb ‘hate crimes‘ instantly reminds one of the extremely Hinduphobic Communal Violence that maintained that people of the majority community could not be victims and consequently, that the minority community could never be aggressors. It certainly has a definite appeal for a section of the minority community that thrives on victim-mongering.

The decision to curb ‘hate speech‘ on social media has similar connotations as well. We have seen time and again that the Radical Left, which the Congress party has definitely embraced, only construes those opinions as hate speech which the minority community is likely to find offensive, even if there’s nothing objectively hateful about it. Thus, again, it has similar connotations.

The most glaring glimpse of the Congress party’s submission to Islamism is, perhaps, its decision to review AFSPA should it come to power. The Congress manifesto says that the Act would be amended to strike a ‘balance’ between security and human rights. It then says that it would “remove immunity for enforced disappearances, sexual violence and torture”.

Demand for the removal of AFSPA has long been the focus of radical Islamic organizations and far-left institutions inimical to Indian interests. These organizations have peddled the most nefarious of propaganda which has only served as a tool to radicalize the youth of Kashmir.

Only yesterday, Congress ally Omar Abdullah had demanded a separate post of Prime Minister for Jammu and Kashmir. In addition to amending AFSPA, Congress further hinted at reducing security presence in the valley. It appears that the Congress’ promise on AFSPA was certainly motivated by the concerns of its ally which is known to harbour sympathies for Kashmiri separatists. Thus, it’s the most grievous instance of Congress compromising National Security for the sake of partisan politics.

In addition to this, the Congress manifesto makes other promises to the Muslim community as well. It says on page 42, “The Waqf Properties (Eviction of Unauthorized Occupants) Bill, 2014 will be re-introduced and passed. Waqf properties will be restored to the legal trustees.” In addition to that, “Congress promises to uphold the character of Aligarh Muslim University and Jamia Millia Islamia as minority educational institutions.”

Last year, Ram Shankar Katheria, Chairperson of National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) and a BJP MP had asserted that he would urge the NDA government to stop providing the AMU with grants should it fails to provide reservations to SCs, STs and OBCs.

The NCSC had written to the HRD Ministry as well, questioning the principle of funding the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) despite failing to implement the reservation policies similar to other central universities. Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Yogi Adityanath, too, had suggested that AMU and Jamia should offer reservations like other Universities.

Therefore, the Congress manifesto is clearly directed towards appeasing the fundamentalist sections of the Muslim community. And once again, the Congress party compromises the interests of the Dalits, Tribals and Backward Castes for its favourite vote-bank. Incidentally, the Allahabad High Court had judged back in 2006 that the AMU was not a minority institution. This decision was then appealed by the UPA government.

The Congress President’s candidature from a constituency where the Muslim community is in the majority hints towards the same. Even the CPI(M), its ally once, has remarked that the Congress is in bed with extremist Muslim organizations in Kerala.

Congress’ support in Wayanad emanates from Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) which in turn is tied up with Jammat-e-Islami and Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI), both accused by National Investigation Agency (NIA) in conducting arms training camps across the state under the pretence of health awareness camps. In several police raids in the offices of PFI and SDPI in Kerala, weapons and arms-stockpiling came to light in 2014. As many as 24 accused arrested belonged to these two parties.

In the North-East, the Congress manifesto promises to withdraw the Citizenship Amendment Bill which would have provided scores of oppressed Hindus from neighbouring Islamic countries the opportunity to lead a life of dignity in India. In Assam, the party also reportedly has a pre-poll understanding with the AIUDF, which its own state party president calls ‘communal’.

Note that the manifesto, nowhere, makes any such explicit commitment towards any religious community. The Congress promises to restore Waqf property to the Board but makes no such promises to the Hindu Temples whose lands have been encroached upon. While the party makes an explicit commitment towards the radical sections of the Kashmiri Muslim community, it makes no such promises to the Kashmiri Pandits. Combined with the rest of the manifesto, it is clearly designed to appease a particular religious community, the same community that the party has been nurturing as its vote-bank for decades.

Congress’ hollow manifesto and false promises: Rahul Gandhi expects people to drop patriotism and pick up the crumbs he throws at us

Saket Suryesh
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Congress’ hollow manifesto and false promises: Rahul Gandhi expects people to drop patriotism and pick up the crumbs he throws at us

“In politics, Stupidity is not a handicap.”- Napoleon Bonaparte

Congress has today released its Manifesto for 2019 Elections. It was launched by Rahul Gandhi, the dynast president of the family-run political party. Perhaps, it helps not understanding the words one speaks. Then one is not worried about the truth or falsehood they carry.

