Archives for 2024

New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is expected to summon Rahul Gandhi, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, for further questioning in its ongoing money laundering investigation related to the National Herald newspaper. According to sources, the ED aims to conclude its probe, which has already led to the attachment of assets worth ₹751 crore.

Rahul Gandhi, who was previously interrogated by the agency for nearly 40 hours in June 2022, may face another round of questioning. The ED’s investigation focuses on the financial transactions of Young Indian Pvt Ltd (YI), a company in which both Rahul Gandhi and his mother Sonia Gandhi hold majority stakes. The probe also examines the acquisition of Associated Journals Ltd (AJL) by YI and the ₹90.21 crore loan given by the All India Congress Committee (AICC) to AJL.

The ED’s findings suggest that a criminal conspiracy was orchestrated to transfer control of properties worth “hundreds of crores of rupees” from AJL to the “beneficial owners” of YI, Rahul and Sonia Gandhi. The agency has alleged that the same individuals held key positions in AJL, YI, and AICC, facilitating the transactions.

In response, Congress has consistently denied any wrongdoing, arguing that the financial decisions were made to save the National Herald newspaper and protect the jobs of its staff. The party has accused the central government of using the ED to target the Gandhi family for political reasons.

The case has been ongoing, with AJL challenging the attachment of properties before the appellate tribunal for forfeited property (ATFP). As the ED seeks to finalize its investigation, it remains uncertain whether Sonia Gandhi will also be called for additional questioning.

Ten government hospitals in Delhi have begun an indefinite strike, halting all elective services on Monday, in response to the recent rape and murder of a resident doctor in Kolkata.

The Maulana Azad Medical College, RML Hospital, Lady Hardinge Medical College, VMMC and Safdarjung Hospital, Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital, GTB, IHBAS, Dr Baba Saheb Ambedkar Medical College, and National Institute of TB and Respiratory Diseases Hospital are participating in the strike, which began at 9 am, according to a statement by the Resident Doctors’ Associations (RDA).

According to the RDA, during the indefinite strike, all outpatient departments (OPDs), operation theatres (OTs), and ward duties will be shut, but emergency services will continue to operate as usual, ensuring that urgent patient care remains unaffected.

The move comes in response to a call from the Federation of Resident Doctors’ Association (FORDA) after a postgraduate trainee doctor was raped and murdered at the RG Kar Medical College in Kolkata while on duty.

The semi-naked body of the 32-year-old woman was found in the seminar hall of the government-run hospital in the West Bengal capital on Thursday night.

“As a mark of solidarity with our colleagues at RG Kar, we announce a nationwide suspension of elective services in hospitals starting Monday, August 12. This decision is not made lightly but is necessary to ensure that our voices are heard and that the demands for justice and safety are addressed without further delay,” the statement read.

Jehanabad (Bihar): At least seven people, including six women, were killed and 16 others injured in a stampede at Baba Siddheshwar Nath Temple in Bihar’s Jehanabad district, an official said on Monday.

The deceased have been identified as Pyare Paswan (30), Nisha Devi (30), Punam Devi (30), Nisha Kumari (21), and Sushila Devi (64). The identity of one woman remains unknown, the official added.

District Magistrate Alankrita Pandey confirmed the fatalities and injuries, stating that the stampede took place at the temple around 11.30 pm on Sunday. She noted that security personnel at the temple quickly brought the situation under control.

“Seven people, mostly kanwariyas, were killed and 16 others injured in a stampede at Baba Siddeshwar Nath temple in Barabar Pahadi area of Jehanabad around 11.30 pm on Sunday. The deceased included six women”, she told PTI.

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar expressed grief over the incident and instructed that an ex gratia of Rs 4 lakh each be provided to the families of the deceased. The Chief Minister also directed the district administration to ensure the best possible treatment for the injured.

“The CM has instructed that an ex gratia of Rs 4 lakh each be immediately provided to the next of the kin of the deceased. Kumar has also directed the district administration to provide best possible treatment to the injured,” a statement by the Chief Minister’s Office said.

The injured were taken to medical facilities in Mukundapur and nearby areas, with 10 discharged after first aid and six still hospitalised. Senior officials from the district administration and police are stationed at the temple due to the high volume of pilgrims.

Pandey said security personnel deployed at the temple rushed to the spot and brought the situation under control.

