GOVT SIMPLIFIES, WIDENS DEFINITION OF STARTUP TO PROVIDE
RELIEF FROM ANGEL TAX
Revising the current
definition of startups and addressing the raging issue of angel tax, Union
Minister Suresh Prabhu said an entity shall be considered a startup upto 10
years from its date of incorporation / registration instead of the existing
period of 7 years. An entity shall be considered a startup if its turnover for
any of the financial years since its incorporation/registration hasn’t exceeded
Rs 100 Crore instead of existing Rs 25 crore he said. He also said that the
considerations of shares received by eligible startups for shares issued or
proposed to be issued by all investors shall be exempt up to an aggregate limit
of Rs 25 crore. The minister added that all investments into eligible Startups
by Non-Residents, Alternate Investment Funds- Category I registered with SEBI
shall also be exempt under Section 56(2)(viib) of Income Tax Act beyond the
limit of Rs 25 crores. Funds from angels are subjected to over 30% tax if it is
more than the fair market value (FMV). Introduced in Section 56 of the I-T Act
in Budget 2012, it explicitly states that companies - from mature private
enterprises to small startups – are liable to pay taxes on money invested at
capital. But with most startups taking years just to break-even, treating part
of the hard-won cash that came in from angels as taxable income, even before a
company begins to make money seems unwarranted.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
MENTIONING DETAILS OF INTER-STATE SUPPLIES MADE TO
UNREGISTERED PERSONS IN TABLE 3.2 OF FORM GSTR-3B AND TABLE 7B OF FORM GSTR-1
A registered supplier is
required to mention the details of inter -State supplies made to unregistered
persons composition taxable persons and UIN holders in Table 3.2 of FORM
GSTR-3B Further, the details of all inter-State supplies made to unregistered
persons where the invoice value is up to Rs 2.5 lakhs (rate-wise) are required
to be reported in Table 7B of FORM GSTR-1. It has been brought to the notice of
the Board that a number of registered persons have not reported the details of
inter-State supplies made to unregistered persons in Table 3.2 of FORM GSTR-3B.
However, the said details have been mentioned in Table 7B of FORM GSTR-1. In
order to ensure uniformity in the implementation of the provisions of law
across the field formations, the Board, in exercise of its powers conferred by
section 168 (1) of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017(CGST Act for
short), hereby issues the following instructions. It is pertinent to mention
that apportionment of IGST collected on inter–State supplies made to
unregistered persons in the State where such supply takes place is based on the
information reported in Table 3.2 of FORM GSTR-3B by the registered person. As
such, non-mentioning of the said information results in –
(i) non-apportionment of
the due amount of IGST to the State where such supply takes place; and
(ii) a mis-match in the
quantum of goods or services or both actually supplied in a State and the
amount of integrated tax apportioned between the Centre and that State, and
consequent non-compliance of sub-section (2) of section 17 of the Integrated
Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017.
Accordingly, it is
instructed that the registered persons making inter-State supplies to
unregistered persons shall report the details of such supplies along with the
place of supply in Table 3.2 of FORM GSTR-3B and Table 7B of FORM GSTR–1 as
mandated by the law. Contravention of any of the provisions of the Act or the
rules made there under attracts penal action under the provisions of section
125 of the CGST Act.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
GOM FAVOURS UNIFORM TAX ON LOTTERY, GST COUNCIL TO DECIDE RATE
ON FEBRUARY 20
A state ministerial panel
set up to review tax rate on lottery Monday favoured a uniform GST rate of
either 18 per cent or 28 per cent -- a final call on which would be taken by
the GST Council at its meeting on February 20. Currently, a state-organised
lottery attracts 12 per cent GST while a state-authorised lottery attracts 28
per cent tax. The eight-member Group of Ministers under Maharashtra Finance
Minister Sudhir Mungantiwar favoured hiking GST rate on the state-organised
lottery to either 18 per cent or 28 per cent. While the GST rate on
state-authorised lottery would be retained at 28 per cent or brought down to 18
per cent. The GoM favoured a uniform GST rate for both state-organised and
state-authorised lotteries. A final call on whether that rate should be 18 per
cent or 28 per cent would be taken by the GST Council on Wednesday, an official
said. The GoM was also tasked to suggest whether private persons authorised by
the states were misusing the lower rate and getting enriched themselves at the
cost of the state and suggest measures to curb it. It was also mandated to
examine issues related to enforcement including the legal frame work, so as to
prevent evasion of tax on lottery and suggest appropriate tax rate to address
the problem. It was decided in the GoM meet that decision relating to tax rate
changes should be brought before the GST Council on February 20. Evasion aspect
