The Evening Wrap: Electoral reforms Bill passed amidst opposition

Amid stiff opposition and without detailed discussion, the Lok Sabha on Monday passed a Bill, which seeks to link the electoral-roll data with Aadhar; the move raises serious concerns about exclusion and privacy by exposing the identity of voters. Law Minister Kiren Rijiju, while moving Election Laws Amendment bill went on to state that the linking was voluntary but went on to quote a report of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Law and Justice to assert that it would “purify” the rolls. The Opposition protested the manner of passing the Bill, barely two hours after it was introduced in the Lok Sabha and accused the Narendra Modi government of “compromising” the authority of Parliament. Congress leader in the House Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury was seen throwing bits of papers towards the Well of the House in protest. BJP member Nishikant Dubey alleged that the Congress and the Trinamool Congress members were opposing the Bill because they rely on “illegal Bangladeshis” as their vote banks. Hitting back at Mr Dubey, NCP member Supriya Sule said the BJP should first clarify the allegations about a Minister in the present Cabinet being a Bangladeshi national. While Trinamool members Kalyan Banerjee and Mahua Moitra were agitated over the government pushing through the Bill, the Biju Janata Dal and the YSR Congress, also urged the government not to pass it in the din. At the time of introduction, several members including Manish Tewari and Shashi Tharoor from the Congress, Asaduddin Owaisi (AIMIM) and N.K. Premachandran (RSP) opposed the Bill. The Bill allows electoral registration officers to ask for Aadhaar numbers of applicants seeking to register as voters to establish the identity of the applicant. It also seeks to allow the electoral registration officers to ask for the Aadhaar number from “persons already included in the electoral roll for the purposes of authentication of entries in electoral roll, and to identify registration of name of the same person in the electoral roll of more than one constituency or more than once in the same constituency”. At the same time, the amendment Bill makes it clear that “no application for inclusion of name in the electoral roll shall be denied and no entries in the electoral roll shall be deleted for inability of an individual to furnish Aadhaar number due to such sufficient cause as may be prescribed”. People who cannot furnish their Aadhaar numbers will be allowed to present other documents to establish identity. The Statement of Objects and Reasons of the Bill states that Section 23 of the Representation of People Act, 1950, will be amended to allow linking of the electoral roll data with the Aadhaar ecosystem “to curb the menace of multiple enrolment of the same person in different places”. The proposed Amendment to Section 20 of the Act, 1950 and Section 60 of the Act, 1951, will allow elections to become gender neutral for service voters. The amendment will also help replace the word “wife” with “spouse” making the statutes “gender neutral”. Delimitation commission proposes to increase seats in Jammu; only one for Kashmir division The proposal of the J&K Delimitation Commission to increase six seats for the Jammu division and one for the Kashmir division, besides reserving 16 seats for the Scheduled Caste (SC) and Schedule Tribe (ST) communities in the Union Territory has elicited sharp reactions from the regional parties. The commission, headed by Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai, met its five associate members, including two Members of Parliament from the BJP and three from the National Conference which earlier boycotted it, in New Delhi on Monday.An NC MP confirmed to The Hindu that the commission has proposed six seats for the Jammu province and only one for the Kashmir division. Besides, the draft proposal has suggested nine seats reserved for ST and seven for SC. J&K will have a 90-member Legislative Assembly now, up from 87 prior to the Centre’s decision to end J&K’s special constitutional position. NC MP Hasnain Masoodi, who attended the meeting, termed the proposal “unacceptable”. “It is a matter of concern. We will submit our report in detail very soon, as the proposal is not acceptable at all,” he said. NC vice president Omar Abdullah said the distribution of newly created Assembly constituencies, with six going to Jammu and only one to Kashmir was not justified by the data of the 2011 census. “It is deeply disappointing that the commission appears to have allowed the political agenda of the BJP to dictate its recommendations rather than the data which should have been it’s only consideration. Contrary to the promised ‘scientific approach’, it’s a political approach,” he stated. Peoples Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti said her apprehensions about the Commission weren’t misplaced. “They want to pitch people against each other by ignoring the population census and preposing six seats for one region and only one for Kashmir,” she observed. The commission had been created simply to serve the BJPs political interests by dividing people along religious and regional lines. The real game plan was to install a government in J&K that would legitimise the illegal and unconstitutional decisions of August 2019, she noted. Sajad Lone, who heads the Peoples Conference, said, “The recommendations of the delimitation commission are totally unacceptable. They reek of bias. What a shock