Tag: Modi government

Government mulls action against India heads of social media on failure to check fake news

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

Abide by law or face prosecution — this is the tough message likely to be sent to the India heads of social media platforms if the recommendations of a high-level government panel, which discussed steps to curb fake news and misinformation besides child pornography, are accepted.

The issue was discussed by a committee of secretaries, which was constituted following lynching of nearly 40 people in last one year suspectedly due to circulation of fake news in popular social media platforms like WhatsApp, an official privy to the development said.

The panel, headed by Union Home Secretary Rajiv Gauba, submitted its report to a Group of Ministers headed by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, which in turn will submit its recommendations to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

“There are country representatives of all global social media platforms in India. Action may be initiated against them if they do not comply to remove objectionable contents and video from their sites,” the official said.

The top officials of different ministries and departments deliberated the issue in the wake of reports of many incidents of lynching, communal tension and abuse following circulation of fake news and communally sensitive contents and videos.

During recent meetings with the representatives of the Twitter India, Facebook, WhatsApp and Youtube, the government officials made it clear that the social media platforms have to comply with the directives without delay, and if not done, action under law would be initiated against them.

The law enforcement agencies have been maintaining that the social media platforms cannot remain aloof to the spread of “irresponsible and explosive messages” and they cannot evade their responsibilities.

Another official said that the India representatives of the social media platforms have promised to cooperate and the law enforcement agencies will closely monitor their actions.

The committee held consultations with a cross-section of society and other stakeholders before submitting its report to the GoM.

It is understood that they have suggested tightening the law by inserting clauses in the Indian Penal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure through parliamentary approval.

The panel report will now be discussed by the GoM comprising External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari, Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad and Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Thawar Chand Gehlot. The home minister heads the GoM.

Last month, the Home Ministry issued advisories to states and Union Territories following the Supreme Court’s directives to check incidents of lynching.

The Centre asked them to appoint an officer in each district at the level of Superintendent of Police, set up a special task force to gather intelligence, and closely monitor social media contents to prevent mob attacks on suspicion of being child-lifters or cattle smugglers.

In its communique to states and UTs, the ministry had said incidents of violence and lynching by mobs in some parts of the country fuelled by various kinds of rumours and unverified news such as child lifting, theft, cattle smuggling etc, are a matter of serious concerns.

Such instances of persons taking the law in their hands run against the basic tenets of the rule of law, it said. “All state governments, UT administrations and their law enforcement agencies are requested to implement the directions of the Supreme Court in letter and spirit,” it said.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Court to hear Vijay Mallya’s case under new fugitive law today

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

Beleaguered businessman Vijay Mallya is listed to appear before a special court here on Monday as part of the first action initiated against an absconding accused under the newly enacted fugitive economic offenders law.

Official sources said while it is certain that Mallya may not appear in person as he is contesting an Indian extradition case in London, it is expected that his authorised legal representative may submit a reply to the court of special PMLA judge M S Azmi as part of his official response to the notice.

The same court, on June 30, had issued notice to Mallya to appear before it on August 27 after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) charged the liquor baron under the new law as it enlarged its money laundering probe against him and others in a RS 9,000 alleged bank fraud case.

The central probe agency has also sought immediate confiscation of assets worth about Rs 12,500 crore of Mallya as part of this latest action.

The next course of legal action under the fugitive economic offender law depends entirely on the decision of the court, they said.

They had earlier indicated that if Mallya does not appear before the court, he runs a risk of being declared a fugitive economic offender, besides orders being issued for properties linked to him being confiscated.

The same court had earlier issued non-bailable warrants against the businessman in two cases filed by the ED.

Mallya, his now defunct venture Kingfisher Airlines Limited and others availed loans from various banks and the outstanding amount, including interest, against him is Rs 9,990.07 crore at present, the officials had said while filing the plea under the new law.

Mallya, in the past, has said that he has become the “poster boy of bank default and a lightning rod for public anger.

I have been accused by politicians and the media alike of having stolen and run away with Rs 9,000 crores that was loaned to Kingfisher Airlines (KFA). Some of the lending banks have also labelled me a wilful defaulter, he said.

The ED has furnished evidences in its two charge sheets, filed under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in the past, to make a case for seeking a fugitive offender tag for Mallya from the court.

He is currently contesting the money laundering charges in London after India initiated extradition proceedings to bring him back to the country.

Both the ED and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) have filed cases for alleged loan default against him.

Modi government brought the new law as there have been instances of economic offenders fleeing the jurisdiction of Indian courts, anticipating the commencement, or during the pendency, of criminal proceedings .

The law has provisions for special courts under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 to declare a person as a fugitive economic offender and order immediate confiscation of assets.

A fugitive economic offender is a person against whom an arrest warrant has been issued in respect of a scheduled offence and who has left India so as to avoid criminal prosecution, or being abroad, refuses to return to India to face criminal prosecution, the government had said.

The cases of frauds, cheque dishonour or loan default of over Rs 100 crore would come under the ambit of the ordinance.

The law offers necessary constitutional safeguards in terms of providing hearing to the person through counsel, allowing him time to file a reply, serving notice of summons to him, whether in India or abroad and appeal before a high court, it had said.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Kerala govt to hold high-level discussions with centre over UAE’s Rs 700 crore aid, says report

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vjayan will have high-level discussions with the centre with regards to the Rs 700 crore aid offered by UAE to the state for the flood relief work, reported CNN-News18.

Reports on Wednesday said that the Narendra Modi government is likely to “politely refuse” any financial aid from foreign governments, citing the new policy set in 2014 as the reason. Under the new policy, the centre disapproves of accepting financial aid from other countries.

However, Kerala chief minister said that the National Disaster Management policy 2016 provides provision to accept voluntary offers from foreign nations in the wake of disasters, added the CNN-News18 report.

The centre has so far provided financial assistance worth Rs 600 crore. Besides, many other state governments, corporate firms and individuals have also contributed to the relief fund.

Kerala faced its worst floods in a century, with nearly 400 people being killed since May. The state has suffered a loss of Rs. 19,512 crore due to the deluge and nearly 8,00,000 people have lost their homes.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Tharoor stands by “Hindu Pakistan” remark, says no confidence motion to discuss government’s failures

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

The opposition’s call for a no confidence motion on Friday was to speak out and engage the government on issues ranging from jobs and farmers’ issues to lynchings and atrocities against dalits, said Congress MP Shashi Tharoor.

“After the washout of that session many opposition parties said we have lost an opportunity to place before the nation the failures of this government – the economic mismanagement, the mis-governance, the agricultural stagnation, farmers’ suicide, joblessness and unemployment, the decline in the economic growth,” he said.

“So, when parliament came around again, many opposition parties, I think it was something like 8, may have been even more by the end of the process and may have been a dozen, all said we want to have a vote of no-confidence just so that we can express our dissatisfaction before the nation and that is precisely what the vote of no-confidence will enable us to do,” Tharoor added.

The MP, who represents Thiruvananthapuram in the Lok Sabha, also stood by his “Hindu Pakistan” comment and said it was taken out of context.

Read the full text of Shashi Tharoor’s interview here

“I was speaking very clearly on the subject of challenges to Indian democracy and secularism. I said one of the big challenges we have is indeed the fact that the ruling party has an ideology which they call “Hindu Rashtra,” he said in an interview.

A no-confidence motion against the Narendra Modi government was moved in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday.

The speaker named all opposition members who had moved similar no-confidence motion notices and said TDP’s Kesineni Srinivas would move his motion as his name had come up in the lottery.

The member of the TDP, which had quit the ruling NDA coalition in March protesting against the government not giving a special package to Andhra Pradesh, moved the motion during Zero Hour which was admitted by the Speaker.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

No-confidence motion moved against Modi government; Speaker admits it

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

A no-confidence motion against the Narendra Modi government was today moved in the Lok Sabha, with Speaker Sumitra Mahajan admitting the notice and saying she would announce the date for a debate on it in “2-3 days”.

The Speaker named all opposition members who had moved similar no-confidence motion notices and said TDP’s Kesineni Srinivas would move his motion as his name had come up in the lottery.

The member of the TDP, which had quit the ruling NDA coalition in March protesting against the government not giving a special package to Andhra Pradesh, moved the motion during Zero Hour which was admitted by the Speaker.

She said she will notify the date for discussion on the no-confidence motion in “2-3 days”.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar said the government was ready to face the no-confidence motion and win it as it enjoyed a two-third majority in the House.

The TDP members had moved a no-confidence motion during the Budget session of Parliament also.

But it was rejected by the Speaker on the ground that the House was not in order as there were continuous protests in the Well by different political parties on various issues

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Wish Amartya Sen spends some time in India, says Niti Aayog Vice Chairman

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

Days after Amartya Sen lamented that India has taken a quantum jump backwards since 2014, Niti Aayog Vice Chairman Rajiv Kumar today said the Nobel laureate should spend some time in the country to see the structural reforms undertaken by the Modi government.

“I wish Professor Amartya Sen would spend some time within India and actually look at conditions on the ground. And at least review all work that has been done in the last four years by the Modi government before making such statements,” Kumar told PTI in an interview.

He was responding to a query regarding Sen’s recent remarks about the present government.

“I actually would like to challenge him to show me another period of four years where so much work has been done for the making India cleaner, inclusive and more caring economy,” Kumar said.

According to him, structural reforms that have been taken are ensuring that benefits of growth reach to the last person.

“If these things are not clear to him, then, I think he should spend some time here,” he added.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is the Chairman of Niti Aayog. Modi-led NDA government came to power in May 2014.

On July 17, speaking at the launch of ‘Bharat aur Uske Virodhabhas’ — the Hindi edition of his book ‘An Uncertain Glory: India and its Contradictions’ — Sen had said that due to moving backward the country is now the second worst in the region.

“Things have gone pretty badly wrong… It has taken a quantum jump in the wrong direction since 2014. We are getting backwards in the fastest-growing economy.

“Now, India is the second worst. Pakistan has managed to shield us from being the worst,” Sen had said.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

CIL ensures better coal quality, output, says Piyush Goyal

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

The government has worked to ensure superior coal quality for consumers along with a focus on lowering costs of electricity, Railway and Coal Minister Piyush Goyal said on Monday.

Speaking on the achievements of the Modi government, Goyal said the historic reforms undertaken in the coal sector, including allowing commercial mining, have led to increased energy capacity and fuel efficiency in the country.

The Minister said that while coal production had gone up by unprecedented levels during this time, the efforts on quality improvement had reduced the amount of coal required per unit of electricity in the country.

“The Ministry has worked for ensuring superior coal quality by setting up third party sampling procedures. The Uttam app has been launched for ensuring transparency and efficiency in the coal monitoring process,” he said.

Regradation has been done of all mines of Coal India and Singareni Collieries by the Coal Controller.

“Focus has been on the cost of electricity through lower cost and higher quality… and the Specific Coal Consumption, or the amount of coal required per unit of electricity, has been cut by 8 per cent in the last four years,” he told the media.

He described commercial coal mining as the “most ambitious reform” in the sector.

As many as 89 coal mines have been auctioned and all the revenues allotted to coal mining states, he said.

The Minister also said that the 105 million tonnes of increased production achieved by state miner Coal India in the last four years took almost seven years to achieve in the period prior to 2013-14.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow