Vol. 67 No. 177 | THURSDAY | APRIL 25, 2024 | 27 Pages | `5 & for Pune `6 only Quality at Value www.freepressjournal.in MEMBER: AUDIT BUREAU OF CIRCULATION JANUARY TO DECEMBER 2023 EDITIONS: MUMBAI*, Pune, Nashik, Konkan, Indore, Bhopal, E-paper AAYUSH SHARMA’S NEXT It feels good to play the titular role in my film Ruslaan EDIT ‘INDIA TO BECOME ONE OF BIGGEST CHIP HUBS IN NEXT 5 YRS’ RAHUL GANDHI’S POVERTARIAN PITCH Cong will tax you to death and beyond, charges Modi PITRODA GOT IT ALL WRONG FPJ NEWS SERVICE / MUMBAI PM pounces on Sam Pitroda's 'inheritance tax' suggestion while Congress distances itself from ‘personal remarks’ GAURAV VIVEK BHATNAGAR NEW DELHI The Congress party has got ensnared in another controversy this time ignited by an , interview given by Sam Pitroda, who heads the overseas wing of the party Pitroda, . while defending his party against recent allegations of its proposal for a wealth redistribution plan, has unwittingly caused a furore by citing the example of what he claims is the US inheritance tax. (SEE BOX – PITRODA GOT IT ALL WRONG) Prime Minister Narendra Modi lost no time in pouncing on Pitroda’s comments on inheritance tax and attacked it saying it showed that the grand old party wanted to tax the inheritance which is passed onto children by their parents. Addressing a rally at Surguja in Chhattisgarh, Modi said the statement showed the ‘‘dangerous intent’’ of the Congress to tax the hard- INDIA A HAD ESTATE DUTY n inheritance tax law existed in India until former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi scrapped it in 1985. An Estate Duty was a form of tax that was calculated at the time of a person's death. It was payable only if the total value of the inherited portion of the property exceeded the exclusion limit. In India, it was set as high as 85% on properties MAHA SQUARE OFF IN 8 SEATS KALPESH MHAMUNKAR MUMBAI Campaigning for the second phase of Lok Sabha elections scheduled for April 26 ended on Wednesday after angry exchanges between the ruling Mahayuti and the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA). The polls will be held in this phase at Buldhana, Akola, Amravati, Wardha, YavatmalWashim, Hingoli, Nanded and Parbhani. Two well-known faces of the BJP in the fray are Navnit earned wealth of citizens. He further cited a catchline of the Life Insurance Corporation to reinforce his argument that “the Congress will not let you pass down your wealth to your children; its hand would snatch it.” He stretched the analogy further to add that the mantra of the party is “Congress ki loot zindagi kay saath bhi, aur zindagi kay baad bhi” (Congress will loot during the lifetime and even after your death). He added that “as long as you live, Congress’s high taxation will make you suffer. When you are dead, they will put the burden of inheritance tax.” Pitroda had reasoned in his interview to ANI that “billionaires don’t need our help. It is the poor people who need it.” Noting that inequities have increased substantially in the last 10 years, he suggested that there is a need to “create new policies so that the concentration of wealth can be prevented”. CONTD. ON NATION whose value exceeded Rs 20 lakh. The levy started for properties worth at least Rs 1 lakh, with a rate of 7.5%. Former finance minister P Chidambaram, on several occasions between 2011-2013, mentioned imposing inheritance tax to shore up government resources. Similarly, during the first term of the NDA government, former Minister of State for GADKARI FAINTS Kaur Rana from Amravati and Prataprao Chikhlikar from Nanded. All eyes are on Amravati, which will witness the electoral face-off between Navneet and Balwant Wankhede. Rana was a former independent MP who won the election during the Modi wave with support from NCP chief Sharad Pawar. Later, she defected to the BJP and started agitating against the MVA, especially against Uddhav Thacekray . CONTD. ON NATION Sam Pitroda may have grossly overstated the tax liability of recipients of inherited assets in America, both in terms of the amounts and the geographical spread. According investopedia, inheritance tax is not common in all the states of the union. It is not a federal tax. As of 2023, just six states have imposed it and the taxation depends on the state in which the deceased lived or owned property the , value of the inheritance, and the beneficiary's relationship to the decedent. Inherited assets may be taxed for residents in