A costly injunction

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

The current logjam on higher judicial appointments has affected the entire judicial system. Its impact on the 28 high courts is grave. These courts of appeal in the states are particularly in the crisis zone with about half the sanctioned posts of judges lying vacant while four million cases are pending. Those to whom justice is delayed are mostly ordinary people, including many who are detained and awaiting trial, and many more who complain that they have been illegally dispossessed or harmed. Obviously with such hapless victims of the judicial system's failure in mind that Chief Justice of India T.S. Thakur made a rather startling remark on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Independence Day speech, saying, "I was hoping he (Modi) will speak about issues plaguing the justice delivery system. However, he did not. I request the government to pay attention to our judiciary, especially appointment of judges".

Modi Takes Bull by the horn

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

Former External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid  dubbed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s statement from the Ramparts of Red Fort on Balochistan as “Adventurism”. Former Finance Minister P Chidambaram and out-spoken Mani Shankar Aiyer were equally critical of Modi the way he  raked up PoK, Balochistan & Gilgit.

How the con man was conned by North Block

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

How the con man was conned by North Block

Exclusive

The PMO connection

• It, now, transpires that the Income Tax sleuths were surprised when they raided the Safdarjung Enclave bungalow of P N Sanyal to look for the man who used to send text SMS messages to top officers of the Central Board of Direct Taxes.  Harish Gupta New Delhi, Aug 3 A high-profile sex racket -- busted in Delhi last week creating ripples as it involved top businessmen, bureaucrats, politicians and others -- has a PMO connection; so it seems. It, now, transpires that the Income Tax sleuths were surprised when they raided the Safdarjung Enclave bungalow of P N Sanyal to look for the man who used to send text SMS messages to top officers of the Central Board of Direct Taxes. Now, it transpires that he not only supplied high-end escort girls to politicians, corporate tycoons and bureaucrats but also used to get things done in government offices. He used to send text messages to CBDT top officials to get officers transferred from one place to other and other favours. The text SMS messages used to be sent in the name of Prime Minister's principal secretary Nripendra Mishra directly to the CBDT officers. Since such messages used to be for low rank officials, none cared to check and complied by replying on the mobile number: "Done Sir." But one day he wanted a commissioner rank officer to be given a plum posting. The text message landed on the mobile phone of the CBDT chairman from ostensibly Mishra's mobile. The chairman had technical difficulty in getting the order implemented and went to the higher-ups to seek advice. When Mishra was contacted, he flatly denied he had anything to do with it. Even the mobile number was not his either. The cat was out of the bag. It was then decided to sent a team of IT officials and raid his place. The case was transferred to the Delhi Police after it turned out to be the case of a smart cookie going berserk. Sanyal was trafficking women from Central Asia and running the syndicate. But somewhere he got involved in transfers and postings too.He was found guilty of impersonation and human trafficking and collected documented proof in the form of SMSes and WhatsApp messages. The I-T officials found documents with "fake letterheads" recovered from his house to "get his work done in government offices".

WATCH OUT, CORPORATES !

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

Tax in India has long been a matter of negotiation rather than obligation. Earlier this year, pending indirect tax disputes in concerned appellate tribunal and the high courts and Supreme Court stood at 136,365. The number was so staggering that the government was forced to find excuses to withdraw appeals in minor disputes ranging from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 15 lakh. Yet the tax revenue now frozen in disputes at various levels is well over five lakh crore of rupees. Besides, Indian companies" 'hunger' for exemption led successive regimes to succumb to make changes in to the tax laws. It has resulted in many large companies being 'zero-tax'. The country's tax administration has, over the decades, left its public finance permanently starved.