COURT QUESTIONS CENTRE ON GIVING RETROSPECTIVE EFFECT TO BLACK
MONEY LAW
The Delhi High Court
Tuesday asked the Centre as to how it gave retrospective effect - from July
2015 - to the black money law which was enacted in April 2016 to deal with
undisclosed foreign income and assets. The petition has been filed by Gautam
Khaitan, a lawyer who has contended that action was being taken against him
under the Act for assets which ceased to exist before the law came into force. Khaitan
is one of the accused in the Rs 3,600 crore AgustaWestland VVIP chopper scam. In
the petition, filed through advocate Pramod Kumar Dubey, Khaitan has also
challenged the I-T department's January 22 order granting sanction to lodge a
criminal complaint against him under section 51 of the Act which provides for
jail term between 3 to 10 years if found guilty of wilfully attempting to evade
tax. His lawyers urged the bench to stay the sanction order, but the court
declined to grant the relief saying it was not going to interfere in the matter
at this stage and listed the matter for further hearing on April 10. During the
hearing, Kapur and Luthra contended that before issue of show cause notice and
grant of sanction, tax assessment has to be carried out for the years in
question which has not been done in the instant case as the assessment year was
2019-20. However, the tax department opposed the contention saying that when
there was an undisclosed foreign asset, there was no need to wait for
completion of the assessment.
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MAXIMIZING REVENUE COLLECTION WITHOUT HARASSMENT IS IMMEDIATE
PRIORITY-CBDT CHAIRMAN
New appointed CBDT
Chairman Shri P. C. Mody in his maiden message as chairman, CBDT has marked the
maximizing Revenue collection as immediate priority For accelerating the
Revenue he has stressed on the need to widen and deepen the tax base ensuring
simultaneously, the optimum utilization of physical as well as human resources.
However he has clearly stated that in achieving the priority of maximisation of
Revenue, must not be done by harassment or high handedness on the part of
officers or officials. But the conduct of the Department must be impeccable,
friendly, yet objective-without fear or favour- as we move towards becoming a
non-adversarial regime. Apart from the maximization of Revenue, the CBDT
Chairman has listed timely delivery of quality Tax Payer Services as another
prime area of focus. He has stated that continuous and concerted efforts must
be made to address and redress all public grievances within the prescribed
time- limit. Systemic reforms shall continue to be undertaken, especially to
redress grievances of smaller taxpayers, such as: Increased automation of
processes, e-filing, centralized processing of tax returns, and other bulk
operations. Focus shall also be on expediting Dispute Resolution, Tax Payer
Education and Litigation Management. He has stated that the Board shall also
make all efforts for ensuring timely provision of service needs of its
officials, with an aim to improve their efficiency, output, and morale. Best
efforts shall be dome to harmonize the organizational goals with the needs of
every employee, so that they are able to rise to the challenges of effective
tax-administration with increased exposure and up-gradation. He has expressed
hope to meet the aspirations of not only the public and taxpayers but also
employees and to continue to strive towards greater transparency,
accountability and improved voluntary compliance as a Digital Administration
being rolled out
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PATANJALI DISTRIBUTORS COME UNDER ANTI-PROFITEERING LENS
After penalising Patanjali
for not passing on tax cuts to customers the National Anti-profiteering
Authority (NAA) has begun investigating the consumer goods company’s
distributors to check if they pocketed the difference, said people with
knowledge of the matter. The NAA has issued notices to about 10 of Patanjali’s
biggest distributors over the past month for not reducing prices in line with
cuts in goods and services tax (GST), they said. Patanjali has already been
asked to pay Rs 150 crore by the NAA. Investigations in the matter are ongoing
and it is learnt that the company may appeal against the decision.
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CBDT AUTHORISES PRCCIT TO ASSIGN ADDITIONAL CHARGE OF VACANT
POST OF CIT-APPEALS
CBDT, in order to ensure
speedy disposal of pending cases has authorised the Principal Chief
Commissioners of Income Tax (CCA) to assign additional charge of the vacant
post of CIT(Appeal) under its jurisdiction. The PrCCIT can assign such
additional duties to the Commissioners of Income Tax (CITs) posted in his/her
region for a period not exceeding three months. It has been clarified that on
posting as CIT(Appeal) as per additional assignment, no additional remuneration
shall be admissible to the respective officer.
