Najeeb Jung on Friday called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a day after springing a surprise by tendering resignation as Delhi&#39;s Lieutenant-Governor even as he said that he had wanted to quit earlier but was asked by the PM to continue. 
 
Jung reached the Prime Minister&#39;s Office (PMO) at South Block here around 11.30 am and spent a little over an hour inside. 
 
Sources said it was a courtesy meeting. Yesterday, in his brief resignation statement, Jung had thanked Modi for his help and cooperation. 
 
Rejecting speculation that he quit as pressure was mounting on him, Jung was quoted as saying by NDTV that there is no politics behind his decision and that he wanted to quit earlier as well. 
 
&quot;I had offered to resign as I had been appointed by the previous UPA government, but the PM asked me to carry on. 
 
After three years, I requested the PM to relieve me but he asked me to carry on,&quot; he said. 
 
&quot;After three and a half years, I requested the PM again on Tuesday that I would like to resign on personal grounds,&quot; Jung was quoted as saying. 
 
Jung also said that he would like to write a book. 
 
Over the last two years, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has time and again taken on Jung over his perceived closeness to Modi. 
 
Earlier in the day, Kejriwal had an hour-long meeting with Jung over breakfast during which the latter reminisced their nearly two-year-long association in governing the city besides discussing other issues. 
 
The Delhi Chief Minister said he was invited by the Lt Governor for the breakfast meeting that came a day after Jung&#39;s sudden resignation from the post. 
 
Sources said Jung and Kejriwal spoke about the bittersweet times and spent some light moments. 
 
Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia also called on Jung. 
 
Asked why Jung quit, Kejriwal said, &quot;He resigned due to personal reasons.&quot;&nbsp; 
 
Though publicly Kejriwal had made stinging attacks on Jung on many occasions, both of them are known to share a cordial relationship at personal level. 
 
Asked about his meeting with Jung, Sisodia said, &quot;We had a very good chat. He shared memories of the last two years and also of his days as a bureaucrat. He said that he was mulling quitting over the last one year. 
 
&quot;He wants to spend time with his family and focus on academics. He said that he could not quit due to things like chikungunya (outbreak in the city).&quot;&nbsp; 
 
Sisodia said he shared a &quot;good rapport&quot; with Jung and thanked him for his cooperation especially in areas of education. &quot;We will work for the people if Delhi irrespective of circumstances be that easy or tough.&quot;&nbsp; 
 
On who could be next LG of Delhi, the Deputy Chief Minister said many names are doing the rounds but nothing official has come up. 
 
Sources close to Jung had said yesterday his resignation has nothing to do with his acrimonious relationship with the AAP government over matters of jurisdiction and he was contemplating to quit for last few months. 
 
The Chief Minister was in Ranchi yesterday when the news of Jung&#39;s resignation broke.

AAP, Congress &#39;doing politics&#39; over Jung&#39;s resignation

Earlier in the day, Union Minister Kiren Rijiju criticised the Aam Aadmi Party and Congress for &quot;doing politics&quot; over the resignation of Delhi LG Najeeb Jung.

&quot;I don&#39;t know what problems do the AAP and Congress have. When Jung was working, they were demanding resignation.

&quot;Now since he has resigned, they are questioning why he has resigned. Should Jung have resigned by taking permission from AAP and Congress?,&quot; Rijiju said.

The Minister of State for Home said the AAP and Congress leaders have no locus standi to ask questions.

He asked the two parties &quot;to give up doing politics&quot; over Jung&#39;s resignation.

(PTI)

Jung also met his sparring partner, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, and spoke about the bittersweet times they shared in the past

Najeeb Jung on Friday called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a day after springing a surprise by tendering resignation as Delhi's Lieutenant-Governor even as he said that he had wanted to quit earlier but was asked by the PM to continue. Jung reached the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) at South Block here around 11.30 am and spent a little over an hour inside. Sources said it was a courtesy meeting. Yesterday, in his brief resignation statement, Jung had thanked Modi for his help and cooperation. Rejecting speculation that he quit as pressure was mounting on him, Jung was quoted as saying by NDTV that there is no politics behind his decision and that he wanted to quit earlier as well. "I had offered to resign as I had been appointed by the previous UPA government, but the PM asked me to carry on. After three years, I requested the PM to relieve me but he asked me to carry on," he said. "After three and a half years, I requested the PM again on Tuesday that I would like to resign on personal grounds," Jung was quoted as saying. Jung also said that he would like to write a book. Over the last two years, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has time and again taken on Jung over his perceived closeness to Modi. Earlier in the day, Kejriwal had an hour-long meeting with Jung over breakfast during which the latter reminisced their nearly two-year-long association in governing the city besides discussing other issues. The Delhi Chief Minister said he was invited by the Lt Governor for the breakfast meeting that came a day after Jung's sudden resignation from the post. Sources said Jung and Kejriwal spoke about the bittersweet times and spent some light moments. Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia also called on Jung. Asked why Jung quit, Kejriwal said, "He resigned due to personal reasons." Though publicly Kejriwal had made stinging attacks on Jung on many occasions, both of them are known to share a cordial relationship at personal level. Asked about his meeting with Jung, Sisodia said, "We had a very good chat. He shared memories of the last two years and also of his days as a bureaucrat. He said that he was mulling quitting over the last one year. "He wants to spend time with his family and focus on academics. He said that he could not quit due to things like chikungunya (outbreak in the city)." Sisodia said he shared a "good rapport" with Jung and thanked him for his cooperation especially in areas of education. "We will work for the people if Delhi irrespective of circumstances be that easy or tough." On who could be next LG of Delhi, the Deputy Chief Minister said many names are doing the rounds but nothing official has come up. Sources close to Jung had said yesterday his resignation has nothing to do with his acrimonious relationship with the AAP government over matters of jurisdiction and he was contemplating to quit for last few months. The Chief Minister was in Ranchi yesterday when the news of Jung's resignation broke. AAP, Congress 'doing politics' over Jung's resignation Earlier in the day, Union Minister Kiren Rijiju criticised the Aam Aadmi Party and Congress for "doing politics" over the resignation of Delhi LG Najeeb Jung. "I don't know what problems do the AAP and Congress have. When Jung was working, they were demanding resignation. "Now since he has resigned, they are questioning why he has resigned. Should Jung have resigned by taking permission from AAP and Congress?," Rijiju said. The Minister of State for Home said the AAP and Congress leaders have no locus standi to ask questions. He asked the two parties "to give up doing politics" over Jung's resignation. (PTI)

Najeeb Jung, who stepped down as Delhi LG, meets PM Modi

India criticised&nbsp;Moody&#39;s&nbsp;ratings methods and pushed aggressively for an upgrade, documents reviewed by Reuters show, but the US-based agency declined to budge citing concerns over the country&#39;s debt levels and fragile banks.

Winning a better credit rating on India&#39;s sovereign debt would have been a much-needed endorsement of Prime Minister Narendra Modi&#39;s economic stewardship, helping to attract foreign investment and accelerate growth.

Since storming to power in 2014, Modi has unveiled measures to boost investment, cool inflation and narrow the fiscal and current account deficits, but his policies have not been rewarded with a ratings upgrade from any of the &quot;big three&quot; global ratings agencies, who say more is needed.

Previously unpublished correspondence between India&#39;s finance ministry and&nbsp;Moody&#39;s&nbsp;shows New Delhi failed to assuage the ratings agency&#39;s concerns about the cost of its debt burden and a banking sector weighed down by $136 billion in bad loans.

In letters and emails written in October, the finance ministry questioned&nbsp;Moody&#39;s&nbsp;methodology, saying it was not accounting for a steady decline in the India&#39;s debt burden in recent years. It said the agency ignored countries&#39; levels of development when assessing their fiscal strength.

Rejecting those arguments,&nbsp;Moody&#39;s&nbsp;said India&#39;s debt situation was not as rosy as the government maintained and its banks were a cause for concern, the correspondence seen by Reuters showed.

Moody&#39;s&nbsp;and one of its lead sovereign analysts, Marie Diron, declined to comment on the correspondence, saying ratings deliberations were confidential. India&#39;s finance ministry did not respond to requests for comment.

Arvind Mayaram, a former chief finance ministry official, called the government&#39;s approach &quot;completely unusual&quot;.

&quot;There was no way pressure could be put on rating agencies,&quot; Mayaram told Reuters. &quot;It&#39;s not done.&quot;

Debt burden, bad loans

India has been the world&#39;s fastest-growing major economy over the past two years, but that rapid expansion has done little to broaden the government&#39;s revenue base.

At nearly 21 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP), India&#39;s revenues are lower than the 27.1 per cent median for Baa-rated countries. India is rated at Baa3 by&nbsp;Moody&#39;s, the agency&#39;s lowest notch for debt considered investment grade.

A higher rating would signify to bond investors that India was more creditworthy and help to lower its borrowing costs.

While India&#39;s debt-to-GDP ratio has dropped to 66.7 percent from 79.5 percent in 2004-05, interest payments absorb more than a fifth of government revenues.

Moody&#39;s&nbsp;representatives, including Diron, visited North Block, the colonial sandstone building in the Indian capital that houses the finance ministry, on Sept. 21 for a discussion on a ratings review.

The atmosphere at the meeting with Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das, one of the ministry&#39;s most senior officials, and his team was tense, according to an Indian official present, after Diron had told local media the previous day that a ratings upgrade for India was some years away.

On Sept. 30,&nbsp;Moody&#39;s&nbsp;explained its methodology to Indian officials in a teleconference.

Lobbying for an upgrade

Four days later, the finance ministry sent an email to Diron questioning&nbsp;Moody&#39;s&nbsp;metrics on fiscal strength. The government cited the examples of Japan and Portugal, which enjoy better ratings despite debts around twice the size of their economies.

&quot;Given that countries are on different stages of economic and social development, should countries be benchmarked against a median or mean number (as is done by&nbsp;Moody&#39;s)&quot; the email asked.

In India&#39;s case, &quot;while the debt burden lowered significantly post 2004, this did not get reflected in the ratings&quot;, the ministry argued.

New Delhi urged Diron to look at improvements in the factors - better forex reserves and economic growth - that&nbsp;Moody&#39;s&nbsp;had considered when handing India its last ratings upgrade in 2004.

In a reply the next day, Diron said that, not only was India&#39;s debt burden high relative to other countries with the same credit rating, but its debt affordability was also low.

She added that a resolution to the banking sector&#39;s bad loan problems was &quot;unlikely&quot; in the near-term.

In a last-ditch effort on Oct. 27, Economic Affairs Secretary Das sent a six-page letter to Singapore-based Diron, addressed to&nbsp;Moody&#39;s&nbsp;New York headquarters.

Reiterating points on India&#39;s fiscal strength, Das asked&nbsp;Moody&#39;s&nbsp;for a &quot;better appreciation of the factual position&quot;.

Das dismissed&nbsp;Moody&#39;s&nbsp;concerns on India&#39;s public finances as &quot;unwarranted&quot; and told the agency that there was &quot;scope for further lowering&quot; the political risk perception to &quot;very low&quot;.

&quot;In the light of stable external debt parameters and the slew of reforms introduced in the realm of foreign direct investment, you may like to reconsider your assessment on &#39;external vulnerability risk&#39;,&quot; he wrote.

Moody&#39;s&nbsp;on Nov. 16 affirmed its Baa3 issuer rating for India, while maintaining a positive outlook, saying the government&#39;s efforts had not yet achieved conditions that would support an upgrade.

(Reuters)

Winning a better credit rating on India's sovereign debt would have been a much-needed endorsement of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's regime

India criticised Moody's ratings methods and pushed aggressively for an upgrade, documents reviewed by Reuters show, but the US-based agency declined to budge citing concerns over the country's debt levels and fragile banks. Winning a better credit rating on India's sovereign debt would have been a much-needed endorsement of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's economic stewardship, helping to attract foreign investment and accelerate growth. Since storming to power in 2014, Modi has unveiled measures to boost investment, cool inflation and narrow the fiscal and current account deficits, but his policies have not been rewarded with a ratings upgrade from any of the "big three" global ratings agencies, who say more is needed. Previously unpublished correspondence between India's finance ministry and Moody's shows New Delhi failed to assuage the ratings agency's concerns about the cost of its debt burden and a banking sector weighed down by $136 billion in bad loans. In letters and emails written in October, the finance ministry questioned Moody's methodology, saying it was not accounting for a steady decline in the India's debt burden in recent years. It said the agency ignored countries' levels of development when assessing their fiscal strength. Rejecting those arguments, Moody's said India's debt situation was not as rosy as the government maintained and its banks were a cause for concern, the correspondence seen by Reuters showed. Moody's and one of its lead sovereign analysts, Marie Diron, declined to comment on the correspondence, saying ratings deliberations were confidential. India's finance ministry did not respond to requests for comment. Arvind Mayaram, a former chief finance ministry official, called the government's approach "completely unusual". "There was no way pressure could be put on rating agencies," Mayaram told Reuters. "It's not done." Debt burden, bad loans India has been the world's fastest-growing major economy over the past two years, but that rapid expansion has done little to broaden the government's revenue base. At nearly 21 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP), India's revenues are lower than the 27.1 per cent median for Baa-rated countries. India is rated at Baa3 by Moody's, the agency's lowest notch for debt considered investment grade. A higher rating would signify to bond investors that India was more creditworthy and help to lower its borrowing costs. While India's debt-to-GDP ratio has dropped to 66.7 percent from 79.5 percent in 2004-05, interest payments absorb more than a fifth of government revenues. Moody's representatives, including Diron, visited North Block, the colonial sandstone building in the Indian capital that houses the finance ministry, on Sept. 21 for a discussion on a ratings review. The atmosphere at the meeting with Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das, one of the ministry's most senior officials, and his team was tense, according to an Indian official present, after Diron had told local media the previous day that a ratings upgrade for India was some years away. On Sept. 30, Moody's explained its methodology to Indian officials in a teleconference. Lobbying for an upgrade Four days later, the finance ministry sent an email to Diron questioning Moody's metrics on fiscal strength. The government cited the examples of Japan and Portugal, which enjoy better ratings despite debts around twice the size of their economies. "Given that countries are on different stages of economic and social development, should countries be benchmarked against a median or mean number (as is done by Moody's)" the email asked. In India's case, "while the debt burden lowered significantly post 2004, this did not get reflected in the ratings", the ministry argued. New Delhi urged Diron to look at improvements in the factors - better forex reserves and economic growth - that Moody's had considered when handing India its last ratings upgrade in 2004. In a reply the next day, Diron said that, not only was India's debt burden high relative to other countries with the same credit rating, but its debt affordability was also low. She added that a resolution to the banking sector's bad loan problems was "unlikely" in the near-term. In a last-ditch effort on Oct. 27, Economic Affairs Secretary Das sent a six-page letter to Singapore-based Diron, addressed to Moody's New York headquarters. Reiterating points on India's fiscal strength, Das asked Moody's for a "better appreciation of the factual position". Das dismissed Moody's concerns on India's public finances as "unwarranted" and told the agency that there was "scope for further lowering" the political risk perception to "very low". "In the light of stable external debt parameters and the slew of reforms introduced in the realm of foreign direct investment, you may like to reconsider your assessment on 'external vulnerability risk'," he wrote. Moody's on Nov. 16 affirmed its Baa3 issuer rating for India, while maintaining a positive outlook, saying the government's efforts had not yet achieved conditions that would support an upgrade. (Reuters)

India's Modi government pushed Moody's for better credit rating but failed: Reuters

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi&#39;s crackdown on the cash economy has shattered the consensus needed for a new national sales tax, plunging his boldest reform into limbo and threatening to entrench an economic slowdown.

Modi&#39;s government already had its work cut out to finalise a deal with India&#39;s 29 federal states to launch a Goods and Services Tax (GST) on April 1 that would transform Asia&#39;s third largest economy into a single market for the first time.

But his decision to scrap 86 per cent of the cash in circulation, in a bid to purge the economy of illicit &quot;black money&quot;, has caused huge disruption.

A slump in business activity stemming from the cash crunch has caused the revenue of state governments, which collect value-added tax on goods and other duties, to slump by 25-40 per cent. The states won&#39;t risk another setback by rushing the sales tax into force.

&quot;The investment and economic environment in the country is in bad shape,&quot; said West Bengal finance minister Amit Mitra, who earlier head a panel tasked with building a consensus on the GST. &quot;How is the country going to absorb the dual shock of GST and demonetisation?&quot;

The GST is India&#39;s biggest tax overhaul since independence in 1947. It would replace a plethora of federal and state levies with one tax, easing compliance, broadening the revenue base and boosting productivity.

It took Modi more than two years to forge a political compromise on the tax in August. Now, demonetisation &quot;has created a trust deficit,&quot; said Kerala finance minister TM&nbsp;Thomas Isaac. &quot;After this, I am not going to sit and compromise. They don&#39;t deserve it.&quot;

&nbsp;

Left in the lurch

Failure to break the deadlock could tip India into a fiscal crisis: The GST would need to come into effect by mid-September&nbsp;when the old system of indirect taxation is due to lapse. The lingering uncertainty is worrying companies needing to understand financial implications of the new tax.

&quot;With so many vital details still missing, they are feeling left in the lurch,&quot; said Saloni Roy, a senior director at Deloitte.

Modi&#39;s shock move last month to scrap 500 and 1,000 rupee notes was aimed at India&#39;s shadow economy. But the ensuing cash crunch has caused job losses, disrupted supply chains and slowed construction activity.

With cash shortages showing no signs of abating, some economists are calling for emergency stimulus to cushion the economy against the impact of demonetisation.

Ambit Capital, a Mumbai brokerage, forecasts growth this fiscal year will be only half of the roughly 7 per cent level many expect. The Reserve Bank of India has shaved its growth outlook by half a percentage point to 7.1 per cent. To make up for their losses, states are seeking compensation and will press their case at a meeting in New Delhi on Thursday and Friday with Finance Minister Arun Jaitley.

He has already agreed to cover states&#39; revenue losses for five years after the GST&#39;s launch, but further concessions would narrow his room for manoeuvre in his annual budget presented in February.

One top finance ministry official dismissed demands for compensation for demonetisation as unreasonable. But states are adamant. &quot;They have brought it upon us,&quot; V&nbsp;Narayanasamy, chief minister of Puducherry, told Reuters. &quot;Now they must pay for our loss.&quot;

&nbsp;

Counting costs

The quibble is not just over lost revenue. Some states worry about the social and political costs of demonetisation.

Take Kerala, where credit cooperatives that farmers and retired government workers rely on cannot swap old bills or issue fresh notes. The state alleges this has encouraged commercial banks to scout for their deposits, sparking a &quot;run&quot; on them.

Odhisa&#39;s chief minister has written to Modi, saying curbs imposed on primary agriculture societies were making it difficult for farmers to access crop loans and procurement payments.

With the states smarting, they have hardened their stance on how to collect the new GST, which will have federal and state elements.

