Will government give in to Opposition's demands? Experts debate on Preeti Choudhry's show
A day after Prime Minister Modi met all-party delegations on Operation Sindoor outreach, the Congress has called for an all-party meeting, a special committee like after Kargil, and a full debate in the upcoming monsoon session. On the other hand, the BJP maintained that the government has been transparent, citing press conferences by military officials and statements by ministers. The debate explores whether the government will accede to opposition pressure for more information on the operation.
Additionally, Sachin Pilot and Ashok Gehlot appeared together at a memorial event for Rajesh Pilot, marking a potential reconciliation in Rajasthan Congress. Pilot personally invited Gehlot to the 25th death anniversary of his father. The Congress leader emphasised the need to strengthen the party organisation and present a united front against the BJP in the upcoming elections. The pilot stated, 'We have to look ahead. We have to look forward and we have to move on, quite frankly.'
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The Wire
30 minutes ago
- The Wire
India Says Reset with Canada on Agenda, Carney Says Nijjar Probe Raised with Modi
Menu हिंदी తెలుగు اردو Home Politics Economy World Security Law Science Society Culture Editor's Pick Opinion Support independent journalism. Donate Now Top Stories India Says Reset with Canada on Agenda, Carney Says Nijjar Probe Raised with Modi The Wire Staff 39 minutes ago Meanwhile, Carney is still facing questions about his invitation to Modi to attend the G7 summit. MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal addressing the press. Photo: Screenshot from MEA livestream. Real journalism holds power accountable Since 2015, The Wire has done just that. But we can continue only with your support. Contribute now New Delhi: Ahead of the G7 summit, India said on Thursday (June 12) that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Canadian counterpart, Mark Carney, would discuss a reset in ties grounded in mutual 'sensitivity', even as Carney confirmed raising with Modi the ongoing probes into alleged Indian involvement in criminal plots on Canadian soil. Last week, Carney spoke with Modi and extended an invitation for the forthcoming G7 summit in Kananaskis in western Canada. Modi accepted the invitation, which came just over a week before the summit begins on June 15. It was a dramatic turnaround in relations that had been frozen for 20 months since former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleged that Indians agents were involved in killing Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police accused Indian agents of targeting Canadian nationals. During the weekly briefing on Thursday, external affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that the forthcoming bilateral meeting between Modi and Carney would 'explore pathways to reset the relationship based on mutual respect, shared interests and sensitivity to each other's concerns'. He added that India's views 'on some of these issues have already been shared publicly in considerable detail'. In contrast to Modi's announcement that only spoke about working together with 'renewed vigour', Carney had to immediately defend his invitation before the media. 'We have now agreed, importantly, to continued law enforcement dialogue. So there's been some progress on that, which recognises issues of accountability. I extended the invitation to Prime Minister Modi in that context, and he has accepted,' he said last Friday in Ottawa. When asked about Carney's mention of a dialogue between security agencies, the Indian foreign ministry spokesperson stated, 'There are existing mechanisms between Indian and Canadian law enforcement agencies that have discussed issues of mutual security concern over a period of time. This engagement is likely to continue.' India had previously claimed on several occasions that Canada had 'created an environment for illegal migration and organised criminal activities'. When asked whether India would raise this again, Jaiswal first listed points of commonality with Canada. 'I also [said] that we are two democracies. We are bound by the rule of law. We have an expansive economic engagement. We have large people-to-people connections. We have a big student community there. We have companies invested in both sides. We have technology collaboration, so there's a lot more, lots that can be discussed and for both countries to gain from each other's engagement,' said Jaiswal. Then, he said that on 'anti-India activities, whether it is Canada or anywhere else', India 'expect[s] our international partners to take into account our concerns and act accordingly'. Meanwhile, Carney is still facing questions about the invitation. In an interview to Radio Canada, he was asked whether he spoke to the Indian PM about the ongoing police probes, including the Nijjar case. 