Iowa, Kentucky Mary, land, Nebraska, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. , "An inheritance tax, if due, is applied only to the portion of an inheritance that exceeds an exemption amount. CONTD. ON NATION Finance Jayant Sinha was an ardent advocate of the idea. In 2017, there were reports that the government was going to re-introduce inheritance tax. In 2018, too, then Finance Minister Arun Jaitley advocated it, saying hospitals and universities in developed countries received large endowments due to factors like inheritance tax. nion Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on Wednesday fainted while speaking at an election rally at Pusad, which comes under the Yavatmal-Washim Lok Sabha constituency in eastern Maharashtra. Security personnel accompanying the BJP leader carried him off stage. The minister, however, recovered after a few minutes and completed his speech. “Felt uneasy due to heat at a rally at Pusad, Maharashtra. But now I am completely alright and on my way to Warud to take part in the next rally,” the 66year-old leader said in a post on X. “Thank you for your love and good wishes,” he posted. U There is a clear policy on bringing state-of-the-art technologies to India, IT minister said RBI clamps curbs on Kotak Mahindra Bank l No new online customers, credit cards l Serious deficiencies’ and non-compliance detected across various crucial areas of IT governance ÷ Srinath Sridharan SPECIAL TO FPJ T he Reserve Bank of India has given a directive to Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited, barring it from taking on board new online customers and issuing new credit cards, with immediate effect. The bank shall, however, continue to provide services to its existing customers, including its credit card customers," the RBI said in a release. The RBI has cited grave concerns stemming from its examinations conducted over the past two years, revealing ‘serious deficiencies’ and noncompliances across various crucial areas of IT governance. These areas were identified as IT inventory management, patch and change man- agement, user access management, vendor risk management, data security and data leak prevention strategy busi, ness continuity and disaster recovery rigour and drill, etc. Despite continuous engagement and high-level discussions aimed at bolstering IT resilience, the bank's persistent failure to address these concerns in a timely and comprehensive manner necessitated decisive action from the regulator. All this highlights The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached properties worth Rs 73.6 crore in an alleged money laundering case linked to the Goregaon Patra Chawl redevelopment scam. The seized properties include land parcels owned by Pravin Raut and his associates in Palghar, Dapoli, Raigad and Thane. The case revolves around alleged irregularities in the redevelopment of the Patra Chawl Project carried out by M/s Guru Ashish Construction OUR BUREAU / NEW DELHI FPJ NEWS SERVICE / NEW DELHI Campaigning for the second phase of the Lok Sabha elections, to be held on Friday end, ed on Wednesday It will be . held in 89 constituencies spread across 13 states and Union territories, including Wayanad in Kerala from where Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is seeking re-election. Gandhi is locked a three-cornered contest with Annie Raja of the CPI and BJP Kerala unit president K Surendran. Another key constituency in Kerala is Thiruvananthapuram, from where Shashi Tharoor of the Congress is contesting. Besides, 18 other seats will go to polls in the state.Eight seats in UP will be up for grabs, including Mathura, from where Dream Girl Hema Malini is seeking election as a BJP nominee. Ramayan actor Arun Govil is contesting as a BJP candidate from Meerut. Polling will also be held in Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, MP, Maharashtra, Manipur, Rajasthan, Tripura, West Bengal and Jammu & Kashmir. CONTD. ON NATION The brief respite from sweltering temperatures is over. Brace for a second heatwave session. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has once again issued a heatwave warning. The reason for this has been attributed to an anti-cyclonic circulation prevailing over the region. In Maharashtra, Thane and Raigad districts and select parts of Mumbai will be under alert from April 27 to 29. IMD scientist Sushma Nair, speaking to the FPJ said, “The atmospheric circulation pattern over Thane, Raigad, and Mumbai will drive temperatures upwards. The peak of this heatwave is anticipated on April 27 and 28.” Mumbai can expect a grad- ual increase in temperatures over the next few days. On April 24, temperatures will range from a minimum of 25.0° C to a maximum of 34.0° C, with clear skies. Similar conditions are anticipated for the following day However, temperatures . will begin to rise on April 26, with a minimum of 26.0° C and a maximum of 35.0° C. The heatwave will intensify on April 27, reaching a maximum of 37.0° C under clear skies. April 28 and 29 are expected to be even warmer, with maximum temperatures of 38.0° C and 39.0° C respectively . Throughout this period, skies will remain mainly clear. This is the second heatwave warning for Mumbai and its adjacent areas, in April. Earlier, on April 15 and 16, temperatures in Mumbai and Navi Mumbai soared to as high as 41° C, and an orange alert was issued by the IMD. Mumbai IMD chief Sunil Kamble said, “In Mumbai, the proliferation of tall buildings is trapping heat within the city for extended durations; the challenge is exacerbated by the city’s predominantly vertical growth due to its coastal setting. CONTD. ON NATION RUCHA KANOLKAR / MUMBAI Two lives were lost in a sewercleaning operation in Malad on Wednesday while a third person, a 19-year-old boy is , critical. The incident has sent shockwaves through the local community and once again raised serious questions about safety protocols at construction sites. According to the Mumbai Fire Brigade, the incident was first reported at 3.50pm— several individuals were stranded in a drainage system at Raheja Tower, Pimpripada, on Rani Sati Marg, in Malad (E). Initial informa- FPJ SPECIAL GROUND ZERO SANDESHKHALI The Supreme Court on Wednesday reserved its verdict on a batch of petitions seeking 100% cross verification of votes cast through the Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) by tallying them with the printed slips generated by the attached Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT). (Currently cross-verifica, tion is done for five randomly selected EVMs in every Assembly constituency .) The court reserved the judgment even as the Election Commission defended the integrity of the electronic voting system, asserting that it was not susceptible to any external interference or manipulations. The bench comprising Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Dipankar Datta wondered whether it can issue directions on EVMs merely based on suspicion of hacking and manipulation, even though there is no concrete proof. The petitioners had raised doubts about whether EVMs are hack-proof. However, the poll body submitted that the tion indicated that three to four individuals had fallen into a septic tank, approximately 40 feet deep, during sewer cleaning at a private construction site. Swift action by the authorities, including a search and rescue operation, failed to avert tragedy Firefighters, . equipped with breathing apparatus sets and ropes, had descended into the drainage system to retrieve the stranded individuals. However, the two men, identified as Raju, 50, and Javed Shaikh, 35, were pronounced dead upon arrival at the Trauma Care Hospital. CONTD. ON NATION TAILPIECE Will Mamata’s didis stick with her? JAYANTA ROY CHOWDHURY T he ticket seller at the Dhamakhali ferry-ghat (jetty) hands out small slips of bright pink paper with the word - Sandeshkhali – written on it, regardless of the island you wish to travel to. Welcome to the Sunderbans – a mosaic of inhabited and forested islands of Sundari trees and muddy water creeks and rivulets which lead to the Bay of Bengal. It may be the focus point of a rebellion against Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress cadres for the lumpen culture that some of them have come to represent. The decrepit motorised wooden boat chugs away through the silvery waves of the lazily flowing Kalindi river towards the green tranquil islands which have gained notoriety on India’s news channels for the critical importance RBI places on robust and sustainable IT systems that are at the core of the accelerating growth of digital banking. The RBI's action against Kotak Mahindra Bank, following similar actions taken earlier against HDFC Bank and Paytm, amongst others, clearly demonstrates that the regulator does not hesitate to intervene against errant entities, regardless of their size or prominence in the