India News
A Dramatic, Powerful Initiative
Above: (L to R) Former law secretary P K Malhotra, Supreme Court judge Justice N V Ramana, Former Supreme Court judge Justice B N Srikrishna, Editor-in- Chief of India Legal, Inderjit Badhwar and Chief Justice of Bombay High Court Justice Pradeep Nandrajog in the Legal Leadership Conclave /Photo: Anil Shakya
By Inderjit Badhwar
As the first and only weekly, independent politico-legal journal that covers an entire gamut of legal news and developments in the country, India Legal magazine has constantly endeavoured to promote the spread of legal education. This approach forms the bedrock of all our media initiatives, including the widely acclaimed news channels APN TV and N1 News. Both carry national news as well as in-depth, interactive legal programmes, including a live, daily legal helpline.
India Legal weekly, APN TV and N1 News channels are a part of the ENC Group which takes great pride and responsibility in promoting new ideas, initiatives, and recommendations for the benefit of not only the legal fraternity but also society at large. In continuing with this tradition, we are pleased to inform our readers about the launch of a series of Legal Leadership Conclaves in partnership with the Supreme Court Bar Association and various national law universities and state legal authorities.
While it is common to hear of leadership summits and conclaves which focus on themes like politics, business, technology, arts and culture, it’s rather rare to have a forum exclusively dedicated to the exchange of ideas on law.
The Legal Leadership Conclave is a significant attempt by the ENC Group to fill that void. These conclaves are being held nationwide on a wide range of contemporary legal issues with the participation of sitting judges of the Supreme Court and high courts and several other legal luminaries and thought leaders.
By the time this issue hits the stands, we would have hosted the first of these events on April 27, 2019, at the St Regis Hotel, Mumbai, with the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) as the topic for discussion.
Joining hands with India Legal for this Conclave are the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA), the Maharashtra National Law University, Mumbai (MNLU) and the India Legal Research Foundation (ILRF), all leading institutions in their own right. The SCBA, which works tirelessly in upholding the professionalism and integrity of Supreme Court lawyers, is an important pillar of our legal system.
Our second partner, MNLU, is one of the youngest national law universities and is already taking great strides by attracting some of the brightest minds in the country. Our third partner, the ENC Group-promoted ILRF, is a non-profit organisation which is committed to bringing justice to those who deserve it but cannot afford it.
At the time we were planning the Mumbai conclave a few weeks back, the IBC emerged as the topic for discussion almost unanimously, the reasons for which are not hard to fathom. The IBC is a major economic reform initiated in the country in recent times to provide for a time-bound insolvency resolution process. Since it was enacted in 2016, as many as 12,000 insolvency cases have been filed under it and around Rs 1 lakh crore has been recovered through insolvency proceedings. Before the introduction of the IBC, it took companies about four to five years to dissolve their operations; now the time has dropped drastically to a year.
As with any new legislation, however, the IBC’s smooth implementation has been riddled with many issues that had not been thought of at the time of drafting the legislation. Some of these issues have been addressed by way of legislative amendments and court orders. This conclave proffered another opportunity for various stakeholders to deliberate on several aspects such as practical issues in the insolvency resolution process and recent developments in the IBC as well as a prognosis of what is to come.
—India Legal
India News
PM Modi says change in government certain in Chhattisgarh
According to PM Modi, the second Parivartan Yatra was launched from Jashpur in north Chhattisgarh on September 15 while the first one left Dantewada in south Chhattisgarh on September 12.
On Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended the closing ceremony of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) two Parivartan Yatras in Bilaspur. This is PM Modi’s third trip to the state, which is governed by the Congress and will host assembly elections later this year.
The Prime Minister attacked the Bhupesh Baghel-led governance during a public rally by claiming that Chhattisgarh is steeped in corruption and misrule. Every plan of the Congress government contains a fraud.
According to PM Modi, the second Parivartan Yatra was launched from Jashpur in north Chhattisgarh on September 15 while the first one left Dantewada in south Chhattisgarh on September 12.
Before reaching their conclusion in Bilaspur, both yatras covered a distance of more than 3,000 km over 87 assembly segments (out of the total 90), he said, and included 83 Swagat Sabhas (welcome gatherings), four roadshows, and several public meetings.
The Maoist-affected districts of Bijapur, Sukma, and Antagarh are not on the schedule, although residents from these districts participated in the yatra when it went through their neighbouring districts.
The party officials and employees spirits were unaffected by the rain, he said, and they joyfully took part in the two yatras, which attracted a large number of people.
According to Sao, who expressed confidence that the Congress will be defeated in the 2019 elections, the two yatras, in which almost 50 lakh people participated, have converted the tide of change into a storm.