They want sole control over businesses with annual turnover of 15 million rupees ($220,000) and so-called &quot;dual control&quot; over bigger firms. Jaitley opposes this, fearing tax collectors could end up at cross purposes.

&quot;We reached this far because states were willing to compromise,&quot; said Isaac, Kerala&#39;s finance minister, told Reuters. &quot;If they want the GST, they will have to now concede to the states.&quot;

(Reuters)

A slump in business activity stemming from the cash crunch has caused the revenue of state governments to slump by 25-40 per cent

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's crackdown on the cash economy has shattered the consensus needed for a new national sales tax, plunging his boldest reform into limbo and threatening to entrench an economic slowdown. Modi's government already had its work cut out to finalise a deal with India's 29 federal states to launch a Goods and Services Tax (GST) on April 1 that would transform Asia's third largest economy into a single market for the first time. But his decision to scrap 86 per cent of the cash in circulation, in a bid to purge the economy of illicit "black money", has caused huge disruption. A slump in business activity stemming from the cash crunch has caused the revenue of state governments, which collect value-added tax on goods and other duties, to slump by 25-40 per cent. The states won't risk another setback by rushing the sales tax into force. "The investment and economic environment in the country is in bad shape," said West Bengal finance minister Amit Mitra, who earlier head a panel tasked with building a consensus on the GST. "How is the country going to absorb the dual shock of GST and demonetisation?" The GST is India's biggest tax overhaul since independence in 1947. It would replace a plethora of federal and state levies with one tax, easing compliance, broadening the revenue base and boosting productivity. It took Modi more than two years to forge a political compromise on the tax in August. Now, demonetisation "has created a trust deficit," said Kerala finance minister TM Thomas Isaac. "After this, I am not going to sit and compromise. They don't deserve it." Left in the lurch Failure to break the deadlock could tip India into a fiscal crisis: The GST would need to come into effect by mid-September when the old system of indirect taxation is due to lapse. The lingering uncertainty is worrying companies needing to understand financial implications of the new tax. "With so many vital details still missing, they are feeling left in the lurch," said Saloni Roy, a senior director at Deloitte. Modi's shock move last month to scrap 500 and 1,000 rupee notes was aimed at India's shadow economy. But the ensuing cash crunch has caused job losses, disrupted supply chains and slowed construction activity. With cash shortages showing no signs of abating, some economists are calling for emergency stimulus to cushion the economy against the impact of demonetisation. Ambit Capital, a Mumbai brokerage, forecasts growth this fiscal year will be only half of the roughly 7 per cent level many expect. The Reserve Bank of India has shaved its growth outlook by half a percentage point to 7.1 per cent. To make up for their losses, states are seeking compensation and will press their case at a meeting in New Delhi on Thursday and Friday with Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. He has already agreed to cover states' revenue losses for five years after the GST's launch, but further concessions would narrow his room for manoeuvre in his annual budget presented in February. One top finance ministry official dismissed demands for compensation for demonetisation as unreasonable. But states are adamant. "They have brought it upon us," V Narayanasamy, chief minister of Puducherry, told Reuters. "Now they must pay for our loss." Counting costs The quibble is not just over lost revenue. Some states worry about the social and political costs of demonetisation. Take Kerala, where credit cooperatives that farmers and retired government workers rely on cannot swap old bills or issue fresh notes. The state alleges this has encouraged commercial banks to scout for their deposits, sparking a "run" on them. Odhisa's chief minister has written to Modi, saying curbs imposed on primary agriculture societies were making it difficult for farmers to access crop loans and procurement payments. With the states smarting, they have hardened their stance on how to collect the new GST, which will have federal and state elements. They want sole control over businesses with annual turnover of 15 million rupees ($220,000) and so-called "dual control" over bigger firms. Jaitley opposes this, fearing tax collectors could end up at cross purposes. "We reached this far because states were willing to compromise," said Isaac, Kerala's finance minister, told Reuters. "If they want the GST, they will have to now concede to the states." (Reuters)

India: Demonetisation imperils crucial national tax reform

Three out of four economists summoned by the Standing Committee of Finance -- headed by Congress member of parliament Veerapa Moily -- today expressed deep concern about the demonetisation&nbsp;policy being pursued by the Indian government.

Noted economists Kavita Rao, professor at National Institute of Public Finance and Policy, Pronab Sen, former chief statistician to the government of India and Mahesh Vyas, chairman of Centre for Monitoring Indian economy, were critical of the demonetisation process whereas Rajiv Kumar, senior fellow, Centre for Policy Research argued for it in front of the committee.

&ldquo;This committee will submit its report on demonetisation on the first day of the Budget Session of the Parliament,&rdquo; said a member of the committee on the condition of anonymity.

Sources confirmed to WION&nbsp;how&nbsp;the conversion of cash economy into digital would take place within the confined time declared by the central government.

All three economists who expressed concern on demonetisation spoke on the issue of counterfeit currency, inflation and black money.

The economists argued in the committee that a lot of unaccounted black money does not exist in cash and is parked in other sectors of the economy.

Sources also confirmed that three economists said that currency reform might end up spiking the inflation instead of reducing it.

Lastly, it was also argued that for a meaningful war against black money, government should have&nbsp;de-notified a part of the currency every two years.

The Committee has decided to call Urjit Patel, the Reserve Bank of India governor, and members of the Indian Banking Association on January 19.&nbsp;

The meeting was also attended by former prime minister Manmohan Singh.

Even Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to meet economists on December 27 to discuss the state of economy. That day, the economists in the first half will meet the Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and spend second half with the PM.

Since the exercise has become politically contested, every opinion of experts in this field counts both for the government and the Opposition.

(WION)

&nbsp;

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to meet the economists next week

Three out of four economists summoned by the Standing Committee of Finance -- headed by Congress member of parliament Veerapa Moily -- today expressed deep concern about the demonetisation policy being pursued by the Indian government. Noted economists Kavita Rao, professor at National Institute of Public Finance and Policy, Pronab Sen, former chief statistician to the government of India and Mahesh Vyas, chairman of Centre for Monitoring Indian economy, were critical of the demonetisation process whereas Rajiv Kumar, senior fellow, Centre for Policy Research argued for it in front of the committee. “This committee will submit its report on demonetisation on the first day of the Budget Session of the Parliament,” said a member of the committee on the condition of anonymity. Sources confirmed to WION how the conversion of cash economy into digital would take place within the confined time declared by the central government. All three economists who expressed concern on demonetisation spoke on the issue of counterfeit currency, inflation and black money. The economists argued in the committee that a lot of unaccounted black money does not exist in cash and is parked in other sectors of the economy. Sources also confirmed that three economists said that currency reform might end up spiking the inflation instead of reducing it. Lastly, it was also argued that for a meaningful war against black money, government should have de-notified a part of the currency every two years. The Committee has decided to call Urjit Patel, the Reserve Bank of India governor, and members of the Indian Banking Association on January 19. The meeting was also attended by former prime minister Manmohan Singh. Even Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to meet economists on December 27 to discuss the state of economy. That day, the economists in the first half will meet the Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and spend second half with the PM. Since the exercise has become politically contested, every opinion of experts in this field counts both for the government and the Opposition. (WION)

Three economists argue demonetisation may not bring desired result

Prime Minister Narendra Modi received Rs 45 crore ($6.6 million) from Sahara -- a large business conglomerate in India -- before he became came to power in 2014, according to opposition leader Rahul Gandhi.

At a rally in the western state of Gujarat, the Congress vice-president&nbsp;claimed that during a raid in 2014,&nbsp;taxmen found documents which suggested that Sahara company made multiple payments to Modi between October 2013 and February 2014.

Earlier in the day, Gandhi tweeted that the Modi government is behaving like a &quot;confused&quot; traffic signal exhibiting different colours at the same time. He was attacking the government&#39;s &#39;repeated&#39; changes in the rules regarding deposit of old currency notes in banks.

He posted the picture of a huge traffic signal showing red, yellow, blue and a few other colours at the same time, on Twitter with the caption, &quot;Government orders after demonetisation.&quot;

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Government orders after demonetisation: <a href="https://t.co/5D5p0XX4MO">pic.twitter.com/5D5p0XX4MO</a>
&mdash; Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) <a href="https://twitter.com/OfficeOfRG/status/811452231413207040">December 21, 2016</a></blockquote>
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<h5>Chief Congress spokesman Randeep Surjewala was equally critical of the latest order. He gave the RBI the sobriquet &#39;Reverse Bank of India&#39;</h5>
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<div class="share-blockquote"><a class="twitter popup" href="http://twitter.com/intent/tweet?text=Chief Congress spokesman Randeep Surjewala was equally critical of the latest order. He gave the RBI the sobriquet 'Reverse Bank of India'" target="_blank">&nbsp;</a></div>
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The Congress leader had yesterday likened the repeated changes in the rules to Modi&#39;s changing of &quot;clothes&quot; and had said that the message going out was that the Prime Minister&#39;s words were &quot;hollow&quot;.

He was commenting on the new decision of the government under which an amount more than Rs 50,00 in scrapped currency can be deposited only once per account till December 30.

Earlier, the Prime Minister, while announcing the demonetisation decision on November 8, had said old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes could be deposited in banks till December 30 without any questions asked.

Party chief spokesman Randeep Surjewala was equally critical of the latest order, with him giving RBI the sobriquet of &quot;Reverse Bank of India.&quot;

In a series of tweets, he said, &quot;Unfortunately, Reserve Bank of India has become &#39;Reverse Bank of India&#39;!&quot;

Surjewala also posted two cartoons stating &quot;the rules of RBI are like weather, which keeps on changing and therefore, requires hourly bulletins to inform people.&quot;

&quot;Daily &#39;headline management&#39; is the norm for Modi Govt. If Ind. Owner has a choice to pay in cash or cheque, futile to amend the Wages Act,&quot; he said in response to the government bringing an ordinance to amend the Payment of Wage Act for allowing business and industrial establishments to pay salaries through cheques or by using electronic modes.

&quot;2ndly, it reflects massive shortage of currency with Modi Govt. Instead of admitting it, it is forcing daily wage earners to stand in bank queues,&quot; he said.

Surjewala also latched on to the remarks of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, who after supporting demonetisation initially, did a volte face and said the move has created many troubles for the common man.

&quot;AP CM, NDA ally &amp; head of #DeMonetisation Committee is breaking his head over the mess. Do u need more proof Modiji?&quot;, he said.

Ahmed Patel, Political Secretary to Congress president Sonia Gandhi, was equally caustic. &quot;50 days, 60 rules #DeMonetisation,&quot; he said in a tweet.

(PTI)

Gandhi said Modi received Rs 45 crore from a business conglomerate and also attacked the government's haywire demonetisation policy

Prime Minister Narendra Modi received Rs 45 crore ($6.6 million) from Sahara -- a large business conglomerate in India -- before he became came to power in 2014, according to opposition leader Rahul Gandhi. At a rally in the western state of Gujarat, the Congress vice-president claimed that during a raid in 2014, taxmen found documents which suggested that Sahara company made multiple payments to Modi between October 2013 and February 2014. Earlier in the day, Gandhi tweeted that the Modi government is behaving like a "confused" traffic signal exhibiting different colours at the same time. He was attacking the government's 'repeated' changes in the rules regarding deposit of old currency notes in banks. He posted the picture of a huge traffic signal showing red, yellow, blue and a few other colours at the same time, on Twitter with the caption, "Government orders after demonetisation." Government orders after demonetisation: pic.twitter.com/5D5p0XX4MO — Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) December 21, 2016 × Chief Congress spokesman Randeep Surjewala was equally critical of the latest order. He gave the RBI the sobriquet 'Reverse Bank of India' × The Congress leader had yesterday likened the repeated changes in the rules to Modi's changing of "clothes" and had said that the message going out was that the Prime Minister's words were "hollow". He was commenting on the new decision of the government under which an amount more than Rs 50,00 in scrapped currency can be deposited only once per account till December 30. Earlier, the Prime Minister, while announcing the demonetisation decision on November 8, had said old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes could be deposited in banks till December 30 without any questions asked. Party chief spokesman Randeep Surjewala was equally critical of the latest order, with him giving RBI the sobriquet of "Reverse Bank of India." In a series of tweets, he said, "Unfortunately, Reserve Bank of India has become 'Reverse Bank of India'!" Surjewala also posted two cartoons stating "the rules of RBI are like weather, which keeps on changing and therefore, requires hourly bulletins to inform people." "Daily 'headline management' is the norm for Modi Govt. If Ind. Owner has a choice to pay in cash or cheque, futile to amend the Wages Act," he said in response to the government bringing an ordinance to amend the Payment of Wage Act for allowing business and industrial establishments to pay salaries through cheques or by using electronic modes. "2ndly, it reflects massive shortage of currency with Modi Govt. Instead of admitting it, it is forcing daily wage earners to stand in bank queues," he said. Surjewala also latched on to the remarks of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, who after supporting demonetisation initially, did a volte face and said the move has created many troubles for the common man. "AP CM, NDA ally & head of #DeMonetisation Committee is breaking his head over the mess. Do u need more proof Modiji?", he said. Ahmed Patel, Political Secretary to Congress president Sonia Gandhi, was equally caustic. "50 days, 60 rules #DeMonetisation," he said in a tweet. (PTI)

Demonetisation: Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi accuses PM Modi of graft

All India Bank Employees Association (AIBEA) and All India Bank Officers Association (AIBOA) have given a call for demonstration against the problems that various banks and their employees are facing due to demonetisation.

The agitational programmes that they plan to undertake include demonstrations on December 28, followed by the unions addressing a letter to Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on December 29, the two bank unions said. The union members also plan to demonstrate over the issue on January 2 and 3, 2017.

AIBEA general secretary C H Venkatchalam and his AIBOA counterpart S Nagrajan in a statement issued today said, &quot;As per the call of our organisations, already our units have undertaken the programme of demonstrations in all major centres and met the local executives of RBI to hand over our memorandum&quot;.

The unions have demanded to ensure supply of adequate cash to all banks and branches, restore all ATMs without further delay and ensure transparency in cash supply to banks.

&quot;If RBI is not able to supply adequate cash to banks, then decision should be taken to suspend cash transactions in the bank branches till sufficient cash is supplied to banks,&quot; the statement said.

They also demanded CBI inquiry into the cases of seizure of huge number of new currency notes with some big persons when the bank branches are cash starved. The unions also demanded compensation to the families of the persons and bank staff who lost their lives recently due to the demonetisation.

The statement asked RBI and state governments to ensure safety and protection of bank employees and officers by maintaining law and order in all branches to prevent harassment of the staff.

They also want proper compensation to employees and officers for their extra work/late sittings done since November 8. Both the unions claim to have over 5.50 lakh members out of the nearly 9 lakh bank employees in the country.

(PTI)

Bank unions have called for demonstrations against the problems that various banks and their employees are facing due to demonetisation.

All India Bank Employees Association (AIBEA) and All India Bank Officers Association (AIBOA) have given a call for demonstration against the problems that various banks and their employees are facing due to demonetisation. The agitational programmes that they plan to undertake include demonstrations on December 28, followed by the unions addressing a letter to Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on December 29, the two bank unions said. The union members also plan to demonstrate over the issue on January 2 and 3, 2017. AIBEA general secretary C H Venkatchalam and his AIBOA counterpart S Nagrajan in a statement issued today said, "As per the call of our organisations, already our units have undertaken the programme of demonstrations in all major centres and met the local executives of RBI to hand over our memorandum". The unions have demanded to ensure supply of adequate cash to all banks and branches, restore all ATMs without further delay and ensure transparency in cash supply to banks. "If RBI is not able to supply adequate cash to banks, then decision should be taken to suspend cash transactions in the bank branches till sufficient cash is supplied to banks," the statement said. They also demanded CBI inquiry into the cases of seizure of huge number of new currency notes with some big persons when the bank branches are cash starved. The unions also demanded compensation to the families of the persons and bank staff who lost their lives recently due to the demonetisation. The statement asked RBI and state governments to ensure safety and protection of bank employees and officers by maintaining law and order in all branches to prevent harassment of the staff. They also want proper compensation to employees and officers for their extra work/late sittings done since November 8. Both the unions claim to have over 5.50 lakh members out of the nearly 9 lakh bank employees in the country. (PTI)

Bank unions call for agitation over note ban-related issues

Parliament was again not allowed to function Wednesday, because of the continued uproar over demonetisation.&nbsp;

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Opposition raises &quot;Modi sarkar hosh me aao&quot; slogans in Lok Sabha <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/DeMonetisation?src=hash">#DeMonetisation</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI_news) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI_news/status/808927071795900416">December 14, 2016</a></blockquote>
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The Lok Sabha or lower house was adjourned till tomorrow. Not counting today, there are now only two days left in this current winter session of parliament.&nbsp;

The Rajya Sabha or upper house was adjourned till 2 pm.&nbsp;

Parliament has not been allowed to function at all this winter session; the Opposition has been demanding a debate and vote on the government&#39;s shock demonetisation of India&#39;s 500- and 1,000-rupee notes. (That sucked 86 per cent of the cash in circulation then out of the economy.) The government has so far not agreed to the demand. &nbsp;

And while there was immense support for the stated aims of the move -- getting to the black money in the economy and cutting down on terror funding -- reports from around the country point to people having had to face tremendous amounts of hardship post November 8 when Prime Minister Modi made his shock announcement.&nbsp;

But, the real &quot;masala&quot; -- the Hindi word for spice -- took place outside of Parliament.&nbsp;

At a joint media briefing by the Opposition after Parliament was adjourned, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi made the startling allegation that he had &quot;information about personal corruption by Prime Minister Modi&quot; but that he was not being allowed to speak in Parliament.&nbsp;

&quot;Read my lips... the PM is personally terrified of the information I have. It is personal corruption of the PM,&quot; he said.

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<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WATCH?src=hash">#WATCH</a> Rahul Gandhi says he has info of personal corruption of PM Modi, about which he is not being allowed to speak in Lok Sabha <a href="https://t.co/5h7NDjOmJk">pic.twitter.com/5h7NDjOmJk</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI_news) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI_news/status/808936657072189440">December 14, 2016</a></blockquote>
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Mr Gandhi had recently said that if he were allowed to speak in Parliament, his words would &quot;cause an earthquake&quot;.&nbsp;

When WION&#39;s Kartikeya Sharma asked Mr Gandhi why, if he was not being allowed to speak in Parliament, he did not make his allegation(s) about Mr Modi in front of the media, Gandhi replied: &quot;I am an elected member of Parliament. I have a right to speak in Parliament. That right is being denied to me.&quot;&nbsp;

Later, he told the media corps that it was imperative the Narendra Modi administration explained to public in detail about the merits of demonetisation.

