New Delhi, Mar 10 : In an unprecedented order, the Supreme Court today issued bailable warrants against serving Calcutta High Court judge C S Karnan to ensure his presence before it on March 31 in a contempt case.
Justice Karnan goes down in the Indian judicial history as the first serving High Court judge against whom an arrest warrant has been issued by the apex court in a contempt case.
A seven-judge bench headed by Chief Justice J S Khehar took strong note of Justice Karnan’s non-appearance despite being served with the contempt notice and asked the Director General of West Bengal Police to execute the warrants on the judge to ensure his presence at 10.30 AM on March 31.
The court said it would “appreciate” if the bailable warrants are served on Justice Karnan by the DGP.
“Notice of this petition has been duly served. Despite service, wherein the personal presence of Shri Justice C S Karnan, in this Court, was imperative, he has neither entered appearance in person, nor through counsel,” the bench, also comprising Justices Dipak Misra, J Chelameswar, Ranjan Gogoi, M B Lokur, P C Ghose and Kurian Joseph, said.
“In view of the above, there is no other alternative but to seek the presence of Shri Justice C S Karnan by issuing bailable warrants. Ordered accordingly. Bailable warrants, in the sum of Rs 10,000, in the nature of a personal bond, to the satisfaction of the arresting officer, be issued, to ensure the presence of Shri Justice C S Karnan, in this Court, on March 31 at 10.30 A.M,” it said.
The bench during a 15-minute-long hearing that took place in the packed CJI’s courtroom referred to Justice Karnan’s fax message sent to the apex court registry on March 8 seeking a meeting with the CJI to discuss “certain administrative issues”.
It said the message “primarily seem to reflect the allegations levelled by him against certain named judges. The above fax message, dated March 8, cannot be considered as a response of Justice C S Karnan, either to the contempt petition, or to the notice served upon him.”
At the outset, Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi said that Justice Karnan had defied the Supreme Court order and the apex court rules on contempt provide for issuance of bailable and non-bailable warrants against a contemnor to ensure his presence.
Women working in the organised sector will now be entitled to paid maternity leave of 26 weeks, up from 12 weeks, as Parliament passed a bill on Thursday in this regard that will benefit about 1.8 million women.
The new law will apply to all establishments employing 10 or more people and the entitlement will be for only up to first two children. For third child, the entitlement will be for only 12 weeks.
The Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Bill, 2016 was passed by the Lok Sabha on Thursday, months after the Rajya Sabha approved the measure that takes India to the third position in terms of the number of weeks for maternity leave after Canada and Norway where it is 50 weeks and 44 weeks, respectively.
Piloting amendments to the old law, Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya said while framing the rules, he would try to ensure that maximum benefits reach the pregnant women. “This is my humble gift to women, a day after the world celebrated the International Women’s Day,” he said after about 4-hour debate during which some members demanded paternity benefits too, arguing that these days most of the children are born in nuclear families where both the father and the mother have to take care of the child. The Maternity Benefit Act, 1961, protects the employment of women during the time of her maternity and entitles her full paid absence from work, to take care for her child.
Among other things, the bill provides for 12 weeks of maternity leave to a woman who legally adopts a child below three months of age and a commissioning mother (defined as a biological mother) who uses her egg to have a surrogate child. In such cases, 12-week period of maternity leave will be calculated from the date the child is handed over to the adoptive or commissioning mother.
The Bill also requires every establishment with 50 or more employees to provide crche facilities within a prescribed distance. The woman will be allowed four visits to the creche in a day. This will include her interval for rest.
It has also made a provision under which an employer can permit a woman to work from home, if the nature of work assigned permits her to do so. This option can be availed of, after the period of maternity leave, for a duration that is mutually decided by the employer and the woman.
Observing that labour is in the Concurrent List of the Constitution, the minister appealed to the state governments to play an active role to ensure that all benefits reach women. He said the amendments were “progressive” in nature and would have “positive impact” on women participation and improve their “work life balance”. It would be expected of the employer to inform women about the maternity benefits at the time of employment, Dattatreya said.