Rahul Gandhi made a huge noise about his Rs 72,000 per year for poor, and also lamented how everything has gone bad under the Narendra Modi government.

Rahul Gandhi also lamented how the Indian economy is stagnated under the Modi government on account of demonetization and GST and the economy has stopped growing. The explanation of funds for NYAY (Nyuntam Aay Yojana) has been left to P. Chidambaram, who in all probability is the writer of this Manifesto. Chidambaram explains the fiscal logic of NYAY as

“With growing GDP and improving tax collection, it would be possible to implement the scheme now. The size of the Indian economy is 200 Lakh Crores and is likely to grow at 12% per annum. Revenues are growing at 18 percent per annum.”

Above is what is said by the author of NYAY scheme and see how it contrasts with what Rahul Gandhi said. So, demonetisation and GST which has ensured higher tax collection and income will be the foundation on which Rahul Gandhi’s populist scheme is based. That is Rahul Gandhi for you, never burdened by the heavy weight of the truth. The money too he says will be directly transferred to the accounts of the poor. He forgets that it was Modi who brought the marginalized section in India into the banking segment. Rahul refers to Modi but only to mock him about the loans given to industrialists (given actually by UPA government).

Rahul Gandhi makes another point about Jobs. Media has somehow decided to interpret and present it to the people as a proposition of 22 lakh jobs per year. A closer look at the Congress Manifesto tells us that there is no per-year assurance. This 22 lakh jobs offer is one time. The offer is based on existing government positions vacant. Congress manifesto refers to 24 lakh jobs, not 22 lakh Jobs as announced by Rahul Gandhi. But then, Rahul never had a thing for facts and numbers. The manifesto says when in power, Congress will ensure that 4 lakh central government vacant positions in CPSU, judiciary and parliament will be filled. The estimate of a remaining major chunk of 20 Lakh comes from the State governments, which they will request the state governments to fill up. It is pertinent to note here that Congress currently is in power in Six (5) States, and BJP in 16 states out of 29 States and Rahul Gandhi’s poll promise is largely based on his Government in the Center requesting and BJP governments in the states obliging. There is no structural design to the promise.

The key job segments here are Elementary and Secondary School teachers (10.1 Lakh), Police (5.4 Lakh), Railway (2.4 Lakh) and Anganwadi workers (2.2 Lakhs).  Essentially, the Congress manifesto is largely silent on Job creation and is about filling job vacancies, dependent again on state governments. So the proposition carries the recipe for failure and excuse explaining the expected failure.

To be honest, there is one mention of job creation, which is one additional ASHA worker. There is no rationalization here, the only offer of one more job per village here. The document vaguely talks about the creation of industrial clusters. One pertinent question would be to ask – where? Without acquiring land?  Congress does not explain, and media would not ask.

Then his proposes in-applicability of all the laws (except minimum wages and taxes) seemingly to once again pave the way for shell companies.

Rahul Gandhi promises to revitalize the growth in the industry segment, as the UPA did in 2004-2014 by reviving various stalled projects. However, since Rahul is always messing the numbers and media is always affectionate towards his half-truths and lies, let us look at the claim at the Utopian UPA rule (first-time voters will not know and will believe the rhetoric). In 2004 when UPA came to the power, Industrial production growth rate was 7.4%, and as the economist PM, in Rahul Gandhi’s words, ‘revived the industry’ , UPA handed the economy back to Narendra Modi at something between 0.9 to 0.35% in 2014.   In the last year of UPA, 2013-14, Manufacturing segment contracted by 0.7%.

There is a growth in Healthcare budget proposed by Rahul Gandhi to 3%. A very noble thought, indeed. In the year, 2013-14, the architect of this manifesto, Chidambaram had reduced the Healthcare budget by 15%, making the %age allocation of 1.2% under UPA.

In contrast, Modi government increased the healthcare budget in the 2019 budget by around 16%. From around Twenty Four thousand Crores in UPA, healthcare Budget in 2019 is now INR 96 Thousand Crores. In 2019 interim budget, it is already 2.2 percent on the way to the target of 2.5% set already by Narendra Modi (though not with the eyes on the election). The catch is that the promise of 3% made by Rahul Gandhi is targeted not after (and if) he comes to power. It is to happen in 2023-24, before the next election.