TV news channels reported first reactions from the BJP as: &quot;BJP laughs off Rahul&#39;s allegations&quot;. &nbsp;

Prime Minister Modi attended Parliament today; he was in the Lok Sabha.&nbsp;

And with both the government and the Opposition having told their MPs to attend Parliament today, there had been some hope earlier in the day that the Prime Minister would speak in Parliament and answer his detractors.&nbsp;

(WION)

The opposition leader said he would expose Modi in the Parliament, if he was allowed to do so

Parliament was again not allowed to function Wednesday, because of the continued uproar over demonetisation. Opposition raises "Modi sarkar hosh me aao" slogans in Lok Sabha #DeMonetisation — ANI (@ANI_news) December 14, 2016 × The Lok Sabha or lower house was adjourned till tomorrow. Not counting today, there are now only two days left in this current winter session of parliament. The Rajya Sabha or upper house was adjourned till 2 pm. Parliament has not been allowed to function at all this winter session; the Opposition has been demanding a debate and vote on the government's shock demonetisation of India's 500- and 1,000-rupee notes. (That sucked 86 per cent of the cash in circulation then out of the economy.) The government has so far not agreed to the demand. And while there was immense support for the stated aims of the move -- getting to the black money in the economy and cutting down on terror funding -- reports from around the country point to people having had to face tremendous amounts of hardship post November 8 when Prime Minister Modi made his shock announcement. But, the real "masala" -- the Hindi word for spice -- took place outside of Parliament. At a joint media briefing by the Opposition after Parliament was adjourned, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi made the startling allegation that he had "information about personal corruption by Prime Minister Modi" but that he was not being allowed to speak in Parliament. "Read my lips... the PM is personally terrified of the information I have. It is personal corruption of the PM," he said. #WATCH Rahul Gandhi says he has info of personal corruption of PM Modi, about which he is not being allowed to speak in Lok Sabha pic.twitter.com/5h7NDjOmJk — ANI (@ANI_news) December 14, 2016 × Mr Gandhi had recently said that if he were allowed to speak in Parliament, his words would "cause an earthquake". When WION's Kartikeya Sharma asked Mr Gandhi why, if he was not being allowed to speak in Parliament, he did not make his allegation(s) about Mr Modi in front of the media, Gandhi replied: "I am an elected member of Parliament. I have a right to speak in Parliament. That right is being denied to me." Later, he told the media corps that it was imperative the Narendra Modi administration explained to public in detail about the merits of demonetisation. TV news channels reported first reactions from the BJP as: "BJP laughs off Rahul's allegations". Prime Minister Modi attended Parliament today; he was in the Lok Sabha. And with both the government and the Opposition having told their MPs to attend Parliament today, there had been some hope earlier in the day that the Prime Minister would speak in Parliament and answer his detractors. (WION)

Congress' Rahul Gandhi accuses Indian PM Modi of corruption

Indian defence forces and defence production would be &quot;open to scrutiny&quot; and &quot;control&quot; by the United States, which will make India its &quot;junior ally&quot; following finalisation of the &quot;Major Defense Partner&quot;&nbsp;designation, CPI(M) has alleged.

Noting that the US has placed the details of &quot;Major Defense Partner&quot;&nbsp;designation for Senate approval as part of FY 2017 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), the party said the Narendra Modi government &quot;has not even made a statement in Parliament about such a significant deal&quot;.

&quot;The country can see the US side of the deal by reading the 2017 NDAA, but remains ignorant of the Indian commitment as a &#39;Major Defense Partner&#39; of the United States,&quot; CPI(M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury said.

In a letter to the Prime Minister, he referred to Paragraph (E) of Section 1292 of 2017 NDAA, &quot;which talks of &#39;mechanisms to verify the security of defense articles, defense services, and related technology, such as appropriate cyber security and end user monitoring agreements&#39; for items and technologies sold to India.

&quot;Paragraph (F) thereafter states that India will align its &#39;export control and procurement regimes with those of the United States&#39;.&quot; 
Yechury further said, &quot;Paragraph(I) of Section 1292, 2017 NDAA makes the facts amply clear. It explicitly highlights enhanced &#39;defense and security cooperation with India in order to advance United States interests in South Asia and greater Indo-Asia-Pacific regions&#39;.&quot;

&quot;This is, sadly, a commitment by your government to become a junior ally of the US in our own neighbourhood. This represents the final nail in the coffin of India&#39;s independent foreign policy,&quot; Yechury said in his letter to Modi. He said, &quot;These are significant concessions made by your government which will make Indian defence forces open to American scrutiny, and Indian defence production under the control of the United States of America.&quot;

&quot;Serious apprehensions arise about your government compromising India&#39;s sovereignty and strategic autonomy,&quot; the CPI(M) leader said, quoting the US statement as saying that the &quot;Major Defense Partner&quot;&nbsp;designation was &quot;a status unique to India&quot; and brings &quot;India to a level at par with that of the United States&#39; closest allies and partners&quot;.

&quot;This is a significant departure from India&#39;s long- standing policy on defence relations and it has been done without taking Parliament into confidence,&quot; Yechury said.

 
The finalisation of the &quot;Major Defense Partner&quot;&nbsp;designation to India by the US had followed the signing of the Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA) between the US and Indian defence ministries earlier this year.

Yechury said, &quot;It is particularly galling that all these commitments, as part of the announcement of the &#39;Major Defense Partner&#39; designation, were made by the Defence Ministry when both Houses of Parliament were, and still are, in session.

&quot;This is in complete contravention of the established norms and practices of our parliamentary system,&quot; he said.

He said he was constrained to state that &quot;your government seems particularly keen on ignoring Parliament, because even the text of LEMOA has so far not been placed before either of the Houses or the Standing Committee on Defence.

&quot;It needs no reminder that Parliament represents the people of this great country and by choosing to willfully ignore Parliament, you are disrespecting 1.3 billion Indians,&quot; he said and demanded that full texts of these documents are tabled in Parliament during the ongoing session and made public immediately.

(PTI)

'This represents the final nail in the coffin of India's independent foreign policy,' CPI(M) general secretary Yechury wrote to PM Modi

Indian defence forces and defence production would be "open to scrutiny" and "control" by the United States, which will make India its "junior ally" following finalisation of the "Major Defense Partner" designation, CPI(M) has alleged. Noting that the US has placed the details of "Major Defense Partner" designation for Senate approval as part of FY 2017 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), the party said the Narendra Modi government "has not even made a statement in Parliament about such a significant deal". "The country can see the US side of the deal by reading the 2017 NDAA, but remains ignorant of the Indian commitment as a 'Major Defense Partner' of the United States," CPI(M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury said. In a letter to the Prime Minister, he referred to Paragraph (E) of Section 1292 of 2017 NDAA, "which talks of 'mechanisms to verify the security of defense articles, defense services, and related technology, such as appropriate cyber security and end user monitoring agreements' for items and technologies sold to India. "Paragraph (F) thereafter states that India will align its 'export control and procurement regimes with those of the United States'." Yechury further said, "Paragraph(I) of Section 1292, 2017 NDAA makes the facts amply clear. It explicitly highlights enhanced 'defense and security cooperation with India in order to advance United States interests in South Asia and greater Indo-Asia-Pacific regions'." "This is, sadly, a commitment by your government to become a junior ally of the US in our own neighbourhood. This represents the final nail in the coffin of India's independent foreign policy," Yechury said in his letter to Modi. He said, "These are significant concessions made by your government which will make Indian defence forces open to American scrutiny, and Indian defence production under the control of the United States of America." "Serious apprehensions arise about your government compromising India's sovereignty and strategic autonomy," the CPI(M) leader said, quoting the US statement as saying that the "Major Defense Partner" designation was "a status unique to India" and brings "India to a level at par with that of the United States' closest allies and partners". "This is a significant departure from India's long- standing policy on defence relations and it has been done without taking Parliament into confidence," Yechury said. The finalisation of the "Major Defense Partner" designation to India by the US had followed the signing of the Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA) between the US and Indian defence ministries earlier this year. Yechury said, "It is particularly galling that all these commitments, as part of the announcement of the 'Major Defense Partner' designation, were made by the Defence Ministry when both Houses of Parliament were, and still are, in session. "This is in complete contravention of the established norms and practices of our parliamentary system," he said. He said he was constrained to state that "your government seems particularly keen on ignoring Parliament, because even the text of LEMOA has so far not been placed before either of the Houses or the Standing Committee on Defence. "It needs no reminder that Parliament represents the people of this great country and by choosing to willfully ignore Parliament, you are disrespecting 1.3 billion Indians," he said and demanded that full texts of these documents are tabled in Parliament during the ongoing session and made public immediately. (PTI)

Indian defence forces to be 'Junior ally' of US, says Indian left party

Former Indian finance minister P Chidambaram slammed the ruling Modi government saying&nbsp;demonetisation was the biggest scam of the year, and that it must be investigated.&nbsp;

&quot;This is the biggest scam of the year and must be investigated. I cannot get Rs 2,000 note, how crores in Rs 2,000 notes found their way to individuals being raided all over the country,&quot; Chidambaram told reporters.&nbsp;

He also questioned the calculations done by the government which made it say one can withdraw Rs 24,000 when banks don&#39;t have enough cash to dispense that amount.

&quot;Every bank says there is no cash. So how does the government say there is cash? This is why Dr Manmohan Singh said monumental mismanagement,&quot; he added.

&quot;Who will compensate the 45 crore people who have been affected due to demonetisation?&quot; he asked.

&quot;I went for a wedding the other day, saw that the rich are not affected. It is the poor who are hurt. Has this stopped corruption, black money? The objective is not being served by this. Only poor people are being punished,&quot; he added.

The Congress leader also said the long-term impact of demonetisation will be negative in terms of GDP figures, adding that the Reserve Bank of India&#39;s projections say so.

&quot;Most economists say 1-2 per cent negative impact. I believe people will not forget for what is being done to them and will certain not forgive the govt for it. Just because people are not protesting in the manner you are suggesting that does not mean that they are condoning what government is doing,&quot; he said.

Meanwhile, the Congress Party alleged Tuesday that the government is avoiding a discussion on demonetisation in Parliament till public anger subsides.&nbsp;

&quot;They want to avoid a discussion in Parliament till the time the anger of the common man melts down. That is why they are trying to delay it,&quot; said Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge.

&quot;It is not us, but they (the ruling party) who are stopping the debate from taking place. They do not want their mistakes to be counted in Parliament and want to hide their mistakes from the people. That is why they are delaying debate in parliament,&quot; he said.&nbsp;

(This article first appeared in DNA)

He calls it a scam, says it must be investigated

Former Indian finance minister P Chidambaram slammed the ruling Modi government saying demonetisation was the biggest scam of the year, and that it must be investigated. "This is the biggest scam of the year and must be investigated. I cannot get Rs 2,000 note, how crores in Rs 2,000 notes found their way to individuals being raided all over the country," Chidambaram told reporters. He also questioned the calculations done by the government which made it say one can withdraw Rs 24,000 when banks don't have enough cash to dispense that amount. "Every bank says there is no cash. So how does the government say there is cash? This is why Dr Manmohan Singh said monumental mismanagement," he added. "Who will compensate the 45 crore people who have been affected due to demonetisation?" he asked. "I went for a wedding the other day, saw that the rich are not affected. It is the poor who are hurt. Has this stopped corruption, black money? The objective is not being served by this. Only poor people are being punished," he added. The Congress leader also said the long-term impact of demonetisation will be negative in terms of GDP figures, adding that the Reserve Bank of India's projections say so. "Most economists say 1-2 per cent negative impact. I believe people will not forget for what is being done to them and will certain not forgive the govt for it. Just because people are not protesting in the manner you are suggesting that does not mean that they are condoning what government is doing," he said. Meanwhile, the Congress Party alleged Tuesday that the government is avoiding a discussion on demonetisation in Parliament till public anger subsides. "They want to avoid a discussion in Parliament till the time the anger of the common man melts down. That is why they are trying to delay it," said Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge. "It is not us, but they (the ruling party) who are stopping the debate from taking place. They do not want their mistakes to be counted in Parliament and want to hide their mistakes from the people. That is why they are delaying debate in parliament," he said. (This article first appeared in DNA)

Demonetisation: Ex-finance minister Chidambaram slams move

The UK government is finalising plans to cut annual student visa figures by nearly half, from the&nbsp;current 300,000 to 170,000, a <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/education/2016/dec/12/uk-halve-international-student-visa-tougher-rules">media report</a> said today amid a sharp fall in students coming to the&nbsp;country from outside Europe including India.

Some university chiefs are also warning that many Indian students are already being denied visas on&nbsp;minor grounds as part of a wider move to cut immigration into the UK. 
 
&quot;They are telling some&nbsp;students there is exactly the same quality of course available in India so why are you coming here.&nbsp;That is outrageous,&quot; a UK vice-chancellor was quoted as saying by the Guardian newspaper.

The move comes despite recent UK Office of National Statistics (ONS) figures indicating there has&nbsp;been a drastic drop in students coming to the UK from outside Europe. &quot;There was a statistically&nbsp;significant decline in the number of non-EU citizens migrating to the UK to study, from 134,000 in&nbsp;the previous year to 111,000...there was a statistically significant decline in citizens of South&nbsp;Asia, with the number coming to study having almost halved,&quot; ONS said in its &#39;Migration Statistics&nbsp;Quarterly Report: August 2016&#39;.

India is the third-largest category in terms of student visa applications after the US and China,&nbsp;with 10,664 granted between June 2015 and 2016.

&quot;International students contribute, directly and indirectly, 14 billion pounds to the UK economy,&nbsp;making higher education one of this country&#39;s most valuable exports...Over the last five years, the&nbsp;number of Indian students attending UK universities has halved. I have consistently asked the&nbsp;government to remove students from the net migration target,&quot; said Lord Bilimoria, leading Indian-origin entrepreneur and Cobra Beer founder, who himself came to the UK as a student.

&quot;We should immediately re-introduce the two-year post-study work visa, which I fought hard to&nbsp;introduce before its withdrawal in 2012, to allow foreign students to implement their much-needed&nbsp;skills here and help boost our economy,&quot; he added.

During British Prime Minister Theresa May&#39;s visit to India last month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi&nbsp;had stressed on the importance of access for Indian students to UK institutions.

&quot;Education is vital for our students and will define our engagement in a shared future. We must&nbsp;therefore encourage greater mobility and participation of young people in educational and research&nbsp;opportunities,&quot; PM Modi had told May in his address at the UK India Tech Summit in New Delhi.

However, senior university sources indicate the UK Home Office is on track for some dramatic&nbsp;immigration cuts in student visa numbers. While it has dismissed rumours of an annual cutback of&nbsp;more than two-thirds, the likely cut to around 170,000 seems likely to be enforced.

A UK Home Office spokesperson said: &quot;Claims the Home Office is modelling cuts to reduce&nbsp;international students to a third [ie 100,000 a year] are categorically untrue&quot;.

&quot;We want to strengthen the system to support the best universities - and those that stick to the&nbsp;rules - to attract the best talent. The British people have sent a clear message that they want more&nbsp;control of immigration and we are committed to getting net migration down to sustainable levels in&nbsp;the tens of thousands,&quot; he said.

(PTI)

Many Indian students are already being denied visas on minor grounds as part of a wider move to cut immigration into the UK, the report says

The UK government is finalising plans to cut annual student visa figures by nearly half, from the current 300,000 to 170,000, a media report said today amid a sharp fall in students coming to the country from outside Europe including India. Some university chiefs are also warning that many Indian students are already being denied visas on minor grounds as part of a wider move to cut immigration into the UK. "They are telling some students there is exactly the same quality of course available in India so why are you coming here. That is outrageous," a UK vice-chancellor was quoted as saying by the Guardian newspaper. The move comes despite recent UK Office of National Statistics (ONS) figures indicating there has been a drastic drop in students coming to the UK from outside Europe. "There was a statistically significant decline in the number of non-EU citizens migrating to the UK to study, from 134,000 in the previous year to 111,000...there was a statistically significant decline in citizens of South Asia, with the number coming to study having almost halved," ONS said in its 'Migration Statistics Quarterly Report: August 2016'. India is the third-largest category in terms of student visa applications after the US and China, with 10,664 granted between June 2015 and 2016. "International students contribute, directly and indirectly, 14 billion pounds to the UK economy, making higher education one of this country's most valuable exports...Over the last five years, the number of Indian students attending UK universities has halved. I have consistently asked the government to remove students from the net migration target," said Lord Bilimoria, leading Indian-origin entrepreneur and Cobra Beer founder, who himself came to the UK as a student. "We should immediately re-introduce the two-year post-study work visa, which I fought hard to introduce before its withdrawal in 2012, to allow foreign students to implement their much-needed skills here and help boost our economy," he added. During British Prime Minister Theresa May's visit to India last month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had stressed on the importance of access for Indian students to UK institutions. "Education is vital for our students and will define our engagement in a shared future. We must therefore encourage greater mobility and participation of young people in educational and research opportunities," PM Modi had told May in his address at the UK India Tech Summit in New Delhi. However, senior university sources indicate the UK Home Office is on track for some dramatic immigration cuts in student visa numbers. While it has dismissed rumours of an annual cutback of more than two-thirds, the likely cut to around 170,000 seems likely to be enforced. A UK Home Office spokesperson said: "Claims the Home Office is modelling cuts to reduce international students to a third [ie 100,000 a year] are categorically untrue". "We want to strengthen the system to support the best universities - and those that stick to the rules - to attract the best talent. The British people have sent a clear message that they want more control of immigration and we are committed to getting net migration down to sustainable levels in the tens of thousands," he said. (PTI)

UK to reduce student visas by almost half: Report

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday accused the opposition Congress of looting the common man for 70 years and vowed to continue fighting for the poor.

&quot;You have looted the common man for 70 years and made it harsh for them to survive. I have come to fight for the poor and give power in their hands,&quot; said Modi while inaugurating dairy plants in Deesa city of western Gujarat state.

The 66-year-old politician slammed the opposition for not letting him speak in the parliament even after they demanded his presence.

&quot;Government has always said we are ready to debate. I am not being allowed to speak in the Lok Sabha (lower house). So I am speaking in the Jan (common) Sabha,&quot; he said.

Emphasising the fact that demonetisation has been introduced with the intention of curbing black money and eradicating corruption, Prime Minister Modi said corruption has always pained the common man, making their lives miserable.

&quot;Who is unhappy with corruption? Not those perpetrating corruption...it is the poor, the common citizens who are unhappy,&quot; he said. He added that the &quot;evils&quot; of black money and corruption were slowing India&#39;s progress and adversely affecting the poor.

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Want to assure the people of the country that no one will be spared: PM Narendra Modi in Gujarat <a href="https://t.co/HBURG3F7ik">pic.twitter.com/HBURG3F7ik</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI_news) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI_news/status/807477788433215488">December 10, 2016</a></blockquote>
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He further urged the people to move towards digital modes of payment and not waste their time outside of banks and ATMs.

