TAXATION UPDATES 19.04.2019

CBDT INVITES STAKEHOLDER COMMENTS ON REPORT PERTAINING TO PROFIT ATTRIBUTION TO PERMANENT ESTABLISHMENT(PE) IN INDIA

Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) places the report of the Committee on Profit Attribution on online public domain and invites suggestions/comments to be furnished electronically within 30 days from the date of publication of the aforementioned document on the website of the Department. The document can be accessed at www.incometaxindia.gov.in and comments can be sent to email address: usfttr-1@gov.in.

Taxation of non-residents in India is governed by the provisions of the Income-tax Act, 1961 (the Act) and the provisions of the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement(s) [DTAA(s)] concluded or adopted by the Central Government under the powers conferred under Section 90 or 90A of the Act, respectively. The business income of a non-resident can be taxed in India if it satisfies the requisite thresholds provided under the Act as well as the threshold provided in the applicable tax treaty, by a concept of Permanent Establishment (PE), which is defined in Article 5 of Model Tax Conventions and tax treaties. Under Article 7 in the Indian treaties, profits are to be attributed to the PE as if it were a distinct and separate entity on the basis of the accounts of the PE and where such accounts are not available to enable determination of profits attributable to the PE, the profits attributable to the PE can be determined under the domestic laws. For the application of this method, the Assessing Officer in India can resort to Rule 10 of Income-tax Rules, 1962. Recognizing the significance of issues relating to attribution of profits to a permanent establishment as well as the need to bring greater clarity and predictability in the applicable tax regime, a Committee was formed to examine the existing scheme of profit attribution to PE under Article 7 of DTAAs and recommend changes in Rule 10 of the Income-tax Rules, 1962. The Committee has submitted its report and it has been decided to seek suggestions/comments of the stakeholders and the general public.

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INVESTORS PANIC AS INCOME TAX SEEKS DETAILS FROM UNLISTED COMPANIES

A Mumbai-based investor who has stakes in a few startups and unlisted companies is seeking to exit the investments in the next few months. Another person, who had invested in a Kolkata-based company a few years ago and is on its board, is in an advanced stage of selling his shares. What triggered the action in both instances was the same: a tax department instruction. According the tax return form released by the department, assessees must provide details of any investment they have made, and directorial positions they hold, in unlisted companies in their tax returns. This has caused a lot of flutter among people who have such holdings. Fearing tax problems in future, many of them are rushing to sell or transfer the shares and resign from the boards before they file their returns, tax experts said. The fear is that tax officials could closely scrutinise those data and initiate investigations if they find any mismatch, they said. The way the enhanced details of the shareholding in private companies in India and abroad are sought by the tax department, going ahead they could be looking to cross verify this with the ROC (Registrar of Companies) or other secondary records, said Paras Savla, a partner at KPB & Associates. He advised taxpayers to take steps to collate the necessary information and provide those in the tax return, as otherwise it could lead to penal consequences under not only the Income-tax Act but also other laws like the Black Money Act. As per the directive, the assesses must furnish these details for the last fiscal year ended on March 31. But many of the investors are likely to exit their holdings and board positions and avoid reporting those, hoping that the tax department wouldn’t closely scrutinise their returns. Tax officials could still find out the information if they want to go after a taxpayer. These people are ready to take that risk, said tax experts. If they provide the information, tax officials are more likely to compare that against ROC data. Many of these investors are not very comfortable with that. In Panama and Paradise papers leak, many investors were just directors in companies and they were questioned as to whether they were beneficiaries. Now imagine if such information has to be submitted voluntarily to the income tax department, said a lawyer, who is advising a client in such a case. An income tax officer, on condition of anonymity, said the details were sought to create a database. In many cases, we suspect that some of the investors are manipulating balance sheets of unlisted companies. There is no clear way of knowing who owns what and what is their exact income and if it’s escaping taxes, he said.