for those who believe in democracy”. Aishwarya summoned by ED; questioned for over five hours Actor Aishwarya Rai Bachchan was questioned for over five hours by the Enforcement Directoration for alleged forex violations related to the ‘Panama Papers’. It is not known if the actor has been asked to appear again at a later date. The ‘Panama Papers’ case is a investigation by a consortium of journalists into how the rich and powerful set up offshore accounts to avoid paying taxes. The probe agency recorded her statement over claims that she has parked her money in a company based in the British Virgin Islands, according to news reports. The 48 year old actor had been summoned earlier but had sought more time. The Enforcement Directorate started investigating the allegations in 2017. It issued notices to the Bachchan family asking them to explain foreign remittances since 2004 under the Liberalized Remittance Scheme (LRS) of the Reserve Bank of India. Sources said Aishwarya Rai had submitted foreign payments records received over the past 15 years. Agencies reported that Ms Rai had been named Director of an offshore company - Amic Partners - set up in the British Virgin Islands in 2004. Panama-based law firm Mossack Fonseca registered the company, which had a paid- up capital of $50,000. The actor allegedly exited the company in 2009; which was later acquired by Dubai-based BKR Adonis. Sensex crashes The Sensex fell over 1,800 points or 3.2 per cent and Nifty 50 index breaking below 16,450 as fears of the Omicron variant of Coronavirus shook investors’ sentiment. Global markets have also panicked. Spread of the new Covid-19 variant Omicron has stoked fears of stagflation, analysts said. Stagflation is a scenario with rising inflation and stagnant or declining economic growth due to the spread of Omicron and lockdowns. As of 2:21 pm, the Sensex was down 1,371 points or 2.4 per cent at 55,641 and Nifty 50 index dived 432 points or 2.54 per cent to 16,553. Covid Watch: Numbers and Developments The number of reported coronavirus cases from India stood at 3,47,46,846 at the time of publishing this newsletter, with the death toll at 4,77,554. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. [logo] The Evening Wrap 20 DECEMBER 2021 [The Hindu logo] Welcome to the Evening Wrap newsletter, your guide to the day’s biggest stories with concise analysis from The Hindu. [[Arrow]Open in browser]( [[Mail icon]More newsletters]( Electoral reforms Bill passed amidst opposition Amid stiff opposition and without detailed discussion, the [Lok Sabha on Monday passed a Bill, which seeks to link the electoral-roll data with Aadhar]( the move raises serious concerns about exclusion and privacy by exposing the identity of voters. Law Minister Kiren Rijiju, while moving Election Laws Amendment bill went on to state that the linking was voluntary but went on to quote a report of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Law and Justice to assert that it would “purify” the rolls. The Opposition protested the manner of passing the Bill, barely two hours after it was introduced in the Lok Sabha and accused the Narendra Modi government of “compromising” the authority of Parliament. [Union Minister for Law and Justice Kiren Rijiju speaks in the Lok Sabha during the Winter Session of Parliament, in New Delhi, on December 20, 2021.]  Congress leader in the House Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury was seen throwing bits of papers towards the Well of the House in protest. BJP member Nishikant Dubey alleged that the Congress and the Trinamool Congress members were opposing the Bill because they rely on “illegal Bangladeshis” as their vote banks. Hitting back at Mr Dubey, NCP member Supriya Sule said the BJP should first clarify the allegations about a Minister in the present Cabinet being a Bangladeshi national. While Trinamool members Kalyan Banerjee and Mahua Moitra were agitated over the government pushing through the Bill, the Biju Janata Dal and the YSR Congress, also urged the government not to pass it in the din. At the time of introduction, several members including Manish Tewari and Shashi Tharoor from the Congress, Asaduddin Owaisi (AIMIM) and N.K. Premachandran (RSP) opposed the Bill. The Bill allows electoral registration officers to ask for Aadhaar numbers of applicants seeking to register as voters to establish the identity of the applicant. It also seeks to allow the electoral registration officers to ask for the Aadhaar number from “persons already included in the electoral roll for the purposes of authentication of entries in electoral roll, and to identify registration of name of the same person in the electoral roll of more than one constituency or more than once in the same constituency”. At the same time, the amendment Bill makes it clear that “no application for inclusion of name in the electoral roll shall be denied and no entries in the electoral roll shall be deleted for inability of an individual to furnish Aadhaar number due to such sufficient cause as may be prescribed”. People who cannot furnish their Aadhaar numbers will be allowed to present other documents to establish identity. The Statement of Objects and Reasons of the Bill states that Section 23 of the Representation of People Act, 1950, will be amended to allow linking of the electoral roll data with the Aadhaar ecosystem “to curb the menace of multiple enrolment of the same person in different places”. The proposed Amendment to Section 20 of the Act, 1950 and Section 60 of the Act, 1951, will