The Evening Wrap: Supreme Court questions the ‘timing’ of Delhi CM’s arrest, ED to respond on May 3

The Supreme Court on April 30 underscored that life and liberty are exceedingly important while hearing Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s plea challenging his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a money laundering case stemming from the alleged Delhi excise policy scam. A Bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta also asked the central agency to address arguments on the “timing” of the APP supremo’s arrest right before the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. The Bench will hear the matter next on May 3. During the proceedings, senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi contended that no “proceeds of crime” have been recovered so far by the ED and that the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002, (PMLA) envisages a high threshold for arrest. He reiterated that mere non-cooperation could not be a ground for Kejriwal’s incarceration by the law enforcement agency. On the other hand, the ED in its affidavit filed before the top Court argued that arresting politicians who are “criminals” is not a blow against free and fair elections. Meanwhile, the Delhi High Court on Monday said continuing as Delhi Chief Minister even after his arrest was Arvind Kejriwal’s personal choice, but his unavailability could not come in the way of poor school-going children getting free textbooks, writing material, and uniforms. In a massive blow to the Chief Minister, the Delhi High Court on April 9 said there was nothing illegal about his arrest by the ED. Justice Swarna Kanta recorded a prima facie finding that there was adequate material, including statements of approvers, involvement of middlemen and references that cash was handed over for expenditure in the 2022 Goa elections. Kejriwal is currently lodged in the Tihar jail in the national capital after a Delhi court on April 23 extended his judicial custody till May 7. Two Congress and AAP functionaries arrested for posting doctored video of Amit Shah Two more persons, political functionaries from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Congress party, were arrested on April 30 in Gujarat for allegedly posting a doctored video of Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s April 23 speech in Telangana regarding reservation. A day ago, Assam Police arrested Reetam Singh, a lawyer at the Gauhati High Court currently working as the Congress’ Assam war room coordinator. Shah appealed for information on the people who were disseminating the doctored video. “If you come across any such fake video anywhere, please inform us about the details of the disseminator. We will take strict action against the culprits,” the Minister said in a post on X. “The Congress has now resorted to misleading citizens with fake videos out of panic and fear of defeat. The right to reservations in the country belongs to SC (Scheduled Castes), ST (Scheduled Tribes) and OBC (Other Backward Classes) brothers and sisters, and as long as the BJP government is in office, no one can change it. The INDIA Alliance has given reservations to Muslims, reducing the share of SCs, STs and OBCs. Congress is misleading people by editing a speech of mine in which I committed to abolishing the unconstitutional reservations for Muslims. Directions have been issued to the police to address this issue as per the law,” Shah said. Since April 28, the police in Delhi, Assam, Maharashtra and Gujarat have filed four separate cases in connection with the video. Most persons named in the First Information Reports (FIRs) are Opposition party workers who shared the post on social media platforms X and Facebook. The police is yet to arrest the person who created the video. While in the doctored video, Shah is heard saying that the BJP intends to eradicate reservations for SCs, STs and OBCs, in the original video he says the party intends to remove the 4% reservation for Muslims in Telangana. The Delhi Police have summoned Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy to appear before the police on May 1 as the video was shared from the handle of the Telangana Congress on April 27. Reddy has been served notice as he is also the president of Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee. Prajwal Revanna ‘sex video scandal’: Former driver of family releases video statement, says he will submit video documents of case to SIT A person, said to have worked for former minister H.D. Revanna’s family as a driver, has said that he will submit video documents with regard to allegations against Lok Sabha member Prajwal Revanna to the Special Investigation Team, constituted by the State government. In a video statement that he released from an unknown place on Tuesday, April 30, Karthik said that he had worked as a driver for Revanna’s family for over 15 years. He left the job last year following differences with the former minister’s family after he was forced to sell off