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MNCS IN INDIA MAY FACE HIGHER TAXES

The rules for attributing profits to multinational enterprises having a permanent establishment (PE) or business connection in India are set to significantly change if the draft report issued on Thursday night by a committee — appointed by the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) — is adopted. MNCs carrying offshore operations in India, which also have sales revenue from the country, may find that higher profits that are attributed to Indian operations — under the prescribed formula-driven approach — will result in a higher tax outgo. If a foreign enterprise has a PE in India (in general, it refers to a fixed place of business and is defined in tax treaties), then India can tax the business profits of the entity. However, tax can be imposed only on the profits ‘attributed’ to the operations carried out in India. Where detailed accounts are not available to determine this attribution, rule 10 empowers the income tax (I-T) officer to do so by indirect apportionment — say, a percentage of the turnover. However, lack of uniformity in this approach results in litigation. In its report, the CBDT-appointed committee states that it is not appropriate to attribute profits to the PE exclusively on the basis of functions, assets and risks (FAR) alone. This is a game changer. The panel’s report outlines a formula for calculating profits attributed to operations in India, giving equal weightage assigned to sales, manpower and assets. This three-factor approach will be a challenge where there is significant manpower deployed in India and sales revenue is also generated from here. A lot of offshore centres in India, which provide technical services to their overseas head office and group companies, could be adversely impacted as it could result in a higher tax outgo, says Girish Vanvari, founder of a boutique advisory firm TransactionSquare. However, the report adds that profits derived from Indian operations that have already been subjected to tax in India — say, in the hands of a subsidiary — should be deducted from the apportioned profits. A floor rate for profits derived from India has been set to protect revenue interests. The committee further suggests a minimum 2% of the turnover derived from here as deemed ‘profits derived from India’ in certain circumstances — say, when the foreign enterprise is incurring global losses. It also provides that where no sale has taken place in India and the profits that can be apportioned to the supply activities are already taxed in the hands of an Indian subsidiary, there may be no further taxes payable by the foreign enterprise. The panel has also considered emerging business models. For business models in which users contribute significantly to the profits of the foreign enterprise, the user base could be taken into account for the purpose of profit attribution as the fourth factor for apportionment, in addition to sales, manpower and assets. Weightage in the range of 10-20% has been assigned to the user base, points out Nangia Advisors director Sandeep Jhunjhunwala.

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NOTICE TO SAMSUNG FOR NOT PASSING GST CUT BENEFIT TO CONSUMERS

The Directorate General of Anti-Profiteering has served a notice to technology major Samsung India for allegedly not passing on the benefits of GST reduction to its customers and in turn making undue profits, sources said. The notice, sources said, was served on the basis of a complaint which alleged that the company was not transferring the rate cut in the Goods and Services Tax (GST) on television sets to the consumers. The anti-profiteering body, which functions under the GST Council, has also sought documents of sales made by the company. Despite repeated messages and phone calls, Samsung spokesperson could not be reached for comment. Company sources, however, confirmed the notice from anti-profiteering body but put the blame squarely on channel partners for not passing on the benefit of lower duty to consumers. They said the company has no control over partners some of whom might not have effected price cuts based on duty revision. At the company level, they said, pricing of all products was revised downwards post duty cuts and products were supplied to partners at lower per unit cost. Non-transmission of rate cuts to consumers violates Section 171 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act which mandates that any reduction in tax rates on goods and services or benefits of input tax credit should be passed on to customers through reduction in prices.

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SUSPENSION OF LOC TRADE BETWEEN J&K AND POJK

MHA has issued orders to suspend the LoC trade in Jammu & Kashmir w.e.f 19-04-2019. This action has been taken as the Government of India has been receiving reports that the Cross LoC trade routes are being misused by the Pakistan based elements for funnelling illegal weapons, narcotics and fake currency etc. It may be recalled that the LoC trade is meant to facilitate exchange of goods of common use between local populations across the LoC in Jammu & Kashmir. The trade is allowed through two Trade Facilitation Centres located at Salamabad, Uri, District Baramulla and Chakkan-da-Bagh, District Poonch. The trade takes place four days a week. The Trade is based on Barter system and zero duty basis. However, reports have been received that the LoC trade is being misused on very large scale. It has been revealed that the trade has changed its character to mostly third party trade and products from other regions, including foreign countries, are finding their way through this route. Unscrupulous and anti national elements are using the route as a conduit for Hawala money, drugs and weapons, under the garb of this trade. During the ongoing investigations of certain cases by NIA, it has been brought out that a significant number of trading concerns engaged in LoC trade are being operated by persons closely associated with banned terrorist organizations involved in fuelling terrorism/separatism. Investigations have further revealed that some individuals, who have crossed over to Pakistan, and joined militant organizations have opened trading firms in Pakistan. These trading firms are under the control of militant organizations and are engaged in LoC trade. After the Pulwama incident, Government of India has withdrawn the MFN status to Pakistan. Inputs have also been received that in order to evade the consequent higher duty, LoC trade is likely to be misused to a much larger extent It has, therefore, been decided by the Government of India to suspend the LoC trade at Salamabad and Chakkan-da-Bagh in Jammu and Kashmir with immediate effect. Meanwhile, a stricter regulatory & enforcement mechanism is being worked out and will be put in place in consultation with various agencies. The issue of reopening of LoC trade will be revisited thereafter.