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INDIA'S BLACK MONEY ECONOMY ESTIMATED AT 79% OF GDP DURING
2009-11
The size of the country's
black economy has been estimated at 71-79% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP)
during 2009-2011, the studies commissioned by the union government show. Black
incomes were generated in different ways. Tax evasion resulted in generation of
65% of the black income in the country while non-tax corruption methods
accounted for 20% of the unaccounted income, reveals one of the three
top-secret study reports on black money prepared by three think tanks. In 2011,
the finance ministry had asked National Institute of Public Finance and Policy
(NIPFP), National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) and National
Institute of Financial Management (NIFM) to estimate the amount of black money
in the country and outside. The reports were submitted to the Parliamentary
Standing Committee on Finance by the government in 2017. As per the study done
by the premier public policy institute NIPFP, the unaccounted income during
2009-2010 was estimated to be at 72% of the GDP. Another study on unaccounted
income as a percentage of GDP done by NCAER shows that the level of black money
in the economy was in the range of 71% to 79% of the GDP during 2010-2011. The
third study by NIFM, however, puts the black economy estimate at a distant 10%
of GDP. The tax-related unaccounted income during 2010-2011 was estimated at
65.34% while non-tax corruption related black income was at 19.57%, as per
NCAER. Of the total unaccounted money or black wealth, an estimated Rs 9.4-22
lakh crore ($216-498 billion) or 2.8-10% of the black money was stashed abroad
during 1980-2010. NCAER has estimated the unaccounted wealth (stock) at 2.8% of
the total unaccounted wealth at around Rs 22 lakh crore ($384-490 billion)
during 1980-2010. Black wealth outside the country was 0.2-7.4% of the GDP
during 1997-2009, the NIPFP said in its report which didn't estimate the
amount. Pointing out that less than 1% of the black wealth is in cash, Kumar
said, As much as 30-40% of the outflows come back to India through
round-tripping. What is available in liquid form is not very large, he said.
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MONTHLY ACCOUNT OF THE GOVERNMENT OF INDIA UPTO THE MONTH OF
JANUARY 2019
The Monthly Account of the
Union Government of India upto the month of January 2019 has been consolidated
and reports published. The highlights are given below:-
The Government of India has
received Rs. 12,30,737 crore (67.52% of corresponding RE 18-19 of Total
Receipts) upto January 2019 comprising Rs. 10,19,288 crore Tax Revenue (Net to
Centre), Rs. 1,62,126 crore of Non Tax Revenue and Rs.49,323 crore of Non Debt
Capital Receipts. Non Debt Capital Receipts consists of Recovery of Loans (Rs. 13,717
crore) and Disinvestment of PSUs (Rs. 35,606 crore). Rs. 5,41,738 crore has
been transferred to State Governments as Devolution of Share of Taxes by
Government of India upto this period which is Rs. 60,261 crore higher than the
corresponding period of last year 2017-18. Total Expenditure incurred by
Government of India is Rs. 20, 01,582 crore (81.46% of corresponding RE 18-19),
out of which Rs. 17, 71,851 crore is on Revenue Account and Rs. 2,29,731 crore
is on Capital Account. Out of the Total Revenue Expenditure, Rs. 4,63,325 crore
is on account of Interest Payments and Rs.2, 59,900 crore is on account of
Major Subsidies.
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TRIPURA GOVT PRESENTS TAX-FREE AND ZERO-DEFICIT BUDGET
The Tripura government
presented a tax -free and zero-deficit budget of Rs 17,530.46 crore for the
fiscal year 2019-20 along with several new schemes. While tabling the budget,
the state government announced a hike in social pensions and other schemes,
including, subsidised sugar and formation of more self-help groups in the
budget 2019-20. Jishnu Dev Varma, said as many as 2,110 self-help groups will
be formed and livelihood opportunities will be created for 52,030 families. Under
the Mini Dairy scheme of NABARD, 10,000 cows (2 cows per family) to women
members of 5,000 families will be provided to give a boost to milk production
in the state, for which the Tripura government shall provide 100 per cent
interest subvention.
