Congress asks government to change mind-set
The Congress on Monday accused the Central government of being in a “perpetual mode of confrontation” with the Opposition and asked it to change its mind-set. Congress leader Anand Sharma said that the party would not support a special session of Parliament unless the Narendra Modi-led government engaged with the Opposition in a “constructive manner”. Criticising the government for its land acquisition bill, Sharma said that Modi had “wasted 10 months of development” by enacting the now-lapsed land ordinance. The Centre has been considering a special session of both Houses to discuss and vote on important legislation such as the Goods and Services Tax Bill.
GDP growth slows to 7%
National Income data released on Monday showed that the country’s Gross Domestic Product growth had slowed to 7% in the first quarter of 2015 from 7.5% in the previous quarter. The Central Statistics Office said that while manufacturing grew at 7.2% between April and June, financial services grew by 8.9% and trade, transport and communication recorded the highest growth rate with 12.9%. However, poor rains led to a growth of only 1.9% in agriculture, with the mining and quarrying sectors also recording a low growth rate of 4%.
Law Commission calls for abolishing death penalty
The Law Commission in its 262nd report has called for the abolition of the death penalty. The 20th Commission’s report, released on Monday, called for the removal of capital punishment for all crimes except terrorism-related offences and the crime of waging war against India. The report said that the “rarest of the rare” doctrine adopted by the Supreme Court for awarding the death penalty was constitutionally unsustainable. Law Commission Chairperson AP Shah said that the report’s recommendations were meant to start a dialogue with the legislature with an aim to move towards abolition.
Mehrishi replaces Goyal as Home Secretary
Rajiv Mehrishi on Monday took over from LC Goyal as the new Union Home Secretary on Monday. Officials said that Goyal was asked to seek voluntary retirement. However, he was later appointed as the Chairperson of the Indian Trade Promotion Organisation under the Ministry of Commerce. Officials said that the government decided to replace Goyal as it was not happy with his style of functioning. He had reportedly expressed his displeasure with the Prime Minister’s Office about being kept out of peace negotiations with Naga separatist groups.
No need to include Hurriyat in talks: Mehbooba
People’s Democratic Party leader Mehbooba Mufti on Monday said that it was not necessary for separatist groups such as the Hurriyat Conference to be included in every round of talks between India and Pakistan. Mufti said that there were “many issues” between India and Pakistan, so Kashmiri separatist groups could not be invited to attend all discussions. She urged the Central government to revive the political reconciliation movement that began in Jammu and Kashmir when her father, PDP patron Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, was chief minister.
The Congress on Monday accused the Central government of being in a “perpetual mode of confrontation” with the Opposition and asked it to change its mind-set. Congress leader Anand Sharma said that the party would not support a special session of Parliament unless the Narendra Modi-led government engaged with the Opposition in a “constructive manner”. Criticising the government for its land acquisition bill, Sharma said that Modi had “wasted 10 months of development” by enacting the now-lapsed land ordinance. The Centre has been considering a special session of both Houses to discuss and vote on important legislation such as the Goods and Services Tax Bill.
GDP growth slows to 7%
National Income data released on Monday showed that the country’s Gross Domestic Product growth had slowed to 7% in the first quarter of 2015 from 7.5% in the previous quarter. The Central Statistics Office said that while manufacturing grew at 7.2% between April and June, financial services grew by 8.9% and trade, transport and communication recorded the highest growth rate with 12.9%. However, poor rains led to a growth of only 1.9% in agriculture, with the mining and quarrying sectors also recording a low growth rate of 4%.
Law Commission calls for abolishing death penalty
The Law Commission in its 262nd report has called for the abolition of the death penalty. The 20th Commission’s report, released on Monday, called for the removal of capital punishment for all crimes except terrorism-related offences and the crime of waging war against India. The report said that the “rarest of the rare” doctrine adopted by the Supreme Court for awarding the death penalty was constitutionally unsustainable. Law Commission Chairperson AP Shah said that the report’s recommendations were meant to start a dialogue with the legislature with an aim to move towards abolition.
Mehrishi replaces Goyal as Home Secretary
Rajiv Mehrishi on Monday took over from LC Goyal as the new Union Home Secretary on Monday. Officials said that Goyal was asked to seek voluntary retirement. However, he was later appointed as the Chairperson of the Indian Trade Promotion Organisation under the Ministry of Commerce. Officials said that the government decided to replace Goyal as it was not happy with his style of functioning. He had reportedly expressed his displeasure with the Prime Minister’s Office about being kept out of peace negotiations with Naga separatist groups.
No need to include Hurriyat in talks: Mehbooba
People’s Democratic Party leader Mehbooba Mufti on Monday said that it was not necessary for separatist groups such as the Hurriyat Conference to be included in every round of talks between India and Pakistan. Mufti said that there were “many issues” between India and Pakistan, so Kashmiri separatist groups could not be invited to attend all discussions. She urged the Central government to revive the political reconciliation movement that began in Jammu and Kashmir when her father, PDP patron Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, was chief minister.
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