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NO TDS FOR STAFF ON DEPUTATION IN FOREIGN COMPANIES

The Bombay high court has held that there is no requirement for tax deducted at source (TDS) under section 195 of the Income Tax Act for an employee deputed to a foreign company through a manpower contract even if the overseas entity exercised supervision and control. The income tax department had demanded TDS under section 195, which deals with the TDS on non-resident payments, and the HC order will have a bearing on several people who are working overseas based on a contract between Indian and foreign companies. The judgment is in response to a case involving Radiant Services, which had entered into an agreement with Kuwait’s Arabi Enertech for providing manpower. The Kuwait-based company paid a fixed sum of $5,500, of which $4,000 was paid to the employee.

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DISPOSE PRE-GST CASES SOON TO HELP BUSINESSES: ALLAHABAD HC TO STATE GOVT

A two-judge bench of the Allahabad High Court has directed the State Govt to dispose of all the pre-GST cases so that the businesses can plan their business properly. The petitioner-Company, engaged in the manufacture and sales of electric and electronic goods, had availed exemption under Section 4-A of the U.P. Trade Tax Act, 1948. The State Government had from time to time has issued various notifications granting exemption from payment of tax to the new unit or to the units undertaken expansion, diversification, modernization within a period prescribed upon conditions. In the relevant year, the petitioner established a new unit with the investment of more than Rs. 50 crores and commenced its commercial production on 9.3.1998. The petitioner was granted Eligibility Certificate for a period of 15 years from the date of the first sale i.e. 27.3.1998 or to the extent of 200% of the fixed capital investment i.e. Rs. 1,02,75,90,892/-, whichever is earlier. Even after the introduction of UP VAT Act also, the Government continued the exemption. This continued up to 31st December 2007 from 1st January 2008. U.P. VAT Act was introduced in which Section 42 provides for treatment of industrial units availing exemption or reduction in the rate of tax under erstwhile Act and sub-section (4) of Section 42 provides that the units were required to deposit the tax and on the strength of entitlement certificate they shall be entitled to exemption by way of refund of net tax paid along with the return of the Tax period in prescribed manner and on fulfilling the conditions. Justice Bharati Sapru and Justice Piyush Agrawal observed that under U.P. VAT Act regime the units were entitled to exemption only after they deposit the Tax and then a refund of only net tax paid only with the return of the remaining amount mentioned on the Entitlement Certificate were refunded or within the period as mentioned therein. Now, after the introduction of Goods and Service Tax with effect from 1st July 2017, there is no scheme of exemption The matter in question relates to the grant of exemption initially granted under Sales Tax Act then under Trade Tax Act and then under U.P. VAT Act but, no exemption under GST Act. It is not appropriate to accept the contention of the respondent that the petitioner has an alternative remedy and the petitioner is relegated back as if aggrieved by the order passed by the Commissioner, as presently only notice under Section 4A-(3) of the Act is issued. The case of grant or rejection of exemption should be decided at the earliest so that businessman can plan his business accordingly. The case in hand shows that four tax regime has changed and presently country in under new G.S.T. Regime, the old pending cases should be decided at the earliest which will be in the interest of both the parties i.e. petitioner as well as the State and we, therefore, reject the contention of the respondent for relegating back the petitioner to approach the Commissioner in pursuance of notice issued under Section 4-A(3) of the Act, the bench said.