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I urge you all to integrate people with e-banking, e-wallets: PM <a href="https://twitter.com/narendramodi">@narendramodi</a>
&mdash; PMO India (@PMOIndia) <a href="https://twitter.com/PMOIndia/status/807478225420972034">December 10, 2016</a></blockquote>
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There is no need to waste your time standing outside banks or ATMs, e-wallets have brought banks to your mobiles: PM Modi <a href="https://t.co/sl828PMZQL">pic.twitter.com/sl828PMZQL</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI_news) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI_news/status/807478385580482560">December 10, 2016</a></blockquote>
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The Prime Minister thanked the people for standing by his side and encouraging his decision to demonetise.

&quot;In spite of efforts by others to incite people, people have stood by me and supported the decision.&quot;

He assured people that they will see changes in time.

West Bengal state chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday criticised Modi&#39;s address saying, &quot;Modi babu knows that #DeMonetisation now derailed. Except giving &#39;bhashan&#39;, he has no solution.&quot;

Urban development minister Venkaiah Naidu also hit out at the Opposition on Saturday, &quot;Don&#39;t try to threaten us, we are ready for a debate, it is you (Opposition), who are obstructing the Parliament.&quot;

(With inputs from ANI)

Modi accused the Congress of looting the common man for 70 years and vowed to continue his fight for the poor

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday accused the opposition Congress of looting the common man for 70 years and vowed to continue fighting for the poor. "You have looted the common man for 70 years and made it harsh for them to survive. I have come to fight for the poor and give power in their hands," said Modi while inaugurating dairy plants in Deesa city of western Gujarat state. The 66-year-old politician slammed the opposition for not letting him speak in the parliament even after they demanded his presence. "Government has always said we are ready to debate. I am not being allowed to speak in the Lok Sabha (lower house). So I am speaking in the Jan (common) Sabha," he said. Emphasising the fact that demonetisation has been introduced with the intention of curbing black money and eradicating corruption, Prime Minister Modi said corruption has always pained the common man, making their lives miserable. "Who is unhappy with corruption? Not those perpetrating corruption...it is the poor, the common citizens who are unhappy," he said. He added that the "evils" of black money and corruption were slowing India's progress and adversely affecting the poor. Want to assure the people of the country that no one will be spared: PM Narendra Modi in Gujarat pic.twitter.com/HBURG3F7ik — ANI (@ANI_news) December 10, 2016 × He further urged the people to move towards digital modes of payment and not waste their time outside of banks and ATMs. I urge you all to integrate people with e-banking, e-wallets: PM @narendramodi — PMO India (@PMOIndia) December 10, 2016 × There is no need to waste your time standing outside banks or ATMs, e-wallets have brought banks to your mobiles: PM Modi pic.twitter.com/sl828PMZQL — ANI (@ANI_news) December 10, 2016 × The Prime Minister thanked the people for standing by his side and encouraging his decision to demonetise. "In spite of efforts by others to incite people, people have stood by me and supported the decision." He assured people that they will see changes in time. West Bengal state chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday criticised Modi's address saying, "Modi babu knows that #DeMonetisation now derailed. Except giving 'bhashan', he has no solution." Urban development minister Venkaiah Naidu also hit out at the Opposition on Saturday, "Don't try to threaten us, we are ready for a debate, it is you (Opposition), who are obstructing the Parliament." (With inputs from ANI)

Indian PM Modi: Demonetisation will empower and strengthen poor

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said today that things will get worse before they get better. He was referring to the aftermath of demonetisation; there have been reports from around the country of people having to put up with tremendous hardship.&nbsp;

&quot;I had said from day one this is not an ordinary decision. It is full of difficulties. It is a difficult decision and I had said a lot of hardships and problems will be faced,&quot; the Press Trust of India reported Modi as saying.&nbsp;

&quot;For 50 days this difficulty has to be there. And this difficulty will even increase, but after 50 days, I have done my calculation, the situation, in one go, will turn to gradually move towards normalcy. You will see after 50 days that situation will slowly start improving in front of your eyes,&quot; he said.&nbsp;

Despite the hardships, so far, the common man -- or at least many of them -- seems to have stood behind Modi and his promise of finding the black money hidden in the economy.&nbsp;

Modi was in Deesa, Gujarat, where he was inaugurating dairy plants.&nbsp;

The demonetisation, the PM said, will root out terrorism, corruption and fake currency. 
&nbsp; 
&quot;Demonetisation has broken the backbone of terrorism and Naxal movement. I am fighting against terrorism as fake currency is fuelling and funding their activities,&quot; PTI reported him as saying.&nbsp;

&quot;Demonetisation is aimed at empowering downtrodden and honest people,&quot; he said. &nbsp;

He also slammed the Opposition for not letting him speak in Parliament, even after they demanded his presence in the house. 
&nbsp; 
&quot;Government has always said we are ready to debate. I am not being allowed to speak in the Lok Sabha (lower house). So I am speaking in the jan (people&#39;s) sabha,&quot; he said. 
&nbsp; 
He added that corruption has always pained the common man, making his life miserable. 
&nbsp; 
&quot;Who is unhappy with corruption? Not those perpetrating corruption...it is the poor, the common citizens who are unhappy,&quot; he said.&nbsp;

He added that the &quot;evils&quot; of black money and corruption were slowing India&#39;s progress and adversely affecting the poor.

He further urged the people to go digital and not waste their time outside banks and ATMs.

The Prime Minister thanked the people for standing behind him and supporting his decision to demonetise India&#39;s 500- and 1,000-rupee notes. 
&nbsp; 
&quot;In spite of efforts by others to incite people, people have stood by me and supported the decision.&quot;

&nbsp;He assured people that they would see change in time. 
&nbsp; 
He also took a jibe at the Congress, accusing it of looting the common man for 70 years, and vowed to continue fighting for the poor. 
&nbsp; 
&quot;You have looted the common man for 70 years and made it harsh for them to survive. I have come to fight for the poor and give power in their hands,&quot; he said. 
&nbsp; 
In turn, West Bengal state chief minister Mamata Banerjee criticised Modi&#39;s address. &quot;Modi babu knows that #DeMonetisation now derailed. Except giving bhashan, he has no solution,&quot; she tweeted.

(WION with inputs from agencies)

Says he had said from day 1 demonetisation will be difficult. But that things will return to normal 20 days from now

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said today that things will get worse before they get better. He was referring to the aftermath of demonetisation; there have been reports from around the country of people having to put up with tremendous hardship. "I had said from day one this is not an ordinary decision. It is full of difficulties. It is a difficult decision and I had said a lot of hardships and problems will be faced," the Press Trust of India reported Modi as saying. "For 50 days this difficulty has to be there. And this difficulty will even increase, but after 50 days, I have done my calculation, the situation, in one go, will turn to gradually move towards normalcy. You will see after 50 days that situation will slowly start improving in front of your eyes," he said. Despite the hardships, so far, the common man -- or at least many of them -- seems to have stood behind Modi and his promise of finding the black money hidden in the economy. Modi was in Deesa, Gujarat, where he was inaugurating dairy plants. The demonetisation, the PM said, will root out terrorism, corruption and fake currency. "Demonetisation has broken the backbone of terrorism and Naxal movement. I am fighting against terrorism as fake currency is fuelling and funding their activities," PTI reported him as saying. "Demonetisation is aimed at empowering downtrodden and honest people," he said. He also slammed the Opposition for not letting him speak in Parliament, even after they demanded his presence in the house. "Government has always said we are ready to debate. I am not being allowed to speak in the Lok Sabha (lower house). So I am speaking in the jan (people's) sabha," he said. He added that corruption has always pained the common man, making his life miserable. "Who is unhappy with corruption? Not those perpetrating corruption...it is the poor, the common citizens who are unhappy," he said. He added that the "evils" of black money and corruption were slowing India's progress and adversely affecting the poor. He further urged the people to go digital and not waste their time outside banks and ATMs. The Prime Minister thanked the people for standing behind him and supporting his decision to demonetise India's 500- and 1,000-rupee notes. "In spite of efforts by others to incite people, people have stood by me and supported the decision." He assured people that they would see change in time. He also took a jibe at the Congress, accusing it of looting the common man for 70 years, and vowed to continue fighting for the poor. "You have looted the common man for 70 years and made it harsh for them to survive. I have come to fight for the poor and give power in their hands," he said. In turn, West Bengal state chief minister Mamata Banerjee criticised Modi's address. "Modi babu knows that #DeMonetisation now derailed. Except giving bhashan, he has no solution," she tweeted. (WION with inputs from agencies)

Demonetisation: PM Modi says things will get worse before they get better

The impasse over demonetisation continued for the 16th day in parliament today with the government asking the Opposition to apologise for disrupting proceedings. The Lower House, Lok Sabha, was adjourned until December 14 while the Upper House, Rajya Sabha was adjourned until&nbsp;2:30pm.&nbsp;

&quot;For 16 days they have disrupted the House and held the House hostage. Majority wanted to debate. But Congress, TMC and Left members are not allowing the House to function. The situation has reached such a stage that the President had to speak against the disruption. They must tender apology to the people of the country,&quot; parliamentary affairs minister Ananth Kumar said.

He was referring to President Pranab Mukherjee&#39;s remarks yesterday that disrupting parliament amounted to &quot;gagging of majority&quot; by minority, ie,&nbsp;the Opposition. 
 
The government also rejected the Opposition&#39;s demand for a debate and a vote on demonetisation, with union minister Venkaiah Naidu saying voting has &quot;already happened in 2014 and Time magazine&quot;.&nbsp;

Naidu was referring to the general election of 2014 which brought Prime Minister Narendra Modi to power. Mr Modi also recently won the online readers&#39; poll for Time magazine&#39;s person of the year. &nbsp;

Naidu also did not seem to think much of Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi&#39;s claim that his speech on demonetisation is ready, but that he is being prevented from giving it in Parliament because the government keeps running away from a debate.&nbsp;

&quot;I am not allowed to speak. If they allow me to speak in the Parliament, there will be an earthquake,&quot; Gandhi had said.&nbsp;

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<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Demonetisation?src=hash">#Demonetisation</a> is the biggest scam in Indian history.I will expose it in House but govt is not allowing me to speak: <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/RahulGandhi?src=hash">#RahulGandhi</a>(File pic) <a href="https://t.co/AWXWE3aToJ">pic.twitter.com/AWXWE3aToJ</a>
&mdash; Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) <a href="https://twitter.com/PTI_News/status/807111561445683201">December 9, 2016</a></blockquote>
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He had added that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was giving speeches across the country, but had so far refused to address Parliament.&nbsp;

Parliament has been unable to function ever since the start of the winter session, because of the uproar over demonetisation.

The Opposition has been demanding that the Prime Minister address Parliament, and a debate and vote on demonetisation.&nbsp;

But so far, the two sides have not been able to come to an agreement. There are now four days left of the winter session, and so far Parliament has been adjourned virtually every day.&nbsp;

&quot;They are running away from the debate and are merely claiming to be ready for it,&quot; Gandhi said.&nbsp;

Mr Modi has on one day attended Parliament, he attended the Rajya Sabha or upper house,&nbsp;but did not address it. &nbsp;

(WION)

 
&nbsp;

Union minister Venkaiah Naidu said voting has 'already happened in 2014 and Time magazine'

The impasse over demonetisation continued for the 16th day in parliament today with the government asking the Opposition to apologise for disrupting proceedings. The Lower House, Lok Sabha, was adjourned until December 14 while the Upper House, Rajya Sabha was adjourned until 2:30pm. "For 16 days they have disrupted the House and held the House hostage. Majority wanted to debate. But Congress, TMC and Left members are not allowing the House to function. The situation has reached such a stage that the President had to speak against the disruption. They must tender apology to the people of the country," parliamentary affairs minister Ananth Kumar said. He was referring to President Pranab Mukherjee's remarks yesterday that disrupting parliament amounted to "gagging of majority" by minority, ie, the Opposition. The government also rejected the Opposition's demand for a debate and a vote on demonetisation, with union minister Venkaiah Naidu saying voting has "already happened in 2014 and Time magazine". Naidu was referring to the general election of 2014 which brought Prime Minister Narendra Modi to power. Mr Modi also recently won the online readers' poll for Time magazine's person of the year. Naidu also did not seem to think much of Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi's claim that his speech on demonetisation is ready, but that he is being prevented from giving it in Parliament because the government keeps running away from a debate. "I am not allowed to speak. If they allow me to speak in the Parliament, there will be an earthquake," Gandhi had said. #Demonetisation is the biggest scam in Indian history.I will expose it in House but govt is not allowing me to speak: #RahulGandhi(File pic) pic.twitter.com/AWXWE3aToJ — Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) December 9, 2016 × He had added that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was giving speeches across the country, but had so far refused to address Parliament. Parliament has been unable to function ever since the start of the winter session, because of the uproar over demonetisation. The Opposition has been demanding that the Prime Minister address Parliament, and a debate and vote on demonetisation. But so far, the two sides have not been able to come to an agreement. There are now four days left of the winter session, and so far Parliament has been adjourned virtually every day. "They are running away from the debate and are merely claiming to be ready for it," Gandhi said. Mr Modi has on one day attended Parliament, he attended the Rajya Sabha or upper house, but did not address it. (WION)

India: Govt says no to debate and vote on demonetisation, Parliament's Lower House adjourned until Dec 14

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi asked the poor not to return the money illegally deposited in their Jan Dhan account on Saturday while addressing Bharatiya Janata Party&#39;s (BJP) Parivartan Yatra rally.&nbsp;

&quot;All those who are Jan Dhan account holders, you should not return the money that others have put in your accounts. If you promise to do so, I am working hard on to devise a formula to send all those who deposited their money illegally into your accounts to jail and to ensure the money goes to the poor households,&quot; Modi said.&nbsp;

The Jan Dhan (Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana) scheme was launched by Modi in 2014 which provides banking facitites to the poor and can be opened with minimum balance.&nbsp;

The PM slammed his opposition for trying to &quot;spread disinformation and despair&quot; regarding criticism over long lines outside ATMS and banks since demonetisation.&nbsp;

Adding &quot;this will be the last queue for the people who have been standing in line for the last 70 years for their daily needs&quot;.

&quot;I salute the people of the country for standing for long hours in queues.

&quot;I want to ask those politicians who are crying over these long queues.

&quot;You kept the entire nation in queues for 70 years after independence, as one had to stand in lines for even sugar, kerosene and wheat in the past. This is the last queue to end all those queues,&quot; he said.&nbsp;

&quot;I am being hounded as if I have committed some crime by waging a battle against graft. But, what can my opponents do to me? I am a fakir (hermit)...Jhola ley kar chaley jayenge (I will exit with my little belongings),&quot; Modi said in reference to protests from the opposition inside and outside the Parliament disrupting the Winter Session.&nbsp;

Modi without taking names made an apparent reference at the Congress saying&nbsp;&quot;You are my leader [the people] ...I have no high command.&quot;

 
(WION with inputs from PTI)

He said he is trying to work out how to jail the corrupt and ensure the deposited money goes to poor households

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi asked the poor not to return the money illegally deposited in their Jan Dhan account on Saturday while addressing Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) Parivartan Yatra rally. "All those who are Jan Dhan account holders, you should not return the money that others have put in your accounts. If you promise to do so, I am working hard on to devise a formula to send all those who deposited their money illegally into your accounts to jail and to ensure the money goes to the poor households," Modi said. The Jan Dhan (Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana) scheme was launched by Modi in 2014 which provides banking facitites to the poor and can be opened with minimum balance. The PM slammed his opposition for trying to "spread disinformation and despair" regarding criticism over long lines outside ATMS and banks since demonetisation. Adding "this will be the last queue for the people who have been standing in line for the last 70 years for their daily needs". "I salute the people of the country for standing for long hours in queues. "I want to ask those politicians who are crying over these long queues. "You kept the entire nation in queues for 70 years after independence, as one had to stand in lines for even sugar, kerosene and wheat in the past. This is the last queue to end all those queues," he said. "I am being hounded as if I have committed some crime by waging a battle against graft. But, what can my opponents do to me? I am a fakir (hermit)...Jhola ley kar chaley jayenge (I will exit with my little belongings)," Modi said in reference to protests from the opposition inside and outside the Parliament disrupting the Winter Session. Modi without taking names made an apparent reference at the Congress saying "You are my leader [the people] ...I have no high command." (WION with inputs from PTI)

Indian PM Modi: Do not return money corrupt have deposited in your Jan Dhan accounts

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi said Thursday that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi&#39;s demonetisation move was a &quot;foolish decision&quot;.&nbsp;

&quot;The assessment is that it is a disaster. It has devastated the poor, farmers and daily wage workers. We want to have a discussion. We want a vote, government doesn&#39;t. How can it be a bold decision? It is a foolish decision taken without any due consideration,&quot; ANI reported him as saying.&nbsp;

He also added that Prime Minister Modi has changed &quot;his narrative&quot; with regards to demonetisation. &quot;Prime Minister Modi started by saying it is against black money, now the talk of black money is vanished. Then, he went to terrorism. After the terrorists were caught with the new notes, he went to counterfeit currency and later cashless economy. So, basically he is running.&quot;&nbsp;

&quot;PM Modi is running away, if he comes to the House for a debate, we won&#39;t let him run. He (PM Modi) is laughing, having a nice time while the people of the country are suffering. The idea behind a cashless economy is that a few people must get maximum benefits from these transactions, this has damaged the nation,&quot; &nbsp;ANI reported him as saying.&nbsp;

Parliament has been unable to function because of the uproar over demonetisation.&nbsp;

When asked about it, Rahul said it is the government&#39;s responsibility to run Parliament.

He added, &quot;If I am allowed to speak in the Lok Sabha, I will show to all how Paytm means &#39;Pay to Modi&#39;.&quot;&nbsp;

The government hit back at the Congress saying it was supporting black money hoarders.&nbsp;

(WION with inputs from ANI) 
&nbsp;

'The assessment is that?it is a disaster,' he said

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi said Thursday that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's demonetisation move was a "foolish decision". "The assessment is that it is a disaster. It has devastated the poor, farmers and daily wage workers. We want to have a discussion. We want a vote, government doesn't. How can it be a bold decision? It is a foolish decision taken without any due consideration," ANI reported him as saying. He also added that Prime Minister Modi has changed "his narrative" with regards to demonetisation. "Prime Minister Modi started by saying it is against black money, now the talk of black money is vanished. Then, he went to terrorism. After the terrorists were caught with the new notes, he went to counterfeit currency and later cashless economy. So, basically he is running." "PM Modi is running away, if he comes to the House for a debate, we won't let him run. He (PM Modi) is laughing, having a nice time while the people of the country are suffering. The idea behind a cashless economy is that a few people must get maximum benefits from these transactions, this has damaged the nation," ANI reported him as saying. Parliament has been unable to function because of the uproar over demonetisation. When asked about it, Rahul said it is the government's responsibility to run Parliament. He added, "If I am allowed to speak in the Lok Sabha, I will show to all how Paytm means 'Pay to Modi'." The government hit back at the Congress saying it was supporting black money hoarders. (WION with inputs from ANI)

India: Demonetisation a 'foolish decision', says Rahul Gandhi

It doesn&#39;t get more direct than what President Ashraf Ghani of Afghanistan had to say at Amritsar on Sunday.