allow elections to become gender neutral for service voters. The amendment will also help replace the word “wife” with “spouse” making the statutes “gender neutral”. [underlineimg] Delimitation commission proposes to increase seats in Jammu; only one for Kashmir division The [proposal of the J&K Delimitation Commission to increase six seats for the Jammu division and one for the Kashmir division]( besides reserving 16 seats for the Scheduled Caste (SC) and Schedule Tribe (ST) communities in the Union Territory has elicited sharp reactions from the regional parties. The commission, headed by Justice Ranjana Prakash Desai, met its five associate members, including two Members of Parliament from the BJP and three from the National Conference which earlier boycotted it, in New Delhi on Monday.An NC MP confirmed to The Hindu that the commission has proposed six seats for the Jammu province and only one for the Kashmir division. Besides, the draft proposal has suggested nine seats reserved for ST and seven for SC. J&K will have a 90-member Legislative Assembly now, up from 87 prior to the Centre’s decision to end J&K’s special constitutional position. NC MP Hasnain Masoodi, who attended the meeting, termed the proposal “unacceptable”. “It is a matter of concern. We will submit our report in detail very soon, as the proposal is not acceptable at all,” he said. NC vice president Omar Abdullah said the distribution of newly created Assembly constituencies, with six going to Jammu and only one to Kashmir was not justified by the data of the 2011 census. “It is deeply disappointing that the commission appears to have allowed the political agenda of the BJP to dictate its recommendations rather than the data which should have been it’s only consideration. Contrary to the promised ‘scientific approach’, it’s a political approach,” he stated. Peoples Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti said her apprehensions about the Commission weren’t misplaced. “They want to pitch people against each other by ignoring the population census and preposing six seats for one region and only one for Kashmir,” she observed. The commission had been created simply to serve the BJPs political interests by dividing people along religious and regional lines. The real game plan was to install a government in J&K that would legitimise the illegal and unconstitutional decisions of August 2019, she noted. Sajad Lone, who heads the Peoples Conference, said, “The recommendations of the delimitation commission are totally unacceptable. They reek of bias. What a shock for those who believe in democracy”. [underlineimg] Aishwarya summoned by ED; questioned for over five hours Actor [Aishwarya Rai Bachchan was questioned for over five hours by the Enforcement Directoration]( for alleged forex violations related to the ‘Panama Papers’. It is not known if the actor has been asked to appear again at a later date. The ‘Panama Papers’ case is a investigation by a consortium of journalists into how the rich and powerful set up offshore accounts to avoid paying taxes. [Bollywood actor Aishwarya Rai Bachchan. File]  The probe agency recorded her statement over claims that she has parked her money in a company based in the British Virgin Islands, according to news reports. The 48 year old actor had been summoned earlier but had sought more time. The Enforcement Directorate started investigating the allegations in 2017. It issued notices to the Bachchan family asking them to explain foreign remittances since 2004 under the Liberalized Remittance Scheme (LRS) of the Reserve Bank of India. Sources said Aishwarya Rai had submitted foreign payments records received over the past 15 years. Agencies reported that Ms Rai had been named Director of an offshore company - Amic Partners - set up in the British Virgin Islands in 2004. Panama-based law firm Mossack Fonseca registered the company, which had a paid- up capital of $50,000. The actor allegedly exited the company in 2009; which was later acquired by Dubai-based BKR Adonis. [underlineimg] Sensex crashes The [Sensex fell over 1,800 points or 3.2 per cent and Nifty 50 index breaking below 16,450]( as fears of the Omicron variant of Coronavirus shook investors’ sentiment. Global markets have also panicked. Spread of the new Covid-19 variant Omicron has stoked fears of stagflation, analysts said. Stagflation is a scenario with rising inflation and stagnant or declining economic growth due to the spread of Omicron and lockdowns. As of 2:21 pm, the Sensex was down 1,371 points or 2.4 per cent at 55,641 and Nifty 50 index dived 432 points or 2.54 per cent to 16,553. [underlineimg] Covid Watch: Numbers and Developments The [number of reported coronavirus cases from India]( stood at 3,47,46,846 at the time of publishing this newsletter, with the death toll at 4,77,554. [underlineimg] Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. Today's Top Picks [[Pradeep Rawat to take over as India’s next envoy in China] Pradeep Rawat to take over as India’s next envoy in China]( [[Explained | What kept cybersecurity busy in 2021?] Explained | What kept cybersecurity busy in 2021?]( [[News Analysis| Political murders in Kerala call for stern action] News Analysis| Political murders in Kerala call for stern action]( [[TDB planning copter service for elite devotees] TDB planning copter service for elite devotees]( Copyright @ 2021, THG PUBLISHING PVT LTD. If you are facing any trouble in viewing this newsletter, please [try here]( If you do not wish to receive such emails [go here](