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DELHI GOVT TARGETS COLLECTION OF RS 29000 CRORE AS GST IN
2019-20
The Delhi government which
presented its annual budget for 2019-20 on Tuesday, announced a target of
collecting Rs 29,000 crore as Goods and Services Tax (GST). Keeping in view the
growth in Delhi's economy, the target of GST collection in the budget estimates
for the year 2019-20 is Rs 29,000 crore with estimated growth of 9.44 percent
over the revised estimate of Rs 26,500 crore in 2018-19, Sisodia said. The net
GST revenue collected for the year 2018-19 (upto January 31, 2019) was Rs
20,766.77 crore and an amount of Rs 3,140 crore has been received as a GST
compensation upto January, 2019, he said. A total 1,14,282 new GST
registrations were done from April 1, 2018 till December, 2018, he said adding
over two lakh new registration were recorded during 2017-18, he said.
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GST EVASION WORTH RS 650 CRORE UNEARTHED IN MAHARASHTRA
The Raigad wing of the
Central GST and Central Excise Commissionerate reportedly unearthed Rs 650
crore tax evasion by using fake invoices showing the supply of goods and GST
payment of about Rs 110 crore. In connection with this, one Mr. Anand Mangal
was arrested and sent to judicial custody until March 8 by a local court in
Panvel, while another accused, Rakesh H Garg, is absconding. The tax department
has recovered Rs 17 crores of cash during the search. The duo has been booked
under Section 132 of the CGST Act.
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MAKEMYTRIP GETS RS 73.9 CRORE TAX REFUND
Online travel firm
MakeMyTrip has received a tax refund of Rs 73.9 crore an amount it had
deposited with DCGEI under protest pursuant to a probe into service tax
matters, according to a regulatory filing. In the filing to the United States
Security Exchange Commission, the NASDAQ-listed company said that after the
Supreme Court upheld the decision of the Delhi high court directing the
Directorate General of Central Excise Intelligence (DCGEI) to refund the tax
amounts due to the company, DCGEI has refunded the amount to MMT India and
ibibo India. During the year ended March 31, 2016, MakeMyTrip (India) Pvt Ltd
and ibibo Group Pvt Ltd had deposited a total amount of Rs 73.9 crore as tax
under protest pursuant to an ongoing investigation by the DGCEI that began
during that fiscal year for matters related to service tax on hotel bookings
facilitated by MMT India and ibibo India during certain previous periods, the
filing said. The high court thereafter directed the DGCEI to refund these tax
amounts, while allowing the body to continue with the adjudication proceedings,
it added. The Delhi High Court's order was further upheld by the Supreme Court
of India in the appellate proceedings initiated by the DGCEI, and consequently
the DGCEI processed a full refund of the aforementioned tax amount and the
funds have been received by MMT India and ibibo India as on February 25, 2019,
the filing said.
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SC AGREES TO HEAR REVIEW PLEAS AGAINST RAFALE VERDICT IN OPEN
COURT
The Supreme Court Tuesday
allowed open court hearings on pleas seeking review of its December 14, 2018
verdict on Rafale deal case. A bench of Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi and
Justices S K Kaul and K M Joseph took up the request of petitioners to hear the
two review petitions, which challenge the December 14 judgment, in which the
apex court had dismissed pleas questioning the deal to procure 36 Rafale
fighter jets. The prayer for open court hearing is allowed the bench said.