&quot;Pakistan,&quot; he told representatives of nearly 50 countries or organisations, including Pakistan foreign affairs and security adviser Sartaj Aziz, who had gathered in the northern Indian town for the sixth edition of the Heart of Asia - Istanbul Process on Afghanistan,&nbsp;&quot;has pledged 500 million dollars for Afghanistan&rsquo;s development. This amount, Mr Aziz, can be spent to fight terrorists and extremists in Pakistan.&quot;

TV cameras did not capture Aziz&#39;s expression but the sting in&nbsp;Ghani&#39;s words was not lost on anyone. The Afghan President did not stop at that. 
 
&ldquo;A key Taliban leader,&quot; the Afghan President said, &quot;has himself admitted to getting sanctuary in Pakistan. He said that without Pakistan support, we would have&nbsp;not lasted for more than a month.&rdquo; 
 
As if on cue, Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India, who co-chaired the conference with Ghani, called for action &quot;against those who support, shelter, train and finance&quot; terrorists.&nbsp;

&quot;Silence and inaction against terrorism in Afghanistan and our region will only embolden terrorists and their masters,&quot; he continued in the same vein.

This double-barrelled attack on Pakistan, by the Afghan and Indian leaders, was in keeping with India&#39;s attempts of late to shame their common neighbour and further isolate it diplomatically.&nbsp;The bonhomie between Kabul and New Delhi extended to the bilateral talks between Ghani and Modi on the margins of the conference.

Economic partnership via trade and connectivity, development assistance and security cooperation were among the bilateral, regional and global issues that came up for discussion in their meeting.

Indian foreign ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup said that Ghani and Modi agreed to strengthen counter-terrorism cooperation to combat especially the cross-border nature of the scourge which had caused immense suffering to the people of India and Afghanistan.

Both countries decided to operationalise the additional one billion meant as Indian development assistance for infrastructure and connectivity projects. They also plan to introduce an air transport corridor between India and Afghanistan&nbsp;to give India and Afghan consumers and producers unimpeded access to each other&#39;s products and services.

Modi was to amplify it later by saying that &quot;Afghanistan should be at the centre of our connectivity networks, not peripheral to them. On our part, we see Afghanistan as the hub for strengthening links of connectivity between South Asia and Central Asia&quot;.&nbsp;

&quot;We,&quot; he said, &quot;cannot deny that the more connected Afghanistan is with the regional arteries of trade, capital and markets, the more assured would be its economic growth and progress. President Ghani and I have converged on the priority of strengthening trade and transport linkages with other partners in the region.&quot;

For his part, Ghani said that all the countries in Afghanistan&#39;s neighbourhood and beyond &quot;need to identify cross-border terrorism and a fund to combat terrorism&quot;. He lauded India&#39;s development role in his war-torn country by saying that Indian assistance is transparent and came without without strings attached. &quot;There are no hidden agreements [or] secret conditions...it is convergence of interests and values of two states inspired by the belief in cooperative advantage.&quot;

Aziz defended by saying in his intervention afterwards at the conference that &quot;it is simplistic to blame only one country for the recent upsurge in violence&quot; in Afghanistan. In an oblique reference to the continued India - Pakistan tensions, he said that peaceful resolution of outstanding disputes will further improve regional cooperation and connectivity in the region. (Pakistan does not allow India access through its territory for exporting goods to Afghanistan.) 
 
However, at a joint news conference with Deputy Foreign Minister Hekmat Karzai of Afghanistan, Indian Finance Minister Arun Jaitley (standing in for Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj, who is indisposed) said that terrorism was at the very core of the deliberations and that the tone had been set by Ghani and Modi earlier in the day. 
 
Karzai, in turn, spoke about how Pakistan, without naming it, is nurturing and flirting with terrorism, which has consequences not only for Pakistan itself but also for the region. 
 
The participating countries, Jaitley added, recognised that terrorism was the biggest threat to peace and stability and the Amritsar Declaration (see below) adopted towards the end of the summit expressed concern over violence perpetrated by terrorist groups, such as Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad.

If there were fears that India - Pakistan tensions would hijack the conference agenda, it was not to be. In the end, Aziz&#39;s engagements did not go beyond the customary handshake and photo-op with Modi. Indian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup maintained that there was no pull-aside or bilateral meeting between Aziz and Indian National Security Adviser Ajit Doval either.&nbsp;

An excerpt from the Amritsar Declaration:

&quot;We remain concerned by the gravity of the security situation in Afghanistan in particular and the region and the high level of violence caused by the Taliban, terrorist groups including ISIL / DAISHand its affiliates, the Haqqani Network, Al Qaida, Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, East Turkistan Islamic Movement, Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Mohammad, TTP, Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, Jundullah and other foreign terrorist fighters. Acknowledging the support that terrorism derives in our region, we demand an immediate end to all forms of terrorism, as well as all support to it, including financing of terrorism. We recognize that terrorism is the biggest threat to peace, stability and cooperation in our region. We encourage the international community to continue to assist the Government of Afghanistan. We strongly call for concerted regional and international cooperation to ensure elimination of terrorism, in all its forms and manifestations, including dismantling of terrorist sanctuaries and safe havens in the Heart of Asia region, as well as disrupting all financial, tactical and logistical support for terrorism.&quot;

(WION)

Silence and inaction against terrorism in Afghanistan and our region will only embolden terrorists and their masters: Modi

It doesn't get more direct than what President Ashraf Ghani of Afghanistan had to say at Amritsar on Sunday. "Pakistan," he told representatives of nearly 50 countries or organisations, including Pakistan foreign affairs and security adviser Sartaj Aziz, who had gathered in the northern Indian town for the sixth edition of the Heart of Asia - Istanbul Process on Afghanistan, "has pledged 500 million dollars for Afghanistan’s development. This amount, Mr Aziz, can be spent to fight terrorists and extremists in Pakistan." TV cameras did not capture Aziz's expression but the sting in Ghani's words was not lost on anyone. The Afghan President did not stop at that. “A key Taliban leader," the Afghan President said, "has himself admitted to getting sanctuary in Pakistan. He said that without Pakistan support, we would have not lasted for more than a month.” As if on cue, Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India, who co-chaired the conference with Ghani, called for action "against those who support, shelter, train and finance" terrorists. "Silence and inaction against terrorism in Afghanistan and our region will only embolden terrorists and their masters," he continued in the same vein. This double-barrelled attack on Pakistan, by the Afghan and Indian leaders, was in keeping with India's attempts of late to shame their common neighbour and further isolate it diplomatically. The bonhomie between Kabul and New Delhi extended to the bilateral talks between Ghani and Modi on the margins of the conference. Economic partnership via trade and connectivity, development assistance and security cooperation were among the bilateral, regional and global issues that came up for discussion in their meeting. Indian foreign ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup said that Ghani and Modi agreed to strengthen counter-terrorism cooperation to combat especially the cross-border nature of the scourge which had caused immense suffering to the people of India and Afghanistan. Both countries decided to operationalise the additional one billion meant as Indian development assistance for infrastructure and connectivity projects. They also plan to introduce an air transport corridor between India and Afghanistan to give India and Afghan consumers and producers unimpeded access to each other's products and services. Modi was to amplify it later by saying that "Afghanistan should be at the centre of our connectivity networks, not peripheral to them. On our part, we see Afghanistan as the hub for strengthening links of connectivity between South Asia and Central Asia". "We," he said, "cannot deny that the more connected Afghanistan is with the regional arteries of trade, capital and markets, the more assured would be its economic growth and progress. President Ghani and I have converged on the priority of strengthening trade and transport linkages with other partners in the region." For his part, Ghani said that all the countries in Afghanistan's neighbourhood and beyond "need to identify cross-border terrorism and a fund to combat terrorism". He lauded India's development role in his war-torn country by saying that Indian assistance is transparent and came without without strings attached. "There are no hidden agreements [or] secret conditions...it is convergence of interests and values of two states inspired by the belief in cooperative advantage." Aziz defended by saying in his intervention afterwards at the conference that "it is simplistic to blame only one country for the recent upsurge in violence" in Afghanistan. In an oblique reference to the continued India - Pakistan tensions, he said that peaceful resolution of outstanding disputes will further improve regional cooperation and connectivity in the region. (Pakistan does not allow India access through its territory for exporting goods to Afghanistan.) However, at a joint news conference with Deputy Foreign Minister Hekmat Karzai of Afghanistan, Indian Finance Minister Arun Jaitley (standing in for Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj, who is indisposed) said that terrorism was at the very core of the deliberations and that the tone had been set by Ghani and Modi earlier in the day. Karzai, in turn, spoke about how Pakistan, without naming it, is nurturing and flirting with terrorism, which has consequences not only for Pakistan itself but also for the region. The participating countries, Jaitley added, recognised that terrorism was the biggest threat to peace and stability and the Amritsar Declaration (see below) adopted towards the end of the summit expressed concern over violence perpetrated by terrorist groups, such as Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad. If there were fears that India - Pakistan tensions would hijack the conference agenda, it was not to be. In the end, Aziz's engagements did not go beyond the customary handshake and photo-op with Modi. Indian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup maintained that there was no pull-aside or bilateral meeting between Aziz and Indian National Security Adviser Ajit Doval either. An excerpt from the Amritsar Declaration: "We remain concerned by the gravity of the security situation in Afghanistan in particular and the region and the high level of violence caused by the Taliban, terrorist groups including ISIL / DAISHand its affiliates, the Haqqani Network, Al Qaida, Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, East Turkistan Islamic Movement, Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Mohammad, TTP, Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, Jundullah and other foreign terrorist fighters. Acknowledging the support that terrorism derives in our region, we demand an immediate end to all forms of terrorism, as well as all support to it, including financing of terrorism. We recognize that terrorism is the biggest threat to peace, stability and cooperation in our region. We encourage the international community to continue to assist the Government of Afghanistan. We strongly call for concerted regional and international cooperation to ensure elimination of terrorism, in all its forms and manifestations, including dismantling of terrorist sanctuaries and safe havens in the Heart of Asia region, as well as disrupting all financial, tactical and logistical support for terrorism." (WION)

Heart of Asia: Modi, Ghani launch double-barrelled attack on Pakistan

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday called for &quot;resolute action&quot; against terrorism in the region.

In his address at the 6th conference of Heart of Asia, he also urged on the importance of taking strict action against those who support, shelter, train and finance them.

&quot;Terrorism and externally-induced instability pose the gravest threat to Afghanistan&#39;s peace, stability and prosperity. And, the growing arc of terrorist violence endangers our entire region. As such, support for voices of peace in Afghanistan alone is not enough.

&quot;It must be backed by resolute action. Not just against forces of terrorism, but also against those who support, shelter, train and finance them,&quot; the prime minister said.

He was speaking after jointly inaugurating the annual ministerial conference here along with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani which is being attended by Pakistan Prime Minister Foreign Affairs Adviser Sartaj Aziz along with representatives of around 30 countries.

&quot;Silence and inaction against terrorism in Afghanistan and our region will only embolden terrorists and their masters. Third, our bilateral and regional commitments of material assistance for Afghanistan&#39;s development and humanitarian needs must continue and increase,&quot; Modi&nbsp;said.

Modi said there was a need to demonstrate strong and collective will to defeat terror networks that cause bloodshed and spread fear.

Expressing India&#39;s strong commitment to Afghanistan&#39;s transition, Modi said, &quot;On India&#39;s part, our commitment to our brave Afghan brothers and sisters is absolute and unwavering. The welfare of Afghanistan and its people is close to our hearts and minds.&quot;

He also called for an Afghan-led, Afghan-owned and Afghan-controlled peace process to bring stability to the country.&nbsp;

Calling for sustained and sincere global efforts to bring &quot;durable peace and lasting political stability&quot; to Afghanistan, Modi said securing its territory and citizens from external threats must be a focus area for the &quot;critical unfinished mission of our time&quot;.

&quot;We have no doubt about the scale of the challenge. But, we are equally determined to succeed,&quot; he said, adding the results of collective efforts thus far have been hard-won, but mixed.

Modi said there was a need to reflect with urgency on what more must be done and what must be avoided in Afghanistan so that its citizens can self-sustain peace and economic growth.

&quot;The question is of resolve and action. And, of putting Afghanistan and its people first. For this, First, an Afghan-led, Afghan-owned and Afghan-controlled process is key. It is the only guarantor of durability of solutions.

&quot;Second, we must demonstrate strong collective will to defeat terror networks that cause bloodshed and spread fear,&quot; he said.

Noting that all those involved in Afghanistan&#39;s transition must build on the gains of the last 15 years, he said what was at stake is not just the future of Afghanistan that has invested in a vision of development, democracy, and pluralism but the the peace and stability of the entire region, and beyond.

Pitching for improving connectivity between Afghanistan and countries of the region, the prime minister said Afghanistan should be at the centre of our connectivity networks, not peripheral to them.

&quot;On our part, we see Afghanistan as the hub for strengthening links of connectivity between South Asia and Central Asia.

&quot;We cannot deny that the more connected Afghanistan is with the regional arteries of trade, capital and markets, the more assured would be its economic growth and progress. President Ghani and I have converged on the priority of strengthening trade and transport linkages with other partners in the region,&quot; he said.

Talking about significance of hosting the Heart of Asia Conference in Amritsar, Modi said the flow of trade, people and ideas through the region has often intersected in the holy city on one of Asia&#39;s oldest and longest surface arteries, the Grand Trunk Road.

&quot;Amritsar reinforces the value of restoring connectivity which is so crucial for the overall growth, stability and economic prosperity of Afghanistan,&quot; he said, while describing the city as an embodiment of peace and humanism as well as a symbol of great valour and sacrifice.

Talking about Amritsar&#39;s link with Afghanistan, he said among the the earliest disciples of the first Guru of Sikhs, Baba Guru Nanak Dev ji, were Afghans he had preached in Kabul in the 15th century.

(PTI)

The Indian Prime Minister also pushed for stronger ties with Afghanistan

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday called for "resolute action" against terrorism in the region. In his address at the 6th conference of Heart of Asia, he also urged on the importance of taking strict action against those who support, shelter, train and finance them. "Terrorism and externally-induced instability pose the gravest threat to Afghanistan's peace, stability and prosperity. And, the growing arc of terrorist violence endangers our entire region. As such, support for voices of peace in Afghanistan alone is not enough. "It must be backed by resolute action. Not just against forces of terrorism, but also against those who support, shelter, train and finance them," the prime minister said. He was speaking after jointly inaugurating the annual ministerial conference here along with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani which is being attended by Pakistan Prime Minister Foreign Affairs Adviser Sartaj Aziz along with representatives of around 30 countries. "Silence and inaction against terrorism in Afghanistan and our region will only embolden terrorists and their masters. Third, our bilateral and regional commitments of material assistance for Afghanistan's development and humanitarian needs must continue and increase," Modi said. Modi said there was a need to demonstrate strong and collective will to defeat terror networks that cause bloodshed and spread fear. Expressing India's strong commitment to Afghanistan's transition, Modi said, "On India's part, our commitment to our brave Afghan brothers and sisters is absolute and unwavering. The welfare of Afghanistan and its people is close to our hearts and minds." He also called for an Afghan-led, Afghan-owned and Afghan-controlled peace process to bring stability to the country. Calling for sustained and sincere global efforts to bring "durable peace and lasting political stability" to Afghanistan, Modi said securing its territory and citizens from external threats must be a focus area for the "critical unfinished mission of our time". "We have no doubt about the scale of the challenge. But, we are equally determined to succeed," he said, adding the results of collective efforts thus far have been hard-won, but mixed. Modi said there was a need to reflect with urgency on what more must be done and what must be avoided in Afghanistan so that its citizens can self-sustain peace and economic growth. "The question is of resolve and action. And, of putting Afghanistan and its people first. For this, First, an Afghan-led, Afghan-owned and Afghan-controlled process is key. It is the only guarantor of durability of solutions. "Second, we must demonstrate strong collective will to defeat terror networks that cause bloodshed and spread fear," he said. Noting that all those involved in Afghanistan's transition must build on the gains of the last 15 years, he said what was at stake is not just the future of Afghanistan that has invested in a vision of development, democracy, and pluralism but the the peace and stability of the entire region, and beyond. Pitching for improving connectivity between Afghanistan and countries of the region, the prime minister said Afghanistan should be at the centre of our connectivity networks, not peripheral to them. "On our part, we see Afghanistan as the hub for strengthening links of connectivity between South Asia and Central Asia. "We cannot deny that the more connected Afghanistan is with the regional arteries of trade, capital and markets, the more assured would be its economic growth and progress. President Ghani and I have converged on the priority of strengthening trade and transport linkages with other partners in the region," he said. Talking about significance of hosting the Heart of Asia Conference in Amritsar, Modi said the flow of trade, people and ideas through the region has often intersected in the holy city on one of Asia's oldest and longest surface arteries, the Grand Trunk Road. "Amritsar reinforces the value of restoring connectivity which is so crucial for the overall growth, stability and economic prosperity of Afghanistan," he said, while describing the city as an embodiment of peace and humanism as well as a symbol of great valour and sacrifice. Talking about Amritsar's link with Afghanistan, he said among the the earliest disciples of the first Guru of Sikhs, Baba Guru Nanak Dev ji, were Afghans he had preached in Kabul in the 15th century. (PTI)

India: Resolute action needed against those sheltering terror forces, says Modi

Pakistan Premier&#39;s foreign affairs advisor Sartaj Aziz along with foreign ministers of four countries on Saturday called on Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi who told them that it was important to end terrorism and violence for fostering stability in Afghanistan and the region.

The Foreign Ministers of Kyrgyzstan, Iran, Afghanistan, and Slovakia, which holds the European Union Presidency this month, along with Pakistan Prime Minister&#39;s Foreign Affairs Advisor Aziz called on Modi ahead of the 6th Ministerial Conference of the Heart of Asia Istanbul Process on Afghanistan here.

Prime Minister Modi welcomed the Foreign Ministers and stressed it was the collective responsibility of all those in the region to work together to help Afghanistan out of its current difficulties, External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said.

The Prime Minister stated that his several interactions with both the common people of Afghanistan and the country&#39;s leadership had convinced him that the Afghan people were tired of the continuing violence and terrorism.

Prime Minister Modi stressed on &quot;the need to end terrorism and violence for fostering stability, security and development in Afghanistan and our region,&quot; Swarup said.

In this context, the Prime Minister hoped that discussions in the Ministerial Conference tomorrow will produce good results.