in lottery can be dealt in subsequent meetings, the official said.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
SUPREME COURT DISMISSES PIL SEEKING QUASHING OF FEBRUARY 1
INTERIM BUDGET
The Supreme Court on
Monday dismissed a PIL seeking quashing of the February 1 interim Budget on the
alleged ground that there was no constitutional provision for an interim Budget
A bench comprising Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice Sanjiv Khanna said it
was not inclined to entertain the petition by lawyer Manohar Lal Sharma, filed
in his personal capacity. Sharma in his PIL said there was provision for only a
full annual Budget and a vote-on-account under the Constitution. A
vote-on-account is an approval taken in an election year for a limited period
for government spending; a full-fledged budget is presented later by the newly
elected government.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
GSTN ALERT: TWO NEW FEATURES ADDED IN THE PORTAL
The Goods and Services Tax
Network has updated two new features in the official website including System
Generated Acknowledgement of Application of Appeal and the Population of Data
from EWB System into Form GSTR-1 At the time of generating E-Way Bill for
outward supply, taxpayers enter the details of outward supplies such as invoice
number, Date, Value Tax etc. With the new functionality added in the portal,
the taxpayers can now easily import these details of outward supply invoices,
as indicated in the e-way bill at the time of preparation of Form GSTR-1, by
clicking the import ‘EWB Data’ button on the GST Portal in following tiles,
(i) B2B Invoices
(ii) B2C Large Invoices
(iii) HSN-wise summary of
Outward supplies.
The other new
functionality enabled in the portal is an acknowledgement of Application of
Appeal.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
MERGER OF FIRM AS GOING-CONCERN WILL NOT ATTRACT GST, RULES
AAR
An Advanced Authority
Ruling (AAR) has upheld that merger of a proprietorship firm as a going-concern
with a company is not a supply and hence it does not involve payment of Goods
and Services Tax (GST) on the fixed or current assets. Also, un-utilised ITC
(Input Tax Credit) balance of the firm can be transferred to the company which
is taking over, the ruling said. The applicant is BM Industries, a proprietorship
firm based in Yamunanagar, Haryana, engaged in manufacture and sales of
aluminium profiles. It proposed to merge as a going-concern with Bimal
Aluminium Pvt Ltd, based in the same city. Consequent to the merger, the
proprietorship firm will cease to exist and all its assets and liabilities,
rights, claims, and business will be taken over by the latter. The applicant
approached the Haryana AAR with two specific queries — whether the applicant is
liable to pay tax under CGST/SGST Act, on the merger as a going-concern and
whether the ITC available in the credit ledger account or cash ledger account
of the proprietorship firm can be transferred to the respective credit ledger
and cash ledger account of the private limited company, post-merger. The petitioner
argued that the merger will be for consideration based on the valuation of
assets and liabilities on the date of merger. All the assets and liabilities of
applicant to be taken over by the company and business of the firm will
continue to be run by the company. Accordingly, it was mentioned that such
transaction should not be construed as ‘supply’ as defined under Section 7 of
the CGST Act, 2017. The term ‘supply’ includes sale, transfer, barter, exchange
made for a consideration in the course of or for furtherance of business. It
was also said that the transfer of the applicant’s business as a going-concern
to a private limited company is not in the ordinary course of business or for
the furtherance of business. The selling of business is an extraordinary
activity and not the business of the applicant and hence the activity cannot be
termed as supply as per Section 7. After considering the legal position and
facts in the matter, the AAR found merit in the arguments of the applicant and
held that there are specific provisions under the GST laws which deal with the
taxability of the transaction where the business is transferred as a
going-concern. Considering this provision, such a transaction is not treated as
supply and thus the same stands excluded from the scope of supply of goods. It
means that the applicant will not have to pay GST on the fixed assets and
currents assets, including stocks of raw material, semi-finished and finished
goods. Also, it was held that the ITC available in the credit ledger account of
proprietorship firm will be transferred to the respective credit ledger account
of the private limited company, consequent upon merger in accordance with the
relevant provisions of GST laws.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
PUNJAB BUDGET GIVES FUEL RELIEF! PETROL PRICES CUT BY RS 5,
DIESEL DOWN BY RE 1
In a welcome move, Punjab
government on Monday reduced petrol and diesel prices from midnight as it
slashed value added tax (VAT) on fuel selling in the state in the budget. After
the revision, price of petrol in Punjab stands reduced by Rs 5 per litre and
diesel by Rs 1 per litre post the cut On Monday, State Finance Minister
