Chhattisgarh assembly monsoon session begins today; congress gears up to corner BJP govt
Around 1000 questions have been listed for the Question Hour in the upcoming session.
According to official sources, the BJP government is likely to introduce some key bills besides a supplementary budget during the session.
The leader of the opposition, Charandas Mahant, who chaired a meeting of his party MLAs ahead of the session at Rajiv Bhawan, conveyed that every important issue related to public interest should be raised with an aggressive stance to corner the government. The Congress legislators have been instructed to attend the monsoon session with their full preparation, supported with facts and reasoning on various key issues that are to come up for discussions in the House.
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Indian Express
13 minutes ago
- Indian Express
‘Bawankule real mastermind of attack on me': Pravin Gaikwad targets BJP again
Speaking at a press conference where he once again targeted the BJP and its minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule, social wing chief of Sambhaji Brigade Pravin Gaikwad on Wednesday said his dream was to save democracy, save the Constitution and that he was ready to die for it. He held the BJP and Bawankule responsible for the 'murderous attack' on him in Akkalkot on Sunday. Gaikwad said he is a follower of Gautam Buddha and Mahatma Gandhi. 'I believe in the philosophy Ahimsa… I follow the the teachings of Buddha in letter and spirit which has brought peace in my life. I follow the ideology of and Gandhi have taught us to remain calm even in adversity,Z' he said. At the press conference held at Patrakar Bhavan, Gaikwad expanded on what he has been alleging since the 'black oil' attack on him by Deepak Kate, a BJP worker and his associates in Akkalkot. 'The attack on me was a murderous one. They wanted to kill me and crush my ideology… An agency appointed by the BJP video-recorded the attack on me and made it go viral, which reveals it was all well-planned,' he said. Gaikwad once again reiterated that the attack on him was sponsored by the state government. 'The BJP-led government has planned to finish off activists who do not follow its ideology, it wants to finish off organisations like BAMCEF, Sambhaji Brigade, Maratha Seva Sangh and Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi who they consider as hurdles for remaining in power… They call themselves party with a difference. The same party has planned to do away with social activists who do not follow their ideology and do not want any posts. Even Mahatma Phule, Mahatma Gandhi, Shahu Maharaj and Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar were attacked by such ideologies,' he said. Gaikwad said from 2014 to 2019, the likes of Dabholkar, Pansare, Lankesh and Kalburgi have been murdered. 'Those who killed Dabholkar were also criminals. Similarly, the activists were also killed by people who had criminal background,' he said. Gaikwad alleged that Revenue Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule, who belongs to BJP was the real mastermind of the attack on him. At the press conference, he played two videos to prove the close relations with Bawankule and Kate. Gaikwad said,'In one of the videos, it emerges that Bawankule is the godfather of Kate. He is backing and supporting criminals. Bawankule says he is proud of Deepak Kate. In another video, Bawankule is heard clearly saying that the previous government had filed cases against Kate, but he and Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis fully supports him (Kate).' Gaikwad said videos are not the only proof of the BJP being behind the attack. 'There is no doubt that Bawankule and the accused are closely related. Bawankule openly said Kate is a BJP worker. It was Bawankule who was behind Kate getting bail for illegally possessing arms. He was arrested at Lohegaon airport with two pistols and 28 cartridges. The BJP managed to secure bail for Kate so that he could carry out their plans. Under Section 3 of The Arms Act, it is difficult to get bail in such cases. The prosecution in this argued that there was no criminal record though he had undergone jail term in a heinous crimes and several other crimes in his name registered with the police.' Gaikwad said Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis holds the charge of Home Ministry as well. He said, 'Now that it is proved who is the mastermind of the attack on me… Will the Chief Minister take action again Bawankule?' Both BJP and Bawankule had earlier refused the allegations that they have any connection with the attack on Gaikwad. Gaikwad said BJP considers his ideology an impediment for coming to power. 'I have a progressive mindset but BJP's is not… I believe in equality… BJP is against equality. BJP wants one party rule, BJP wants dictatorship to thrive, it wants its anti-progressive mindset to hold upper hand. We believe in Constitution, we believe in democracy,' he said. Gaikwad said he suspects the entire event was managed by the BJP. 'I have a strongly feeling that the organisers of the event are hand in glove with the BJP. They invited me under the guise of a felicitation function. But when the attack on me happened, no one came forward, the organisers did not even file a police complaint. Several BJP leaders were present at the occasion. In the police station, my associates told me that some ministers called up and told the police not to charge Kate and his associates under stringent law,' he said. Gaikwad said the Maratha community leaders have planned a bandh in Akkalkot on July 18. 'The Maratha community will protest the attack on me by observing a bandh on July 18,' he said.
