1. SC Picks Ex-Judge to Probe If a Gang Is Trying to Fix Benches, Frame CJI
The sexual harassment complaint against CJI Ranjan Gogoi took on a larger dimension on Thursday, 25 April, with the Supreme Court appointing former SC judge AK Patnaik to probe, with help from the CBI, Intelligence Bureau and Delhi police, a lawyer’s allegations that a ‘gang of fixers’ in league with disgruntled and dismissed SC employees were attempting to manage benches and frame the CJI.
“We want to find out whether there are ex-employees (of SC), fixers and middlemen involved. This is a serious allegation that there is bench fixing. This probe is independent of the administrative side inquiry into the sexual harassment complaint (by a dismissed woman employee). This probe is completely separate from that. Outcome of this inquiry shall not affect the in-house procedure/inquiry which is pending in the administrative side,” a bench of Justices Arun Mishra, RF Nariman and Deepak Gupta said.
(Source: The Times of India)
2. Congress Decides Not to Field Priyanka Gandhi Against PM Narendra Modi
After hints and nudges fuelled speculation over Priyanka Gandhi Vadra taking on Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Varanasi, Congress has opted for local candidate Ajay Rai who had stood in 2014 as well when he polled a little over 75,000 votes.
Till recently, Congress president Rahul Gandhi had said that the suspense on Priyanka’s candidature would continue while she had said the decision was up to her brother. The tame end to weeks of speculation indicated that Congress is not keen to risk pitting a Gandhi in direct contest with Modi and raises the question whether raising the stakes was avoidable.
(Source: The Times of India)
3. Sri Lankans in Blast-Ravaged City Target Refugees from Pakistan, Force Hundreds to Flee
The first disturbing sign of communal backlash surfaced in grief-soaked Negombo, a picturesque coastal town on Sri Lanka’s west coast and north of Colombo, when several Pakistani refugees were violently attacked by locals. Hundreds of them started fleeing Negombo on Wednesday, 24 April, on buses organised by community leaders.
At least 800 men, women and children, all asylum seekers living in small rental homes on dole provided by the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), were asked to get out of their temporary homes by their Sinhalese, Christian and Muslim landlords, who feared they may have terrorist links.
(Source: The Times of India)
4. CAT Stays Suspension of Officer Who Searched Modi Chopper, EC Seeks Action
The Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) on Thursday, 25 April, stayed the Election Commission’s move to suspend an IAS officer who, as a poll observer, had searched the helicopter of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Odisha’s Sambalpur during a campaign rally last week.
Shortly after the CAT passed the interim order, the EC revoked Mohammed Mohsin’s suspension, but barred him from election duty and recommended disciplinary action against him to the Karnataka government. The poll panel, simultaneously, also warned the District Election Officer (DEO) of Sambalpur for his involvement in the helicopter search.
Speaking to The Indian Express on the CAT order, Mohsin, a 1996-batch IAS officer from the Karnataka cadre, said: “I have gone strictly by the rules. I have not done anything wrong. Whatever are the rules will have to be followed”. Asked if he feared retribution for his action, he said: “I have an unblemished record in my 22 years of service. I have always followed what the law says.”
(Source: The Indian Express)
5. India, China Begin to Prepare for Second Informal Summit
With nearly a month to go for the results of the general election, India and China have quietly begun preparing for the second informal summit between their top leadership that is expected to build on the gains of the first such meeting in Wuhan and bridge differences on key issues.
New Delhi initially suggested dates in November for the meeting, set to be held in India, but later agreed on dates in October after Beijing said the timing of the summit should be advanced so that the momentum created by the Wuhan meeting isn’t dissipated, people familiar with the developments on both sides said.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
6. Full Statehood for Delhi Gets Top Billing in AAP Manifesto
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Thursday, 25 April, released its Delhi manifesto for the Lok Sabha elections, promising free schooling, jobs and housing for residents if it wins all seven seats in the national capital.
The party, which reiterated that its talks for an alliance with the Congress had failed, retained its demand for full statehood to Delhi as the central theme of its manifesto.
Delhi chief minister and AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal said grant of full statehood would accelerate development of Delhi and enable the city administration to carry out reforms in Delhi Police and the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) — agencies that are currently under the Centre’s control through the Lieutenant Governor.
AAP’s manifesto promised 85 percent reservation in college admissions and Delhi government jobs for residents of the city.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
7. Maruti Makes it Official: No Diesel Cars From Next April
Bringing an end to a segment that accounts for almost a quarter of its total sales, Maruti Suzuki announced on Thursday, 25 April, that it will stop selling diesel cars next year.
“From April 1, 2020, we will have no diesel car on sale. Depending on how customers react… if we find there is a market for diesel cars (after the new emission norms kick in) we will develop it in a reasonable amount of time,” R C Bhargava, chairman MSIL, told reporters at a press conference in Delhi, while announcing the fourth quarter results of the company.
Industry experts and company sources said that the company’s decision to stop sales of diesel cars is in line with the mandatory upgrade for automakers from BS-IV to BS-VI beginning 1 April 2020. In the wake of rising pollution levels, the Supreme Court had said that 31 March 2020, would be the last date for the registration of BS-IV compliant vehicles.
BS-VI norms require car makers to invest heavily in upgrading their technology.
(Source: The Indian Express)
8. Will Seek Pakistan Help to Trace Terrorists If Needed: Sri Lanka PM
Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe sent written responses to e-mailed questions from Hindustan Times on Easter Sunday’s suicide attacks on churches and hotels in Colombo, in which 253 people, including at least 45 children, were killed and hundreds injured.
Till the time of going to press, 76 arrests were made which, according to media reports, include nine Pakistani nationals.
Responding to a question on whether Pakistan was involved in the attacks, Wickremesinghe said, “While we are investigating the possibility of foreign links, there is no evidence yet to suggest any particular country has backed these terrorists. All the countries in our region are faced with the same threats. India is trying to prevent global terror from spreading into our countries. Even the best of defences can sometimes be breached by ruthless terrorists, as we have seen time and again, all over the world. Our intelligence has worked with their counterparts abroad. But this is the first time that global terrorism has struck Sri Lanka. This is a new experience for us and we will work with our international allies to apprehend all the perpetrators.”
On whether the ties between the two nations will be impacted amid reports of a suicide bomber having received training at a terror camp in Pakistan, the Lankan PM said: “Pakistan has fully supported Sri Lanka’s war on terror. If necessary, we will seek their help to trace the terrorists and eliminate them. I see this tragic event as further strengthening the trust that exists between our countries and increasing cooperation.”
(Source: Hindustan Times)
9. Sexual Harassment Charges Against CJI: After Complainant Raises Concerns, Justice Ramana Opts Out, Malhotra In
Justice Indu Malhotra was on Thursday, 25 April, appointed member of the Supreme Court in-house inquiry committee constituted to look into a former woman employee’s allegations of sexual harassment against Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi, hours after Justice NV Ramana recused himself from the panel.
Justice Ramana opted out after the woman complainant raised concerns over his presence in the panel, saying he is “a close friend of the CJI and like a family friend to him”, and that she “fears” her “affidavit and evidence will not receive an objective and fair hearing”.
The reconstituted committee, which includes Justice SA Bobde and Justice Indira Banerjee, is scheduled to meet on Friday.
Incidentally, Justice Malhotra heads the Gender Sensitisation and Internal Complaints Committee (GSICC) of the court, empowered to deal with cases of sexual harassment on the Supreme Court premises.
(Source: The Indian Express)
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- ‘Schools Wahin Banayenge’: On the Campaign Trail with AAP’s Atishi
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