On the Judiciary, the saviour of democratic and constitutional organizations, Shri Rahul Gandhi proposes to bring Judicial Complaint Commission. This would remind one to the time when Congress proposed impeachment of CJI on not getting favourable judgment in Justice Loya case. Congress also proposes a National Judicial Commission for the appointment of Judges. This commission proposed by the Congress will have judges, jurists and parliamentarians. This will in all likelihood help Congress get a judiciary similar to the one during Emergency.

There are people aghast at the apathy with which Hindu refugees escaping the totalitarian Islamic tyranny of Pakistan have been treated in successive Governments. Narendra Modi government brought in Citizenship amendment bill allowed for these minorities escaping atrocities in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh. It takes a specially cruel heart for Rahul Gandhi to propose in the Manifesto to withdraw Citizenship Amendment Bill. We can vote for Congress and continue to read news headlines of little Hindu girls being kidnapped, married off and converted to Islam, listening to the silences of hypocrites like Malala.

Rahul Gandhi also proposes scraping defamation law (Article 499). This matter was brought to the note of Supreme Court in 2017 and the highest courts held that Right to reputation is an essential part of Right to Live and refused to scrap it. Now, looking at the absurd allegations Rahul Gandhi keeps on throwing, with varying amount of corruption charges changing at hilarious frequencies, it seems he wants to prevail over the judiciary and scrap this law.  The court also held that the misuse of law does not mean that the law should be scrapped.

The same misuse of law is being used to stoke public emotions on Sedition law (Article 124A). A compliant media refuses to ask a question and check the honesty of intentions. Now Congress wants to scrap the sedition act. Much noise has been made about five urban naxals arrested with Arundhati Roy coming on to claim it was worse than Emergency. This is based on the assumption that the young Indians are not aware of Emergency when 75000 young men were arrested. Similar is the case of Congress standing with the forces which want India as a nation to be broken and wanting to scrap the sedition law. The same argument of misuse of law needs to be considered. When we look at the past, Congress commitment on both Sedition act and the claim of being inclusive to Southern India as an explanation of Rahul Gandhi becoming a fugitive of Amethi stands exposed.

We don’t even have to go back to Nehru and arrest of Mazrooh, or Indira and draconian Emergency when the whole opposition was arrested. We only look at the UPA era, when there has been much noise raised about 47 sedition cases across nine states in 2016. Aseem Trivedi was arrested in 2012 when this act came into limelight. Aseem had no history of violence and had not found inciting violence. His opposition was to Congress. In March 2014, 60 Kashmiri Students were charged with Sedition by SP Government under Akhilesh Yadav. A most interesting incident is from Tamil Nadu. Under UPA, between 2012 and 2013, during the protest against Nuclear deal, 23000 (yes, the number of zeroes is correct) were charged with waging war against the nation and, hold your breath, 9000 Indians from Tamil Nadu were charged with Sedition. It is just because they escaped the attention of Barkha Dutt, unlike Kanhaiyya Kumar that we do not even know them and no one questions Rahul Gandhi on that.

The whole manifesto seems to have been written by the people on the wrong side of law and living on bail. If you, like me, are exasperated at never-ending bails being given to Chidambaram and Son, you can expect more of such ridiculous bail, without midnight opening of Courts, as Rahul Gandhi in the manifesto proposes to

a. Free the under-trials.

b. Make bail a fundamental right.

So the much-cheered arrests of Kashmiri terror sympathizers can go out of the window once Congress comes to power.

Congress also assures repeal of AFSPA, exposing our soldiers defending disturbed areas to imminent dangers. This should be read together with Rahul Gandhi’s friend Omar Abdullah threatening to break Kashmir away from India. In entirety, this is the most anti-national and mischievous manifesto in recent times.

I have tried to analyse the Congress manifesto as much as I could, rest is for the nation to decide if it will fall for fake promises aimed at individual greed or rise above the low opinion the Congress prince seems to have of Indian masses, which makes him believe that we will drop the patriotism we carry on our shoulders to pick the crumbs he throws at us.

In the end, to quote my favourite quote by Abraham Lincoln,

“Elections belong to the people. It’s their decision. If they decide to turn their back on the fire and burn their behinds, then they will just have to sit on their blisters.”