Manpreet Singh Badal presented the state budget for FY20 with a total outlay of
Rs 1,58,493 crore with no new taxes. The budget was primarily focussed on
agriculture, health, education and rural and urban infrastructure and proposed
hikes in the range of 9-36 per cent in the allocation of funds for these
sectors. The total outstanding debt of the state has been projected at Rs
2,29,612 crore for 2019-20 as against Rs 2,12,276 crore for 2018-19 (revised
estimates). The state finance minister projected the revenue deficit and fiscal
deficit at Rs 11,687 crore (2.02 per cent of GSDP) and Rs 19,658 crore (3.40
per cent of GSDP) for the 2019-20. The finance minister said that the state
government is drafting a new policy ‘Make in Punjab’ with an aim to promote
goods manufactured and produced in the state. He also proposed an allocation
off Rs 3,000 crore for the year 2019-20 in the budget. Meanwhile, the petrol
prices rose for the fifth straight day across four metro cities in the country
today while diesel became costlier as well. The rates of petrol in all the
metro cities surged by 15-16 paise a litre while diesel became costlier by
13-14 paise.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
AFTER 27 YEARS, HARSHAD MEHTA AND FAMILY FREE OF TAX CLOUD
After 27 years of tortuous
battle, involving claims, counter-claims, and cross-appeals, the income tax
tribunal has scrapped almost the entire tax demand on late Harshad Mehta, his
wife Jyoti, and brother Ashwin — reviving memories of the 1992 securities scam
that shook the country and changed the rules of the game in Dalal Street. The I-T
Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) has deleted more than Rs 2,000 crore of additions
made by the tax department on the members of the Mehta family for the
assessment year 1992-93. Analysing the various transactions relating to trades
in money and stock markets, the tribunal looked into the facts in questioning
the assessment order of February 1995 when the I-T department had pegged the
untaxed income of the Mehtas at more than Rs 2,014 crore. The tribunal has
reiterated the cardinal principle of taxation that in spite of the probes and
observations by JPC, RBI, and CBI, and seizure of volumes of documents, the I-T
department has to compute correct taxable income embedded in the transactions.
Every receipt by an assessee cannot be termed as taxable income The tribunal
has done a commendable job of analysing each transaction and commuting taxable
income. The volume and value were no deterrent in deciding this pending
litigation by the last fact finding authority, said Dilip Lakhani. The tax
department’s action began with a raid on the Mehtas on February 28, 1992 when
several documents and share certificates were seized. On June 4, 1992, CBI
carried out a search operation on Mehtas, and subsequently, the tax return
filed by Harshad Mehta for assessment year 1992-93 was rejected by the
department. The question that arises is how significant were these additions?
Did it really call for protracted litigations over two decades? Finally, one is
virtually down to nil revenue for the exchequer. Despite the books of accounts
being rejected, the assessee could receive favourable order leading to a
deletion of almost all the demands the matters were remanded back to the AO
time and again and finally the order was passed on merits, said Mitil Chokshi.
The assessment order by the department issued in February 1995 was built on
fresh additions and disallowances such as ‘money market oversold position’ (Rs
1,080.58 crore), ‘money market unexplained stock’ (Rs 291.05 crore), ‘profit on
sale of shares in shortage’ (Rs 253.16 crore), ‘unexplained money’ (Rs 251.8
crore), ‘interest on securities in money market’ (Rs 58.27 crore), ‘money
market difference received’ (Rs 35.55 crore), ‘share market trading profit’ (Rs
16 crore) etc. Since ITAT’s verdict is based on facts and on the principle of tax
law, the I-T department has little ground to move the high court in challenging
the order. Refund amounts from the tax department would go to the custodian
which was created under a special law for impounding the assets of scam
accused. While the tussle between the tax office and Mehtas could continue on
other smaller issues, the 297-page tribunal order, released a fortnight ago,
brings to an end the bulk of the tax disputes relating to the securities scam.
The tax refunds following favourable court orders would eventually pave the way
for the custodian to release the assets of the Mehtas. In the opaque world and
tight money market of 1990s, Harshad had used the government bond market to
access finance and used the money to buy stocks. As one bank borrowed from
another bank against bonds in a transaction where Harshad was the broker, the
cheque was credited to Harshad’s current (instead of the borrowing bank’s). In
a way, he was shorting the bond market and going long on stocks. As interest
rates surged in the interbank market call money rates to 100% and bond prices
fell, Harshad could buy back bonds at a cheaper price to cover up. What
followed, as deals multiplied, was more outrageous: often borrowing banks,
which were not in a position to give securities, issued bank receipts or BRs.