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ITC AVAILABLE ON VEHICLES SUPPLIED TO CUSTOMERS ON LEASE RENT SUBJECT TO CONDITIONS: AAR

The Authority for Advance Ruling (AAR) Madhya Pradesh has ruled that Input Tax Credit (ITC) is available on GST paid on vehicles provided to different customers on lease rent. The Applicant M/s Narsingh Transport, based in Ujjain, is providing ‘Goods Transport Agency Service’. The applicant while purchasing cars for their business purpose i.e. for providing to other companies on a monthly lease rent under a lease agreement has paid GST as applicable. The applicant had desired the advance ruling on whether the GST paid on these cars will be available to it as ITC in terms of section 17(5) of CGST Act, 2017. Additional Commissioner of CGST and Central Excise, Rajiv Agarwal and Joint Commissioner of Commercial Tax, Manoj Kumar Choubey while processing the application was of the point of view that, The applicant is entitled to avail ITC on vehicle which are further supplied to customers on lease rent, subject to condition apllicable as per section 17(5) of CGST Act, 2017, Madhya Pradesh Goods and Service Tax Act, 2017 and notifications number 11/2017 central tax (Rate) dated 28 June, 2017, state notification No. F-A-3-32—2017-1-V(41) dated 29 June, 2017 read with amendments. Such Vehicles must be registered for commercial use and permit holder as per section 66 under Motor Vehicle Act, 1988.

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HC DISMISSES PETITIONS AGAINST ARREST BY GST OFFICIALS

The Telangana High Court on Thursday dismissed a batch of writ petitions filed by seven private companies seeking a direction to the Hyderabad GST Commissionerate officials not to arrest them and set aside summons issued by the latter. A Division Bench comprising Justice V. Ramasubramanian and Justice P. Keshava Rao pronounced the verdict, rejecting the technical objections raised by the petitioners over the powers and reasons of the GST officials to arrest them. The judgement said that despite the petitions being maintainable and incongruities within some provisions of the Central Goods and Service Tax (CGST) Act-2017, the relief could not be granted to the companies due to the ‘special circumstances’ of the case. They challenged the summons issued by the Hyderabad GST officials and the searches conducted by the latter at their respective offices. Since they were apprehending their arrest, the Bench issued interim directions not to arrest them initially. The authorities, in their counter affidavit, said that the companies claimed Input Tax Credit based on some invoices without there being any actual physical receipt of goods. They contended the said companies used bogus or fake invoices to avail and utilise fraudulent ITC of GST by the recipients of such invoices. According to them, all the said companies put together showed a total turnover of ₹1,289 crore in the GST and claimed the fraudulent ITC to the tune of ₹224.05 crore. The counsels for the petitioners said the maximum punishment under Section 132 of the CGST Act was five years apart from fine. They contended that under sections 41 and 41A of the Criminal Procedure Code a person cannot be arrested as long as he or she complies with the notice for appearance. The GST regime is at its nascent stage. The law is yet to reach its second anniversary. The complaints against the petitioners constitute a threat to the very implementation of a law within a short duration of its inception, the judgement said.

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GST FRAUD: TELANGANA HC NIXES RELIEF PLEA OF SUJANA GROUP’S FRONT FIRMS

The Telangana high court on Thursday dismissed the pleas for relief by various directors of Sujana Universal Industries Ltd and several firms believed to be front companies of the Sujana Group from summons or likely arrests by GST officials probing fraudulent claims of input tax credit (ITC) of Rs 225 crore allegedly made by these directors. A bench of Justice V Ramasubramanian and Justice P Keshava Rao, which was hearing the pleas of directors from Sujana Universal, Hindustan Ispat Pvt Ltd, EBC Bearings and others, said: In essence, the main allegation of the GST department against the petitioners is that they are guilty of circular trading by claiming input tax credit on materials they never purchased and passing on such input tax credit to companies to whom they never sold any goods. The department has estimated that fake GST invoices were issued to the total value of about Rs.1,289 crore and the benefit of wrongful ITC passed on by the petitioners is to the tune of about Rs.225 crore. The bench further said: Generally, in all other fiscal laws, the offences that we have traditionally known revolve around evasion of liability. In such cases, the government is only deprived of what is due to them. But in cases of fraudulent ITC claims, a huge liability is created for the government. The acts committed by the petitioners constitute a threat to the very implementation of a law within a short duration of its inception. The bench wondered about the ‘foresight’ displayed by the accused directors and the way they exploited a new law that was still at a nascent stage. If, even before the GST regime is put on tracks, someone can exploit the law, without the actual purchase or sale of goods or hiring or rendering of services, projecting a huge turnover that remained only on paper, giving rise to a claim for input tax credit of about Rs.225 crore, then there is nothing wrong in the thinking of GST authorities that persons involved should be arrested, the bench said.