TMC leader caught on camera distributing cheques to farmers demanding votes in exchange

OpIndia Staff
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TMC leader caught on camera distributing cheques to farmers demanding votes in exchange

With Lok Sabha elections fast approaching, political leaders getting desperate to woo voters are resorting to all kind of strategies. In one such shocking incident, a pradhan of a Trinamool-ruled panchayat in South 24 Parganas district was caught on camera distributing cheques to farmers and demanding votes for the party ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dNPtuqn-rsQ&w=644&h=362]

Modassur Hossain, the Trinamool pradhan, also threatened the farmers with dire consequences if they do not vote for his party.

While caught distributing cheques ranging from Rs 2,000 to Rs 5,000 to the farmers, the leader was heard saying that 600 families will be getting these cheques. He went on to say that these cheques belong to didi (Mamata Banerjee) and so, “you have to vote for us [Trinamool Congress] in the Lok Sabha election 2019.”

Hossain threatened the poor farmers of taking away the cheques if they did not vote for Mamata Banerjee in the upcoming elections.

This audacious act is a major violation of the model code of conduct. What is further appalling is that the minister while speaking to India Today, admitted that he did distribute cheques to the villagers for votes. “We are giving cheques and hence, we will ask for votes as well. They will have to vote for us. What is wrong with it?”

According to the video that is making the rounds, Hossain is seen threatening the people to vote for actress turned politician Mimi Chakraborty, who is contesting from Jadavpur constituency on TMC ticket, or else their voter ids would be snatched.

Threatening to bar people from welfare schemes if voted out of power, Hasan said, “Mrityur pore je 2 lokkho taka pawar kotha, seita aar pabe na. kheyal thake jen, Taile voteta amader dite hobe… amader candidate tomara protekei jaano. (The amount of Rs 2 Lakh you were supposed to get after the demise of your family member, you will not get. Mind it. That is why you will have to vote for us. You know our candidate very well).”

The party which is usually quick to take a dig at its political rivals have not come up with any clarifications yet. The party is probably getting desperate as there are many ministers recently who have jumped ships to join the BJP just before the elections. In this rashness, Trinamool leaders have during several occasions resorted to severe violence against their political rivals.

Lok Sabha elections 2019 will take place in seven phases in West Bengal, beginning from April 11 and would conclude on May 19. The counting of votes and results would be announced on May 23.

Comparing manifestos, 2004, 2009, 2014 and 2019: Some promises that Congress made for decades but never fulfilled

OpIndia Staff
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Comparing manifestos, 2004, 2009, 2014 and 2019: Some promises that Congress made for decades but never fulfilled

Ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha, the Congress party on Tuesday has revealed their election manifesto titled “Congress Will Deliver” to fight the incumbent NDA government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The Congress party has made various obscure policies including foolhardy NYAY scheme which according to economists will not only put pressure on the country’s fiscal policies but also wreck the Indian economy. Interestingly, Congress party has been trying to depict the promises made in its manifesto as a new set of policy ideas. However, the Congress party has attempted to fool the voters by repeatedly asserting that they have fulfilled all of their their past promises. However, that doesn’t seem to be the case.

Here are the promises that have been promised by the Congress party since one decade in their election manifesto:

Women’s Reservation Bill:

2009: The Indian National Congress will ensure that the Bill for reserving 33% of the seats in the Lok Sabha and the State legislatures is passed in the 15th Lok Sabha and
that the elections to the 16th Lok Sabha are held on the basis of one-third
reservation for women.

2014: We will ensure the passage of the Women’s Reservation Bill.

2019: Congress promises to pass the Constitution (Amendment) Bill to provide for reservation of 33 per cent of seats in the Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies in the first session of the 17th Lok Sabha and in the Rajya Sabha.

Health:

2004: In 2004, the Congress had promised to provide health insurance for families living below the poverty line.

2009: We will guarantee health security for all: The Indian National Congress pledges that every family living below the poverty line will be covered by the Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana over the next three years

2014: Right to Health: The Indian National Congress will increase health expenditure to 3% of GDP and provide universal and quality health care for all Indians.

2019: Congress promises that the total government expenditure on healthcare will be doubled to 3 per cent of GDP by the year 2023-24. Congress promises to enact the Right to Healthcare Act that will guarantee to every citizen the right to healthcare services, including free diagnostics, out-patient care, medicines and
hospitalisation through a network of public hospitals and enlisted private hospitals.

Rural development and Panchayat Raj:

2009: The Congress party had promised to connect every village to a broadband network within three years.