The DM indicated that a dispute among kanwariyas might have led to the stampede. The exact cause is still under investigation, and an inquiry has been ordered, officials said.

“Some locals suggested that a heated argument between a group of kanwariyas and flower sellers outside the temple may have triggered the incident. The exact cause is still under investigation,” she said.

The administration will provide Rs 20,000 each to the families of the deceased for last rites, in addition to the Rs 4 lakh ex gratia. The injured will receive Rs 50,000 each, officials said.

Meanwhile, RJD leaders Lalu Prasad, Rabri Devi and Tejashwi Yadav have expressed grief over the incident, a statement by the party said.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal

 Delhi court on Thursday extended the judicial custody of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal till August 20 in a corruption case registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the alleged excise scam.

Special Judge Kaveri Baweja extended Kejriwal’s custody after he was produced before the court through video conference.

The court is likely to consider on August 12 a supplementary charge sheet filed by the CBI against Kejriwal in the case.

The judge had sent Kejriwal to judicial custody in June, saying his name has surfaced as one of the “main conspirators” and the investigation was still in progress. The judge had also noted the apprehension of the CBI, which claimed that Kejriwal may influence the witnesses in the case.

Kejriwal, 55, was arrested by the CBI on June 26 from Tihar Jail, where he was in judicial custody in a connected money laundering case filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

Kejriwal was arrested by the ED on March 21.

Though the Supreme Court granted interim bail to Kejriwal in the ED case on July 12, he continues to be lodged in Tihar jail in connection with the case as he has not furnished the bail bond.

Congress leader Jairam

New Delhi: Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh has submitted a notice to initiate privilege proceedings in the Rajya Sabha against Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan for “misleading” the House over the issue of alleged dropping of the Preamble to the Constitution from certain NCERT textbooks.

In his letter to Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar, Ramesh said that on August 7, 2024, Leader of the Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge raised the matter regarding “omitting the Preamble to the Constitution of India in the textbooks by NCERT for children of Class 3 and 6”.

“In response thereto, Dharmendra Pradhan, Minister of Education, subsequently (at 12 Noon) inter alia stated ‘abhi bhi kaksha 6 ki jo pathyapustak aayi hai, usme bhi preamble hai (the textbook for Class 6 that has come out also contains the preamble)’,” Ramesh said.

This assertion by Pradhan is factually “incorrect and misleading”, Ramesh said in his letter to Dhankhar dated August 8.

“In support of my contention, I enclose herewith copies of textbook for Class 3 titled ‘Looking Around’ (Environmental Studies), November, 2022 edition, textbook in Hindi titled “Rimjhim-3′ November, 2022 edition and textbook of Class 6 titled ‘Honeysuckle’, December 2022 Edition. In these textbooks, the Preamble to the Constitution had been incorporated as was done in the earlier editions of the textbooks,” the Congress leader said.

On the other hand, in the textbook for students of Class 3 titled ‘Our Wondrous World’, June 2024 edition, textbook in Hindi titled ‘Veena’, June 2024 edition and the textbook for students of Class 6 titled ‘Poorvi’ June 2024 edition, the Preamble to the Constitution has been omitted, he claimed.

“Thereafter, your goodself, had inter alia observed, ‘…If he is wrong, it is a breach of privilege. .. (Interruptions)… If what the hon. Minister says is wrong, then, it is a breach of privilege’. The relevant extracts from Rajya Sabha Debates dated 7 August 2024 as well as from the textbooks referred to above are enclosed for reference,” he said in his letter.

Omission of the Preamble to the Constitution in the textbooks of school children is a “grave affront” to the very concept of generating awareness among youth of this country about the spirit of the Constitution of India, Ramesh said.

“It was this point which the hon’ble Leader of the Opposition had contended while raising the matter during Zero Hour on 7 August, 2024. The contentions made by Dharmendra Pradhan contesting the assertions made by me in the House in this regard as already stated are misleading,” Ramesh said.

It is well established that “misleading and misrepresentation of facts” on the floor of the House constitutes breach of privilege and contempt of the House, he said.

“I, therefore, request you to initiate privilege proceedings against Dharmendra Pradhan in this regard,” Ramesh said.

Education Minister Pradhan on Wednesday has said the Preamble to the Constitution is in the NCERT textbooks of Class 6 as he refuted charges made in this regard by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge.

