News Analysis India

Tag: Jairam Ramesh

  • Manipur govt diverting urea for poppy plantations, claims Jairam Ramesh

    Express News Service

    GUWAHATI: Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Tuesday accused the BJP government in Manipur of diverting its quota of urea to the state’s hill districts where poppy is allegedly grown for opium.

    In a tweet captioned “BJP’s Vikas in Manipur”, Ramesh wrote: “Manipur is getting TWICE the supply of urea it needs and yet farmers complain of shortage! Why?

    “Because urea is diverted to hill areas in Manipur, where poppy is being grown for opium in large areas in last 4 yrs. The State Govt is fully complicit in this.”

    Ramesh, who has been appointed as the party’s observer for next year’s Assembly elections in the state, attached a statement issued recently by the Loumi Shimee Apunba Lup, an Imphal-based farmers’ body that had demanded a probe into the shortage of urea for peasants.

    Urea is extensively used in illegal poppy cultivation. The farmers in the state claimed the poppy/opium business thrives in some hilly areas.

    ALSO READ | Don’t weaken ‘Mahajot’, AIUDF tells Congress after being removed from the alliance in Assam

    The farmers’ organisation had said it received complaints on a regular basis from the farmers over shortage of urea due to smuggling. Protesting the “artificial” crisis, the farmers had also staged sit-in demos and a hunger strike.

    Manipur has 81,189 hectares of paddy fields in the Imphal valley. The size of paddy fields in the hills, which surround the valley, is 88,820 hectares. Farming has been affected in around 20,000 hectares due to various developmental projects.

    Manipur’s total urea requirement is 2.43 lakh bags – a farmer needs three 45-kg urea bags per hectare. The Centre had allotted 4.4 lakh urea bags to the state which was 1.97 lakh bags more than the state’s requirement, the farmers’ body had said.

    Alleging black marketing, it added that there have been several instances of urea being smuggled into neighbouring Myanmar where poppy is grown aplenty.

    In February, Chief Minister N Biren Singh had offered a cash reward of Rs 10 lakh to a village in the Ukhrul district for voluntarily destroying poppy plants grown in the village.

  • Jairam Ramesh accuses PM Modi of being expert at renaming schemes

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Saturday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of being an expert at renaming and relaunching schemes.

    His remarks came on the 7th anniversary of the Jan Dhan Yojna which, he claimed, was renaming of UPA’s ‘savings bank deposit’ scheme.

    “The PM has hailed the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana on its 7th anniversary. It is actually the 7th anniversary of the renaming of the UPA’s Basic Savings Bank Deposit Account,” he said on Twitter.

    “What an expert in renaming, repackaging and relaunching,” he said.

    The government is celebrating the 7th anniversary of the Jan Dhan scheme.

    The PM has hailed the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana on its 7th anniversary. It is actually the 7th anniversary of the renaming of the UPA’s Basic Savings Bank Deposit Account.What an expert in renaming, repackaging and relaunching!
    — Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) August 28, 2021
    Taking to Twitter, the prime minister said, “Today we mark seven years of #PMJanDhan, an initiative that has forever transformed India’s development trajectory.

    It has ensured financial inclusion and a life of dignity as well as empowerment for countless Indians.

    Jan Dhan Yojana has also helped further transparency.”

    He also lauded the untiring efforts of all those who have worked to make the scheme a success, saying their efforts have ensured that the people of India lead a better quality of life.

  • ‘Truth always wins’: Congress on Shashi Tharoor’s discharge in Sunanda Pushkar death case

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: After a Delhi court discharged Shashi Tharoor in his wife Sunanda Pushkar’s death case, the Congress on Wednesday asked whether the prime minister would apologise for his “intemperate” remarks against him.

    Congress leaders hailed Tharoor’s discharge in the case, and said the truth always wins.

    Taking to Twitter, Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said, “The truth always wins. The constant abuse, innuendos and slander of our colleague Shashi Tharoor by BJP and its crony TV anchors comes to naught. Will the PM now apologise for his intemperate remarks? Will the same TV anchors do a debate and apologise today.”

    The truth always wins !The constant abuse, innuendos & slander of our colleague @ShashiTharoor by BJP & its crony TV anchors comes to a naught.Will PM now apologize for his intemperate remarks?Will the same TV anchors do a debate & apologize today?https://t.co/DhNIZTIzRZ
    — Randeep Singh Surjewala (@rssurjewala) August 18, 2021
    Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said, “For seven years my friend and colleague Shashi Tharoor was harassed and subjected to vilification, abuse and mental torture.” “Today, he stands vindicated and the MoSha duo along with their hatchet men stand totally exposed. Jai Ho for the judiciary. All is not lost yet,” he said in a tweet.

