Parliament Budget Session | PM Modi says India will be third largest economy in his next term
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on February 5 replied to the Motion of Thanks to the President’s address in the Lok Sabha during the Budget session. Mr. Modi said that India will become the third largest economy in his third term and quoted former PM Manmohan Singh’s 2013 speech, saying, “They were proud on being the 11th largest economy. They saw a vision that India will be the third largest in 30 years. We will not allow the nation to wait for so long. In the next term , we will fulfill it - this is Modi’s guarantee”.
Jharkhand Mukti Morcha-led coalition Govt. of Champai Soren wins trust vote 47-29
Jharkhand’s JMM-led coalition government headed by Chief Minister Champai Soren won the vote of confidence in the Assembly on February 5. While 47 MLAs voted in favour of the confidence motion, 29 legislators opposed it in the 81-member Assembly. Independent legislator Saryu Roy abstained. Former Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren, arrested by the ED in the alleged land scam, was also present in the Assembly. Hitting out at the BJP, Mr. Hemant Soren said if the party wants to suppress his voice by sending him to jail, it is not going to happen. Meanwhile, Hemant Soren’s counsel, Advocate General Rajeev Ranjan, said that a special PMLA court in Ranchi will hear a petition against the ED action on February 12.
Jammu and Kashmir Interim Budget | Sitharaman proposes ₹1.18 lakh crore for 2024-25
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 5 proposed an interim Budget of ₹1.18 lakh crore for fiscal 2024-25 for the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir. The interim Budget envisages a fiscal deficit of ₹20,760 crore and a 7.5% growth in gross State domestic product. The capital expenditure for the fiscal has been proposed at ₹38,566 crore, which is 14.64% of the GSDP, as per the interim Budget tabled by Ms. Sitharaman in Parliament.
Despite court directions, AAP leader Sanjay Singh could not take oath as Rajya Sabha MP
Aam Aadmi Party leader Sanjay Singh, who was recently elected to the Rajya Sabha for a second term, could not swear in on February 5, despite directions from the Rouse Avenue Court, as it was not listed in the business for the day. According to sources, AAP MPs met Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar. It is not known what the two sides spoke. There was no clarity on why Mr. Singh was not allowed to take the oath. “Proceedings of Rajya Sabha are regulated by the listed business which is notified in bulleting. Oath taking of Mr. Sanjay Singh wasn’t listed in the business of House and no communication from Rajya Sabha on this matter ever came for consideration of Rajya Sabha chair,” was the only explanation offered by the officials in the Vice President’s office.
Kerala Budget 2024-25 seeks to mop up additional resources, attract investment
The State Budget for the 2024-25 fiscal presented by Kerala Finance Minister K.N. Balagopal on February 5 sought to mop up additional resources and draw private investment in key sectors, even as it proposed Chinese-model special development zones for tapping the potential of the Vizhinjam seaport project and a new ‘assured’ pension system for government employees.
Uttar Pradesh Finance Minister Suresh Kumar Khanna presents ₹7.36 lakh crore budget for FY-25
Uttar Pradesh Finance Minister Suresh Kumar Khanna on February 5 presented the budget for financial year 2024-25 in the State Assembly with an outlay of ₹7.36 lakh crore, higher from current fiscal’s budget of ₹6.90 lakh crore. The total outlay of ₹7,36,437.71 crore for the next fiscal includes new schemes worth ₹24,863.57 crore, the State Finance Minister said while presenting the budget. For the next fiscal, the State government’s budget has estimated the total receipts at ₹7,21,233.82 crore, which includes a revenue receipts estimated at ₹6,06,802.40 crore and capital receipts at ₹1,14,531.42 crore.
A three-judge Bench headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud on February 5 remitted the 20-year sentence of a man found guilty of the aggravated sexual assault of a 14-year-old girl whom he later married and had children with in Tamil Nadu. The Special Bench, also comprising the two senior most puisne judges, Justices Sanjiv Khanna and B.R. Gavai, passed the order under the extraordinary powers of the Supreme Court to do ‘complete justice’ endowed to the top court by Article 142 of the Constitution.
Maldivian President Muizzu says first group of Indian troops to be sent back before March 10
Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu said the first group of Indian military personnel will be sent back from the island nation before March 10, while the remaining Indians manning two aviation platforms will be withdrawn by May 10. In his maiden address to Parliament, Mr. Muizzu, widely seen as a pro-China leader, said he believes a large majority of Maldivians support his administration with the expectation that they will remove foreign military presence from the country, and recover the lost oceanic territory.
At least 10 killed in attack on police station in Pakistan
“At least 10 police personnel were killed and six others injured in a pre-dawn attack on February 5 by militants at a police station in northwest Pakistan,” police said, as violence escalated ahead of general elections this week. “At around 3 a.m. local time (2200 GMT Sunday) militants attacked the police station with sniper fire and then entered the building,” police officers said in Pakistan’s Draban region in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province. “After entering the building, the terrorists used hand grenades which caused more casualties,” Malik Anees ul Hassan, the deputy superintendent of police in Draban, said.
Samsung chief Lee Jae-yong is acquitted of financial crimes related to 2015 merger
A South Korean court acquitted Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong of financial crimes in relation to a contentious merger between two Samsung affiliates in 2015 that tightened his grip over South Korea’s biggest company. The ruling by the Seoul Central District Court on February 5 could ease the legal troubles surrounding the Samsung heir less than two years after he was pardoned of a separate conviction of bribing a former president in a corruption scandal that toppled a previous South Korean government.
India’s January services PMI hits 6-month high amid strongest upturn in new business since mid-2023
The services sector growth in India rose to a six-month high in January as new business expanded at a faster pace amid buoyant demand from domestic and external clients, a monthly survey said on February 5. The seasonally adjusted HSBC India Services PMI Business Activity Index rose to 61.8 in January, up from 59 in December, pointing to the sharpest rate of expansion in six months.
ED probing Paytm and bank unit over currency transactions: sources
India’s financial crime-fighting agency is investigating if platforms run by One 97 Communications, also known as Paytm, were involved in violations of foreign exchange rules, two senior Government sources said. The sources did not indicate what specific provisions of the Foreign Exchange Management Act, which covers individual and corporate transfers overseas, were the subject of the investigation by the ED. One of the sources added that the investigators were not yet in contact with Paytm.
Ind vs Eng 2nd Test | India dismiss England for 292, register series-levelling 106-run win
Indian bowlers won an engrossing battle against England’s firebrand batting for a series-levelling 106-run victory in the second Test in Visakhapatnam on February 5, blunting ‘Bazball’ with their resilience in a roller-coaster contest. England began the day at 67 for one, chasing a record target of 399. They were bowled out for 292 in the extended afternoon session. The visiting team’s no holds barred approach, which has largely been successful, did not work on this occasion as India picked up nine wickets over the course of two sessions to bounce back in the five-match series.
