Rahul Gandhi's remarks on EC aimed at diverting attention from National Herald case: BJP
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday again targeted Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, over his comments on the Election Commission, stating that it was an attempt to divert attention from the National Herald case.
At a press conference, BJP national spokesperson Nalin Kohli questioned the 'silence' of the senior leadership of the Congress, including the Gandhis, on charges in the prosecution complaint filed by the Enforcement Directorate in the National Herald case. He said the Congress leaders were attacking the institutions of India for political reasons.
On Monday, BJP spokesperson and MP Sambit Patra had said called the National Herald case 'an open and shut case of loot by the mother and son'.
'...Rahul Gandhi is a traitor not only because he goes to a foreign land and insults the country's institutions and undermines the Indian democracy, he is also a traitor because he has embezzled crores of the country's property through National Herald,' he said, terming the Congress leader 'politically unfit'.
Also read | Bansuri Swaraj attends JPC on simultaneous polls with 'National Herald's loot' bag
'If they feel that they can destroy the image of this great democracy by speaking outside of the country, then they are totally on the wrong side of the line...,' said Mr. Patra in response to Mr. Gandhi's remarks on the EC.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Indian Express
9 minutes ago
- Indian Express
The battle today is not for the abstract ideals of Constitution — it is for democracy itself
Written by Anmol Jain 'Samvidhan khatre mein hai' has been the rallying cry of Congress since the beginning of its campaign for the 2024 general elections. After the polls, the party doubled down on this narrative, directing its state units to conduct Samvidhan Bachao rallies across the country. Several such rallies were organised in April and May in many states, including Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh. On June 8, the Yatra began in Goa. Over the past year, Congress has left no occasion to assert that our Constitution is under threat. But a deeper, more pressing question must be asked, not just by the Opposition, but by every citizen: If the Constitution is in danger, what exactly needs to be rescued, safeguarded, and nourished? The complexity of the question demands that we ascribe an identity to the Constitution. And this identity is connected to another core idea of the Republic: Democracy. From the abuse of constitutional offices like that of the Governor — as the Supreme Court emphasised in the Tamil Nadu Governor case — to the trampling of rights, threats to the foundational essence of democracy are real. Notably, it is often rooted in constitutional structures and silences. For instance, the Constitution does not explicitly ask the Governor or the Speaker to shed all partisan loyalties in their functioning. However, our demand that they rise above party lines stems from the democratic values the Constitution is meant to embody. The Constitution, in this sense, becomes an accessible language through which we reassert and reinforce democratic values in public discourse. However, this language is gradually losing its resonance. When the essence of constitutional arrangements is repeatedly subverted for short-term political gain, non-constitutional justifications begin to suffice. And when courts do intervene, often the independent institutions are blamed, but not the style of governance. So, the political and intellectual struggle today cannot be framed merely as a defence of the Constitution. It must go deeper and become a struggle to resurface, reiterate, and reassert the 'identity' of the Constitution and the democratic values it is meant to uphold. And to do so, we must shift the pivot of the discourse from 'Constitution' to 'Democracy'. There are two long-term dangers to the overreliance on the Constitution as the central narrative. The first is political. If those raising the slogan today come to power, they would find it difficult to pursue the structural changes necessary for democratic repair. Any attempt to redesign constitutional structures and institutions, however justified, would risk the charge of hypocrisy. Having opposed constitutional change while in opposition, they would be accused of undermining it once in office. They might also face the slogan 'Samvidhan khatre mein hai.' The second is intellectual. An overemphasis on the Constitution risks stifling critical engagement with it. After all, constitutional provisions were used to enable the imposition of Emergency, legitimise central executive dominance, and allow repeated rights violations. In light of what the country has experienced over the past 75 years, a critical, reflective engagement with the Constitution is not only desirable, it is essential. But such a critique becomes difficult when the Constitution is treated as a flawless relic that must be defended at all cost. Any discourse rooted in democracy is politically sharper. It is far harder for incumbents to deflect an opposition narrative grounded in loktantra. The government is, no doubt, elected constitutionally and acts largely within formal constitutional bounds. But that is precisely the issue: Constitutional form is being used to mask democratic erosion. The Constitution remains intact, but democracy appears to be backsliding. This distinction is crucial. The battle today is not for the Constitution in the abstract. It is for democracy itself. The writer teaches law Jindal Global Law School. He was the 2023-24 Fox International Fellow at Yale University and Melbourne Law School
Indian Express
17 minutes ago
- Indian Express
India slips to 131st position in Global Gender Gap Index 2025
India has ranked 131 out of 148 countries in the World Economic Forum's Global Gender Gap Report 2025, slipping two places from its position last year. With a parity score of just 64.1 per cent, India is among the lowest-ranked countries in South Asia, according to the report released on Thursday. India ranked 129 last year. The Global Gender Gap Index measures gender parity across four key dimensions: Economic Participation and Opportunity, Educational Attainment, Health and Survival, and Political Empowerment. The Indian economy's overall performance improved in absolute terms by +0.3 points. 'One of the dimensions where India increases parity is in Economic Participation and Opportunity, where its score improves by +.9 percentage points to 40.7 per cent. While most indicator values remain the same, parity in estimated earned income rises from 28.6 per cent to 29.9 per cent, positively impacting the subindex score,' the report said. Scores in labour force participation rate remained the same (45.9 per cent) as last year — India's highest achieved to date. In educational attainment, the report said, India scored 97.1 per cent, reflecting positive shifts in female shares for literacy and tertiary education enrolment, which result in positive score improvements for the subindex as a whole. 