2014: We will ensure that all our towns and Gram Panchayats are connected with high-speed broadband connectivity within 18 months.

2019:  Congress promises to connect all villages and habitations with a population of 250 with a road under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana. Broadband connectivity will be provided to all village Panchayats by the year 2021.

Goods and Service Tax:

2009: The Indian National Congress now pledges to take the next decisive step and introduce a moderate goods and services tax (GST). Once GST is implemented, all other central and state-level indirect taxes such as VAT, excise duty, service tax, entertainment tax, luxury tax, etc. will stand abolished and bring substantial relief to the aam aadmi.

2014: Introduce the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bills in Parliament and ensure they are enacted within 1 year. GST is likely to increase the aggregate revenue which will be used to fund the extra investment in infrastructure, health and education.

2019: Congress promises to review and replace the current GST laws with the GST 2.0 regime that will truly reflect the intent and purpose of a non-cascading, value-added, indirect tax. The GST 2.0 regime will be based on a single, moderate, standard rate of tax on all goods and services.

Power:

2004: Congress will launch a special programme to ensure each household will have access to reliable power in the next three to five years.

2009: The Congress party had started and achieved considerable progress on the ambitious Bharat Nirman programme to transform rural India by expanding and providing irrigation, all-weather roads, houses for the poor, drinking water, electricity for all poor families and phone connectivity in all villages.

2014: We will work to ensure greater access to electricity; 100% access in urban from current 94% and 90% access in rural areas from current 67.3% under the Raj Gandhi Grameen Vidyutikaran Yojana (RGGVY).

2019: Congress promises to enhance availability of, and access to, electricity in rural areas by encouraging investment in off-grid renewable power generation with ownership and revenues vesting in local bodies.

National Security:

2004: The UPA Government will ensure that all delays in the modernisation of the armed forces are eliminated and that all funds earmarked for modernisation are spent fully at the earliest.

2009: In the last five years, modernisation of our defence forces has resumed substantially. This will continue at a rapid pace. The Indian National Congress also pledges to make India’s defence forces technology-enabled and equipped with modern weapons, aircraft, ships and delivery systems to repel any threat from land, sea or air.

2014: The Indian National Congress believes modernisation of our defence forces is imperative. The Indian National Congress shall ensure that the process of procuring the finest, and most state-of-the-art equipment is carried out efficiently and transparently while ensuring rapid development of our domestic defence industry.

2019: Congress will reverse the trend of declining defence spending under the NDA government, and will ensure that defence spending is increased to meet the requirements of the Armed Forces. We will expedite all modernisation programmes of the armed forces in a transparent manner.

Interestingly, there are few other promises which are made by the Congress party for over 10 years have been fulfilled by the present Narendra Modi led NDA government. This includes Direct Income to farmers, providing electricity to each household, bank accounts through Jan Dan Yojana, One Rank One Pension, Goods and Service Tax, High Growth with Low Inflation, Health Security through Ayushman Bharat, Reservations to Economically Weaker Sections.

The NDA government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has successfully implemented most of the above commitments that had been promised by the UPA government from 2004 to 2014. There are few other reforms and promises which have been initiated by the present government like GST and defence modernisation as these reformative projects have long gestation periods.

The 2019 Congress party manifesto indicates that they seem to have a history of repeating their old promises in their subsequent election manifesto. The Congress party which has failed in delivering governance since 2004 has once again come out with their stale promises without any remorse that they failed to deliver the same promises despite being power for over a decade.

Data released by CBI shows its probe led to 1,468 convictions in graft cases in 2018

OpIndia Staff
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Data released by CBI shows its probe led to 1,468 convictions in graft cases in 2018

The data released by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on its 57th annual day shows that its probe has led to 1,468 people being convicted last year in graft cases investigated by the agency, according to reports.

The data shows that the anti-graft agency had filed 8,999 cases and preliminary enquiries through 2018, out of which it achieved conviction in 544 cases. As many as 209 of these cases were taken up on the direction of courts.

The agency claims that it had laid 156 trap operations for detection of bribery allegations and also registered 211 cases pertaining to bank frauds.

A CBI spokesperson confirmed that convictions were achieved in several sensitive cases as well, “The CBI successfully used the technology of Percentage Matching of DNA and Lineage Match for the first time in India while investigating the case of rape and murder of a minor girl in Shimla (Himachal Pradesh),” he added.