his land. He and his wife were allegedly assaulted in that case. Karthik said, after losing the land, he approached BJP leader G. Devaraje Gowda, who had challenged Prajwal Gowda’s election in court, and sought his help. As per his guidance, he shared details of the land issue with the media. Later, Karthik shared videos and photos he possessed with Devaraje Gowda. He (Gowda) had assured him that the photos and videos would not be shown to anyone. “Believing him, I shared a copy of the videos. It seems he used them for his selfish needs,” he said. Karthik, in his statement, states that except for Devaraje Gowda, he did not share the videos and photos with anyone else. “Devaraje Gowda had been telling the media that the videos had reached Congress leaders. I did not share the content with any of the Congress leaders, as I had no confidence in them. They had not come to my rescue in the land case,” he said. Further, he said he would appear before the SIT and share all the contents he had. Manipur Police personnel drove two Kuki women to mob that paraded them naked, says CBI charge sheet Manipur Police personnel allegedly drove the two women from the Kuki-Zomi community, who had sought refuge in their official gypsy, to a mob of around 1,000 Meiti rioters in Kangpokpi district, the CBI charge sheet has said. The two women were subsequently stripped naked and paraded before being sexually assaulted during the ethnic violence in the State, the charge sheet added. The women, one of whom was the wife of a Kargil war veteran, desperately asked the police personnel to drive them to a safe location but were allegedly told by them that “there was no key” (of the vehicle) and did not provide any help, the officials giving details of the charge sheet said. A video showing two women being paraded naked surrounded by a mob of men went viral last year in July, nearly two months after the incident that took place on May 4. The CBI filed its charge sheet against the six accused and a report against one Child in Conflict with the Law (CCL) before the Special Judge, CBI Court at Guwahati on October 16 last year. It has alleged that the two women were running away from a mob of around 900-1,000 persons carrying sophisticated weapons like AK rifles, SLR, INSAS and.303 rifles. The mob had forcefully entered their village in Kangpokpi district, about 68 km south of Saikul police station, it said. The women, along with other victims, ran into the forest to escape from the mob but were spotted by the rioters who had separated the victims. Some members of the mob told the women to reach the police vehicle parked on the roadside to seek help, officials in the know of the development said. The two women managed to get inside the vehicle, in which two police personnel and the driver were sitting. Three to four personnel were outside the vehicle. One of the male victims, who also managed to make his way inside the vehicle, kept pleading with the driver to drive them to a safe place but was told “there was no key”. The husband of one of the victims had served the Indian Army as a subedar of the Assam Regiment. The police also did not help the father of the man sitting in the vehicle from being assaulted by the mob, the CBI alleged. Later, the driver of the police gypsy drove the vehicle towards a mob of around 1,000 people and stopped it in front of them. The victims desperately asked the police personnel to drive them to safety, but no help was provided to them. The mob had already killed the father of one of the male victims who was sitting in the gypsy along with the two women, the agency has said. The violent mob came towards the gypsy when the police personnel fled from the scene, leaving the victims at the mercy of the crowd. The rioters dragged the women out, stripped them of their clothes and paraded them naked before sexually assaulting them, the charge sheet has said. The CBI has charge sheeted Huirem Herodas Meitei, who was nabbed by Manipur police in July, and five others, and a report has been filed against a juvenile. The accused have been charged under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, including those pertaining to gang rape, murder, outraging the modesty of a woman and criminal conspiracy, the CBI has said. ‘The IMA has not covered itself with glory’: Supreme Court takes exception to IMA president’s remarks about top court Tables turned on Tuesday when the Supreme Court took stern exception to comments reportedly made by Indian Medical Association president R.V. Asokan in an interview about the Court’s criticism of practices of private doctors. “After all this, you do this? The IMA has not covered itself with glory… How can you decide which way we (Supreme Court) should go?” Justice Hima Kohli asked the IMA lawyers. The media interview of Asokan was brought to the attention of a Bench of Justices Hima Kohli and Ahsanuddin Amanullah by Patanjali Ayurved’s lawyer, senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi. The contempt proceedings against Patanjali