Indian Polity - Current Affairs for September, 2015

Delhi HC on 28 September 2015 agreed to hear a PIL that challenges the constitutional validity of Article 370 of the Constitution of India that deals with the special status of Jammu & Kashmir (J&K) filed by a 22-year old Kumari Vijayalakshmi Jha. It was decided that bench of Chief Justice G Rohini and Justice Jayant Nath be posted the hearing on the matter for 19 October 2015.

The constitutional validity of A370 was challenged on the basis that it was a temporary provision or interim arrangement until a separate Constitution for J&K was framed by the State Constituent Assembly. With the dissolution of the State’s Constituent Assembly on 26 January 1957, the Article 370 also lapsed. Constituent Assembly of J&K was constituted in October 1951 for framing the J&K Constitution. Article 370 of the Constitution of India provides special autonomous status to state of Jammu and Kashmir and is drafted in Part XXXI of the Constitution pertaining to Temporary, Transitional and Special Provisions.

Late President A P J Abdul Kalam's grandnephew Sheikh Salim joined BJP following the burial services for the ex-president in Rameshwaram. He is an importer from the United States, as per trade sources. He joined the party in the presence of Amit Shah and Tamil Nadu BJP vice-president M. Chakravarthy.

CBI has raided a serving CM for the first time when HP’s CM Virbhadra Singh was arrested in a disproportionate assets case. In the previous times a CM was arrested, it was only after his resignation (Lalu Prasad Yadav). FIR registered on September 23rd 2015 includes names of the CM and his wife as well as orchard manager and PIC agent. Singh was examined by CBI officials last year in connection with the case in which CBI conducted searches at 13 locations including New Delhi, Shimla and Solan. The probe, initiated in October 2013, found Singh had amassed illegal assets worth Rs 6.03 crore when he was Union steel minister from 2009 to 2012, as also shown in his income tax returns and bank documents. Singh had filed IT returns for assessment years 2009-2010, 2010-2011 and 2011-2012 showing agricultural income of Rs 735,000, Rs 1,500,000 and Rs 2,500,000 respectively. In 2012, in order to explain the unaccounted money, Singh filed revised IT returns for assessment years 2009-10, 2010-2011 and 2011-2012.The agency, in its preliminary enquiry had said that the documents showed revised agricultural income, showing an 18 to 30-fold increase in income in the three years which was Rs 2.21 crore, Rs 2.8 crore and Rs 1.55 crore respectively (total Rs 6.10 crore). Total illegal income was found to be INR 6.03 crores

Former Manipur CM Radhabinod Koijam has joined BJP’s Manipur unit along with former Manipur People's Party (MPP) president Okram Joy Singh and former DGP Yumnam Joykumar Singh. Next general assembly in the states are likely to be held in 2017.

PM Modi arrived for a brief visit to Ireland en-route to the US. Relations between the two countries date back to independence. Total trade in goods and services was pegged at euro 2.48 billion in 2013. Chief Irish export items include computer hardware and software, pharmaceuticals and chemicals, food and machinery. Indian exports to Ireland cover textiles, garments and clothing accessories, pharmaceuticals, light engineering goods and chemicals.Indian companies in Ireland include pharma majors such as Wockhardt, Sun Pharma and Reliance Genemedix and information technology firms such as FirstSource, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), HCL and Wipro. Ireland is home to around 26,000 persons of Indian origin, of which around 17,000 are Indian citizens. Last Indian PM to visit this nation was Nehru in 1956.

Assam CM Tarun Gogoi has expanded his cabinet by two former ministers taking total ministerial strength to 16. The oath of office and secrecy was administered to 2 ministers by Governor P. B. Acharya at Raj Bhawan. Gogoi has not allotted portfolios to newly inducted Ministers of Cabinet Rank hailing from Barak Valley in the state. This is the second time a Cabinet reshuffle has taken place over Gogoi’s third consecutive term. Roy was the Public Health and Engineering Department Minister till 2014. He represents the Katlicherra assembly constituency in Barak Valley’s Hailakandi distric. He has served as Ministers in all the three terms of the Congress rule led by Mr. Gogoi since 2001 and also earlier in the Hiteshwar Saikia government.Mr. Siddeque Ahmed served as the Border Areas Development and Cooperation Minister in the current term and represents the Karimganj (South) assembly constituency. Assam Cabinet can have maximum strength of 19 including CM. Total strength of MLAs in the 126 member state assembly is 78.

Aam Aadmi Party spokesperson and its 2014 LS Ludhiana candidate H. S. Phoolka has resigned from party posts to provide attention to 1984 anti Sikh riot cases. He resigned from all party posts and dedicated his withdrawal to his dedication for the cause. Modi government has recently given clean chit to Jagadish Tytler and not filed a missing charge sheet against Sajjan Kumar. Phoolka has said he will work for the cause and ensure justice is delivered. The lawyer was holding three key posts as AAP's national spokesperson, legal affairs incharge and executive member of the party's Punjab unit from which he resigned.

In a first move of its kind, none of the above options on EVMs will carry the symbol of a cross in Bihar polls and all forthcoming elections. It will be present on the last panel of all EVMs carrying photos of candidates and other ballot papers against the Nota option. State chief electoral officers have been issued instructions for the same. Symbol has been designed by National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad.

India and the US have created a joint challenge coin for unique partnership in the field of naval armament. One side of the coin is inscribed with the message Forward Together We Go and Chale Saath Saath in Hindi on the other side . This reflects the vision statements of the US president and the Indian PM respectively. One side of the coin that is golden in colour has India and US flags and the other shows an aircraft carrier floating on blue waters. The coin was created by JWG at the first meeting in August 2015 to symbolise partnership between naval forces which in turn was announced in January 2015 during president Obama’s visit to India.

Vice President H. Ansari signed two MoUs including on on quick impact projects and the other on air services agreement in a visit which is the first by an Indian vice president to the nation of Laos. Indian firm WAPCOS was also handed over certificate of completion of Champassak irrigation project during this visit. The That Luang Stupa was brought from India in 2 BC, and this sacred stupa was visited by the vice president. India is attempting to strengthen economic engagement with ASEAN nations following this visit.

PMMY has been launched for aiding Dalits and OBCs through funding of business schemes for weaker sections of society. Shishu product covers loans up to 50,000. Kishor covers loans between INR 50,000 and 5 lakh and the third, Tarun between INR 5 and 10 lakh. The countrywide campaign will be launched from September 25 to October 2, 2015.

Ex IPS officer and AAP Lokpal N. Dilip Kumar has quit from the position in the party citing personal reasons and inability to devote time to the party on account of involvement in anti graft movement in Vizag. Kumar retired as special commissioner of Delhi Police. AAP has seen resignations and explosions in the past such as those of Yogendra Yadav, Shazia Illmi and Prashant Bhushan. The former law minister of the AAP Delhi Government, Narendra Singh Tomar was alleged to have forged his law degree. However, Kumar indicated he is in consonance with the AAP leadership and only quit on account of time paucity.