In fact, CBI director Rishi Kumar Shukla has awarded 14 investigating officers, six law officers, 46 executive & ministerial staff and two technical officers with the Director CBI’s Commendation Certificate and cash rewards for their exemplary work.

He went on to say “The CBI enjoys the trust of the people, Parliament, the judiciary and the government. Whenever there is a major offence or a credible investigation is required, there is always a demand for a CBI investigation,” he added.

In his address to CBI officers, Shukla also emphasised on the importance of grievance redressal and referred to the ‘Open Door Policy’ for all officials of the organisation in this regard.

Shukla said the CBI has evolved from an anti-corruption agency into a multi-faceted, multi-disciplinary central police law enforcement body with capability, credibility and legal mandate to investigate and prosecute offences across the country.

Recently, an appointment committee, comprising of PM Modi, CJI Rajan Gogoi and Congress leader in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge approved the appointment of IPS Rishi Kumar Shukla as the new CBI Director for a period of two years.

The post of the CBI Chief had been lying vacant since January 10, after ousted CBI director Alok Verma resigned from the post following serious charges of corruption. M Nageswara Rao has been working as the interim CBI chief after Verma’s ouster.

This accomplishment assumes significance especially because of the recent crisis in the agency. After the appointment of Shukla, the agency, which was going through a rough time, returned to normalcy.

The appointment of Shukla, who was ousted from his post as the DIG in Madhya Pradesh by the newly elected Congress government and which had sparked a war of words between the government and the opposition, preceded the turf war between his predecessor Alok Verma and former deputy chief of the agency Rakesh Asthana.

Both the officers levelled serious allegations of corruption against each other with the reputation of the agency taking a serious hit.

Radical Left Congress: Where treason and ‘bharat tere tukde honge’ is acceptable, but free speech on Social Media is not

K Bhattacharjee
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Radical Left Congress: Where treason and ‘bharat tere tukde honge’ is acceptable, but free speech on Social Media is not

The Congress party in its manifesto, released earlier today, has promised a crackdown on social media. After hinting at Communal Violence Bill 2.0, the manifesto also hints at the possible return of Section 66A, only stronger.

Reading through the entire length of the manifesto, one gets the distinct impression that the Congress President has been watching too many videos of Alexandria Ocasio Cortez on Youtube, far more than what can deemed healthy. Rahul Gandhi could never be accused of great intellect but displaying remarkable similarities with the likes of Cortez is a fall far too low, even for him.

The Manifesto promises to “Pass regulations to stop the spread of fake news and hate speech and punish those who misuse digital and social media.” The last time the Congress made an attempt to regulate social media, we got 66A. It is naive to assume that we will get anything different this time around.

The Congress manifesto makes it abundantly clear that the party is attempting to replicate the social engineering that Liberals in the West have succeeded in. People in other parts of the world have already traveled this road before and we know where it ends. It’s not somewhere pretty.

We have seen time and again that attempts to curb ‘hate speech’ are always directed towards stifling mainstream dissenting opinions. The ambiguity of the terms ‘hate speech’ provides ample scope for political parties to crackdown on those who refuse to toe the party line. Because at the crux of the matter is riddled with ambiguity. After all, who exactly defines what ‘hate speech’ is? Who defines what ‘misuse’ of social media is?

The Left worldwide has demonstrated repeatedly that it’s primary objective is to accumulate power, attaching themselves to noble pursuits is only the means towards that end. The transformation of the party under Rahul Gandhi has been such that now it’s essentially impossible to distinguish between the Congress and Radical Democrats in the US like Cortez.

The Left has recognized that social media has been instrumental in propagating rightwing ideas and is actively trying to regulate it. Donald Trump is touted to be the first President to be ‘memed’ into the Presidency. In India, the Bharatiya Janata Party has used social media very effectively to secure its rise to power. Under such circumstances, Rahul Gandhi’s promise to regulate social media appears to be motivated by political concerns hiding under the cloak of ‘hate speech’ and ‘fake news’.

It’s also necessary to emphasize here exactly what the Left considers ‘rightwing’ political opinion. According to Democrats like Cortez, and now it appears Rahul Gandhi, anyone to the Right of Pol Pot, Mao and Stalin are ‘rightwingers’. Therefore, objectively speaking, a great number of these so-called ‘rightwingers’ are really liberals themselves. That the Congress party is taking leaves out of the Radical Left playbook in the West speaks volumes of the lack of wisdom on Rahul Gandhi’s part and, of course, on the part of his advisers.