'Yes, I have,' he said, as reported by CBC News. The Canadian leader added that the legal case will continue and 'India knows that'. He added that Canada had made progress with India bilaterally and that 'they are OK with having a legal process between law enforcement entities'. Carney reiterated that Canada wants to discuss energy security, critical minerals and artificial intelligence with world leaders, and it's 'hard to have those discussions without India'. Ruling Liberal party lawmaker Sukh Dhaliwal, who represents the constituency where Nijjar was killed, had been critical of the invitation. As per Canadian media, he had a meeting with Carney on Wednesday to express his constituents' concerns. Dhaliwal said Carney is 'very strong' and would represent concerns about Indian interference and transnational crime when speaking to Modi. 'I'm saying it's not a good idea, but now he's invited. We have to move forward,' he said. Canada has listed countering ' foreign interference and transnational crime ' as a key priority for the upcoming G7 summit. Besides India, the other non-G7 invitees to the summit are the leaders of Ukraine, Mexico, Australia, Brazil, South Africa, South Korea and the United Arab Emirates. The Wire is now on WhatsApp. Follow our channel for sharp analysis and opinions on the latest developments. Make a contribution to Independent Journalism Related News Ahead of G7 Summit, Canada Lists 'Foreign Interference and Transnational Crime' as Key Priority Marking Turnaround in Ties, Modi Accepts Late Canadian Invitation to Attend G7 Summit Next Week Canada Placed Law Enforcement Conditions Before Modi for G7 Summit Invite: Report Nijjar & After: Facing Flak, Canadian PM says Progress in 'Accountability' Paved Way for Modi G7 Invite As the G7 Clock Ticks, Silence over India's Invite and What it Means India's Disastrous Isolation Around the World As India and Canada's Foreign Ministers Speak Over Phone, Signs of a Further Thaw in Ties Has Trump 2.0 Deprioritised India? The Evidence is Clear. Whose Growth Is it, Anyway? Understanding India's Infrastructure Push View in Desktop Mode About Us Contact Us Support Us © Copyright. All Rights Reserved.
New Indian Express
an hour ago
- New Indian Express
Triumph of India's diplomatic crusade against terror
Another vital goal was to impress on our international interlocutors Pakistan's complicity in such acts of terror and its malign nurturing of terror groups, weaponised against India as an instrument of state policy. The ultimate objective of this outreach was to garner global support for India's counterterrorism efforts—all while driving home the point that the perpetrators of terror and the victims of it must never be spoken of in the same breath, let alone be the object of mediation, as if terrorists and their victims could be placed on an equal plane. But even while these delegations where on their missions, conflicting views surfaced in our congested (and often confused) news space on the question of their success, with some dismissing it as a drain on taxpayers' money. The truth is that we have succeeded, emphatically and evidently, in what we set out to do. As the leader of one of the seven delegations, these are my reflections on some of the achievements of our outreach across five nations in South, Central, and North America: Guyana, Panama, Colombia, Brazil, and the US. In all these five countries, our delegation was greeted with tremendous enthusiasm and regard for India's democratic, inclusive, and united approach to this crucial national security concern. With our diversity—of political affiliation, faith, mother tongue and native region—on ample display, yet speaking the same language of resolve and righteousness, we undertook a series of high-profile engagements. Notably, we met the President of Guyana, Mohamed Irfaan Ali; Prime Minister of Guyana, Brigadier Mark Anthony Phillips; Vice President of Brazil, Geraldo Alckmin; and Vice President of the US, J D Vance. To ensure that our message resounds in the highest decision- and law-making forums of these countries, we provided thorough briefings on Operation Sindoor and India's evolving counterterrorism policy to government officials and lawmakers—including the heads of external affairs committees in all five countries, presidents of the national assembly in two, and in the US, the Senate foreign relations committee, House foreign affairs committee, and the India Caucus). To shape public discourse in these nations, we extensively engaged with the media and policy experts, participated in think tank deliberations—as with the Council on Foreign Relations in the US— and brought the Indian diaspora up to speed with developments back at home, providing them with accurate information to serve as advocates for India's position. Though our target audience was those concerned with foreign policy who could make an impact and we had no unrealistic expectations of mass media attention in a crowded news space, our outreach was positively covered by major outlets in the countries concerned. While anchored in the core issue of terrorism, our engagements also spanned broader domains of strategic, technological, defence, trade and economic cooperation, serving to deepen our bonds with the five nations.