Since printing of bonds at the Nasik press took time, the original intention
behind BRs was to enable institutions sell bonds (they bought in a primary
issue) against a letter of allotment.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
'GST REVENUE DIDN'T BRING BUOYANCY'
Punjab finance minister
Manpreet Badal was critical of the goods and services tax (GST) regime in his
budget speech on Monday, claiming that it failed to bring about expected
buoyancy The state's revenue from major commodities like automobiles and auto
parts, cycle and cycle parts, hosiery/readymade garments, soft drinks and
cement has decreased in comparison to the corresponding period in the previous
year. GST revenues have, thus, not shown the kind of buoyancy that was
expected, he said. He said it was presumed before GST's implementation that the
levy would improve tax compliance and yield a higher revenue and, in turn,
compensate for the shortfall in revenue in all states. But, in the first year
of GST implementation, the revenue receipts have been far lower than
expectations, he added. Considering problems faced by the local business
community, Punjab has increased the limit of generation of e-way bill from Rs
50,000 to Rs 1,00,000 for intrastate supplies he said. We are also organising
refresher workshops and seminars for staff and stakeholders on a continuous
basis in the hope that GST will evolve as a good and simple tax in the times to
come due to Government's pro-active measures and industry's active
participation, he said.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
HCS HAVE LIMITED POWER TO ORDER CBI PROBE, SAYS SC
In a message to high
courts, the Supreme Court on Monday ruled that the highest courts in states
have limited power to order CBI probe as the premier investigating agency was
created to investigate corruption and cases of national importance. Setting
aside a Madhya Pradesh HC order directing CBI probe into theft of a machine
from Indore's Raja Ramana Centre for Advanced Technology, under the Department
of Atomic Energy of the Union government, a bench of Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi
and Justice Sanjiv Sen said, The HC's jurisdiction to order CBI probe cannot be
doubted but it is extremely limited keeping mind the fact that the premier
investigating agency is authorised to investigation corruption and matters of
national importance. The machine, worth Rs 5 lakh, was stolen from Raja Ramana
Centre in 2004. MP police had investigated the case and filed a closure report
but the trial court on April 28, 2005, rejected the report and directed the
police to carry out further investigations. Acting on a petition, the HC in May
2017 had ordered CBI probe saying the matter involved a serious crime in which
the state police had not been able to make any headway. The CBI had challenged
the HC order before the SC. Setting aside the HC order the CJI-led bench said,
Given the nature of functioning of the CBI, the HC was not justified in
ordering CBI probe into such a matter. However, it said that the 15-year-old
case needed to be investigated expeditiously and asked the state police to
complete the probe in six months.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
I-T RAID ON SOYA FIRMS: RS 60 CRORE UNEARTHED
Soya refinery firms,
Ambika and Dhanuka have jointly admitted of having over Rs 60 crore as
undisclosed income on which they will pay the taxes, revealed income tax
department on concluding day of the investigation in one of the biggest
crackdown on tax evasion in state. The firms, which are based in Mandsaur and
Neemuch, were involved in a largescale tax evasion with the help of some
associates spread across five states. The income tax officers have also found
documents indicating a bank fraud of Rs 518 crore by a Delhi-based businessman
Manish Jain, in which these soya refinery firms may be indirectly involved. An
official from income tax department, on condition of anonymity, said, After
2003, this was one of the biggest operations at any small centre like Mandsaur
and Neemuch, where a large team was roped in to unearth tax evasion. It was a
big operation wherein we took help of bomb detection squad and advanced means
to carry out the search. The official said, We are investigating the matter. There
is no direct relation of Manish Jain with these firms, but, indirectly there is
some connection. We found that Rs 518 crore bank frauds have been done by using
bogus invoices and receivables used to take bank loans. Income tax sleuths
seized jewellery worth Rs 6 crore and recovered close to Rs 2 crore in cash
besides taking lockers in possession. The final amount may rise further during
the course of investigation and analysis of the documents.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
NSEL: CHIDAMBARAM, OTHER OFFICERS FACE ₹10,000-CR LAWSUITS
The NSEL saga took an ugly
turn on Monday with 63 moons technologies (formerly FTIL) announcing it has
decided to slap ₹10,000-crore damage suits against former Finance Minister P
Chidambaram, then FMC Chairman Ramesh Abhishek and then Additional Secretary in
Finance Ministry KP Krishnan for their proactive role in conjuring the fall of
the exchange ecosystem created by 63 moons to favour its competitor, the NSE.