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WHO'S LYING? PM MODI OR PSU BANKS? VIJAY MALLYA TAKES SWIPE AT NDA GOVT

A day after a UK judge refused to dismiss an order freezing nearly 260,000 pounds ($337,730) in one of his London bank accounts, embattled liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya on Thursday questioned the SBI-led consortium of public sector banks pursuing him through the courts to recover dues they claim are owed to them. In his latest Twitter intervention, the 63-year-old former Kingfisher Airlines boss made another reference to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's interview last month in which he had claimed that the government has recovered assets worth Rs 14,000 crores related to the now-defunct airline's loan defaults. Mallya is wanted in India on charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to an alleged Rs 9,000 crores. None other than the Prime Minister of India specifically says in an interview that his government has recovered more money than I allegedly owe PSU Banks and the same banks claim otherwise in English courts, reads Mallya's Tweet. Who does one believe? One or the other is lying, he said. His statement came hours after Master David Cook, a judge in the Queen's Bench Division of the Royal Courts of Justice in London, ruled on Wednesday that an interim debt order in favour of SBI and other banks seeking access to funds in Mallya's ICICI UK bank account should remain in force. However, the application to make it final has been adjourned until after the hearing of Mallya's pending bankruptcy petition, expected by the end of this year. The funds held in the account 258,559.79 pounds will meanwhile remain frozen as part of the worldwide freezing order in favour of the Indian banks last year.

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INDIA RICE RATES DIP AS DEMAND SLOWS, BANGLADESH TO REVIEW EXPORT BAN

Asian rice exporting hubs saw tepid activity this week, with prices for the staple from top exporter India dipping on lower demand, while Bangladesh mulled a review of its ban on exports of the grain. India's 5 percent broken parboiled variety was quoted around $377-$380 per tonne, down from last week's $387-$390. Demand from African buyers was weak as they have ample inventories, said Nitin Gupta, vice president, rice business at Olam India. Aggressive selling of old inventories by China at lower prices has also weighing on prices, he added. The country's rice exports for April-February dropped 9.4 percent from a year earlier to 10.57 million tonnes, as leading buyer Bangladesh trimmed its purchases due to a bumper local harvest, a government body said.However, concerns over domestic supply in the country have kept prices steady recently, traders said.

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ADARSH SCAM: PUNJAB AND HARYANA HC GRANTS INTERIM BAIL TO MUKESH, RAHUL MODI

The Punjab and Haryana High Court Thursday granted interim bail of 15 days to founder and managing director of Adarsh Credit Cooperative Society, Mukesh Modi and Rahul Modi, while directing the special court in Gurgaon to decide their application for regular bail on April 20. The duo, however, will be treated as under arrest and two police officials will continue to escort them during the period of their interim relief, the high court order said. The father-son duo was arrested by the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs in December 2018 for committing an alleged fraud by syphoning over Rs 200 crore of over 20 lakh depositors through an alleged Ponzi scheme. The Ahmedabad-based society was operational since 1999. Since the remand order for their arrest was passed by a special magistrate in Gurgaon, the application for regular bail is pending.

