BJP's Karnataka executive adopts resolutions for laws against inter-faith marriages, cow slaughter
Bengaluru: The BJP's Karnataka state executive on Saturday adopted resolutions for the passage and implementation of legislation against inter-faith marriages and cow slaughter in the state.
State BJP President Nalin Kumar Kateel said the government would take necessary decisions in this regard, a release said.
Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa, BJP national general secretary in charge of Karnataka Arun Singh, Union Minister Pralhad Joshi were among those present at the meeting held on Saturday at Belagavi.
Karnataka Animal Husbandry Minister Prabhu Chavan has already indicated that the anti-cow slaughter bill will be introduced during the state legislative session starting from December 7.
Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai has said the state will have a law against "love jihad", and officials have been directed to gather information regarding an ordinance promulgated in Uttar Pradesh in this regard.
Uttar Pradesh had recently promulgated an ordinance against forcible or fraudulent religious conversions, which provides for imprisonment of up to 10 years and a fine of up to Rs 50,000 under different categories.
"Love jihad" is a coinage used by right-wing activists to refer to the alleged campaign of Muslims forcing Hindu girls to convert in the guise of love.
The state executive of the BJP has also strategized at ensuring that a large number of BJP supported candidates win the upcoming Gram Panchayat polls.
According to sources, the party's election committee and the disciplinary committee were also constituted.
They said instructions have also been given to leaders and workers not to make statements on issues concerning the party or government in public or in front of the media, and to discuss them at the appropriate forums within the party.
This has come amid recent developments in the BJP, as the wait is on for expansion or reshuffle of the state cabinet, with some aspirants openly expressing their resentment about the possible induction of certain legislators.
According to reports, during the BJP's meeting in Belagavi views have been expressed about the need to discuss at party forums before taking certain decisions at the government level.
It is said that this was following Yediyurappa's move to recommend inclusion of the dominant Veerashaiva- Lingayat community under the central government's OBC list, which has been put on hold, and also certain appointments made to boards and corporations.
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India should create strategic buffers to navigate 'most difficult' energy shock: CEA Nageswaran
New Delhi (PTI): Chief Economic Advisor V Anantha Nageswaran on Saturday said India needs to create strategic buffers in the face of the "most difficult" energy shock that the country is facing amid the West Asia crisis.
Nageswaran also said the rising prices of fertiliser and petroleum products globally due to the crisis will make it challenging to achieve the 4.3 per cent fiscal deficit target for the current fiscal, while below normal monsoon and pass-through of higher energy prices could lead to "potential inflation spike".
He also said India has employment challenge emanating from AI, and there is a need to ensure that IT sector becomes more competitive and not lose jobs to AI, and instead create jobs that use AI within the IT sector or in other services.
Speaking at the ICPP Growth Conference organised by the Ashoka University, Nageswaran said the current account deficit (CAD) in the current fiscal could rise to over 2 per cent of GDP, from less than 1 per cent in FY'26.
"The ... priority for us is to create strategic buffers. This energy shock is the most difficult one compared to any other previous energy shock in terms of energy lost as a percentage of total global energy supply, not just oil, including gas.
"And we also need to use this occasion to think about other areas where we are vulnerable in terms of import dependence, nickel, tin, and copper. We need to build strategic buffers if we have to make a shot at manufacturing and becoming indispensable," Nageswaran said.
Since the beginning of the war in West Asia on February 28, crude oil prices soared to a four-year high of USD 126 per barrel on Thursday, from about USD 73 level before the war.
Stating that geopolitics will compel policymakers to be nimble and flexible and shed old model of thinking, Nageswaran said India is better prepared than many other countries to deal with the crisis because of the fiscal leeway that the country has due to lowering of fiscal deficit ratio to 4.4 per cent of GDP in FY'26.
Nageswaran said the West Asia conflict is more of a price shock than supply shock for India as the government is managing the supply side deftly.
"This particular conflict, which is going to be on a low simmer or a high flame situation, whatever it is, it is going to be there with us in some form or the other because the military conflict may be over, but the strategic conflict is well and truly alive. It will be so for some time," Nageswaran said.
He said the conflict has four channels of shock: price and supply shock, trade impact, sticky logistics costs and remittance shock.
India imports 60 per cent of its LPG usage and of that, 90 per cent flows through the now closed Strait of Hormuz.
Nageswaran said the pass-through of high global energy prices would have to be a "balancing act". He said some pass-through is already happening in commercial LPG, and the levy of export duty on diesel and ATF.
The government has cut excise duty on petrol and diesel to shield customers from the impact of the rise in petroleum prices. "We are coming around to arriving at a certain modus vivendi with respect to burden-sharing between the fiscal policy side, inflation, households and the oil marketing companies. So it has to be a balancing act," Nageswaran said.