He appreciated the role of some states like Tamil Nadu which are providing more benefits over and above what is mandated in the central statutes. The amendments would ensure that full maternal care is provided during the full bloom period and will encourage more women to join the workforce in organised sector, he added.
The central government has already amended its service rules and is providing 26 weeks maternity leaves to its employees. The Minister also clarified women working in Special Economic Zones (SEZs) would be entitled to all benefits of the legislation.
Responding to concerns expressed by members that benefits would be restricted to only 10 per cent of women working in organised sector, Dattatreya said the government has taken a host of steps for the welfare of unorganised workers. With these changes, India would rank high among the nations providing maternity benefit to women, he said.
Indian women will get more maternity leave than what is provided in developed countries like Japan, Germany, the United Kingdom and South Korea, the Minister said.
Participating in the debate, Sushmita Dev (Congress) said since amendments raise the period of maternity leave to 26 weeks from the present 12 weeks, it could act as a deterrent for the private sector to employ women workforce. “Since the employer has to pay the salary during the leave period, the amendment might turn out to be counter productive. Innovative thing to do would be to bring in paternity benefit,” Dev said.
She said such a benefit can also be extended to single fathers who adopt a child. She said only 1.8 million pregnant ladies will benefit from the amendments to the bill as 90% of the women workforce is in the unorganised sector. Pritam Munde (BJP) said a father also has equal responsibility towards the child like a mother and paternity benefits would help a couple to raise their child together as majority are now nuclear families.
Ratna De Nag (TMC) too made a case for paternity benefit and said her state government in West Bengal is already providing paternity leave for 30 days.
Tathagata Satpathy (BJD) termed the Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Bill, 2016, a social bill and said instead of reducing the period of leave from 26 week to 12 week after the second child, the Centre should say that up to third child there would be 26 week leave and after that no leave. He too sought paternity benefits. The Rajya Sabha had passed the bill in August last year.
Moscow : Russia’s foreign minister says the WikiLeaks dump of purported US intelligence has highlighted the CIA’s reported capability to imitate an electronic trace usually left behind by hackers from other nations.
Sergey Lavrov said today that while Russia has been accused of leaving its “fingerprints” after hacks on the US, documents released by WikiLeaks show that “the CIA could get access to such ‘fingerprints’ and then use them.”
The US intelligence agencies have accused Russia of hacking Hillary Clinton’s campaign to help Donald Trump win the US elections.
Lavrov reaffirmed a strong denial of Russia’s involvement in any hacking attacks.
Commenting on the WikiLeaks’ trove, he added that Russia needs to take the CIA’s hacking capabilities into account. He said he leaves his cellphone behind when he conducts sensitive talks.
United Nations: In a bid to get the United Nations reform process moving, India and other G4 nations have said they were open to innovative ideas and willing to not exercise veto as permanent members of a reformed Security Council until a decision on it has been taken.
In a joint statement, delivered by India’s Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Syed Akbaruddin at an inter-governmental negotiations meeting on Wednesday, the G4 nations of India, Brazil, Germany and Japan emphasised that an overwhelming majority of the UN member states supports the expansion of both permanent and non-permanent membership in a reformed Security Council.
On the issue of the veto, Akbaruddin said the question of veto has been addressed by many from differing perspectives but the G4 approach is that the problem of veto is not one of quantity (of extending it immediately to new permanent members) but of quality — of introducing restrictions.
“Our position is imbued with this spirit. While the new permanent members would as a principle have the same responsibilities and obligations as (the) current permanent members, they shall not exercise the veto until a decision on the matter has been taken during a review,” the G4 statement said.
The bloc warned that the issue of veto was important but member states should not allow it to have a “veto over the process of Council reform itself.”
Akbaruddin, on behalf of the G4, said the grouping was open to “innovative” and differing ideas compiled in a composite text to achieve UN reform. He asserted that the mere expansion in the category of non-permanent Security Council members will not address the “malaise” afflicting the UN body.