Ayurved, its co-founder Baba Ramdev and his close associate Acharya Balkrishna was initiated in a petition filed by the Indian Medical Association (IMA). Meanwhile, the court “appreciated” the second round of unconditional apologies published by Patanjali, Ramdev and Balkrishna in over 300 newspapers. However, court ordered them to file the original pages of the newspapers in which the apology was published. The IMA had complained to the court about the blatant disregard shown by Patanjali to the Supreme Court and the field of allopathic medicine. In the last hearing, on April 23, the Bench had turned to the IMA and said it would look into the phenomenon of inflated bills and doctors allegedly prescribing over-priced medicine brands in cahoots with pharmaceutical companies. Rohatgi drew the court’s attention to Asokan’s interview in which he had said it was “unfortunate” for the court to have criticised the IMA. He had reportedly said the “vague and generalised statements” had demoralised private doctors. The senior lawyer repeatedly pointed to the part where Asokan was quoted to have said that “it does not behove the Supreme Court to take a broadside against the medical profession of the country which after all sacrificed so many lives for the Covid war”. Asokan had been replying to a query about the Supreme Court’s observations in its hearing on April 23 that when it was pointing one finger at Patanjali, the remaining four fingers were pointed towards IMA. Rohatgi sought exemption for Ramdev and Balkrishna from appearing in court. The Bench allowed them a respite for the next date of hearing alone. Supreme Court not impressed with Uttarakhand authority’s ‘lightning’ action to suspend 14 licences of Patanjali, Divya Pharmacy The Supreme Court on April 30 expressed dissatisfaction at the Uttarakhand State Licensing Authority, saying it only “woke up” and moved against Patanjali Ayurved and its co-founder Baba Ramdev like “lightning” for repeated violations committed under the Drugs and Magic Remedies Act after the court intervened and passed orders. A Bench of Justices Hima Kohli and Ahsanuddin Amanullah were not impressed by the authority’s affidavit which said it had, on April 15, suspended the manufacturing licences of Divya Pharmacy and Patanjali Ayurved Ltd. for 14 products., ‘Swasari Gold’, ‘Swasari Vati, Bronchom’, ‘Swasari Pravahi’, ‘Swasari Avaleh’, ‘Mukta Vati Extra Power’, ‘Lipidom’, ‘Bp Grit’, ‘Madhugrit’, ‘Madhunashini Vati Extra Power’, ‘Livamrit Advance’, ‘Livogrit’, ‘Eyegrit Gold’ and ‘Patanjali Drishti Eye Drop’ under Rule 159(1) of The Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945. “This is something you should have done as a routine. So, if you want to, you can move like lightning. Otherwise, you simply do not,” Justice Kohli addressed senior advocate Dhruv Mehta, who appeared for the State Licensing Authority (SLA). The Court said the SLA thought it fit to move only after the court, on April 10, sought an explanation from it on why no action was taken despite repeated communications from the AYUSH Ministry about complaints received against Patanjali and Divya Pharmacy products. “It was only after our order that you [SLA] realised that there is a law — Drugs and Magic Remedies Act. You were oblivious of it till then. Now, you wake up and realise you have power… Why were you in limbo for nearly six years?” Justice Kohli asked. Justice Amanullah said the SLA has “shot from the court’s shoulders”. Dr. Mithilesh Kumar, Joint Director State Licensing Authority, Ayurvedic and Unani Services, tendered an unconditional apology to the Court. In his affidavit, he submitted that directions were issued to every Ayurvedic/Unani medicine factory to strictly comply with the Drug and Magic Remedies Act. Orders have been issued to ensure that no pharmaceutical factory would “use claims like approved/certified by the Ministry of AYUSH on the label of their products”. The affidavit assured the court that measures were in place to make sure that advertisements would comply with provisions under Consumer Protection Act, 2019, Cable Television Networks Act, 1995, Emblems and Names Act, 1950. However, the court took exception to Kumar’s submission that the SLA had been “vigilant in its duties”. “Are you giving yourself a self-certificate?” Justice Amanullah asked. Expressing its unhappiness with the affidavits filed by Kumar and his predecessors of the past six years, right from the time the first complaints against Patanjali started trickling in, the Bench gave them another 10 days to file fresh affidavits. The case was posted for hearing on May 14. Poll roundup: The Congress on April 30 appointed former MLA Devender Yadav as interim president of its Delhi unit, two days after Arvinder Singh Lovely resigned from the post while criticising the alliance with Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and statements of the party’s candidates in the national capital. Yadav, who won from the Badli assembly constituency in Delhi in 2008 and 2013 and lost to Ajesh Yadav of AAP in 2015, is currently the All India Congress Committee’s (AICC) Punjab in-charge. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on April 30 wrote personal letters to all NDA candidates in the fray in the third phase of Lok Sabha polls to take on what he termed Congress’s “divisive agenda”, including that of giving reservations to Muslims by snatching it from SC/ST and OBCs as well as “dangerous ideas” like bringing in inheritance tax. Stressing that the current polls were “no ordinary election” he said: “They (Opposition) are also bent upon taking away the hard-earned wealth of the people and giving it to their vote bank. The Congress has also made it clear that they will bring in dangerous ideas like inheritance tax. The nation must unite to stop them. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on April 30 claimed that the BJP was seeking to win more than 400 Lok Sabha seats not for the welfare of the poor but for taking away their rights. Speaking at a campaign rally in Chhattisgarh’s Janjgir-Champa district, he also said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had become frustrated after sensing that the INDIA bloc was heading for a majority, and hence he was resorting to remarks about “mangalsutra” and “Hindu-Muslims.” The rally was in support of Shivkumar Dahariya, Congress’ candidate from Janjgir-Champa. In Brief:AAP’s Manish Sisodia denied bail in Delhi Excise Policy cases filed by ED, CBI A Delhi court on April 30 dismissed the bail pleas of former Deputy Chief Minister and AAP leader Manish Sisodia in the corruption and money laundering cases lodged by the CBI and the ED in relation to the alleged excise scam. Special judge for CBI and ED, Kaveri Baweja, denied the relief, saying the stage was not right to grant the bail. The court had reserved the order after hearing arguments from the CBI and the ED as well as the counsel appearing for Sisodia. Pannun case: Unwarranted, unsubstantiated imputations, says India on media report A day after The Washington Post named an Indian official for allegedly plotting to eliminate Sikh separatist leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, the External Affairs Ministry on April 30 said the report made “unwarranted and unsubstantiated” imputations on a serious matter. The newspaper, citing unnamed sources, named a RAW officer in connection with the alleged plot to assassinate Pannun. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. [logo] The Evening Wrap 30 April 2024 [The Hindu logo] Welcome to the Evening Wrap newsletter, your guide to the day’s biggest stories with concise analysis from The Hindu. [View in browser]( [More newsletters]( Supreme Court questions the ‘timing’ of Delhi CM’s arrest, ED to respond on May 3 The [Supreme Court on April 30 underscored that life and liberty are exceedingly important while hearing Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s plea challenging his arrest]( by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a money laundering case stemming from the alleged Delhi excise policy scam. A Bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta also asked the central agency to address arguments on the “timing” of the APP supremo’s arrest right before the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. The Bench will hear the matter next on May 3. During the proceedings, senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi contended that no “proceeds of crime” have been recovered so far by the ED and that the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002, (PMLA) envisages a high threshold for arrest. He reiterated that mere non-cooperation could not be a ground for Kejriwal’s incarceration by the law enforcement agency. On the other hand, the ED in its affidavit filed before the top Court argued that arresting politicians who are “criminals” is not a blow against free and fair elections. Meanwhile, the Delhi High Court on Monday said continuing as Delhi Chief Minister even after his arrest was Arvind Kejriwal’s personal choice, but his unavailability could not come in the way of poor school-going children getting free textbooks, writing material, and uniforms. In a massive blow to the Chief Minister, the Delhi High Court on April 9 said there was nothing illegal about his arrest by the ED. Justice Swarna Kanta recorded a prima facie finding that there was adequate material, including statements of approvers, involvement of middlemen and references that cash was handed over for expenditure in the 2022 Goa elections. Kejriwal is currently lodged in the Tihar jail in the national capital after a Delhi court on April 23 extended his judicial custody till May 7. Two Congress and AAP functionaries arrested for posting doctored video of Amit Shah [Two more persons, political functionaries from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Congress party, were arrested on April 30 in Gujarat for allegedly posting a doctored video of Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s April 