The three individuals will also face a CBI probe, as 63 moons has filed
criminal complaints with the investigation agency for alleged corruption and
criminal conspiracy. Jignesh Shah, mentor of 63 moons, said the National Spot
Exchange Ltd (NSEL) saga was not that of a crisis, but of a conspiracy. This
(damage suits, CBI complaint) is nothing against the Congress party. It is also
not against the current government, Shah said during his presentation to the
media on the NSEL episode, which first came to light in July 2013. Shah also blamed
Abhishek, who is now Secretary in the Department for Promotion of Industry and
Internal Trade, for his slow action as FMC Chairman. What he could have solved
in five weeks as FMC Chairman has now taken five years for investigative
agencies to unravel, Shah said. He added that the FMC, which later got merged
into SEBI, had gone slow on solving it on purpose. There was a clear
dereliction of duty in selectively targeting the parent company of NSEL despite
no money trail to them, he said. Much before the SFIO (Serious Fraud
Investigation Office) report, the FMC was aware of the role of the brokers and
traders It, however, acted in a partisan manner only against NSEL and its
parent company, he added. Shah expressed hope that SEBI will take action based
on the recommendations of the SFIO and other investigative agencies. Shah said
of the ₹5,600 crore involved in the NSEL payment crisis, decree has
been obtained already for ₹3,600 crore. Another ₹1,000 crore is in the
pipeline. Around ₹600 crore in payments have already been made.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
SC REJECTS PLEA CHALLENGING NAGESWARA RAO'S APPOINTMENT AS
INTERIM CBI BOSS
The Supreme Court Tuesday
disposed of a plea challenging the appointment of M Nageswara Rao as interim
CBI Director. A bench of Justices Arun Mishra and Vineet Saran said no further
interference is required as the relief has already been granted with the
appointment of a full time CBI Director. The verdict came on a plea of NGO,
Common Cause, which had challenged the appointment of Rao as interim CBI
director.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
ROBERT VADRA SKIPS ED SUMMONS CITING POOR HEALTH
Robert Vadra, who was
summoned by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for questioning in connection with
a money laundering case, did not depose before the agency on Tuesday citing
poor health. Vadra was supposed to join the investigation on Tuesday morning.
However, his lawyers informed the ED officials that he was unwell and will
appear whenever he is summoned again On February 16, a Delhi court extended
Vadra's interim bail till March 2.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
SARADHA CHIT FUND SCAM: HC GRANTS INTERIM PROTECTION TO NALINI
CHIDAMBARAM
The Calcutta High Court on
Monday granted interim protection to Nalini Chidambaram, wife of P Chidambaram,
from arrest by CBI for six weeks in the Saradha chit fund scam. Directing
Chidambaram to cooperate with the investigation, a division bench headed by Justice
Joymalya Bagchi kept her application for anticipatory bail pending. The court
directed the CBI and Chidambaram to file affidavits in support of their
respective stands in the case in the meantime. The CBI claimed that the ₹
1.3 crore paid to Nalini Chidambaram, a senior lawyer, was from the money
collected by Saradha chit fund illegally from investors.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
NSE PLEDGES SUPPORT TO PARAMILITARY FORCES
Leading exchange NSE has
expressed condolences to the families of CRPF Jawans martyred and injured in
the Pulwama terrorist attack. We are deeply grateful to the services personnel
for their many sacrifices for the nation, a media release said. The National
Stock Exchange of India (NSE) will contribute an amount equivalent to one day's
salary of all its group employees to a government sponsored fund set up for the
purpose of supporting families of Central Armed Paramilitary Forces personnel
killed or injured in action, the exchange added.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
RS 46 CRORE COLLECTED UNDER BHARAT KE VEER: GOVERNMENT
The Government on Monday
said that a sum of Rs 46 crore has been collected and dispersed as part of the
Bharat Ke Veer initiative for CRPF troopers who lost their lives in the
February 14 Pulwama attack. Over 80,000 people came forward in the last few
days since Thursday to contribute over Rs 20 crore, a statement said.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
SBI TO WAIVE LOANS OF CRPF PERSONNEL KILLED IN PULWAMA TERROR
ATTACK
State Bank of India Monday
said it would waive all outstanding loans taken by 23 CRPF personnel who were
killed in the Pulwama terror attack. The state-owned lender would also expedite
payment of insurance amount of Rs 30 lakh each to the families of CRPF
personnel killed. In a release, the bank announced a special initiative for the
