Aadhaar not mandatory for bank account, mobile connection: Key takeaways

The Supreme Court on Wednesday declared government's Aadhaar scheme as Constitutionally valid and also struck down Section 57 of Aadhaar Act permitting private entities to avail Aadhaar data. "Robust data protection regime has to be brought in place as early as possible," Justice Sikri said while reading out the majority judgement.

The court said that the Aadhaar authentication data cannot be stored for more than six months.

The apex court's five-judge Constitution bench said Aadhaar means unique and it is better to be unique than being best. The first of the three judgements was pronounced by Justice A K Sikri. Justice Sikri pronounced the judgement for himself, Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justice A M Khanwilkar.

Here are the key takeaways:

1. Individuals and corporates cannot collect Aadhaar data

2. Government not to give Aadhaar to illegal immigrants

3. Aadhaar need not be made compulsory for school admissions

4. Linking Aadhaar to telecom services unconstitutional

5. No person can be denied govt benefits only due to absence of Aadhaar

6. No need to link bank accounts, mobile numbers to Aadhaar

7. Aadhaar card is mandatory for PAN linking, Income Tax return

8. Aadhaar can be passed as Money Bill

9. Nothing in Aadhaar Act that violates right to privacy of individual

10. No child can be denied benefits of any schemes on not being able to bring their Aadhaar number

11. CBSE, NEET, UGC cannot make Aadhaar mandatory, also not compulsory for school admissions

BJP and RSS trying to divide, spread hatred in India: Rahul Gandhi

Congress President Rahul Gandhi has lambasted the BJP and RSS, saying they were working "to divide and spread hatred" in India.

Gandhi made the statement while addressing the Indian Overseas Congress on Thursday in Berlin, the Congress said on Friday.

His address was not aired live due to a technical glitch.

Interacting with the Indian-origin parliamentarians, Gandhi said that "the government which is now ruling in India, the Bharatiya Janata Party and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, want to divide and spread hatred in the country. The Congress party will not let this happen".

Gandhi said the strength of India lies in listening to the views of every citizen, irrespective of his/her religion or caste.

Rahul Gandhi slams mob lynchings and attacks on Dalits; BJP hits back

Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday said mob lynchings and attacks on Dalits and minorities reflected the anger that currently pervaded India’s society because of growing joblessness and the Narendra Modi government taking away protections provided to the country’s poor. He said the Modi government’s demonetisation and poorly implemented goods and services tax (GST) have destroyed the informal economy and killed jobs in the small and medium businesses, which contributed to this anger.

Addressing a gathering at the Bucerius Summer School at Hamburg in Germany, of which Rahul Gandhi is an alumnus, the Congress president pointed to the example of the rise of the Islamic State, in Iraq and Syria to caution that excluding a large number of people from the development process could lead to creation of insurgent groups anywhere in the world.

Here's how social media pages are good source for making a quick buck

Those of us even sparsely active on social media must have at some point of scrolling through an ocean of posts come across images of Indian army soldiers, with the caption – “share if you are a true Indian”. The not-so-subtle nudge at our patriotism gets us to do as intended and the post goes viral; rarely do we wonder that the image might have an ulterior motive.

A thriving business
They say sharing is caring and a closed Facebook group by the same name seems to live the thought on a daily basis. The group asks for a government ID proof if you wish to join it and once you’re inside the circle of over 18,000 individuals, you can buy or sell patriotism, misogyny, politics, Bollywood, nationalism and even God.

1. Modi and BJP
With the advent of the internet, social media has become a money-making factory. Facebook is no longer limited to connecting with friends and playing Farmville but a place to easily connect with potential buyers. As more and more people got politically active on Facebook, a silent market emerged.

Ankit Pandey
In a May 2017 article, we chronicled the activities of Pandey – how he made a mint in sleazy and pro-BJP websites that supplied regular content to Facebook pages.
Read More

SC to hear pleas challenging validity of Article 35-A in Jammu & Kashmir

Amid tense situation in Jammu and Kashmir, the Supreme Court is all set to hear a batch of petitions on Monday, which challenge the validity of Article 35 A of the Constitution that grants special privileges to the residents of the state.

The State government had on Friday moved an application before the top court and sought to defer the hearing of the case, citing upcoming panchayat and urban local body elections.

Earlier in May, the top court had deferred the hearing of the case, saying that the government-appointed interlocutor, Dineshwar Sharma, is making efforts to find a solution; in such a situation, passing an interim order could prove futile.

The Union government decided not to file a counter affidavit in order to leave the Supreme Court free to decide on what is essentially an interpretation of the law and the Constitution.

As Sec 377 is in force, Rahul Gandhi must marry before we hug him: BJP MP

A day after Rahul Gandhi said Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MPs step back on seeing him as they fear he might hug them, BJP MP Nishikant Dubey on Thursday took a jibe, saying the leaders might be divorced by their wives if they embrace the Congress president as "Section 377 hasn't been scrapped as yet".

