<p>BJP&rsquo;s incessant attempts to check the feasibility to hold simultaneous state and general elections are worrisome. Modi has a knack of catching the opposition napping. More than the Congress and other opposition parties, it&rsquo;s the voters who should be worried about it since this is an attack on the fundamentals of our Constitution and voting rights.</p>

<p>If an Idea saves the government hundreds of thousands public exchequer and makes the process easier, save time and energy of those participating in election preparations, wouldn&rsquo;t it be a great one? Well, not really if it curtails the fundamental rights of the voters and the elected state assembly.</p>

<p>The Election commission of India&rsquo;s (ECI) assurance on Oct 5 to the Modi government that it was ready to hold simultaneous state and national polls by September 2018, may have come as a surprise to many but Prime Minister Modi and his government had given enough indications of this in last year or so. So much so, Mr Modi and BJP, along with the institutions, seems to have made up their mind to bring the idea into reality, much to the chagrin of the essential idea of democracy.</p>

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<p><strong>Modi&rsquo;s incessant pitch for simultaneous polls</strong></p>

<p>A month before ECI&rsquo;s assurance, on August 27, the NITI Ayog &mdash;India&rsquo;s planning commission released a report summarizing that all elections in India should happen in a free, fair and synchronized manner to ensure minimum &quot;campaign mode&quot; disruption to governance. Calling it in the &ldquo;National Interest,&quot; the commission had recommended forming an experts committee to work out an appropriate model and had urged Election Commission to set up the timeline for achieving this. Interestingly, within days of this report, the Vice-chairman Arvind Panagariya had resigned from the commission.</p>

<p>But NITI Ayog&rsquo;s report was totally in line with Prime minister Modi&rsquo;s pitch for holding the state and national elections together. Speaking in the Parliament in February in response to President Mukherjee&rsquo;s address, Mr Modi had spoken how the election expenditure of Rs 1,100 crore in 2009 Lok Sabha shot up four-fold to Rs 4,000 crore in 2014. While agreeing that the process may not be easy, Mr Modi had said, &ldquo;Few will lose some and others will lose more, but parties will have to come together to achieve this.&rdquo;</p>

<p>Ex-President Mr Pranab Mukherjee too, who Mr Modi fondly called a father figure, had supported the demand that the elections be held simultaneously. It appears that the Modi government has been doing extensive groundwork with various constitutional bodies to check the feasibility.</p>

<p><strong>Arguments in </strong><strong>favour</strong><strong> of the simultaneous polls</strong></p>

<p>The votaries of this idea have given two major advantages of making a &lsquo;one-time&rsquo; change in the process to synchronize the polls.&nbsp;</p>

<p>One, the huge cost of holding elections can be saved by holding polls together &mdash;since some of the state and national polls are just months apart. And two, there will be a continued focus on governance from the politicians than the &ldquo;disruptions of election campaigns&rdquo; and thereby reduced the time of model code of conduct that restricts the government schemes.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Take for instance the Maharashtra Assembly elections that took place in September 2014 right after the General elections of May 2014. The four-month gap, it is being argued that, resulted in huge loss of state exchequer.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Even former election commission Mr S. Y. Quraishi - was for this idea except that he thought the Constitutional amendment to effect this would not come easy.</p>

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<h5>The center can use Article 356 to dismiss the elected state governments and impose President&#39;s rule under rare circumstances.</h5>
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<p><strong>Why joint election is a serious threat to Federalism and Voting rights</strong></p>

<p>Although the so-called benefits of simultaneous polls look extremely lucrative, a close look at the electoral process and democracy reveals that this is only a grave danger subtly served with sugar of convenience and cost saving.<br />
The election commission mentioned that six states including Gujarat are going to Poll next year. The simultaneous elections are possible only if the Loksabha Polls, due in 2019, are advanced by a year to 2018. Or Alternatively, terms of assemblies like Karnataka or Madhya Pradesh are extended by one year (The term expires in March) and also to curtail the assemblies of the states such as Maharashtra and Haryana by few months in order to have joint elections along with Loksabha polls.</p>

<p>Renowned Supreme Court lawyer Karuna Nundy cautions against the curtailment of state assembly terms. &ldquo;There are state Governments whose term will extend beyond 2019. Those cannot be dissolved to align the State and Union elections unless this government and Parliament jump through some very unlikely constitutional hoops. For this reason, I don&#39;t believe this will happen, it&#39;ll be too strong a strike against federalism.&rdquo;</p>

<p>Ms Nundy&rsquo;s fear of strong strike against federalism is not unfounded. Although the center can use Article 356 to dismiss the elected state governments and impose President&#39;s rule under rare circumstances, curtailing the term for convenience would be very difficult to get across the parliament and legal hurdles.</p>

<p><strong>But what if the amendment gets passed? Will the common voter gain anything by using his voting rights </strong><strong>fewer</strong><strong> number of times? What about his choice of two different parties for state and national level?&nbsp;</strong></p>

<p>In the Delhi Assembly elections of Feb 2015, it was reported that many BJP voters who voted for Modi in 2014 chose Aam Admi party to take care of Delhi. In a simultaneous election, Delhi would have seen BJP government both at the state and the center. Thus, restricting Voters changing choices based on performance.</p>

<p>Payal Gaikwad, Constitutional Expert and Supreme Court lawyer stresses on the right of voters to get multiple chances to decide best options. She says, &ldquo;Elections have always been a turning point in this country. The Constitution mentions that elections are to be held in every 5 years, in both, the centre and the state but was silent over that it should happen simultaneously. Periodical elections give chance to people, to assess the performance of the candidate as well as the party. In Bihar assembly polls in 2015, wherein people changed the mandate and voted BJP out of the state despite giving it full mandate in 2014 Loksabha elections&rdquo;</p>

<p>If it was not for separate elections, both Delhi, Bihar and Karnataka would have seen BJP governments in the state as well, given that Modi was riding on a strong wave. But the local issues, voters basic amenities would have been sidelined in presence of strong nationwide waves.</p>

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<p>Bihar and Delhi election debacles did help in giving a break to BJP&rsquo;s ambitious plan of an opposition-free country. It forced them to rethink their strategies.</p>

<p>Nitin Meshram, Supreme Court advocate strongly opposes any such move and criticisms the much-touted cost saving. He says, &ldquo;We are in a shared federalism. Expenses on state exchequer is a malicious propaganda to prevent the enrolling of democracy in the society. More mature voters who are difficult to be emotionally fooled.&rdquo;</p>

<p>Bahujan Samaj Party founder Kanshi Ram famously called for elections frequently. He maintained that he prefers majbur sarkar (weak government) and not a majboot sarkar (strong government) since he thought a weak government will do more for the people if it sees that elections are round the corner.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Nitin Meshram tends to agree to this. He says &ldquo; if the elections are held at once for both &nbsp;Parliament &amp; Assemblies, the political parties, their leaders &amp; elected representatives would become absolutely arrogant, unresponsive &amp; hostile to the common public. It will also ensure widespread &amp; massive corruption by the political parties, its leaders &amp; by government agents.&rdquo;</p>

<p>Is India the only democracy where separate elections happen in general elections and state elections? The United States, often juxtaposed with Indian Democracy, have mid-term elections for Senate and Congress. The elections take place for many Senators and Congressmen two years after the Presidential elections are done. This significantly changes the majority in Senate and house halfway through the President&#39;s term. An election setback helps the President review its policies and pay more attention to the internal issues. During his first term, President Obama lost the control of Senate and House but this acted as a reality check and the President and his party worked hard to get re-elected for the second term.</p>

<p>Whether its L.K. Advani asking people to vote for only National parties (even if it meant voting Congress), Mr Vajpayee setting up Constitution review committee or the party repeatedly asking to fix the five-year term for the state assemblies and Parliament, BJP has long wanted to do away with established Constitutional norms. But BJP&rsquo;s seriousness in taking the simultaneous elections idea to significant actionable level should worry the supporters of democracy.</p>

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<p><strong>But why is BJP hell-bent on doing it this time?</strong></p>

<p>Well, the party has the majority in Loksabha and secured majority with regional parties so this is the best for it to go for any legislation. Also, after demonetisation, the BJP is best placed financially to fight elections at any time.</p>

<p>But the effects of anti-incumbency are now widely seen, with social media slowly turning against BJP and opposition trying to make a slow comeback, BJP may not want to give sufficient time for them to recover and may announce early general elections by &ldquo;sacrificing&rdquo; his coveted post for few months in the &ldquo;National Interest&rdquo;.</p>

<p>The simultaneous elections amendment will in effect mean fixing a five-year term for the governments. India&rsquo;s opposition parties must rise to this occasion and fight this inevitable attack on the fundamentals of the Constitution, Federalism and the basic rights of the voters. Their failure will lead India to a Political Autocracy in the guise of stability and maximum governance.</p>


Modi government persistent to hold General and State elections together to secure a five-year term

BJP’s incessant attempts to check the feasibility to hold simultaneous state and general elections are worrisome. Modi has a knack of catching the opposition napping. More than the Congress and other opposition parties, it’s the voters who should be worried about it since this is an attack on the fundamentals of our Constitution and voting rights. If an Idea saves the government hundreds of thousands public exchequer and makes the process easier, save time and energy of those participating in election preparations, wouldn’t it be a great one? Well, not really if it curtails the fundamental rights of the voters and the elected state assembly. The Election commission of India’s (ECI) assurance on Oct 5 to the Modi government that it was ready to hold simultaneous state and national polls by September 2018, may have come as a surprise to many but Prime Minister Modi and his government had given enough indications of this in last year or so. So much so, Mr Modi and BJP, along with the institutions, seems to have made up their mind to bring the idea into reality, much to the chagrin of the essential idea of democracy. Prime minister Modi pitch for holding the state and national elections together. × Modi’s incessant pitch for simultaneous polls A month before ECI’s assurance, on August 27, the NITI Ayog —India’s planning commission released a report summarizing that all elections in India should happen in a free, fair and synchronized manner to ensure minimum "campaign mode" disruption to governance. Calling it in the “National Interest," the commission had recommended forming an experts committee to work out an appropriate model and had urged Election Commission to set up the timeline for achieving this. Interestingly, within days of this report, the Vice-chairman Arvind Panagariya had resigned from the commission. But NITI Ayog’s report was totally in line with Prime minister Modi’s pitch for holding the state and national elections together. Speaking in the Parliament in February in response to President Mukherjee’s address, Mr Modi had spoken how the election expenditure of Rs 1,100 crore in 2009 Lok Sabha shot up four-fold to Rs 4,000 crore in 2014. While agreeing that the process may not be easy, Mr Modi had said, “Few will lose some and others will lose more, but parties will have to come together to achieve this.” Ex-President Mr Pranab Mukherjee too, who Mr Modi fondly called a father figure, had supported the demand that the elections be held simultaneously. It appears that the Modi government has been doing extensive groundwork with various constitutional bodies to check the feasibility. Arguments in favour of the simultaneous polls The votaries of this idea have given two major advantages of making a ‘one-time’ change in the process to synchronize the polls. One, the huge cost of holding elections can be saved by holding polls together —since some of the state and national polls are just months apart. And two, there will be a continued focus on governance from the politicians than the “disruptions of election campaigns” and thereby reduced the time of model code of conduct that restricts the government schemes. Take for instance the Maharashtra Assembly elections that took place in September 2014 right after the General elections of May 2014. The four-month gap, it is being argued that, resulted in huge loss of state exchequer. Even former election commission Mr S. Y. Quraishi - was for this idea except that he thought the Constitutional amendment to effect this would not come easy. The center can use Article 356 to dismiss the elected state governments and impose President's rule under rare circumstances. × Why joint election is a serious threat to Federalism and Voting rights Although the so-called benefits of simultaneous polls look extremely lucrative, a close look at the electoral process and democracy reveals that this is only a grave danger subtly served with sugar of convenience and cost saving. The election commission mentioned that six states including Gujarat are going to Poll next year. The simultaneous elections are possible only if the Loksabha Polls, due in 2019, are advanced by a year to 2018. Or Alternatively, terms of assemblies like Karnataka or Madhya Pradesh are extended by one year (The term expires in March) and also to curtail the assemblies of the states such as Maharashtra and Haryana by few months in order to have joint elections along with Loksabha polls. Renowned Supreme Court lawyer Karuna Nundy cautions against the curtailment of state assembly terms. “There are state Governments whose term will extend beyond 2019. Those cannot be dissolved to align the State and Union elections unless this government and Parliament jump through some very unlikely constitutional hoops. For this reason, I don't believe this will happen, it'll be too strong a strike against federalism.” Ms Nundy’s fear of strong strike against federalism is not unfounded. Although the center can use Article 356 to dismiss the elected state governments and impose President's rule under rare circumstances, curtailing the term for convenience would be very difficult to get across the parliament and legal hurdles. But what if the amendment gets passed? Will the common voter gain anything by using his voting rights fewer number of times? What about his choice of two different parties for state and national level? In the Delhi Assembly elections of Feb 2015, it was reported that many BJP voters who voted for Modi in 2014 chose Aam Admi party to take care of Delhi. In a simultaneous election, Delhi would have seen BJP government both at the state and the center. Thus, restricting Voters changing choices based on performance. Payal Gaikwad, Constitutional Expert and Supreme Court lawyer stresses on the right of voters to get multiple chances to decide best options. She says, “Elections have always been a turning point in this country. The Constitution mentions that elections are to be held in every 5 years, in both, the centre and the state but was silent over that it should happen simultaneously. Periodical elections give chance to people, to assess the performance of the candidate as well as the party. In Bihar assembly polls in 2015, wherein people changed the mandate and voted BJP out of the state despite giving it full mandate in 2014 Loksabha elections” If it was not for separate elections, both Delhi, Bihar and Karnataka would have seen BJP governments in the state as well, given that Modi was riding on a strong wave. But the local issues, voters basic amenities would have been sidelined in presence of strong nationwide waves. BJP’s seriousness in taking the simultaneous elections idea to significant actionable level should worry the supporters of democracy. × Bihar and Delhi election debacles did help in giving a break to BJP’s ambitious plan of an opposition-free country. It forced them to rethink their strategies. Nitin Meshram, Supreme Court advocate strongly opposes any such move and criticisms the much-touted cost saving. He says, “We are in a shared federalism. Expenses on state exchequer is a malicious propaganda to prevent the enrolling of democracy in the society. More mature voters who are difficult to be emotionally fooled.” Bahujan Samaj Party founder Kanshi Ram famously called for elections frequently. He maintained that he prefers majbur sarkar (weak government) and not a majboot sarkar (strong government) since he thought a weak government will do more for the people if it sees that elections are round the corner. Nitin Meshram tends to agree to this. He says “ if the elections are held at once for both Parliament & Assemblies, the political parties, their leaders & elected representatives would become absolutely arrogant, unresponsive & hostile to the common public. It will also ensure widespread & massive corruption by the political parties, its leaders & by government agents.” Is India the only democracy where separate elections happen in general elections and state elections? The United States, often juxtaposed with Indian Democracy, have mid-term elections for Senate and Congress. The elections take place for many Senators and Congressmen two years after the Presidential elections are done. This significantly changes the majority in Senate and house halfway through the President's term. An election setback helps the President review its policies and pay more attention to the internal issues. During his first term, President Obama lost the control of Senate and House but this acted as a reality check and the President and his party worked hard to get re-elected for the second term. Whether its L.K. Advani asking people to vote for only National parties (even if it meant voting Congress), Mr Vajpayee setting up Constitution review committee or the party repeatedly asking to fix the five-year term for the state assemblies and Parliament, BJP has long wanted to do away with established Constitutional norms. But BJP’s seriousness in taking the simultaneous elections idea to significant actionable level should worry the supporters of democracy. The simultaneous elections amendment will in effect mean fixing a five-year term for the governments. × But why is BJP hell-bent on doing it this time? Well, the party has the majority in Loksabha and secured majority with regional parties so this is the best for it to go for any legislation. Also, after demonetisation, the BJP is best placed financially to fight elections at any time. But the effects of anti-incumbency are now widely seen, with social media slowly turning against BJP and opposition trying to make a slow comeback, BJP may not want to give sufficient time for them to recover and may announce early general elections by “sacrificing” his coveted post for few months in the “National Interest”. The simultaneous elections amendment will in effect mean fixing a five-year term for the governments. India’s opposition parties must rise to this occasion and fight this inevitable attack on the fundamentals of the Constitution, Federalism and the basic rights of the voters. Their failure will lead India to a Political Autocracy in the guise of stability and maximum governance.