23 speech]( in Telangana regarding reservation. A day ago, Assam Police arrested Reetam Singh, a lawyer at the Gauhati High Court currently working as the Congress’ Assam war room coordinator. Shah appealed for information on the people who were disseminating the doctored video. “If you come across any such fake video anywhere, please inform us about the details of the disseminator. We will take strict action against the culprits,” the Minister said in a post on X. “The Congress has now resorted to misleading citizens with fake videos out of panic and fear of defeat. The right to reservations in the country belongs to SC (Scheduled Castes), ST (Scheduled Tribes) and OBC (Other Backward Classes) brothers and sisters, and as long as the BJP government is in office, no one can change it. The INDIA Alliance has given reservations to Muslims, reducing the share of SCs, STs and OBCs. Congress is misleading people by editing a speech of mine in which I committed to abolishing the unconstitutional reservations for Muslims. Directions have been issued to the police to address this issue as per the law,” Shah said. Since April 28, the police in Delhi, Assam, Maharashtra and Gujarat have filed four separate cases in connection with the video. Most persons named in the First Information Reports (FIRs) are Opposition party workers who shared the post on social media platforms X and Facebook. The police is yet to arrest the person who created the video. While in the doctored video, Shah is heard saying that the BJP intends to eradicate reservations for SCs, STs and OBCs, in the original video he says the party intends to remove the 4% reservation for Muslims in Telangana. The Delhi Police have summoned Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy to appear before the police on May 1 as the video was shared from the handle of the Telangana Congress on April 27. Reddy has been served notice as he is also the president of Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee. Prajwal Revanna ‘sex video scandal’: Former driver of family releases video statement, says he will submit video documents of case to SIT [A person, said to have worked for former minister H.D. Revanna’s family as a driver, has said that he will submit video documents with regard to allegations against Lok Sabha member Prajwal Revanna to the Special Investigation Team, constituted by the State government](. In a video statement that he released from an unknown place on Tuesday, April 30, Karthik said that he had worked as a driver for Revanna’s family for over 15 years. He left the job last year following differences with the former minister’s family after he was forced to sell off his land. He and his wife were allegedly assaulted in that case. Karthik said, after losing the land, he approached BJP leader G. Devaraje Gowda, who had challenged Prajwal Gowda’s election in court, and sought his help. As per his guidance, he shared details of the land issue with the media. Later, Karthik shared videos and photos he possessed with Devaraje Gowda. He (Gowda) had assured him that the photos and videos would not be shown to anyone. “Believing him, I shared a copy of the videos. It seems he used them for his selfish needs,” he said. Karthik, in his statement, states that except for Devaraje Gowda, he did not share the videos and photos with anyone else. “Devaraje Gowda had been telling the media that the videos had reached Congress leaders. I did not share the content with any of the Congress leaders, as I had no confidence in them. They had not come to my rescue in the land case,” he said. Further, he said he would appear before the SIT and share all the contents he had. Manipur Police personnel drove two Kuki women to mob that paraded them naked, says CBI charge sheet [Manipur Police personnel allegedly drove the two women from the Kuki-Zomi community, who had sought refuge in their official gypsy, to a mob of around 1,000 Meiti rioters in Kangpokpi district, the CBI charge sheet has said.]( The two women were subsequently stripped naked and paraded before being sexually assaulted during the ethnic violence in the State, the charge sheet added. The women, one of whom was the wife of a Kargil war veteran, desperately asked the police personnel to drive them to a safe location but were allegedly told by them that “there was no key” (of the vehicle) and did not provide any help, the officials giving details of the charge sheet said. A video showing two women being paraded naked surrounded by a mob of men went viral last year in July, nearly two months after the incident that took place on May 4. The CBI filed its charge sheet against the six accused and a report against one Child in Conflict with the Law (CCL) before the Special Judge, CBI Court at Guwahati on October 16 last year. It has alleged that the two women were running away from a mob of around 900-1,000 persons carrying sophisticated weapons like AK rifles, SLR, INSAS and .303 rifles. The mob had forcefully entered their village in Kangpokpi