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OPPOSITION GANGING UP AS THEY CAN’T LOOT TAXPAYERS’ MONEY
ANYMORE, SAYS PM NARENDRA MODI
Hitting out at the
Opposition, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said nearly 8 crore fake
beneficiaries were getting the government aid during earlier regimes and
opposition leaders have now gathered to abuse him as he has stopped their means
of looting taxpayers’ money. Citing schemes like Jan Dhan Yojana and Aadhaar
linking, Modi said that these efforts made since his government came to power
in 2014 has led to more than Rs 1,10,000 crore of exchequer’s funds being saved
from going to such fake beneficiaries. The prime minister said if one wants to
indulge in scams now, they cannot do so as he has blocked all means of looting
public money. In past, there were nearly 8 crore fake beneficiaries who were
getting govt monetary aid. Our government stopped it. Leaders of opposition
parties have gathered to abuse me as I have stopped means of pocketing
taxpayer’s money, Modi said. Referring to the opposition’s criticism on the
jobs issue, Modi said nearly 1.2 crore jobs have been created annually going by
figures from different sectors such as tourism, aviation and infra.
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INDIA DELAYS LEVYING RETALIATORY TARIFF ON U.S. GOODS TO APRIL
1
India has once again delayed
implementation of higher tariffs on some goods imported from the United States
to April 1, according to a government order issued on Tuesday. The new tariff
structure was to come into force from March 2. Angered by Washington's refusal
to exempt it from new steel and aluminium tariffs, New Delhi decided in June to
raise the import tax from Aug. 4 on some U.S. products including almonds,
walnuts and apples.
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AGUSTAWESTLAND CASE: DELHI COURT ISSUES PRODUCTION WARRANT
AGAINST GAUTAM KHAITAN
A Delhi court on Tuesday
issued a production warrant against lawyer Gautam Khaitan, who is an accused in
the Rs 3,600-crore AgustaWestland VVIP chopper case. Special Judge Arvind Kuma
issued his production warrant and posted the matter for hearing on May 9.
Gautam Khaitan had been arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the
CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) a few years ago in connection with their
probe but was granted bail in the case.
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NO GENUINE NAME TO BE LEFT OUT OF NATIONAL REGISTER OF
CITIZENS: RAHUL GANDHI
Rahul Gandhi said it will
ensure that no genuine Indian name is left out of National Register of Citizens
(NRC). He said due to opposition from congress party Citizenship Amendment bill
was not tabled in Rajya Sabha. Rahul said, BJP and RSS are attacking the
culture, history and ways of life of Northeast India. Rahul said, See today
Arunachal Pradesh is burning. There is trouble in Assam, Meghalaya and Manipur.
Stating that Congress will return the special category state status of
Northeast India if voted to power, Rahul said, The BJP took away the special
category status.
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70 TRUCKS CARRYING TOMATOES AND POTATOES ACROSS LINE OF
CONTROL AS TRADE CONTINUES
Amid escalation of
tensions between India and Pakistan, trade across the Line of Control continued
on Tuesday, as 70 trucks crossed Line of Control from both sides of northern
Kashmir with high level security arrangements. The cross LoC trade is scheduled
for four days a week from Tuesday to Friday, while as travel is scheduled once
every week. 35 trucks carrying tomatoes, embroidery and grapes crossed the Kaman
Post from Uri to the other side and 35 trucks came from the other side, a
senior government official in Uri told. Trade was temporarily halted in Poonch
for two days last week due to curfew in Jammu district because of which
transport was not plying. Cross-LoC barter trade has had a rickety journey
since its inception in 2008, but it is still considered to be the biggest
confidence-building measure (CBM) between India and Pakistan. However, it is
often suspended in wake of political strain between the two countries. Also,
these traders have been frequently targeted by the investigating agencies like
NIA for their alleged involvement in narcotics and illegal money exchange,
which has not allowed the trade to flourish. Besides the major trade lobbies in
both sides of Punjab have frequently opposed the trade.
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GST CUT TO BOOST SALES OF UNDER-CONSTRUCTION FLATS; NO ITC MAY
HIT BUILDERS' PROFIT MARGIN: MOODY'S
Credit rating agency
Moody's Wednesday said the GST rate cut on under-construction flats will boost
housing sales but may hit profit margins of builders with withdrawal of input
tax credit. The GST Council had on Sunday decided to cut goods and services tax
(GST) rate on affordable homes to 1 per cent without input tax credit (ITC)
from earlier 8 per cent with ITC. The GST on under-construction flats, which is
not under the affordable housing segment, has been reduced to 5 per cent
without ITC from earlier 12 per cent with ITC. The reduction in GST is credit
positive for India's property developers because the reduction in tax will
boost demand and increase sales of properties under construction, Moody's
Investors Service said. The new GST measures eliminate the ability to claim
input tax credit which may hit the profitability of the developers, the rating
agency said.
