The bugle has sounded for a legal battle between the Centre and Kerala in the Supreme Court, after the Union government said on March 13 that it could only spare ₹5,000 crore as a one-time measure to avert an immediate financial crisis in the Kerala.
The amount offered by the Union government will not be enough to fulfill Kerala’s most basic financial commitments, including pensions and salaries, senior advocate Kapil Sibal and C.K. Sasi, representing the State, told a Bench of Justices Surya Kant and K.V. Viswanathan.
The Union government also said it would deduct ₹5,000 crore from the State’s net borrowing ceiling in the first nine months of the financial year 2024-2025, and stipulated that the State would not be allowed any “ad-hoc” borrowing in 2024-2025 if it takes the ₹5,000 crore being proffered now.
Sibal said that the Union government’s objective was to simply “strap the State down and control its finances”. Rejecting the Centre’s offer, he said: “We want an absolute minimum of at least ₹10,000 crore. This ₹5,000 crore does not take us anywhere. I will not be able to pay my people.”
The court was hearing an original suit filed by Kerala accusing the Union government of interfering with its borrowing limits and financial affairs in violation of the principle of federalism.
In an earlier hearing, Justice Kant said that the suit was probably the first of its kind in the Supreme Court. The court listed the case to hear arguments for interim relief on March 21.
The Bench had initially urged the Union and State governments to resolve the issue out of court. However, Wednesday’s hearing saw any hope for an amicable resolution fade away as Additional Solicitor General N. Venkataraman, appearing for the Union government, read from a note detailing the statistical projections and reasons for limiting financial help to Kerala.
“So, the negotiation part is over. You [Union government] have made your position clear. Your note is self-explanatory,” Justice Kant said after the reading.
Sibal said that it seemed as if the Union government’s note was prepared under the assumption that the State was not entitled to the amounts required to pay its people. “The note assumes that our suit should be dismissed,” he said.
The note said that Kerala’s projected Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) for 2024-2025 is estimated at ₹11,19,906 crore. The net borrowing ceiling for Kerala is 3% of its GSDP, which would amount to ₹33,597 crore.
Out of ₹33,597 crore, ₹4,711 crore has to be deducted for off-budget borrowing done by Kerala in 2021-2022. This would reduce the total borrowing limit to ₹28,886 crore. Out of this, 75% — or ₹21,664 crore — can be loaned in the first nine months of 2024-2025.
If Kerala, according to its current demand, wants an advance of ₹15,000 crore before the end of March 2024, its borrowing space for the next financial year would be reduced to ₹6,664 crore, the note explained. “Given the expenditure trend of Kerala, it will be extremely difficult for the State government to manage its finances with just a borrowing limit of ₹6,664 crore for the first nine months,” Venkataraman submitted.
Kerala had ploughed through ₹21,852 crore in the first six months of the current financial year 2023-2024, at an average of ₹3,642 crore per month, the Union government said. “So, the State cannot manage with just ₹6,664 crore in the first nine months, with an average spending of ₹740 crore a month. This would cause hardship to its people,” Venkataraman said, conveying the limitations of the State’s legal right to borrow.
Appointment of Election Commissioners | Supreme Court to hear plea to bring CJI back in selection committee
The Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to urgently hear on March 15 a plea which said the Centre could take “unfair advantage” while filling the two vacancies of Election Commissioners (ECs) in the Election Commission of India (ECI) following the unexpected resignation of Arun Goel ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.
A Bench headed by Justice Sanjiv Khanna agreed to list for hearing the plea by NGO Association for Democratic Reforms, which said the new law on the appointments of ECs should be put on hold.
The NGO said the Chief Justice of India (CJI) should be brought back on board the high-profile selection committee headed by the Prime Minister for appointments of ECs to the top poll body as directed by a landmark Supreme Court judgment in the Anoop Baranwal case of March 2, 2023.
“Now, the Executive has the ability to appoint two Election Commissioners which can give an unfair advantage to the Executive. The role of the Election Commission is critical in ensuring free and fair elections and therefore, the appointments must also be seen to be fair and free from any bias or latches to the government of that time,” the NGO, represented by advocate Prashant Bhushan and Cheryl D’Souza, submitted.
In Anoop Baranwal versus Union of India in March last year, a Constitution Bench headed by Justice K.M. Joseph (now retired) ordered the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and two ECs to be appointed by the President on the advice tendered by a committee of Prime Minister, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha or the leader of the single largest party in Opposition and the CJI.