district, about 68 km south of Saikul police station, it said. The women, along with other victims, ran into the forest to escape from the mob but were spotted by the rioters who had separated the victims. Some members of the mob told the women to reach the police vehicle parked on the roadside to seek help, officials in the know of the development said. The two women managed to get inside the vehicle, in which two police personnel and the driver were sitting. Three to four personnel were outside the vehicle. One of the male victims, who also managed to make his way inside the vehicle, kept pleading with the driver to drive them to a safe place but was told “there was no key”. The husband of one of the victims had served the Indian Army as a subedar of the Assam Regiment. The police also did not help the father of the man sitting in the vehicle from being assaulted by the mob, the CBI alleged. Later, the driver of the police gypsy drove the vehicle towards a mob of around 1,000 people and stopped it in front of them. The victims desperately asked the police personnel to drive them to safety, but no help was provided to them. The mob had already killed the father of one of the male victims who was sitting in the gypsy along with the two women, the agency has said. The violent mob came towards the gypsy when the police personnel fled from the scene, leaving the victims at the mercy of the crowd. The rioters dragged the women out, stripped them of their clothes and paraded them naked before sexually assaulting them, the charge sheet has said. The CBI has charge sheeted Huirem Herodas Meitei, who was nabbed by Manipur police in July, and five others, and a report has been filed against a juvenile. The accused have been charged under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, including those pertaining to gang rape, murder, outraging the modesty of a woman and criminal conspiracy, the CBI has said. ‘The IMA has not covered itself with glory’: Supreme Court takes exception to IMA president’s remarks about top court [Tables turned on Tuesday when the Supreme Court took stern exception to comments reportedly made by Indian Medical Association president R.V. Asokan in an interview about the Court’s criticism of practices of private doctors](. “After all this, you do this? The IMA has not covered itself with glory… How can you decide which way we (Supreme Court) should go?” Justice Hima Kohli asked the IMA lawyers. The media interview of Asokan was brought to the attention of a Bench of Justices Hima Kohli and Ahsanuddin Amanullah by Patanjali Ayurved’s lawyer, senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi. The contempt proceedings against Patanjali Ayurved, its co-founder Baba Ramdev and his close associate Acharya Balkrishna was initiated in a petition filed by the Indian Medical Association (IMA). Meanwhile, the court “appreciated” the second round of unconditional apologies published by Patanjali, Ramdev and Balkrishna in over 300 newspapers. However, court ordered them to file the original pages of the newspapers in which the apology was published. The IMA had complained to the court about the blatant disregard shown by Patanjali to the Supreme Court and the field of allopathic medicine. In the last hearing, on April 23, the Bench had turned to the IMA and said it would look into the phenomenon of inflated bills and doctors allegedly prescribing over-priced medicine brands in cahoots with pharmaceutical companies. Rohatgi drew the court’s attention to Asokan’s interview in which he had said it was “unfortunate” for the court to have criticised the IMA. He had reportedly said the “vague and generalised statements” had demoralised private doctors. The senior lawyer repeatedly pointed to the part where Asokan was quoted to have said that “it does not behove the Supreme Court to take a broadside against the medical profession of the country which after all sacrificed so many lives for the Covid war”. Asokan had been replying to a query about the Supreme Court’s observations in its hearing on April 23 that when it was pointing one finger at Patanjali, the remaining four fingers were pointed towards IMA. Rohatgi sought exemption for Ramdev and Balkrishna from appearing in court. The Bench allowed them a respite for the next date of hearing alone. Supreme Court not impressed with Uttarakhand authority’s ‘lightning’ action to suspend 14 licences of Patanjali, Divya Pharmacy [The Supreme Court on April 30 expressed dissatisfaction at the Uttarakhand State Licensing Authority, saying it only “woke up” and moved against Patanjali Ayurved and its co-founder Baba Ramdev like “lightning” for repeated violations committed under the Drugs and Magic Remedies Act after the court intervened and passed orders.]