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ROBERT VADRA APPEARS BEFORE ED FOR QUESTIONING IN MONEY
LAUNDERING CASE
Robert Vadra, the
brother-in-law of Congress President Rahul Gandhi, on Wednesday appeared before
the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for questioning for the seventh time in
connection with its probe into a money laundering case. ED officials said that
Vadra arrived at the agency's Jamnagar office in central Delhi at 10.40 a.m.
The ED has questioned Vadra, for over 42 hours in connection with the case on
February 6,7,9 20, 22 and 26.
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NO FRESH INCIDENTS OF VIOLENCE AGAINST KASHMIRIS SINCE
FEBRUARY 22, CENTRE TO SC
The Supreme Court
Wednesday took note of the Centre's submissions that no fresh incident of
violence against Kashmiris has been reported since February 22, the day when
the apex court had taken cognisance of a PIL on the issue. The apex court on
February 22 directed chief secretaries and DGPs of 11 states to take prompt and
necessary action to prevent incidents of alleged threat, social boycott and
violence against Kashmiris following the Pulwama terror attack. The bench said
no further orders were required at this stage in view of the Centre's
submissions and posted the PIL filed by lawyer Tariq Adeeb for further hearing
after two weeks.
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RAJNATH SINGH HOLDS HIGH-LEVEL MEETING ON SECURITY
Union Home Minister
Rajnath Singh on Wednesday chaired a high-level meeting to discuss internal
security a day after the Indian Air Force (IAF) bombed the Jaish-e-Mohammed
(JeM) terror outfit's biggest training camp in Pakistan. The issues discussed
in the meeting included the current situation in Jammu and Kashmir,
intelligence inputs after Tuesday's air strikes and further strategy, said
sources.
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CHOPPER CRASH: SRINAGAR, JAMMU, LEH AIRPORTS CLOSED FOR
CIVILIAN FLIGHTS
Jammu and Leh airports
were among five airports closed on Wednesday for civilian air traffic shortly
after an IAF jet crashed in Kashmir's Budgam district, officials said. The move
to close the five airports comes amid escalation of tension between India and
Pakistan after IAF carried out strikes on terror bases in Pakistan. Airports at
Chandigarh and Amritsar were among those closed, according to airline
officials. In Srinagar, an official of the Airports Authority of India told
PTI, The civilian air traffic has been suspended temporarily in view of the
emergency.
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PAKISTAN SAYS ITS JETS CROSSED LOC TO UNDERTAKE STRIKES IN
INDIA
Pakistan on Wednesday said
that its jets crossed the Line of Control to undertake strikes in India for
self defence. Indian officials said Pakistani fighter jets on Wednesday
violated Indian air space in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch and Nowshera sectors
but were pushed back by Indian aircraft. Pakistan Foreign Office said in a
statement said, Pakistan Air Force undertook strikes across Line of Control
from within Pakistani airspace. This was not a retaliation to continued Indian
belligerence, Pakistan has therefore, taken strikes at non military target,
avoiding human loss and collateral damage. Sole purpose being to demonstrate
our right, will and capability for self defence. We have no intention of
escalation, but are fully prepared to do so if forced into that paradigm. If
India is striking at so called terrorist backers without a shred of evidence,
we also retain reciprocal rights to retaliate against elements that enjoy
Indian patronage while carrying out acts of terror in Pakistan. We do not wish
to go to that route and wish that India gives peace a chance and to resolve
issues like a mature democratic nation, it said.
