#everydayquiz #the hindu #economic Times #IndianExpress #Business Standard
The hindu: The language of violence
The recent prevalence of
debates on non-issues such as whether citizens must chant the slogan ‘Bharat
Mata ki Jai’ is troubling in itself. When influential public figures inject the
language of violence and intimidation into this discourse, they are but attempting
to ignite a spark in an already overheated atmosphere
. Yoga guru and
businessman Baba Ramdev’s remark that but for his respect for the law of the
land and the Constitution, lakhs of people would be beheaded for their refusal
to chant the slogan can be construed as sheer incitement to violence. That this
was a response to All-India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen leaderAsaduddin Owaisi, who had said he would not utter the
words in question “even if a
knife were held to my throat”, is hardly a defence. That Ramdev’s remarks were
made at a public function organised by the ‘Sadbhavana Sammelan’ in Rohtak,
Haryana, where the participants included Himachal Pradesh Governor Acharya Dev
Vrat, illustrates the brazenness of such bigotry. In tenor and language they
contain the ingredients of typical hate speech: appeal to sectarian feelings,
incitement to violence and intent to cause discord. Whether it would fall under
the ambit of a specific provision in the Indian Penal Code (Section 295A, for
instance) is a separate issue, but one well worth examining. But what is of
equal import is the growing feeling that such virulence in speech is met with
an accepting silence, or worse, with quiet approbation, by those in political
power. BJP president Amit Shah may be right in pointing out that Ramdev is not
a member of his party. But in wondering whether the right of free speech does not
apply to the yoga guru, he glosses over an important distinction between bona fide forms of free expression and those
that could incite violence.
Summarily
dismissing the issue, Union Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu chose to say that what
really mattered was government policy and not individual opinion. But we
live in an environment in which even those who hold office sometimes lack any
sense of restraint. For instance, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra
Fadnavis was reported as saying that those who do not proclaim ‘Bharat Mata ki
Jai’ have no right to live in the country. He later claimed that he was
misquoted, but maintained that those who refused to chant the slogan had mala fide intentions. Mr. Naidu did distance his
government from what both Ramdev and Mr. Fadnavis said, but clearly, not enough
is being done to rein in the motormouths and the extremist fringe in his larger parivar.
Ironically, Section 295A, which resembles a hate speech provision, is routinely
invoked for all the wrong reasons, and has become a tool to harass people such
as authors and artists to appease some religious group or the other. If this
frequently misused provision has any justification, its use should be
restricted to deliberate and malicious acts that can foment violence and
discord. It would be well if the likes of Ramdev are made to understand this.
prev·a·lence
The fact or condition of being prevalent; commonness.
in·tim·i·da·tion
The action of intimidating someone, or the state of being
intimidated.
dis·course
Written or spoken communication or debate
con·strue
Interpret (a word or action) in a particular way.
sheer
Nothing other than; unmitigated (used for emphasis).
brazenness
Shamelessness: behavior marked by a bold defiance of the
proprieties and lack of shame
big·ot·ry
Intolerance toward those who hold different opinions from
oneself.
ten·or
The general meaning, sense, or content of something.
virulence
Extreme harmfulness (as the capacity of a microorganism to cause
disease); "the virulence of the plague"
ap·pro·ba·tion
Approval or praise.
fo·ment
Instigate or stir up (an undesirable or violent sentiment or
course of action).
The hindu: The Panama paper trail
As the ramifications of the leak of about 11 million secret
documents from the Panama-based law firm,Mossack Fonseca, play
themselves out, a clear articulation of what the “Panama Papers” hold for the
state of global finance today came from U.S. President Barack Obama. Following
the joint investigation by the International Consortium of Investigative
Journalists and the German newspaperSüddeutsche Zeitung into the
leaked papers, Mr. Obama described global tax avoidance as
a huge problem. Today, it is perfectly legal in many countries to park money in
various kinds of shadowy companies in tax havens. This
holds true in India as well, where a lack of clarity persists about the
legality of buying offshore companies, a service that is expressly provided by
Mossack Fonseca. Thelack of clarity exists despite the
Reserve Bank of India’s evolving guidelines on offshore remittances and
investments since 2004. While the guidelines, such as those of the Liberalised
Remittance Scheme, are specific to remittances utilised by residents to service
various overseas requirements such as medical treatment and education, they
have been modified over time to permit the setting up of 100 per cent
subsidiaries and joint ventures within the limit of $250,000 a year. One of the
few stipulations is that money cannot be sent to countries identified as
“non-cooperative” by the global Financial Action Task Force. (The FATF
identified Panama as having taken significant steps to comply with standards
related to anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism, in
February 2016.) The RBI guidelines have largely been a reactive measure to
address flows to tax havens. The investigation into the Panama Papers and the
scrutiny of the accounts of Indians named in them should pave the way for yet
another tightening of the norms.
The global investigation has revealed large-scale
possible tax avoidance and parking of income in shell
companies, possibly earned through graft and cronyism by powerful political and
governmental actors. The fallout has already begun, with the resignation
of one Prime Minister (of Iceland), and a shadow of doubt
on the political leadership in countries such as Russia and China. This
could be the tip of the iceberg; the leaks relate to just one offshore law
firm, even if it is the fourth largest in the world. A global tax avoidance
problem requires a coordinated response, and the papers point to the urgent
need for much more transparency in the movement of global finance capital. The
NDA government has passed the Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets (Imposition
of Tax) Act, 2015 and provided a one-time compliance window to declare foreign
assets and income. So far, these steps have yielded little by way of
repatriation of transferred assets. The problem of black money stashed overseas
has to be dealt with both at the multilateral level, through tightened capital
flow norms, and domestically, through a zero tolerance approach to illegal
transfers.
Post
Comment
ram·i·fi·ca·tion
A consequence of an action or event, especially when complex or
unwelcome.
ar·tic·u·la·tion
The action of putting into words an idea or feeling of a
specified type.
e·volve
Develop gradually, especially from a simple to a more complex
form.
scru·ti·ny
Critical observation or examination.
cro·ny·ism
The appointment of friends and associates to positions of
authority, without proper regard to their qualifications.
graft
A shoot or twig inserted into a slit on the trunk or stem of a
living plant, from which it receives sap.
fall·out
Radioactive particles that are carried into the atmosphere after
a nuclear explosion or accident and gradually fall back as dust or in
precipitation.
repatriation
The act of returning to the country of origin
Business standard: Legislative impropriety
The little-noticed
announcement in the Finance Bill to retrospectively amend a clause in the
Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) does little to enhance the
government's reputation for ethical governance. The amendment, to apply from
2010, will mean that donations to political parties by Indian companies with
foreign direct investment within mandated sectoral limits will no longer be
considered "foreign contributions". The FCRA bans political parties
from receiving funds from a foreign entity, which is defined as one where 50
per cent or more equity is owned by a foreign enterprise.
In itself, the amendment may be defensible. Companies registered in India, even with majority foreign equity, have as much of a stake in Indian politics as wholly-owned Indian concerns, and there is no reason to prevent them from donating to political parties in a transparent manner. But the motive behind this amendment has little to do only with clarifying policy; it is also driven by self-interest that almost amounts to a rank abuse of power. It stems from a 2014 Delhi High Court ruling that held both the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress guilty for violating FCRA rules by accepting funds from two Indian subsidiaries of the London-headquartered Vedanta Group. The penalty for this includes imprisonment of between three and five years and a fine or both. A Supreme Court appeal is pending, but it is worth noting that the apex court did not stay the high court's decision. Retrospectively amending this provision would, in one stroke, let both the political parties off the hook and enable them to deflect criticism of having wrongly received donation from companies in violation of the existing law.
Adding to the misgivings about the opportunism embedded in this amendment is the fact that it has been included in the Finance Bill, 2016, which is a Money Bill under the Constitution. This means that the Rajya Sabha can neither amend nor reject it once the Bill is passed by the Lok Sabha, nor can it be referred to a joint committee of the Houses. This legislative chicanery becomes explicable only because of the ruling coalition lacking the requisite numbers in the upper House to pass any controversial legislation. But the real question is how the Speaker can certify this amendment as a Money Bill. First, the FCRA falls under the home ministry, not the finance ministry. Second, it is an issue that involves political party funding and in no way entails taxation, expenditure or borrowing of the Government of India or any appropriation or receipts to the Consolidated Fund of India, which are the broad constitutional qualifications for a Money Bill.
Overall, it is difficult to avoid the view that the ruling party is leveraging its political dominance to subordinate due legislative process. Indian subsidiaries of foreign companies may appreciate this clarification. But having openly repudiated the system of retrospective taxation that created so much controversy under the previous government, the regime's use of the same ruse of backdated legislation to suit its narrow purposes is unlikely to reassure the global investor community about its consistency on such matters. Nor does it enhance the reputation of the Congress as an effective opposition party, as it continues to maintain silence over such impropriety, presumably because it also stands to gain from the legislative amendment.
In itself, the amendment may be defensible. Companies registered in India, even with majority foreign equity, have as much of a stake in Indian politics as wholly-owned Indian concerns, and there is no reason to prevent them from donating to political parties in a transparent manner. But the motive behind this amendment has little to do only with clarifying policy; it is also driven by self-interest that almost amounts to a rank abuse of power. It stems from a 2014 Delhi High Court ruling that held both the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress guilty for violating FCRA rules by accepting funds from two Indian subsidiaries of the London-headquartered Vedanta Group. The penalty for this includes imprisonment of between three and five years and a fine or both. A Supreme Court appeal is pending, but it is worth noting that the apex court did not stay the high court's decision. Retrospectively amending this provision would, in one stroke, let both the political parties off the hook and enable them to deflect criticism of having wrongly received donation from companies in violation of the existing law.
Adding to the misgivings about the opportunism embedded in this amendment is the fact that it has been included in the Finance Bill, 2016, which is a Money Bill under the Constitution. This means that the Rajya Sabha can neither amend nor reject it once the Bill is passed by the Lok Sabha, nor can it be referred to a joint committee of the Houses. This legislative chicanery becomes explicable only because of the ruling coalition lacking the requisite numbers in the upper House to pass any controversial legislation. But the real question is how the Speaker can certify this amendment as a Money Bill. First, the FCRA falls under the home ministry, not the finance ministry. Second, it is an issue that involves political party funding and in no way entails taxation, expenditure or borrowing of the Government of India or any appropriation or receipts to the Consolidated Fund of India, which are the broad constitutional qualifications for a Money Bill.
Overall, it is difficult to avoid the view that the ruling party is leveraging its political dominance to subordinate due legislative process. Indian subsidiaries of foreign companies may appreciate this clarification. But having openly repudiated the system of retrospective taxation that created so much controversy under the previous government, the regime's use of the same ruse of backdated legislation to suit its narrow purposes is unlikely to reassure the global investor community about its consistency on such matters. Nor does it enhance the reputation of the Congress as an effective opposition party, as it continues to maintain silence over such impropriety, presumably because it also stands to gain from the legislative amendment.
im·pro·pri·e·ty
A failure to observe standards or show due honesty or modesty;
improper language, behavior, or character.
retrospectively
In a manner contemplative of past events; "retrospectively,
he seems like a great artist"
de·flect
Cause (something) to change direction by interposing something;
turn aside from a straight course.
chi·can·er·y
The use of trickery to achieve a political, financial, or legal
purpose.
re·pu·di·ate
Refuse to accept or be associated with.
IE: Extra dry
Nitish Kumar has had a complicated relationship
with Narendra Modi, but who would have expected him to embrace the Gujarat
model with extreme retro-ness, by enforcing complete, comprehensive
prohibition? Kumar will even install digital locks on liquor trucks passing
through the state, which will refuse to open while on Bihari soil.
Kumar has ostensibly drawn strength from the
“overwhelming” rural response to the country liquor ban declared on All Fools’
Day. Interestingly, in 1991, Manipur had chosen that very day to ban drink.
Perhaps that’s just coincidence, but rural support for prohibition does seem to
cut across state lines. Liquor is perceived to be a social problem in villages
across India, and women’s groups and social movements often back prohibition.
States from Tamil Nadu to Haryana have banned drink to battle very real social
problems, and concluded that it can only be a transient intervention. It is
useful to jolt drunks to their senses by closing the bar for a bit. But keeping
the tap stubbornly closed does nothing for either the public exchequer or the
public temper. Or for public probity, since prohibition creates flourishing
underground markets. Nitish Kumar was bound to order a round of prohibition. It
has been brewing ever since he made a rash electoral promise, and the
opposition has been putting him to the proof. But he would be wise to stop
hitting the bottle, in a manner of speaking, after the heat is off. Already, he
has hinted at leniency by singing the virtues of neera or palm sap, which is a
dual-use substance, a universal tonic which automagically transmutes into toddy
at 11 am sharp. Bihar’s people know their mind. Kumar should not force a
culture of denial and duplicity upon them, which might invite them to fiddle
with time, and perhaps even with reality itself.
em·brace
Hold (someone) closely in one's arms, especially as a sign of
affection.
os·ten·si·bly
Apparently or purportedly, but perhaps not actually.
tran·sient
Lasting only for a short time; impermanent.
jolt
Push or shake (someone or something) abruptly and roughly.
stubbornly
In a stubborn unregenerate manner; "she remained stubbornly
in the same position"
pro·bi·ty
The quality of having strong moral principles; honesty and
decency.
fid·dle
A violin, especially when used to play folk music.
The Economic Times (Bangalore)
PM Modi Continues to Ride High in Towns
But some of his schemes do not find traction
Exports, stock market indices and corporate returns might be down
and banks battered by bad debt, but the popularity of Prime Minister Narendra
Modi remains undiminished: this is the finding of a survey of over 2,100 people
from India's seven largest cities. The Economic Times Survey conducted by TNS
covered people in the age group 24-50 with annual earnings between ` . 3 lakh
and . 20 lakh, with a bias towards those aged 24-30 and earn` . 5 lakh. The
Congress is blamed for stalling Paring up to ` liament and Rahul Gandhi's
popularity is less than half Modi's, although the Congress leader's disapproval
decreases as the income of the respondent rises.
India's
urban middle class is generally satisfied with the performance of the
government, is hopeful about the future and thinks enough jobs are being
generated. The Union Budget receives a more mixed review. Prosperous
forty-somethings tend to think the Budget would hurt their earnings, but the
vast majority are either happy with the Budget or neutral about it. Finance
minister Arun Jaitley also receives a favourable rating, although lower than
the PM's. In the game of percepti on management, the government has a clear
upper hand. In the controversy over nationalism, urban middle class opinion is
firmly with the BJP . This would not be news to the Congress, which decided to
duck the nationalism debate in Maharashtra, not by refusing to let the BJP
choose the agenda but by going along with it on the perverse conflation of
patriotism with the iconography of the nation as mother goddess.
It might
come as a mild disappointment to the ruling dispensation, however, that schemes
such as Digital India and Smart Cities are not the resounding successes they
were supposed to be. It is only in Delhi that Digital India manages to find
traction. However, the Swachh Bharat scheme is immensely popular. On the whole,
the ability to identify what moves people and raise aspirations seems to have
dominated, tangible achievements when it comes to middle-class assessment.
Actual delivery will matter in the days to come.
bat·tered
Injured by repeated blows or punishment.
dis·pen·sa·tion
Exemption from a rule or usual requirement.
trac·tion
The action of drawing or pulling a thing over a surface,
especially a road or track.
im·mense·ly
To a great extent; extremely.
No comments:
Post a Comment