CRPF soldiers who were martyred in a dreadful terrorist attack in Pulwama,
Jammu and Kashmir.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
BHARTI FOUNDATION TO SUPPORT EDUCATION OF CHILDREN OF SECURITY
PERSONNEL MARTYRED IN PULWAMA ATTACK
Bharti Foundation, the
philanthropic arm of Sunil Mittal-led Bharti Enterprises, has offered to
undertake the education of children of the security personnel who were martyred
in last week's terror attack in Pulwama, Jammu & Kashmir, as a mark of
support for the country's security forces. Bharti Foundation will reach out to
the individual families and bear all education related expenses for these
children till they graduate from college. At this hour of grief, we would like
to express our solidarity with the families who have sacrificed their loved
ones to make sure we stay safe. This is a heartfelt contribution from us to
make sure that the children of these heroes will never have to worry about
access to quality education and are able to fulfill their dreams, Vijay Chadda,
said in an official statement Monday.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
PULWAMA ATTACK: NO CRICKETING TIES WITH PAKISTAN UNTIL
GOVERNMENT NOD, SAYS RAJEEV SHUKLA
In the wake of Pulwama
terror attack, Indian Premier League (IPL) chairman Rajeev Shukla made it clear
that there is no possibility of bilateral cricket ties between India and
Pakistan unless they get the government's nod Shukla admitted to have faith in
the concept of sports being above everything else but asserted that if somebody
is sponsoring terrorism then it would obviously have an impact on sports. Our
position is very clear. Unless the government gives us the nod, we are not
going to play with Pakistan. When asked if India will play against Pakistan in
the forthcoming World Cup, Shukla ducked the question saying, That we can't tell
you know right now. World cup is far away. We will see what happens.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
INDIA ASKS ICJ TO DECLARE JADHAV'S TRIAL IN PAKISTAN
'UNLAWFUL'
India on Monday said the
trial of its national Kulbhushan Jadhav by a Pakistani military court
hopelessly failed to satisfy even the minimum standards of due process and
requested the International Court of Justice to declare it unlawful India's
plea came as the top UN court began a four-day public hearing in the case of
Jadhav, 48, who was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges
of espionage. India, during the first day of the hearing, based its case on two
broad issues - breach of Vienna Convention on consular access and the process
of resolution. It is an unfortunate case where the life of an innocent Indian
is at risk, ex-solicitor general Harish Salve, who was representing India,
said. Pakistan's story is solely based on rhetoric and not facts, he said,
adding that Jadhav's continued custody without consular access should be
declared unlawful. No credible evidence was provided by Pakistan to show his
involvement in any act of terrorism and Jadhav's purported confession clearly
appeared to be coerced, Salve said. There is no manner of doubt that Pakistan
was using this as a propaganda tool. Pakistan was bound to grant consular
access without delay, Salve said. Pakistan used confession document as
propaganda. Pakistan has disrespected the Vienna Convention, Salve said. He
said India had sent 13 reminders to Pakistan for consular access to Jadhav, but
Islamabad is yet to accede. Article 36 of the Vienna Convention says that a
country must be informed about the detention of its citizens but Pakistan did
not inform India about his arrest. India and Pakistan have a bilateral
agreement on consular access, he said.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
PAKISTANI AD HOC JUDGE AT ICJ SUFFERS CARDIAC ARREST: REPORT
The ad hoc judge for
Pakistan in the International Court of Justice (ICJ) suffered a cardiac attack
during the hearing of Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav's case on Monday,
according to a Pakistani media report. Tassaduq Hussain Gillani, 69, suddenly
suffered a heart attack and was rushed to the hospital however, his health was
said to be stable. Sources said that he is being given treatment in hospital.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
WHO RELEASED MASOOD AZHAR IN 1999? NAVJOT SINGH SIDHU CITES
KANDAHAR TO BLAME BJP FOR PULWAMA ATTACK
Battling controversy over
his controversial remarks on the Pulwama terror attack, Navjot Singh Sidhu on
Monday reiterated his stand on the matter and sought to blame the BJP for the
attack itself. Sidhu reminded the BJP that JeM chief Masood Azhar who
orchestrated the attack, was released by the BJP government in 1999. I am firm
on my stand. Terrorism will not be tolerated. People who are responsible should
be punished harshly that it acts as a deterrence for generations to come, he
said. I want to ask who released those (Masood Azhar) involved in 1999 Kandahar
