1. MP Likely to go From Kamal to Kamal, Gehlot Raj Frontrunner
Veteran Congress leader Kamal Nath looks set to take over as chief minister of Madhya Pradesh after a day-long exercise in Bhopal by party observers capped the process of consultation. In Rajasthan, Ashok Gehlot is believed to have the edge over state unit chief Sachin Pilot for the post of CM.
In MP, Congress defeated BJP in the final tally announced on Wednesday, 12 December, finishing below the majority mark of 116 by two MLAs but stitching alliances with BSP (3) and SP (1) and enlisting the support of four independents.
Sources said Nath, the MP Congress chief, has been almost finalised as the leader of the legislature party ahead of Jyotiraditya Scindia. A final announcement is likely to be made by Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Thursday, 13 December.
(Source: The Times of India)
2. Nobody Should Try to Make India Islamic country, Only Govt Under Modiji Will Understand: HC Judge
Calling the National Register of Citizens (NRC) updating process in Assam “defective as many foreigners become Indians and original Indians are left out which is very sad,” Justice Sudip Ranjan Sen of Meghalaya High Court has said “nobody should try to make India… another Islamic country, otherwise it will be a doomsday for India and the world.”
He said the Centre should bring a law to allow non-Muslim and tribal communities like Khasis from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan to live in India without any cut-off year and be given citizenship without any question or production of document.
He said he is “confident that only this Government under Shri Narendra Modiji will understand the gravity, and will do the needful” and “Chief Minister Mamataji will support the national interest in all respect”.
(Source: The Indian Express)
3. Like Raman Singh, Shivraj Singh Chouhan Owns Up Defeat, Party Bosses Stay Silent
On Wednesday, 12 December, taking a cue from his Chhattisgarh counterpart Raman Singh, MP’s outgoing CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan took responsibility for the BJP’s performance in the election and submitted his resignation.
While Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated the Congress on Tuesday, 11 December, saying “we accept the people’s mandate with humility”, the silence of BJP chief Amit Shah and Union ministers in charge of Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh has been conspicuous.
After the results Tuesday, 11 December, Shah posted only one tweet, congratulating K Chandrashekar Rao and the TRS for the “impressive victory” in Telangana. The BJP chief has also not held the customary post-election press conference this time.
(Source: The Indian Express)
4. New RBI Governor Signals Better Ties With Govt
New RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das has hinted at a reconciliation between the bank and the government, saying that all issues, however contentious, could be resolved through discussions.
“RBI is a great institution. It has got a rich legacy and I will do everything possible to uphold its professionalism, values, credibility and autonomy,” he said after taking charge. But he added every institution must adhere to the principle of accountability.
Das said while RBI needed to be watchful on inflation, maintaining the growth trajectory of the economy was also important.
(Source: The Times of India)
5. Oppn, Centre at Odds Over Voting in Rafale Debate
There were disruptions and adjournments in both Houses of Parliament on the first business day of the winter session as Opposition parties, led by the Congress, protested against the treasury benches over a host of issues ranging from the Rafale jet fighter deal to the sharing of Cauvery waters to the construction of a Ram temple in Ayodhya.
The Congress is pressing for a parliamentary debate on the Rafale deal under a motion that would entail voting, senior party leaders said on Wednesday, 12 December. They added that the proposal, however, has not been accepted by the BJP, which says it is open to any debate but without voting.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
6. Pune University Puts Off Indian History Congress, Triggers Outrage
The 79th session of the Indian History Congress (IHC), slated to be held at the Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU) from 28 to 30 December, has been “postponed until further notice”, a move the IHC described as “arbitrary.”
The IHC, in a letter to the SPPU vice-chancellor, has said the university took the decision without its consent, calling it “irresponsible action.” The letter adds that this in effect means cancellation of the event as hosts cannot postpone IHC sessions and that too to unknown dates.
For its part, SPPU said the event has only been postponed, not cancelled, due to a lack of funds. The “postponement” has been announced on the SPPU’s website. Interestingly, IHC has been critical of attempts to rewrite history using mythology and other speculation.
(Source: The Times of India)
7. HC Bans Online Med Sales Across Country
The Delhi high court on Wednesday, 12 December, ordered a ban on sale of online medicines by e-pharmacists across the country, and directed the Centre and the AAP government to immediately implement the order.
A bench of Chief Justice Rajendra Menon and Justice VK Rao passed the order while acting on a PIL filed by Delhi-based dermatologist Zaheer Ahmed who complained that lakhs of medicines were being sold on the internet every day without much regulation, posing a huge risk to patients and doctors alike.
In the plea filed through advocate Nakul Mohta, Ahmed pointed out that online sale of medicines is not permitted under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 and Pharmacy Act, 1948.
(Source: The Times of India)
8. Ranil Wins Vote of Confidence in House
A majority of Sri Lankan parliamentarians – including 14 from the Opposition Tamil National Alliance (TNA) – on Wednesday, 12 December, voted for ousted Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe as their preferred candidate to serve in the post.
The motion, moved by Sajith Premadasa, deputy leader of Wickremesinghe’s United National Party (UNP), sought to demonstrate the support that the deposed leader has in the House.
It is unlikely that the trust vote – passed with the support of 117 MPs in the 225-member House – will help end the island’s political impasse, especially coming a week after President Maithripala Sirisena declared that he would not appoint Wickremesinghe as Prime Minister “even if all 225 legislators” back him.
(Source: The Hindu)
9. Need to Fix MP’s Fiscal Health, Will Raise GST For 2019: Kamal Nath
A day after the Congress ended 15 years of BJP rule in Madhya Pradesh and immersed itself in talks on who should be its Chief Minister, Kamal Nath, state Congress president and frontrunner for the top job, told The Indian Express that “we will campaign against the kind of GST he (Prime Minister) has brought in”.
Asked if he thinks the Assembly election was like a semi-final before the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Nath said: “No, I did not think of it like a semi-final. It was inevitable… we ended 15 years of misrule of the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government.”
“We had seen the resentment against the government build up in every section of society. The defeat had to happen,” Nath said.
(Source: The Indian Express)
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