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Delhi Vs Centre: BIG HURRAH FOR AAP By Insaf, 7 July 2018 Print E-mail

Round The States

New Delhi, 7 July 2018

Delhi Vs Centre

BIG HURRAH FOR AAP

By Insaf

 

Big hurrah for Kejriwal and team! None other than the Supreme Court has put the lid, hopefully though, on the perennial tu-tu-mein-mein between Aam Admi Party government and the Lt Governor over who holds the ‘real power’. On Wednesday last, a five-judge Bench was undivided that the L-G is “bound by the aid and advice” of the elected government and overturned the Delhi high Court’s judgement. In simple terms it means that the real authority to take decisions lies with Kejriwal and his Cabinet and that Governor Baijal, titular head, has no independent authority, except in matters under Article 239 or those outside the purview of the NCT government. Furthermore, the Bench was firm that every ‘trivial difference of opinion” between the two cannot be referred to the President for a decision unless it is substantive or of national importance. The justification as stated being that ‘the Constitutional court would be doing disservice if an elected government is reduced to a mere form without substance.” And this was what precisely the BJP-ruled Centre sought to do through the drama played out by the L-G, by putting a freeze on either government decisions on appointment of bureaucrats or school teachers or mohalla clinic staff et al. Sadly, it was throttling democracy. Fortunately, the apex court has helped Delhi show the Centre its place. Has it learnt its lesson, is the big question. While time will tell, it would do well do adhere to the adage ‘once bitten twice shy’.     

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Tripura-Mizo Agreement  

It’s a win-win situation for both Tripura and Mizoram. The two N-E States along with the Centre and Mizoram Bru Displaced People’s Forum signed a historic agreement on Tuesday last. Members of Bru tribe, living as refugees in Tripura shall finally be repatriated to their homeland, Mizoram. After burning the midnight oil for years, 32,876 persons of 5,407 families based in 7 refugee camps will be repatriated before September 30. The Centre will give financial aid for their rehabilitation i.e. each family will get one time Rs 4 lakh, Rs 5,000 per month for two years, Rs 1.5 lakh to build a house and free ration for two years. Plus, the Centre shall ensure security, education, livelihood in consultation with the State governments. Recall, thousands from Bru tribe, not accepted as an indigenous group by Mizo nationalist groups, had to flee the State following backlash from Mizos after Bru militants killed a Mizo forest guard (in 1997) and a teenager (2009). Three months from now, predictably there will be a mix of anxiety and joy amongst the Bru tribe: Will word be kept for their ‘ghar wapsi’?  

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Jittery Rajasthan

Jittery BJP in Rajasthan has gone into damage-control mode. With Assembly elections year-end and predictions that the voter is going to show Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje the door, the government is out to appease the disgruntled communities—Rajputs and Gujjars, traditionally their vote bank. On Monday last, it started with the first of its decisions. One, to withdraw 24 cases against the Rajputs and its leaders involved in July last year’s violence in Nagaur district following their protest against ‘police encounter’ of a Rajput leader with a criminal antecedents. Two, it again issued orders clarifying that the five castes, including Gujjars, are entitled to receive 21 per cent reservations under the OBC category, along with 1 per cent quota as Most Backward Class (MBC). This after the Gujjar community had threatened to stage protests during Prime Minister Modi’s visit to capital Jaipur today. However, with Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment giving clear instructions to all departments and educational institutions to clear pending recruitments under the policy, the community decided to withdraw its protest. All eyes would now be what Modi offers as the next bait.   

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SC Warning To States

States can no longer run with the hare and hunt with the hounds! The Supreme Court is firm about it. On Tuesday last, it made it amply clear that all States “are under obligation to prevent lynchings and mob violence and such incidents cannot happen by the remotest chance”. It was hearing petitions on attacks by gau rakshaks (cow vigilantes), ‘contempt of court’ by States for not stopping the lynchings as per its earlier directive and there has been a spate of mob attacks in the country. CJI Mishra was clear: “Whether there is a law or not (against lynching), nobody should be allowed to take law into their hands,” and the States shall be held accountable. He reserved the orders—an elaborate judgement, for another day. Apparently, since May 22 persons have been reportedly beaten to death in different parts of the country, including Maharashtra, Tripura and Assam. While the Court will consider whether the Centre should frame a scheme under Article 256 to give directions to the States to prevent/control such incidents, it would at least spell out the compensation for victims of such crime, depending on the “injury suffered --whether it’s simple, rigorous or death.” Be that as it may, will the fear of the Supreme Court, if not God, make the State governments pull up their socks? Or will they continue to make a mockery of rule of law? .

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Karnataka Flux

The farmers in Karnataka are in a conundrum. Is the Kumaraswamy government looking at their welfare or are they being led up the garden path? In the Budget, presented on Thursday last, the JD(S)-Congress government, has waived all defaulted crop loans of the farmers made up to December 31 last year, in the first phase of the loan waiver scheme. However, it is not so simple, as the Budget has imposed a number of conditions for the waiver scheme. It says, among others that the maximum principal of loans to be waived off is fixed at ₹2 lakh and ear marks ₹34,000 crore for the same; families of co-operative and government officials, farmers who have paid income tax for the past three years are ineligible etc. This adds to uncertainty. At the same time, it has announced it will repay ₹25,000 or the full loan amount, whichever is lower, to all farmers who have repaid the loan, so as to encourage non-defaulting farmers and to facilitate farmers to avail new loans, the government will issue clearance certificate by waiving off arrears from the defaulting account. While the farmers will be busy understanding the waiver, the Government too would need to look at the coffers of fulfilling its promise. Who will blink first?

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Uttarakhand’s ‘Animal Kingdom’

If animals could make a wish, Uttarakhand would be their destination. The hilly State’s High Court on Wednesday declared ‘the entire animal kingdom’, including avian and aquatic species as legal entities with ‘corresponding rights, duties and liabilities of a living person.’ The order, in a PIL in 2014, seeking directions to restrict movement of horse carts, between Indian and Nepal through Banbasa, Champawat district, also spelt out dont’s: No animal, including horses, moving between the countries should carry excess weight; there will be no use of any ‘sharp equipment’ throughout the State “to avoid bruises, swelling, abrasions or severe pain” to animals; no animal be used for drawing vehicles from 11am-4pm if temperature exceeds 37 deg C (summers) and from 5 am-7am and 10pm-5am below 5 deg C (winter); No goods vehicle shall carry over six cattle and each vehicle shall have one attendant. The dos include: animals be transported on foot only between 12 deg C to 30 deg C; be given water every 2 hours and food every 4 hours; municipal bodies to provide shelter to horses and bullocks; every animal transported must be healthy and have a veterinary doctor certificate. Moreover, the citizens have a responsibility i.e. be “the human face for the welfare and protection of animals.” How well they carry out their duties needs to be watched. ---INFA

(Copyright, India News & Feature Alliance)

 

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