incident? Who’s responsibility is it? Our fight is against them. Why should a
soldier die? Why can’t there be a permanent solution? Sidhu asked. The Congress
leader was referring to a decision by the NDA government led by Atal Bihari
Vajpayee in 1999 to release JeM terrorist Masood Azhar for the exchange of 178
hijacked passengers of Air India flight 814. Sidhu’s remark comes after SAD
MLAs protested against him and the Congress party inside the Punjab Assembly
over the latter’s remark advocating for talks with Pakistan and arguing that an
entire country cannot be held responsible for the cowardly act of a few In the
Punjab Assembly, SAD MLAs created ruckus and raised slogans against Sidhu. The
SAD leaders led by Bikram Singh Majithia even burnt the photographs of Sidhu
including those in which he is seen hugging the Pakistan Army chief, outside
the House.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
PULWAMA ATTACK: PAKISTAN PM, NSC TO MEET AND DISCUSS TENSIONS
WITH INDIA
Pakistan's civil and
military leadership is expected to meet this week to discuss the increasing
tensions with India following one of the worst terror attacks in Jammu and
Kashmir in which over 40 Indian soldiers were killed, according to a media
report on Tuesday. The attack has heightened bilateral tensions with both New
Delhi and Islamabad calling back their envoys. The Pakistani envoy would brief
the civil and military leadership about the current situation in India. The
high-powered National Security Committee (NSC), the highest decision-making
forum on national security and foreign policy, is likely to meet this week. The
meeting would be presided over by Prime Minister Imran Khan and attended by key
federal ministers as well as the services chiefs, the report said.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
PAKISTAN OFFER FULL SUPPORT FOR ANY INVESTIGATION IN PULWAMA
ATTACK: IMRAN KHAN
Offering full support for
any investigation in Pulwama attack, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan said
that India has blamed Pakistan without any proof and if India has any proof
about any wrongdoing it should give it to Pakistan for action. Pakistan offer
full support for any investigation in Pulwama. I guarantee action on this,
Imran said. India has blamed the Pakistan without any proof. Pakistan has
nothing to gain from this attack. Pakistan is moving towards peace and
stability, Prime Minister Imran Khan said. What would Pakistan gain from this?
This is new Pakistan and new thinking that doesn't support terrorism, he said.
He also said that he didn't respond to the Pulwama attack because of important
visit of Saudi Arabia's crown price to Pakistan.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
PULWAMA ATTACK: PAKISTAN CALLS ON UN TO HELP 'DEFUSE TENSIONS'
WITH INDIA
Pakistan has sought the
UN's urgent intervention to defuse tensions with India, the Foreign Office said
Tuesday, following one of the worst terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir in
which over 40 Indian soldiers were killed. Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah
Mahmood Qureshi sent a letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on
Monday, seeking his help to reduce the tensions between the two countries,
Pakistan Foreign Office said. It is with a sense of urgency that I draw your
attention to the deteriorating security situation in our region resulting from
the threat of use of force against Pakistan by India, Qureshi wrote in the
letter. India has rejected any third party intervention in the Kashmir issue
and has maintained that all outstanding matters in Indo-Pak ties should be
resolved bilaterally. Qureshi, in his letter, said the Pulwama attack on Indian
CRPF soldiers was ostensibly and even by Indian accounts carried out by a
Kashmiri resident. Qureshi wrote that India has also hinted that it may abandon
the Indus Waters Treaty, asserting that it would be a grievous error. It is
imperative to take steps for de-escalation. The United Nations must step in to
defuse tensions, Qureshi said.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
ANYONE WHO PICKS UP THE GUN IN KASHMIR WILL BE ELIMINATED:
INDIAN ARMY
Sending a strong message
to the misguided youth of Kashmir, Lt Gen Kanwal Jeet Singh Dhillon, Corps
Commander of the Srinagar-based 15 Corps, said Tuesday that anyone who picks up
a gun in Kashmir will be eliminated He appealed directly to the 'mothers' in
Kashmirs to ask their children to not take up terrorism and surrender to the
forces Mothers have an important part to play in Kashmiri society, he said. Lt
Gen Dhillon also paid his respects to the men killed in action in military
operation in Pulwama where the top commander of the Jaish-e-Mohammed, Abdul
Rasheed Ghazi alias Kamran, was eliminated in a 12-hour-long encounter with
multiple terrorists.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
WORK ON HI-TECH BORDER SURVEILLANCE PROJECT IN PROGRESS: BSF
The work to set up hi-tech
surveillance system along the 2000-km sensitive stretch on the international
border with Pakistan and Bangladesh is likely to be completed in next six to
seven years a senior Border Security Force (BSF) official said. With the use of
advanced technology, the Comprehensive Integrated Border Management System
(CIBMS) will be able to spot intruders if they try to enter the Indian
territory, BSF's Additional Director General A K Sharma told. CIBMS is an
integration of a number of new gadgets and technologies to ensure electronic
surveillance of borders. Sharma said under the CIBMS project, the work to
install modern equipment in parts of India-Pakistan border in Jammu and some
other areas has been completed, while it is in progress in the border areas
adjoining Bangladesh. The work on CIBMS project is going on continuously. Under
this, some of the world's best technologies are being used to keep a watch on
the country's borders, he said.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
JUST ONE SLAP FROM ARMY MAN RATTLED JAISH CHIEF MASOOD AZHAR,
RECALLS HIS INTERROGATOR
The dreaded architect of
some of the most gruesome terror attacks in India, Maulana Masood Azhar+ , was
an easy man to handle in custody and he got shaken up on the first slap from an
Army jawan prompting him to blurt out details of his movements, says a former
police officer who interrogated him after his arrest in 1994. Azhar, who had
used a Portuguese passport to enter India through Bangladesh and reach Kashmir,
was arrested in February 1994 in Anantnag in South Kashmir. In the custody, the
intelligence agencies did not have to do much work on Azhar who started
speaking after the first slap from an Army officer and gave deep insights into
the functioning of terror groups operating from Pakistan, the officer said. He
was an easy man to handle and a slap from an Army officer had shaken him
completely, Avinash Mohananey, told PTI. After his release in exchange of
passengers of hijacked IC-814 flight of Indian Airlines in 1999 by the then BJP
government, Azhar formed Jaish-e-Mohammed and scripted many audacious terror
strikes in India, including on Parliament House, Pathankot air force base, Army
camps in Jammu and Uri, and the latest suicide attack on CRPF in Pulwama which
claimed the lives of 40 personnel. While in custody, Azhar, in his early 50s
now, shared information about recruitment process and functioning of terror
groups in Pakistan at a time when the intelligence agencies were still
grappling to understand the proxy-war unleashed by Pakistan's espionage agency
ISI, said Mohananey, a 1985-batch IPS officer who headed the Kashmir desk in
the agency at that time. There were several occasions when I met him in Kot
Balwal jail and interrogated him for hours together. We did not have to use any
coercive method as information flowed consistently from him, he said. Azhar
gave the Indian agencies vital insights into diversion of Afghan terrorists
into Kashmir Valley and merger of Harkat-ul-Mujahideen and
Harkat-ul-Jehad-e-Islami (HuJI) into Harkat-ul-Ansar, represented by him as its
general secretary, he said. After his arrival into India from Bangladesh in
1994, Azhar had travelled to Saharanpur before reaching Kashmir where he held
meetings of warring factions of HuM and HuJI to formulate a common policy,
Mohananey said. I came on a forged Portuguese passport for ensuring that HuM
and HuJI are together in the Valley. It was not possible for me to cross the
Line of Control on foot, the police officer recalled Azhar telling them.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
ZERO TOLERANCE FOR ILLEGAL, IMPROPER CONDUCT: COGNIZANT CEO TO
STAFF
Advocating the company's
zero tolerance for illegal and improper conduct Cognizant CEO Francisco D'Souza
has told employees that the firm continues to ensure that its staff is trained
on anti-corruption and made fully aware of compliance policies and procedures.
The move comes at a time when the US company has announced it is settling
charges related to bribery case in India. Cognizant, which has a majority of
its employees based in India, will pay $25 million to the US Security and
Exchange Commission to settle the charges. The US Department of Justice (DOJ),
on the other hand, has filed criminal cases against two of its former top
executives. It's worth noting that this matter does not involve our work with
clients and has not had an impact on our ability to provide the quality
services our clients expect from us. I'd ask you all to now continue to remain
focussed on delivering to our clients in our usual, high quality way, he wrote.
D'Souza highlighted that the company has instituted measures to ensure that it
has top-notch anti-corruption compliance and internal controls over financial
reporting.
#For Source of Information copy and paste the heading in google.
Thanks & Regards,
CS Meetesh Shiroya
Thanks & Regards,
CS Meetesh Shiroya
No comments:
Post a Comment