9 December 2014
National:
False cruelty cases
under Section 498A ruining marriages, SC says
The Supreme Court said
false complaints under Section 498A of Indian Penal Code against innocent
in-laws alleging cruelty and harassment at matrimonial homes were increasingly
making the husbands adamant not to take back their wives. "For no fault,
the in-laws, especially old parents of the husband, are taken to jail the
moment a false complaint is filed against them by a woman under Section 498A.
By roping in in-laws without a reason and for settling a score with the
husband, the false and exaggerated 498A complaints are causing havoc to
marriages," said a bench of Chief Justice H L Dattu and A K Sikri. These
comments assume significance as it has been a trend with the apex court to seek
response from the husband on a mere mention of a petition by a woman in
matrimonial disputes. The court also readily transfers a matrimonial case to a
place convenient to the wife, brushing aside protests from the husband.
Draft report on
Insurance Bill finalized
The Rajya Sabha Select
Committee finalised its draft report on the Insurance Bill. The Bill seeks to
raise foreign direct investment in insurance joint ventures from 26 to 49 per
cent. The Select Committee has 15 members. It is expected that with the three
BJP members, three Congress and one member each from the AIADMK, Shiromani
Akali Dal and Biju Janata Dal on board, the report will be adopted by majority
vote.
Dalveer Bhandari gets
Nagendra Singh international peace award
Vice President Hamid
Ansari conferred on former Supreme Court judge and a member of the
International Court of Justice, Dalveer Bhandari, the first Justice Nagendra
Singh International Peace Award. The award was instituted by the International
Goodwill Society of India (IGSI), a non-political, cultural and academic
organization, which claims its objective is to float a global movement and
awakening for a total nuclear ban and revival of ancient Indian cultural
heritage. Bhandari cited a few judgements he had sat upon at the ICJ, to which
he was elected member in 2012. These include a pending 200 year-old boundary
dispute, a temple dispute between Thailand and Cambodia, a maritime dispute
between Peru and Chile and a recent settlement between Australia and Japan on
the issue of whaling. "Such is the role of the
ICJ in building and maintaining peace and justice in the world. The threat to
peace is so imminent that UN agencies alone cannot ensure peace and security.
LS clears Bill to repeal
90 Amendment Acts
The Lok Sabha cleared
The Repealing and Amending (Second) Bill, 2014, to remove 90 redundant
Amendment Acts from the statute book despite a demand from the Congress and the
Communist Party of India (Marxist) to refer the draft legislation to a
Parliamentary Standing Committee.
Now, finance panel may
allocate funds
In the aftermath of the
scrapping of the Planning Commission, the Modi government is mulling whether
the role of allocating plan funds across States can be given to the Finance
Commission. It would like the new body that will replace the Plan panel to be a
‘think-tank in the era of liberalisation’ that could possibly be merged with
the National Development Council (NDC).The NDC is the highest development
policy planning body, comprising the Prime Minister, Union Cabinet Ministers,
State Chief Ministers and State Finance Ministers. The Modi government scrapped
the Plan panel on August 13 through a Cabinet decision. Till then, the Centre
had transferred to States in excess of Rs. 3,00,000 crore, or 2.5 per cent of
GDP, annually through the panel. The mechanism for the transfers was two-fold.
States received funds for Centrally Sponsored Schemes. They also received
Central Assistance for their plans. Each State’s share was arrived at following
discussions between the Planning Commission, Finance Ministry and the State
Government in the case of Central Assistance. For Centrally Sponsored Schemes,
the individual State shares were determined through discussions between the
Planning Commission, States and Union Ministries such as Health and Rural
Development.
International:
World’s first herbal
Koran unveiled in Dubai
The world’s first
handcrafted herbal Holy Koran, made from about 200 medicinal plants, has been
unveiled .The Koran has been made by the Islamic arts and calligraphy company,
Heddem Arts and has been crafted over 23 years from 1957 to 1979 by Turkish Unani
Doctor Hamdi Taher. The Koran is made of high potency herbal mixtures prepared
as per Unani medical system. “Herbal sheets of the Holy Koran have many
therapeutic properties when the reader moves his fingers on the letters or in
and around the pages, the herbal mixture seeps through the pores in the
fingers, providing health benefits. The herbal-cream-written Koran includes 606
pages and weighs about 7.5 kg.
