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SC to hear plea against Mamata Banerjee granting govt fund for Durga Puja committees

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SC to hear plea against Mamata Banerjee granting govt fund for Durga Puja committees

The Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to hear on Friday an appeal challenging decision of Mamata Banerjee’s government in Bengal to grant Rs 10,000 each to puja committees in the state for Durga Puja celebrations.

The Calcutta High Court had on Wednesday refused to interfere with the Mamata Banerjee government’s decision of granting funds to 28,000 Durga Puja committees in the state, saying the legislature is the appropriate forum to decide on such expenditure. A bench comprising Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and justices SK Kaul and KM Joseph was apprised about the same Thursday.

Lawyer Saurabh Dutta, who had filed an appeal against the high court’s decision, told the bench that the decision of the state government was against the established principle of law and sought an urgent hearing on his plea.

The petition assails the decision of the state government to grant a total of Rs. 28 crore to Puja organizers as being against the principles of secularism, which is a part of the Basic Structure of the Constitution of India. It is contended that there is no public purpose involved in organizing Durga Puja, which is a religious programme.

On September 10, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had declared that Rs 10,000 would be given to each of the 28,000 puja committees across the state — 3,000 in the city and 25,000 in the districts, costing the government an amount of Rs 28 crore.

However, the petitioners said there were no guidelines for disbursing the Rs 28 crore the state had earmarked for this purpose. The High Court had asked the state’s counsel if the distribution of such a large amount of money involved any guidelines.

The High Court had refused to go into the challenge against the state government’s decision to grant money to Durga Puja committees, stating that it would not want to interfere with the manner in which the Executive utilised government funds.

The State in turn had submitted before the High Court that the funds will be used for assisting the police under its Traffic Safety Campaign, and not for religious purposes.

The petitioner argued, “Since no public purpose would be served by granting money and/or handing out concessions to Durga Puja organizers, the said decision of the state violates the provision of Article 282 of the Constitution of India and thus, the said decision of granting money to the puja committees is liable to be set aside. There is no provision of law by which State exchequer could be utilized for giving gift to puja organizer.”

Further, it argued that the use of tax payers’ money for repair or construction of any religious place offends the spirit and object of Article 27 of the Constitution. Article 27 of the Constitution of India says no person shall be compelled to pay any taxes, the proceeds of which are specifically appropriated in payment of expenses for the promotion or maintenance of any particular religion or religious denomination.

Lawyer Saurav Datta, in his plea in the Supreme Court, alleged that the Mamata Banerjee-led government’s decision was against the established principle of law, and sought an urgent hearing, PTI reported. “The High Court failed to appreciate that there is no public purpose involved in organising Durga Puja, rather, it is a religious programme,” the plea said.

The matter was mentioned before Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi, who agreed to list the case tomorrow.

Cricket news

T20 World Cup: Co-host West Indies receives terror threat from Pakistan

Cricket West Indies (CWI) CEO Jonny Graves said that the safety and security of everyone at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 is their number one priority.

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North Pakistan had issued a terror threat against the West Indies, who are co-hosting the T20 World Cup today, May 6. However, West Indies (CWI) assured the public that every safety measure has been done.

The Caribbean islands have received warnings about possible terror threats coming from North Pakistan, according to a trustworthy source with firsthand knowledge of the circumstances. From June 1 to June 29, the US and the West Indies will host the T20 World Cup.

World Cup matches in Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Guyana, Saint Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago will take place in the West Indies. In addition, there are matches in the US cities of Florida, New York, and Texas; however, there appears to be no danger to the games in the US. Barbados will host the final after the two semifinals are held in Trinidad and Guyana.

A source said that they are closely monitoring the situation and maintaining close communication with relevant authorities. Continuous evaluation of security measures is underway to ensure appropriate plans are in place to mitigate any identified risks, they added.

The severity of the problem has increased with the assignment of blame for the danger to IS Khorasan. Trinidad Prime Minister Keith Rowley said that security forces have protocols in place to handle any threats to matches.

As per the report, the Barbados regional security officials are monitoring potential threats to the ICC event in addition to the fact that intelligence of a potential threat to the World Cup has been received through Pro-Islamic State (Daesh) through the media group Nashir Pakistan.

Regarding India, the Men in Blue will face off against Ireland at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York in their season-opening match. On June 9, they will play their next game at the same location against their bitter rivals, Pakistan. The team captained by Rohit Sharma will play the United States in their subsequent game in New York, and then they will play Canada in their last group-stage encounter at the Central Broward Regional Park Stadium Turf Ground in Lauderhill, Florida.

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2024 Lok Sabha Elections

PM Modi says expiry date of BJD government in Odisha is June 4

The prime minister was addressing an election rally in Odisha’s Behrampur. The state of Odisha is going to Assembly as well as general elections simultaneously starting May 13.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said that 2 Yagya are taking place together in Odisha – one to form a government in India and the other in the state. He was confident that the BJP will form the double-engine government in Odisha for the first time. The prime minister was addressing an election rally in Odisha’s Behrampur. The state of Odisha is going to Assembly as well as general elections simultaneously starting May 13. The counting of votes of both elections is going to take place on June 4.

PM Modi added that enthusiasm of the people shows that the double-engine government is going to be formed in Odisha for the first time. He further asserted that BJP does what it says. Therefore, after forming the government here, they will implement the declarations made in the manifesto with full force and this is Modi’s guarantee.

The prime minister further added that the expiry date of the BJD government in Odisha is written as June 4.  He said the BJP’s chief ministerial candidate for Odisha will be decided on 6th June. PM Modi predicted that the swearing-in ceremony of the BJP Chief Minister will be held in Bhubaneswar on June 10. He said today he had come to invite the people of Odisha to the swearing-in ceremony of the Chief Minister of the BJP government in the state.

PM Modi attacked Congress and Naveen Patnaik’s BJD and said that the people of the rich state have remained poor and both the parties are responsible for it. He said in Odisha, it was Congress for around 50 years, and BJD for around 25 years. The prime minister said everyone has seen the result. He added Odisha has a fertile land, mineral resources, sea coasts, a trade centre like that of Berhampur, culture, heritage and still, the people of this rich Odisha have remained poor. He asked who is responsible for this sin? The answer is Congress and BJD.

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India News

ED raids Jharkhand minister’s secretary, recovers Rs 20 crore from house help

Jharkhand minister’s secretary raided by ED, huge amount of cash recovered.

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The Enforcement Directorate on Monday, May 6, started conducting raids at several Ranchi sites, including the home of Sanjiv Lal, the minister for Jharkhand Alamgir Alam’s personal secretary. A substantial sum of money, estimated to be between Rs 20 to Rs 30 crore, was taken from Sanjiv Lal’s house help.

The majority of the money is in notes worth Rs 500, and authorities have also found some jewellery with it.

Alamgir Alam who is the minister for Rural Development in Jharkhand. The 70-year-old Congress leader serves as the legislator for the Pakur seat in Jharkhand.

Video captured officers from the central investigation unit removing bundles of banknotes from suitcases in a room.

In its investigation into reported corruption in Jharkhand’s rural development department, the ED has made headway. The chief engineer of the department, Virendra Ram, was taken into custody in February 2023 in relation to a money laundering case involving possible anomalies in the execution of government projects.

In November 2019, the state’s Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) filed a formal complaint after apprehending junior engineer Suresh Prasad Verma for receiving a bribe. A substantial quantity of cash was found in a Verma-owned home that his cousin Alok Ranjan, who is connected to Virendra Ram, was occupying during the ACB’s investigation.

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