    For seven years my friend and colleague @ShashiTharoor was harassed and subjected to villification, abuse and mental torture. Today, he stands vindicated and the MoSha duo along with their hatchet men stand totally exposed. Jai Ho for the judiciary. All is not lost yet!
    — Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) August 18, 2021
    Tharoor in a statement also said his faith in the Indian judiciary stands vindicated and the ruling brings a “significant conclusion to the long nightmare” that enveloped him. “This brings a significant conclusion to the long nightmare which had enveloped me after the tragic passing of my late wife Sunanda,” Tharoor said.

    “I have weathered dozens of unfounded accusations and media vilification patiently, sustained by my faith in the Indian judiciary, which today stands vindicated,” the former Union minister said. Special Judge Geetanjali Goel earlier pronounced the order discharging Tharoor in the case during a virtual hearing.

  • Jairam Ramesh moves SC challenging certain provisions of Tribunal Reforms Act, 2021

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Congress leader and Member of Parliament Jairam Ramesh has moved the Supreme Court challenging the constitutional validity of various provisions of the Tribunal Reforms Act, 2021, which was recently passed during the Monsoon session of Parliament and received Presidential assent on August 13.

    Ramesh in his plea said that he has filed the petition in public interest assailing the proviso to Section 3(1) along with Sections 3(7), 5 and 7(1) of the Tribunal Reforms Act, 2021 as being ultra-vires Articles 14, 21 and 50 of the Constitution.

    “The Petitioner is aggrieved by the impugned Act abrogating the principle of judicial independence, and its passage being a deliberate attempt to legislatively override the judgement of this Court in Madras Bar Association versus Union of India, which set aside provisions identical to those being impugned, without removing the basis of the judgement,” the petition said.

    Ramesh in his plea filed through advocate Abhishek Jebaraj said that in August 2021, the Tribunals Reforms Act, 2021 was passed by both Houses of Parliament and received Presidential assent on August 13, 2021.

    “The Tribunals Act which repeals the Tribunals Ordinance was made retrospectively effective from April 4, 2021 and enacted inter alia with the objective, “to abolish certain tribunals and authorities and to provide a mechanism for filing appeal directly to the commercial court or the High Court” and also reduce the burden on public exchequer”, his plea said.

    He further said that the impugned Act contains various provisions that are identical in nature to those in the Tribunals ordinance that were set aside by this Court on July 14.

    “The proviso to Section 3 (1) of the Tribunals Reforms Act, 2021, which bars the appointment to tribunals of persons below fifty years of age, violates Articles 14, 21 and 50 of the Constitution. The provision is identical to Section 184(1) of the Finance Act, 2017, which was set aside by this Court”, the plea said.

    It said that the Section 3(7) of the Tribunals Act which mandates the recommendation of a panel of two names by the search-cum selection committee to the Central Government violates the principles of separation of powers and judicial independence.

    “Section 3 (7) thereby contravenes Articles 14, 21 and 50 of the Constitution and is identical to Section 184 (7) of the Finance Act, 2017 which was set aside in Madras Bar Association-IV (MBA-IV) versus Union of India-2021 verdict”, the plea said.

    Ramesh said that the said provision of the impugned Act in so far as it grants discretion to the Central Government to take a decision on the recommendations made by that Committee, preferably within three months from the date of such recommendation is also unconstitutional and violates Article 14 of the Constitution.

    “The impugned provision entirely nullifies the directions of this Court in Madras Bar Association versus Union of India (MBA-III), which directed the Union to make appointments to tribunals within three months from the date on which the Search-cum-Selection Committee completes the selection process and makes its recommendations”, it said.

    It said that another provision Section 5 of the impugned Act, in so far as it fixes the tenure of the Chairperson and Member to a manifestly short tenure of four years, adversely impacts judicial independence and violates Article 14 of the Constitution.

    Ramesh further said that section 7 (1) of the impugned Act which allows the government its own discretion to fix HRA other than in conformity with the parameters as set by this Court in MBA-IV verdict violates the security of services conditions of appointees, the principles of judicial independence and thereby Article 14 of the Constitution.

    The plea said that the interpretation as to whether the impugned provisions violate Article 14 and Part III of the Constitution vests solely in the judicial domain and the ensuing directions of this Court in Madras Bar Association case are binding on Parliament.

    “The passage of the impugned provisions is therefore a transgression of the constitutional limits of Parliament’s legislative power and undermines the power of judicial review and the Supremacy of the Constitution, which are basic features of the Constitution as repeatedly held by this Court,” it said.

