'Vote chori' main issue before country today, PM's Manipur visit now no 'big deal': Rahul Gandhi
Junagadh (PTI): Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday said Manipur has been in trouble for a long time and Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the strife-torn state now is not a "big deal" as he insisted "vote chori" (vote theft) remains the main issue before the country currently.
Talking to reporters outside the Keshod airport in Junagadh district of Gujarat, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha claimed everywhere people are raising "vote chor" (vote thief) slogan.
After landing at the airport in the afternoon, Gandhi reached Junagadh city where is scheduled to address district and city unit presidents of the Congress in Gujarat and interact with senior leaders.
When reporters sought Gandhi's comments on PM Modi's scheduled visit to Manipur on Saturday, the Congress MP sought to downplay his tour to the trouble-torn north-eastern state.
"Manipur has been in trouble for a long time and the PM has decided to go there now. So that's not a big deal. The main issue today in India is 'vote chori' (vote theft)," asserted Gandhi.
Modi will visit Manipur on September 13 and interact with internally displaced people in Churachandpur and state capital Imphal. This will be the PM's first visit to Manipur since ethnic violence broke out in the state two years ago.
"They stole the elections of Haryana and Maharashtra. We proved that in Karnataka recently. So, the main issue is vote theft. Everywhere people are raising 'vote chor' (vote thief) slogan," said the Lok Sabha MP from Raebareli.
A training camp for local party leaders is being organised in Junagadh from September 10 to 19 as part of the Congress' 'Sangathan Srujan Abhiyan' (campaign to strengthen the organisation) in the BJP-ruled state.
The camp was inaugurated on Wednesday by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge.
"Rahul Gandhi will address district and city unit presidents and interact with senior leaders of the party. He will be at the event for nearly three hours before leaving for Delhi," Gujarat Congress spokesperson Manish Doshi said.
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Ordinance issued to increase number of Supreme Court judges from 34 to 38
New Delhi (PTI): The government has promulgated an ordinance to increase the strength of the Supreme Court from the present 34 judges to 38, including the Chief Justice of India.
The law ministry notified the ordinance on Saturday, which amended the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, 1956, to increase the sanctioned strength of the top court.
So far, the sanctioned strength of the top court was 34, including the Chief Justice of India (CJI). Now, the number of judges has been increased by four, taking the sanctioned strength to 38.
The top court will now have 37 judges, other than the CJI.
With the apex court having two vacancies at present, and the ordinance coming into force immediately, the Supreme Court Collegium will now have to recommend six names for appointment as judges in the top court.
A bill will be brought in the Monsoon Session of Parliament to convert the ordinance – an executive order – into a law passed by Parliament.
The Union Cabinet had cleared a draft bill on May 5 to increase the number of apex court judges.
The strength of the Supreme Court was last increased from 30 to 33 (excluding the CJI) in 2019.
The Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, as originally enacted in 1956, put the maximum number of judges (excluding the CJI) at 10.
This number was increased to 13 by the Supreme Court (Number of Judges), Amendment Act, 1960, and to 17 by another amendment to the law.
The Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Act, 1986, augmented the strength of judges from 17 to 25, excluding the CJI.
A fresh amendment in 2009 further increased the strength from 25 to 30.
Article 124(3) of the Constitution lists the qualifications required to become a Supreme Court judge.
An Indian citizen who has either served as a high court judge for at least five years, or as an advocate for 10 years, or is a distinguished jurist, can be appointed to the top court.
The strength of the Supreme Court is increased based on the recommendations of the CJI, who writes to the Union law minister. After consulting the finance ministry, the Department of Justice under the law ministry moves the Cabinet with a draft bill.