Dubey said BJP MPs can hug Gandhi only when the Congress president gets married.=

"Why should we hug him. Section 377 hasn't been scrapped as yet. And our wives will also give divorce to us. If Rahul Gandhi gets married, then we will hug him," he said.  

The IPC's Section 377 criminalises sex among people of the same gender. 

BJP chief Amit Shah, Nitish Kumar lay ground work for 2019 Lok Sabha battle

If the broad understanding reached between Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president Amit Shah and Janata Dal (United) chief Nitish Kumar over their breakfast meeting in Patna on Thursday holds firm in the coming months, the 2019 Lok Sabha polls could see the JD(U) contesting on less than a dozen of the state’s 40 Lok Sabha seats.

People with knowledge of the matter said top BJP and JD(U) leaders also discussed the possibility of holding the assembly polls in Bihar more than 18 months ahead of schedule, along with the Lok Sabha polls. If the BJP gets to contest the majority of Bihar’s Lok Sabha seats, the JD(U) could get to contest the lion’s share of the state’s 243 assembly seats. The BJP leadership recognised Kumar as the leader of the coalition in Bihar.

BJP pulls out of alliance with PDP in Jammu and Kashmir, CM Mufti resigns

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) broke its alliance with Jammu and Kashmir’s ruling Peoples Democratic Party on Tuesday, forcing Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti to resign at the end of an uneasy partnership at a time when fresh violence was stalking the militancy-hit state.

“It has become untenable for the BJP to continue in the alliance government in Jammu and Kashmir," general secretary Ram Madhav said in New Delhi, blaming Mufti’s party for challenging security conditions. He did not, however, name Mufti in his address to the press.

The BJP’s decision, which was taken after consulting Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party chief Amit Shah, raised the possibility of governor's rule in the politically volatile state for the eighth time, news agency PTI reported.

“Keeping in mind that Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India and in order to control the prevailing situation in the state, we have decided that the reins of power in the state be handed over to the governor," Madhav said.

Immediately after his news conference, senior PDP minister and party's chief spokesperson, Naeem Akhtar, told reporters in Srinagar that CM Mufti will submit her resignation to Governor N N Vohra.

In the national capital, Madhav said the Centre’s ruling BJP did everything feasible for the development of the state, which has been on the boil since the killing of a militant leader two years ago.

Supreme Court refuses CBI probe into 2 BJP workers' death in Bengal

The Supreme Court today refused to entertain a plea seeking a CBI probe into the recent killing of two BJP workers in Purulia district of West Bengal after panchayat polls.

A vacation bench of Justices A K Goel and Ashok Bhushan asked the petitioners to approach the Calcutta High Court for the relief.

Advocate Gaurav Bhatia, appearing for petitioners, said that it is a serious matter as the killing of BJP workers have taken place after the panchayat polls in Purulia district.

On May 30, 18-year-old Tirlochan Mahato, a BJP worker from Balrampur village of Purulia district was found hanging from a tree with a poster written in Bengali struck on his back, saying he was killed for canvassing for the BJP during panchayat election.

Another death of one Dulal Kumar, also a BJP worker, had taken place on June 2 in a similar manner in the same district.

The petition was filed by the father of Kumar, who sought a CBI probe into the killings.

Will waive farm loans within 10 days: Rahul Gandhi in MP's Mandsaur

Congress president Rahul Gandhi promised on Wednesday to waive farm loans within 10 days of coming to power in Madhya Pradesh, projecting his party as farmer-friendly in Mandsaur district where six people were killed in police firing during a protest a year ago.

“We want to change your lives…You will get the reward for your hard work,” media reports quoted Gandhi as saying in the politically crucial state that will vote to elect a new government later this year.

Gandhi also met the families of the victims of the June 6 police firing and said his party, if elected to power, will launch a probe into the incident.

“The probe report has not come out even after one year of the Mandsaur firing…Today I tried to share the pain of the victims’ families by spending some time with them,” Gandhi posted on Twitter.

Demanding better prices for their products, farmers in 2017 held state-wide protests that were marred by violence, with Mandsaur emerging as the epicentre of the stir.

In Wednesday’s rally, Gandhi accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of lying to the poor, and misleading the youth, who were promised "two crore" jobs.

After EVM row, Cong says BJP has new plan for rigging Madhya Pradesh polls

After levelling allegations of tampered electronic voting machines across polls in the country, the Congress has made another shocking accusation regarding electoral fraud. The Grand Old Party has accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of trying to influence the upcoming Madhya Pradesh Assembly election by enrolling close to 6 million (60 lakh) fake voters in the state's voters list.
Responding to the allegations, the Election Commission of India (EC) has ordered a probe into the matter. EC teams will reach the state, which is slated to go to polls later this year, on Monday to look into allegation levelled by Congress.