    Ramesh said that the proviso to Section 3(1) and Sections 3(7), 5 and 7 (1) of the Tribunal Reforms Act, 2021 are identical to corresponding Sections 184 (1), 184 (7) and 184 (11) of the Finance Act 2017 which were set aside by this Court in July in MBA-IV verdict for violating the principles of judicial independence, separation of powers and Article 14 of the Constitution.

    “The impugned provisions are therefore an unconstitutional legislative override of the judgement of this Court which held identical provisions to violate Part III of the Constitution, without legislatively curing the defect,” his plea said.

    The Member of Parliament in Rajya Sabha further said, “The impugned provisions, and the repeated failure of the Respondents (Centre) to comply with the directions of this Court, undermine the rule of law, the equal protection of law, the independence of the judiciary, and the principle of separation of powers that are fundamental guarantees under Articles 14, 21 and 50 of the Constitution”.

  • Parliament being made ‘irrelevant’ by Narendra Modi govt, presiding officers complicit: Jairam Ramesh

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Friday alleged that Parliament was being made “irrelevant” by the Modi government and the presiding officers were complicit.

    Explaining further, Ramesh said one of the reasons for the opposition getting agitated was that only 12 per cent bills were sent to select committees for scrutiny under the current government and 27 per cent were sent in the previous Modi dispensation.

    “Why’s the opposition agitated? One of the reasons: Only 12% of bills in Modi-II have gone through any parliamentary committee scrutiny.

    This was 27% in Modi-I, 71% in UPA-II and 60% in UPA-I,” he said on Twitter.

    “Parliament is being made irrelevant by Modi government and the presiding officers are complicit,” he said.

  • Rajya Sabha business lists debate on ‘agri problems, solutions’, Jairam Ramesh questions his name on it

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Congress leader Jairam Ramesh has accused the government of putting his name in the discussion on ‘agriculture problems and solutions’ in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday which is not related to his calling attention notice on farmers’ agitation.

    Since the start of the Monsoon session on July 19, parliamentary proceedings have been continuously witnessing disruptions due to protests by Opposition parties and a logjam has persisted over their demand for a discussion on the Pegasus snooping row and farmers’ protests.

    “Tomorrow, in a too clever-by-half move the Modi Government has scheduled a discussion on ‘the agricultural problems and solutions’ and added my name to it.

    “The discussion has nothing to do with my notice given on July 23 on the ongoing farmers’ agitation,” Ramesh tweeted on Monday.

    The government has listed a short-duration discussion on “the agricultural problems and solutions” in the list of businesses of the Rajya Sabha for August 10.

    Ramesh shared a picture of the calling attention notice given on July 23 in which he wrote, “Farmers and farmer organisations have been protesting and agitating against the three farm laws that were pushed through Parliament without any legislative scrutiny in September 2020. The agitation has been going on for at least nine months now.”

    Trinamool Congress leader Derek O’Brien supported Ramesh saying the “dirty tricks” of the BJP is trying to break opposition unity.

    “Dirty tricks of Modi-Shah. Glad you called them out. Opposition speaking in one voice: we want a discussion on internal security (Pegasus). Failed again in trying to divide and rule,” O’Brien tweeted in reply to Ramesh.

  • UP’s proposed population control measures attempt to keep communal agenda alive: Jairam Ramesh

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Saturday slammed the Uttar Pradesh government’s proposed population control measures, claiming it is nothing but BJP’s attempt to polarise society and keep the communal agenda alive during the assembly polls.

    He alleged that the BJP is best at hiding its failures and raising non-issues ahead of every election.

    The former union minister also raised concerns on population control measures in the country and said India will have to prepare for an ageing population and not a growing population by 2031.

    “This is nothing but BJPs attempt to polarise society and keep the communal agenda alive during UP assembly polls.”

    “This is yet another attempt to whip up communal passions and prejudices,” Ramesh told PTI.

    He said the Modi Government’s own Economic Survey for the year 2018-19 comprehensively challenges and debunks the assumptions and motivations behind bills on population control measures.

    Incidentally, there have been 28 such bills since 2000, he noted.

    Several BJP MPs propose to bring private member bills on population control in the upcoming Monsoon Session of Parliament.

    The senior Congress leader said India’s total fertility rate has fallen very dramatically even without the type of measures being proposed in the bills.

    Ramesh also shared a thread on the population control debate on Twitter, raising concerns over India’s ageing population.

    He said some states have already gone below the replacement level of 2.1 fertility rates.

    “The crucial tipping point in demography is when replacement level of fertility reaches 2.1. Subsequently, after a generation or two, the population will stabilise or begin to decline. Kerala was first in 1988, followed by Tamil Nadu five years later.”