The Hindu
13 minutes ago
- The Hindu
Social activist alleges negligence in Rahul Gandhi's security during U.P. court visit, seeks probe
Alleging a complete breakdown of law and order and negligence in the security of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi during his recent court visit in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh-based social activist and former Indian Police Service officer Amitabh Thakur on Wednesday (July 16, 2025) demanded a high-level inquiry and fixing responsibility over the issue. In a letter addressed to the Union Home Minister, the Chief Justice of India and the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister, Mr. Thakur said Mr. Gandhi was among the highest threat perception leaders in India and was given Z-plus security by the Home Ministry. On July 15, during his appearance in the MP/MLA Magistrate Court in Lucknow, there was not only a complete breakdown of law and order inside the courtroom but also massive bungling and compromise with his security when security personnel allowed hundreds of persons to enter the courtroom. People were present everywhere around Mr. Gandhi. Even the security failed to maintain the dignity of the court. Speaking to The Hindu, Mr. Thakur, a former 1992 batch IPS officer, said, 'Two family members of Mr. Gandhi, including his father, have been assassinated due to security lapse. In Lucknow, Mr. Gandhi's security was compromised for more than three hours.' Multiple videos of huge crowd inside the courtroom with Mr. Gandhi and within court premises went viral, with people even taking selfies. The Congress said the authorities should look into the matter. 'I was not present there, but the security of Rahul ji, who is the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, is the responsibility of the Home Ministry and the State government. Any breakdown in security is not acceptable,' said Imran Masood, Congress MP. On July 15, Mr. Gandhi appeared before the MP/MLA Special Court in Lucknow in connection with a case of allegedly making a defamatory statement against the Indian Armed Forces during his Bharat Jodo Yatra in 2022. The Congress leader, who surrendered in the court of Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Alok Verma, was granted bail after the court allowed his application.
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Business Standard
13 minutes ago
- Business Standard
Lok Sabha select committee proposes 285 changes to Income Tax Bill, 2025
Dropping of provision that denies refunds if returns are filed after the due date and reinstatement of the inter-corporate dividend deduction were among the 285 suggestions made by the select committee of Lok Sabha examining the Income Tax Bill, 2025 -- which was adopted on Wednesday. The Income Tax Bill, 2025, will replace the Income Tax Act, 1961. The government aims to implement the new Income Tax law from April 1, 2026. Overall, the committee has recommended about 285 changes, most of which involved simplifying the language of the draft legislation. The committee will present its report in the Lok Sabha on July 21, the first day of the Monsoon session. The committee, headed by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Lok Sabha member Baijayant Panda, has suggested the removal of a controversial provision that denies refunds if returns are filed after the due date. The New Income Tax Bill, 2025 drafted by the finance ministry required that a person seeking refunds under chapter XX must mandatorily file income tax returns within the due date. On top of that, as per section 433 of the New IT Bill states that a refund should be sought only while filing a return, which created a contradiction. 'The Select Committee has appropriately deleted clause 263(1)(ix), so that there is no unnecessary litigation in this matter which would have impacted all the taxpayers. Taxpayers remain ever grateful for this by maintaining that there are no policy changes in the provisions related to refunds in the New IT Bill, 2025,' said Vivek Jalan, partner with Tax Connect Advisory Services. Deduction under section 80M (Clause 148 of New bill) for Inter Corporate Dividends for companies availing the benefit of special rate of tax under section 115BAA (Clause 200 of the New bill) which is available in the Current Income Tax Act, was also erroneously missed out in the New Income Tax Bill 2025. The select committee has now recommended reinstatement of the inter-corporate dividend deduction. In the IT Bill 2025, presented on February 25, in clause 395, only low TDS (Tax Deducted At Source) deduction certificate was available to the taxpayers. Now, in addition to low deduction TDS Certificate, even NIL TDS certificate can be availed by taxpayers. 'This aligns the new IT Bill with the current IT Act, 1961 and would provide consequential relief to taxpayers whose funds get blocked by deduction of TDS where no tax is applicable to them at all. This is beneficial primarily to businesses which incur losses in a tax year or tax exempt entities like charitable organisations,' Jalan added. 'The panel has suggested 285 changes to the Bill. The government, if it deems fit, will incorporate the changes in the Bill, take approval from the Cabinet before moving the bill for consideration and passage in the Lok Sabha,' a member of the select committee said, requesting anonymity.