The court had reasoned that “fierce independence, neutrality and honesty” envisaged in the institution of the ECI required an end to government monopoly and “exclusive control” over appointments to the highest poll body.
However, the government had enacted a new law — The Chief Election Commission and other Election Commissions (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Act, 2023 — to countermand the judgment. The law had replaced the CJI with a Cabinet Minister on the selection committee, giving the Centre a dominant role in the appointments process.
“The ruling government ought not to have the dominant say in the appointment of members of Election Commission… Democracy is a facet of the basic structure of the Constitution and in order to ensure free and fair elections and to maintain healthy democracy in our country, the Election Commission should be insulated from political and/or executive interference,” NGO argued.
The application filed by the NGO also pointed out that the ECI at present was under the sole charge of CEC Rajiv Kumar. “In light of the eminent elections, it would not be prudent to leave the post of the Election Commissioners vacant as the role of the Election Commission is critical in assuring free and fair elections, in adjudicating disputes between political parties and in ensuring accurate voter lists and voter turnout,” the application said.
Selection of Election Commissioners: Congress leader seeks details of short-listed candidates
Ahead of the meeting of the Prime Minister-chaired high-powered panel for selection of Election Commissioners, Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury has written to the Law Ministry seeking details of short-listed candidates along with their “dossiers”.
In a letter to Secretary, Legislative Department, Rajiv Mani, Chowdhury has asked him to send him details of shortlisted candidates for the post of Election Commissioners along with their bio-datas.
The Congress leader, who is part of the panel for selection of ECs, has asked the Law Ministry official to follow the procedure for appointment of other top officials, including CIC and Information Commissioners, besides that adopted for appointing Central Vigilance Commissioner.
Chowdhury is also a member of the PM-led panels for selection of CIC and CVC.
“I would request you to make available the ‘dossier’ containing bio-datas of shortlisted candidates for the post of Election Commissioners before the meeting,” Chowdhury is learnt to have said in his letter to the Law Ministry.
The meeting of the high powered panel will be held on March 14 at 12 noon to select two Election Commissioners to fill up vacancies created by the sudden resignation of Arun Goel and retirement of Anup Chandra Pandey.
Electoral bonds | Information ‘hand-delivered’ to Election Commission of India, SBI informs Supreme Court
The State Bank of India (SBI) on March 13 informed the Supreme Court that details of electoral bonds anonymously purchased by contributors and encashed by political parties between April 2019 and February 15, 2024 were hand-delivered to the Election Commission of India (ECI) in order to facilitate public disclosure of political funding.
The SBI said a total of 22,217 electoral bonds were purchased and 22,030 were redeemed by political parties between April 1, 2019, and February 15, 2024.
From April 1, 2019 to April 11 the same month, 3,346 bonds were purchased and 1,609 were redeemed by parties. Between April 12, 2019, and February 15, 2024, donors bought 18,871 bonds and 20,421 were redeemed by parties, the SBI affidavit said.
Though the Supreme Court had sought information only from April 12, 2019, the bank said the selling and redeeming of electoral bonds had started from April 1.
The ECI has time till March 15 to compile and publish the information got from the bank on its official website.
The bank said it has shared information with the ECI about the dates of purchase of electoral bonds, the names of purchasers and denomination of the bonds. Similarly, the dates of encashment of the bonds, names of political parties which received the contributions and denomination of the bonds encashed were also provided to the top poll body.
The bank has shown impressive alacrity to divulge the information which was readily available with it. A five-judge Bench headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud had put the bank on notice on March 11, threatening to initiate contempt action if it did not disclose the required information in the next 24 hours.
CAA linked to NRC, won’t allow detention camps in West Bengal: Mamata Banerjee
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on March 13 asserted that the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) is linked with the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and that is the reason why she is opposing the new legislation. The Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo said she doesn’t want detention camps in West Bengal, like those in Assam.
“CAA is related to NRC, that is why we are opposing it. We don’t want detention camps like those in Assam,” she said. Banerjee also claimed that the CAA is a “political gimmick” ahead of Lok Sabha polls.
With the CAA rules being issued, the Central government will now start granting Indian nationality to persecuted non-Muslim migrants from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan, who came to India till December 31, 2014. These include Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis and Christians.
