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Mint
15 minutes ago
- Mint
Bihar Voter List Row: SC to hear pleas challenging Election Commission's decision today
Bihar Voter List Row: The Supreme Court will today hear the batch of petitions challenging the Election Commission of India's special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in poll-bound Bihar. The SC bench, comprising Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and Joymalya Bagchi, has over 10 related matters, including the SIR issue, listed for hearing on July 10 On July 9, the top court agreed to hear a fresh plea by two social activists, Arshad Ajmal and Rupesh Kumar, challenging the poll panel's decision to undertake extensive revision of electoral rolls in the state. The activists have said the exercise undermines the principles of free and fair elections and representative democracy, both integral features of the Constitution's basic structure, by introducing arbitrary, unreasonable and disproportionate documentation requirements related to birth, residence and citizenship. Besides, lawyer Ashwini Upadhyay has filed a separate plea supporting the move and seeking a direction to the poll panel to conduct the SIR to ensure only Indian citizens decide the polity and policy, not the illegal foreign infiltrators.' The demography of 200 districts and 1,500 tehsils has changed after independence due to massive illegal infiltration, deceitful religious conversion and population explosion. Demography is destiny, and dozens of districts have already seen their destiny being shaped by those who aren't Indians," he said. On July 7, the bench noted the submissions of lawyers led by senior counsel Kapil Sibal, who was representing several petitioners, and agreed to hear the pleas on July 10. Sibal, who is representing RJD MP Manoj Jha, urged the bench to issue notices to the poll panel on the petitions, calling it an "impossible task" within the timeline as elections were to happen in the state in November. Senior advocate Abhishek M Singhvi, appearing for another petitioner, said of the eight crore voters in the state, four crore voters would have to submit their documents under the exercise. "The timeline is so strict, and if by July 25 you don't submit the documents, you will be out," Singhvi added. Senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, appearing for another petitioner, said the poll panel was not accepting Aadhaar cards and voter ID cards as proof for the exercise. Posting the matter on July 10, Justice Dhulia said the timeline was not sanctified at present as elections hadn't been notified yet. The bench asked the petitioners to give advance notice of their petitions to the counsel for the Election Commission of India. Election watchdog Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) is also one of the petitioners. Beside RJD MP Jha and Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra, Congress' K C Venugopal, Supriya Sule from the Sharad Pawar NCP faction, D Raja from Communist Party of India, Harinder Singh Malik from Samajwadi Party, Arvind Sawant from Shiv Sena (Uddhav Thackeray), Sarfraz Ahmed from Jharkhand Mukti Morcha and Dipankar Bhattacharya of CPI (ML) have jointly moved the top court. All leaders have challenged the Election Commission's order directing for SIR of electoral rolls in Bihar and sought direction for its quashing. Jha, in his plea filed through advocate Fauzia Shakil, argues that the EC's June 24 order should be quashed for violating Articles 14 (fundamental right to equality), 21 (fundamental right to life and liberty), 325 (no person can be excluded from electoral roll based on caste, religion, and sex) and 326 (every citizen of India who has attained 18 years of age is eligible to be registered as a voter) of the Constitution. "The impugned order prescribes a schedule and requires the submission of enumeration form within 30 days, followed by filing of claims and objections and their disposal within 30 days," the plea said. Moitra sought a direction from the apex court to restrain the EC from issuing similar orders for SIR of electoral rolls in other states of the country. The poll panel's SIR exercise, which started in Bihar on June 25, has triggered a political storm. The opposition Congress has dubbed it 'a rigging attempt' orchestrated by the Election Commission under instructions from the ruling regime. At least half a dozen petitions by political parties, individuals, and civil society groups have been filed in the Supreme Court against what they call a 'blatantly unconstitutional' exercise. The impugned order prescribes a schedule and requires the submission of enumeration form within 30 days, followed by filing of claims and objections and their disposal within 30 days. Opposition leaders, including Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, RJD's Tejashwi Yadav and several others of the INDIA bloc led a march to the Election Commission's office in Patna as part of the protest. The poll panel has said that the intensified revision's objective is to ensure that the names of all eligible citizens are included in the electoral roll so as to enable them to exercise their franchise, that no ineligible voter is included in the electoral roll, and that complete transparency is introduced in the process of adding or deleting electors in the electoral roll.