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DELHI, MUMBAI & 5 OTHER CITIES PUT ON 'HIGHEST ALERT'
Anticipating a Pakistani
retaliation to the Balakot bombing, Delhi, Mumbai and five other cities have
been put on highest alert for the next 72 hours a period being termed
'crucial'. However, the threat perception isn't as much from Pakistan army
directly as it is from terror modules active in the Valley and elsewhere backed
by ISI, sources said. At least three of these cities are in Punjab, Rajasthan
and Gujarat, a source said. Nuclear installations, airbases, naval commands,
Army camps and cantonment areas across north and west India have been brought
under heavy security cover. The inputs are being verbally conveyed to the
anti-terror units in these towns and cities and no written alert has been
issued given their sensitivity, a top intelligence officer told. Five districts
of Punjab - Gurdaspur, Tarn Taran, Amritsar, Ferozepur, and Fazilka - share a
553 km-long border with Pakistan. DCs and SSPs have been directed to put in
place contingency plans to ensure protection of citizens, while no evacuation
of residents of the border areas was deemed necessary, for now. Rajasthan,
which shares a 1,048 km-long border with Pakistan, has prohibited all movement
of civilians within a 5km radius from the international border between 6pm and
7am till the first week of April.
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INDIA'S DEFENCE MINISTRY SAYS NO INFORMATION ABOUT AIR
VIOLATIONS INTO PAKISTAN
The Defence Ministry said
on Tuesday that it had no information about Pakistani allegations that an
Indian aircraft violated Pakistani airspace. I have no information, said a
defence spokesman.
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BCCI RAISES SECURITY CONCERN, ICC ASSURES ALL ISSUES WILL BE
ADDRESSED
The International Cricket
Council (ICC) Wednesday assured the BCCI that it will do everything to address
India's security concerns during the upcoming World Cup the wake of the Pulwama
terror attack. At the start of the ICC's Chief Executives Committee (CEC)
meeting, BCCI CEO Rahul Johri expressed India's concerns about the security of
its players in the mega event which is scheduled to start May 30. On behalf of
the BCCI, Rahul Johri raised concerns for the safety and security of the Indian
team, match officials and the Indian Fans, at the CEC Meeting, a senior BCCI
official, privy to the development, told PTI. It is learnt that Johri told the
CEC that the BCCI believes in the security being planned by the ICC and the
England Cricket Board. However, at this point, the BCCI has taken no stand on
boycotting the game as there remains a possibility that both teams may end up
meeting in the knockouts as well.
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AIR STRIKE TO AVENGE PULWAMA IS APPROPRIATE, BUT DO NOT RULE
OUT ESCALATION
Out of all the options
available to India to respond to the Pulwama outrage it currently appears that
it chose the most appropriate one. The word ‘currently’ is important here
because in hybrid conflict situations oneoff acts do not bring an end to
conflict. In fact, many times they exacerbate a situation. The common
understanding in the armed forces is that we can resort to various options
within the spectrum of response but the moment we choose to get the Indian Air
Force (IAF) to cross the border or the LoC with a targeted mission the
escalation climbs higher to the extent of a nearwar-like situation. The Indian
government in conjunction with the armed forces has obviously done a deep risk
appreciation and concluded that an air strike by a reasonably large quantum of
aircraft and armed appropriately with 1000 and 500 pound bombs would meet the
needs of retribution being sought for the Pulwama attack. Damage assessment is
yet to confirm the physical outcome of the air strike. Pakistan is attempting
to downplay the Indian action by claiming that its own air force scrambled in
response to force the Indian aircraft to return without meeting the intended
aim of the strike. It also claims that the munitions were dropped randomly by
the Indian aircraft with limited or no effect. Pakistan’s Inter Services Public
Relations (ISPR) arm has gone on an overdrive to push the information aspects
in its favour.
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IAF STRIKES: PM SAYS COUNTRY IN SAFE HANDS
In his first public
comments after the air strikes in Pakistan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on
Tuesday said the country is in safe hands and that he will not let the country
down The Prime Minister stressed that nothing was above the nation.
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INDIA IS FULLY SAFE UNDER STRONG AND DECISIVE LEADERSHIP OF PM
MODI, SAYS AMIT SHAH
India is fully safe under
the decisive and strong leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and a New
India will not tolerate any act of terror, said Amit Shah. Credible
intelligence was received that JeM was attempting another suicide terror attack
in various parts of the country, and the fidayeen jihadis were being trained
for this purpose. In the face of imminent danger, a preemptive strike became
absolutely necessary, confirmed ministry of external affairs in a statement.