Simultaneous elections: New reform or an inescapable attack on the constitution and basic voting rights?

<p>BJP&rsquo;s incessant attempts to check the feasibility to hold simultaneous state and general elections are worrisome. Prime Minister Modi has a knack of catching the Opposition napping. More than the Congress and other Opposition parties, it&rsquo;s the voters who should be worried about it since this is an attack on the fundamentals of our Constitution and voting rights.</p>

<p>If an idea saves the government hundreds of thousands public exchequer and makes the process easier, save time and energy of those participating in election preparations, wouldn&rsquo;t it be a great one?</p>

<p>Well, not really if it curtails the fundamental rights of the voters and the elected state assembly.</p>

<p>The Election Commission of India&rsquo;s (ECI) assurance on October 5 to the Modi government that it was ready to hold simultaneous state and national polls by September 2018 may have come as a surprise to many. However, Prime Minister Modi and his government had given enough indications of this in last year or so. So much so, Mr Modi and BJP, along with the institutions, seems to have made up their mind to bring the idea into reality, much to the chagrin of the essential idea of democracy.Mr Modi and BJP, along with the institutions, seems to have made up their mind to bring the idea into reality, much to the chagrin of the essential idea of democracy.</p>

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<h5>Prime minister Modi pitch for holding the state and national elections together.</h5>
</blockquote>
</div>

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<p><strong>Modi&rsquo;s incessant pitch for simultaneous polls</strong></p>

<p>A month before ECI&rsquo;s assurance, on August 27, the NITI Ayog &mdash;India&rsquo;s planning commission released a report summarising that all elections in India should happen in a free, fair and synchronised manner to ensure minimum &quot;campaign mode&quot; disruption to governance. Calling it in the &ldquo;national interest,&quot; the commission had recommended forming an experts committee to work out an appropriate model and had urged Election Commission to set up the timeline for achieving this. Interestingly, within days of this report, the Vice-chairman Arvind Panagariya had resigned from the commission.</p>

<p>But NITI Ayog&rsquo;s report was totally in line with Prime minister Modi&rsquo;s pitch for holding the state and national elections together. Speaking in the Parliament in February in response to President Mukherjee&rsquo;s address, Mr Modi had spoken how the election expenditure of Rs 1,100 crore in 2009 Lok Sabha shot up four-fold to Rs 4,000 crore in 2014. While agreeing that the process may not be easy, Mr Modi had said, &ldquo;Few will lose some and others will lose more, but parties will have to come together to achieve this.&rdquo;</p>

<p>Ex-President Mr Pranab Mukherjee too, who Mr Modi fondly called a father figure, had supported the demand that the elections be held simultaneously. It appears that the Modi government has been doing extensive groundwork with various constitutional bodies to check the feasibility.</p>

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<h5>The huge cost of holding elections can be saved by holding polls together</h5>
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<p><strong>Arguments in favour</strong><strong> of the simultaneous polls</strong></p>

<p>The votaries of this idea have given two major advantages of making a &lsquo;one-time&rsquo; change in the process to synchronise the polls.&nbsp;</p>

<p>One, the huge cost of holding elections can be saved by holding polls together &mdash;since some of the state and national polls are just months apart. And two, there will be a continued focus on governance from the politicians rather than the &ldquo;disruptions of election campaigns&rdquo;. Also, it will reduce&nbsp;the time of model code of conduct that restricts the government schemes.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Take for instance the Maharashtra Assembly elections that took place in September 2014 right after the General elections of May 2014. The four-month gap, arguably, resulted in a huge loss of state exchequer.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Even former Election Commissioner&nbsp;Mr S. Y. Quraishi was in support of this idea except that he thought the constitutional amendment to effect this would not come easy.</p>

<p><strong>Why joint election is a serious threat to federalism and voting rights</strong></p>

<p>Although the so-called benefits of simultaneous polls look extremely lucrative, a close look at the electoral process and democracy reveals that this is only a grave danger subtly served with sugar of convenience and cost saving.</p>

<p>The Election Commission mentioned that six states, including Gujarat are going to the poll next year. The simultaneous elections are possible only if the Loksabha polls, due in 2019, are advanced by a year to 2018. Or alternatively, terms of assemblies in states like Karnataka or Madhya Pradesh are extended by one year (The term expires in March) and also to curtail the assemblies of the states, such as Maharashtra and Haryana by few months in order to have joint elections along with Loksabha polls.</p>

<p>Renowned Supreme Court lawyer Karuna Nundy cautions against the curtailment of state assembly terms. &ldquo;There are state governments whose term will extend beyond 2019. Those cannot be dissolved to align the State and Union elections unless this government and Parliament jump through some very unlikely constitutional hoops. For this reason, I don&#39;t believe this will happen, it&#39;ll be too strong a strike against federalism.&rdquo;</p>

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<h5>If it was not for separate elections, both Delhi, Bihar and Karnataka would have seen BJP governments in the state as well, given that Modi was riding on a strong wave.</h5>
</blockquote>
</div>

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<p>Ms Nundy&rsquo;s fear of strong strike against federalism is not unfounded. Although the center can use Article 356 to dismiss the elected state governments and impose President&#39;s rule under rare circumstances, curtailing the term for convenience would be very difficult to get across the parliament and legal hurdles.</p>

<p><strong>But what if the amendment gets passed? </strong></p>

<p>Will the common voter gain anything by using his voting rights a&nbsp;fewer number of times? What about his choice of two different parties for state and national level?&nbsp;</p>

<p>In the Delhi Assembly elections of February 2015, it was reported that many BJP voters who voted for Modi in 2014 chose Aam Admi party to take care of Delhi. In case of a simultaneous election, Delhi would have seen BJP government both at the state and the center. Thus, restricting voters changing choices based on performance.</p>

<p>Payal Gaikwad, constitutional expert and Supreme Court lawyer stresses on the right of voters to get multiple chances to decide best options. She says, &ldquo;Elections have always been a turning point in this country. The Constitution mentions that elections are to be held in every 5 years, in both, the centre and the state but was silent over that it should happen simultaneously. Periodical elections give chance to people, to assess the performance of the candidate as well as the party. In Bihar assembly polls in 2015, wherein people changed the mandate and voted BJP out of the state despite giving it full mandate in 2014 Loksabha elections&rdquo;</p>

<p>If it was not for separate elections, both Delhi, Bihar and Karnataka would have seen BJP governments in the state as well, given that Modi was riding on a strong wave. But the local issues and voters basic amenities would have been sidelined in presence of strong nationwide waves.</p>

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<h5>BJP&rsquo;s seriousness in taking the simultaneous elections idea to significant actionable level should worry the supporters of democracy.</h5>
</blockquote>
</div>

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<p>Bihar and Delhi election debacles did help in giving a break to BJP&rsquo;s ambitious plan of an opposition-free country. It forced them to rethink their strategies.</p>

<p>Nitin Meshram, Supreme Court advocate strongly opposes any such move and criticise the much-touted cost saving. He says, &ldquo;We are in a shared federalism. Expenses on state exchequer is a malicious propaganda to prevent the enrolling of democracy in the society. More mature voters who are difficult to be emotionally fooled.&rdquo;</p>

<p>Bahujan Samaj Party founder Kanshi Ram famously called for elections frequently. He maintained that he prefers majbur sarkar (weak government) and not a majboot sarkar (strong government) since he thought a weak government will do more for the people if it sees that elections are round the corner.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Nitin Meshram tends to agree to this. He says &ldquo; if the elections are held at once for both &nbsp;Parliament &amp; Assemblies, the political parties, their leaders &amp; elected representatives would become absolutely arrogant, unresponsive &amp; hostile to the common public. It will also ensure widespread and massive corruption by the political parties, its leaders and by government agents.&rdquo;</p>

<p><strong>Is India the only democracy where separate elections happen? </strong></p>

<p>The United States, often juxtaposed with Indian Democracy, have mid-term elections for Senate and Congress. The elections take place for many Senators and Congressmen two years after the Presidential elections are done. This significantly changes the majority in Senate and Congress halfway through the president&#39;s term. An election setback helps the president review its policies and pay more attention to the internal issues. During his first term, President Obama lost the control of Senate and House but this acted as a reality check and the president and his party worked hard to get re-elected for the second term.</p>

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<p>Whether its L.K. Advani asking people to vote for only national parties (even if it meant voting Congress), Mr Vajpayee setting up constitution review committee or the party repeatedly asking to fix the five-year term for the state assemblies and Parliament, BJP has long wanted to do away with established constitutional norms. But BJP&rsquo;s seriousness in taking the simultaneous elections idea to significant actionable level should worry the supporters of democracy.</p>

<p><strong>But why is BJP hell-bent on doing it this time?</strong></p>

<p>Well, the party has the majority in Loksabha, so this is the best time for it to go for any legislation. Also, after demonetisation, the BJP is best placed financially to fight elections at any time.</p>

<p>But the effects of anti-incumbency are now widely seen, with social media slowly turning against BJP and the Opposition trying to make a slow comeback. BJP may not want to give sufficient time for them to recover and may announce early general elections.</p>

<p>The simultaneous election&nbsp;amendment will in effect mean fixing a five-year term for the governments. India&rsquo;s Opposition parties must rise to this occasion and fight this inevitable attack on the fundamentals of the Constitution, Federalism and the basic rights of the voters. Their failure will lead India to a political autocracy in the guise of stability and maximum governance.</p>


Periodical elections, rather than simultaneous elections in the center and the state, give chance to people to assess the performance of the candidate as well as the party.

BJP’s incessant attempts to check the feasibility to hold simultaneous state and general elections are worrisome. Prime Minister Modi has a knack of catching the Opposition napping. More than the Congress and other Opposition parties, it’s the voters who should be worried about it since this is an attack on the fundamentals of our Constitution and voting rights. If an idea saves the government hundreds of thousands public exchequer and makes the process easier, save time and energy of those participating in election preparations, wouldn’t it be a great one? Well, not really if it curtails the fundamental rights of the voters and the elected state assembly. The Election Commission of India’s (ECI) assurance on October 5 to the Modi government that it was ready to hold simultaneous state and national polls by September 2018 may have come as a surprise to many. However, Prime Minister Modi and his government had given enough indications of this in last year or so. So much so, Mr Modi and BJP, along with the institutions, seems to have made up their mind to bring the idea into reality, much to the chagrin of the essential idea of democracy.Mr Modi and BJP, along with the institutions, seems to have made up their mind to bring the idea into reality, much to the chagrin of the essential idea of democracy. Prime minister Modi pitch for holding the state and national elections together. × Modi’s incessant pitch for simultaneous polls A month before ECI’s assurance, on August 27, the NITI Ayog —India’s planning commission released a report summarising that all elections in India should happen in a free, fair and synchronised manner to ensure minimum "campaign mode" disruption to governance. Calling it in the “national interest," the commission had recommended forming an experts committee to work out an appropriate model and had urged Election Commission to set up the timeline for achieving this. Interestingly, within days of this report, the Vice-chairman Arvind Panagariya had resigned from the commission. But NITI Ayog’s report was totally in line with Prime minister Modi’s pitch for holding the state and national elections together. Speaking in the Parliament in February in response to President Mukherjee’s address, Mr Modi had spoken how the election expenditure of Rs 1,100 crore in 2009 Lok Sabha shot up four-fold to Rs 4,000 crore in 2014. While agreeing that the process may not be easy, Mr Modi had said, “Few will lose some and others will lose more, but parties will have to come together to achieve this.” Ex-President Mr Pranab Mukherjee too, who Mr Modi fondly called a father figure, had supported the demand that the elections be held simultaneously. It appears that the Modi government has been doing extensive groundwork with various constitutional bodies to check the feasibility. The huge cost of holding elections can be saved by holding polls together × Arguments in favour of the simultaneous polls The votaries of this idea have given two major advantages of making a ‘one-time’ change in the process to synchronise the polls. One, the huge cost of holding elections can be saved by holding polls together —since some of the state and national polls are just months apart. And two, there will be a continued focus on governance from the politicians rather than the “disruptions of election campaigns”. Also, it will reduce the time of model code of conduct that restricts the government schemes. Take for instance the Maharashtra Assembly elections that took place in September 2014 right after the General elections of May 2014. The four-month gap, arguably, resulted in a huge loss of state exchequer. Even former Election Commissioner Mr S. Y. Quraishi was in support of this idea except that he thought the constitutional amendment to effect this would not come easy. Why joint election is a serious threat to federalism and voting rights Although the so-called benefits of simultaneous polls look extremely lucrative, a close look at the electoral process and democracy reveals that this is only a grave danger subtly served with sugar of convenience and cost saving. The Election Commission mentioned that six states, including Gujarat are going to the poll next year. The simultaneous elections are possible only if the Loksabha polls, due in 2019, are advanced by a year to 2018. Or alternatively, terms of assemblies in states like Karnataka or Madhya Pradesh are extended by one year (The term expires in March) and also to curtail the assemblies of the states, such as Maharashtra and Haryana by few months in order to have joint elections along with Loksabha polls. Renowned Supreme Court lawyer Karuna Nundy cautions against the curtailment of state assembly terms. “There are state governments whose term will extend beyond 2019. Those cannot be dissolved to align the State and Union elections unless this government and Parliament jump through some very unlikely constitutional hoops. For this reason, I don't believe this will happen, it'll be too strong a strike against federalism.” If it was not for separate elections, both Delhi, Bihar and Karnataka would have seen BJP governments in the state as well, given that Modi was riding on a strong wave. × Ms Nundy’s fear of strong strike against federalism is not unfounded. Although the center can use Article 356 to dismiss the elected state governments and impose President's rule under rare circumstances, curtailing the term for convenience would be very difficult to get across the parliament and legal hurdles. But what if the amendment gets passed? Will the common voter gain anything by using his voting rights a fewer number of times? What about his choice of two different parties for state and national level? In the Delhi Assembly elections of February 2015, it was reported that many BJP voters who voted for Modi in 2014 chose Aam Admi party to take care of Delhi. In case of a simultaneous election, Delhi would have seen BJP government both at the state and the center. Thus, restricting voters changing choices based on performance. Payal Gaikwad, constitutional expert and Supreme Court lawyer stresses on the right of voters to get multiple chances to decide best options. She says, “Elections have always been a turning point in this country. The Constitution mentions that elections are to be held in every 5 years, in both, the centre and the state but was silent over that it should happen simultaneously. Periodical elections give chance to people, to assess the performance of the candidate as well as the party. In Bihar assembly polls in 2015, wherein people changed the mandate and voted BJP out of the state despite giving it full mandate in 2014 Loksabha elections” If it was not for separate elections, both Delhi, Bihar and Karnataka would have seen BJP governments in the state as well, given that Modi was riding on a strong wave. But the local issues and voters basic amenities would have been sidelined in presence of strong nationwide waves. BJP’s seriousness in taking the simultaneous elections idea to significant actionable level should worry the supporters of democracy. × Bihar and Delhi election debacles did help in giving a break to BJP’s ambitious plan of an opposition-free country. It forced them to rethink their strategies. Nitin Meshram, Supreme Court advocate strongly opposes any such move and criticise the much-touted cost saving. He says, “We are in a shared federalism. Expenses on state exchequer is a malicious propaganda to prevent the enrolling of democracy in the society. More mature voters who are difficult to be emotionally fooled.” Bahujan Samaj Party founder Kanshi Ram famously called for elections frequently. He maintained that he prefers majbur sarkar (weak government) and not a majboot sarkar (strong government) since he thought a weak government will do more for the people if it sees that elections are round the corner. Nitin Meshram tends to agree to this. He says “ if the elections are held at once for both Parliament & Assemblies, the political parties, their leaders & elected representatives would become absolutely arrogant, unresponsive & hostile to the common public. It will also ensure widespread and massive corruption by the political parties, its leaders and by government agents.” Is India the only democracy where separate elections happen? The United States, often juxtaposed with Indian Democracy, have mid-term elections for Senate and Congress. The elections take place for many Senators and Congressmen two years after the Presidential elections are done. This significantly changes the majority in Senate and Congress halfway through the president's term. An election setback helps the president review its policies and pay more attention to the internal issues. During his first term, President Obama lost the control of Senate and House but this acted as a reality check and the president and his party worked hard to get re-elected for the second term. BJP’s seriousness in taking the simultaneous elections idea to significant actionable level should worry the supporters of democracy. × Whether its L.K. Advani asking people to vote for only national parties (even if it meant voting Congress), Mr Vajpayee setting up constitution review committee or the party repeatedly asking to fix the five-year term for the state assemblies and Parliament, BJP has long wanted to do away with established constitutional norms. But BJP’s seriousness in taking the simultaneous elections idea to significant actionable level should worry the supporters of democracy. But why is BJP hell-bent on doing it this time? Well, the party has the majority in Loksabha, so this is the best time for it to go for any legislation. Also, after demonetisation, the BJP is best placed financially to fight elections at any time. But the effects of anti-incumbency are now widely seen, with social media slowly turning against BJP and the Opposition trying to make a slow comeback. BJP may not want to give sufficient time for them to recover and may announce early general elections. The simultaneous election amendment will in effect mean fixing a five-year term for the governments. India’s Opposition parties must rise to this occasion and fight this inevitable attack on the fundamentals of the Constitution, Federalism and the basic rights of the voters. Their failure will lead India to a political autocracy in the guise of stability and maximum governance.