Agreeing with the Premier on the need to end violence in Afghanistan, the Foreign Ministers shared Prime Minister Modi&#39;s view that Afghanistan&#39;s stability, security and prosperity are integral to the region&#39;s, Swarup said.

&quot;They greatly appreciated the continued commitment and engagement of India and its leadership for these ends. The Foreign Ministers warmly thanked India for hosting the Conference and expressed confidence that all friends of Afghanistan will work together for realising the aspirations for peace and development,&quot; he said.

(PTI)

Narendra Modi stressed 'the need to end terrorism and violence for fostering stability, security and development in... our region'

Pakistan Premier's foreign affairs advisor Sartaj Aziz along with foreign ministers of four countries on Saturday called on Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi who told them that it was important to end terrorism and violence for fostering stability in Afghanistan and the region. The Foreign Ministers of Kyrgyzstan, Iran, Afghanistan, and Slovakia, which holds the European Union Presidency this month, along with Pakistan Prime Minister's Foreign Affairs Advisor Aziz called on Modi ahead of the 6th Ministerial Conference of the Heart of Asia Istanbul Process on Afghanistan here. Prime Minister Modi welcomed the Foreign Ministers and stressed it was the collective responsibility of all those in the region to work together to help Afghanistan out of its current difficulties, External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said. The Prime Minister stated that his several interactions with both the common people of Afghanistan and the country's leadership had convinced him that the Afghan people were tired of the continuing violence and terrorism. Prime Minister Modi stressed on "the need to end terrorism and violence for fostering stability, security and development in Afghanistan and our region," Swarup said. In this context, the Prime Minister hoped that discussions in the Ministerial Conference tomorrow will produce good results. Agreeing with the Premier on the need to end violence in Afghanistan, the Foreign Ministers shared Prime Minister Modi's view that Afghanistan's stability, security and prosperity are integral to the region's, Swarup said. "They greatly appreciated the continued commitment and engagement of India and its leadership for these ends. The Foreign Ministers warmly thanked India for hosting the Conference and expressed confidence that all friends of Afghanistan will work together for realising the aspirations for peace and development," he said. (PTI)

India PM to Pak's Aziz: Important to end terror for stability in South Asia

Here's the full text of the Amritsar declaration adopted at the 6th Heart of Asia ministerial conference

Amritsar Declaration: Complete text

The Supreme Court &nbsp;will hear all matters pertaining to demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 currency notes today (December 2).

The pleas will include the transfer petition filed by the Centre seeking stay on all the pending pleas against demonetisation, ANI reported.&nbsp;

The Centre had submitted an affidavit last week, telling the SC that the move is a step to unearth an illegal parallel economy.&nbsp;

&quot;Earlier, we constituted SIT to curb black money, amended Benami Act. The people might have to face some inconveniences. Re-calibration of ATMs is in full swing. Crores of fake currency notes have became useless. Funding of terror groups has been stopped,&quot; said the affidavit.

Attorney General Mukul Rohtagi told ANI&nbsp;that the Centre has&nbsp;filed a report in which it has told the court for the initiation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) and addressing &nbsp;other issues that could be affected because of demonetisation.&nbsp;

General Rohatgi had earlier filed a transfer petition before the Supreme Court seeking a stay on all pending pleas against demonetisation.

The SC had earlier refused to put a stay on hearings in various High Courts and lower courts on the demonetisation process.&nbsp;

(WION with inputs from ANI)

Attorney General Mukul Rohtagi said Centre had filed a report starting from the initiation of SIT and all other issues caused by the move

The Supreme Court will hear all matters pertaining to demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 currency notes today (December 2). The pleas will include the transfer petition filed by the Centre seeking stay on all the pending pleas against demonetisation, ANI reported. The Centre had submitted an affidavit last week, telling the SC that the move is a step to unearth an illegal parallel economy. "Earlier, we constituted SIT to curb black money, amended Benami Act. The people might have to face some inconveniences. Re-calibration of ATMs is in full swing. Crores of fake currency notes have became useless. Funding of terror groups has been stopped," said the affidavit. Attorney General Mukul Rohtagi told ANI that the Centre has filed a report in which it has told the court for the initiation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) and addressing other issues that could be affected because of demonetisation. General Rohatgi had earlier filed a transfer petition before the Supreme Court seeking a stay on all pending pleas against demonetisation. The SC had earlier refused to put a stay on hearings in various High Courts and lower courts on the demonetisation process. (WION with inputs from ANI)

Indian Supreme Court to hear all pleas on demonetisation today

For the 11th consecutive day, opposition parties stalled India&#39;s Parliament today, even while Prime Minister Narendra Modi was present in the upper house, Rajya Sabha.&nbsp;Members of Parliament have been demanding the resumption of debate on demonetisation.

Changing stance, the opposition demanded an apology from the Prime Minister for his remarks against those opposing demonetisation, and resorted to noisy protest when the demand was rejected.

During the first half of the day, Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha MPs expressed their concern over the way the commercial plane carrying West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee was kept hovering for a long time while landing at Kolkata airport last night. Banerjee said the aircraft was low on fuel.&nbsp;The government said the incident will be probed.

Starting off the question hour, leader of opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad said that while the Prime Minister has been addressing his party MPs in Parliament House and even speaking outside, the opposition parties have been demanding his presence during the debate on demonetisation issue.

Modi sat through the question hour on a day which had&nbsp;questions listed against his name. Subsequently, he was present in the post-lunch session at 2 pm as well.

&quot;We had been demanding for last 15 days (presence of PM). ...We are against blackmoney. We want to speak on this issue but with whom? Our anguish is that the Prime Minister is holding weekly meetings with his MPs in Parliament House. He is also speaking outside. Our demand is that the Prime Minister should be here and listen to us,&quot; Azad said.

When the senior Congress leader also alleged that the PM had remarked that ppposition parties support blackmoney-holders and said it was a &quot;big allegation&quot;, Bharatiya Janata Party members protested the remark.

Law and IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad and urban development minister M Venkaiah Naidu insisted that the House should continue with the debate on demonetisation, which started on November 16, the first day of the winter session.

Ansari also said that the debate has not been concluded and called the listed speaker, A U Singh Deo of Biju Janata Dal&nbsp;to start.

Sharad Yadav of Janata Dal (United) also demanded that the Prime Minister be present in the House through the discussion.

&quot;Why are you assuming that he (PM) will not participate?&quot; Ansari asked Yadav.

As Singh Deo rose to speak on demonetisation, Congress members started raising slogans like &quot;Pradhan Mantri Mafi Maango (PM should apologise)&quot; from the aisles.

The House was adjourned for 15 minutes amid the din.&nbsp;

(WION with inputs from PTI)

 
&nbsp;

The opposition MPs asked Modi to apologise for his remarks that targeted those opposing demonetisation

For the 11th consecutive day, opposition parties stalled India's Parliament today, even while Prime Minister Narendra Modi was present in the upper house, Rajya Sabha. Members of Parliament have been demanding the resumption of debate on demonetisation. Changing stance, the opposition demanded an apology from the Prime Minister for his remarks against those opposing demonetisation, and resorted to noisy protest when the demand was rejected. During the first half of the day, Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha MPs expressed their concern over the way the commercial plane carrying West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee was kept hovering for a long time while landing at Kolkata airport last night. Banerjee said the aircraft was low on fuel. The government said the incident will be probed. Starting off the question hour, leader of opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad said that while the Prime Minister has been addressing his party MPs in Parliament House and even speaking outside, the opposition parties have been demanding his presence during the debate on demonetisation issue. Modi sat through the question hour on a day which had questions listed against his name. Subsequently, he was present in the post-lunch session at 2 pm as well. "We had been demanding for last 15 days (presence of PM). ...We are against blackmoney. We want to speak on this issue but with whom? Our anguish is that the Prime Minister is holding weekly meetings with his MPs in Parliament House. He is also speaking outside. Our demand is that the Prime Minister should be here and listen to us," Azad said. When the senior Congress leader also alleged that the PM had remarked that ppposition parties support blackmoney-holders and said it was a "big allegation", Bharatiya Janata Party members protested the remark. Law and IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad and urban development minister M Venkaiah Naidu insisted that the House should continue with the debate on demonetisation, which started on November 16, the first day of the winter session. Ansari also said that the debate has not been concluded and called the listed speaker, A U Singh Deo of Biju Janata Dal to start. Sharad Yadav of Janata Dal (United) also demanded that the Prime Minister be present in the House through the discussion. "Why are you assuming that he (PM) will not participate?" Ansari asked Yadav. As Singh Deo rose to speak on demonetisation, Congress members started raising slogans like "Pradhan Mantri Mafi Maango (PM should apologise)" from the aisles. The House was adjourned for 15 minutes amid the din. (WION with inputs from PTI)

Opposition stalls India's Parliament even with PM Modi present

India can ill-afford to take much pride in having the world&#39;s fastest growing large economy when it releases September quarter data on Wednesday, with businesses, farmers and families all suffering after the government&#39;s sudden demonetization drive.

Having taken credit for putting life back in a moribund economy when he took power 2-1/2 years ago, Prime Minister Narendra Modi&#39;s crackdown on tax dodgers and counterfeiters by removing 500 rupee and 1,000 rupee banknotes from circulation has taken the economy down a very bumpy road.

How bumpy depends who&#39;s talking, but almost everyone agrees the drag on growth is likely to last through next year.

&quot;The move will weigh on Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth for a few quarters, dampening government revenues,&quot; warned credit ratings firm Moody&#39;s Investors Service. &quot;The decline in economic activity will lower corporate sales volumes and cash flows.&quot;

The quarterly gross domestic product data released on Wednesday won&#39;t show the ill-effects. July-September will be the last quarter before the impact is felt from Modi&#39;s bold and risky move this month to force people to deposit their hidden cash in banks, making it easy for the taxman to see.

The median estimate from a Reuters poll showed economists expect economic growth accelerated to 7.5 per cent in the September quarter from 7.1 per cent in the June quarter.

That&#39;s not as fast as the 7.9 per cent posted in the March quarter, but it had recovered momentum, and might have gone higher until Modi launched his attack on the so-called &quot;black economy&quot;.

While Modi has been praised for his intentions, people are wringing their hands over the cost of taking 86 per cent of the country&#39;s banknotes out of circulation virtually overnight.

The most optimistic forecasts suggest that India will finish this fiscal year in March with a respectable, but slightly lower growth rate of 7.3 per cent.

But the most pessimistic forecast, from Mumbai-based brokerage Ambit Capital, for a precipitous drop to 3.5 per cent growth shows just how worried people are. 
&nbsp;

Knock-on effects

With a small stock of smaller notes available and new bills of 500 and 2,000 rupee in short supply, Indians had to stand in snaking queues outside banks and cash machines to change their old notes.

The better off may have more money to change, but for the mass of Indians living on the margins the disruption and loss of earnings has caused real hardship.

Modi expects the cash situation to become normal by end-December, but critics say he is being over-optimistic.

Meantime, consumers are spending less, which is hurting small producers who, in turn, are being forced to scale back their activities.

As a consequence, supply chains at small, medium and even larger companies are breaking down. Trucks are stranded with no money for fuel, workers won&#39;t load goods for free, and distributors can&#39;t pay up. Wholesale markets in many cities are shut.

The cash crunch has jeopardised production of key commodities and hurt rural communities - just recovering after two years of drought - as farmers lack cash to buy seeds and fertiliser. As a result, the area under cultivation for India&#39;s winter crop has declined.

CMIE, an economic think tank, reckons the big banknote swap would cost at least $19 billion by the end of 2016 in foregone wages, lost business, and higher administrative expenses alone.

The liquidity shortage will retard efforts to revive private investment that has been plagued by weak external demand and a slow recovery in domestic demand.

And, despite the high economic growth rates seen over the past year-and-a-half, factories&#39; capacity utilization ratio remains stuck near their lowest level since 2009.

&quot;Given that the growth recovery has still not taken full hold, the impact of this demonetisation ... could delay the private corporate capex recovery,&quot; analysts at Morgan Stanley wrote in a note, adding that they don&#39;t expect that recovery to happen before 2018.

At least the potential for lower inflation holds out some hope that the Reserve Bank of India will extend its easing cycle with a quick interest rate cut.

&quot;The central bank might prefer to bring forward the rate cut to December to support growth and tap the favourable inflation outlook,&quot; said Radhika Rao, an economist with DBS Bank.

(Reuters)

The country will release September quarter data on Wednesday

India can ill-afford to take much pride in having the world's fastest growing large economy when it releases September quarter data on Wednesday, with businesses, farmers and families all suffering after the government's sudden demonetization drive. Having taken credit for putting life back in a moribund economy when he took power 2-1/2 years ago, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's crackdown on tax dodgers and counterfeiters by removing 500 rupee and 1,000 rupee banknotes from circulation has taken the economy down a very bumpy road. How bumpy depends who's talking, but almost everyone agrees the drag on growth is likely to last through next year. "The move will weigh on Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth for a few quarters, dampening government revenues," warned credit ratings firm Moody's Investors Service. "The decline in economic activity will lower corporate sales volumes and cash flows." The quarterly gross domestic product data released on Wednesday won't show the ill-effects. July-September will be the last quarter before the impact is felt from Modi's bold and risky move this month to force people to deposit their hidden cash in banks, making it easy for the taxman to see. The median estimate from a Reuters poll showed economists expect economic growth accelerated to 7.5 per cent in the September quarter from 7.1 per cent in the June quarter. That's not as fast as the 7.9 per cent posted in the March quarter, but it had recovered momentum, and might have gone higher until Modi launched his attack on the so-called "black economy". While Modi has been praised for his intentions, people are wringing their hands over the cost of taking 86 per cent of the country's banknotes out of circulation virtually overnight. The most optimistic forecasts suggest that India will finish this fiscal year in March with a respectable, but slightly lower growth rate of 7.3 per cent. But the most pessimistic forecast, from Mumbai-based brokerage Ambit Capital, for a precipitous drop to 3.5 per cent growth shows just how worried people are. Knock-on effects With a small stock of smaller notes available and new bills of 500 and 2,000 rupee in short supply, Indians had to stand in snaking queues outside banks and cash machines to change their old notes. The better off may have more money to change, but for the mass of Indians living on the margins the disruption and loss of earnings has caused real hardship. Modi expects the cash situation to become normal by end-December, but critics say he is being over-optimistic. Meantime, consumers are spending less, which is hurting small producers who, in turn, are being forced to scale back their activities. As a consequence, supply chains at small, medium and even larger companies are breaking down. Trucks are stranded with no money for fuel, workers won't load goods for free, and distributors can't pay up. Wholesale markets in many cities are shut. The cash crunch has jeopardised production of key commodities and hurt rural communities - just recovering after two years of drought - as farmers lack cash to buy seeds and fertiliser. As a result, the area under cultivation for India's winter crop has declined. CMIE, an economic think tank, reckons the big banknote swap would cost at least $19 billion by the end of 2016 in foregone wages, lost business, and higher administrative expenses alone. The liquidity shortage will retard efforts to revive private investment that has been plagued by weak external demand and a slow recovery in domestic demand. And, despite the high economic growth rates seen over the past year-and-a-half, factories' capacity utilization ratio remains stuck near their lowest level since 2009. "Given that the growth recovery has still not taken full hold, the impact of this demonetisation ... could delay the private corporate capex recovery," analysts at Morgan Stanley wrote in a note, adding that they don't expect that recovery to happen before 2018. At least the potential for lower inflation holds out some hope that the Reserve Bank of India will extend its easing cycle with a quick interest rate cut. "The central bank might prefer to bring forward the rate cut to December to support growth and tap the favourable inflation outlook," said Radhika Rao, an economist with DBS Bank. (Reuters)

Chilled by demonetisation, India to take cold comfort from strong GDP

Digital payment providers in India have mobilised hundreds of extra workers to enrol small merchants and offered their services for free, betting that severe cash shortages will prove to be the opportunity of a lifetime.

Signing people up, however, may be the easy part. Getting shops and customers to change their reliance on cash permanently will involve convincing people like Mohammad Javed, a 36-year-old meat shop owner in New Delhi.

Working out of a bustling market in the capital, he is surrounded by banks and ATM machines, but says he does not know how to use a credit card machine, let alone a mobile wallet.

He says business has dropped since Prime Minister Narendra Modi&#39;s shock move on November 8 to ditch higher value banknotes, but Javed does not believe mobile app providers offer a solution to his problem - or to his customers.

&quot;We don&#39;t have knowledge or resources to open a mobile wallet or card-swipe machine, and our customers who pay 100-200 rupees ($1.46-$2.92) are not interested either,&quot; he said.

Javed&#39;s reluctance is a reality check for the likes of Paytm and smaller rival MobiKwik, which have gone into promotional overdrive since Modi&#39;s announcement.

The prime minister, whose government supports digital payments, brought in demonetisation to crack down on the shadow economy and improve tax collection.

&quot;Why should India not make a beginning in creating a &#39;less-cash society?&#39;,&quot; he said on Sunday, &quot;Once we embark on our journey to create a &#39;less-cash society&#39;, the goal of &#39;cashless society&#39; will not remain very far.&quot;

Promising signs

The companies say results have been promising so far.

Paytm, backed by Chinese Internet giant Alibaba Group Holding, has added 700 sales representatives since November 8, taking its number of agents to 5,000.

The company, which has 4,500 full-time employees, plans to double the number of agents to more than 10,000, as it aggressively expands its network.

It says it has nearly doubled the number of small merchants signed up to its services to 1.5 million in the last few weeks and added eight million clients to the 150 million it had before the banknote ban.

MobiKwik, whose backers include US venture capital firm Sequoia Capital and American Express, said it had increased its agent base to more than 10,000 from about 1,000 before the Modi move.

Merchants on its platform have risen to 250,000 from 150,000 previously, and chief executive Bipin Preet Singh said they were aiming for a million in up to two months. It has added 5 million accounts since November 8, bringing the total to 40 million.

But challenges loom.

Credit Suisse estimates more than 90 per cent of consumer purchases are made in cash, as millions still do not have bank accounts. Those who do have bank cards mainly use them to withdraw from cash machines.

Sales of cheap smartphones have boomed in recent years, but internet networks remain patchy, especially in rural India. Financial literacy and technology usage also remain low.

Dillip Kumar Agrahari, a vegetable seller in a Mumbai suburb, recently signed up to Paytm but does not know how to operate a smartphone.

He hopes switching to digital payments will improve his business as the cash crunch drags on, but says he will have to depend on a cousin to help with accounts.

Many businesses have traditionally opted for cash transactions because they are hard for the tax man to trace, given sales taxes are typically at least 10 per cent.

Mangal Singh, a furniture store owner, said nearly 80 per cent of his business was transacted in cash, even though he accepts credit card payments.

&quot;We are working on wafer-thin margins,&quot; he said. &quot;If we are asked to pay 12.5 per cent tax and other charges, we will have to close down our shops.&quot;

Concerns also remain about the infrastructure for mobile payments, as customers or merchants from one platform cannot transfer payments to another.