The program’s location has been heavily fortified with security, according to the police. There will be a total of 1,500 security personnel deployed, including police officers, members of the Special Protection Group (SPG), members of the Chhattisgarh Armed Force, and members of the National Security Guard (NSG).
According to a police, a three-kilometer radius around the city has been designated a no-fly zone, and anti-drone weaponry have also been deployed in anticipation of the PM’s visit.
The Congress gave the BJP, which had been in power for 15 years under Raman Singh, a crushing loss in the 2018 assembly elections. The BJP had only won 15 seats, while the Congress had won 68. There are 71 seats in the current Congress.
India News
Punjab: Farmer’s rail roko protest enters 3rd day, disrupts train services
Many trains have been cancelled, short-terminated, or diverted as a result of the unrest, according to railway officials.
The rail roko protest of Punjabi farmers demanding MSP legal protection, a broad debt relief, and compensation for crops damaged in the recent floods began its third day today.
Many trains have been cancelled, short-terminated, or diverted as a result of the unrest, according to railway officials.
As part of their three-day agitation, the farmers have been blocking railway tracks at various locations in Faridkot, Samrala, Moga, Hoshiarpur, Gurdaspur, Jalandhar, Tarn Taran, Sangrur, Patiala, Ferozepur, Bathinda, and Amritsar since Thursday.
In Punjab and Haryana, the protest has halted hundreds of rail passengers.
A train passenger at the Ludhiana station claimed that he had travelled by road from Jalandhar City in order to board a train to Gorakhpur, but the arrival time of the train was unknown.
Another passenger at the station claimed that the Amritsar-bound train that was scheduled to carry 12 members of his family to Bihar had to be cancelled due to the unrest.
Later, they discovered that the family had journeyed by road from Amritsar and that the train would leave from Ludhiana. He continued, however, there has still been no update on the train.
According to officials, the Ambala and Ferozepur railway divisions have suffered specifically as a result of the farmers’ unrest.
The Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee, Bharti Kisan Union (Krantikari), Bharti Kisan Union (Ekta Azaad), Azaad Kisan Committee, Doaba, Bharti Kisan Union (Behramke), Bharti Kisan Union (Shaheed Bhagat Singh), and Bharti Kisan Union (Chottu Ram) are among the farmer organisations taking part in the three-day demonstration.
The angry farmers have stated that the three-day protest will end on Saturday.
Their requests include a financial aid package for those in north India hit by floods, a statutory guarantee of the minimum support price (MSP) for all crops, and a farmer debt forgiveness programme.
The Swaminathan Commission report’s proposals for MSP and a 50,000 crore flood relief package for the states of northern India are what the farmers are asking for.
In addition, they want the debt of all farmers and labourers to be forgiven, as well as compensation of Rs 10 lakh and a government job for the families of each farmer killed during the protests against the three farm laws that have since been repealed.
India News
Sankalp Saptaah: PM Modi today launches week-long initiative for aspirational blocks at Bharat Mandapam
The country’s Sankalp Saptah programme, which is being implemented in 500 aspirational blocks throughout 329 districts, seeks to increase block-level government while also improving civilian quality of life.
At Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi on Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi introduced a week-long project named Sankalp Saptaah for the country’s aspirational groups.
He also conversed with attendees, including members from the panchayat and the block level.
The week-long programme, which is described in an official news release, is closely correlated with the national Aspirational Blocks Programme (ABP), which Modi introduced in January of this year.
The country’s Sankalp Saptah programme, which is being implemented in 500 aspirational blocks throughout 329 districts, seeks to increase block-level government while also improving civilian quality of life.
Chintan Shivirs were held nationwide at the village and block levels to help with the effective execution of the ABP and to create strong block development strategies. The result of these careful considerations, which will be seen in each of the 500 aspirational blocks, is Sankalp Saptaah.
On October 9, the final day of the seven-day event, a celebration of the week’s worth of effort will take place under the banner of Sankalp Saptaah – Samavesh Samaroh.
Speaking at the inaugural function, the prime minister claimed that more than 25 crore people’s lives in 112 districts throughout the nation had been improved by the aspirational districts plan. He asserted that the quality of living had changed. Now, the aspirational blocks programme will be built on the success of the aspirational districts programme, he said.
According to the statement, about 3,000 panchayat and block level functionaries and representatives of the people are expected to attend the inaugural event at Bharat Mandapam, in addition to about two lakh farmers, block and panchayat level functionaries, and people from other walks of life who will participate virtually.
Starting on October 3 and running through October 9, each day of Sankalp Saptaah is devoted to a distinct development subject on which all aspirational blocks will focus. Sampoorna Swasthya, Suposhit Pariwaar, Swachhta, Krishi, Shiksha, and Samridhi Diwas are some of the themes for the first six days, according to the statement.