The statement points out that a negotiating text is a basic requirement for work at the UN. “While we are aware of no other way to proceed but this, we are open to innovative ideas to rework the UN system,” the statement said.
The G4 nations said it unfortunate that they have not heard any innovative ideas but a few countries bringing old rejected models for consideration of the member states yet again.
“We are, as a matter of respect, willing to consider them and have them tabled along with our proposals in a composite text,” the statement said, adding that for the nations’ and UN’s credibility to be sustained, it is time for “honest engagement and exchange on the basis of a text”.
The bloc said it believes there is an “imbalance of influence” within the Security Council between the permanent and non-permanent members and expansion only in the non-permanent category is not going to solve the problem.
“It will actually widen the difference between permanent and non-permanent members even more, tilting further the scales in favour of a dispensation that was valid in the special situation in 1945 but is no longer now,” the G4 statement said.
Akbaruddin said a “balanced enlargement” in both categories is necessarily the only way to ensure an equilibrium that reflects the current situation and any reform that does not address expansion of both categories will be “incomplete and futile”.
“Expansion of non-permanent membership is a solution which adds to the size without addressing the malaise that afflicts the Council,” he said in the statement.
The statement suggested that new permanent members can be democratically elected through an appropriate initial election process and subjected to mandatory and detailed review process after a specific time-period so as to ensure accountability.
Some member states have “conflated and confused” regular elections to the Council with accountability, the G4 said.
“Ensuring a perpetual campaign mode is not the best form of accountability,” it said.
Washington, Mar 8 : Kansas Governor San Brownback has written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressing “profound regret” at the terrible act of violence against the Indian nationals last month and said that acts of hate and intolerance have no place in his state.
Srinivas Kuchibhotla, 32, was killed and Alok Madasani, another Indian of the same age, injured in a shooting by navy veteran Adam Purinton, who yelled “terrorist” and “get out of my country” before opening fire on them in Kansas last month.
The Kansas incident and the two hate crime incidents against Indians and Indian-Americans since then has sent shock waves among the large Indian community in the US.
“As Governor of the State of Kansas, I would like to express my deep sadness and profound regret at the terrible act of violence committed against Srinu Kuchibhotla and Alok Madasani. The people of Kansas share in my shock and horror.
Words cannot express the sorrow that we feel for Srinu’s wife, Sunayana, and his family in Hyderabad,” Brownback wrote.
“In the time since Srinu’s death, we have reflected on his life, and the words I have heard most often to describe him are that he was courageous, and that he loved his family, and that he respected elders. We strive to live in Srinu s example of courage and love and respect,” he wrote in the letter dated March 3, a copy of which has been seen by PTI.
Brownback wrote that Kansans have been awed by Sunayana’s grace and determination.
Her indomitable spirit has moved the entire community and they pray for her comfort and peace in this time of grief.
Telling the Prime Minister that open arms of friendship are the very hallmarks of being a Kansan, the Governor said Srinu embodied the essence of what it means to be a Kansan.
“His friends describe him as charming, caring and loving.
He brought with him his immense talents and education and passion. His story is similar to the thousands of Indian diaspora who have called Kansas home over generations,” he wrote.
“They have enjoyed tremendous success through their ingenuity, hard work, and determination. Our state has thrived because of their contributions,” Brownback wrote, adding that he would like to personally welcome Indians to his state.
“Before they moved here, Sunayana said: ‘Kansas was (the) instant choice.’ We are humbled that this was the case. I would like to personally welcome Indians to Kansas, and assure them that Kansas is a welcoming, hospitable place,” he said.
Noting that Sunayana also spoke about being without her family in Kansas, Brownback wrote in the letter that it is their solemn hope that the community in Olathe and all of Kansas may nourish and love her in the difficult months ahead.
“Acts of hate and intolerance have no place in Kansas.
Since our founding, Kansas have fought against injustice and senseless hatred. We are recommitted daily to protecting our family, our neighbors, our guests. We find wisdom and peace in the Sanskrit mantra ‘Satyameva Jayate’,” Brownback said.