Madhya Pradesh Congress chief Kamal Nath has alleged that these names "have been deliberately registered" in the voter rolls, adding that his party's allegations were not over "administrative negligence" but about "administrative misuse" by the BJP. Kamal Nath on Sunday led a Congress delegation to meet EC officials over the allegations.

BJP no longer 'big brother'? Nitish Kumar, Bihar allies become assertive

After Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP's) recent bypoll defeats across the country and its own loss in Jokihat, the Janata Dal (United), or JD(U), may be trying to project itself as more than just the saffron party's junior partner in Bihar with a senior party leader stating that Chief Minister Nitish Kumar was the face of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in the state.

"Nitish Kumar is the face of the NDA in Bihar, that is why he is the chief minister. JD(U) is the largest constituent of the coalition," party National Secretary Pavan Varma said after the JD(U) core committee meet in Patna on Sunday. (Read more here)

Party spokesperson Ajay Alok also spoke on similar lines after the meet. "Nitish Kumar is the face of NDA alliance in Bihar," he said.

Last week, the Rashtriya Janata Dal wrested the Jokihat Assembly seat from the JD(U) and registered victory by a huge margin of over 41,000 votes.

JD(U) appears to have changed the way it deals with the BJP as the party has recently attacked the Centre on several issues.

Modi magic fading? United Opposition must not ignore BJP's 2 key advantages

A resurgent and united Opposition dealt another blow to the PM Narendra Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), defeating it in electorally-crucial Uttar Pradesh's Kairana and Noorpur bypolls, whose results were announced on Thursday. BJP's defeat in Kairana, in particular, was seen as a successful test case for Opposition unity ahead of the 2019 general elections. However, the Congress and other opposition parties must not ignore the advantages the saffron party still enjoys going into the Lok Sabha polls.

The BJP and its allies could only win three of the 14 seats up for grabs in the recent bypolls. Out of the four Lok Sabha seats in play, BJP won only in Maharashtra's Palghar, while the BJP-NDPP alliance won in Nagaland. The saffron party lost in Kairana and Maharashtra's Bhandara-Gondia. Among the Legislative Assembly seats that saw bypolls, the BJP only won in Uttarakhand's Tharali. The saffron party's ally, the Nitish Kumar-led Janata Dal (United), lost Bihar's Jokihat to the Rashtriya Janata Dal.

The BJP, for its part, has played down the outcome of the bypolls and asserted that the party will win the 2019 elections. The saffron party also has two key things going for it:

Bypoll results 2018: Kairana has a loud message for Modi-Shah before 2019

The Kairana Lok Sabha bypoll result has yet again underlined the challenge that Narendra Modi-Amit Shah combine is set to face in 2019 against a united Opposition. The Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP’s) loss here is seen as yet another dent in the invincibility cloak of Prime Minister Modi and party chief Shah.

With the BJP likely to struggle a repeat of its 2014 performance in much of northern India, the Kairana loss puts into sharper focus Shah’s efforts at expanding the party in areas beyond the Vindhyas and Chota Nagpur plateau, and make inroads in the Coromandel coast states.

In 2019, the BJP needs to win in the northeastern states, West Bengal, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana to offset its foreseeable losses in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, etc.

The BJP’s Kairana loss comes on the heels of its losses in recent Lok Sabha by-polls in Phulpur and Gorakhpur in eastern Uttar Pradesh, and Ajmer and Alwar in Rajasthan.

While the BJP emerged the single largest party in Karnataka, its failure to form the government jolted the confidence that its supporters had in Shah’s abilities as a ‘master strategist’. These are not good signs as Modi and Shah prepare for 2019, and the government has its work cut out for the remainder of its term.

Some hits, some misses in Modi's first term: Does he deserve a second one?

Four years ago this week, Narendra Modi was sworn in as India's prime minister amid the kind of excitement and expectation not seen in decades. Not for 30 years had a single party won an electoral majority. Modi's success, his rhetoric and his background all seemed like a decisive break with India's past -- one which many Indians were eager to embrace.

What precisely was expected from Modi? Surely, that's one fair way to judge how his government has done as he makes a bid for reelection next year. As far as economic policy goes -- which was where the previous Congress administration had disappointed the most -- voters hoped to see three things: less corruption, greater decisiveness in policymaking and more market-friendly reform.

Even Modi’s critics have to admit – and welcome – the fact that he’s made real progress on all three. Even his fans, though, must acknowledge that given its advantages, his government hasn’t lived up to its potential.