( A Bench of Justices Hima Kohli and Ahsanuddin Amanullah were not impressed by the authority’s affidavit which said it had, on April 15, suspended the manufacturing licences of Divya Pharmacy and Patanjali Ayurved Ltd. for 14 products., ‘Swasari Gold’, ‘Swasari Vati, Bronchom’, ‘Swasari Pravahi’, ‘Swasari Avaleh’, ‘Mukta Vati Extra Power’, ‘Lipidom’, ‘Bp Grit’, ‘Madhugrit’, ‘Madhunashini Vati Extra Power’, ‘Livamrit Advance’, ‘Livogrit’, ‘Eyegrit Gold’ and ‘Patanjali Drishti Eye Drop’ under Rule 159(1) of The Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945. “This is something you should have done as a routine. So, if you want to, you can move like lightning. Otherwise, you simply do not,” Justice Kohli addressed senior advocate Dhruv Mehta, who appeared for the State Licensing Authority (SLA). The Court said the SLA thought it fit to move only after the court, on April 10, sought an explanation from it on why no action was taken despite repeated communications from the AYUSH Ministry about complaints received against Patanjali and Divya Pharmacy products. “It was only after our order that you [SLA] realised that there is a law — Drugs and Magic Remedies Act. You were oblivious of it till then. Now, you wake up and realise you have power… Why were you in limbo for nearly six years?” Justice Kohli asked. Justice Amanullah said the SLA has “shot from the court’s shoulders”. Dr. Mithilesh Kumar, Joint Director State Licensing Authority, Ayurvedic and Unani Services, tendered an unconditional apology to the Court. In his affidavit, he submitted that directions were issued to every Ayurvedic/Unani medicine factory to strictly comply with the Drug and Magic Remedies Act. Orders have been issued to ensure that no pharmaceutical factory would “use claims like approved/certified by the Ministry of AYUSH on the label of their products”. The affidavit assured the court that measures were in place to make sure that advertisements would comply with provisions under Consumer Protection Act, 2019, Cable Television Networks Act, 1995, Emblems and Names Act, 1950. However, the court took exception to Kumar’s submission that the SLA had been “vigilant in its duties”. “Are you giving yourself a self-certificate?” Justice Amanullah asked. Expressing its unhappiness with the affidavits filed by Kumar and his predecessors of the past six years, right from the time the first complaints against Patanjali started trickling in, the Bench gave them another 10 days to file fresh affidavits. The case was posted for hearing on May 14. Poll roundup: - The [Congress on April 30 appointed former MLA Devender Yadav as interim president of its Delhi unit]( two days after Arvinder Singh Lovely resigned from the post while criticising the alliance with Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and statements of the party’s candidates in the national capital. Yadav, who won from the Badli assembly constituency in Delhi in 2008 and 2013 and lost to Ajesh Yadav of AAP in 2015, is currently the All India Congress Committee’s (AICC) Punjab in-charge. - Prime Minister [Narendra Modi on April 30 wrote personal letters to all NDA candidates in the fray in the third phase of Lok Sabha polls]( to take on what he termed Congress’s “divisive agenda”, including that of giving reservations to Muslims by snatching it from SC/ST and OBCs as well as “dangerous ideas” like bringing in inheritance tax. Stressing that the current polls were “no ordinary election” he said: “They (Opposition) are also bent upon taking away the hard-earned wealth of the people and giving it to their vote bank. The Congress has also made it clear that they will bring in dangerous ideas like inheritance tax. The nation must unite to stop them. - Congress president [Mallikarjun Kharge on April 30 claimed that the BJP was seeking to win more than 400 Lok Sabha seats not for the welfare of the poor but for taking away their rights](. Speaking at a campaign rally in Chhattisgarh’s Janjgir-Champa district, he also said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had become frustrated after sensing that the INDIA bloc was heading for a majority, and hence he was resorting to remarks about “mangalsutra” and “Hindu-Muslims.” The rally was in support of Shivkumar Dahariya, Congress’ candidate from Janjgir-Champa. In Brief: AAP’s Manish Sisodia denied bail in Delhi Excise Policy cases filed by ED, CBI [A Delhi court on April 30 dismissed the bail pleas of former Deputy Chief Minister and AAP leader Manish Sisodia in the corruption and money laundering cases lodged by the CBI and the ED in relation to the alleged excise scam](. Special judge for CBI and ED, Kaveri Baweja, denied the relief, saying the stage was not right to grant the bail. The court had reserved the order after hearing arguments from the CBI and the ED as well as the counsel appearing for Sisodia. Pannun case: Unwarranted, unsubstantiated imputations, says India on media report A day after The Washington Post named an Indian official for allegedly plotting to eliminate Sikh separatist leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, the [External Affairs Ministry on April 30 said the report made “unwarranted and unsubstantiated” imputations on a serious matter](. 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