It’s also consistent with the interests of the mainstream media to have social media regulated as it has irreparably damaged their reputation. In the US, the mainstream media acts as the propaganda wing of the Democrat party while in India, they render their services to the Congress. People have seen through their partisanship and as a consequence, their reputation has suffered horribly. Therefore, as the mainstream media in the US cheer for a crackdown on social media, so have their counterparts in India. It’s basic quid pro quo.

Further evidence of the fact that the promise to regulate social media is a direct threat to dissenters is the Congress party’s promise to revoke the sedition law. The manifesto promises to “Omit Section 124A of the Indian Penal Code (that defines the offence of ‘sedition’) that has been misused and, in any event, has become redundant because of subsequent laws.”

Thus, the Congress, which can only be described now as a radical Left party, is offering its acquiescence to slogans such as “Bharat tere tukde honge” while potentially criminalizing dissenting mainstream opinions that does not align with radical Left inclinations.

The Congress President’s concept of ‘Hate Speech’ is bewildering as well. When those anti-India slogans were raised at JNU, he was the first to rush to the University in solidarity with the ‘students’. However, suddenly, he has woken up to the necessity of cracking down on hate speech. Oh! Advocating violent revolution against the Indian state is fine but dissenting opinions on social media? Rahul Gandhi has no tolerance for that.

The promise to regulate ‘Fake News’ on social media is just as problematic. The mainstream media, undoubtedly, has been the greatest purveyor of Fake News across the world. Will Rahul Gandhi act against his friends in the media who diligently peddle his propaganda day in and day out and relaunch his political career every few years? Of course not.

In the US, the mainstream media pulled off the greatest hoax in US history with remarkable efficiency for three years without suffering any consequences. I am, of course, referring to the Russian Collusion hoax. Has there been any shred of accountability? None. Will there be in India? ‘Extremely unlikely’ is a major understatement.

It was the Congress party itself which pulled off the greatest hoax in independent India, the Hindu Terror theory. A certain leader of theirs even attended the launch of a book which blamed the RSS for the Mumbai Attacks. Has the Congress party taken any action against the leader or those who propagated the distasteful Fake News about Hindu Terror? Of course not.

The issue of ‘Fake News’ and ‘Hate Speech’ is further polarized by the fact that people across the political spectrum now disagree on fundamental ontological positions regarding what constitutes the two. According to Radical Left organizations such as the Congress party and mainstream media, even maintaining that there are only two genders is ‘Hate Speech’. Therefore, will people who emphasize on the biological basis of gender be punished as well under the new law? There have been instances in the West where they have been. It appears that the malaise is coming to India should AOC fanboy Rahul Gandhi become the Prime Minister of the country.

At the end of the day, it’s the ordinary citizen who will suffer, regardless of any political affiliation. Because it will give people more scope to take unethical advantage of the law and unethical people can be found across both ends of the political spectrum. For instance, there is a certain Babu on social media who goes around threatening common people who use social media effectively to spread knowledge and truth by abusing his authority. The consequence of the Congress party’s harebrained idea would be empowering such people to harass ordinary citizens.

The law will also give political leaders immeasurable power to hunt down dissenters. It’s something that has happened in the past when section 66A was enforced. And it was the Congress party who was responsible for that.

Only a couple of days earlier, Times of India had published a ‘Fact Check‘ where it informed its readers that Chris Gayle aka Krishna Goyal had not joined the BJP. Whoever wrote that article could not differentiate between Fake News and a Meme, what’s the guarantee that the government appointed regulators will be able to? Will memers be punished, most of whom are creative young people, because people much older than them can’t understand humour?

That the Congress party’s real intentions behind the law is to go after dissenters is further confirmed by its history which is littered with instances where it has clamped down on free speech to preserve its political interests. It’s the party of The Emergency, it’s the party of Section 66A. That it has included the return of Section 66A in its manifesto only shows how deadly serious the party is about preserving its political interests. But most importantly, it remains the party of Fake News, the party which propagated the myth of Hindu Terror.

A charter to weaken India: Arun Jaitley on Congress manifesto

OpIndia Staff
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A charter to weaken India: Arun Jaitley on Congress manifesto

Reacting strongly to Congress’ 2019 election manifesto, Union Minister Arun Jaitley today took to Facebook to express his views on the manifesto. In a post, he dissected the manifesto point-by-point and explained how Congress is a disaster waiting to happen.