Time of India
17 minutes ago
- Time of India
JSW Group to increase stake in JSW MG Motor India amid SAIC's exit from Indian Market
JSW Group plans to raise its stake in JSW MG Motor India , its car manufacturing joint venture with SAIC Motor . The Chinese company has decided against committing further capital to India, instead prioritising investments at home and in Europe. Parth Jindal, director of JSW MG, told ET the group wants to come in as the single largest shareholder in the maker Hector SUV and Windsor EV . Currently, JSW MG is a 51:49 joint venture, with JSW owning 35 per cent, Indian financial institutions 8 per cent, MG Motor India dealers 3 per cent, and JSW MG Motor India employees 5 per cent. The remaining 49 per cent is with SAIC, which will continue to extend technology and brand support, he added. Alongside, the Sajjan Jindal-led group has finalised two separate licensing pacts—one each for electric passenger and commercial vehicles—with Chinese automakers, as it pushes ahead with its ambition of emerging as a full-spectrum electric mobility company. Jindal didn't name the Chinese firms. 'SAIC has made it clear they are not committing additional capital to India right now. Their focus is China and Europe. We have put our hands up, saying we would be interested in investing… Their stake would get diluted,' he said, adding that the additional stake purchase would be funded through internal accruals. On the size of JSW's stake in the automaker post the infusion and the timeframe, Jindal said, 'Those talks are still on, but we want to come in as a clear, single largest shareholder." Jindal was speaking on the sidelines of the inauguration of MG Select, JSW MG's first exclusive EV showroom for its premium offerings. The company is expanding its EV footprint as part of its localisation and brand development efforts. It plans to open 13 more Select outlets over the next year. Simultaneously, JSW is proceeding with plans to launch its own EVs in the coming years. Its electric trucks and buses are slated to debut in early 2026, and electric passenger cars in the first half of 2027. The conglomerate has signed non-equity licensing deals for both ventures with Chinese automakers, involving upfront fees and per-unit royalties, while committing to full localisation in India. 'There is no equity arrangement. It's a pure licensing agreement. We will pay a licensing fee and royalty per vehicle but will localise production from the start,' said Jindal. He said the commercial vehicle range will sport a new brand name, while passenger EVs will be sold under the JSW brand. A dedicated manufacturing facility for the former is under development. JSW is forging licensing agreements with Chinese automakers amid longstanding geopolitical tensions with Beijing. The latter has recently curbed exports of rare earth magnets to India, crucial for industries like automobiles and consumer electronics. 'One thing is very clear—the technology for affordable new energy vehicles resides in China. No other country can match what they've achieved. That said, we're aware of the geopolitical tensions, which is why we're focusing on localising manufacturing,' said Jindal. 'The partnerships we've entered are strictly for technology licensing- —to get the know-how, not to rely on imports," he said. For instance, he said, the Windsor EV was launched with less than 30 per cent localisation but by this year-end, it will touch 72 per cent, and the plan is to take it close to 90 per cent.
India Gazette
18 minutes ago
- India Gazette
Indian banks' systemic deposit growth gain momentum but NIM likely to dip 30bps (YoY): Report
New Delhi [India], July 10 (ANI): The Indian banking sector is witnessing a steady pickup in deposit growth, but banks are likely to report a decline in their net interest margins (NIM) in the first quarter of FY26, according to a report by Phillip Capital. The report noted that systemic deposit growth is gaining momentum, helping improve the credit-to-deposit ratio. Based on business updates released so far, the overall credit growth stands at 0.4 per cent on a sequential basis. It stated 'banking universe will see 1 per cent yoy (-1.5 per cent qoq) growth in NII. Sector NIM will decline 10bps qoq /30bps yoy as cost of funds remains stable' The report highlighted muted growth in Net Interest Income (NII) across the banking sector due to weak credit expansion. Overall NII is projected to grow just 1 per cent year-on-year (YoY) and decline by 1.5 per cent QoQ. Sector-wide NIM is expected to decline by 10 basis points (bps) QoQ and 30bps YoY as the cost of funds stays largely stable and returns from repo-linked loans decline. However, it also noted that the private sector banks have shown stronger performance with loan growth of 0.5 per cent quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) and deposit growth of 1.3 per cent QoQ. As a result, their credit-to-deposit ratio stands at 92 per cent, reflecting a decline of 0.8 per cent QoQ. In contrast, public sector banks (PSBs) posted a modest 0.2 per cent QoQ loan growth, while their deposit levels remained flat. The credit-to-deposit ratio for PSBs remained stable sequentially at 78%. Private banks are likely to record a 1.9 per cent YoY decline and a 0.8 per cent QoQ drop in NII. Meanwhile, PSBs may witness a 0.3 per cent YoY decline and a sharper 2.4 per cent QoQ fall in NII. On the profitability front, banks are expected to report modest growth in profit after tax (PAT), supported by lower credit costs. Overall PAT is forecast to grow 3.5 per cent YoY and 0.8 per cent QoQ. Among segments, PSBs may post a 7 per cent YoY rise in PAT but a 4.1 per cent QoQ decline, while private banks could register 1.4 per cent YoY and 4.2 per cent QoQ growth. Credit costs are seen normalizing, aided by improving asset quality. The report estimated credit cost at 59bps for Q1FY26, down from 64bps in Q4FY25 but up from 52bps in Q1FY25. The report outlined that while the deposit momentum is positive, the pressure on margins and core earnings will be a key watchpoint for the banking sector in the upcoming quarterly results. (ANI)