U.S., NATO combat role
ends
The U.S. and NATO closed
their combat command in Afghanistan, more than 13 years after invading the
country in the wake of the September 11 terror attacks to target al-Qaeda and
Osama bin Laden. As NATO’s International Security Assistance Force’s Joint
Command, which was in charge of combat operations, lowered its flag and formally
ended its deployment, resurgent Taliban militants launched yet another bloody
attack in the country. The NATO flag of the command folded and put away amid
the foreign troop withdrawal. From January 1, the coalition will maintain a
force of 13,000 troops in Afghanistan, down from a peak around 140,000 in 2011.
As of December 1, there were some 13,300 NATO troops in the country. Up to
10,800 U.S. troops will remain in Afghanistan for the first three months of
next year, 1,000 more than previously planned. As a result, there will be
little, if any, net drop in U.S. troop numbers between now and December 31,
when the international combat mission formally ends. By the end of 2015,
however, American officials say the U.S. troop total will shrink to 5,500, and
to near zero by the end of 2016.
Hong Kong protest sites
to be cleared: Court
Hong Kong's high court
has ordered the main protest sites that have choked the financial city for more
than two months to be cleared, building up to a final showdown between
pro-democracy activists and authorities backed by Beijing. A local bus company,
which was granted an injunction against street blockades at the site in
Admiralty, home to government offices and next to the main Central business
district, has received an official clearance order from the high court,
according to notices posted in local papers. Student groups have been calling
for a free vote in the Chinese controlled city through largely peaceful
demonstrations dubbed the "Umbrella Movement".
Business & Economy:
Huffington Post now in
India with Times Group
AOL-owned news website
Huffington Post launched its India edition in partnership with The Times of
India Group, India's largest media conglomerate. Huffington Post will combine
its award-winning news and blogging platform with the local expertise and reach
of the Times of India Group to tap India's snowballing number of internet
users. Group M, the world's largest media investment corporation, will be the
strategic partner for brand synergies and advertising in India for the website.
India sees clear pick-up
in growth momentum: OECD
Reflecting improved
prospects, India is the only major economy seeing a ‘clear pick up in growth
momentum’ while mixed trends are predicted for developed countries, according
to Paris-based think tank Organization for Economic Co-operation and
Development (OECD). The OECD said growth would continue to lose momentum in
Europe. For other major economies, the outlook is for stable growth momentum.
The readings, for the month of October, are based on composite leading
indicator (CLI), which is designed to anticipate turning points in economic
activity relative to trend. “India is the only major economy where the CLI
points to a clear pick-up in growth momentum. The country’s CLI rose to 99.6 in
October from 99.4 in the previous month. Last month, the OECD said the Indian
economy was expected to see an average growth of 6.7 per cent over the 2015-19
period, while a further boost would depend on reform plans of the government.
ICICI Bank to charge ATM
transactions
ICICI Bank has announced
a hike in its ATM charges for saving account holders from January 1 next year.
Under the new method, the number of free transactions in a month is fixed at
five using own ATMs, while it has been capped at three for other banks’
machines.
CCI clears Sun-Ranbaxy
deal with riders
The Competition
Commission of India (CCI) approved Sun Pharmaceutical's $3.2 billion
acquisition of rival drug firm Ranbaxy Laboratories, provided the companies
divest some overlapping brands within six months. The completion of the merger
would make Sun Pharma the largest drug maker in the domestic market and the
fifth largest global generic pharma company. The Competition Commission of
India ordered Sun and Ranbaxy to sell seven brands, in which the merged company
would have "appreciable adverse effect" on competition in India as a
result of their market share. Earlier this month, TOI reported CCI will soon
give a go-ahead to the merger on condition the two companies will divest some
products to avoid monopoly. Sun Pharma the seven products, which are to be
divested, constitute less than 1% of the combined entity's revenues in India.