We have republished his blog in its entirety below:

Sitting in Opposition from 2004-14, I used to listen to the tall promises in the Congress Budgets. An early lesson that I gave to myself was “Don’t go by what is said, the devil is always in the details”. In the little time available, I have read the 53 pages of the Congress Manifesto. My worst fears have come true.

The tukde-tukde Manifesto

At point No.30, at page 35, otherwise an innocuous entry which deals with review of laws, rules and regulations. It repeals Section 124A of the Indian Penal Code which defines and then punishes an accused in sedition. Even for terrorists and hardcore criminals, it underlines the principles “bail is the rule and jail is the exception.” It seeks to dilute the provisions of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) . After having been spurned on various occasions to have a dialogue with the separatists, who want to settle for nothing other than cessation from India, it promised to have a continuous dialogue with them. It promises to dilute the presence of the Armed Forces in the Valley.

The Congress is the principal creator of the Jammu and Kashmir problem. It created a special status; it unconstitutionally brought in Article 35A. It rigged the 1957, 1962, 1967 as also the 1988 Assembly elections. This eroded the confidence of the people of Jammu and Kashmir and now its Manifesto only brings smiles on the faces of the separatists and the terrorists. A reference to “Kashmiri Pandits’ and their ethnic cleansing from the Valley is conspicuously absent in the Manifesto.

The Congress has always been soft on terror. Late Shri Rajiv Gandhi introduced TADA. Later the Congress revoked it. It revoked POTA. Now it wants to go further soft on separatism and terrorism.

There is only a lip sympathy in the assault required on Maoists violence, which Dr. Manmohan Singh had described as the greatest threat to India. In the recent elections, as also in the case of JNU and urban Maoists, Congress and Congressmen have always flirted with the Maoists as fellow travellers.

Nyay bluff

Most economists have already rubbished the Congress Party’s Nyay. Between the Centre and the States, we are already giving to the poorest 20 per cent much more than what Nyay promises. As the economy expands to depleting poverty, further amounts can also be increased. To my initial query whether it will be reworking of the existing schemes or over and above the existing, the Congress Spokesman boasted that it will be over and above. I went through the detailed paragraphs in point No.9 at page 19-20. It contains the following statements:

  1. Fiscal prudence will be maintained.
  2. There will be pilots and testing phases.
  3. It will be implemented in phases.
  4. On how it will be funded, the Congress says that it will be funded from the future expansion of the economy.

Nyay, in the Manifesto, has now become a joint scheme of Central and the State Governments thereby diluting the initial announcement. The State Governments may well suggest that these existing subsidies are more than what Congress promises? To the vexed question of what happens to the existing subsidies, the manifesto says that ‘only merit based subsidies will continue’. So the Centre will retain the power to say that some subsides can be subsumed, diluted or abolished since they are non-merit based while in others the number of beneficiaries reduced since with every passing year many people are moving out of poverty.

Farm loan waivers

The Congress does not commit to the loan waiver but says that it has done so in several States. If you look at the track record of Karnataka, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, a miniscule effort has not even been put. Even the PM-KISAN is on hold in Congress States.

Public Health

It is extremely desirable that public health institutions be strengthened. The Congress is only giving slogans on healthcare. Shri Narendra Modi has implemented the Ayushman Bharat where 50 crore people get hospital treatment free.

Women’s reservation in legislatures

In 2010, as the Leader of Opposition in the Upper House, I was instrumental in having the Constitution Amendment Bill passed in the Rajya Sabha where the Congress brought it. In the next four years, it did not press for it in the Lok Sabha. How can its track record be believed?

The GST

The Manifesto repeats that the Congress will try for Single Rate GST. Today most food items are taxed at zero. Aam Aadmi items are taxed at 5 per cent. The 28 per cent slab is almost over. In the next round, the two standard rates of 12% and 18% will be merged into a mid rate. Thus you will have, besides the non-merit goods, goods and services, taxed at zero, 5% and at about 15%. The Congress says irrespective of the product and the category of consumers using it, there will be one single rate. This effectively means that electronic goods, air-conditioners, television sets, washing machines should be taxed at the same rate as food items, chappals and coarse cloth. Rahul Gandhi got this wisdom from Singapore which does not have poverty. Both rice and Mercedes car in Singapore are taxed at 7 per cent.

The Manifesto compromises national security and has sham and bluff promises with little detailed understanding of the subjects involved. It is an irresponsible document which has never to be implemented since Congress looks a certain loser.

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