MobiKwik said it had started offering wallet-to-wallet transfers, though not all rivals were on board.

When will profits come?

The challenges raise questions about whether the business models of mobile payments providers are sustainable.

Paytm recently slashed fees until December 31, from a system of fees that ranged from 1 to 4 per cent, with the most lucrative coming from telephone and utility bill payments.

MobiKwik is not charging fees until March 2017. The closely-held companies are loss-making.

Paytm Chief Executive Vijay Shekhar Sharma said the company expected to reach profitability in two years, without giving details. MobiKwik&#39;s co-founder Upasana Taku said they hoped to become profitable in mid-2018.

Fitch Ratings believes that once the cash crunch subsides, some merchants and customers will go back to business as usual, using notes to pay for transactions.

&quot;I would expect some amount of behavioural changes,&quot; said Fitch analyst Saswata Guha. &quot;We&#39;re still not sure if this shock per se is incentive enough for them to completely change the way they do things.&quot;

(Reuters)

&nbsp;

Once the cash crunch subsides, at least some merchants and customers are expected to go back to using cash

Digital payment providers in India have mobilised hundreds of extra workers to enrol small merchants and offered their services for free, betting that severe cash shortages will prove to be the opportunity of a lifetime. Signing people up, however, may be the easy part. Getting shops and customers to change their reliance on cash permanently will involve convincing people like Mohammad Javed, a 36-year-old meat shop owner in New Delhi. Working out of a bustling market in the capital, he is surrounded by banks and ATM machines, but says he does not know how to use a credit card machine, let alone a mobile wallet. He says business has dropped since Prime Minister Narendra Modi's shock move on November 8 to ditch higher value banknotes, but Javed does not believe mobile app providers offer a solution to his problem - or to his customers. "We don't have knowledge or resources to open a mobile wallet or card-swipe machine, and our customers who pay 100-200 rupees ($1.46-$2.92) are not interested either," he said. Javed's reluctance is a reality check for the likes of Paytm and smaller rival MobiKwik, which have gone into promotional overdrive since Modi's announcement. The prime minister, whose government supports digital payments, brought in demonetisation to crack down on the shadow economy and improve tax collection. "Why should India not make a beginning in creating a 'less-cash society?'," he said on Sunday, "Once we embark on our journey to create a 'less-cash society', the goal of 'cashless society' will not remain very far." Promising signs The companies say results have been promising so far. Paytm, backed by Chinese Internet giant Alibaba Group Holding, has added 700 sales representatives since November 8, taking its number of agents to 5,000. The company, which has 4,500 full-time employees, plans to double the number of agents to more than 10,000, as it aggressively expands its network. It says it has nearly doubled the number of small merchants signed up to its services to 1.5 million in the last few weeks and added eight million clients to the 150 million it had before the banknote ban. MobiKwik, whose backers include US venture capital firm Sequoia Capital and American Express, said it had increased its agent base to more than 10,000 from about 1,000 before the Modi move. Merchants on its platform have risen to 250,000 from 150,000 previously, and chief executive Bipin Preet Singh said they were aiming for a million in up to two months. It has added 5 million accounts since November 8, bringing the total to 40 million. But challenges loom. Credit Suisse estimates more than 90 per cent of consumer purchases are made in cash, as millions still do not have bank accounts. Those who do have bank cards mainly use them to withdraw from cash machines. Sales of cheap smartphones have boomed in recent years, but internet networks remain patchy, especially in rural India. Financial literacy and technology usage also remain low. Dillip Kumar Agrahari, a vegetable seller in a Mumbai suburb, recently signed up to Paytm but does not know how to operate a smartphone. He hopes switching to digital payments will improve his business as the cash crunch drags on, but says he will have to depend on a cousin to help with accounts. Many businesses have traditionally opted for cash transactions because they are hard for the tax man to trace, given sales taxes are typically at least 10 per cent. Mangal Singh, a furniture store owner, said nearly 80 per cent of his business was transacted in cash, even though he accepts credit card payments. "We are working on wafer-thin margins," he said. "If we are asked to pay 12.5 per cent tax and other charges, we will have to close down our shops." Concerns also remain about the infrastructure for mobile payments, as customers or merchants from one platform cannot transfer payments to another. MobiKwik said it had started offering wallet-to-wallet transfers, though not all rivals were on board. When will profits come? The challenges raise questions about whether the business models of mobile payments providers are sustainable. Paytm recently slashed fees until December 31, from a system of fees that ranged from 1 to 4 per cent, with the most lucrative coming from telephone and utility bill payments. MobiKwik is not charging fees until March 2017. The closely-held companies are loss-making. Paytm Chief Executive Vijay Shekhar Sharma said the company expected to reach profitability in two years, without giving details. MobiKwik's co-founder Upasana Taku said they hoped to become profitable in mid-2018. Fitch Ratings believes that once the cash crunch subsides, some merchants and customers will go back to business as usual, using notes to pay for transactions. "I would expect some amount of behavioural changes," said Fitch analyst Saswata Guha. "We're still not sure if this shock per se is incentive enough for them to completely change the way they do things." (Reuters)

Demonetisation: Digital payment firms cash in on India's money mess, but can it last?

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has asked all BJP lawmakers -- both MPs and MLAs -- to furnish all details of their bank transactions between November 8 and December 31 to party president Amit Shah.&nbsp;

The prime minister had on November 8, unexpectedly, announced that the country&#39;s 500- and 1,000-rupee notes would cease to be legal tender from midnight that day.&nbsp;

The move, he said, would unearth the black or illegal money floating in the Indian economy, and would also curtail terror funding.&nbsp;

While the announcement caught the entire country by surprise -- and led to a fair amount of panic -- the Opposition has since accused the BJP of having tipped off industrialists and thier own partymen about the move. They point to media reports about the BJP buying large tracts of land in the state of Bihar just before the announcement as proof.&nbsp;

ANI, citing sources, said the bank details will have to be furnised by January 1.&nbsp;

It is still unclear what will be done with the details once they are furnished, whether for example they will be made public.&nbsp;

The demonetisation of the two notes took 86 per cent&nbsp;of the cash in circulation then out of the economy.&nbsp;

It also led to tremendous hardship, considering 90 per cent&nbsp;of all transaction in India are conducted with cash.&nbsp;

(WION)

The details have to be given to party president Amit Shah by January 1

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has asked all BJP lawmakers -- both MPs and MLAs -- to furnish all details of their bank transactions between November 8 and December 31 to party president Amit Shah. The prime minister had on November 8, unexpectedly, announced that the country's 500- and 1,000-rupee notes would cease to be legal tender from midnight that day. The move, he said, would unearth the black or illegal money floating in the Indian economy, and would also curtail terror funding. While the announcement caught the entire country by surprise -- and led to a fair amount of panic -- the Opposition has since accused the BJP of having tipped off industrialists and thier own partymen about the move. They point to media reports about the BJP buying large tracts of land in the state of Bihar just before the announcement as proof. ANI, citing sources, said the bank details will have to be furnised by January 1. It is still unclear what will be done with the details once they are furnished, whether for example they will be made public. The demonetisation of the two notes took 86 per cent of the cash in circulation then out of the economy. It also led to tremendous hardship, considering 90 per cent of all transaction in India are conducted with cash. (WION)

Demonetisation: PM tells party MPs, MLAs to furnish all bank details from Nov 8 to Dec 31

The Government on Monday introduced a new Bill in Lok Sabha to tax newly deposited undeclared income as part of demonetisation drive.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Under the scheme namely,&nbsp;&lsquo;Taxation and Investment Regime for Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana,&nbsp;2016&rsquo; (PMGKY) proposed in the Bill, it said, &quot;Concerns have been raised that some of the existing provisions of the Income-tax Act, 1961 (the Act) can possibly be used for concealing black money. The Taxation Laws (Second Amendment) Bill, 2016 (&lsquo;the Bill&rsquo;) has been introduced in the Parliament to amend the provisions of the Act to ensure that defaulting assessees are subjected to tax at a higher rate and stringent penalty provision.&quot;

The Government said, &quot;In the wake of declaring specified bank notes &ldquo;as not legal tender&rdquo;, there have been suggestions from experts that instead of allowing people to find illegal ways of converting their black money into black again, the Government should give them an opportunity to pay taxes with heavy penalty and allow them to come clean so that not only the Government gets additional revenue for undertaking activities for the welfare of the poor but also the remaining part of the declared income legitimately comes into the formal economy.&quot;

<table border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1" summary="Changes to Income Tax Act">
	<caption>Overview of Amendments Proposed</caption>
	<tbody>
		<tr>
			<td>PARTICULARS</td>
			<td>EXISTING PROVISIONS</td>
			<td>PROPOSED PROVISIONS</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>General provision for penalty&nbsp;</td>
			<td>
			PENALTY (Section 270A)&nbsp;

			Under-reporting - @50% of tax&nbsp;

			Misreporting - @200% of tax

			(Under-reporting/ Misreporting income is normally difference between returned income and assessed income)
			</td>
			<td>No changes proposed</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Provisions for taxation &amp; penalty of unexplained credit, investment, cash and other assets</td>
			<td>
			Penalty (271AAB)

			(i) 10% of income, if admitted, returned and taxes are paid

			(ii) 20% of income, if not admitted but returned&nbsp;and taxes are paid

			(iii) 60% of income in any other case
			</td>
			<td>
			Penalty (271AAB)

			(i) 30% of income, if&nbsp;admitted, returned and taxes are paid

			(ii) 60% of income in any other case
			</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Taxation and Investment Regime for Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana, 2016&rsquo; (PMGKY)</td>
			<td>New Taxation&nbsp;and Investment&nbsp;Regime</td>
			<td>
			Undisclosed income in the form of cash &amp; bank deposit can be declared:

			(A)&nbsp;Tax, Surcharge, Penalty payable

			&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Tax&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;@30% of income declared

			&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;Surcharge &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;@33% of tax

			&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;Penalty&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;@10% of income&nbsp;declared

			&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;Total&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;@50% of income (approx.)

			<a id="m_5906746394611854875__GoBack" name="m_5906746394611854875__GoBack"></a>(B) &nbsp;Deposit

			&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 25% of declared income to be deposited in interest &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

			&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; free Deposit Scheme for four years.&nbsp;&nbsp;
			</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>&nbsp;</td>
			<td>&nbsp;</td>
			<td>&nbsp;</td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

&nbsp;

The declarant under this regime shall be required to pay tax @ 30% of the undisclosed income, and penalty @10% of the undisclosed income. Further, a surcharge to be called &lsquo;Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Cess&rsquo; @33% of tax is also proposed to be levied. In addition to tax, surcharge and penalty (totaling to approximately 50%), the declarant shall have to deposit 25% of undisclosed income in a Deposit Scheme to be notified by the RBI under the &lsquo;Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Deposit Scheme, 2016&rsquo;, it said.&nbsp;

&quot;This amount is proposed to be utilised for the schemes of irrigation, housing, toilets, infrastructure, primary education, primary health, livelihood, etc., so that there is justice and equality,&quot; it concluded. &nbsp;

The Taxation Law is expected to tax defaulting assessees at a higher rate and stringent penalty provision

The Government on Monday introduced a new Bill in Lok Sabha to tax newly deposited undeclared income as part of demonetisation drive. Under the scheme namely, ‘Taxation and Investment Regime for Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana, 2016’ (PMGKY) proposed in the Bill, it said, "Concerns have been raised that some of the existing provisions of the Income-tax Act, 1961 (the Act) can possibly be used for concealing black money. The Taxation Laws (Second Amendment) Bill, 2016 (‘the Bill’) has been introduced in the Parliament to amend the provisions of the Act to ensure that defaulting assessees are subjected to tax at a higher rate and stringent penalty provision." The Government said, "In the wake of declaring specified bank notes “as not legal tender”, there have been suggestions from experts that instead of allowing people to find illegal ways of converting their black money into black again, the Government should give them an opportunity to pay taxes with heavy penalty and allow them to come clean so that not only the Government gets additional revenue for undertaking activities for the welfare of the poor but also the remaining part of the declared income legitimately comes into the formal economy." Overview of Amendments Proposed PARTICULARS EXISTING PROVISIONS PROPOSED PROVISIONS General provision for penalty PENALTY (Section 270A) Under-reporting - @50% of tax Misreporting - @200% of tax (Under-reporting/ Misreporting income is normally difference between returned income and assessed income) No changes proposed Provisions for taxation & penalty of unexplained credit, investment, cash and other assets Penalty (271AAB) (i) 10% of income, if admitted, returned and taxes are paid (ii) 20% of income, if not admitted but returned and taxes are paid (iii) 60% of income in any other case Penalty (271AAB) (i) 30% of income, if admitted, returned and taxes are paid (ii) 60% of income in any other case Taxation and Investment Regime for Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana, 2016’ (PMGKY) New Taxation and Investment Regime Undisclosed income in the form of cash & bank deposit can be declared: (A) Tax, Surcharge, Penalty payable Tax @30% of income declared Surcharge @33% of tax Penalty @10% of income declared Total @50% of income (approx.) (B) Deposit 25% of declared income to be deposited in interest free Deposit Scheme for four years. The declarant under this regime shall be required to pay tax @ 30% of the undisclosed income, and penalty @10% of the undisclosed income. Further, a surcharge to be called ‘Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Cess’ @33% of tax is also proposed to be levied. In addition to tax, surcharge and penalty (totaling to approximately 50%), the declarant shall have to deposit 25% of undisclosed income in a Deposit Scheme to be notified by the RBI under the ‘Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Deposit Scheme, 2016’, it said. "This amount is proposed to be utilised for the schemes of irrigation, housing, toilets, infrastructure, primary education, primary health, livelihood, etc., so that there is justice and equality," it concluded.

Income Tax Act: This is how the new amnesty scheme looks like

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said that the decision on demonetisation is tough &quot;but (the) future will be bright&quot;.

He advised people, including villagers, to take the e-wallet route to withdraw money in order to counter problems while withdrawing money.

&quot;Era of wallet has gone, you can use your mobile phone as your bank branch with the same ease with which you take snaps and send them to friends,&quot; Modi said.&nbsp;

Earlier in the day, during his monthly address to the nation, Modi urged the nation, especially the youth, to embrace demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes and adopt digital banking.&nbsp;

About criticisms over implementation of the major currency move, Modi said that &quot;the disease which has infected the country for 70 years cannot have a simple treatment&quot;.&nbsp;

He appealed to people to be patient and allow the government the time need to fight black money. &quot;Time has come for everyone, particularly my young friends, to embrace e-banking, mobile banking &amp; more such technology,&quot; Modi tweeted.

He questioned the opposition&#39;s reluctance to digital banking and asked why they were resolute on its stand that the poor and rural population are not tech savy.&nbsp;

The government has launched programmes to assist people living in villages who do not have bank accounts yet.&nbsp;

He urged the citizens to participate in a survey and vote on the demonetisation policy through the Narendra Modi app on their mobile phones.&nbsp;

The scheme had the support of over 93 per cent of the 5,00,000 people, a statement put out by Prime Minister Modi&#39;s website said.

Modi also &nbsp;criticised opposition parties for announcing an all-India strike against demonetisation, saying they were organising the agitation at a time when he was trying to weed out corruption and black money.

&quot;I am stopping black money and corruption and some are giving call for Bharat Bandh (nationwide strike),&quot; Modi said during a rally in Uttar Pradesh.

Without naming any opposition party, Modi said: &quot;We are trying to curb corruption and they are organising &#39;Bharat Bandh&#39;. Should there be &#39;Bharat Bandh&#39; or should the route of corruption be blocked?&quot;&nbsp;

Meanwhile, the opposition -- spearheaded by the Congress -- clarified that while they would go ahead with &#39;Akrosh Diwas&#39; (Anger Day) on Monday to mark their protest, they would not hold a nationwide strike and bring the country to a standstill.&nbsp;

(WION with inputs from&nbsp;

&nbsp;

He urged the nation, especially the youth, to adopt digital banking

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said that the decision on demonetisation is tough "but (the) future will be bright". He advised people, including villagers, to take the e-wallet route to withdraw money in order to counter problems while withdrawing money. "Era of wallet has gone, you can use your mobile phone as your bank branch with the same ease with which you take snaps and send them to friends," Modi said. Earlier in the day, during his monthly address to the nation, Modi urged the nation, especially the youth, to embrace demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes and adopt digital banking. About criticisms over implementation of the major currency move, Modi said that "the disease which has infected the country for 70 years cannot have a simple treatment". He appealed to people to be patient and allow the government the time need to fight black money. "Time has come for everyone, particularly my young friends, to embrace e-banking, mobile banking & more such technology," Modi tweeted. He questioned the opposition's reluctance to digital banking and asked why they were resolute on its stand that the poor and rural population are not tech savy. The government has launched programmes to assist people living in villages who do not have bank accounts yet. He urged the citizens to participate in a survey and vote on the demonetisation policy through the Narendra Modi app on their mobile phones. The scheme had the support of over 93 per cent of the 5,00,000 people, a statement put out by Prime Minister Modi's website said. Modi also criticised opposition parties for announcing an all-India strike against demonetisation, saying they were organising the agitation at a time when he was trying to weed out corruption and black money. "I am stopping black money and corruption and some are giving call for Bharat Bandh (nationwide strike)," Modi said during a rally in Uttar Pradesh. Without naming any opposition party, Modi said: "We are trying to curb corruption and they are organising 'Bharat Bandh'. Should there be 'Bharat Bandh' or should the route of corruption be blocked?" Meanwhile, the opposition -- spearheaded by the Congress -- clarified that while they would go ahead with 'Akrosh Diwas' (Anger Day) on Monday to mark their protest, they would not hold a nationwide strike and bring the country to a standstill. (WION with inputs from

Demonetisation: PM says era of wallet is gone, use mobile like your bank

Three suspected Al-Qaeda operatives were arrested on Monday by India&rsquo;s National Investigation Agency (NIA) in Madurai in India&rsquo;s southern state of Tamil Nadu.

The three were allegedly planning to attack Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with 22 top leaders of India, police said.

Those arrested were identified as M Khareem, Asif Sultan Mohammed and Abbas Ali, PTI reported.

While Khareem was arrested from Usmannagar, Asif Sultan Mohammed was picked up from GR Nagar and Abbas Ali from Ismailpuram, police said.

Police said NIA raided several places on specific information that suspected Al-Qaeda activists were operating from South Tamil Nadu in and around Madurai. &ldquo;Explosive materials and arms have been seized from them,&rdquo; police said.

NIA is searching for two other suspected Al-Qaeda operatives, Hakeem and Dawood Sulaiman.

