1. Sabarimala Pleas in SC, CM Says Govt Action Alienated Some
With the Supreme Court set to hear a clutch of review petitions on Tuesday against its Sabarimala verdict allowing women of all ages to enter the temple in Kerala, the state’s Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan told The Indian Express that his government’s efforts to implement the order may have “alienated” a “section of the faithful”.
Responding to a question about the political and social impact of the violent protests led by Hindu organisations against the verdict and the state’s attempts to implement it, Vijayan said: “A section of the faithful may have been alienated. However, that alienation is only temporary, I believe… The government is left with no other option but to implement the Supreme Court order.”
On Tuesday, a batch of 48 review petitions will be taken up in-chamber by a bench of Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi, and Justices RF Nariman, AM Khanwilkar, DY Chandrachud and Indu Malhotra.
(Source: The Indian Express)
2. Rafale Fighter Deal: MMRCA Delay Allowed India’s Adversaries to Upgrade Says Govt
In line with the directions of the Supreme Court, the government submitted on Monday details of the pricing of 36 Rafale fighter aircraft being purchased from Dassault Aviation of France to the top court in a sealed cover.
A separate government document shared with the petitioners — a redacted copy of its earlier response to the Supreme Court on the decision-making process leading to the award of the contract — said the delay in sealing the Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft deal (during the UPA rule) gave India’s adversaries time to upgrade and equip their fighter fleets with advanced weaponry.
“During this long period of inconclusive 126 MMRCA process, our adversaries inducted modern aircraft and upgraded their older versions. They acquired better capability air-to-air missiles and inducted their indigenous fighters in large numbers. Further, they modernised and inducted aircraft with advanced weapon and radar capabilities,” the government said.
(Source: The Indian Express)
3. In Chhattisgarh, Voters Cross Red Line, 66% Turn Up at Booths
The first phase of voting in 18 constituencies in Chhattisgarh saw a 66% turnout despite a string of Maoist attacks in the run-up to the polls—an indication that people of Bastar are prepared to break free from the shackles of red terror.
This was the average polling figure the Election Commission put out at 10pm and may go up marginally with data still coming in from remote polling stations. It is likely to end up close to the 2014 turnout of 67% and fall short of the 76% seen in the 2013 Lok Sabha election.
(Source: The Times of India)
4. CVC Gives Probe Report on CBI’s Verma; Next Hearing on Friday
The Supreme Court deferred hearing Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) director Alok Verma’s petition challenging the government’s move to divest him of his powers to Friday, November 16, after there was a delay by the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) in handing over a report on allegations of bribery against Verma to the court.
The apex court, in its 31 October order, directed the CVC to probe corruption charges against Verma under the supervision of retired Supreme Court judge AK Patnaik, and submit its report in two weeks. The deadline ended on Sunday.
But it was only during Monday’s hearing that solicitor general Tushar Mehta passed on the report in a sealed cover to the bench led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Ranjan Gogoi.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
5. RBI Governor Met PM, FM Last Week in Bid to Heal Rift
Reserve Bank of India governor Urjit Patel met Prime Minister Narendra Modi last week to discuss possible solutions to contentious issues which have caused a rift that has spilt into the public domain.
The meeting came after weeks of friction over the RBI’s differences with the government over the quantum of reserves that need to be maintained, NPA norms, insolvency proceedings against power companies and interest rates, which triggered a heated discussion over the central bank’s powers and autonomy.
Patel is also understood to have had discussions with finance minister Arun Jaitley.
(Source: The Times of India)
6. Ananth Kumar Never Lost A Poll, Built Bridges Across Divide
Union minister HN Ananth Kumar, who died Monday at the age of 59 after a short, uphill battle with cancer, was never defeated in the six Lok Sabha elections that he contested from the Bengaluru South constituency.
Ever since he won the seat for the BJP in 1996 for the first time, among the reasons Ananth Kumar never lost even when the BJP fared badly in the rest of Karnataka, was the astute politician’s ability to forge alliances across party lines.
He enjoyed a bonhomie with top leaders of all major parties which he put to use during elections, which facilitated his quick rise to the top echelons of the BJP. Since 2016, Kumar was Union Cabinet Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers and Parliamentary Affairs.
(Source: The Indian Express)
7. Kolkata to Varanasi Journey Heralds Mega Waterway Plan
A cargo vessel travelling from Kolkata docked at Varanasi in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday, completing the first such journey through inland waterways since Independence, on a day the Prime Minister inaugurated several infrastructure projects in his Lok Sabha constituency.
Modi inaugurated the country’s first inland waterways terminal – part of a planned multimodal terminal (MMT) on the Ganga in Varanasi, opened two roads totaling 34 kilometres, and launched three sewage infrastructure projects.
The projects were worth about ~2,400 crore, according to government data.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
8. Should Chat-Messaging Apps be Regulated by Govt, asks TRAI
Should internet players such as WhatsApp, Facebook and Google – which compete directly with the calling and messaging services of telecom companies – come under the regulatory and licence fee-paying regime of the government while being more accountable to users on quality and security aspects?
Telecom regulator TRAI has come out with a consultation paper on the issue, ‘Regulatory Framework for Over-The-Top communication Services’. It is seeking views on whether there should be a tighter regulatory mechanism for internet apps that ride the network of telcos to reach consumers and compete with the services of mobile operators.
TRAI chairperson RS Sharma said the regulator hopes to come out with its recommendations on the matter over the next six months, after it studies the response to its paper as well as discusses the matter with stakeholders.
(Source: The Times of India)
9. EPCA’s Pollution Cure: Ban Non-CNG Vehicles
The national capital’s primary pollution control and prevention agency on Monday suggested imposing a complete ban on all non-CNG vehicles, both private and commercial, if pollution remains at ‘very poor’ or ‘severe’ levels — a measure that experts and stakeholders described as impractical, kneejerk, and symptomatic of the haphazard manner in which the war against bad air is being fought.
The Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority (EPCA) said after a meeting that it was asking the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) to look at the feasibility, and if it would help cut pollution.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
More From The Quint
Bus to Pakistan, From China Via PoK: Why is India Worked Up?
MP Assembly Election: It’s Still Stone Age in This Part of Gwalior
‘He Made Us Dream’: Twitter Mourns Death of ‘Marvel-lous’ Stan Lee
Me, The Change: Meet Shweta Shahi, a Rugby Player Without A Ground
Are You a Sports Wiz? Take The Quint’s Weekly Quiz to Find Out
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)