Karnataka LIVE updates: Speaker from Congress, name to be disclosed soon

A day ahead of his swearing-in, Karnataka Chief Minister-designate H D Kumaraswamy on Tuesday visited the Hindu holy towns of Dharmasthala and Sringeri to pray for the success of the Congress-Janata Dal (Secular) coalition government. Kumaraswamy will take oath on Wednesday at 4:30 pm at Vidhan Soudha in Bengaluru. Governor Vajubhai Vala will administer the oath of office and secrecy to Kumaraswamy, according to a government release.

The swearing-in was earlier scheduled to be held on Monday but was later postponed as it coincided with former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi's death anniversary.

JD(S) leader Kumaraswamy returned to the southern state after a day-long visit on Monday to Delhi to discuss government formation and ministerial berth sharing between the coalition partners with Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.

The details of the meeting were not divulged but sources have reportedly said the Congress demanded two posts for Deputy Chief Ministers — one for a Dalit and the other for a Lingayat, 12 for ministers and one for the Speaker. However, Kumaraswamy said the matter will be finalised when the two sides sit together on Tuesday in Bengaluru.

Demonetisation effect: Demand for cash rises 7%, says RBI

People’s demand for cash continues to head northwards compared to pre-demonetisation levels despite the frequency of digital transactions going up and a substantial increase in bank deposits since November 2016.

Currency with the public (CwP), or people’s demand for cash or currency, is 7 per cent higher at Rs 18.25 trillion at the end of April compared to Rs 17 trillion at the beginning of November 2016, the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) data reveals.

Over the past four years, through its twin policies of Jan Dhan Yojana and demonetisation, the government has taken necessary steps to expand banking services substantially.
Today, around 80 per cent of Indians have a bank account, thanks to improvements in access to formal finance channels.

While account ownership has increased by 79 per cent since 2014, around 38 per cent of all bank accounts were inactive over the course of last year, the survey found. Similarly, the Jan Dhan Yojana, which was launched in 2014, has added around 310 million banking accounts with deposits totalling Rs 812 billion as of May 9.

Good show by Modi govt in four years; private sector now needs to pitch in

Evaluating the performance of any government on economic grounds is challenging. This is so because direct linkages are at best by chance as phenomena like oil prices, monsoons, global forces etc. affect inflation and exchange rates which are beyond the purview of any government. Further, it would also be disingenuous to say that the NPAs are high during a particular regime due to the ruling government as these things build up over time and mere recognition cannot be attributed to a government.

Hence, to evaluate the performance of the NDA government in the last 4 years a twofold approach is required. The first is to judge what is within the purview of the government and the progress made therein and the second is a comparison of economic indicators in the pre- and post-periods as part of the routine.

The performance of the NDA government in terms of conceptualisation and implementation of policies has been most remarkable with very little left to be done. The major reforms that were noteworthy are bringing in the eNAM (electronic national agricultural market), opening up of FDI (defence and railways equipment included), GST, power sector reforms, addressing NPA issue through the IBC and recap measures, improving the doing business environment, channeling funds for the SMEs etc.

Karnataka shows what Modi should most fear ahead of 2019 general elections

As a politician, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is distinguished by his relentlessness. Every vote, every constituency, every election matters. Modi has built his Bharatiya Janata Party into an electoral juggernaut that runs 21 of India’s 29 states; 70 per cent of India’s population is ruled by the BJP at both the state and the federal level.

In some of these states, such as the vast northern territory of Uttar Pradesh, the party swept elections on its own. In others, such as UP’s struggling neighbor Bihar, the BJP stole away one member of the ruling coalition in order to seize power for itself. In yet others, such as the coastal state of Goa, the opposition Congress Party in fact did better than the BJP in the elections only to discover that Modi’s lieutenants were far more skillful alliance-builders.

Last weekend, in the southern state of Karnataka -- home to India’s IT capital, Bangalore -- Modi discovered the limits of this strategy. Karnataka was the last major state ruled by Congress; after a bruising election campaign, the BJP ended up winning more seats in the state assembly, though not quite enough to form an outright majority.

Had to swallow bitterness: Karnataka Cong leader on JD(S) alliance; updates

Senior Congress leader D K Shivakumar on Monday said he had to swallow bitterness that he had with Janata Dal (Secular) in order to give Karnataka a secular government. He said it was party president Rahul Gandhi's decision that there should be a secular government in the state.

He, however, refused to comment on the alliance's chances of completing the full term, saying the party had various issues and options before it.

Some media reports have indicated resentment within the Congress over its alliance with the JD(S). The reports, however, have been trashed by JD(S) leader and CM-designate H D Kumaraswamy.

Shivakumar's statements reflect the Congress' new compromising attitude to stitch together a broad alliance for taking on the Narendra Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the upcoming polls.

After the Karnataka election result, the party decided to play second fiddle to a smaller outfit, the JD(S) in the southern state, receiving accolades from several regional parties.