Hitting out at her brother Babun Banerjee for speaking out against the TMC’s selection of candidates, Banerjee said she has decided to renounce all relationships with him.
“My family and I renounce all relationships with him. I don’t like greedy people. I have heard what he has said. He is in touch with the BJP and can do whatever he wants to. Please don’t relate me with him,” Banerjee added.
Delhi HC upholds ITAT order in ₹100-crore tax demand case involving Congress party
The Delhi High Court on Wednesday upheld an order of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) refusing to stay a notice issued by the Income Tax department to the Congress party for recovery of outstanding tax of more than ₹100 crore.
A bench of Justices Yashwant Varma and Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav said there was no reason to interfere with the ITAT’s March 8 order. The bench had reserved its order on March 12 after hearing the submissions on behalf of the Congress and the I-T department.
The Congress approached the high court after ITAT dismissed the party’s application seeking a stay on the February 13 notice of the I-T department initiating recovery proceedings against it.
The assessing officer had raised a tax demand of more than ₹100 crore for the assessment year 2018-19 when the income was assessed to be more than ₹199 crore.
The counsel for the Congress had urged the court to grant it some protection otherwise the party would collapse. The I-T department’s counsel had informed the court that the original tax demand stood at ₹102 crore and together with interest it rose to ₹135.06 crore. He said ₹65.94 crore stands recovered now.
The tribunal had dismissed the stay application saying, “… we do not find that the recovery notice under Section 226(3) of the Act issued by the assessing officer on February 13, 2024 is lacking in bona fides, so as to require us to intervene.” The party had earlier said the I-T tribunal order freezing its funds was “an attack on democracy” as it had come just ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.
Varanasi court sentences Mukhtar Ansari to life imprisonment in three-decade-old fake gun licence case
The MP-MLA court of judge Awanish Gautam also slapped a fine totalling ₹2 lakh on Ansari under various penal provisions, district government counsel Vinay Singh said.
He said the case against Ansari was registered under IPC sections 467 (forgery), 468 (forgery for the purpose of cheating) and 120B (criminal conspiracy), along with provisions of the Arms Act at Mohammadabad police station of Ghazipur district in December 1990.
According to the government counsel, Ansari joined the court proceedings via video conference from Banda Jail, where he is currently lodged.
According to police officials, around 60 cases are pending against the gangster-turned-politician in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, New Delhi and other states. He has so far been convicted in at least seven cases.
Singh said that on June 10, 1987, Ansari had approached the district magistrate of Ghazipur for a gun licence. He later obtained the licence by forging the signatures of the then-district magistrate and the superintendent of police.
After the fraud was exposed, CB-CID filed a case against Ansari, the then-deputy collector and five people on December 4, 1990. A charge sheet was sent in 1997 against the then-ordnance clerk Gaurishankar Srivastava and Ansari. After Srivastava’s death, the case against him was dropped in 1997.
Born in 1963, Ansari has been elected as a Member of the Legislative Assembly from the Mau constituency five times, including twice as a Bahujan Samaj Party candidate. He last contested the assembly polls in 2017.
In Brief
Arunachal Pradesh Assembly elections 2024 | BJP names candidates for all 60 seats; three Ministers not on list
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday left out three Ministers and an MLA accused of rape from the list of candidates for the Arunachal Pradesh Assembly polls. Elections to the 60-member House in the frontier State will the held simultaneously with the Lok Sabha election. Chief Minister Pema Khandu will contest again from the Mukto seat, Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein from his Chowkham seat, and Assembly Speaker Pasang Dorjee Sona from his Mechukha seat. State BJP president Biyuram Wahge will seek re-election from the Pakke-Kessang constituency.
Haryana floor test | Nayab Singh Saini Government wins trust vote in Assembly
The Nayab Singh Saini government in Haryana on March 13 won the confidence motion in the Assembly, in Chandigarh, through a voice vote. A two-hour discussion took place on the motion. The Jannayak Janata Party (JJP) had issued a whip, asking its 10 legislators to remain absent from the House during voting on the confidence motion. However, when the issue of trust vote was taken up, five of its MLAs left the House. In the 90-member State Assembly, the BJP has 41 MLAs and it also enjoys the support of six of the seven Independents as well as of lone Haryana Lokhit Party MLA Gopal Kanda.
Evening Wrap will return tomorrow.
