The Evening Wrap: Uttarakhand Assembly passes Uniform Civil Code Bill

The Uttarakhand Assembly on February 7 passed the Uniform Civil Code Bill, which may serve as template for other BJP-run States to enact similar legislation. The Bill, which was passed by voice vote, was introduced in the BJP-majority Assembly a day earlier and the Opposition had suggested that it should be sent to a select committee of the House first. Once the Bill gets the governor’s consent, Uttarakhand will become the first State after independence to get a common law on marriage, divorce, land, property and inheritance for all citizens, irrespective of their religion. Speaking on the Bill before its passage, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said it is not an ordinary legislation. The Uniform Civil Code will create equal laws for men and women across all faiths and will help create a non-partisan and non-discriminatory society, he said. It will especially protect the rights of women and put an end to their exploitation, Dhami said. “It fulfils a commitment we had made to the people of the state in the run-up to the 2022 assembly polls,” the chief minister said. It is a small contribution from Uttarakhand to building of a developed India under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Dhami said. Sharad Pawar’s group now called ‘Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar’ The Election Commission on Wednesday allotted ‘Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar’ as the party name for the group led by Sharad Pawar. The order by the poll authority came a day after it gave the Nationalist Congress Party name and the “clock” election symbol to the group led by Ajit Pawar, who had walked away with a majority NCP MLAs in the Maharashtra assembly in July last year. The Commission had asked the Sharad Pawar group to suggest three names of which one could be allotted in view of the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections in Maharashtra. Accordingly, the Sharad Pawar group has suggested the names -- Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar, Nationalist Congress Party -- Sharadrao Pawar and Nationalist Congress Party-Sharad Pawar -- to the Commission. The faction had also sought ‘banyan tree’ as the election symbol for itself. The Commission conveyed to Sharad Pawar that it has “acceded to your first preference, i.e. ‘Nationalist Congress PArty -- Sharadchandra Pawar’ as the name of your group/faction as a onetime option for the purposes of forthcoming election to 6 seats in the Rajya Sabha in Maharashtra...” Excise policy case: Court asks Kejriwal to appear on February 17 on ED’s plea A Delhi court on February 7 summoned Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on February 17 on a complaint filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) against him over the non-compliance of its summons in a money-laundering case linked to the now-scrapped excise policy for the national capital. “Cognisance of the complaint has been taken and summons is being issued to him to appear on February 17,” Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Divya Malhotra said. The judge had reserved the order after the ED submitted that it had concluded its arguments in the matter. The ED had on February 3 filed a fresh complaint case against Mr. Kejriwal for the non-compliance of its summons. Kejriwal on Friday skipped the fifth summons issued to him by the ED. The agency had issued the summons to him on last Wednesday. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convenor had earlier written to the ED, describing the summonses as “illegal and politically motivated”. He had alleged that the summonses were aimed at preventing him from campaigning in elections. The Aam Aadmi Party said it was studying the Delhi court order that asked Kejriwal to appear before it on February 17 on the ED’s complaint over non-compliance of summonses in the Excise policy case. The party maintained that the multiple notices by the Enforcement Directorate against Kejriwal were “illegal” and said it would apprise the court of its stand. “We are studying the court order and will take necessary legal steps accordingly,” AAP leader Jasmine Shah told a press conference. ‘Chalo Delhi’: Siddaramaiah, Karnataka Ministers protest at Jantar Mantar against Centre Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D. K. Shivakumar along with the State Cabinet are in Delhi for a protest named ‘Chalo Delhi’ in Jantar Mantar at 11 a.m. on February 7 against the Centre’s tax devolution policies. Karnataka Minister Satish Jarkiholi said that his government is protesting, as over ₹1 lakh crore was due from the Centre. Mr. Siddaramaiah has accused the Central Government of economic disparities, saying that his government stands against the unfair treatment in tax devolution and grants for the State. Siddaramaiah has accused the Central Government of economic disparities, saying that his government stands against the unfair treatment in tax devolution and grants for ‘Kannadigas’. While speaking to ANI, Jarkiholi said that the Central government should listen to their demands. “Over ₹1 lakh crore is due to Karnataka. For this, we held meetings with the Union Home Minister, Union Finance Minister, but to date, we have not received our money. We are protesting for this. The government should listen as our demands are right. So many people have come with the Chief Minister, it is the duty of the Central government to speak on this,” Jarkiholi said. He said that this fight is not against a party but for the justice of the State’s people. “The amount is of the last 10 years when there was a BJP government also in the State,” he added. Meanwhile, Ramalinga Reddy, another State Minister, said that this year 220 taluks in Karnataka were declared affected by drought but to date not even a single rupee has been released by the Centre. “Around ₹4,50,000 tax will be collected from our State by the Central govt. but we are getting just ₹50,000. This year, out of 236 taluks, 220 taluks are declared affected by drought. Till now not even a single rupee has been released for Karnataka,” he said. Apart from him, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee working president Saleem Ahmed said, “Today, we [Karnataka] are suffering a drought...We had demanded ₹17,000 crores almost four months ago but not even a single penny has been released...For this, we are protesting at Jantar Mantar...” Earlier on Monday, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, the leader of Congress in Lok Sabha, said there is a general perception across the nation that the non-BJP States are being deprived of their legitimate dues. The latest example, he alleged, is Congress-ruled Karnataka. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, rubbishing the Congress leader’s charges, termed the allegations to be a “politically vitiated narrative” that is being propagated by some vested interest groups. “Adhir ji, please understand I don’t have the right to change as per my whims and fancies, that I like a State or another State, it is against my party politics. No way, I have no role I would have to follow rules 100%, and that’s what I have done,” Sitharaman responded, as she explained the procedure of how devolution of taxes to the States is decided upon by the Finance Commission. “Finance Commission gives recommendations which I have to implement, it is done without any fear or favour or anything like that. So this apprehension that some States have been discriminated against is a politically vitiated narrative, which I am sorry to say, vested interests are happy to go about saying it. There is not just a possibility that any Finance Minister can intervene and say ‘I don’t like this State, stop payment’,” she added. Saudi Arabia reiterates no diplomatic relations with Israel without independent Palestinian state Saudi Arabia has told the U.S. its position stands that there will be no diplomatic relations with Israel unless an independent Palestinian state is recognised on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem, and Israeli “aggression” on the Gaza Strip stops, the Saudi foreign ministry said in a statement on Wednesday. On Tuesday, White House National Security spokesperson John Kirby had said that the Biden administration has received positive feedback that Saudi Arabia and Israel are willing to continue to have normalisation discussions. The kingdom issued the statement to affirm its steadfast position to Washington on the Palestinian issue in the light of the comments attributed to Kirby, the ministry said. The idea of Israel and Saudi Arabia formally cementing ties has been under discussion since the Saudis gave their quiet assent to Gulf neighbours United Arab Emirates and Bahrain establishing ties with Israel in 2020. Saudi Arabia put U.S.-backed plans to normalise ties with Israel on ice, sources familiar with Riyadh’s thinking told Reuters in Oct, 2023, as the war between Palestinian militant group Hamas and Israeli forces escalated. Israel began its military offensive in Gaza after militants from Hamas-ruled Gaza killed 1,200 people and took 253 hostages in southern Israel on October 7. In brief A special PMLA court on February 7 extended the ED remand of former Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren by five days in a money laundering case linked to an alleged land scam, lawyers said. Soren on February 2 was remanded to five days’ ED custody by the special PMLA court which ended on the day. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. [logo] The Evening Wrap 07 February 2024 [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]( Uttarakhand Assembly passes Uniform Civil Code Bill The [Uttarakhand Assembly on February 7 passed the Uniform Civil Code Bill]( which may serve as template for other BJP-run States to enact similar legislation. The Bill, which was passed by voice vote, was introduced in the BJP-majority Assembly a day earlier and the Opposition had suggested that it should be sent to a select committee of the House first. Once the Bill gets the governor’s consent, Uttarakhand will become the first State after independence to get a common law on marriage, divorce, land, property and inheritance for all citizens, irrespective of their religion. Speaking on the Bill before its passage, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said it is not an ordinary legislation. The Uniform Civil Code will create equal laws for men and women across all faiths and will help create a non-partisan and non-discriminatory society, he said. It will especially protect the rights of women and put an end to their exploitation, Dhami said. “It fulfils a commitment we had made to the people of the state in the run-up to the 2022 assembly polls,” the chief minister said. It is a small contribution from Uttarakhand to building of a developed India under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Dhami said. Sharad Pawar’s group now called ‘Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar’ The Election Commission on Wednesday allotted [‘Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar’ as the party name for the group led by Sharad Pawar](. The order by the poll authority came a day after it gave the Nationalist Congress Party name and the “clock” election symbol to the group led by Ajit Pawar, who had walked away with a majority NCP MLAs in the Maharashtra assembly in July last year. The Commission had asked the Sharad Pawar group to suggest three names of which one could be allotted in view of the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections in Maharashtra. Accordingly, the Sharad Pawar group has suggested the names -- Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar, Nationalist Congress Party -- Sharadrao Pawar and Nationalist Congress Party-Sharad Pawar -- to the Commission. The faction had also sought ‘banyan tree’ as the election symbol for itself. The Commission conveyed to Sharad Pawar that it has “acceded to your first preference, i.e. ‘Nationalist Congress PArty -- Sharadchandra Pawar’ as the name of your group/faction as a onetime option for the purposes of forthcoming election to 6 seats in the Rajya Sabha in Maharashtra...” Excise policy case: Court asks Kejriwal to appear on February 17 on ED’s plea [A Delhi court on February 7 summoned Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on February 17]( on a complaint filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) against him over the non-compliance of its summons in a money-laundering case linked to the now-scrapped excise policy for the national capital. “Cognisance of the complaint has been taken and summons is being issued to him to appear on February 17,” Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Divya Malhotra said. The judge had reserved the order after the ED submitted that it had concluded its arguments in the matter. The ED had on February 3 filed a fresh complaint case against Mr. Kejriwal for the non-compliance of its summons. Kejriwal on Friday skipped the fifth summons issued to him by the ED. The agency had issued the summons to him on last Wednesday. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convenor had earlier written to the ED, describing the summonses as “illegal and politically motivated”. He had alleged that the summonses were aimed at preventing him from campaigning in elections. The Aam Aadmi Party said it was studying the Delhi court order that asked Kejriwal to appear before it on February 17 on the ED’s complaint over non-compliance of summonses in the Excise policy case. The party maintained that the multiple notices by the Enforcement Directorate against Kejriwal were “illegal” and said it would apprise the court of its stand. “We are studying the court order and will take necessary legal steps accordingly,” AAP leader Jasmine Shah told a press conference. ‘Chalo Delhi’: Siddaramaiah, Karnataka Ministers protest at Jantar Mantar against Centre [Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D. K. Shivakumar along with the State Cabinet]( are in Delhi for a protest named ‘Chalo Delhi’ in Jantar Mantar at 11 a.m. on February 7 against the Centre’s tax devolution policies. Karnataka Minister Satish Jarkiholi said that his government is protesting, as over ₹1 lakh crore was due from the Centre. Mr. Siddaramaiah has accused the Central Government of economic disparities, saying that his government stands against the unfair treatment in tax devolution and grants for the State. Siddaramaiah has accused the Central Government of economic disparities, saying that his government stands against the unfair treatment in tax devolution and grants for ‘Kannadigas’. While speaking to ANI, Jarkiholi said that the Central government should listen to their demands. “Over ₹1 lakh crore is due to Karnataka. For this, we held meetings with the Union Home Minister, Union Finance Minister, but to date, we have not received our money. We are protesting for this. The government should listen as our demands are right. So many people have come with the Chief Minister, it is the duty of the Central government to speak on this,” Jarkiholi said. He said that this fight is not against a party but for the justice of the State’s people. “The amount is of the last 10 years when there was a BJP government also in the State,” he added. Meanwhile, Ramalinga Reddy, another State Minister, said that this year 220 taluks in Karnataka were declared affected by drought but to date not even a single rupee has been released by the Centre. “Around ₹4,50,000 tax will be collected from our State by the Central govt. but we are getting just ₹50,000. This year, out of 236 taluks, 220 taluks are declared affected by drought. Till now not even a single rupee has been released for Karnataka,” he said. Apart from him, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee working president Saleem Ahmed said, “Today, we [Karnataka] are suffering a drought...We had demanded ₹17,000 crores almost four months ago but not even a single penny has been released...For this, we are protesting at Jantar Mantar...” Earlier on Monday, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, the leader of Congress in Lok Sabha, said there is a general perception across the nation that the non-BJP States are being deprived of their legitimate dues. The latest example, he alleged, is Congress-ruled Karnataka. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, rubbishing the Congress leader’s charges, termed the allegations to be a “politically vitiated narrative” that is being propagated by some vested interest groups. “Adhir ji, please understand I don’t have the right to change as per my whims and fancies, that I like a State or another State, it is against my party politics. No way, I have no role I would have to follow rules 100%, and that’s what I have done,” Sitharaman responded, as she explained the procedure of how devolution of taxes to the States is decided upon by the Finance Commission. “Finance Commission gives recommendations which I have to implement, it is done without any fear or favour or anything like that. So this apprehension that some States have been discriminated against is a politically vitiated narrative, which I am sorry to say, vested interests are happy to go about saying it. There is not just a possibility that any Finance Minister can intervene and say ‘I don’t like this State, stop payment’,” she added. Saudi Arabia reiterates no diplomatic relations with Israel without independent Palestinian state [Saudi Arabia has told the U.S. its position stands that there will be no diplomatic relations with Israel unless an independent Palestinian state is recognised]( on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem, and Israeli “aggression” on the Gaza Strip stops, the Saudi foreign ministry said in a statement on Wednesday. On Tuesday, White House National Security spokesperson John Kirby had said that the Biden administration has received positive feedback that Saudi Arabia and Israel are willing to continue to have normalisation discussions. The kingdom issued the statement to affirm its steadfast position to Washington on the Palestinian issue in the light of the comments attributed to Kirby, the ministry said. The idea of Israel and Saudi Arabia formally cementing ties has been under discussion since the Saudis gave their quiet assent to Gulf neighbours United Arab Emirates and Bahrain establishing ties with Israel in 2020. Saudi Arabia put U.S.-backed plans to normalise ties with Israel on ice, sources familiar with Riyadh’s thinking told Reuters in Oct, 2023, as the war between Palestinian militant group Hamas and Israeli forces escalated. Israel began its military offensive in Gaza after militants from Hamas-ruled Gaza killed 1,200 people and took 253 hostages in southern Israel on October 7. In brief A [special PMLA court on February 7 extended the ED remand of former Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren by five days]( in a money laundering case linked to an alleged land scam, lawyers said. Soren on February 2 was remanded to five days’ ED custody by the special PMLA court which ended on the day. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. 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