The Governor had met the Indian Consul General Dr Anupam Ray in Topeka and expressed his sincere condolences and reiterated his strong commitment to providing a safe and welcoming environment in Kansas.
The Centre today clarified that no one will be deprived of the benefits of subsidy schemes for the want of Aadhaar number and other identity proofs will be accepted.
The move comes after various opposition parties objected to the HRD Ministry’s announcement of making Aadhaar mandatory for receiving scholarships and benefits under the mid-day meal scheme.
“No one will be deprived of benefits for lack of Aadhaar.
Till Aadhaar number is assigned to any individual, the benefit will continue to be given based on alternate means of identification,” an official statement said.
“In case of Mid Day Meal scheme and under the Integrated Child Development Scheme, schools and anganwadis have been asked to collect Aadhaar number of the beneficiaries and in case a child does not have Aadhaar, the functionaries will be required to provide enrollment facilities and till then the benefits will continue,” it said.
The government asserted that the total savings in some schemes after plugging of leakages due to want of Aadhaar number in the last two and a half years amount to more than Rs 49,000 crore.
Aadhaar has become an important tool of transformation, good governance and empowerment of people, it said.
“Considering the usefulness of Aadhaar, the government has recently issued orders to use it in several welfare schemes. While these orders require beneficiaries to give their Aadhaar number, it has also been ensured that no one is deprived of the benefits for want of it,” the release said.
“During the last two and half years, Aadhaar has helped in direct delivery of benefits to crore of people through the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) in schemes such as LPG subsidy under Pahal, Scholarships, MNREGA, and Pensions.
“In the Public Distribution System, Aadhaar is ensuring that food grains are received only by genuine beneficiaries and are not diverted by any middle man or unscrupulous elements,” it said.
Delhi University professor GN Saibaba and five others were, on Tuesday, convicted by Maharashtra’s Gadchiroli court under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in a case of having Maoist links. While Saibaba and four others were given a life sentence, one Vijay Tirke, was given a ten year sentence.
Judge SS Shinde convicted Saibaba under sections 13, 18, 20, 38 and 39 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act which deals with conspiracy, being a member of a terrorist gang or organisation, and offences relating to support given to a terrorist organisation. Saibaba is currently out on bail.
“Court has said these six people are guilty of ‘continuos offense’ and not a single event and because of them, the district is facing Naxal violence for years,” Abhinav Deshmukh, SP, Gadchiroli said.
London, Mar 7 : The British government is facing more opposition to its plans for leaving the European Union from Parliament’s unelected House of Lords.
The Lords are likely today to pass an amendment to the government’s Brexit bill requiring Parliament not just the government to approve Britain’s exit deal with the EU. The chamber has already voted to promise EU citizens living in Britain that they can stay after the UK leaves the bloc.
But the changes may be temporary. Once the bill is passed by the Lords it will go back to the elected House of Commons, where lawmakers may overturn the amendments next week.
Prime Minister Theresa May wants to invoke Article 50 of the EU’s key treaty, triggering exit negotiations, by March 31. She can’t do that until Parliament passes legislation sanctioning the move.
Providing a respite for cancer patients, the drug pricing regulator National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) has cut prices of some cancer drugs by up to a whopping 86%, reported Mumbai Mirror.
A senior doctor from Tata Memorial Hospital said, “It is a big relief for cancer patients. Patients admitted in Tata get medicines for free or at a discounted rate, as we buy branded medicines in bulk at a 50 to 80% discount, but for private patients it is always an expensive affair. There are several drugs, especially to treat leukemia, which the patient has to take for years. As they are often very expensive, patients often leave the treatment midway.”
Various cancer-related drugs have seen a major price cut. The price for a lung cancer drug called Iressa, manufactured by Astrazeneca Pharma India Limited has been slashed from Rs 29,259 to Rs 3,977. The price of a drug for cancer therapy–Biceltis, manufactured by Emcure Pharmaceutical, has been cut by over Rs 10,000. Price of chemotherapy drugs like Doceaqualip has been reduced from Rs 16,890 to Rs 10,560. Price of Dr Reddy’s tablet Levin used to treat blood cancer has been slashed by 25% too.
