The Evening Wrap: Panel on simultaneous polls to invite political parties, Law Commission for views

A high-level committee to explore the feasibility of conducting simultaneous elections, headed by former president Ram Nath Kovind, held its first meeting in New Delhi on September 23 and decided to invite political parties and the Law Commission to seek their views on holding synchronised polls in the country, a statement said. The government, on September 2, notified the eight-member “high-level” panel to examine and make recommendations at the earliest on the issue of holding simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha, state assemblies, municipalities and panchayats. Home Minister Amit Shah, Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal, former leader of the opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad, former Finance Commission chairman N.K. Singh, former Lok Sabha secretary general Subhash C. Kashyap and former chief vigilance commissioner Sanjay Kothari attended the meeting. Noted lawyer Harish Salve joined the meeting virtually. The Congress’s leader in the Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, however, was not present in the meeting. Notably, Chowdhury was named as a member in the committee originally but he declined to join. Outlining the modalities of working of the committee, it decided to invite recognised national parties, parties having governments in States, those having their representatives in Parliament and other recognised state parties “for seeking suggestions or view points on the issue of simultaneous elections in the country”. In addition, the committee will also invite the Law Commission for its suggestions and view points on the issue of simultaneous elections, according to a statement issued by the law ministry. NIA confiscates properties of SFJ’s Gurpatwant Singh Pannun The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on September 23 confiscated the properties of “designated individual terrorist” Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, self-styled general counsel of the United State-based proscribed outfit Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), in Punjab’s Amritsar and Chandigarh. He is currently operating from Canada. The action has been taken against Pannun following the confiscation orders passed by an NIA special court in Mohali, Punjab. This is the first time that properties of an absconding accused of the NIA have been confiscated He has been on the NIA’s radar since 2019, when the agency had registered its first case alleging his major role in promoting and commissioning terror acts and activities, and spreading fear and terror in Punjab and elsewhere in the country through threats and intimidation tactics. On February 3, 2021, non-bailable warrants of arrest were issued against Pannun by the NIA court and he was declared a “Proclaimed Offender” on November 29 last year. According to the NIA, its probe has revealed that the SFJ was misusing the cyberspace to radicalise gullible youth and instigate them to undertake terrorist activities. He was the main handler and controller of the outfit, which was declared an unlawful association by the Ministry of Home Affairs vide a notification dated July 10, 2019. Pannun was designated an “individual terrorist” on July 1, 2020. He has been accused of exhorting Punjab-based gangsters and youth over the social media to indulge in pro-Khalistan activities, challenging the sovereignty, integrity and security of the country. The properties confiscated by the agency include 46 kanal agricultural land located in Khankot village of Amritsar, and 1/4th share of a house in Chandigarh. Chandrababu Naidu moves Supreme Court in Andhra Pradesh skill development scam case Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leader and former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on September 23 appealed the Supreme Court against an Andhra Pradesh High Court order refusing to quash FIRs against him in the multi-crore skill development scam case. The special leave petition, filed through Naidu’s lawyer, advocate Guntur Pramod Kumar, said the FIRs were “an orchestrated campaign of regime revenge to derail the largest Opposition in the State”. “The petitioner (Naidu) was suddenly named in the FIR registered 21 months ago, arrested in an illegal manner and deprived of his liberty, motivated only by political reasons. Even though there is no material against him, the petitioner is being made to suffer an illegal and motivated investigation in clear violation of his fundamental rights,” the special leave petition said. The High Court had declined to quash the criminal cases filed against Naidu and also refused to set aside the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) court’s order to remand him. The High Court, in its September 22 order, said the probe agency had initiated criminal action against Naidu after conducting extensive examination of witnesses and collection of documentary evidence following the registration of the crime in 2021. The investigation was at its final stage, the High Court had said. The case involves alleged misappropriations made in the process of establishment of skill development institutions by Andhra Pradesh State Skill Development Corporation in collaboration with