Cess and surcharge money spent to benefit states: FM Sitharaman
NEW DELHI: Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday rejected the criticism by states over cesses and surcharges, arguing that it was in line with the Constitutional provisions and the money collected through these levies was spent on schemes that benefited the states. . While responding to the discussion on the Budget in the Lok Sabha, FM said that states should distinguish between the gross tax revenue and the net proceeds that are legally shareable. “States can’t have it both ways. The states should check if the entire net proceeds which form the divisible pool, after removing cess and surcharge from gross tax revenue, is received by them,” she said. The minister said that the Centre was transferring 41% to the states, as was recommended by the Finance Commission. “The 16th Finance Commission analysed the state’s share transferred by the Centre to the states from 2018-19 to 2022-23, and concluded that in each of these years, the devolution made by the Centre exactly matches the recommendation of the Finance Commission. So, we are not the only ones claiming this… There is no scope for any doubt in this for the states,” the minister said. Sitharaman also criticised states such as West Bengal, where Mamata Banerjee’s TMC was in power, arguing that they blamed the Centre for GST, but then imposed additional burden on consumers. “The state govt in West Bengal imposes road levies and charges taxes at the time of new vehicle registration. If there is so much concern about GST burdening citizens, then why impose additional state-level taxes? These could be waived for the people of Bengal, but instead, GST collections are criticised while state taxes continue to be levied,” she said while accusing Abhishek Banerjee of twisting facts on GST. She said govt is incentivising data centres in the country, in what was a rebuttal to Rahul Gandhi’s claims on Indian data. Further, she listed out measures on SEZs, customs reforms and support to MSMEs to counter Rahul’s concerns. “Leader of the Opposition expressed concerns over geopolitics, energy and weaponisation of finance. He said that the Budget acknowledges these challenges, but he didn’t read the Budget and the steps announced in it to address these challenges.” Courtesy :TOI Note: This news is originally published on https:/timesofindia.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
Revanth meets Kharge, exudes confidence of Cong win in civic polls
Hyderabad: Chief minister A Revanth Reddy on Wednesday met AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge in Delhi and expressed confidence that the Congress would win the ongoing municipal elections and continue its momentum in the upcoming polls to the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation and two other corporations in the core urban area. Revanth travelled to the national capital to meet top AICC leaders and Union ministers. Sources said the visit had a dual purpose. He had not met Kharge or Rahul Gandhi since his Davos and US tour and had been busy with municipal election campaign work. With a considerable gap since his last interaction, he wanted to brief the leadership on the current political situation in Telangana. A senior AICC leader told TOI that another key objective was to meet Union ministers and seek clarity on approvals and central funding for major state projects. The state govt is preparing to present its annual budget soon, and clarity on central assistance would help factor allocations accordingly. MPs Mallu Ravi and Anil Kumar Yadav accompanied the CM to Kharge’s residence. Revanth will meet Union ministers to seek support on issues including Hyderabad Metro Rail expansion, Musi rejuvenation, devolution of funds, fertilisers, irrigation projects, and disputes with Andhra Pradesh over river waters and railway lines. The CMO has sought appointments with railways minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, fertilisers minister JP Nadda, and power, housing and urban affairs minister Manohar Lal Khattar. He is likely to meet Rahul Gandhi in Parliament on Thursday. Sources said meetings with Sonia Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi are also possible. A Congress MP said Revanth would brief Rahul on efforts to check the revival of BRS and contain the BJP’s rise, besides outlining plans for the upcoming civic polls. Courtesy : TOI Note: This news is originally published on https:/timesofindia.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
US chokehold on PM Modi, he has sold India: Rahul Gandhi