(WION with inputs from PTI)

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Police said the three allegedly planned to attack 22 top leaders of India

Three suspected Al-Qaeda operatives were arrested on Monday by India’s National Investigation Agency (NIA) in Madurai in India’s southern state of Tamil Nadu. The three were allegedly planning to attack Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with 22 top leaders of India, police said. Those arrested were identified as M Khareem, Asif Sultan Mohammed and Abbas Ali, PTI reported. While Khareem was arrested from Usmannagar, Asif Sultan Mohammed was picked up from GR Nagar and Abbas Ali from Ismailpuram, police said. Police said NIA raided several places on specific information that suspected Al-Qaeda activists were operating from South Tamil Nadu in and around Madurai. “Explosive materials and arms have been seized from them,” police said. NIA is searching for two other suspected Al-Qaeda operatives, Hakeem and Dawood Sulaiman. (WION with inputs from PTI)

Three suspected Al-Qaeda operatives planning to kill 22 top leaders including Indian PM Narendra Modi arrested

Terming Prime Minister Narendra Modi&#39;s demonetisation move as &quot;very bold&quot;, China&#39;s official media today said it was a &quot;gamble&quot; that would create a precedent irrespective of whether it succeeds or fails and China will draw lessons from its impact on corruption.

&quot;Modi&#39;s move is very bold. We cannot imagine what would happen in China if the country bans its 50 and 100 yuan notes,&quot; said an editorial in the state-run Global Times titled &#39;Modi takes a gamble with money reform&#39;. 100 yuan is China&#39;s highest currency note.

&quot;To prevent a leak of information jeopardising the implementation of the demonetisation reform, the roll out of the plan had to be kept confidential. Modi is in a dilemma as the reform aims to render the black money useless but the process goes against the governance principle of winning support of the public before initiating a new policy,&quot; the editorial said.

&quot;As more than 90 per cent of transactions in India are made with cash, banning 85 per cent of the currency in circulation brings a lot of trouble to people&#39;s daily life&quot; sparking fierce criticism including from &quot;former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh who termed it as organised loot&quot;, it said.

&quot;Demonetisation can crackdown on corruption and shadow economy but it is obviously unable to solve the deeper social and political issues that help breed the aforementioned problems,&quot; the editorial said.

However, it stated that as far as the root causes of corruption exist, the problems will always resurface. &quot;In other words, the Modi government wishes to turn a long and arduous reform into a one-off deal,&quot; it said.

&quot;Demonetisation is a gamble for Modi. He bet on both the execution ability of the government and the tolerance level of the Indian society, hoping that the benefits of this reform can outrun the negative social impacts and low morale,&quot; the editorial said.

It asserted that the &quot;Western-style&quot; democratic system of India allows little room for such bold moves. &quot;However, he is really carrying it out, and will create a precedent no matter he succeeds or fails,&quot; it said.

&quot;Reform is always difficult and requires more than just courage. Modi&#39;s demonetisation came with good intention but whether it can succeed depends on the efficiency of the system and the cooperation of the entire society. More and more people are growing pessimistic about the ability of Modi&#39;s government to control the process,&quot; the editorial said.

Noting that China&#39;s reform and opening-up has been going on for nearly 40 years, the editorial said it had ups and downs but remained largely stable. &quot;Its success is based on broad public support,&quot; it said.

&quot;The strong execution capabilities of the Communist Party of China are built on the consensus of the entire country. By observing India&#39;s reforms we will draw lessons, which would in turn help us understand our own reforms,&quot; it said. 
 
(PTI)

The article, which appeared in China's state-run Global Times, was titled 'Modi takes a gamble with money reform'

Terming Prime Minister Narendra Modi's demonetisation move as "very bold", China's official media today said it was a "gamble" that would create a precedent irrespective of whether it succeeds or fails and China will draw lessons from its impact on corruption. "Modi's move is very bold. We cannot imagine what would happen in China if the country bans its 50 and 100 yuan notes," said an editorial in the state-run Global Times titled 'Modi takes a gamble with money reform'. 100 yuan is China's highest currency note. "To prevent a leak of information jeopardising the implementation of the demonetisation reform, the roll out of the plan had to be kept confidential. Modi is in a dilemma as the reform aims to render the black money useless but the process goes against the governance principle of winning support of the public before initiating a new policy," the editorial said. "As more than 90 per cent of transactions in India are made with cash, banning 85 per cent of the currency in circulation brings a lot of trouble to people's daily life" sparking fierce criticism including from "former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh who termed it as organised loot", it said. "Demonetisation can crackdown on corruption and shadow economy but it is obviously unable to solve the deeper social and political issues that help breed the aforementioned problems," the editorial said. However, it stated that as far as the root causes of corruption exist, the problems will always resurface. "In other words, the Modi government wishes to turn a long and arduous reform into a one-off deal," it said. "Demonetisation is a gamble for Modi. He bet on both the execution ability of the government and the tolerance level of the Indian society, hoping that the benefits of this reform can outrun the negative social impacts and low morale," the editorial said. It asserted that the "Western-style" democratic system of India allows little room for such bold moves. "However, he is really carrying it out, and will create a precedent no matter he succeeds or fails," it said. "Reform is always difficult and requires more than just courage. Modi's demonetisation came with good intention but whether it can succeed depends on the efficiency of the system and the cooperation of the entire society. More and more people are growing pessimistic about the ability of Modi's government to control the process," the editorial said. Noting that China's reform and opening-up has been going on for nearly 40 years, the editorial said it had ups and downs but remained largely stable. "Its success is based on broad public support," it said. "The strong execution capabilities of the Communist Party of China are built on the consensus of the entire country. By observing India's reforms we will draw lessons, which would in turn help us understand our own reforms," it said. (PTI)

Demonetisation: Modi's 'gamble' will set precedent, says Chinese media

Total deposits in Jan Dhan accounts have increased to Rs 64,252.15 crore, with Uttar Pradesh leading the chart with Rs 10,670.62 crore deposits followed by West Bengal and Rajasthan, the government said today.

The government&nbsp;also stressed that no public sector banks had given any instructions to their officials to deposit Re 1 or 2 to avoid zero balance in Jan Dhan accounts.

&quot;As on November 16, 25.58 crore accounts with aggregate deposits of Rs 64,252.15 crore have been opened under Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) across the country,&quot; Minister of State for Finance Santosh Kumar Gangwar said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.

Leading the pack of states, Uttar Pradesh has the highest number of account holders to the tune of 3.79 crore and therefore highest deposits of Rs 10,670.62 crore. It is followed by West Bengal with 2.44 accounts and deposits of Rs 7,826.44 crore.

Rajasthan comes at the third spot with 1.89 crore accounts and the deposit in these accounts totals to Rs 5,345.57 crore while Bihar with 2.62 crore accounts have deposits of Rs 4,912.79 crore as of 16 November.

Out of 25.58 crore accounts, 5.98 crore (23.02 per cent) are zero balance accounts, he said.

&quot;All public sector banks have denied giving any instructions to deposit Re 1 to 2 in the zero balance accounts,&quot; he said.

&quot;Banks have been asked to ensure linkage of all PMJDY accounts with Aadhaar number in a time-bound manner. PMJDY envisages channelising all government benefits to thebeneficiaries to all accounts opened under the Yojana and thus trying to bring down the zero balance in such accounts by transferring Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT),&quot; he said.

In reply to a separate question, Minister of State for Finance Arjun Ram Meghwal said the currency in circulation as on 11 November is Rs 17.87 lakh crore.

RBI presses printed 2,119.5 crore pieces of bank notes during 2015-16 as against 2,365.2 crore pieces in the previous fiscal, Meghwal said.

During 2015-16, 429.1 crore pieces were Rs 500 notes and 97.7 crore pieces of Rs 1,000 were printed as compared to 501.8 crore pieces, 105.2 crore pieces, respectively in the previous fiscal.

Replying to another question, Meghwal said introduction of new series of bank notes in various denominations which are distinctly different in terms of look, design, size and colour has already been approved by the government.

The new banknotes in denominations of Rs 2,000 and Rs 500 are already in circulation and other denomination banknotes will also be circulated in due course, he said.

(PTI)

Uttar Pradesh noted the highest deposits of Rs 10,670.62 crores followed by West Bengal and Rajasthan

Total deposits in Jan Dhan accounts have increased to Rs 64,252.15 crore, with Uttar Pradesh leading the chart with Rs 10,670.62 crore deposits followed by West Bengal and Rajasthan, the government said today. The government also stressed that no public sector banks had given any instructions to their officials to deposit Re 1 or 2 to avoid zero balance in Jan Dhan accounts. "As on November 16, 25.58 crore accounts with aggregate deposits of Rs 64,252.15 crore have been opened under Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) across the country," Minister of State for Finance Santosh Kumar Gangwar said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha. Leading the pack of states, Uttar Pradesh has the highest number of account holders to the tune of 3.79 crore and therefore highest deposits of Rs 10,670.62 crore. It is followed by West Bengal with 2.44 accounts and deposits of Rs 7,826.44 crore. Rajasthan comes at the third spot with 1.89 crore accounts and the deposit in these accounts totals to Rs 5,345.57 crore while Bihar with 2.62 crore accounts have deposits of Rs 4,912.79 crore as of 16 November. Out of 25.58 crore accounts, 5.98 crore (23.02 per cent) are zero balance accounts, he said. "All public sector banks have denied giving any instructions to deposit Re 1 to 2 in the zero balance accounts," he said. "Banks have been asked to ensure linkage of all PMJDY accounts with Aadhaar number in a time-bound manner. PMJDY envisages channelising all government benefits to thebeneficiaries to all accounts opened under the Yojana and thus trying to bring down the zero balance in such accounts by transferring Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT)," he said. In reply to a separate question, Minister of State for Finance Arjun Ram Meghwal said the currency in circulation as on 11 November is Rs 17.87 lakh crore. RBI presses printed 2,119.5 crore pieces of bank notes during 2015-16 as against 2,365.2 crore pieces in the previous fiscal, Meghwal said. During 2015-16, 429.1 crore pieces were Rs 500 notes and 97.7 crore pieces of Rs 1,000 were printed as compared to 501.8 crore pieces, 105.2 crore pieces, respectively in the previous fiscal. Replying to another question, Meghwal said introduction of new series of bank notes in various denominations which are distinctly different in terms of look, design, size and colour has already been approved by the government. The new banknotes in denominations of Rs 2,000 and Rs 500 are already in circulation and other denomination banknotes will also be circulated in due course, he said. (PTI)

Demonetisation: Deposits in Jan Dhan accounts rise to Rs 64,250 crore

The Indian government is planning to introduce amendments to the Income Tax Act in the ongoing session of Parliament which will attract a minimum of 50 per cent tax on unaccounted bank deposits made in scrapped currency noted up to December 30, if declared to taxmen.&nbsp;

Sources told PTI, the proposal could also include a lock-in period of 4 years for half of the remaining amount, or 25 per cent of the original deposit.&nbsp;

In case the assessees do not disclose the unaccounted cash voluntarily and the money is detected by tax authorities, it will be charged with 60 per cent tax and a longer lock-in period, the sources added.

The amendments to the Income Tax Act were approved by the Cabinet last night and will now be presented in the Parliament, sources said.&nbsp;

Earlier, the tax authorities were considering levying a peak rate of tax and an added 200 per cent penalty on unexplained deposits above Rs 2.5 lakh. But they felt that such a move may not have legal backing.&nbsp;

This week, the government had ended the over-the-counter exchange of old currency notes at the banks, in an effort to encourage the people to make deposits to their bank accounts. All old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes can be deposited in bank accounts without any ceiling.&nbsp;

The government had allowed a 50-day window from November 10 to December 30 to deposit the banned currency in bank accounts.&nbsp;

(WION with inputs from PTI)

&nbsp;

The government is expected to present the proposed amendments to the Income Tax Act in the ongoing session of Parliament

The Indian government is planning to introduce amendments to the Income Tax Act in the ongoing session of Parliament which will attract a minimum of 50 per cent tax on unaccounted bank deposits made in scrapped currency noted up to December 30, if declared to taxmen. Sources told PTI, the proposal could also include a lock-in period of 4 years for half of the remaining amount, or 25 per cent of the original deposit. In case the assessees do not disclose the unaccounted cash voluntarily and the money is detected by tax authorities, it will be charged with 60 per cent tax and a longer lock-in period, the sources added. The amendments to the Income Tax Act were approved by the Cabinet last night and will now be presented in the Parliament, sources said. Earlier, the tax authorities were considering levying a peak rate of tax and an added 200 per cent penalty on unexplained deposits above Rs 2.5 lakh. But they felt that such a move may not have legal backing. This week, the government had ended the over-the-counter exchange of old currency notes at the banks, in an effort to encourage the people to make deposits to their bank accounts. All old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes can be deposited in bank accounts without any ceiling. The government had allowed a 50-day window from November 10 to December 30 to deposit the banned currency in bank accounts. (WION with inputs from PTI)

Demonetisation: Unaccounted deposits could attract 50 per cent tax, four year lock-in period

Attacking the Modi government, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday called the implementation of demonetisation as &#39;monumental management failure&#39; and urged the Prime Minister to find a practical and pragmatic solution to give relief to the common man.

Here is the complete text of his speech:

<blockquote>
I rise to highlight some of the problems that have arisen after the decision to demonetise Rs500 and Rs1000 currency notes.

Prime minister has been arguing that this is the way to curb black money, to prevent growth of forfeited currency notes and also to help in control of terrorist finance activity.

I do not disagree with these objectives. But what I do want to point out is that in the process of demonetisation, monumental mismanagement has been undertaken [applause] about which there is no opinions in the country as a whole.

Even those who say that this measure will do harm or will cause distress in the short term but be in the interest of the country in the long-run, I am reminded of what John Keynes said once: In the long run, all of us are dead.

And therefore it is important to take note of the grievances of the people, the ordinary people who have suffered as a result of this imposition on the country overnight by the prime minister.

And I say so with all responsibility, that the outcome&hellip; we do not know what will be final outcome. Prime minister has said that we should wait for 50 days. Well, 50 days is a short period, but for those who are poor and deprived section of the community, even 50 days torture can bring about disastrous effect. And that&rsquo;s why about 60 to 65 people have lost their lives. Maybe more.

And what is more is, what has been done can weaken and erode our people&rsquo;s confidence in the currency system and in the banking system. One, I would like to know from the prime minister, the names of any countries he may think of where people have deposited their money in the banks but they are not allowed to withdraw their money. This alone, I think, is enough to condemn what has been done in the name of [inaudible].

And sir, I would further like to point out that in my opinion, this scheme of (de)monetisation, the way it has been implemented will hurt agricultural growth in our country, will hurt small industry, will hurt all those people who are in the informal sectors of the economy. And my own feeling is that the national income, i.e. the GDP of the country, can decline by about two percentage points as a result of what has been done. This is an underestimate, not an overestimate.

Therefore, I feel that the prime minister must come with some construction proposal: How we can implement this scheme and at the same time, prevent this distress that is being caused to the common people?

It is no good that every day the banking system comes with modification of the rules, the conditions under which people can withdraw money. That reflects very poorly on the prime minister&rsquo;s office, on the finance minister&rsquo;s office and on the Reserve Bank of India. I am very sorry that the Reserve Bank of India has been exposed to this sort of criticism, which I think is fully justified.

I, therefore, would not like to say much more than this. I urge upon the prime minister to find practical, pragmatic ways and means to relieve the distress of the people who happen to be a great majority of our people. 
After all, 90 per cent of our people work in the informal sector, 55% of our workers in agriculture are feeling distressed. The cooperative banking system, which serves a large number of people in the rural areas, is non-functional. It has been prevented from handling [inaudible].

So, all these measures convince me that the way this scheme has been implemented is a monumental management failure and in fact, it is a case of organised loot and legalised plunder [inaudible].

With these words, sir, I conclude. It is not my intention to pick holes in what one side does, or another side does. But I sincerely hope that the prime minister will, even at this late hour, will help us to find practical, pragmatic ways and means to provide relief to the suffering people of this country.
</blockquote>

He urged the Prime Minister to find a practical and pragmatic solution to give relief to the common man

Attacking the Modi government, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday called the implementation of demonetisation as 'monumental management failure' and urged the Prime Minister to find a practical and pragmatic solution to give relief to the common man. Here is the complete text of his speech: I rise to highlight some of the problems that have arisen after the decision to demonetise Rs500 and Rs1000 currency notes. Prime minister has been arguing that this is the way to curb black money, to prevent growth of forfeited currency notes and also to help in control of terrorist finance activity. I do not disagree with these objectives. But what I do want to point out is that in the process of demonetisation, monumental mismanagement has been undertaken [applause] about which there is no opinions in the country as a whole. Even those who say that this measure will do harm or will cause distress in the short term but be in the interest of the country in the long-run, I am reminded of what John Keynes said once: In the long run, all of us are dead. And therefore it is important to take note of the grievances of the people, the ordinary people who have suffered as a result of this imposition on the country overnight by the prime minister. And I say so with all responsibility, that the outcome… we do not know what will be final outcome. Prime minister has said that we should wait for 50 days. Well, 50 days is a short period, but for those who are poor and deprived section of the community, even 50 days torture can bring about disastrous effect. And that’s why about 60 to 65 people have lost their lives. Maybe more. And what is more is, what has been done can weaken and erode our people’s confidence in the currency system and in the banking system. One, I would like to know from the prime minister, the names of any countries he may think of where people have deposited their money in the banks but they are not allowed to withdraw their money. This alone, I think, is enough to condemn what has been done in the name of [inaudible]. And sir, I would further like to point out that in my opinion, this scheme of (de)monetisation, the way it has been implemented will hurt agricultural growth in our country, will hurt small industry, will hurt all those people who are in the informal sectors of the economy. And my own feeling is that the national income, i.e. the GDP of the country, can decline by about two percentage points as a result of what has been done. This is an underestimate, not an overestimate. Therefore, I feel that the prime minister must come with some construction proposal: How we can implement this scheme and at the same time, prevent this distress that is being caused to the common people? It is no good that every day the banking system comes with modification of the rules, the conditions under which people can withdraw money. That reflects very poorly on the prime minister’s office, on the finance minister’s office and on the Reserve Bank of India. I am very sorry that the Reserve Bank of India has been exposed to this sort of criticism, which I think is fully justified. I, therefore, would not like to say much more than this. I urge upon the prime minister to find practical, pragmatic ways and means to relieve the distress of the people who happen to be a great majority of our people. After all, 90 per cent of our people work in the informal sector, 55% of our workers in agriculture are feeling distressed. The cooperative banking system, which serves a large number of people in the rural areas, is non-functional. It has been prevented from handling [inaudible]. So, all these measures convince me that the way this scheme has been implemented is a monumental management failure and in fact, it is a case of organised loot and legalised plunder [inaudible]. With these words, sir, I conclude. It is not my intention to pick holes in what one side does, or another side does. But I sincerely hope that the prime minister will, even at this late hour, will help us to find practical, pragmatic ways and means to provide relief to the suffering people of this country.

Demonetisation: What former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said in Parliament

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