private companies. Government trying to draft laws in simple manner and in Indian languages: PM Modi Prime Minister Narendra Modi on September 23 said that his government is focussing on drafting laws in Indian languages and in a manner that is simple to understand. He was inaugurating the International Lawyers’ Conference in the presence of Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal, Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice of the United Kingdom Alex Chalk K.C. Attorney General R. Venkataramani, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, Bar Council of India chairman and senior advocate Manan Kumar Mishra and several judges of the Supreme Court were also present. “We in the Indian government are thinking that law should be produced in two ways. One draft will be in the language you are used to,” he told the audience which was mainly made up of legal professionals. “The second draft will be in a language which the country’s common man can understand. He should consider the law his own,” he added, noting that laws were being drafted in a complex manner. Modi said his government “made the first beginning” in the Data Protection law and also welcomed the Supreme Court’s decision to provide the operative part of a judgment to the litigant in his or her own language. Lauding the legal fraternity, he said the judiciary and the Bar have long been protectors of India’s justice system and pointed out that Mahatma Gandhi, B.R. Ambedkar, Jawaharlal Nehru and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel were all lawyers. Assam CM Himanta’s wife files ₹10-crore defamation suit against Gaurav Gogoi Riniki Bhuyan Sarma, wife of Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, filed a ₹10-crore defamation suit against Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi for “false” allegations of irregularities in a food processing project. Her counsel, senior advocate Devajit Saikia, said that the case has been filed at the Court of Civil Judge (Senior Division) of Kamrup Metropolitan on September 22 and it will be moved on September 26. “We have made it very clear that we never made any application to receive subsidy,” the counsel said. Saikia further claimed that the process to seek subsidy has not been initiated at all and for which, a show cause notice was slapped on his client’s firm on May 26 this year, followed by an email from the Ministry of Food Processing. “The approval for the project was given on November 22, 2022. In the last email, we were told that our claim would lapse if we didn’t submit our proposal. We are not responding to anything to seek subsidy,” he added. Whatever Gogoi stated on social media about Sarma and her entity ‘Pride East Entertainments’, was not based on facts, claimed the senior advocate. Controversy erupted after Guwahati-based digital media ‘The Crosscurrent’ published a report alleging that over 50 bigha (nearly 17 acres) of agricultural land at Darigaji village in Kaliabor in Nagaon district was reclassified as industrial land within a month after it was bought by Pride East Entertainments, in which the Chief Minister’s wife is the chairman and managing director. Following this, Gogoi, in a series of tweets for several days, brought allegations of corruption against CM Sarma and his wife in getting central government subsidy for the project. Gogoi also sought Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal’s intervention in bringing facts out in the open regarding subsidy for the project under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada Yojana and Scheme for Creation of Infrastructure for Agro Clusters. In Brief: Hangzhou Asian Games opens with futuristic ceremony Blending elements of artificial intelligence and environmentally friendly technology, the Hangzhou Asian Games opened on September 23 with a one-of-a-kind opening ceremony, headlined by a spectacular futuristic light show. The dazzling programme was a melange of technology, cultural history of China, and the spirit of the continent’s unity. In keeping with the main theme of ‘Tides Surging in Asia’, the ceremony was about the intermingling of China, Asia and the world in the new era, as well as the unity, love and friendship of the Asian people. Chinese President Xi Jinping declared the Games open as more than 12,000 athletes from 45 countries gear up to fight for top honours till October 8. Manipur CM Biren announces restoration of Internet services Internet services in Manipur, which has been suspended since May 23, 2023, were restored on September 23 throughout the State, announced by CM N. Biren Singh. Mobile Internet services remained suspended in Manipur for more than 140-days in the wake of communal clashes between the Meiteis and the Kukis. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. [logo] The Evening Wrap 23 September 2023 [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]( Simultaneous poll panel to invite political parties, Law Commission for views A high-level committee to explore the feasibility of conducting simultaneous elections, headed by former president Ram Nath Kovind, held its first meeting in New Delhi on September 23 and [decided to invite political parties and the Law Commission to seek their views on holding synchronised polls]( in the country, a statement said. The government, on September 2, notified the eight-member “high-level” panel to examine and make recommendations at the earliest on the issue of holding simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha, state assemblies, municipalities and panchayats. Home Minister Amit Shah, Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal, former leader of the opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad, former Finance Commission chairman N.K. Singh, former Lok Sabha secretary general Subhash C. Kashyap and former chief vigilance commissioner Sanjay Kothari attended the meeting. Noted lawyer Harish Salve joined the meeting virtually. The Congress’s leader in the Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, however, was not present in the meeting. Notably, Chowdhury was named as a member in the committee originally but he declined to join. Outlining the modalities of working of the committee, it decided to invite recognised national parties, parties having governments in States, those having their representatives in Parliament and other recognised state parties “for seeking suggestions or view points on the issue of simultaneous elections in the country”. In addition, the committee will also invite the Law Commission for its suggestions and view points on the issue of simultaneous elections, according to a statement issued by the law ministry. NIA confiscates properties of SFJ’s Gurpatwant Singh Pannun The [National Investigation Agency (NIA) on September 23 confiscated the properties of “designated individual terrorist” Gurpatwant Singh Pannun]( self-styled general counsel of the United State-based proscribed outfit Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), in Punjab’s Amritsar and Chandigarh. He is currently operating from Canada. The action has been taken against Pannun following the confiscation orders passed by an NIA special court in Mohali, Punjab. This is the first time that properties of an absconding accused of the NIA have been confiscated He has been on the NIA’s radar since 2019, when the agency had registered its first case alleging his major role in promoting and commissioning terror acts and activities, and spreading fear and terror in Punjab and elsewhere in the country through threats and intimidation tactics. On February 3, 2021, non-bailable warrants of arrest were issued against Pannun by the NIA court and he was declared a “Proclaimed Offender” on November 29 last year. According to the NIA, its probe has revealed that the SFJ was misusing the cyberspace to radicalise gullible youth and instigate them to undertake terrorist activities. He was the main handler and controller of the outfit, which was declared an unlawful association by the Ministry of Home Affairs vide a notification dated July 10, 2019. Pannun was designated an “individual terrorist” on July 1, 2020. He has been accused of exhorting Punjab-based gangsters and youth over the social media to indulge in pro-Khalistan activities, challenging the sovereignty, integrity and security of the country. The properties confiscated by the agency include 46 kanal agricultural land located in Khankot village of Amritsar, and 1/4th share of a house in Chandigarh. Chandrababu Naidu moves Supreme Court in Andhra Pradesh skill development scam case Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leader and former Andhra Pradesh [Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on September 23 appealed the Supreme Court]( against an Andhra Pradesh High Court order refusing to quash FIRs against him in the multi-crore skill development scam case. The special leave petition, filed through Naidu’s lawyer, advocate Guntur Pramod Kumar, said the FIRs were “an orchestrated campaign of regime revenge to derail the largest Opposition in the State”. “The petitioner (Naidu) was suddenly named in the FIR registered 21 months ago, arrested in an illegal manner and deprived of his liberty, motivated only by political reasons. Even though there is no material against him, the petitioner is being made to suffer an illegal and motivated investigation in clear violation of his fundamental rights,” the special leave petition said. The High Court had declined to quash the criminal cases filed against Naidu and also refused to set aside the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) court’s order to remand him. The High Court, in its September 22 order, said the probe agency had initiated criminal action against Naidu after conducting extensive examination of witnesses and collection of documentary evidence following the registration of the crime in 2021. The investigation was at its final stage, the High Court had said. The case involves alleged misappropriations made in the process of establishment of skill development institutions by Andhra Pradesh State Skill Development Corporation in collaboration with private companies. Government trying to draft laws in simple manner and in Indian languages: PM Modi Prime Minister [Narendra Modi on September 23 said that his government is focussing on drafting laws in Indian languages]( and in a manner that is simple to understand. He was inaugurating the International Lawyers’ Conference in the presence of Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal, Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice of the United Kingdom Alex Chalk K.C. Attorney General R. Venkataramani, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, Bar Council of India chairman and senior advocate Manan Kumar Mishra and several judges of the Supreme Court were also present. “We in the Indian government are thinking that law should be produced in two ways. One draft will be in the language you are used to,” he told the audience which was mainly made up of legal professionals. “The second draft will be in a language which the country’s common man can understand. He should consider the law his own,” he added, noting that laws were being drafted in a complex manner. Modi said his government “made the first beginning” in the Data Protection law and also welcomed the Supreme Court’s decision to provide the operative part of a judgment to the litigant in his or her own language. Lauding the legal fraternity, he said the judiciary and the Bar have long been protectors of India’s justice system and pointed out that Mahatma Gandhi, B.R. Ambedkar, Jawaharlal Nehru and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel were all lawyers. Assam CM Himanta’s wife files ₹10-crore defamation suit against Gaurav Gogoi [Riniki Bhuyan Sarma, wife of Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, filed a ₹10-crore defamation suit against Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi]( for “false” allegations of irregularities in a food processing project. Her counsel, senior advocate Devajit Saikia, said that the case has been filed at the Court of Civil Judge (Senior Division) of Kamrup Metropolitan on September 22 and it will be moved on September 26. “We have made it very clear that we never made any application to receive subsidy,” the counsel said. Saikia further claimed that the process to seek subsidy has not been initiated at all and for which, a show cause notice was slapped on his client’s firm on May 26 this year, followed by an email from the Ministry of Food Processing. “The approval for the project was given on November 22, 2022. In the last email, we were told that our claim would lapse if we didn’t submit our proposal. We are not responding to anything to seek subsidy,” he added. Whatever Gogoi stated on social media about Sarma and her entity ‘Pride East Entertainments’, was not based on facts, claimed the senior advocate. Controversy erupted after Guwahati-based digital media ‘The Crosscurrent’ published a report alleging that over 50 bigha (nearly 17 acres) of agricultural land at Darigaji village in Kaliabor in Nagaon district was reclassified as industrial land within a month after it was bought by Pride East Entertainments, in which the Chief Minister’s wife is the chairman and managing director. Following this, Gogoi, in a series of tweets for several days, brought allegations of corruption against CM Sarma and his wife in getting central government subsidy for the project. Gogoi also sought Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal’s intervention in bringing facts out in the open regarding subsidy for the project under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada Yojana and Scheme for Creation of Infrastructure for Agro Clusters. In Brief: Hangzhou Asian Games opens with futuristic ceremony Blending elements of artificial intelligence and environmentally friendly technology, the [Hangzhou Asian Games opened]( on September 23 with a one-of-a-kind opening ceremony, headlined by a spectacular futuristic light show. The dazzling programme was a melange of technology, cultural history of China, and the spirit of the continent’s unity. In keeping with the main theme of ‘Tides Surging in Asia’, the ceremony was about the intermingling of China, Asia and the world in the new era, as well as the unity, love and friendship of the Asian people. Chinese President Xi Jinping declared the Games open as more than 12,000 athletes from 45 countries gear up to fight for top honours till October 8. Manipur CM Biren announces restoration of Internet services [Internet services in Manipur, which has been suspended since May 23, 2023, were restored]( on September 23 throughout the State, announced by CM N. Biren Singh. Mobile Internet services remained suspended in Manipur for more than 140-days in the wake of communal clashes between the Meiteis and the Kukis. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. [Sign up for free]( Today’s Top Picks [[Political parties in Punjab adopt contrasting strategies amid India-Canada conflict] Political parties in Punjab adopt contrasting strategies amid India-Canada conflict]( [[Budget progressively coming down; Centre aims to dilute MGNREGS, says Kerala Minister M.B. Rajesh] Budget progressively coming down; Centre aims to dilute MGNREGS, says Kerala Minister M.B. Rajesh]( [[MotoGP Indian Grand Prix: VR46’s Bezzecchi in pole position] MotoGP Indian Grand Prix: VR46’s Bezzecchi in pole position]( [[Health/online: The anatomy of women’s cancers: how does gender shape diagnosis, treatment?] Health/online: The anatomy of women’s cancers: how does gender shape diagnosis, treatment?]( Copyright @ 2023, THG PUBLISHING PVT LTD. If you are facing any trouble in viewing this newsletter, please [try here]( Manage your newsletter subscription preferences [here]( If you do not wish to receive such emails [go here](