NEW DELHI: Leader of the opposition Rahul Gandhi accused the govt Wednesday of “completely surrendering” India’s core data, food and energy interests in the trade deal, in a sharp attack in Lok Sabha on PM Modi who, he alleged, had caved in to pressure due to the leverage that country has over him. Participating in the discussion on the Budget, Gandhi began his speech with mention of the concept of grip and chokehold players are taught in martial arts to floor rivals and then used the metaphor to target Modi in the US’s handling of him. Gandhi’s condemnation of the interim pact as a sellout of national interest was the theme of his speech. ‘Farmers left to mercy of mechanised US farms’ Rahul said the data of 140 crore Indians is the country’s most valuable asset, while the nation needs to secure its energy and food interests in these turbulent times. The LoP’s controversial references to a convicted child sex offender in the US, two Indian businessmen and Bharat Mata as he sought to corner govt was met with resistance from treasury benches and were expunged from records. He alleged that minister Hardeep Puri had introduced an Indian businessman to the child sex offender, and the files released by the US govt mention their names. The Chair asked him not to level the allegations. Rahul Gandhi’s condemnation of the interim trade pact as a sellout of national interest was the theme of his speech, hitting the BJP-led NDA govt on a plank which it has practically owned since coming to power in 2014. He alleged, “The most valuable asset (data) of India has been handed over. Our farmers have been left to the mercy of mechanised American farms. Our textiles have been wiped out. Our energy security has been handed over. We cannot buy oil from who we want to buy it from. This is a wholesale surrender.” Unlike Modi’s and NSA Doval’s assertion that it is not an era of war, Rahul said the world is in fact “moving into an era of war and instability” amid intensifying geo-political conflicts. Dollar’s supremacy is being challenged and world is moving away from the era of one superpower, he said. While the budget recognises these challenges, including the weaponisation of energy and finance, it offers no future pathways, he said, before turning to the agreement to hit out at govt. He alleged the deal has compromised security in all three critical things needed to run a modern country: data, food supply and energy. Courtesy : TOI Note: This news is originally published on https:/timesofindia.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
Bharat Bandh: Rahul Gandhi backs workers & farmers; takes ‘grip’ jibe at PM Modi
NEW DELHI: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday backed nationwide protests by workers and farmers demanding protection of their rights. He flagged concerns over labour reforms, trade policies, and potential changes to the rural jobs programme MGNREGA. “Workers fear that the four labour codes will weaken their rights. Farmers are apprehensive that the trade agreement will harm their livelihoods. And weakening or scrapping MGNREGA could snatch away the last lifeline of villages. When decisions affecting their future were taken, their voices were ignored,” he said through a post on X. “Will Modiji listen now? Or is the “grip” on him too strong? I stand firmly with the workers and farmers on their issues and their struggle,” Rahul added. An all-India general strike called by ten Central Trade Unions (CTUs) and backed by the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) on Thursday is aimed at opposing a range of government policies, including the four labour codes, privatisation and contractualisation measures, the Electricity Amendment Bill 2025, changes to MGNREGA and the proposed Seed Bill. Large-scale participation from farmers, agricultural workers and industrial unions is expected at protest sites across the country, with power sector employees, PRTC staff and other worker organisations also set to join. In a statement, the SKM said the strike seeks the withdrawal of the four labour codes, the Electricity Bill 2025, the Seed Bill 2025 and the VB-G RAM G Act 2025, among other demands. It also called for the restoration of the old pension scheme and the implementation of minimum wages for all workers, including scheme workers. Communist Party of India (CPI) leader and All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) working president Binoy Viswam expressed full support for the nationwide farmers’ strike, describing it as a movement to defend people’s basic rights. Apple farmers in Himachal Pradesh have also intensified preparations to join the nationwide farmers’ strike on February 12 and announced a march to Delhi, warning that recent import duty reductions under India-US and other free trade agreements could hurt the state’s apple-based economy. They expressed concern that cheaper imports could impact local growers, despite repeated assurances from union commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal that the interests of Indian apple farmers will be safeguarded. While several trade unions and farmer organisations have decided to join the strike, the National Front of Indian Trade Unions (NFITU) said it would not participate, describing the protest as “politically motivated.” Courtesy : TOI Note: This news is originally published on https:/timesofindia.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