sector. CONTD. ON NATION 2nd phase Can’t distrust EVMs campaign on suspicion: Court winds up ED attaches Rs 74cr Yellow alert for Thane, Mumbai 2 lives go down the drain in Malad assets of Raut, aides Pvt Ltd (GACPL). According to the ED, Pravin, a close associate of Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut, acted as a frontman for the latter in the scam. Both Pravin and Sanjay were arrested by the ED in 2022 and were granted bail that same year, in November. Earlier, assets worth Rs 11.15 crore belonging to Pravin and Sanjay were also attached by the ED, having been found to be part of the alleged proceeds of crime (PoC) amounting to Rs 95 crore received by Pravin. CONTD. ON NATION Sunrise : 06:15 am Sunset : 06:59 pm flash memory of the microcontrollers in EVMs cannot be reprogrammed. ‘‘Can we act on the basis of a suspicion? The report you are relying on says that there is no incident of hacking yet. We cannot be the controlling authority of another constitutional authority We cannot . control elections. The judgment of Supreme Court did say (use) VVPAT and the directions were followed by the EC. But where did it say match all slips, it says only 5 percent. Now let us see if any candidate – other than this 5 percent -- says that there are instances of misuse," court the told the petitioners. CONTD. ON NATION THE FP SEWER-CLEANING TRAGEDY STAFF REPORTER / MUMBAI exposes on TMC musclemen accused of large-scale land grabbing and molestation of women. The three ‘sister’ islands - Sandeshkhali, Bhangatushkhali and the largest of them all Baro Tushkhali – all of which form part of the Basirhat Lok Sabha constituency already have a festive air with TMC, BJP and the odd CPIM bunting and flags fluttering in the breeze. None would guess that these islands, a hop. Step and jump away from Bangladesh, witnessed a tumultuous “re- volt” a few weeks ago of ordinary peasants against muscle men who have dominated the area for l decades spanning Left Front and TMC rule. Twentyfive years ago Sahajahan Sheikh and his friends Uttam Sardar and Shibu Hazra were nobodies. In CPM’s time they became somebody in the fish trade and when elections came they would organise the muscle … by the time Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress came to power in 2011, they were on her side, explained Nemai Jena, who runs a popular tea shop at Baro Tushkhali. CONTD. ON NATION 0 Digital banking crusade PATRA CHAWL SCAM ASHISH SINGH/MUMBAI 0 39 c. 24 c. What is Modi doing about his ‘parivar’, asks Uddhav FPJ NEWS SERVICE / MUMBAI U ddhav Thackeray strongly criticised PM Narendra Modi on his remark about the ‘mangalsutra’ worn by married Hindu women. Thackeray asked, “Since when does Modiji know the importance of women’s mangalsutras? The Prime Minister doesn’t speak on inflation, unemployment and development but about who is eating nonvegetarian food and who has several children.” Campaigning for his party candidate Nagesh PatilAshtikar, Uddhav said, “In the previous election, BJP leaders said that Shiv Sena candidates had won using the photo and name of Modi. If this was true then, why aren’t they using Modi’s photo this time around? Why are they using Balasaheb Thackeray’s photo? Because they know no one will vote in the name of Modi in Maharashtra. His ‘goodwill’ won’t work here; there is no connect between Amit Shah and Maharashtra citizens.” CONTD. ON NATION BULLETIN ONE YEAR, ONE PM: OPPN PLAN T he INDIA bloc is contemplating a “oneyear, one-PM” formula to resolve their leadership issue, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Wednesday at an election rally at Harda under the Betul Lok Sabha seat in Madhya Pradesh. They are busy auctioning the PM's chair, he added. The world will ridicule such an arrangement in the largest democracy, Modi said and asked if voters were ready for a “five prime ministers in five years” formula. “People should know to whom INDI alliance leaders want to hand over the reins of the country. It is clear in the BJP that it is Modi, but what about them?” he asked. AKHILESH YADAV IN FRAY, FINALLY S amajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav will contest from Kannauj, from where he had earlier nominated his nephew Tej Pratap Yadav. With this, doubts about Akhilesh’s candidature have been laid to rest. The BJP sprang a surprise in 2019 by winning Kannauj but this time SP seems to be sure of itself. Five members of the Yadav clan are also contesting the LS polls.