Earlier, the Congress party had raised the issue in Rajya Sabha, saying dropping the Preamble from textbooks was an attempt to impose communal ideology on the country – a claim which Union Minister J P Nadda countered, saying the government was committed to protecting the Constitution.

The minister informed the House that till now textbooks for up to class 7 have been published.

“Leader of the Opposition was saying that earlier there used to be Preamble (in the textbooks). In the new textbooks of Class 6, there is Preamble. Not only Preamble, there is Fundamental Duties, Fundamental Rights, and National Anthem (in the books). These also represent core values of the Constitution and they are in the books. What he said was not a fact,” Pradhan had said.

Ramesh has given the notice of privilege motion under Rule 187 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the Rajya Sabha against Pradhan.

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday granted bail to AAP leader Manish Sisodia in the corruption and money laundering cases linked to the alleged Delhi excise policy scam, noting that he has been in custody for 17 months.

A bench of justices B R Gavai and K V Viswanathan said Sisodia has been in custody for 17 months and trial has not yet commenced, depriving him of the right to speedy trial.

The bench said it would be a travesty of justice to relegate him to the trial court for seeking bail in these cases.

The top court said it is high time that the trial courts and high courts recognise that the principle of bail is a rule and jail is an exception.

It directed that Sisodia be released on bail on a personal bond of Rs 10 lakh with two sureties of the like amount.

The former deputy chief minister of Delhi was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on February 26, 2023 for the purported irregularities in the formulation and implementation of the now-scrapped Delhi excise policy 2021-22.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested him in the money laundering case stemming from the CBI FIR on March 9, 2023.

He resigned from the Delhi cabinet on February 28, 2023.

Sisodia had sought bail contending that he has been in custody for 17 months and the trial against him has not yet started.

The ED and the CBI had opposed his bail pleas.

New Delhi : Air India on Tuesday cancelled morning flight to Dhaka from the national capital amid massive anti-government protests in Bangladesh.

The neighbouring country has plunged into uncertainty after extraordinary street protests over job quota forced Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to quit and flee.

IndiGo and Vistara have cancelled all their flights to the Bangladesh capital on Tuesday, two officials said.

Vistara operates daily flights from Mumbai and three weekly services from Delhi to Dhaka.

An airline official on Tuesday said Air India cancelled its morning flight to Dhaka and will take a decision later in the day on whether to operate its evening flight to the Bangladesh capital.

As per schedule, the airline is to operate two flights daily to Dhaka from Delhi.

“In view of the emerging situation in Bangladesh, we have cancelled the scheduled operation of our flights to and from Dhaka with immediate effect.

“We are continuously monitoring the situation and are extending support to our passengers with confirmed bookings for travel to and from Dhaka with a one-time waiver on rescheduling and cancellation charges,” an Air India spokesperson had said in a statement on Monday.

New Delhi : INDIA bloc parties staged a protest in Parliament premises on Tuesday to press for the rollback of 18 per cent Goods and Services Tax (GST) on life and health insurance premiums.

MPs from various parties such as TMC, Congress, AAP and NCP (SC), among others, participated in the protest on the steps leading to the Makar Dwar of Parliament.

Carrying placards reading “Tax terrorism”, the protesting MPs raised slogans demanding that the GST on life and health insurance premiums be rolled back.

Trinamool Congress MPs have raised the issue in Parliament and party president and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has written to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on the matter.

Union minister Nitin Gadkari also wrote to Sitharaman and urged her to consider withdrawing the GST which, he said, amounted to taxing uncertainties of life and restricting the industry’s growth.

New Delhi : External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Tuesday told an all-party meeting that India has assured help to former Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina, who arrived here on Monday evening, and given her time to decide the future course of action, sources said.

Briefing political party leaders in Parliament House, Jaishankar said India was in touch with the Bangladesh Army to ensure the safety of over 10,000 Indian students in that country, the sources said.

“Briefed an All-Party meeting in Parliament today about the ongoing developments in Bangladesh. Appreciate the unanimous support and understanding that was extended,” Jaishankar posted on X after the meeting.

Congress leader Karti Chidambaram said the government had briefed an all-party meeting on the situation in Bangladesh.Congress party is fully with the government as far as national security and national interest are concerned.

Bangladesh plunged into uncertainty after extraordinary street protests over job quota forced Prime Minister Hasina to quit and flee.