Leaving space for more good news, Bhupendra Singha, chairman of NPPA stated that more cancer drugs will come out soon.
He added, “Apart from cancer, important medicines used in the treatment of diabetes, bacterial infections and blood pressure have been capped by the government, thereby reducing the cost by an average of around 25 to 50%.” Since March 2016, prices of around 800 drugs have been slashed by the government.
Jerusalem : Israeli Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman said today that the United States has warned that annexing the West Bank would lead to an “immediate crisis” with President Donald Trump’s administration.
Lieberman, speaking before his first trip to Washington since Trump took office, sought to push back against those in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition calling for a declaration of Israeli sovereignty over all or part of the occupied territory.
He said annexation would provoke a crisis with Washington and result in steep costs for the Israeli government since it would be required to provide services to Palestinians in the West Bank.
“We have received a very clear, direct message from the United States stating that the application of Israeli law in Judea and Samaria (the West Bank) would provoke an immediate crisis with the new administration,” Lieberman said before a parliamentary committee.
His office said he would leave Israel tonight for Washington, where he would meet Vice President Mike Pence, Defence Secretary Jim Mattis, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson “and hold other meetings.”
Some 2.6 million Palestinians live in the West Bank, which Israel occupied in 1967.
The latest call for annexation came yesterday, when lawmaker Miki Zohar from Netanyahu’s Likud party said in a television interview that “the two-state solution is dead”.
Zohar advocated a single state, but said that Palestinians in the West Bank should not be allowed to vote in Israeli parliamentary elections.
Others have made similar calls, including Education Minister Naftali Bennett who heads the religious nationalist Jewish Home party.
Bennett advocates annexing most of the West Bank, and has said he hopes support from Trump’s presidency will spell the end of the idea of a Palestinian state.
In his comments today, Lieberman also laid out an economic argument against annexation, saying Israel immediately “will be required to spend 20 billion shekels (USD 5.4 billion)” on various social services.
The defence minister, who heads the rightwing Yisrael Beitenu party, advocates a two-state solution based on territorial and population exchanges.
Netanyahu says he still supports a two-state solution, though he has also pushed for settlement expansion in the West Bank.
He has found himself seeking to hold together his governing coalition — seen as the most rightwing in Israeli history — while managing international relations, including with the United States.
The US is Israel’s most important ally, providing it with more than USD 3 billion in defence aid annually.
Some Israeli politicians have pushed for the immediate annexation of Maale Adumim, an Israeli settlement of some 37,000 people in a strategic location east of Jerusalem.
However, a bill to annex the settlement has been postponed by the cabinet to an unclear date.
While the confusion with Trump’s clear-cut stand on H1-B visa still looms, the administration has announced a hostile move that will hit businesses all across, especially the Indians who receive approximately 70% of the non-immigrant visas.
The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) on Friday announced that it will temporarily suspend its premium processing for all H1-B petitions starting April 3. The date till when the process is suspended has still not been announced, though USCIS has stated that it may last up to six months.
While the process is suspended, petitioners will not be able to file Form I-907 to request for Premium Processing Service and for Form I-129 which files a petition for a nonimmigrant worker which requests the H-1B nonimmigrant classification.
In a press release posted on Friday, USCIS stated that the temporary suspension will help the administration “reduce overall H1-B processing times.” It reasoned out the move by stated that USCIS will be able to process long-pending petitions which it has been unable to process due to large number of incoming petitions. It also said it will now, “Prioritize adjudication of H-1B extension of status cases that are nearing the 240 day mark.”
H1-B is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise. Technology companies, including those from India, depend on it for hiring tens of thousands of employees each year.
Under the current system, a company who is sponsoring a potential employee or current employee’s H-1B petition may fill out a form to expedite the processing of that petition. After paying an additional $1,225 fee for this service, USCIS responds typically in 15 days, whereas standard H-1B petitions may take anywhere between three to six months to receive a judgement.