Government confident it did better in battle of wits with opposition
NEW DELHI: Any hope of normalcy returning to LS was apparently dashed when opposition stepped up their offensive and submitted a notice for the removal of the Speaker. In a twist, it turned out to be the end of a week-long impasse, laying bare faultlines within the opposition as pragmatic voices wanting to be heard on key issues in the House prevailed over those favouring uncompromising rigidity and confrontation. LS functioned normally even though the govt did not agree to the conditions set by Congress: allowing LoP Rahul Gandhi to speak, rectification of the Speaker’s “baseless” claim that he had to request PM not to speak during the debate on motion of thanks to the President for her address in view of plans of Congress’ MPs to do something unprecedented, and a probe into why BJP MP Nishikant Dubey’s mic was not switched off when he attacked Nehru-Gandhi family. The prevailing view within govt was that it had come out better in the battle of wits by not making any concession to the key Congress demand of allowing Rahul to speak first and revoking the suspension of eight MPs to defuse the crisis that had stalled proceedings. What helped the govt defuse the impasse was the keenness among some key regional BJP rivals for LS to function and allow discussion on regional concerns. Bengal and Tamil Nadu, where TMC and DMK are in office, are headed to polls, while political temperature is rising in UP, where Samajwadi Party is the main opposition party, with elections only a year away. While TMC made its differences clear by not signing the notice, MPs from different non-Congress oppn parties suggested many of them did not want the first half of the session to be consumed by the deadlock. Across the aisle, BJP’s allies stood firm with the govt, backing the Speaker and criticising the opposition for targeting a constitutional office. Taking high moral ground, Birla decided not to attend till the notice is disposed of, signalling the matter may be taken up later in the session. Courtesy : TOI Note: This news is originally published on https:/timesofindia.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
Delay in alliance talks by DMK ‘saddening’: Cong
Chennai: Congress leaders mounted pressure on DMK to constitute a panel to hold seat sharing talks ‘immediately,’ stating the delay on the part of DMK in constituting the panel was ‘saddening.’ Congress leaders, who held a meeting with Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday in New Delhi, appeared to toughen their stand. They said the delay in seat-sharing talks could affect ground level preparations for the assembly elections. “It has been more than 70 days since AICC president formed a committee comprising five members and it is more than two months since the committee called on chief minister M K Stalin on Dec 3,” Girish Chodankar, head of the five-member committee told reporters after the meeting in New Delhi. “We are waiting with hope against hope that they will start the negotiation,” Chodankar said. Chodankar said the absence of a formal coordination mechanism was ‘saddening’ and it had caused concern among party cadres and leaders. “There is no negotiation committee yet, no coordination, and alliance talks have not started. Our cadres keep asking why there is no progress. It may appear as though we are delaying matters, but that is not the case. We have met the CM and followed it up repeatedly, but there has been no development,” he said. Chodankar said elections were approaching fast and parties needed sufficient time to prepare. “We are not blaming anyone. We are only stating the fact that we have been waiting for 70 days and do not know the reason for the delay,” he said. TNCC chief K Selvaperunthagai echoed the concern, urging Stalin to constitute the panel immediately. “Our request to CM is to form the panel immediately. Last-minute seat allocation and election processes do not work well,” he said stating the delayed preparations in Maharashtra and Jharkhand assembly elections did not yield results. He said the message would be conveyed to Stalin directly on Wednesday. Courtesy : TOI Note: This news is originally published on https:/timesofindia.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
Rahul says no to debate on Budget, wins allies’ praise
New Delhi: As the opposition gathered to decide strategy for the upcoming discussion on Budget on Tuesday, Rahul Gandhi faced a unanimous demand from allies that he should start the debate, if only to get back at BJP which had not let him speak for seven days. The demand was led by DMK’s T R Baalu and supported by others. But Rahul resisted. He argued that if he stood up to speak, it would result in objections from the treasury benches. And the ensuing commotion would cost every opposition party the chance to speak. He underlined that all regional parties has important issues to raise, and they should not fall prey to “organised disruptions” of BJP. The move won a few hearts in the room, with an ally-critic of LoP Rahul Gandhi later describing it as a “magnanimous” gesture. The meeting was attended by Congress’ Mallikarjun Kharge, K C Venugopal, Naseer Hussain and Manickam Tagore, Ramgopal Yadav (SP), N K Premachandran (RSP), Sanjay Raut and Arvind Sawant (SS), John Brittas (CPM), PC Gupta (RJD), Shatabdi Roy (TMC), E T Mohd Basheer (IUML), Rajaram Singh (CPI-ML), among others. That was how the plan was clinched, with the party sticking to Shashi Tharoor to initiate the discussion. Gandhi will speak on the Budget on Wednesday. When the India bloc leaders met in Kharge’s chamber to brainstorm on the future course, the allies decided on ending the logjam. If Gandhi is still blocked from speaking, they would submit the planned no-confidence notice against Speaker Om Birla, and then get on with the stalled business. If Gandhi is allowed, the notice will not be filed. Lok Sabha is now expected to hold normal proceedings. Courtesy : TOI Note: This news is originally published on https:/timesofindia.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
Delhi Police register FIR over circulation of an unpublished book of ex-Army chief Naravane
NEW DELHI: The Delhi Police on Monday registered an FIR over the circulation of an unpublished book of ex-Chief of Army Staff General Naravane on social media, cops told news agency PTI. A row erupted over General Naravane’s book after Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi cited excerpts from the former Army chief’s unpublished memoir and accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of “not fulfilling responsibility” during the 2020 India-China military clashes in Ladakh. Speaking to reporters outside the Parliament the Congress leader said, “The speaker is saying that this book does not exist, Rajnath ji has said this book does not exist. This is Naravane ji’s book wherein he has written the account of Ladakh…Narendra Modi ji did not fulfil his responsibility.” Rahul Gandhi’s insistence on reading purported extracts from the yet-to-be-published Naravane’s book shone the spotlight on the rules and regulations that restrict senior military officials from revealing classified information or crucial leadership decisions even after retirement. Meanwhile, Penguin Random House, which holds the publishing rights, said the book has “not gone into publication. No copies of the book – in print or digital form – have been published, distributed, sold, or otherwise made available to the public” by them. “In light of recent public discourse and media reporting, Penguin Random House India would like to clarify that we hold the sole publishing rights for the book Four Stars of Destiny, a memoir by General Manoj Mukund Naravane, former Chief of the Indian Army. We wish to make it clear that the book has not gone into publication. No copies of the book – in print or digital form – have been published, distributed, sold, or otherwise made available to the public by Penguin Random House India,” the publishing house wrote on X. — PenguinIndia (@PenguinIndia) There has been no official word from the author or even the ministry on the status of the book. Senior military officials, particularly those dealing with classified information, are subject to regulations under the Official Secrets Act that restrict the publication of books or information even after retirement to prevent such classified material from becoming public. While a general one-year “cooling-off” period exists for taking up commercial or private employment, regulations for publishing secret content require prior government clearance. “Four Stars of Destiny”, a memoir of Naravane, who was Army chief from December 31, 2019, to April 30, 2022, remains unpublished due to pending clearance from the defence ministry regarding sensitive details on the 2020 Line of Actual Control (LAC) standoff and Agnipath scheme. If the said rules and regulations are violated, the government can take legal action and such violations can also lead to the withholding of part or all of the pension of the military official concerned, as per CCS (Pension) Rules. There are chances that if the memoir is published, it could “flare up” the LAC situation with China. In May-June 2020, Indian and Chinese troops engaged in violent face-offs along the LAC in eastern Ladakh and Sikkim, most notably during the June 15, 2020, clash in Galwan Valley that resulted in the death of 20 Indian soldiers. There were casualties on the Chinese side as well. This marked the deadliest confrontation in decades, leading to major troop escalations. Under the then General Naravane’s command, India and China held a series of ground-level talks that led to “disengagement” in a phased manner from the stand-off areas. As of today, the situation along LAC is characterised by a “thaw” following a series of disengagement agreements, yet high-level military forward deployment from both sides persists. Courtesy : TOI Note: This news is originally published on https:/timesofindia.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