    “By now, a large majority of Indian states have achieved replacement levels of fertility. By 2026, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh will also do so with Bihar being the last by 2030,” he said.

    “I wonder how many in the BJP are aware of the basic facts that Modi Sarkar’s own 2018-19 Economic Survey had presented in Parliament in July 2019,” he said, sharing the survey in a tweet.

    “The graph shows India is set to witness a sharp slowdown in population growth in the next two decades,” he said sharing the image where total fertility rates of states were falling below the replacement level fertility of 2.1.”

    “By Modi Sarkar’s own estimate in the Economic Survey 2018-19, some states in India will have to prepare for an ageing population by 2031, not growing population.”

    “This will be driven by existing policies to empower women, family planning programmes and socio-economic changes,” he said.

    He noted that all this will become clear when one reads Volume 1 Chapter 7 of the 2018-19 Economic Survey and shared a copy of the same on Twitter.

    The comments came days after Uttar Pradesh, where assembly polls are due next year, made public its draft population control bill and the Assam government proposed a policy on population control.

    The Uttar Pradesh draft population bill contains provisions that seek to debar people having more than two children from the benefits of government schemes and proposes perks to those who follow the two-child policy.

  • High drama during parliamentary panel meet on vaccine development, several BJP MPs walk out

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: A parliamentary panel meeting on the issue of vaccine development witnessed high drama on Wednesday as several BJP MPs walked out of it asserting that this is not the appropriate time to discuss the vaccine policy, sources said.

    Scientific Advisor to the government K Vijaya Raghavan, ICMR DG VK Bhargava and Secretary in the Department of Biotechnology Renu Swarup were among those who deposed before the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Science and Technology.

    The meeting was chaired by Congress MP Jairam Ramesh on the agenda of vaccine development for COVID-19 and genetic sequencing of coronavirus and its variants.

    When several opposition MPs expressed their desire to ask questions about the Centre’s vaccination policy such as increasing the gap between two doses, the BJP MPs strongly opposed it and few of them even demanded postponement of the meeting and walked out, the sources said.

    The BJP MPs were of the opinion that as the vaccine drive is going on in the country, this is not the appropriate time to raise such issues which may hamper the vaccination process, the sources said.

    Panel chairman Ramesh underlined that the meeting should be held according to its agenda, they said.

    When a BJP MP stuck to the demand for postponement of the meeting, and wanted a vote on it, Ramesh categorically refused it saying that standing committee meetings are conducted through consensus.

    Ramesh was of the view that there would be no voting, even if it would be his last meeting as chairman, according to the sources.

    The Opposition MPs asserted that they also have the right to question as they are answerable to people as parliamentarians, they said.

    The sources said the drama lasted for about an hour after which top officials were called to depose before the meeting.

    During the meeting, all members applauded the scientific community for their role amid the pandemic, the sources said.

    Later, Ramesh in a tweet termed all the reports claiming that PM-CARES was mentioned in the meeting as false and said it was not mentioned even once in 150 minutes.

  • Jairam Ramesh urges parliamentary standing committees be allowed to meet virtually

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Tuesday demanded Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla allow parliamentary standing committees to meet virtually to discuss issues of urgent public importance.

    Ramesh, the chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Science and Technology, Environment, Forests and Climate Change, has been calling for allowing the holding of Committee meetings virtually in view of the coronavirus pandemic.

    Naidu had earlier disallowed the request, citing rules and secrecy issues.

    “I am requesting this once again for the umpteenth time. Speaker Lok Sabha Om Birla and Chairman Rajya Sabha M Venkaiah Naidu, please allow virtual meetings of Standing Committees. There are so many issues of utmost public importance that need to be discussed urgently,” he said in a tweet.

    Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, the Chairman of the Standing Committee on Information Technology, said he agreed with Ramesh’s request as physical meetings are not possible during the current times.

    Some meetings of the panel have earlier been cancelled due to the lack of quorum.

    “I agree strongly with Jairam Ramesh and had made the same request last year. We are stymied because virtual participation is not allowed and physical meetings are impossible in the present circumstances (the last one I convened had to be cancelled for lack of a quorum as MPs pulled out),” Tharoor said on Twitter.

    The two leaders had earlier also made requests to the presiding officers of both houses of Parliament to allow the holding of virtual meetings of Parliamentary panels

  • Bills passed in budget session to be challenged in court: Congress

    Congress claimed that they wanted the current Parliament session to continue till its stipulated time of April 8, but the government found excuses to curtail it two weeks ahead of schedule.