'India also records higher parity in health and survival, driven by improved scores in sex ratio at birth and in healthy life expectancy,' it said. However, similar to other countries, parity in healthy life expectancy is obtained despite an overall reduction in the life expectancy of men and women, the report said. 'Where India records a slight drop in parity (-0.6 points) since the last edition is in Political Empowerment. Female representation in Parliament falls from 14.7 per cent to 13.8 per cent in 2025, lowering the indicator score for the second year in a row below 2023 levels,' it said. Similarly, the share of women in ministerial roles falls from 6.5 per cent to 5.6 per cent, moving the indicator score (5.9 per cent) further away this year from its highest level (30 per cent in 2019), it said. With notable gains in political empowerment and economic participation, Bangladesh emerged as the best performer in South Asia, jumping 75 ranks to rank 24 globally. Nepal ranked 125, Sri Lanka 130, Bhutan 119, Maldives 138 and Pakistan 148. The report said the global gender gap has closed to 68.8 per cent, marking the strongest annual advancement since the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet full parity remains 123 years away at current rates, according to the report. Iceland leads the rankings for the 16th year running, followed by Finland, Norway, the United Kingdom and New Zealand. The 19th edition of the report, which covers 148 economies, revealed both encouraging momentum and persistent structural barriers facing women worldwide. The progress made in this edition was driven primarily by significant strides in political empowerment and economic participation while educational attainment and health and survival maintained near-parity levels above 95 per cent. However, despite women representing 41.2 per cent of the global workforce, a stark leadership gap persists with women holding only 28.8 per cent of top leadership positions, the report said. 'At a time of heightened global economic uncertainty and a low growth outlook combined with technological and demographic change, advancing gender parity represents a key force for economic renewal,' said Saadia Zahidi, Managing Director, World Economic Forum. 'The evidence is clear. Economies that have made decisive progress towards parity are positioning themselves for stronger, more innovative and more resilient economic progress,' Zahidi said.
Time of India
18 minutes ago
- Time of India
India-EU FTA 'pretty close' to final deal: 'Non-tariff barriers' key issue, says Goyal; both sides actively working to resolve it
NEW DELHI: Union commerce minister Piyush Goyal, during his three-day official visit to Sweden, said India and the European Union are "pretty close" to finalising the long-awaited Free Trade Agreement (FTA). He added that the only major issue left to be resolved between the two is "non-tariff barriers." "We are very much on track to achieve that (FTA). Significant progress has been made. More than half the chapters are ready. In terms of content, I would say we are almost 90 per cent ready for market access. The important issues to be addressed are non-tariff barriers and how we will make it smoother, easier, and better to do business between the EU and India," Goyal told reporters here. He added that India and the EU are actively discussing ways to make business easier for companies on both sides. Addressing "non-tariff barriers" is crucial for the proposed Free Trade Agreement (FTA), and both sides are working together to resolve these issues, he noted. "Unless countries recognise that over regulation and barriers to trade will be met with reciprocal action, everybody suffers. We are committed to deregulation, to finding solutions to the high cost of regulation, the non-tariff barriers that these regulations cause and the impediments to free trade. I am quite hopeful that we will find very robust solutions to this problem," the minister said, expressing optimism about finding strong solutions. Goyal is on an official visit to Sweden to meet his Swedish counterpart and engage with companies to boost trade and investment ties between the two countries. Sweden is part of the 27-member European Union. Several key Indian exports continue to face high non-tariff barriers in the EU, including chillies, tea, Basmati rice, milk, poultry, bovine meat, fish, and chemical products. Countries establish non-tariff measures (NTMs) as domestic regulations to safeguard human, animal, plant health and environment. These comprise technical measures including regulations, standards, testing, certification, pre-shipment inspection, and non-technical measures such as quotas, import licensing, subsidies, and government procurement restrictions. NTMs transform into non-tariff barriers (NTBs) when they become arbitrary and exceed scientific justification, creating trade obstacles. Indian exports remain significantly under potential due to NTBs in various regions, including the EU, US, China, Japan, and Korea. According to GTRI, the EU has reduced the minimum residual limit (MRL) for tricyclazole in rice to 0.01 mg per kg, compared to its previous tenfold higher limit. The EU has established MRL for aflatoxins B1 in chilies and other spices at 5 to 10 ppb (parts per billion). The minister confirmed that discussions regarding services and rules of origin have commenced. To push forward the ongoing FTA talks, EU Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security Maros Sefcovic is likely to visit New Delhi on June 28-29. On the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said it acts as a non-tariff barrier and is "not good" for India. He warned that imposing such a carbon tax would be unfair to Indian industries and that India would have to respond if the EU goes ahead with it. "Our talks are going on the issue to find ways to deal with this," the minister noted and said he is hopeful that a positive outcome will emerge. Earlier on February 28, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen agreed to finalise a long-pending free trade agreement (FTA) by the end of this year, as concerns grow over US President Donald Trump's tariff policies. India and the 27-member EU bloc resumed FTA negotiations in June 2022 after an eight-year pause. In 2024–25, bilateral trade in goods between India and the EU reached $136.4 billion, with Indian exports at $75.75 billion and imports at $60.65 billion—making the EU India's largest trading partner for goods. The EU accounts for about 17% of India's total exports, while India makes up 9% of the EU's global exports. European companies have invested over $117 billion in India, with around 6,000 firms operating in the country. Meanwhile, Indian investments in the EU are estimated at $40 billion. Later in the evening, Goyal also attended a dinner hosted by the Sweden-India Business Council and the Indian Embassy, where he met Swedish business leaders. Goyal showcased India's growing investment potential and reaffirmed the country's commitment to sustainable growth under its "zero defect, zero effect" manufacturing policy. Stay informed with the latest business news, updates on bank holidays and public holidays . AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