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DEMONETISATION: ENFORCEMENT DIRECTORATE SEIZES 146 KG GOLD JEWELLERY IN HYDERABAD

About 146 kg of gold jewellery worth over ₹ 82 crore has been seized by the ED after it raided the premises of a Hyderabad-based jewellery group and its associates in connection with a post demonetisation money laundering case, the agency said Thursday. It said the searches were conducted over the last few days. For tracing the proceeds of crime, simultaneous searches were conducted in the premises of the accused persons which resulted in the seizure of 145.89 kg of gold jewellery worth ₹ 82.11 crore, the Enforcement Directorate said in a statement. The agency had filed a criminal case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) against these people based on an FIR of the Telangana Police and a complaint of the Income Tax Department for blatantly misusing the scheme of demonetisation by illegally depositing huge amounts of unaccounted demonetised cash in their accounts. For this purpose, they (accused) fraudulently created around 5,200 back-dated fabricated advance sale receipts dated November 8, 2016 for an amount less than ₹ 2 lakh to avoid furnishing PAN (permanent account number) details, the agency said. Describing the alleged modus operandi deployed in the case, the statement said that soon after the notes ban was announced, the accused illegally deposited ₹ 110.85 crore in their bank account falsely claiming that within a few hours they had received advances of less than ₹ 2 lakh each from more than 5,200 customers on the night of November 8, 2016 for purchase of gold and jewellery from their firms. The ED said all these invoices were bogus. It also analysed CCTV footage of the firms’ offices and that of the neighbourhood that showed that no such activity of purchase of gold was carried out during that period. It said that out of the total ₹ 110.85 crore alleged illegal funds, about ₹ 80 crore was transferred to the bank accounts of various gold and bullion dealers like Ashta Lakshmi Gold, Shri Balaji Gold and others on the pretext of purchase of gold.

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KARNATAKA: I-T RAIDS AT BJP WORKER’S PREMISES IN KARWAR RECOVER ₹82.7 LAKH CASH

The income tax (I-T) department on Wednesday carried out raids at office and residences of a district level Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) worker in the coastal city of Karwar in Uttar Kannada district, about 520 kms from Bengaluru. Senior I-T officials confirmed that a total of ₹82.7 lakh in cash and about 500 grams in gold was seized from this person. The Janata Dal (Secular) and Congress in Karnataka had accused Modi of trying to intimidate well-wishers of the parties by carrying out raids and searches against them. H.D.Kumaraswamy also naming a senior I-T official from Bengaluru as one of the people acting on the PM’s orders. The department had also carried out raids in the premises of Kanimozhi, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) candidate from Thoothukudi, in southern Tamil Nadu, late on Tuesday.

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AUGUSTA WESTLAND CASE: CHRISTIAN MICHEL’S INTERIM BAIL PLEA DISMISSED

Christian Michel’s interim bail plea dismissed by Rouse Avenue Court Complex. He had applied for interim bail to celebrate Easter and the Holy week. Christian Michel the alleged middleman in the ₹3,600-crore AgustaWestland VVIP chopper deal case had moved the Rouse Avenue Delhi court seeking interim bail to celebrate the holy week and to celebrate Easter ‪on April 21. He wished to attend the holy mass on the Easter day and wanted to make offerings during these holidays. ED opposed the plea on the basis of him being an offender of grave economic offence and reasonable apprehension of him evading the law.

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NO PAKISTANI SOLDIER OR CITIZEN DIED IN BALAKOT AIR STRIKE: SUSHMA SWARAJ

Sushma Swaraj Thursday said no Pakistani soldier or citizen died in the air strike carried out by the Indian Air Force across the border in response to the Pulwama terror attack in February. She stressed on a 2014-like full majority BJP-led government this time also, saying former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee could not do everything which he wanted to because he was heading a coalition administration Swaraj said the air strike was carried out in self- defence. When we carried out air strike across the border after the Pulwama terror attack, we had told the international community that we took that step in self-defence only. We had told the international community that the armed forces were instructed not to harm any Pakistani citizen or its soldier during the strike, she said. The Army was told to target only the terror camps of the Jaish-e-Mohammad, which had taken the responsibility for the Pulwama attack. And, our Army did the same without harming any Pakistani citizen or soldier, said Swaraj. Praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi, she said he has emerged as a top international leader who sets the agenda for the world. Stressing on a full majority government led by the BJP this time also, Swaraj said Vajpayee could not do all the things he wanted because he was heading a coalition government (1998-2004). Swaraj, who was a minister in the Vajpayee Cabinet also, said coalition governments face pressure.