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VETO USED TO BLOCK, KILL PROPOSALS IN UNSC SANCTIONS
COMMITTEE: INDIA’S VEILED ATTACK ON CHINA OVER MASOOD AZAHAR ISSUE
India said any member of
the UN Security Council Sanctions Committee can use the veto to block and kill
a proposal for want of unanimity describing as complex and contentious the
issue of veto which has been repeatedly used by China to block India’s bid to
designate Pakistan-based JeM chief Masood Azhar as a global terrorist. Participating
in the informal meeting of the Plenary on the Intergovernmental negotiations on
the question of equitable representation on and increase in the membership of
the Security Council, India’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador
Syed Akbaruddin said that by a procedural stratagem, veto has been expanded to
all members of subsidiary bodies of the Security Council, rather than being
subject to restraints. He said in the UNSC Sanctions Committee, any member can
block or object or place on hold, any request of a Member State, thereby in
effect killing the proposal on grounds that unanimity is required. The use of
the veto has been extended to the subsidiary bodies of the Security Council,
eg, the Sanctions Committees. In these bodies, the veto has been extended to
all 15 members of the Committees, Akbaruddin said here Monday. Akbaruddin said
the issue of veto is complex, complicated and contentious, but then we cannot
also allow the veto to have a veto over the process of Council reform itself. He
said since the creation of the Security Council in 1946 till today, at least
238 vetoes were cast. As many as 59 vetoes were to block applications for membership
to the UN.
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HEAVY FIRING BY PAKISTAN TROOPS ON INDIAN POSTS ALONG LOC IN
J&K; ARMY RETALIATES
Pakistani troops resorted
to mortar shelling at forward Indian posts along the Line of Control in Jammu
and Kashmir’s Akhnoor, Nowshera and Mendhar areas on Tuesday evening. While in
adjoining Rajouri district’s Nowshera sector, Pakistani troops have been
resorting to mortar shelling and small arms fire for past many days, the
ceasefire violation in Akhnoor sector came after nearly three months. The
Indian army was retaliating at all the places, sources added. Sources said that
Pakistani Rangers suddenly opened unprovoked small arms fire in Kananchak area
forcing BSF to retaliate. One Ranger was killed, sources said, adding that
exchange of fire was going on.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
WESTERN NAVAL COMMAND ON HIGH ALERT POST-AIR STRIKES IN PAK,
SAYS OFFICIAL
In the wake of IAF's
preemptive air strikes on terror camps in Pakistan, the Western Naval Command
is on a high alert and fully prepared to tackle any eventualities an official
said on Tuesday. The Mumbai Police are also on a high alert following the air
strikes, the official said. The Western Naval Command remains alert 24X7. Now,
it is fully prepared to deal with any untoward situation in the wake of the air
strikes in Pakistan, he said.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
PAKISTAN BANS INDIAN FLIGHTS IN ITS AIRSPACE; ASK JET AIRWAYS
FLIGHT TO RETURN
The Pakistanis have banned
any Indian aircraft from using their airspace and has started returning Indian
flights that were flying over their airspace. Sources said that a Jet Airways
flight that was flying over the Pakistani airspace was asked to return and is
returning now. A Jet Airways flight was asked to leave the Pakistani airspace
but a British Airways aircraft was allowed to flyover Pakistan, said a senior
official on the know of things.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
PAKISTAN TO RAISE ISSUE OF INDIA’S ‘VIOLATION’ OF LOC AT UN,
OIC: REPORT
Pakistan will raise the
issue of India’s violation of the Line of Control (LoC) at the United Nations
and other international forums, a media said Tuesday, quoting sources. The
decision was taken at a high-level meeting chaired by Prime Minister Imran Khan
and attended by the top civil and military leadership, including Army chief
General Qamar Jawed Bajwa, Geo TV reported. Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood
Qureshi will make contact to raise the issue at international forums, sources
added. During the meeting, it was also decided that a joint session will be
called to take the Parliament into confidence.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
EUROPEAN UNION ASKS PAKISTAN TO TAKE 'CLEAR AND SUSTAINED
ACTION' AGAINST TERRORISTS
The European Union (EU)
has asked Pakistan to act on terror during a call made by Pakistani Foreign
Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi to an EU representative and German Foreign
Minister Heiko Maas. EU's high representative for foreign affairs and security
policy Federica Mogherini called on Pakistan to act against terrorists listed
by the United Nations She highlighted the need to continue addressing terrorism
with clear and sustained actions targeting not only all UN-listed transnational
terrorist groups but also individuals claiming responsibility for such attacks.
