1. Rafale Price Out of SC Debate
The Supreme Court of India said it would for now steer clear of the contentious pricing issue in the controversial Rafale deal, in a move that should bring some relief to the government, but reserved its judgment after a day-long hearing of petitions demanding a court-monitored Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the deal.
The petitioners, activist and lawyer Prashant Bhushan, former Union ministers Arun Shourie and Yashwant Sinha, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh and advocates ML Sharma and Vineet Dhanda, asked for an investigation on four grounds: lack of transparency over the pricing of the jets; an offsets deal that seemed to favour a private firm; flouting of due process in closing the deal; and that the deal isn’t a government-to-government deal at all as it has been pitched because France refused to offer India a sovereign guarantee and instead gave it a letter of comfort.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
2. PM Modi Raises Pakistan Terror, India-US Defence Ties at Talks With US VP Pence
Prime Minister Narendra Modi shared India’s “serious concern” at the “mainstreaming” of Mumbai terror attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed, who carries a $10 million bounty, in Pakistan’s recent elections, when he met US Vice President Mike Pence on the sidelines of the East Asia Summit in Singapore on Wednesday.
Stressing that there was some discussion on the issue of terrorism and Pence referred to the coming 10th anniversary of 26/11, Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale said the Prime Minister reminded him that “in one way or another, all the traces or all the leads in global terror attacks ultimately lead to a single source, a single place of origin”. And, in that context, Modi pointed out that “the mainstreaming of the people involved in Mumbai terror attacks in a political process, which had taken place in a recent election in Pakistan, should be a matter of serious concern not just to the two countries, that is, India and the US, but to the international community,” Gokhale said.
(Source: The Indian Express)
3. Cong CM Face Suspense Continues: Both Pilot, Gehlot in Raj Poll Fray
Congress on Wednesday ended the suspense over whether former Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot and state party chief Sachin Pilot would contest the assembly polls but kept alive the leadership debate, with the party deciding that both leaders would file their candidature.
Gehlot, who has gained an elevated profile in the party’s central organisation, has been keen to contest his traditional Sardarpura seat in Jodhpur and his contesting is expected to be a boost for Congress. But the decision to also field Pilot, a two-term MP who will contest his first assembly poll, reflects the party’s strategic dilemma that has seen it maintain an equivalence between the veteran and the younger leader.
(Source: The Times of India)
4. South Africa President to be Republic Day Chief Guest
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa will be the chief guest at the Republic Day event next year, sources have told The Indian Express. Ramaphosa, who became South Africa’s President in February this year, has accepted the invitation.
His acceptance comes after the fiasco over US President Donald Trump declining the Indian government’s invitation to be the chief guest. While diplomatic channels had reached out to the US President, the White House said he was unable to attend due to a scheduling conflict.
Ramaphosa, who was Nelson Mandela’s choice for future President of South Africa, is a keen Gandhi follower.
(Source: The Indian Express)
5. Focus on Triple Talaq in Winter Session Beginning 11 December
Parliament’s winter session, widely seen as the government’s best chance to push key bills including the Triple Talaq legislation, will be held from December 11 to next year’s January 8.
The Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs (CCPA) met on Tuesday night to recommend this schedule. The first day of the month-long session will coincide with the day votes will be counted for the assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Telangana and Mizoram.
The last full session of Parliament before the Narendra Modiled government faces the next Lok Sabha poll, will also take place amid a raging debate on Rafale and agrarian crisis, which will be the Opposition’s key ammo against the government during the session.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
6. RBI ‘Intrusion’ Becomes Fresh Irritant for Govt
A controversial RBI circular issued in February may emerge as another point of contention with a section in the government of the view that the regulator intruded onto its turf.
While banning debt restructuring schemes, the RBI decided to terminate the “5/ 25 scheme” for bank loans for long-gestation infrastructure and core sector industries. Government officials believe RBI went ahead with the move despite the scheme being announced in Parliament in the 2014 Budget. “Can the government ever issue instructions to banks under the Banking Regulation Act?” asked an official.
The circular is likely to be discussed at RBI’s board meeting on Monday.
(Source: The Times of India)
7. #MeToo Hits All India Radio Stations, Maneka Calls for Probe
Union Minister for Woman and Child Development (WCD) Maneka Gandhi has asked the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to probe the series of sexual harassment complaints from All India Radio (AIR) stations across the country, following a letter written last week by the All India Radio Casual Announcer and Comperes Union (AICACU).
Several cases of alleged mishandling of sexual harassment complaints have come forward from different AIR stations in the wake of the recent #MeToo revelations. In these cases, which have occurred over the last few years, the victims — all casual women employees, some of them working for two decades — have not got any assignment since they complained.
All accused are permanent staffers — some of them were transferred, others got an all-clear. Incidentally, the Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) in these cases comprised of permanent staffers.
(Source: The Indian Express)
8. EPCA’s Bad Air Solution: A Public Commute Crisis
The ‘big idea’ to solve Delhi’s pollution crisis shows that the primary custodians of the capital’s air quality have run out of ideas.
The Environment Pollution (Prevention & Control) Authority, or EPCA, on Wednesday reiterated its unprecedented recommendation to take private vehicles off the road, a move that threatens to plunge Delhi into a public commuting catastrophe, bringing the city to its knees, while doing little to improve air quality – if data, expert opinion and past experience are anything to go by.
The Supreme Court-mandated body has suggested that all non-CNG vehicles – including all private cars and two-wheelers – in the National Capital Region (NCR) be barred from the roads if pollution levels spike again. That means grounding more than 92% of Delhi’s 10.8 million registered vehicles, leaving the capital at the mercy of its inadequate bus fleet, its still-burgeoning Metro network, and its poor last-mile connectivity.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
9. In a 1st for 1984 Riots SIT, Duo Convicted for Killing 2
Thirty four years after two young Sikh men were killed by a mob in Mahipalpur village in south Delhi, a Delhi court on Wednesday convicted two men for the murders, marking the first convictions secured by the special investigating team constituted by the home ministry in 2015 for probing 1984 riot cases.
Delivering the judgment, additional sessions judge Anjay Pandey said the prosecution had successfully proved the offence of murder against the accused. “The common objective of the unlawful assembly, among others, was to murder people of the Sikh community, which is clear from the slogans raised by its leaders and the manner in which the members carried out its objective,” the judge said while delivering the verdict.
(Source: The Times of India)
More From The Quint
Modi, RM Skip Armistice Day: Govt’s Pro-Military Claims are Hollow
With Ananth Kumar’s Death, Who Will Be K’taka’s Next Power Broker?
Yes, Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone Are Now Married, BUT...
13 News Orgs, Including Fox, Back CNN in Fight Against White House
Are Reports of Sonia Gandhi Being 4th Richest Politician True?
(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.)