Simultaneous elections: Reform or an attack on Constitution?

<p>Turkey&nbsp;on Thursday welcomed an&nbsp;Iraqi&nbsp;parliament move to reject a referendum&nbsp;on&nbsp;Kurdish&nbsp;independence.</p>

<p>The parliament in Baghdad authorised the prime minister to &quot;take all measures&quot; to preserve Iraq&#39;s unity in response to the move to hold an independence&nbsp;referendum&nbsp;in Iraq&#39;s semi-autonomous Kurdish&nbsp;region on Sept. 25.</p>

<p>Kurdish&nbsp;leader Massoud Barzani vowed to press ahead with the vote, calling it &quot;a natural right&quot;.</p>

<p>&quot;Barzani&#39;s&nbsp;referendum&nbsp;decision is a historic mistake.&nbsp;Turkey&nbsp;will follow policies that take Iraq&#39;s territorial integrity as a basis,&quot; Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag said.</p>

<p>&quot;The northern Iraq&nbsp;referendum&nbsp;must be cancelled, if not it will have a cost and retribution,&quot; he said, adding the move would erode the region&#39;s peace and bring security risks.</p>

<p>Turkey&nbsp;has the region&#39;s largest&nbsp;Kurdish&nbsp;population and fears a &#39;Yes&#39; vote could fuel separatism in its southeast where&nbsp;Kurdish&nbsp;militants have waged an insurgency for three decades in which more than 40,000 people have been killed.</p>

<p>Ankara has built solid ties with Barzani&#39;s administration, founded on strong economic and energy links as well as Ankara and Erbil&#39;s shared suspicions of other&nbsp;Kurdish&nbsp;groups and Iraq&#39;s central government.</p>

<p>Iran and Syria also oppose the vote, fearing it could fan separatism among their own&nbsp;Kurdish populations.</p>

<p>Western powers worry the plebiscite - which would include the oil-producing city of Kirkuk - could ignite conflict with the central government in Baghdad and divert attention from the war against Islamic State militants.</p>

<p>Turkey&#39;s Foreign Ministry, in a statement on Thursday, said: &quot;We find the (Iraqi&nbsp;Kurdish) leadership&#39;s insistent stance regarding the&nbsp;referendum&nbsp;and its increasingly emotional statements worrying.</p>

<p>&quot;It should be noted that this insistence will definitely have a cost,&quot; it added. &quot;We call on them to act with good sense and abandon this erroneous approach immediately.&quot;</p>


The parliament in Baghdad authorised the prime minister to "take all measures" to preserve Iraq's unity in response to the move to hold an independence?referendum?in Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdish?region on Sept. 25.

Turkey on Thursday welcomed an Iraqi parliament move to reject a referendum on Kurdish independence. The parliament in Baghdad authorised the prime minister to "take all measures" to preserve Iraq's unity in response to the move to hold an independence referendum in Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdish region on Sept. 25. Kurdish leader Massoud Barzani vowed to press ahead with the vote, calling it "a natural right". "Barzani's referendum decision is a historic mistake. Turkey will follow policies that take Iraq's territorial integrity as a basis," Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag said. "The northern Iraq referendum must be cancelled, if not it will have a cost and retribution," he said, adding the move would erode the region's peace and bring security risks. Turkey has the region's largest Kurdish population and fears a 'Yes' vote could fuel separatism in its southeast where Kurdish militants have waged an insurgency for three decades in which more than 40,000 people have been killed. Ankara has built solid ties with Barzani's administration, founded on strong economic and energy links as well as Ankara and Erbil's shared suspicions of other Kurdish groups and Iraq's central government. Iran and Syria also oppose the vote, fearing it could fan separatism among their own Kurdish populations. Western powers worry the plebiscite - which would include the oil-producing city of Kirkuk - could ignite conflict with the central government in Baghdad and divert attention from the war against Islamic State militants. Turkey's Foreign Ministry, in a statement on Thursday, said: "We find the (Iraqi Kurdish) leadership's insistent stance regarding the referendum and its increasingly emotional statements worrying. "It should be noted that this insistence will definitely have a cost," it added. "We call on them to act with good sense and abandon this erroneous approach immediately."

Iraqi Kurdish referendum historic mistake: Turkey

<p>Iraq&#39;s parliament voted on Tuesday to reject an Iraqi Kurdish independence referendum planned for Sept. 25, authorising the prime minister to take all measures to preserve Iraq&#39;s unity, a lawmaker said.</p>

<p>&quot;Kurdish lawmakers walked out of the session but the decision to reject the referendum was passed by a majority,&quot; Mohammed al-Karbouli said.</p>

<p>Kurdish lawmaker Majid Shingali said Kurds would reject the decision.</p>

<p>&quot;This decision has no value and we will not implement it,&quot; he told Reuters.</p>

<p>Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi&rsquo;s government had previously rejected the referendum as unilateral and unconstitutional.</p>

<p>The United States and other Western nations fear the September vote in Iraqi Kurdistan could ignite a new conflict with Baghdad and possibly neighboring countries, diverting attention from the war against Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria.</p>

<p>Turkey, along with Iraq, Iran and Syria, also opposes the idea of Iraqi Kurdish independence, fearing separatism could spread to their own Kurdish populations.</p>

<p>Kurds have sought an independent state since at least the end of World War I, when colonial powers divided up the Middle East and left Kurdish-populated territory split between modern-day Turkey, Iran, Iraq and Syria.</p>


"Kurdish lawmakers walked out of the session but the decision to reject the referendum was passed by a majority," Mohammed al-Karbouli said.

Iraq's parliament voted on Tuesday to reject an Iraqi Kurdish independence referendum planned for Sept. 25, authorising the prime minister to take all measures to preserve Iraq's unity, a lawmaker said. "Kurdish lawmakers walked out of the session but the decision to reject the referendum was passed by a majority," Mohammed al-Karbouli said. Kurdish lawmaker Majid Shingali said Kurds would reject the decision. "This decision has no value and we will not implement it," he told Reuters. Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi’s government had previously rejected the referendum as unilateral and unconstitutional. The United States and other Western nations fear the September vote in Iraqi Kurdistan could ignite a new conflict with Baghdad and possibly neighboring countries, diverting attention from the war against Islamic State militants in Iraq and Syria. Turkey, along with Iraq, Iran and Syria, also opposes the idea of Iraqi Kurdish independence, fearing separatism could spread to their own Kurdish populations. Kurds have sought an independent state since at least the end of World War I, when colonial powers divided up the Middle East and left Kurdish-populated territory split between modern-day Turkey, Iran, Iraq and Syria.

Iraqi parliament rejects Iraqi Kurdish referendum

<p>BJP president Amit Shah today took oath as the member of the Rajya Sabha, making his debut in Parliament.<br />
His party colleague, Union minister Smriti Iran, also took oath as the member of the Upper House.<br />
While Shah took his pledge in Hindi, Irani took hers in Sanskrit.<br />
Both the leaders, accompanied by their spouses, were administered the oath in Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu&#39;s chamber.<br />
The two leaders, who were elected to the Rajya Sabha from Gujarat earlier this month, were accompanied by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, Food Minister Ram Vilas Paswan and Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad among others.<br />
Shah sat for a few minutes with his party colleagues in the BJP office in Parliament.<br />
After the oath, he and his wife called on BJP veteran leader L K Advani at his residence to seek his blessings, party leaders said.</p>


Both the leaders, accompanied by their spouses, were administered the oath in Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu's chamber

BJP president Amit Shah today took oath as the member of the Rajya Sabha, making his debut in Parliament. His party colleague, Union minister Smriti Iran, also took oath as the member of the Upper House. While Shah took his pledge in Hindi, Irani took hers in Sanskrit. Both the leaders, accompanied by their spouses, were administered the oath in Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu's chamber. The two leaders, who were elected to the Rajya Sabha from Gujarat earlier this month, were accompanied by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, Food Minister Ram Vilas Paswan and Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad among others. Shah sat for a few minutes with his party colleagues in the BJP office in Parliament. After the oath, he and his wife called on BJP veteran leader L K Advani at his residence to seek his blessings, party leaders said.

Amit Shah and Smriti Irani took oath as the member of Rajya Sabha

<p>Home minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday said Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi did not follow security protocol when his convoy was attacked in Gujarat last week.</p>

<p>Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.wionews.com/preview/article/18624">Attack on Rahul Gandhi: One person detained</a></p>

<p>&ldquo;Rahul Gandhi did not listen to the area police or SPG officials and refused bulletproof car in Gujarat,&rdquo; Singh said in the Lok Sabha.</p>

<p>Singh also added that Gandhi had not taken SPG protection on 6 foreign tours in the last two years.</p>

<p>&ldquo;In the last two years, Rahul Gandhi was out for 72 days on 6 foreign tours but didn&#39;t take SPG cover. We want to know, where did he go? Why didn&#39;t he take SPG cover?,&rdquo; ANI quoted Singh as saying in the Lok Sabha.</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">We want to know what is Rahul Gandhi trying to hide by not taking SPG along on foreign tours when he is a SPG protectee: HM in Lok Sabha</p>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI_news) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI_news/status/894804909723312128">August 8, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p>He was responding to allegations by Congress members that Gandhi could have been killed in Gujarat where <a href="http://www.wionews.com/preview/article/18606">stones were pelted on his car last week</a>.</p>

<p><br />
&nbsp;</p>


The home minister was responding to allegations by Congress members that Gandhi could have been killed in Gujarat where stones were pelted on his car last week

Home minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday said Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi did not follow security protocol when his convoy was attacked in Gujarat last week. Also read: Attack on Rahul Gandhi: One person detained “Rahul Gandhi did not listen to the area police or SPG officials and refused bulletproof car in Gujarat,” Singh said in the Lok Sabha. Singh also added that Gandhi had not taken SPG protection on 6 foreign tours in the last two years. “In the last two years, Rahul Gandhi was out for 72 days on 6 foreign tours but didn't take SPG cover. We want to know, where did he go? Why didn't he take SPG cover?,” ANI quoted Singh as saying in the Lok Sabha. We want to know what is Rahul Gandhi trying to hide by not taking SPG along on foreign tours when he is a SPG protectee: HM in Lok Sabha — ANI (@ANI_news) August 8, 2017 × He was responding to allegations by Congress members that Gandhi could have been killed in Gujarat where stones were pelted on his car last week.

Rahul Gandhi didn't follow security protocol when he was attacked in Gujarat: Rajnath Singh

<p>The past few days have seen Indian politics reaching a new low. With<a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/sacked-delhi-minister-kapil-mishra-alleges-kejriwal-took-rs-2-crore-bribe-aap-denies-charges-15301">&nbsp;new allegations of corruption</a> against Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and leader of the Rashtriya Janta Dal party <a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/fodder-scam-setback-for-lalu-as-supreme-court-orders-fresh-trial-against-him-15328">Lalu Prasad Yadav</a>, the public is losing trust in our political leaders.</p>

<p>It should come as no surprise though. The political watchdog Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) <a href="http://adrindia.org/research-and-report/election-watch/lok-sabha/2014/lok-sabha-2014-winners-analysis-criminal-and-finan">found in 2014</a> that a third of the members (185) in the current Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Indian parliament, faced criminal cases. It means 21% of Lok Sabha members&nbsp;(MPs) , or one in five, faced &#39;serious&#39; cases relating to murder, kidnapping, crimes against women etc.</p>

<p>Here are some graphics breaking the numbers down:</p>

<p><iframe class="highcharts-iframe" src="//cloud.highcharts.com/embed/ixuwoqy" style="border: 0; width: 100%; height: 500px"></iframe></p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>

<p><iframe class="highcharts-iframe" src="//cloud.highcharts.com/embed/yxalete" style="border: 0; width: 100%; height: 500px"></iframe></p>


With Indian politicians again getting mired in corruption and bribery scandals, we take a look at Indian MPs and the various cases against them

The past few days have seen Indian politics reaching a new low. With new allegations of corruption against Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and leader of the Rashtriya Janta Dal party Lalu Prasad Yadav, the public is losing trust in our political leaders. It should come as no surprise though. The political watchdog Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) found in 2014 that a third of the members (185) in the current Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Indian parliament, faced criminal cases. It means 21% of Lok Sabha members (MPs) , or one in five, faced 'serious' cases relating to murder, kidnapping, crimes against women etc. Here are some graphics breaking the numbers down:

Infographic: How many Lok Sabha MPs face criminal charges?

<p><meta charset="utf-8" /></p>

<p>Shiv Sena MP Ravindra Gaikwad, who had assaulted an Air India employee, attended the Lok Sabha proceedings on Thursday for the first time since the incident last month.</p>

<p>&quot;I apologise to the Parliament if I&#39;ve caused any hurt, but not to the Air India official,&quot; he said in the house.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&quot;Maine kya gunaah kiya? Mera kya apraadh hai ki jaanch ke bina media trial ho raha hai?&quot; he asked.&nbsp;</p>

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<p dir="ltr" lang="hi">Maine kya gunaah kiya? Mera kya apraadh hai ki jaanch ke bina media trial ho raha hai?: Ravindra Gaikwad,Shiv Sena MP in Lok Sabha</p>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI_news) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI_news/status/849875170571497473">April 6, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p dir="ltr" lang="en">I apologise to the Parliament if I&#39;ve caused any hurt, but not to the Air India official: Ravindra Gaikwad,Shiv Sena MP in Lok Sabha</p>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI_news) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI_news/status/849877110760099841">April 6, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p dir="ltr" lang="tl"><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WATCH?src=hash">#WATCH</a> Live: Shiv Sena MP Ravindra Gaikwad speaking in Lok Sabha <a href="https://t.co/7cYNiIVwSQ">https://t.co/7cYNiIVwSQ</a></p>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI_news) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI_news/status/849874608585007104">April 6, 2017</a></blockquote>
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<p>Just as the house met, Shiv Sena leader Anandrao Adsul said Gaikwad would be making a statement.</p>

<p>&ldquo;Either you allow him (to speak) now or later today, he should be allowed (to speak),&quot; he said.</p>

<p>Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan said he can speak during zero hour but not during question hour.</p>

<p>Before Adsul spoke, Sena members raised anti-Air India slogans while Civil Aviation minister Ashok Gajapati Raju was answering a question.</p>

<p>&quot;Goonda raj band karo...Nyay karo, nyay karo (Stop bullying, do justice)&quot; was one of the slogans.</p>

<p>Sena leader and Union minister Ananth Geete requested the Speaker to allow Adsul to speak briefly.</p>

<p>Gaikwad, an MP from Osmanabad, had abused and assaulted a 60-year-old duty manager of Air India with slippers for not being allowed to fly business class despite having boarded an all-economy flight.</p>

<p>(WION with inputs from PTI)</p>


'What is my crime?' he asked the Lok Sabha

Shiv Sena MP Ravindra Gaikwad, who had assaulted an Air India employee, attended the Lok Sabha proceedings on Thursday for the first time since the incident last month. "I apologise to the Parliament if I've caused any hurt, but not to the Air India official," he said in the house. "Maine kya gunaah kiya? Mera kya apraadh hai ki jaanch ke bina media trial ho raha hai?" he asked. Maine kya gunaah kiya? Mera kya apraadh hai ki jaanch ke bina media trial ho raha hai?: Ravindra Gaikwad,Shiv Sena MP in Lok Sabha — ANI (@ANI_news) April 6, 2017 × I apologise to the Parliament if I've caused any hurt, but not to the Air India official: Ravindra Gaikwad,Shiv Sena MP in Lok Sabha — ANI (@ANI_news) April 6, 2017 × #WATCH Live: Shiv Sena MP Ravindra Gaikwad speaking in Lok Sabha https://t.co/7cYNiIVwSQ — ANI (@ANI_news) April 6, 2017 × Just as the house met, Shiv Sena leader Anandrao Adsul said Gaikwad would be making a statement. “Either you allow him (to speak) now or later today, he should be allowed (to speak)," he said. Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan said he can speak during zero hour but not during question hour. Before Adsul spoke, Sena members raised anti-Air India slogans while Civil Aviation minister Ashok Gajapati Raju was answering a question. "Goonda raj band karo...Nyay karo, nyay karo (Stop bullying, do justice)" was one of the slogans. Sena leader and Union minister Ananth Geete requested the Speaker to allow Adsul to speak briefly. Gaikwad, an MP from Osmanabad, had abused and assaulted a 60-year-old duty manager of Air India with slippers for not being allowed to fly business class despite having boarded an all-economy flight. (WION with inputs from PTI)

Shiv Sena MP Gaikwad: Will apologise to Parliament, not AI staffer (he beat)

<p>The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of the Indian Parliament headed by KV Thomas grilled the Governor of Reserve Bank of India on Friday. Highly placed sources confirmed to WION that when members asked Urjit Patel as to who took the decision for demonetisation, Urjit Patel chose to remain silent.&nbsp;</p>

<p>PAC also saw a&nbsp;heated debate between the opposition and ruling party members as some members said that committee meeting was on the state of the&nbsp;economy and not demonetisation per say. Sources also said that there were many questions on demonetisation on which Urjit Patel chose to remain silent or gave general answers.</p>

<p>The committee members also asked the RBI governor to look into cases of irregular deposits in the cooperative banks of which he took note of. Some members also requested the RBI that it must look into the issue of cess which is charged when a digital transaction takes place. The members were of the opinion that the current reprieve should continue till things normalise in the economic system.</p>

<p>Sources said that Patel will be called again for questioning as many questions remained answered. Both the PAC and the Standing Committee of Finance are looking into the issue of demonetisation.<br />
<br />
(WION)</p>


Highly placed sources told WION that Urjit Patel chose to remain silent or gave generic replies to several questions

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of the Indian Parliament headed by KV Thomas grilled the Governor of Reserve Bank of India on Friday. Highly placed sources confirmed to WION that when members asked Urjit Patel as to who took the decision for demonetisation, Urjit Patel chose to remain silent. PAC also saw a heated debate between the opposition and ruling party members as some members said that committee meeting was on the state of the economy and not demonetisation per say. Sources also said that there were many questions on demonetisation on which Urjit Patel chose to remain silent or gave general answers. The committee members also asked the RBI governor to look into cases of irregular deposits in the cooperative banks of which he took note of. Some members also requested the RBI that it must look into the issue of cess which is charged when a digital transaction takes place. The members were of the opinion that the current reprieve should continue till things normalise in the economic system. Sources said that Patel will be called again for questioning as many questions remained answered. Both the PAC and the Standing Committee of Finance are looking into the issue of demonetisation. (WION)

India's central bank chief remains mum during demonetisation grilling

<p>Over 50 days after announcing demonetisation, with the situation yet to return to normalcy, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will discuss the impact of the note-ban with senior ministers on Tuesday, the Hindustan Times reported.</p>

<p>At the meeting, the Prime Minister will discuss the steps taken by the government so far. &nbsp;</p>

<p>&ldquo;The focus will be more on the slew of measures announced by the PM on the eve of the new year,&rdquo; a minister told the daily.</p>

<p>The report added that Modi will start a five day-long series of meetings with the secretaries of 10 ministries.</p>

<p>Addressing the nation on the eve of the new year, the Prime Minister had announced a slew of sops and praised the efforts of bankers post demonetistion.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&quot;My effort is to take the banking system to normalcy as fast as possible in the new year. I have asked all concerned officers in government to focus their attention to this task,&quot; he had said.</p>

<p>He also asked banks to work proactively, especially in rural and remote areas, to ease people&#39;s difficulties.</p>

<p>Meanwhile, a day ago, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi over demonetisation.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&quot;On the day of announcement of demonetization, Modi was saying with great confidence and telling people to see what happens on December 30, but nothing has happened,&quot; he told reporters.</p>

<p>(This report first appeared in DNA)</p>


Modi will reportedly also start a five day-long series of meetings with the secretaries of 10 ministries

Over 50 days after announcing demonetisation, with the situation yet to return to normalcy, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will discuss the impact of the note-ban with senior ministers on Tuesday, the Hindustan Times reported. At the meeting, the Prime Minister will discuss the steps taken by the government so far. “The focus will be more on the slew of measures announced by the PM on the eve of the new year,” a minister told the daily. The report added that Modi will start a five day-long series of meetings with the secretaries of 10 ministries. Addressing the nation on the eve of the new year, the Prime Minister had announced a slew of sops and praised the efforts of bankers post demonetistion. "My effort is to take the banking system to normalcy as fast as possible in the new year. I have asked all concerned officers in government to focus their attention to this task," he had said. He also asked banks to work proactively, especially in rural and remote areas, to ease people's difficulties. Meanwhile, a day ago, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi over demonetisation. "On the day of announcement of demonetization, Modi was saying with great confidence and telling people to see what happens on December 30, but nothing has happened," he told reporters. (This report first appeared in DNA)

Demonetisation: To review impact, PM Modi calls meeting of senior ministers

<p>Bracing for a showdown in Parliament, the BJP and Congress have instructed their members in both Houses to ensure their presence for the remainder of the Winter session which resumes today. The issue of demonetisation has cast a shadow on the winter session of Parliament with the opposition parties protesting the governments move to scrap high-value notes.</p>

<p>The Congress has issued the whip amid concerns in its ranks that the ruling side would rake up the AgustaWestland helicopter issue to target its top brass to &quot;divert attention from hardships faced by people due to demonetisation&quot;, sources in the party said.</p>

<p>Before Parliament reconvenes, leaders of Opposition parties will hold a meeting in the morning to decide their strategy in the House.</p>

<p>On its part, the ruling BJP also issued a whip to ensure that the treasury benches are in full strength in both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.</p>

<p>Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold a meeting with key ministers before Parliament convenes this morning to decide their strategy.</p>

<p>Finance minister Arun Jaitley has urged the Congress and other opposition parties to start a debate on demonetisation.</p>

<p>Information and broadcasting minister Venkaiah Naidu said Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be present in Parliament for the three remaining days of the Session and can participate in proceedings for either of the House depending on the need.</p>

<p>Congress sources blamed the government, saying it has made no attempt to reach out to the Opposition to break the logjam.</p>

<p>Both the government and the Opposition, especially the Congress and Trinamool Congress, have stuck to their stand that the debate be held under a Rule that entails voting which the treasury benches have ruled out.</p>

<p>Last Friday, the Congress changed its stand and expressed readiness for a debate under &quot;no rule&quot;. &nbsp;</p>

<p>Pitching for a debate, finance minister Arun Jaitley urged the Congress and other opposition parties to &quot;rise above slogans...&quot; and participate constructively.</p>

<p>The winter session, which began on November 16, is scheduled to conclude on Friday, with indications that it could be a virtual washout.</p>

<p>Parliament has seen little transaction of any substantial business because of the Opposition ruckus over demonetisation and some other issues.</p>

<p>Both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha continued to be deadlocked over the way a debate should take place on demonetisation, which was announced by the Prime Minister on November 8.</p>

<p>Ever since the session began, the Lok Sabha has managed to conduct only two legislative actions -- passage of Income Tax amendment bill and approval of Supplementary Demand for Grants -- that too amid din and without much debate.</p>

<p>The Rajya Sabha has functioned normally only on the first day of the session when the debate on demonetisation was initiated and held for about 5 hours.</p>

<p>(PTI)</p>


He is in Parliament; information minister Venkaiah Naidu had said he could participate in proceedings depending on need

Bracing for a showdown in Parliament, the BJP and Congress have instructed their members in both Houses to ensure their presence for the remainder of the Winter session which resumes today. The issue of demonetisation has cast a shadow on the winter session of Parliament with the opposition parties protesting the governments move to scrap high-value notes. The Congress has issued the whip amid concerns in its ranks that the ruling side would rake up the AgustaWestland helicopter issue to target its top brass to "divert attention from hardships faced by people due to demonetisation", sources in the party said. Before Parliament reconvenes, leaders of Opposition parties will hold a meeting in the morning to decide their strategy in the House. On its part, the ruling BJP also issued a whip to ensure that the treasury benches are in full strength in both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold a meeting with key ministers before Parliament convenes this morning to decide their strategy. Finance minister Arun Jaitley has urged the Congress and other opposition parties to start a debate on demonetisation. Information and broadcasting minister Venkaiah Naidu said Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be present in Parliament for the three remaining days of the Session and can participate in proceedings for either of the House depending on the need. Congress sources blamed the government, saying it has made no attempt to reach out to the Opposition to break the logjam. Both the government and the Opposition, especially the Congress and Trinamool Congress, have stuck to their stand that the debate be held under a Rule that entails voting which the treasury benches have ruled out. Last Friday, the Congress changed its stand and expressed readiness for a debate under "no rule". Pitching for a debate, finance minister Arun Jaitley urged the Congress and other opposition parties to "rise above slogans..." and participate constructively. The winter session, which began on November 16, is scheduled to conclude on Friday, with indications that it could be a virtual washout. Parliament has seen little transaction of any substantial business because of the Opposition ruckus over demonetisation and some other issues. Both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha continued to be deadlocked over the way a debate should take place on demonetisation, which was announced by the Prime Minister on November 8. Ever since the session began, the Lok Sabha has managed to conduct only two legislative actions -- passage of Income Tax amendment bill and approval of Supplementary Demand for Grants -- that too amid din and without much debate. The Rajya Sabha has functioned normally only on the first day of the session when the debate on demonetisation was initiated and held for about 5 hours. (PTI)

Demonetisation: Prime Minister Modi may speak in Parliament today

<p>India&#39;s president Pranab Mukherjee slammed opposition parties for for routinely disrupting proceedings in Parliament saying<br />
it amounted to &quot;gagging of majority&quot; by the minority.&nbsp;</p>

<p>&quot;Disruption means you are hurt, you are gagging majority. Majority never participates in this disruption. Only minority comes to the well, shouts slogans, stops the proceedings and creates a situation in which the Chair has no option but to adjourn the House. This is totally unacceptable&quot;.</p>

<p>Mukherjee&#39;s scathing attack comes in the midst of paralysis of Parliament procedings for over a fortnight over the issue of demonetisation.</p>

<p>&quot;Disruption is totally unacceptable in Parliamentary system. People send representatives to speak and not to sit on dharna (agitation) and not to create any trouble on the floor,&quot; the president said during a lecture in capital New Delhi. He was speaking on the topic &quot;Electoral reforms for a stronger democracy&quot;&nbsp;</p>

<p>&quot;For demonstration, you can choose any other places. But for God&#39;s sake, do your job. You are meant to transact business. You are meant to devote your time for exercising the authority of members, particularly Lok Sabha members over money and finance,&quot; he said.</p>

<p>Mukherjee, a veteran Parliamentarian himself before he became president, lamented the routine disruption of Parliamentary proceedings, given that Parliament was in session for only a few weeks in a year. He said that even if a member was levelling an allegation against someone, no court could prosecute him because what he said was on the floor of the House.</p>

<p>&quot;Fact remains that this (disruption) has become a practice which should not be acceptable at all. Whatever be the differences, we have the opportunity, to speak our mind, to speak freely and no court can interfere in what I say on the floor of the House,&quot; he said. &quot;This type of freedom should not be misused by causing disruption,&quot; he said.</p>

<p>(WION with inputs from PTI)</p>


Pranab Mukherjee's scathing attack comes in the midst of paralysis of Parliament procedings for over a fortnight over demonetisation

India's president Pranab Mukherjee slammed opposition parties for for routinely disrupting proceedings in Parliament saying it amounted to "gagging of majority" by the minority. "Disruption means you are hurt, you are gagging majority. Majority never participates in this disruption. Only minority comes to the well, shouts slogans, stops the proceedings and creates a situation in which the Chair has no option but to adjourn the House. This is totally unacceptable". Mukherjee's scathing attack comes in the midst of paralysis of Parliament procedings for over a fortnight over the issue of demonetisation. "Disruption is totally unacceptable in Parliamentary system. People send representatives to speak and not to sit on dharna (agitation) and not to create any trouble on the floor," the president said during a lecture in capital New Delhi. He was speaking on the topic "Electoral reforms for a stronger democracy" "For demonstration, you can choose any other places. But for God's sake, do your job. You are meant to transact business. You are meant to devote your time for exercising the authority of members, particularly Lok Sabha members over money and finance," he said. Mukherjee, a veteran Parliamentarian himself before he became president, lamented the routine disruption of Parliamentary proceedings, given that Parliament was in session for only a few weeks in a year. He said that even if a member was levelling an allegation against someone, no court could prosecute him because what he said was on the floor of the House. "Fact remains that this (disruption) has become a practice which should not be acceptable at all. Whatever be the differences, we have the opportunity, to speak our mind, to speak freely and no court can interfere in what I say on the floor of the House," he said. "This type of freedom should not be misused by causing disruption," he said. (WION with inputs from PTI)

'For god's sake, do your job': India's President slams opposition for disrupting Parliament

<p>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.</p>

<p>Here is the complete text of his speech:</p>

<blockquote>
<p>I rise to highlight some of the problems that have arisen after the decision to demonetise Rs500 and Rs1000 currency notes.</p>

<p>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.</p>

<p>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.</p>

<p>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.</p>

<p>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.</p>

<p>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.</p>

<p>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].</p>

<p>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.</p>

<p>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?</p>

<p>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.</p>

<p>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.<br />
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].</p>

<p>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].</p>

<p>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.</p>
</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

<p>In a reply to the opposition in India, the BJP said that the government was eager to hear Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi&#39;s &quot;scholarly&quot; arguments on demonetisation.</p>

<p>Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad also spoke about the Congress&#39; poor show in by-poll results, which were announced yesterday. Instead of forming a&nbsp;human chain outside the Parliament they should produce a &quot;chain of speakers&quot; inside and start a debate, he said.</p>

<p>&quot;The government is very keen to hear Rahul Gandhi&#39;s scholarly arguments. Rajya Sabha witnessed a debate on November 17 and Congress leaders like Ghulam Nabi Azad and Anand Sharma besides BSP&#39;s Mayawati spoke. What happened now that they are running away from a debate. They realise that the country is not appreciating their arguments,&quot; DNA reported Prasad as saying.</p>

<p>Meanwhile, there were reports that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to attend the Rajya Sabha tomorrow.&nbsp;</p>

<p>Prasad said that over Rs 7 lakh crores have been deposited in banks and it may lead to lower interest rates and other benefits to the masses.</p>

<p>Opposition parties today came together to protest against demonetisation outside Parliament, with Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi describing it as the world&#39;s &quot;biggest impromptu financial experiment&quot; and said they are firm on their demand for a JPC probe into the &quot;scam&quot;.</p>

<p>&quot;Our demand is that PM represents the country and he should come to Parliament and sit through the entire debate and hear us out and the other opposition leaders,&quot; Gandhi said.</p>

<p>&quot;We feel there is a scam behind this decision. We feel he informed his own people before and the opposition is firm that it wants a JPC,&quot; he said.</p>

<p>He added that the decision has hit the fishermen in Bengal and Kerala and other places.</p>

<p>(WION with inputs from DNA)</p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>


Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad today lashed out at the opposition saying it should debate in Parliament instead of protesting outside

In a reply to the opposition in India, the BJP said that the government was eager to hear Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi's "scholarly" arguments on demonetisation. Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad also spoke about the Congress' poor show in by-poll results, which were announced yesterday. Instead of forming a human chain outside the Parliament they should produce a "chain of speakers" inside and start a debate, he said. "The government is very keen to hear Rahul Gandhi's scholarly arguments. Rajya Sabha witnessed a debate on November 17 and Congress leaders like Ghulam Nabi Azad and Anand Sharma besides BSP's Mayawati spoke. What happened now that they are running away from a debate. They realise that the country is not appreciating their arguments," DNA reported Prasad as saying. Meanwhile, there were reports that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to attend the Rajya Sabha tomorrow. Prasad said that over Rs 7 lakh crores have been deposited in banks and it may lead to lower interest rates and other benefits to the masses. Opposition parties today came together to protest against demonetisation outside Parliament, with Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi describing it as the world's "biggest impromptu financial experiment" and said they are firm on their demand for a JPC probe into the "scam". "Our demand is that PM represents the country and he should come to Parliament and sit through the entire debate and hear us out and the other opposition leaders," Gandhi said. "We feel there is a scam behind this decision. We feel he informed his own people before and the opposition is firm that it wants a JPC," he said. He added that the decision has hit the fishermen in Bengal and Kerala and other places. (WION with inputs from DNA)

Demonetisation: Government ready to hear 'scholarly arguments' of opposition

<p>India&#39;s law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Tuesday accused the opposition parties of creating unwarranted ruckus in the Parliament and alleged that those opposing the demonetisation drive did not have anything concrete against the<br />
move.</p>

<p>People avoiding the debate on demonetisation, are running away from truth, he said. &quot;We expect the opposition to participate in the debate. But I would like to ask that we did have a debate on the 16th, it went on for the whole day. But it was stalled. Why?&quot; Prasad questioned.</p>

<p>&quot;I would like to assert that they don&#39;t have any statement to make, they don&#39;t have answers and that is why they are running away from a debate,&quot; he added.</p>

<p>The Lok Sabha earlier today witnessed chaos as a united opposition stuck to its demand to discuss the demonetisation issue under rules entailing voting.</p>

<p>The speaker adjourned the house till noon and then for the day. Similar scenes were witnessed in the Upper House too with the opposition demanding the Prime Minister&#39;s presence in the house and payment of compensation to those who died of trauma while queuing up before banks and ATMs following demonetisation of high value currency notes, ANI reported.</p>

<p>The house was adjourned for the day too.</p>

<p>Earlier today, Indian Prime Minister Modi asserted that the demonetisation of high value currency is just a beginning of his government&#39;s deep and continuous struggle against black money. The decision is in the interest of poor and middle class, he said.</p>

<p>Congress on Tuesday alleged that the government&#39;s demonetisation drive has unleashed financial anarchy and asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to tender an apology to the nation.</p>

<p>&quot;What is happening in India is a continual illegality because the money which is there in the bank accounts of the people is their own money and nobody neither the Prime Minister nor the Finance Minister or the Reserve Bank of India have any legal power or authority to deny Indian citizens access to their own bank accounts,&quot; Congress leader Anand Sharma said.</p>

<p>(WION with inputs from agencies)</p>


Both houses of the Parliament today witnessed ruckus over the demonetisation debate, leading to both houses being adjourned for the day

India's law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Tuesday accused the opposition parties of creating unwarranted ruckus in the Parliament and alleged that those opposing the demonetisation drive did not have anything concrete against the move. People avoiding the debate on demonetisation, are running away from truth, he said. "We expect the opposition to participate in the debate. But I would like to ask that we did have a debate on the 16th, it went on for the whole day. But it was stalled. Why?" Prasad questioned. "I would like to assert that they don't have any statement to make, they don't have answers and that is why they are running away from a debate," he added. The Lok Sabha earlier today witnessed chaos as a united opposition stuck to its demand to discuss the demonetisation issue under rules entailing voting. The speaker adjourned the house till noon and then for the day. Similar scenes were witnessed in the Upper House too with the opposition demanding the Prime Minister's presence in the house and payment of compensation to those who died of trauma while queuing up before banks and ATMs following demonetisation of high value currency notes, ANI reported. The house was adjourned for the day too. Earlier today, Indian Prime Minister Modi asserted that the demonetisation of high value currency is just a beginning of his government's deep and continuous struggle against black money. The decision is in the interest of poor and middle class, he said. Congress on Tuesday alleged that the government's demonetisation drive has unleashed financial anarchy and asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to tender an apology to the nation. "What is happening in India is a continual illegality because the money which is there in the bank accounts of the people is their own money and nobody neither the Prime Minister nor the Finance Minister or the Reserve Bank of India have any legal power or authority to deny Indian citizens access to their own bank accounts," Congress leader Anand Sharma said. (WION with inputs from agencies)

Demonetisation: Those opposing move don't have concrete answers, says India's union minister

<p>Both houses of parliament in India were adjourned today following uproar over demonetisation.</p>

<p>Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had on November 8 announced the move, withdrawing from circulation Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes.</p>

<p>The Rajya Sabha on Friday witnessed multiple adjournments during the first-half of the day, with opposition parties protesting against the government&#39;s move.</p>

<p>The opposition also demanded an apology from Prime Minister Modi on the issue, leading to another adjournment of the house.</p>

<p>Minister of state for parliamentary affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi sought an apology from the Congress&#39; Ghulam Nabi Azad for comparing the death of soldiers in the Uri terror attack with those of people standing in queues outside banks and ATMs post demonetisation.</p>

<p>The Rajya Sabha had a day-long debate on the issue on the first day of the on-going winter session of the parliament.</p>

<p>The Lok Sabha has been adjourned till Monday following an uproar between a united opposition and the treasury over the issue.</p>

<p>To try and ease the cash crunch following last week&#39;s decision to demonetise 500- and 1,000-rupee notes, the Indian government said Thursday that select petrol pumps would be allowed to dispense up to Rs 2,000 to customers against their debit or credit cards.</p>

<p>To start with, the facility will be available at 2,500 petrol pumps around the country.</p>

<p>&quot;It has been decided that an amount up to Rs 2,000 per day per person in cash can be dispensed against swiping of debit card from select petrol pumps where Point of Sale (PoS) machines of State Bank of India are already available,&quot; an official told Indian news agency PTI.</p>

<p>The facility will in time be extended to 20,000 petrol pumps.</p>

<p>(WION with inputs from agencies)</p>


Both houses of parliament were adjourned today following uproar over demonetisation

Both houses of parliament in India were adjourned today following uproar over demonetisation. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had on November 8 announced the move, withdrawing from circulation Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes. The Rajya Sabha on Friday witnessed multiple adjournments during the first-half of the day, with opposition parties protesting against the government's move. The opposition also demanded an apology from Prime Minister Modi on the issue, leading to another adjournment of the house. Minister of state for parliamentary affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi sought an apology from the Congress' Ghulam Nabi Azad for comparing the death of soldiers in the Uri terror attack with those of people standing in queues outside banks and ATMs post demonetisation. The Rajya Sabha had a day-long debate on the issue on the first day of the on-going winter session of the parliament. The Lok Sabha has been adjourned till Monday following an uproar between a united opposition and the treasury over the issue. To try and ease the cash crunch following last week's decision to demonetise 500- and 1,000-rupee notes, the Indian government said Thursday that select petrol pumps would be allowed to dispense up to Rs 2,000 to customers against their debit or credit cards. To start with, the facility will be available at 2,500 petrol pumps around the country. "It has been decided that an amount up to Rs 2,000 per day per person in cash can be dispensed against swiping of debit card from select petrol pumps where Point of Sale (PoS) machines of State Bank of India are already available," an official told Indian news agency PTI. The facility will in time be extended to 20,000 petrol pumps. (WION with inputs from agencies)

Demonetisation: Opposition demands PM's apology in Parliament, petrol stations to disburse Rs 2000 against each bank card

<p>Britain&#39;s former prime minister&nbsp;David&nbsp;Cameron&nbsp;has resigned his seat in the House of Commons, he told broadcaster ITV in an interview Monday.</p>

<p>Cameron&nbsp;stepped down as prime minister in June, hours after Britain voted to leave the European Union in a referendum in which he had campaigned to stay in the bloc.</p>

<p>&quot;In my view, with modern politics, with the circumstances of my resignation it isn&#39;t really possible to be a proper backbench MP as a former prime minister,&quot;&nbsp;Cameron&nbsp;told the broadcaster.</p>

<p>&quot;I think everything you do will become a big distraction and a big diversion from what the government needs to do for our country.&quot;</p>

<p>Cameron&#39;s resignation from parliament is unusually quick -- former prime ministers have typically retained their seats for a number of years after leaving the official Downing Street residence.<br />
<br />
(AFP)</p>


Cameron had resigned as the prime minister days after Remain campaign lost the EU referendum in June

Britain's former prime minister David Cameron has resigned his seat in the House of Commons, he told broadcaster ITV in an interview Monday. Cameron stepped down as prime minister in June, hours after Britain voted to leave the European Union in a referendum in which he had campaigned to stay in the bloc. "In my view, with modern politics, with the circumstances of my resignation it isn't really possible to be a proper backbench MP as a former prime minister," Cameron told the broadcaster. "I think everything you do will become a big distraction and a big diversion from what the government needs to do for our country." Cameron's resignation from parliament is unusually quick -- former prime ministers have typically retained their seats for a number of years after leaving the official Downing Street residence. (AFP)

Former British PM David Cameron steps down from parliament

The Balochistan government will send a delegation of parliamentarians to international forums, including the United Nations, to draw the attention of the world on the situation in the province, local media reported today.&nbsp;<br />
<br />
The govenment has decided to send the lawmakers to friendly to raise the issue of India&rsquo;s involvement&nbsp;in fomenting violence in the province, a report by Pakistan daily The Express Tribune said.&nbsp;<br />
<br />
Balochistan chief minister Sardar Sanaullah Zehri reportedly spoke to the media in Lahore on Sunday and said he is planning to write to&nbsp; the UN Secretary-General in this regard.&nbsp;<br />
<br />
&ldquo;These international institutions talk of democracy all the time. The parliamentarians are the true representatives of the Balochistan people and when they talk at these forums their voce carry weight,&rdquo; he was quoted as saying by another Pakistan daily, The Nation, while referring to the negative propaganda of enemies of Pakistan at international level.&nbsp;<br />
<br />
During the Indian&nbsp;Independence Day address last month, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had &quot;thanked&quot; the people of Balochistan, the people of Gilgit and the people of Pakistan-controlled Kashmir for &quot;the goodwill they have showed towards him&quot;.&nbsp;<br />
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<h5>During the Indian&nbsp;Independence Day address last month, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had &quot;thanked&quot; the people of Balochistan, the people of Gilgit and the people of Pakistan-controlled Kashmir for &quot;the goodwill they have showed towards him&quot;.&nbsp;</h5>
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&quot;Time has come that Pakistan shall have to answer to the world for the atrocities committed by it against people in Balochistan and PoK,&quot; he had earlier said at an all-party meeting on Kashmir Valley.&nbsp;<br />
<br />
However, his remarks were clearly rejected by Pakistan following which Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif formed a team of 22 members of parliament as special envoys to &quot;travel to various countries and highlight the situation on the Kashmir issue&quot; and &quot;cement Pakistan&#39;s stand in the long-standing Kashmir dispute&quot;.<br />
<br />
People in Balochistan recently took to streets against Modi&#39;s remark, Zehri pointed out.&nbsp;<br />
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&ldquo;Why did even ten persons had not gathered anywhere in Balochistan to support Mr Modi&rsquo;s assertions? The reason is simple. The so-called separatist elements do not enjoy any public support.&quot;&nbsp;<br />
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The chief minister also accused the separatist leader of provoking the youth.&nbsp;<br />
<br />
(WION)<br />
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&nbsp;

A delegation of lawmakers from the state in Pakistan would also try to draw world's attention towards the province, said local media reports

The Balochistan government will send a delegation of parliamentarians to international forums, including the United Nations, to draw the attention of the world on the situation in the province, local media reported today. The govenment has decided to send the lawmakers to friendly to raise the issue of India’s involvement in fomenting violence in the province, a report by Pakistan daily The Express Tribune said. Balochistan chief minister Sardar Sanaullah Zehri reportedly spoke to the media in Lahore on Sunday and said he is planning to write to the UN Secretary-General in this regard. “These international institutions talk of democracy all the time. The parliamentarians are the true representatives of the Balochistan people and when they talk at these forums their voce carry weight,” he was quoted as saying by another Pakistan daily, The Nation, while referring to the negative propaganda of enemies of Pakistan at international level. During the Indian Independence Day address last month, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had "thanked" the people of Balochistan, the people of Gilgit and the people of Pakistan-controlled Kashmir for "the goodwill they have showed towards him". During the Indian Independence Day address last month, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had "thanked" the people of Balochistan, the people of Gilgit and the people of Pakistan-controlled Kashmir for "the goodwill they have showed towards him". "Time has come that Pakistan shall have to answer to the world for the atrocities committed by it against people in Balochistan and PoK," he had earlier said at an all-party meeting on Kashmir Valley. However, his remarks were clearly rejected by Pakistan following which Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif formed a team of 22 members of parliament as special envoys to "travel to various countries and highlight the situation on the Kashmir issue" and "cement Pakistan's stand in the long-standing Kashmir dispute". People in Balochistan recently took to streets against Modi's remark, Zehri pointed out. “Why did even ten persons had not gathered anywhere in Balochistan to support Mr Modi’s assertions? The reason is simple. The so-called separatist elements do not enjoy any public support." The chief minister also accused the separatist leader of provoking the youth. (WION)

Balochistan chief minister likely to write to UN head over 'India meddling'

Despite members of the assembly voting to reject the nascent administration, Libya&rsquo;s UN-backed government said on Wednesday that it would continue seeking approval from the parliament based in the east of the country.&nbsp;<br />
<br />
The country&rsquo;s Presidential Council also announced that it would present a new government line-up to support the parliament.&nbsp;<br />
<br />
The parliament, which rejected a previous unity government in a confidence vote on Monday, gave the council a &quot;final chance&quot; and 10 days to propose a new cabinet.<br />
<br />
The Government of National Accord (GNA), is making attempts to unite many rival factions that have divided Libya since the downfall of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, and getting the support of the eastern parliament is key to the initiative.<br />
<br />
Libya&#39;s parliament, which was forced to flee to Tobruk after a coalition of militias seized Tripoli two years ago, is recognised by the international community.&nbsp;<br />
<br />
The House of Representatives has however held out with the opponents of GNA, accusing it of relying on Islamist-leaning armed groups that oppose the eastern commander Khalifa Haftar.&nbsp;<br />
<br />
The Presidential Council said it would work with political actors, civil society and the parliament to select a broad base of members for the new cabinet.<br />
<br />
Under the deal signed in December, the GNA needs to pass a confidence vote in parliament in order to take office.<br />
<br />
The parliament had &nbsp;passed a vote of no confidence in Prime Minister designate&nbsp;Fayez al-Sarraj&#39;s government,<br />
<br />
UN envoy Martin Kobler tweeted on Wednesday that he &quot;fully supports&quot; the council&#39;s statement and its decision to work with the parliament, saying it was &quot;urgent&quot; to implement the accord.<br />
<br />
<br />
(WION with inputs from agencies)

The Presidential Council said it would work with political actors, civil society and the parliament to select a broad base of members

Despite members of the assembly voting to reject the nascent administration, Libya’s UN-backed government said on Wednesday that it would continue seeking approval from the parliament based in the east of the country. The country’s Presidential Council also announced that it would present a new government line-up to support the parliament. The parliament, which rejected a previous unity government in a confidence vote on Monday, gave the council a "final chance" and 10 days to propose a new cabinet. The Government of National Accord (GNA), is making attempts to unite many rival factions that have divided Libya since the downfall of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, and getting the support of the eastern parliament is key to the initiative. Libya's parliament, which was forced to flee to Tobruk after a coalition of militias seized Tripoli two years ago, is recognised by the international community. The House of Representatives has however held out with the opponents of GNA, accusing it of relying on Islamist-leaning armed groups that oppose the eastern commander Khalifa Haftar. The Presidential Council said it would work with political actors, civil society and the parliament to select a broad base of members for the new cabinet. Under the deal signed in December, the GNA needs to pass a confidence vote in parliament in order to take office. The parliament had passed a vote of no confidence in Prime Minister designate Fayez al-Sarraj's government, UN envoy Martin Kobler tweeted on Wednesday that he "fully supports" the council's statement and its decision to work with the parliament, saying it was "urgent" to implement the accord. (WION with inputs from agencies)

Libya's Presidential council to come up with new cabinet to support eastern Parliament

<p>Turkey&#39;s parliament&nbsp;on Saturday approved a reconciliation agreement signed with Israel in June which has brought a six-year rift between the two regional powers to an end.</p>

<p>Relations between the two countries crumbled after Israeli marines stormed a Turkish ship in May 2010 to enforce a naval blockade of the Hamas-run Gaza Strip, killing 10 Turks on board.</p>

<p>Israel, which had already offered its apologies for the raid, agreed under the deal to pay out $20 million to the bereaved and injured in return for&nbsp;Turkey&nbsp;dropping outstanding legal claims.</p>

<p>Both countries are to appoint ambassadors under an agreement which is partly driven by the prospect of lucrative Mediterranean gas deals.</p>

<p>&quot;I don&#39;t think there will be a problem during its (Israel deal) implementation. Israel is dependent on&nbsp;Turkey&#39;s security. Israel can&#39;t afford to be against&nbsp;Turkey&nbsp;while being in a region surrounded by Arab and Islamic countries. Secondly, there are natural gas resources in the Mediterranean that they are pursuing and we want to be a part of it. The shortest and safest route to transport natural gas to Europe&nbsp;is through&nbsp;Turkey,&quot; said AKP lawmaker Burhan Kuzu.</p>

<p>The accord, signed on&nbsp;June 28, was a rare rapprochement in the divided Middle East, also driven by mutual fears over growing security risks.&nbsp;Two weeks later, more than 240 people were killed in an attempted coup in&nbsp;Turkey.</p>

<p>Under the deal, the naval blockade of Gaza, which Ankara had wanted lifted, remains in force, although humanitarian aid can continue to be transferred to Gaza via Israeli ports.</p>

<p>Israel says the Gaza blockade is needed to curb arms smuggling by Hamas, an Islamist group that last fought a war with Israel in 2014.<br />
<br />
(Reuters)</p>


Both countries are to appoint ambassadors under an agreement which is partly driven by the prospect of lucrative Mediterranean gas deals

Turkey's parliament on Saturday approved a reconciliation agreement signed with Israel in June which has brought a six-year rift between the two regional powers to an end. Relations between the two countries crumbled after Israeli marines stormed a Turkish ship in May 2010 to enforce a naval blockade of the Hamas-run Gaza Strip, killing 10 Turks on board. Israel, which had already offered its apologies for the raid, agreed under the deal to pay out $20 million to the bereaved and injured in return for Turkey dropping outstanding legal claims. Both countries are to appoint ambassadors under an agreement which is partly driven by the prospect of lucrative Mediterranean gas deals. "I don't think there will be a problem during its (Israel deal) implementation. Israel is dependent on Turkey's security. Israel can't afford to be against Turkey while being in a region surrounded by Arab and Islamic countries. Secondly, there are natural gas resources in the Mediterranean that they are pursuing and we want to be a part of it. The shortest and safest route to transport natural gas to Europe is through Turkey," said AKP lawmaker Burhan Kuzu. The accord, signed on June 28, was a rare rapprochement in the divided Middle East, also driven by mutual fears over growing security risks. Two weeks later, more than 240 people were killed in an attempted coup in Turkey. Under the deal, the naval blockade of Gaza, which Ankara had wanted lifted, remains in force, although humanitarian aid can continue to be transferred to Gaza via Israeli ports. Israel says the Gaza blockade is needed to curb arms smuggling by Hamas, an Islamist group that last fought a war with Israel in 2014. (Reuters)

Turkey parliament officially mends six-year rift with Israel

Tunisia&#39;s President Beji Caid Essebsi today named Youssef Chahed as the new prime minister after parliament ousted Habib Essid in a vote of no-confidence because of his handling of economic reforms and security.<br />
<br />
A junior minister in Essid&#39;s government, Chahed, 41, is an agricultural sciences specialist and academic who has taught in France and Tunisia.&nbsp;He is also part of the Nidaa Tounes secular party and has ties to Essebsi&#39;s family, which has led to some criticism from opposition leaders.<br />
<br />
Nidaa Tounes and the Islamist Ennahda party, both part of the ruling coalition, control a majority of the seats in parliament, which means Chahed&#39;s nomination is likely to be accepted by lawmakers when they vote on his approval.<br />
<br />
(Reuters)

Opposition leaders have criticised the nomination of the 41-year-old junior minister, as he is a relative of President Beji Essebsi

Tunisia's President Beji Caid Essebsi today named Youssef Chahed as the new prime minister after parliament ousted Habib Essid in a vote of no-confidence because of his handling of economic reforms and security. A junior minister in Essid's government, Chahed, 41, is an agricultural sciences specialist and academic who has taught in France and Tunisia. He is also part of the Nidaa Tounes secular party and has ties to Essebsi's family, which has led to some criticism from opposition leaders. Nidaa Tounes and the Islamist Ennahda party, both part of the ruling coalition, control a majority of the seats in parliament, which means Chahed's nomination is likely to be accepted by lawmakers when they vote on his approval. (Reuters)

Tunisian president nominates Youssef Chahed new prime minister

The Indian government will introduce the long-awaited goods and services tax (GST) constitutional amendment bill in Parliament next week, a minister said on Friday, as almost all political parties have agreed on the proposed law.<br />
<br />
The GST bill will be introduced in the upper house of Indian Parliament next week, junior parliamentary affairs minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi told lawmakers.<br />
<br />
The proposed tax reform, the biggest since India&#39;s independence from Britain in 1947, seeks to replace a slew of federal taxes and levies in 29 states, transforming the nation of near 1.3 billion people into a customs union.<br />
<br />
Analysts say the move could boost India&#39;s economic growth by up to 2 percentage points.<br />
<br />
The Indian government on July 27 made crucial ammendments to its goods and services tax bill in a move to enlist the support of opposition parties as well as state governments.<br />
<br />
Indian finance minister Arun Jaitley met his state counterparts on July 26 to forge a political consensus on the bill that is held up in Parliament.<br />
<br />
As part of the ammendments, the government has dropped a contentious 1 per cent additional levy on inter-state movement of goods, and has agreed to compensate states for any revenue losses for five years.<br />
<br />
While there is a broad political support for the measure, differences persist on the details, in particular pitching the tax at the right level to offset possible revenue losses.<br />
<br />
The cabinet, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, decided to include in the Constitutional Amendment Bill that any dispute between states and the centre will be adjudicated by the GST Council, which will have representation from both the Centre and states.<br />
<br />
With states on board and the cabinet approving the amendments, the government is hopeful of passage of the long-pending Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill in the ongoing monsoon session of Parliament, which ends on August 12.<br />
<br />
The GST Bill, with the changes approved by the cabinet, could come up in the upper house of Parliament, the Rajya Sabha as early as this week, but certainly by next week.<br />
<br />
By doing away with the 1 per cent inter-state tax over and above the GST rate, the government has met one of the three key demands over which the main opposition party Congress has been blocking the bill in the upper house.<br />
<br />
The other demands of including GST rate in the statute and a Supreme Court judge-headed dispute resolution body has not been accepted. It remains to be seen if meeting of its demands halfway will persuade the Congress to support the legislation.<br />
<br />
The proposed tax reform, the biggest since India&#39;s independence from Britain in 1947, seeks to replace a slew of taxes and levies in 29 states, transforming the nation of near 1.3 billion people into a customs union.<br />
<br />
The Bill, in its present form, provides that the centre will give 100 per cent compensation to states for first three years, 75 per cent and 50 per cent for the next two years.<br />
<br />
However, the select committee of the Rajya Sabha had in its report recommended 100 per cent compensation for probable loss of revenue for five years.<br />
<br />
As per the amendments, the centre will now constitutionally guarantee states any loss of revenue from the GST subsuming all indirect taxes, including VAT, in the first five years of introduction.<br />
<br />
(Agencies)<br />
&nbsp;

The reform seeks to replace a slew of federal taxes and levies. Analysts say the move could boost economic growth by 2 per cent

The Indian government will introduce the long-awaited goods and services tax (GST) constitutional amendment bill in Parliament next week, a minister said on Friday, as almost all political parties have agreed on the proposed law. The GST bill will be introduced in the upper house of Indian Parliament next week, junior parliamentary affairs minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi told lawmakers. The proposed tax reform, the biggest since India's independence from Britain in 1947, seeks to replace a slew of federal taxes and levies in 29 states, transforming the nation of near 1.3 billion people into a customs union. Analysts say the move could boost India's economic growth by up to 2 percentage points. The Indian government on July 27 made crucial ammendments to its goods and services tax bill in a move to enlist the support of opposition parties as well as state governments. Indian finance minister Arun Jaitley met his state counterparts on July 26 to forge a political consensus on the bill that is held up in Parliament. As part of the ammendments, the government has dropped a contentious 1 per cent additional levy on inter-state movement of goods, and has agreed to compensate states for any revenue losses for five years. While there is a broad political support for the measure, differences persist on the details, in particular pitching the tax at the right level to offset possible revenue losses. The cabinet, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, decided to include in the Constitutional Amendment Bill that any dispute between states and the centre will be adjudicated by the GST Council, which will have representation from both the Centre and states. With states on board and the cabinet approving the amendments, the government is hopeful of passage of the long-pending Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill in the ongoing monsoon session of Parliament, which ends on August 12. The GST Bill, with the changes approved by the cabinet, could come up in the upper house of Parliament, the Rajya Sabha as early as this week, but certainly by next week. By doing away with the 1 per cent inter-state tax over and above the GST rate, the government has met one of the three key demands over which the main opposition party Congress has been blocking the bill in the upper house. The other demands of including GST rate in the statute and a Supreme Court judge-headed dispute resolution body has not been accepted. It remains to be seen if meeting of its demands halfway will persuade the Congress to support the legislation. The proposed tax reform, the biggest since India's independence from Britain in 1947, seeks to replace a slew of taxes and levies in 29 states, transforming the nation of near 1.3 billion people into a customs union. The Bill, in its present form, provides that the centre will give 100 per cent compensation to states for first three years, 75 per cent and 50 per cent for the next two years. However, the select committee of the Rajya Sabha had in its report recommended 100 per cent compensation for probable loss of revenue for five years. As per the amendments, the centre will now constitutionally guarantee states any loss of revenue from the GST subsuming all indirect taxes, including VAT, in the first five years of introduction. (Agencies)

Indian government hopeful of clearing GST bill in Parliament next week, opposition promises support

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras yesterday said the constitution should be revised to give Greeks &quot;direct democracy&quot;, a say in electing the president and the right to hold referendums on laws.<br />
<br />
&quot;It is time to set aside fear of the people&#39;s judgment even if the people are not infallible,&quot; Tsipras said in a televised speech.<br />
<br />
He said people should be allowed to elect the nation&#39;s president - who is currently chosen by parliament - if efforts by lawmakers fail, as they did last year.<br />
<br />
The people should also be able to reject laws by referendum - except those on fiscal matters - and propose their own legal initiatives, Tsipras said.<br />
<br />
Lawmakers should only be allowed to serve a maximum of two consecutive terms in parliament.<br />
<br />
The Greek state should also be &quot;religion-neutral&quot; and officials should take civil oaths, even if Greece&#39;s main religion remains orthodox Christianity, the leftist PM said.<br />
<br />
This last proposal is likely to raise eyebrows in Greece, where Tsipras - a self-admitted atheist - became the country&#39;s first-ever prime minister to take a civil oath on his election last year.<br />
<br />
And the PM must also sway his own Syriza party, where a sizeable faction sees no need for constitutional revision.&nbsp;He said discussion groups would be formed nationwide and deliver a report by April on public proposals for the constitution.<br />
<br />
Most opposition leaders boycotted the ceremony, held mainly before Tsipras allies in front of parliament.<br />
<br />
Even if approved, the constitutional changes cannot be set in motion by the present parliament.&nbsp;They can only be enacted by the legislative body that will emerge after the next elections, which are normally due in 2019.<br />
<br />
However, Tsipras&#39; coalition government rests on a fragile three-seat majority and it is widely assumed that he will be unable to complete his four-year term.<br />
<br />
Tsipras said decisions would be taken in a year&#39;s time and could be supported with a referendum on the issue.<br />
<br />
The Greek constitution has been revised three times in the last four decades, with the last changes coming in 2008.&nbsp;Successive parliamentary votes are required to change a constitutional article - one to nominate a specific article to be amended, and another to actually rewrite it.<br />
<br />
From the two votes to be held on each article selected for amendment, at least one must be carried by a majority of 180 out of Greece&#39;s 300 lawmakers.<br />
<br />
Tsipras can currently rely on at least 153 deputies to approve his proposals, but finding another 180 to confirm the changes, up to three years from now, will not be easy.&nbsp;Tsipras&#39; popularity has waned after he was forced last year to accept an unpopular EU bailout to keep Greece in the eurozone.<br />
<br />
Polls show he could actually lose the next election to Kyriakos Mitsotakis, leader of the conservative New Democracy party.<br />
<br />
(AFP)

People should be allowed to elect the nations's president and also be able to reject laws by referendum, Alexis Tsipras said

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras yesterday said the constitution should be revised to give Greeks "direct democracy", a say in electing the president and the right to hold referendums on laws. "It is time to set aside fear of the people's judgment even if the people are not infallible," Tsipras said in a televised speech. He said people should be allowed to elect the nation's president - who is currently chosen by parliament - if efforts by lawmakers fail, as they did last year. The people should also be able to reject laws by referendum - except those on fiscal matters - and propose their own legal initiatives, Tsipras said. Lawmakers should only be allowed to serve a maximum of two consecutive terms in parliament. The Greek state should also be "religion-neutral" and officials should take civil oaths, even if Greece's main religion remains orthodox Christianity, the leftist PM said. This last proposal is likely to raise eyebrows in Greece, where Tsipras - a self-admitted atheist - became the country's first-ever prime minister to take a civil oath on his election last year. And the PM must also sway his own Syriza party, where a sizeable faction sees no need for constitutional revision. He said discussion groups would be formed nationwide and deliver a report by April on public proposals for the constitution. Most opposition leaders boycotted the ceremony, held mainly before Tsipras allies in front of parliament. Even if approved, the constitutional changes cannot be set in motion by the present parliament. They can only be enacted by the legislative body that will emerge after the next elections, which are normally due in 2019. However, Tsipras' coalition government rests on a fragile three-seat majority and it is widely assumed that he will be unable to complete his four-year term. Tsipras said decisions would be taken in a year's time and could be supported with a referendum on the issue. The Greek constitution has been revised three times in the last four decades, with the last changes coming in 2008. Successive parliamentary votes are required to change a constitutional article - one to nominate a specific article to be amended, and another to actually rewrite it. From the two votes to be held on each article selected for amendment, at least one must be carried by a majority of 180 out of Greece's 300 lawmakers. Tsipras can currently rely on at least 153 deputies to approve his proposals, but finding another 180 to confirm the changes, up to three years from now, will not be easy. Tsipras' popularity has waned after he was forced last year to accept an unpopular EU bailout to keep Greece in the eurozone. Polls show he could actually lose the next election to Kyriakos Mitsotakis, leader of the conservative New Democracy party. (AFP)

Greek PM proposes constitutional change for 'direct democracy'

President Tayyip Erdogan tightened his grip on Turkey on Saturday, ordering the closure of thousands of private schools, charities and other institutions in his first decree since imposing a state of emergency after the failed military coup.&nbsp;A restructuring of Turkey&#39;s once untouchable military also drew closer, with a planned meeting between Erdogan and the already purged top brass brought forward.<br />
<br />
In the decree, published by the Anadolu state news agency, Erdogan extended to a maximum of 30 days from four days the period in which some suspects can be detained. It said this was to facilitate a full investigation into the coup attempt.&nbsp;Erdogan, who narrowly escaped capture and possible death during the July 15 coup attempt, told Reuters in an interview on Thursday he would restructure the armed forces and bring in &quot;fresh blood&quot;.<br />
<br />
Turkey&#39;s Supreme Military Council (YAS) will meet under Erdogan&#39;s supervision on July 28, a few days earlier than originally planned, private broadcaster NTV reported, a sign that the president wants to act fast to ensure the armed forces are fully under the government&#39;s control.<br />
<br />
Reinforcing that message, the YAS meeting, which usually takes place every August, will be held this time in the presidential palace, not as is customary at the headquarters of the military General Staff.<br />
<br />
Erdogan has accused US-based Muslim preacher Fethullah Gulen, who has many followers in Turkey and abroad, of masterminding the failed coup, in which at least 246 people were killed. Gulen denies the charge and has condemned the coup.<br />
<br />
PURGES<br />
<br />
Erdogan declared the state of emergency late on Wednesday saying it would enable authorities to swiftly and effectively root out supporters of the coup.<br />
<br />
The state of emergency allows the president and government to pass laws without first having to win parliamentary support and also allows them to curb or suspend rights and freedoms as they deem necessary.<br />
<br />
Turkish authorities have already launched a series of mass purges of the armed forces, police, judiciary and education system, targeting followers of Gulen, who operates an extensive network of schools and charitable foundations.<br />
<br />
The first decree signed by Erdogan authorises the closure of 1,043 private schools, 1,229 charities and foundations, 19 trade unions, 15 universities and 35 medical institutions over suspected links to the Gulen movement, the Anadolu agency said.<br />
<br />
Parliament must still approve the decree but requires only a simply majority, which the ruling AK Party founded by Erdogan and in power in Turkey since 2002 commands.<br />
<br />
In an address to lawmakers late on Friday Erdogan vowed to bring to justice supporters of the Gulenist &quot;terrorist&quot; movement and he urged Turks to continue attending rallies in major cities in support of democracy and against the coup plotters.<br />
<br />
Turkey expects to complete within a week to 10 days a dossier requesting Gulen&#39;s extradition from the United States, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told private broadcaster NTV in an interview.<br />
<br />
Cavusoglu said the link between soldiers involved in the abortive coup and Gulen&#39;s extensive network of followers was &quot;very clear&quot;, adding that Turkey would do all it could &quot;politically and legally&quot; to secure his extradition.<br />
<br />
Washington has said Ankara needs to provide clear evidence of Gulen&#39;s involvement before it can agree to extradite him. Lawyers say the process could take many years.<br />
<br />
On Friday evening Erdogan held his first meeting since the coup with the head of the national intelligence agency, Hakan Fidan, after complaining of significant intelligence shortcomings ahead of the coup attempt. Despite media speculation, however, he did not sack Fidan.<br />
<br />
After the coup Western countries pledged support for democracy in Turkey, a NATO ally and an important partner in the fight against Islamic State, but they have also expressed concern over the scale of the subsequent purges of state institutions.<br />
<br />
Turkish authorities have suspended, detained or placed under investigation more than 60,000 soldiers, police, judges, teachers, civil servants and others in the past week.<br />
<br />
Speaking at a meeting of G20 finance ministers and central bankers in China on Saturday, Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Simsek said Turkey would strongly adhere to democratic principles and the rule of law.<br />
<br />
(Reuters)

The first decree signed by Erdogan authorises the closure of thousands of schools, unions, charities over suspected links to Fethullah Gulen

President Tayyip Erdogan tightened his grip on Turkey on Saturday, ordering the closure of thousands of private schools, charities and other institutions in his first decree since imposing a state of emergency after the failed military coup. A restructuring of Turkey's once untouchable military also drew closer, with a planned meeting between Erdogan and the already purged top brass brought forward. In the decree, published by the Anadolu state news agency, Erdogan extended to a maximum of 30 days from four days the period in which some suspects can be detained. It said this was to facilitate a full investigation into the coup attempt. Erdogan, who narrowly escaped capture and possible death during the July 15 coup attempt, told Reuters in an interview on Thursday he would restructure the armed forces and bring in "fresh blood". Turkey's Supreme Military Council (YAS) will meet under Erdogan's supervision on July 28, a few days earlier than originally planned, private broadcaster NTV reported, a sign that the president wants to act fast to ensure the armed forces are fully under the government's control. Reinforcing that message, the YAS meeting, which usually takes place every August, will be held this time in the presidential palace, not as is customary at the headquarters of the military General Staff. Erdogan has accused US-based Muslim preacher Fethullah Gulen, who has many followers in Turkey and abroad, of masterminding the failed coup, in which at least 246 people were killed. Gulen denies the charge and has condemned the coup. PURGES Erdogan declared the state of emergency late on Wednesday saying it would enable authorities to swiftly and effectively root out supporters of the coup. The state of emergency allows the president and government to pass laws without first having to win parliamentary support and also allows them to curb or suspend rights and freedoms as they deem necessary. Turkish authorities have already launched a series of mass purges of the armed forces, police, judiciary and education system, targeting followers of Gulen, who operates an extensive network of schools and charitable foundations. The first decree signed by Erdogan authorises the closure of 1,043 private schools, 1,229 charities and foundations, 19 trade unions, 15 universities and 35 medical institutions over suspected links to the Gulen movement, the Anadolu agency said. Parliament must still approve the decree but requires only a simply majority, which the ruling AK Party founded by Erdogan and in power in Turkey since 2002 commands. In an address to lawmakers late on Friday Erdogan vowed to bring to justice supporters of the Gulenist "terrorist" movement and he urged Turks to continue attending rallies in major cities in support of democracy and against the coup plotters. Turkey expects to complete within a week to 10 days a dossier requesting Gulen's extradition from the United States, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told private broadcaster NTV in an interview. Cavusoglu said the link between soldiers involved in the abortive coup and Gulen's extensive network of followers was "very clear", adding that Turkey would do all it could "politically and legally" to secure his extradition. Washington has said Ankara needs to provide clear evidence of Gulen's involvement before it can agree to extradite him. Lawyers say the process could take many years. On Friday evening Erdogan held his first meeting since the coup with the head of the national intelligence agency, Hakan Fidan, after complaining of significant intelligence shortcomings ahead of the coup attempt. Despite media speculation, however, he did not sack Fidan. After the coup Western countries pledged support for democracy in Turkey, a NATO ally and an important partner in the fight against Islamic State, but they have also expressed concern over the scale of the subsequent purges of state institutions. Turkish authorities have suspended, detained or placed under investigation more than 60,000 soldiers, police, judges, teachers, civil servants and others in the past week. Speaking at a meeting of G20 finance ministers and central bankers in China on Saturday, Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Simsek said Turkey would strongly adhere to democratic principles and the rule of law. (Reuters)

Turkey's Erdogan closes more schools, extends detention without charge period

<p>Pakistan&#39;s parliament will on Thursday debate bills aimed at tackling the so-called honour killings and amending its rape law, officials said, following the murder of a social media star last week.</p>

<p>Rights groups and politicians have for years called for tougher laws to tackle perpetrators of violence against women in Pakistan and the debate follows a slew of high-profile killings in the country.</p>

<p>Lawmakers from both lower and upper houses of parliament will take up proposed bills on Thursday afternoon, parliament official Hasan Murtaza Bukhari said, and votes on the suggested changes are expected within weeks.</p>

<p>&quot;After discussion and approval of these bills by this committee, the drafts will be tabled in a joint sitting of the house which is likely to promptly take it up,&quot; he said.</p>

<p>&quot;But we are not sure that how much time this process will take. The salient features of these drafts will also be known only after being presented in the committee,&quot; added Bukhari.</p>

<p>Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif&#39;s ruling Pakistan Muslim League (N)&nbsp;has a large majority of seats in the lower house and the bills are believed to have enough backing from opposition parties to pass in the senate too.</p>

<p>The proposed bills could seek to close a loophole that allows those who kill in the name of honour, &nbsp;usually a relative of the victim, &nbsp;to evade punishment by seeking clemency from other family members.</p>

<p>Pakistan amended its criminal code in 2005 to prevent men who kill female relatives pardoning themselves as an &quot;heir&quot; of the victim.</p>

<p>But punishment is left to a judge&#39;s discretion when other relatives of the victim forgive the killer, a loophole which critics say is exploited.</p>

<p>Social media starlet Qandeel Baloch was strangled to death by her brother on Friday, once again casting a spotlight on the custom of &quot;honour killings&quot;, which claims around a thousand lives in Pakistan every year.</p>

<p>Held up by many of the country&#39;s youth for her liberal views and forthrightness, was also reviled by many and frequently subject to misogynist abuse online.</p>

<p>Rights group Amnesty International this week called on the country to &quot;undertake structural reforms that end impunity for so-called &#39;honour&#39; killings, including by passing legislation that removes the option of clemency for such killings&quot;.<br />
<br />
(AFP)</p>


The bills might seek to close a loophole that allows those who kill in the name of honour to seek clemency from?other family members

Pakistan's parliament will on Thursday debate bills aimed at tackling the so-called honour killings and amending its rape law, officials said, following the murder of a social media star last week. Rights groups and politicians have for years called for tougher laws to tackle perpetrators of violence against women in Pakistan and the debate follows a slew of high-profile killings in the country. Lawmakers from both lower and upper houses of parliament will take up proposed bills on Thursday afternoon, parliament official Hasan Murtaza Bukhari said, and votes on the suggested changes are expected within weeks. "After discussion and approval of these bills by this committee, the drafts will be tabled in a joint sitting of the house which is likely to promptly take it up," he said. "But we are not sure that how much time this process will take. The salient features of these drafts will also be known only after being presented in the committee," added Bukhari. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's ruling Pakistan Muslim League (N) has a large majority of seats in the lower house and the bills are believed to have enough backing from opposition parties to pass in the senate too. The proposed bills could seek to close a loophole that allows those who kill in the name of honour, usually a relative of the victim, to evade punishment by seeking clemency from other family members. Pakistan amended its criminal code in 2005 to prevent men who kill female relatives pardoning themselves as an "heir" of the victim. But punishment is left to a judge's discretion when other relatives of the victim forgive the killer, a loophole which critics say is exploited. Social media starlet Qandeel Baloch was strangled to death by her brother on Friday, once again casting a spotlight on the custom of "honour killings", which claims around a thousand lives in Pakistan every year. Held up by many of the country's youth for her liberal views and forthrightness, was also reviled by many and frequently subject to misogynist abuse online. Rights group Amnesty International this week called on the country to "undertake structural reforms that end impunity for so-called 'honour' killings, including by passing legislation that removes the option of clemency for such killings". (AFP)

Pakistan lawmakers to debate honour killing, rape laws

Over a year after the Upper House of the Indian Parliament (Rajya Sabha) approved a private member&#39;s bill to protect the rights of transgenders, the government on Wednesday cleared a similar legislation to protect such persons from discrimination.<br />
<br />
The Union Cabinet approved The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill 2016 for introduction in Parliament.<br />
<br />
&quot;Through this bill, the government has evolved a mechanism for their social, economic and educational empowerment. The bill will benefit a large number of transgender persons, mitigate the stigma, discrimination and abuse against this marginalised section and bring them into the mainstream of society,&quot; an official statement said.<br />
<br />
Transgender community is among one of the most marginalised communities in the country because they do not fit into the stereotypical categories of gender of &#39;men&#39; or &#39;women&#39;.<br />
<br />
They face problems ranging from social exclusion to discrimination, lack of education facilities, unemployment and lack of medical facilities.<br />
<br />
The private member&#39;s bill moved by Rajya Sabha MP Tiruchi Siva was passed by the Rajya Sabha on April 24, 2015.<br />
<br />
This was for the first time in 45 years that a private member&#39;s Bill was passed by the House.<br />
<br />
The government to assure the House that it would bring its own bill in Lok Sabha after wider consultations.<br />
<br />
(PTI)

Through this bill, the government has evolved a mechanism for their social, economic and educational empowerment an official statement said

Over a year after the Upper House of the Indian Parliament (Rajya Sabha) approved a private member's bill to protect the rights of transgenders, the government on Wednesday cleared a similar legislation to protect such persons from discrimination. The Union Cabinet approved The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill 2016 for introduction in Parliament. "Through this bill, the government has evolved a mechanism for their social, economic and educational empowerment. The bill will benefit a large number of transgender persons, mitigate the stigma, discrimination and abuse against this marginalised section and bring them into the mainstream of society," an official statement said. Transgender community is among one of the most marginalised communities in the country because they do not fit into the stereotypical categories of gender of 'men' or 'women'. They face problems ranging from social exclusion to discrimination, lack of education facilities, unemployment and lack of medical facilities. The private member's bill moved by Rajya Sabha MP Tiruchi Siva was passed by the Rajya Sabha on April 24, 2015. This was for the first time in 45 years that a private member's Bill was passed by the House. The government to assure the House that it would bring its own bill in Lok Sabha after wider consultations. (PTI)

Indian government approves bill to protect transgenders from discrimination

Japanese voters headed to the polls today to cast their ballot in a parliamentary election with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe&#39;s ruling party expected to cruise to victory despite lukewarm support.<br />
<br />
Abe, in power since late 2012, has yet to achieve a strong recovery in the world&#39;s third-largest economy nor his cherished goal of removing a war-renouncing clause from Japan&#39;s US-imposed constitution.<br />
<br />
But voters, despite misgivings, appear willing to boost his party and its conservative allies, due mostly to a lack of faith in the opposition.<br />
<br />
Today&#39;s vote is for half the seats in the House of Councillors -- the less powerful upper house of parliament -- and polling stations across the country opened at 7:00 am (2200 GMT Saturday).<br />
<br />
The vote outcome is expected to become clear shortly after the polls close at 8:00 pm.<br />
<br />
Having been largely written off after a failed 2006-2007 stint as prime minister, Abe got a rare second chance when a left-leaning government collapsed in late 2012.<br />
<br />
He promised to end debilitating deflation through massive easy money and other steps -- so-called Abenomics -- while beefing up Japan&#39;s defence, promoting conservative values and vowing to revise the constitution.<br />
<br />
Initial results were favourable with stocks soaring and businesses reaping record profits as the yen fell, making Japanese companies more competitive.<br />
<br />
But the world&#39;s third-largest economy has since lurched from growth to contraction, with weak consumer inflation still weighing on sentiment.<br />
<br />
<strong>Voters backing Abe due to lack of alternatives&nbsp;</strong><br />
<br />
In a poll last week, 41 per cent said they disapproved of Abe&#39;s economic policies, but support his Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), a less-than-resounding 37 per cent, far outpaced 11 per cent for the main opposition Democratic Party.<br />
<br />
&quot;As in past elections, voters are likely to passively endorse the Abe administration due to a lack of alternatives,&quot; said Koji Nakakita, professor of politics at Hitotsubashi University in Tokyo.<br />
<br />
A wildcard this time is that Japan&#39;s voting age has been lowered from 20 to 18 to encourage young people to take part in politics but how they will vote, and in what numbers, remains to be seen.<br />
<br />
Abe is hoping that the coalition and a loose group of hawkish conservatives from smaller parties can grab a two-thirds majority in the upper house, giving him the strength to start amending the constitution.<br />
<br />
The document, which renounces Japan&#39;s right to wage war, is deplored by nationalists as a relic from Japan&#39;s World War II defeat.<br />
<br />
Still, many Japanese staunchly embrace its pacifist ideal.<br />
<br />
But any legislation that mustered the two-thirds majorities needed to pass both houses would face another hurdle in the form of a national referendum.<br />
<br />
<br />
<strong>Things to know: Japan&#39;s upper house election</strong>

<ul>
	<li>What is the upper house?</li>
</ul>
The House of Councillors, as it is formally known, is the smaller and less powerful side of Japan&#39;s bicameral legislature, or Diet.<br />
<br />
Its 242 members serve six-year terms, with elections every three years for half the seats.
<ul>
	<li>What does it do?</li>
</ul>
The body is designed for careful deliberation, somewhat similar to the US Senate, but lacks the power and prestige.<br />
<br />
Most legislation must pass it to become law, however its decisions can be overturned by the House of Representatives, the lower chamber, though that rarely happens.
<ul>
	<li>Who can run and vote?</li>
</ul>
Japanese citizens over the age of 30 can run. Upper house elections tend to attract candidates with national fame, such as television personalities and athletes, regardless of their political experience and policy chops.<br />
<br />
For the first time, anyone over the age of 18 can vote. Previously the voting age was 20.
<ul>
	<li>What are the key issues?</li>
</ul>
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, a member of the lower house, is not up for election. But voters will consider his steerage of the economy, which has yet to result in as robust a recovery as promised.<br />
<br />
His ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and other conservatives are aiming to gain enough seats to control two-thirds of the upper house, part of their controversial goal to amend Japan&#39;s war-renouncing constitution.
<ul>
	<li>What is the likely result?</li>
</ul>
The jury remains out on the prime minister&#39;s unconventional &quot;Abenomics&quot; economic policies in place for over 3 1/2 years, while many voters appear wary of revising the pacifist constitution.<br />
<br />
But burned by an unpopular 2009-2012 left-leaning government, voters are likely to stick to the status quo, with surveys pointing to Abe and his allies cruising to victory.<br />
<br />
Voters have in the past, however, used upper house elections to punish the ruling party. In 1998, then prime minister Ryutaro Hashimoto resigned when the LDP fared poorly after a consumption tax increase delivered a body blow to the economy.<br />
<br />
Abe is highly likely to avoid such a fate as he recently announced a delay in a planned tax increase.<br />
<br />
<br />
(AFP)

Voters, despite misgivings, appear willing to boost Abe's party and its conservative allies, mostly due to a lack of faith in the opposition

Japanese voters headed to the polls today to cast their ballot in a parliamentary election with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's ruling party expected to cruise to victory despite lukewarm support. Abe, in power since late 2012, has yet to achieve a strong recovery in the world's third-largest economy nor his cherished goal of removing a war-renouncing clause from Japan's US-imposed constitution. But voters, despite misgivings, appear willing to boost his party and its conservative allies, due mostly to a lack of faith in the opposition. Today's vote is for half the seats in the House of Councillors -- the less powerful upper house of parliament -- and polling stations across the country opened at 7:00 am (2200 GMT Saturday). The vote outcome is expected to become clear shortly after the polls close at 8:00 pm. Having been largely written off after a failed 2006-2007 stint as prime minister, Abe got a rare second chance when a left-leaning government collapsed in late 2012. He promised to end debilitating deflation through massive easy money and other steps -- so-called Abenomics -- while beefing up Japan's defence, promoting conservative values and vowing to revise the constitution. Initial results were favourable with stocks soaring and businesses reaping record profits as the yen fell, making Japanese companies more competitive. But the world's third-largest economy has since lurched from growth to contraction, with weak consumer inflation still weighing on sentiment. Voters backing Abe due to lack of alternatives In a poll last week, 41 per cent said they disapproved of Abe's economic policies, but support his Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), a less-than-resounding 37 per cent, far outpaced 11 per cent for the main opposition Democratic Party. "As in past elections, voters are likely to passively endorse the Abe administration due to a lack of alternatives," said Koji Nakakita, professor of politics at Hitotsubashi University in Tokyo. A wildcard this time is that Japan's voting age has been lowered from 20 to 18 to encourage young people to take part in politics but how they will vote, and in what numbers, remains to be seen. Abe is hoping that the coalition and a loose group of hawkish conservatives from smaller parties can grab a two-thirds majority in the upper house, giving him the strength to start amending the constitution. The document, which renounces Japan's right to wage war, is deplored by nationalists as a relic from Japan's World War II defeat. Still, many Japanese staunchly embrace its pacifist ideal. But any legislation that mustered the two-thirds majorities needed to pass both houses would face another hurdle in the form of a national referendum. Things to know: Japan's upper house election What is the upper house? The House of Councillors, as it is formally known, is the smaller and less powerful side of Japan's bicameral legislature, or Diet. Its 242 members serve six-year terms, with elections every three years for half the seats. What does it do? The body is designed for careful deliberation, somewhat similar to the US Senate, but lacks the power and prestige. Most legislation must pass it to become law, however its decisions can be overturned by the House of Representatives, the lower chamber, though that rarely happens. Who can run and vote? Japanese citizens over the age of 30 can run. Upper house elections tend to attract candidates with national fame, such as television personalities and athletes, regardless of their political experience and policy chops. For the first time, anyone over the age of 18 can vote. Previously the voting age was 20. What are the key issues? Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, a member of the lower house, is not up for election. But voters will consider his steerage of the economy, which has yet to result in as robust a recovery as promised. His ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and other conservatives are aiming to gain enough seats to control two-thirds of the upper house, part of their controversial goal to amend Japan's war-renouncing constitution. What is the likely result? The jury remains out on the prime minister's unconventional "Abenomics" economic policies in place for over 3 1/2 years, while many voters appear wary of revising the pacifist constitution. But burned by an unpopular 2009-2012 left-leaning government, voters are likely to stick to the status quo, with surveys pointing to Abe and his allies cruising to victory. Voters have in the past, however, used upper house elections to punish the ruling party. In 1998, then prime minister Ryutaro Hashimoto resigned when the LDP fared poorly after a consumption tax increase delivered a body blow to the economy. Abe is highly likely to avoid such a fate as he recently announced a delay in a planned tax increase. (AFP)

Japan votes in upper house election

The French socialist government was reportedly poised today to push through labour reforms without a vote as protesters gathered for their 12th show of opposition to the controversial package since March.<br />
<br />
&quot;The decision has been taken and the prime minister will announce it officially in parliament, likely at the start of the debate at 3:00 pm (1300 GMT),&quot; a political source told AFP.<br />
<br />
It would be the second time Prime Minister Manuel Valls will have used the so-called 49-3 provision for this package of reforms because he could not count on the support of the left flank of the Socialist Party in parliament when it first came up for a vote in May.<br />
<br />
The move prompted the opposition to call a vote of no-confidence, which the government survived by a comfortable margin.<br />
<br />
Today the head of the centre-right Republicans parliamentary group, Christian Jacob, said they would not call such a vote this time around.<br />
<br />
An opinion poll published last week found that 73 per cent of the French would be &quot;shocked&quot; if the government used the 49-3 provision for the final passage of the reforms, which are aimed at reining in unemployment by freeing up the job market.<br />
<br />
Union and student-backed demonstrations against the reforms which they see as too pro-business and threatening to cherished workers rights began in early March, with some protests descending into violence.<br />
<br />
The worst unrest was seen in Paris on June 14, just four days after the start of the Euro 2016 football championships in France, when around 40 people were hurt and dozens were arrested.<br />
<br />
President Francois Hollande, who faces a re-election bid next April, had hoped for a signature reform to reverse his dire approval ratings.But pressure from the street, as well as parliament`s back benches, caused the government to water down the proposals, which only angered bosses while failing to assuage critics.<br />
<br />
Unions say the main remaining sticking point is a measure giving precedence to agreements negotiated between companies and their staff over deals reached with unions across entire industrial sectors notably on working hours.<br />
<br />
Pierre Gattaz, the head of the employers` federation MEDEF, said last week that he was &quot;very disappointed&quot; with the bill in its watered-down form, calling it a &quot;monument of complexity, absolutely illegible&quot; for small and medium-sized businesses.<br />
<br />
&quot;No one on the ground understands anything anymore and it`s a law that will be of absolutely no use for employment,&quot; Gattaz said after meeting with Valls.<br />
<br />
Last week the right-dominated Senate approved a more business-friendly version of the legislation.<br />
<br />
The Senate bill, passed by a vote of 185 to 156, would scrap the 35-hour work week and restore a cap on the amount employers would have to pay out when they lose labour disputes.&nbsp;<br />
<br />
With the two chambers unlikely to agree a final version, the lower house has the final say, but now the government is expected to invoke clause 49-3 and force through its version.<br />
<br />
The embattled socialist government also had to force a package of economic reforms through parliament last year using the constitutional measure, to prevent the rebel left flank of the party from sinking it.&nbsp;<br />
<br />
(AFP)<br />
&nbsp;

Labour bill, if passed in the Parliament, will give freedom to companies to set work conditions and tailor pay

The French socialist government was reportedly poised today to push through labour reforms without a vote as protesters gathered for their 12th show of opposition to the controversial package since March. "The decision has been taken and the prime minister will announce it officially in parliament, likely at the start of the debate at 3:00 pm (1300 GMT)," a political source told AFP. It would be the second time Prime Minister Manuel Valls will have used the so-called 49-3 provision for this package of reforms because he could not count on the support of the left flank of the Socialist Party in parliament when it first came up for a vote in May. The move prompted the opposition to call a vote of no-confidence, which the government survived by a comfortable margin. Today the head of the centre-right Republicans parliamentary group, Christian Jacob, said they would not call such a vote this time around. An opinion poll published last week found that 73 per cent of the French would be "shocked" if the government used the 49-3 provision for the final passage of the reforms, which are aimed at reining in unemployment by freeing up the job market. Union and student-backed demonstrations against the reforms which they see as too pro-business and threatening to cherished workers rights began in early March, with some protests descending into violence. The worst unrest was seen in Paris on June 14, just four days after the start of the Euro 2016 football championships in France, when around 40 people were hurt and dozens were arrested. President Francois Hollande, who faces a re-election bid next April, had hoped for a signature reform to reverse his dire approval ratings.But pressure from the street, as well as parliament`s back benches, caused the government to water down the proposals, which only angered bosses while failing to assuage critics. Unions say the main remaining sticking point is a measure giving precedence to agreements negotiated between companies and their staff over deals reached with unions across entire industrial sectors notably on working hours. Pierre Gattaz, the head of the employers` federation MEDEF, said last week that he was "very disappointed" with the bill in its watered-down form, calling it a "monument of complexity, absolutely illegible" for small and medium-sized businesses. "No one on the ground understands anything anymore and it`s a law that will be of absolutely no use for employment," Gattaz said after meeting with Valls. Last week the right-dominated Senate approved a more business-friendly version of the legislation. The Senate bill, passed by a vote of 185 to 156, would scrap the 35-hour work week and restore a cap on the amount employers would have to pay out when they lose labour disputes. With the two chambers unlikely to agree a final version, the lower house has the final say, but now the government is expected to invoke clause 49-3 and force through its version. The embattled socialist government also had to force a package of economic reforms through parliament last year using the constitutional measure, to prevent the rebel left flank of the party from sinking it. (AFP)

French labour law poised for passage amid protest

North Korea&#39;s parliament awarded Kim Jong Un a new post today, adding to a long list of titles for the young leader.<br />
<br />
The North&#39;s state television said Kim was made chairman of the state affairs committee, a body that appears to be newly formed and whose function was not immediately clear.<br />
<br />
He also has the titles of the Dear Respected Comrade Kim Jong Un, Chairman of the Workers&#39; Party of Korea, First Chairman of the National Defence Commission of the Democratic People&#39;s Republic of Korea and Supreme Commander of the Korean People&#39;s Army.<br />
<br />
Kim, believed to be in his early 30s, attended the assembly meeting today. He also holds the rank of marshal in the North Korean military, and is more usually referred to &quot;our marshal&quot; in propaganda and common parlance.<br />
<br />
The parliament meets once or twice a year to formally approve budgets or policies set out by the ruling Workers&#39; Party. It also has the authority to grant Kim new titles or positions within North Korea&#39;s opaque leadership structure.<br />
<br />
The meeting was called to implement policy aims stated in a rare Workers&#39; Party congress in May, during which Kim Jong Un announced a five-year economic plan.<br />
<br />
On June 22, North Korea launched two Musudan intermediate-range missiles, drawing strong condemnation from South Korea, Japan and the United States for infringing UN sanctions designed to stop Pyongyang&#39;s nuclear and missile development programmes.<br />
<br />
North Korea referred to the missile as a &quot;Hwasong-10&quot; and said the test did not put the security of neighbouring countries at risk.<br />
<br />
(Reuters)

Kim was made chairman of the state affairs committee, a body that appears to be newly formed and whose function was not immediately clear

North Korea's parliament awarded Kim Jong Un a new post today, adding to a long list of titles for the young leader. The North's state television said Kim was made chairman of the state affairs committee, a body that appears to be newly formed and whose function was not immediately clear. He also has the titles of the Dear Respected Comrade Kim Jong Un, Chairman of the Workers' Party of Korea, First Chairman of the National Defence Commission of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and Supreme Commander of the Korean People's Army. Kim, believed to be in his early 30s, attended the assembly meeting today. He also holds the rank of marshal in the North Korean military, and is more usually referred to "our marshal" in propaganda and common parlance. The parliament meets once or twice a year to formally approve budgets or policies set out by the ruling Workers' Party. It also has the authority to grant Kim new titles or positions within North Korea's opaque leadership structure. The meeting was called to implement policy aims stated in a rare Workers' Party congress in May, during which Kim Jong Un announced a five-year economic plan. On June 22, North Korea launched two Musudan intermediate-range missiles, drawing strong condemnation from South Korea, Japan and the United States for infringing UN sanctions designed to stop Pyongyang's nuclear and missile development programmes. North Korea referred to the missile as a "Hwasong-10" and said the test did not put the security of neighbouring countries at risk. (Reuters)

North Korean assembly awards leader Kim Jong Un fresh title

Just days after voting to leave the European Union, more than 1.5 million Britons and UK residents had signed a petition calling for a second vote, forcing lawmakers to at least consider a debate on the issue.<br />
<br />
The petition on the British parliament website was posted before the June 23 referendum, saying the government should hold another plebiscite on EU membership if the support for Leave or Remain in a referendum is less than 60 per cent based on a turnout of under 75 per cent of electors.<br />
<br />
The result on Thursday saw 52 per cent of voters back a British exit on a turnout of 72 per cent of eligible voters.<br />
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Since then, the petition -- which only British citizens or UK residents have the right to sign -- was proving so popular that by 1417 GMT today, 1,580,220 people had signed it with the number rising quickly.<br />
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It appeared to be rising at a rate of around 1,000 signatures a minute at one point.<br />
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Most of those who signed were based in areas where support for staying in the EU was strongest such as London, the website indicated.<br />
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Parliament has to consider a debate on any petition which attracts more than 100,000 signatures.<br />
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Prime Minister David Cameron, who said on Friday he would resign after leading the failed campaign to keep Britain in the EU, has previously said there would be no second referendum.<br />
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(Reuters)

The British Parliament has to consider a debate on any petition which attracts more than 100,000 signatures

Just days after voting to leave the European Union, more than 1.5 million Britons and UK residents had signed a petition calling for a second vote, forcing lawmakers to at least consider a debate on the issue. The petition on the British parliament website was posted before the June 23 referendum, saying the government should hold another plebiscite on EU membership if the support for Leave or Remain in a referendum is less than 60 per cent based on a turnout of under 75 per cent of electors. The result on Thursday saw 52 per cent of voters back a British exit on a turnout of 72 per cent of eligible voters. Since then, the petition -- which only British citizens or UK residents have the right to sign -- was proving so popular that by 1417 GMT today, 1,580,220 people had signed it with the number rising quickly. It appeared to be rising at a rate of around 1,000 signatures a minute at one point. Most of those who signed were based in areas where support for staying in the EU was strongest such as London, the website indicated. Parliament has to consider a debate on any petition which attracts more than 100,000 signatures. Prime Minister David Cameron, who said on Friday he would resign after leading the failed campaign to keep Britain in the EU, has previously said there would be no second referendum. (Reuters)

More than 1.5 million and rising sign UK petition for new EU referendum

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