A release issued by EU on the call stressed the urgency to de-escalate the
situation arising between nuclear-armed India and Pakistan. In a tweet,
German's foreign ministry said, Pakistan resolutely needs to put a stop to
cross-border terrorism.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
AMERICA SHOULD NOT GIVE AID TO PAKISTAN UNTIL IT STOPS
HARBOURING TERRORISTS: NIKKI HALEY
Pakistan has a long
history of harbouring terrorists and America should not give Islamabad even a
dollar until it corrects its behaviour Indian-American former US envoy Nikki
Haley has said as she praised the Donald Trump administration for wisely
restricting financial assistance to the country. Haley, who has founded a new
policy group 'Stand America Now' that will focus on how to keep the US safe,
strong, and prosperous, wrote in an op-ed that when the US provides aid to
nations, It is more than fair to ask what the U.S. gets in return for our
generosity but instead Pakistan routinely opposed the US position at the UN on
several issues.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
MUSK FACES US CONTEMPT CLAIM FOR VIOLATING ACCORD WITH SEC
Elon Musk is facing a new
round of regulatory trouble for tweets about Tesla Inc, raising fresh concerns
about the billionaire Chief Executive Officer’s (CEO) ability to keep his
impulses in check and responsibly run a public company. The United States (US)
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Monday asked a judge to hold Musk
in contempt for violating a settlement that required him to get Tesla approval
for social media posts and other writings that could be material to investors.
He breached that deal with a February 19 tweet that said Tesla would make about
half a million cars in 2019, the agency claims. The CEO posted a few hours
later that deliveries would only reach about 400,000. The SECs move puts Musk
in fresh legal peril less than five months after he settled claims that he
misled the public with tweets about taking the electric-car maker private. He
could face a variety of penalties, with the stiffest being that hell be barred
from running Tesla or any other public company for a period of time, said
Charles Elson, director of the John L. Weinberg Center for Corporate Governance
at the University of Delaware.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
GETTING H-1B VISAS BECOMES TOUGHER AS TRUMP IMMIGRATION
CRACKDOWN WIDENS
Immigrants with
specialised skills are being denied work visas or seeing applications get
caught up in lengthy bureaucratic tangles under federal changes that some
consider a contradiction to President Donald Trump's promise of a continued
pathway to the US for the most talented foreigners. Getting what's known as an
H-1B visa has never been a sure thing the number issued annually is capped at
85,000 and applicants need to enter a lottery to even be considered. But some
immigration attorneys, as well as those who hire such workers, say they've seen
unprecedented disruptions in the approval process since Trump took office in
2017. Link Wilson, said finding enough qualified workers within the US has been
a problem for years. That's due to a shortage of architects, but also because his
firm needs people with experience in developing senior housing. He said
employers who turn to international applicants do so as a last resort, putting
up with legal fees and ever-expanding visa approval times because they have no
other choice. One order restricted companies' ability to use H-1B workers
off-site at a customer's place of business, while another temporarily rescinded
the option of paying for faster application processing. A growing number of
applications with such requests were ultimately denied, while the approval rate
among all applicants has fallen. Approvals also dipped in two other visa
programs for foreign workers, including one for individuals with extraordinary
abilities in areas such as science, sports and the arts.
#For Source of Information copy and paste the heading in google.
Thanks & Regards,
CS Meetesh Shiroya
Thanks & Regards,
CS Meetesh Shiroya
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