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Business Standard
an hour ago
- Business Standard
Trump signs measure blocking California's ban on gas-powered car sales
It comes as the Republican president is mired in a clash with California's Democratic governor, Gavin Newsom, over Trump's move to deploy troops to Los Angeles in response to immigration protests AP Washington President Donald Trump signed a resolution on Thursday that blocks California's first-in-the-nation rule banning the sale of new gas-powered cars by 2035. The state quickly announced it was challenging the move in court, with California's attorney general holding a news conference to discuss the lawsuit before Trump's signing ceremony ended at the White House. The resolution was approved by Congress last month and aims to quash the country's most aggressive attempt to phase out gas-powered cars. Trump also signed measures to overturn state policies curbing tailpipe emissions in certain vehicles and smog-forming nitrogen oxide pollution from trucks. Trump called California's regulations crazy at a White House ceremony where he signed the resolutions. It's been a disaster for this country, he said. It comes as the Republican president is mired in a clash with California's Democratic governor, Gavin Newsom, over Trump's move to deploy troops to Los Angeles in response to immigration protests. It's the latest in an ongoing battle between the Trump administration and heavily Democratic California over issues including tariffs, the rights of LGBTQ+ youth and funding for electric vehicle chargers. The state is already involved in more than two-dozen lawsuits challenging Trump administration actions, and the state's Democratic Attorney General Rob Bonta announced the latest one at a news conference in California. Ten other states, all with Democratic attorneys general, joined the lawsuit filed Thursday. The federal government's actions are not only unlawful; they're irrational and wildly partisan, Bonta said. They come at the direct expense of the health and the well-being of our people. The three resolutions Trump signed will block California's rule phasing out gas-powered cars and end the sale of new ones by 2035. They will also kill rules that phase out the sale of medium- and heavy-duty diesel vehicles and cut tailpipe emissions from trucks. In his remarks at the White House, Trump expressed doubts about the performance and reliability of electric vehicles, though he had some notably positive comments about the company owned by Elon Musk, despite their fractured relationship. I like Tesla, Trump said. In remarks that often meandered away from the subject at hand, Trump used the East Room ceremony to also muse on windmills, which he claimed are killing our country, the prospect of getting electrocuted by an electric-powered boat if it sank and whether he'd risk a shark attack by jumping as the boat went down. I'll take electrocution every single day," the president said. When it comes to cars, Trump said he likes combustion engines but for those that prefer otherwise, If you want to buy electric, you can buy electric. What this does is it gives us freedom, said Bill Kent, the owner of Kent Kwik convenience stores. Kent, speaking at the White House, said that the California rules would have forced him to install infrastructure that frankly, is extremely expensive and doesn't give you any return. The Alliance for Automotive Innovation, which represents major car makers, applauded Trump's action. Everyone agreed these EV sales mandates were never achievable and wildly unrealistic, John Bozzella, the group's president and CEO, said in a statement. Newsom, who is considered a likely 2028 Democratic presidential candidate, and California officials contend that what the federal government is doing is illegal and said the state plans to sue. Newsom said Trump's action was a continuation of his all-out assault on California. And this time he's destroying our clean air and America's global competitiveness in the process, Newsom said in a statement. We are suing to stop this latest illegal action by a President who is a wholly-owned subsidiary of big polluters. The signings come as Trump has pledged to revive American auto manufacturing and boost oil and gas drilling. The move follows other steps the Trump administration has taken to roll back rules that aim to protect air and water and reduce emissions that cause climate change. The Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday proposed repealing rules that limit greenhouse gas emissions from power plants fueled by coal and natural gas. Dan Becker with the Centre for Biological Diversity, said the signing of the resolutions was Trump's latest betrayal of democracy. Signing this bill is a flagrant abuse of the law to reward Big Oil and Big Auto corporations at the expense of everyday people's health and their wallets, Becker said in a statement. California, which has some of the nation's worst air pollution, has been able to seek waivers for decades from the EPA, allowing it to adopt stricter emissions standards than the federal government. In his first term, Trump revoked California's ability to enforce its standards, but Democratic President Joe Biden reinstated it in 2022. Trump has not yet sought to revoke it again. Republicans have long criticised those waivers and earlier this year opted to use the Congressional Review Act, a law aimed at improving congressional oversight of actions by federal agencies, to try to block the rules. That's despite a finding from the US Government Accountability Office, a nonpartisan congressional watchdog, that California's standards cannot legally be blocked using the Congressional Review Act. The Senate parliamentarian agreed with that finding. California, which makes up roughly 11% of the US car market, has significant power to sway trends in the auto industry. About a dozen states signed on to adopt California's rule phasing out the sale of new gas-powered cars. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