PM’s Lok Sabha absence not due to any threat from us: Women Congress MPs to Birla
NEW DELHI: Women MPs belonging to Congress told Speaker Om Birla Monday that under pressure from the govt, he made “false, baseless and defamatory allegations” that PM Modi faced potential threat from them, because of which he did not come to LS to reply to the motion of thanks. In a letter to Birla, the MPs said he made the allegations a day later under govt pressure “to defend the non-appearance of the PM”, arguing that “questioning our integrity is a attack on every woman who earns her place in public life with dignity and courage”. “His (PM) absence from the House was not due to any threat from us, it was an act of fear. He did not have the courage to face the opposition,” said the letter, signed by Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, S Jothimani, R Sudha, Geniben Thakor, Varsha Gaikwad and Jyotsna Mahant. Rubbishing the idea that women members could have indulged in violence, Rahul Gandhi told reporters if any member did threaten, the govt should file an FIR and arrest that MP. The letter questioning the Speaker’s impartiality, with a remark like “you are no longer the decision maker”, marks a sharp escalation of tension that has prevailed between the governing camp-Speaker and the opposition during the Budget session. “It is amply clear that you are under sustained pressure from the ruling party. We urge you once again to act as impartial custodian of the Lok Sabha,” they wrote, adding, “let history remember you as one who stood for what was right in the most trying circumstances… let it not remember you as one who bowed to pressure from those who leave no stone unturned in subverting constitutional values and damaging the democratic fabric of our nation.” The MPs said while LoP Rahul Gandhi was not allowed to speak for four days and eight opposition MPs were suspended, a BJP MP was allowed to speak in a “vulgar and obscene manner against former PMs”, an unnamed reference to Nishikant Dubey’s speech. They claimed Birla had agreed that a wrong had happened but left Congress’ demand for Dubey’s suspension to be decided by ruling party. Courtesy : TOI Note: This news is originally published on https:/timesofindia.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
Rahul to meet TNCC leaders, district presidents in Delhi
Chennai: Chennai: The Congress high command has summoned senior Tamil Nadu Congress leaders and the newly appointed district presidents to New Delhi on Tuesday. TNCC president K Selvaperunthagai said the district presidents have been invited to Delhi for a training session. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is likely to interact with the district presidents. Later, he would meet the senior leaders to take stock of the alliance dynamics in Tamil Nadu. “Rahul would be seeking the views of the senior leaders on alliance and seat sharing in TN,” a TNCC leader said. The meeting comes days after DMK MP Kanimozhi called on Rahul in Delhi in the wake of a section of the Congress functionaries batting for a power sharing arrangement. Senior TN Congress leaders had a similar meeting with Rahul in Delhi on Jan 18. Congress sources said the meeting is also expected to review the party’s preparedness for the 2026 assembly elections and assess district-level structures following the recent organisational changes. TNCC leaders said all 76 newly appointed district presidents are set to participate in the training programme, along with Selvaperunthagai, Congress legislative party leader S Rajeshkumar, and AICC in-charge for TN Girish Chodankar. Rahul will be joined by AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge, AICC general secretary K C Venugopal, and former Union finance minister P Chidambaram. “This is the first training session. The second session will be held after the assembly election,” TNCC spokesperson A Gopanna told TOI. The district presidents were appointed on merit, after doing away with the `quota system,’ where each TNCC leaders was allotted a certain number of postings for them to fill up with their supporters. “ Their functioning will be directly monitored by the AICC,” Gopanna said. As part of the training, the district presidents would also be briefed on the poll strategy to be adopted. Courtesy : TOI Note: This news is originally published on https:/timesofindia.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights