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Stating that the trial court in Surat had not given reasons for awarding the maximum punishment of two years to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, the Supreme Court stayed his conviction in a criminal defamation case over his 2019 remarks on the Modi surname.
The decision by the bench of Justices B R Gavai, P S Narasimha and P V Sanjay Kumar, which heard Gandhi’s plea challenging the Gujarat High Court order declining to stay the conviction, paves the way for his return to Lok Sabha where he represented Wayanad in Kerala.
Gandhi was disqualified from the House in March this year following the conviction. Now that a stay has been granted, his disqualification stands revoked. The Lok Sabha Secretariat will have to issue a formal notification reviving his membership to the House.
He was found guilty of criminal defamation by a Surat magistrate court in a complaint filed by Surat West MLA Purnesh Modi of the BJP who objected to his remarks in Kolar in April 2019 – in the run-up to the Lok Sabha elections – about thieves with the Modi surname. His appeal against the conviction is pending before the Surat Sessions Court.
In Parliament
House committee suggests lowering of assembly poll contesting age to 18 (Page no. 10)
(GS paper 2, Governance)
A Parliamentary panel on recommended lowering the minimum age for contesting an Assembly election from 25 years to 18 years, saying it would widen the viewpoints in policy debates, thereby improving the credibility of the political process.
The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice presented its report on “aspects of election process and their reform” to the Rajya Sabha.
The panel, which is chaired by BJP MP Sushil Kumar Modi, also cautioned the government and the Election Commission on their proposal for a common electoral roll for Parliamentary, Assembly and local body elections, saying that the principles of federalism should be adhered to.
The committee also recommended increasing the punishment for a candidate filing a false affidavit from six months to up to two years and a fine, depending on the severity of the offence.
“The committee observes that reducing the minimum age requirement for candidacy in elections would give young individuals equal opportunities to engage in democracy.
This viewpoint is reinforced by a vast amount of evidence, such as global practices, the increasing political consciousness among young people and the advantages of youth representation,” the report read.
The report said political parties had in the past favoured experienced candidates for public office, while dismissing younger candidates as lacking in experience.
Bill passed to empower President with mgmt accountability of IIMs (Page no. 10)
(GS paper 2, Governance)
The Lok Sabha passed a Bill proposing that the management accountability of the Indian Institutes of Management (IIM)s should be with the President, who will now be a Visitor.
This means the President of India will now have the power to audit the functioning of IIMs, order probes and appoint as well as remove directors. The President is already a Visitor at IITs and NITs.
Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, in the Lower House, said that the aim of the Bill (which seeks to amend the IIM Act of 2017) is not to take away the academic accountability from the institute, but is instead to ensure its management accountability as the Centre has spent over Rs 6,000 crore in setting up the IIMs.
Under the existing dispensation, the President is also a Visitor at IITs and NITs, but no questions are being raised on the academic autonomy of these institutes.
The Visitor may appoint one or more persons to review the work and progress of any institute, to hold enquiries into affairs thereof and to report in such manner as the Visitor may direct. The board may also recommend to the Visitor an enquiry as deemed proper against the institute which has not been functioning in accordance with provisions and objectives of the Act.
Express Network
India’s export ban pushes global rice prices to nearly 12 year high (Page no. 12)
(GS paper 3, Economy)
Global rice prices have soared to a near 12-year high following India’s decision last month to ban export of all non-parboiled non-basmati.
The United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization’s All-Rice Price Index (with a base year value of 100 for 2014-2016) rose to reach 129.7 points in July 2023, up 19.6 per cent from its level a year ago and the highest since September 2011.
The year-on-year increase was even higher, at 24.4 per cent, for Indica Index (the rice varieties that are grown in the subcontinent) that touched 135.4 points in July.
On July 20, India prohibited exports of all non-basmati white rice, which accounted for 9.94 million tonnes (mt) out of the total 22.35 mt of the cereal shipped out from the country in 2022-23 (April-March). Currently, only exports of basmati (4.56 mt in 2022-23) and parboiled non-basmati rice (7.85 mt) are being allowed.
Rice, unlike wheat, is a thinly traded global commodity. The total annual world trade in wheat is 214-215 mt. India’s share in it has been miniscule, even when it peaked at 7.24 mt in 2021-22.
The ban on wheat exports by India, in May 2022, did affect international price sentiment then, but was not materially significant.
This has not been the case with rice, where the total global trade itself was just 55.65 mt in 2022-23, as per US Department of Agriculture. At 22.5 mt or 40.4 per cent, India’s share in that is significant, both materially and from a price sentiment standpoint.
Editorial
The Cheetah’s return (Page no. 14)
(GS paper 3, Environment)
In modern times, human impacts are primarily responsible for species extinctions and biodiversity loss. Societies founded on ethics and endowed with the finances and scientific acumen often reintroduce locally extinct species to reap the benefits of ecosystem services that emanate from them for future generations.
The cheetah, the only large carnivore made extinct in independent India by human actions, was reintroduced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in September 2022, reinforcing the government’s commitment to conserving our natural heritage. Prehistoric cave paintings, the mention of the animals in ancient texts, and the Sanskrit origin of the name cheetah dispel the view that the animal is exotic to India.
Recent genetic analysis of the extinct Indian cheetah shows the animal’s origin in Persia. The cheetah, the lion, the striped hyena, honey badger, caracal, and gazelles are some examples of Ethiopian fauna that colonised India through Persia in ancient times.
The cheetah served as an evolutionary force and was responsible for the fast speed of the blackbuck, its major prey. Unlike tigers, leopards and lions — ambush predators — the cheetah hunts by chasing its prey and thereby removes the sick, old, as well as young from the population, ensuring the survival of the fittest and keeping the prey population healthy.
A top carnivore at the apex of the food chain can sustain its population when lower trophic levels are functioning optimally.
This is the philosophy of Project Tiger, which uses the tiger as a flagship to garner resources for conserving intact ecosystems. Several ecosystems in India do not have tigers; cheetahs could serve as a flagship for conservation there.
Ideas Page
J&K, like other states (Page no. 15)
(GS paper 2, Governance)
If the head of an Indian state tells you that an INOX theatre, which also screens Hollywood movies, has been opened in the state capital, or that a new theatre in a district headquarters has started showing movies, what would your reaction be? If he says that markets in the state capital are open till late in the night, people roam around until midnight to enjoy an ice cream, there is no street violence in the towns and cities, and ordinary people freely express themselves, what would you say? All these situations sound normal, and it might seem odd that these are being showcased as great achievements — except, of course, if we are speaking of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
Normalcy, as found in any other state or UT in India, is the new normal in J&K — a spectacular achievement of the administration in the last four years after the annulment of Article 370.
The Article had created lawlessness in J&K for decades. The state acquired a fundamentally militaristic character with the shadow of terror over every walk of life. A corroded state became a haven for vested interests and almost everybody bought into it. Naturally, ordinary citizens suffered the worst.
One senior official, who served in key positions in the state during the abrogation of Article 370, equated the situation in Kashmir with the reconstruction of Germany and Japan after World War II.
Dismantling the existing militaristic structure of Meiji Japan or Hitler’s Germany and the creation of a new administrative regime was a challenge accomplished by post-war Japanese and the West German leadership.
A similar effort was undertaken in J&K after the abrogation — the architecture of a civilised and modern state was put in place.
Explained
Peru fossil find could be heaviest animal ever (Page no. 17)
(GS paper 3, Science and Technology)
Blue whales, the giants of the ocean, are known to measure as long as 29.9 metres and weigh as much as 180,000 kilograms—which is about the same as 36 of the heaviest Indian elephants you can find. But it may no longer be the heaviest animal that ever lived. There is a new contender for that post—Perucetus colossus.
Based on a newly-described fossil of the whale Perucetus colossus dating to more than 38 million years ago, scientists believe that it may have been heavier than a blue whale even though it may not have been as long, according to Nature. 13 vertebrae, 4 ribs and a bit of a pelvis of the gigantic sea creature were discovered in Peru. Researchers guess that the species weighed between 85 and a simply massive 340 tonnes.
The animal’s bones had an unusually large volume and were also extremely dense, according to Reuters. This combination of thickening and densification of bones is called pachyosteosclerosis.
The characteristic is absent in living whales, dolphins and porpoise. But it is present in sirenians, a marine mammal group that includes sea cows. The animal has been described in an article published in the journal Nature.
Changing view on privacy: the journey of India’s data protection bill (Page no. 17)
After nearly five years of negotiations involving the government, technology companies and civil society representatives, the Centre tabled the Digital Personal Data Protection Bill, 2023, in Parliament, which lays out procedures on how corporations and the government itself can collect and use information and personal data of India’s citizens.
Over these five years, the legislation has undergone multiple iterations – having started out as a draft legislation that espoused the broader tenets of Europe’s privacy protections, which empower citizens to have a greater say in how their online data is used.
Midway through the journey, there was an infusion of provisions that diluted some proposals to satisfy companies and promote competition, somewhat on the lines of the US legislation.
The final Bill is a mixed bag. While it has serious provisions for the way private entities can deal with users’ personal data, many of those yardsticks do not apply to the Centre itself, which enjoys wide-ranging exemptions and power over the enforcement process.
These include a progressive weakening of the Data Protection Authority of India – the body that is supposed to be the key regulator and enforcer of the law – and the multiple exemptions to the central government and its agencies entities, which were among the most criticised provisions of the previous draft.
The Centre was also empowered to appoint members to the data protection board, raising concerns over the control it could potentially exert on the institution in cases where it was an interested party.
World
Pak House passes bill to curb money laundering terrorism (Page no. 18)
(GS paper 2, International Organisation)
Pakistan's National Assembly has passed a bill, which will help the country avoid the Financial Action Task Force’s grey list forever if it is enforced and properly implemented.
The lower house of Parliament passed the bill on Thursday that seeks to form a central authority to curb money laundering and terror financing, bringing all institutions related to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) under one command.
Last year, Pakistan was taken off the grey list of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the global watchdog on terror financing and money laundering, four years after the country was put in the infamous categorisation.
The bill – the National Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Financing of Terrorism Authority Act, 2023 – was presented by Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Hina Rabbani Khar, who said that the proposed law would bring all institutions related to FATF under one authority, The Express Tribune newspaper reported on Friday.
New Zealand to boost its defence amid rising tensions in the Pacific (Page no. 18)
(GS paper 2, International Relation)
New Zealand said it plans to boost its defence capabilities as tensions rise in the Pacific, due in part to a military buildup by China.
Defence Minister Andrew Little said current defence spending amounted to about 1 per cent of the nation's economy, a proportion he expected would need to increase, although not as high as 2 per cent.
He said replacing aging navy frigates and patrol vessels is among the most pressing needs under consideration. He said the country is also facing an increase in domestic threats such as misinformation, cyberattacks and terrorism.
The new defence policy paper released by Little contained no specifics about increases in spending, equipment or troops, with those details expected to be finalized in a later plan.
Rather the paper pointed to a rethinking about the role of the nation's military, which has often been used primarily to act as peacekeepers or provide aid when Pacific countries are hit by natural disasters.
Now, the paper said, New Zealand is facing more challenging times than it has in decades and the military needs to improve combat readiness. The military has been struggling with outdated equipment and difficulties recruiting and retaining staff.
Chins reopens trade in Australian barley in new sign of improved ties (Page no. 18)
(GS paper 2, International Relation)
China is lifting a stifling 3-year-old tariff on Australian barley starting— a sign of an improving bilateral trade relationship since Australia’s government changed.
China effectively closed its door to Australian barley in May 2020 by imposing an 80.5% tariff after the previous Australian government angered Beijing by calling for an independent inquiry into the origins of, and responses to, the COVID-19 pandemic.
Both governments confirmed the resumption of trade in the grain that was worth 916 million Australian dollars ($602 million) in the year before China blocked imports.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese welcomed the breakthrough, which comes as he plans his first visit to Beijing as government leader before the end of the year.
When Albanese’s government was elected in May 2022, he demanded Beijing drop a series of official and unofficial trade barriers against Australian exports — including barley, wine, coal, beef, wood and seafood — that were costing producers $15 billion a year.
China’s Ministry of Commerce said in a statement it “ruled that in view of the changes in China’s barley market, it was unnecessary to continue to impose anti-dumping duties and countervailing duties on imported barley originating in Australia.”
Australia has denied China’s claims that it subsidized barley and wine to export it at artificially low prices, a process known as dumping.
Economy
Cabinet clears telecom bill with relaxations on OTT regulation (Page no. 19)
(GS paper 3, Economy)
The Union Cabinet has cleared the draft Indian Telecommunication Bill 2023, which contains certain relaxations in regulating communication services such as WhatsApp and Google Meet. The Bill, however, is unlikely to be introduced in the ongoing session of Parliament.
A senior government official said there are significant relaxations to the process of regulating over-the-top (OTT) communication services by requiring them to obtain a licence from the government — among the most contentious issues in the Bill.
Cabinet has cleared Indian Telecommunication Bill 2023 but the government is not in a hurry to table it in the current session.
The Bill was first released last year and in that version, it proposed to include services like WhatsApp, Signal and Telegram in the definition of telecommunication services.
As per the initial draft, providers of telecommunication services will be covered under the licensing regime, and will be subjected to similar rules as other telecom operators.
This issue has been under contention for several years now with telecom service providers seeking a level-playing field with OTT apps over communication services such as voice calls, messages, etc. where operators had to incur high costs of licences and spectrum, while OTT players rode on their infrastructure to offer free services.