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INDIA EARNED RESPECT AT GLOBAL LEVEL DURING BJP GOVERNMENT, SAYS RAJNATH SINGH

Rajnath Singh Wednesday said in the last five years of the Modi government, the country has earned respect across the world. The senior BJP leader, saying organisations cannot get success on the basis of negative thinking. The country has earned respect at the global level during the BJP government. We made an anti-satellite missile which only Russia, China and the US had, Singh said. India is on the sixth spot as far as economy is concerned whereas in 2014 it was ninth. We want the country to become a superpower and ‘vishwa’ guru, he said. The home minister said after the Mumbai attack in 2008, the then Congress government did nothing, but after the Pulwama terror attack, Indian forces went inside Pakistan and carried out its operation. The Indian Air Force on February 26 carried out a strike on a terror camp in Pakistan’s Balakot after 40 CRPF personnel were killed in a terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama district on February 14.

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25 WTO MEMBERS MAY COME OUT WITH DECLARATION ON CRITICAL ISSUES IN MAY

The meeting of 25 WTO member countries on May 13-14 here is expected to come out with a declaration on critical issues including ‘special and differential treatment’ for developing nations and impasse over the appointment of members to the appellate body of dispute settlement, sources said. The other issues that could figure in the meeting include fishery subsidies and public stockholding in agriculture, they said. India has convened a meeting of 25 developing member nations of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) on May 13-14. The meet assumes significance as several countries are raising questions over the relevance of the Geneva-based global trade body. Many countries are also taking protectionist measures, impacting global trade. The idea of the meeting is to discuss these matters in detail and ‘special and differential treatment’ (S&D) is the core issue which would be deliberated upon, one of the sources said. As part of reforms at the WTO, the US wants the formulation of some guidelines that countries with high economic growth are prevented from taking benefits of S&D, which is meant for developing and poor nations. The US has submitted its suggestions to the WTO which states that self-declaration puts the WTO on a path to failed negotiations and it is also a path to institutional irrelevance. India is of the view that the matter needs to be negotiated comprehensively in the WTO and a consensus-based decision needs to be taken on S&D. Further, the work of the WTO’s dispute settlement mechanism would be impacted as the US has put roadblocks in the appointment of new members to the appellate body, which hears appeals against the rulings of dispute panel.

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PAKISTAN ARMY SAYS INDIA SHOULD ACCEPT NO SURGICAL STRIKE HAPPENED IN 2016

Pakistan Army took a jibe at India on Thursday after External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj acknowledged that no civilian or soldier was killed in the Balakot attack, saying New Delhi should also take back its claim about the shooting down of a Pakistani F-16 fighter jet and the 2016 surgical strike. The statement by army spokesman Major General Asif Ghafoor came hours after Swaraj said that no Pakistani soldier or civilian died in the air strike on a terror camp at Balakot in Pakistan in February. Hopefully, so will be about other false Indian claims i.e. surgical strike 2016, denial of shooting down of 2 IAF jets by PAF and claim about F16. Better late than never, Ghafoor said in a twet. Pakistan has denied that the Indian Air Force jets attacked terrorists in Balakot.

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CHINA SEEKS FACE-SAVING FORMULA ON MASOOD AZHAR

China is looking for a formula that would save face for Beijing in Pakistan if it does an about turn on the Masood Azhar issue. The Azhar case has posed a serious challenge to China’s international image ahead of the Belt and Road Forum that it is holding in Beijing between April 25 and 27, informed sources in Beijing said. The most important project under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is in Pakistan which is also seen in many places as an exporter of terror. China is giving out signals that it is reviewing its own stance about blocking efforts by India, the US and other countries to get the United Nations to declare Jaish-e-Mohammed head Masood Azhar a global terrorist. We are also having communication with relevant parties and the matter is moving towards the direction of settlement (sic). Regarding what you said, relevant parties are forcing a new resolution through the Security Council, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lu Kang said. Lu added, On the issue of the listing of Masood Azhar, China’s position remains unchanged. But China is known to say this about almost all international matters even when it is changing its approach to certain issues.

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AZHAR AT UNSC: CHINA SAYS MOVING TOWARDS 'SETTLEMENT'

China Wednesday dismissed reports that the US, the UK and France have served an ultimatum to Beijing to lift its technical hold by April 23 on branding Pakistan-based JeM chief Masood Azhar as a global terrorist by the UN but claimed the vexed issue was moving towards settlement. After the Pulwama attack, a fresh proposal to designate Azhar under the 1267 Al Qaeda Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council was moved by France, the US and the UK. However, China, a close ally of Pakistan, blocked the bid by putting a technical hold on the proposal Following this, the US backed by the UK and France moved directly to UN Security Council (UNSC) to blacklist Azhar. China, a veto-wielding member of the UNSC, opposed the move, saying the issue should be resolved at the 1267 Committee itself which also functioned under the top UN body. Reacting to reports that the three countries have fixed April 23 as a deadline for China to lift its technical hold in the 1267 Committee or else they would press for a discussion on the issue at the UNSC itself, Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said, I don't know where you get such information. He said both the UNSC and its subsidiary body 1267 Committee have clear rules and procedures. You need to get clarification from the sources about where you get such information. China's position is very clear. This issue should be resolved through cooperation. We don't believe that any efforts without the consensus of members will achieve a satisfying results, he said. On the issue of listing Azhar, China's position remains unchanged. The relevant parties are forcing new resolution through the UN Security Council. We firmly oppose that.

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PAKISTAN FINMIN ASAD UMAR STEPS DOWN FROM CABINET AMID IMF NEGOTIATION

Pakistan’s Finance Minister Asad Umar stepped down from the cabinet after Prime Minister Imran Khan attempted to move him to the government’s energy portfolio as the country continues to negotiate an International Monetary Fund bailout. As part of a cabinet reshuffle PM desired that I take the energy minister portfolio instead of finance. However, I have obtained his consent to not take any cabinet position, Umar said Thursday on Twitter. Umar’s decision comes as he led negotiations for what would be Pakistan’s 13th IMF support program since the late 1980s amid prolonged media speculation that he would be moved from the finance ministry as the economy continued to falter. Umar was in Washington for talks with the lender last week, ahead of an IMF delegation visit to Islamabad at the end of April.

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TRUMP AND TEAM WAIT FOR RELEASE OF LONG-AWAITED MUELLER REPORT ON RUSSIA

Special Counsel Robert Mueller's long-awaited report on Russia's role in the 2016 US election will be released on Thursday, providing the first public look at the findings of an inquiry that has cast a shadow over Donald Trump's presidency. Attorney General William Barr's planned release of the nearly 400-page report comes after Mueller wrapped up his 22-month investigation last month into the Trump campaign's contacts with Russia and questions about obstruction of justice by the president. Its disclosure, with portions expected to be blacked out by Barr to protect some sensitive information, is certain to launch a new political fight spilling into the halls of Congress and the 2020 presidential campaign trail, as Trump seeks re-election in a deeply divided country. The release marks a watershed moment in Trump's presidency, promising new details about some of the biggest questions in the probe, including the extent and nature of his campaign's contacts with Russia and actions Trump may have taken to hinder the inquiry including his 2017 firing of FBI Director James Comey. It also may deepen an already bitter partisan rift between Trump's fellow Republicans, most of whom have rallied around the president, and his Democratic critics, who will have to decide how hard to go after Trump as they prepare congressional investigations of his administration. Barr said he would hold a news conference at 9:30 a.m. (1330 GMT) on Thursday to discuss the report, along with Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who appointed Mueller as special counsel in May 2017. Copies of the report will be delivered to Capitol Hill more than an hour later, between 11 a.m. and noon (1500-1600 GMT), a senior Justice Department official said. The delay in seeing the report sparked Democratic complaints that Barr, a Trump appointee, wanted to shape the public's views during his news conference before others had a chance to draw their own conclusions. Mueller's investigation, which Trump has called a witch hunt, raised questions about the legitimacy of Trump's presidency and laid bare what the special counsel and U.S. intelligence agencies have described as a Russian operation to derail Democrat Hillary Clinton's candidacy and elevate Trump, the Kremlin's preferred candidate.

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CS Meetesh Shiroya