Bringing down elected govt with money is treachery: Shiv Sena
Mumbai: Phone tapping is an assault on personal freedom and bringing down a democratically-elected government using money amounts to "treachery", the Shiv Sena said on Monday referring to the Rajasthan political crisis.
It needs to be decided which one of this is a bigger crime, an editorial in Shiv Sena mouthpiece 'Saamana' said, claiming the Rajasthan telephone tapping episode has exposed many.
It said a lot of revelation will come to the fore in case someone hears secretly the conversations among Congress leaders and those (conversations) reach party leader Rahul Gandhi's ears, and claimed some people are hell-bent to not let the Wayanad MP work properly.
This, in effect, hurts the entire opposition, the Shiv Sena said.
Its comments came in the wake of the Centre seeking a report from Rajasthan chief secretary on allegations of phone tapping after two audio clips of conversations purportedly regarding a conspiracy to topple the states Congress government emerged.
The FIR registered by Rajasthan Polices Anti- Corruption Bureau mentions details of conversations of (Congress rebel MLA) Bhanwarlal Sharma with Gajendra Singh (Congress claims it is a reference to Union minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat) and a third man called Sanjay Jain.
The BJP on Saturday asked if the Congress government in the state resorted to unconstitutional methods to tap the phones of politicians, and demanded a CBI probe into what it called a saga of illegalities and concocted lies.
Rajasthan plunged into a political crisis after Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot's deputy Sachin Pilot rebelled. The Congress later removed Pilot as the deputy chief minister and also as the party's state unit head.
"Phone tapping is an offence and assault on personal freedom. It is treachery to bring down a democratically- elected government using money. Hence, it needs to be decided which one is a bigger crime, the Shiv Sena said.
"The deal which was on between the BJP and Sachin Pilot was to the extreme of exchanging money. That means it was decided that the Rajasthan government would be brought down by offering money and purchasing majority engaging in horse trading," it alleged.
"Chief Minister Gehlot exposed that Sachin Pilots rebellion against injustice was a lie (not genuine) and for that, brought to light the phone conversation between Pilot and BJP leaders. It is shocking and equally sensational," it further said.
"The central powers pressure and money was used to bring down the Gehlot government," the Shiv Sena charged, adding that the Congress foiled it.
It further said phone tapping is an assault on one's personal freedom and the Centre ordering a probe into the episode was right.
"Now the question is what was the emergency in the country or the state that led to the Gehlot government hearing the conversations? Activities were on in Rajasthan to bring down a majority government and MLAs were being bought at increasing prices, the Shiv Sena alleged.
Pilots rebellion was driven more by money than morality. This is nothing but corruption and the Gehlot government has registered an offence against Union minister Shekhawat based on evidence, it said.
The BJP is not ready to speak about the serious offences and allegations against Shekhawat, it further said.
Why those who are seeking President's rule in Rajasthan have not made Shekhawat resign? First, make Shekhawat resign, atone for poaching of MLAs and then point a finger towards the Gehlot government, the Shiv Sena said.
It said phone tapping is not limited to Rajasthan only.
Allegations are being made about shadows of invisible Emergency hovering over the country, it said.
"Games are being played these days to debilitate opponents politically, socially and mentally by dislodging them from their governments (in the states), it claimed.
The Shiv Sena, which formed government in Maharashtra with the NCP and Congress last year, alleged that the dramatic events, unfolding before the Maha Vikas Aghadi regime was established in the state, were tinged with phone tapping of leaders of the three parties.
It also said disputes within the Congress are unending and are raked up by certain people, as if to not let Rahul Gandhi succeed.
The Congress lost power in Madhya Pradesh out of such disputes, while the Rajasthan government has been saved for the moment, the Uddhav Thackeray-led party said.
The Rajasthan phone tapping episode has exposed many.
But a lot of revelation will come to the fore if someone hears secretly conversation among Congress leaders and takes it (conversation) to Gandhi. Some people have been hell-bent on not letting Gandhi work properly. This is hurting the entire Opposition, it said.
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AI, IndiGo, SpiceJet seek ATF price relief; say airline industry on verge of 'stopping operations'
Mumbai (PTI): Air India, IndiGo and SpiceJet have told the government that the country's airline industry is under extreme stress and on the verge of "stopping operations", as they sought revision in ATF pricing and financial support.
The West Asia turmoil has pushed up oil prices, and airspace restrictions have increased airlines' operating costs, especially on long-haul routes. Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF) accounts for around 40 per cent of a carrier's operational expenses.
Against this backdrop, the Federation of Indian Airlines (FIA) has written to the civil aviation ministry, seeking steps to extend the same fuel pricing mechanism uniformly across both domestic and international operations as was done in the past with the establishment of the crack band.
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With an unprecedented rise in jet fuel prices and exorbitant crack/differential between crude and ATF, the federation said the operation of airlines is being challenged in totality.
"... any ad hoc pricing (domestic vs international) and/or irrational increase in the price of ATF will result in unsurmountable losses for airlines and will lead to grounding of aircraft, resulting in cancellation of flights," the federation, which represents Air India, IndiGo and SpiceJet, said.
"In order to survive, sustain and continue operation, we request your urgent intervention for immediate and meaningful financial support to tide over the current situation," it said in a letter on April 26.
Also, the airlines have sought temporary deferment of excise duty on ATF, which is at 11 per cent.
"With the abnormal increase in ATF prices from the pre-crisis period, adding rupee depreciation to the increased prices, the 11 per cent excise duty also increases manifold for the airlines and adds to the ATF price as a big impact on airlines," they said.
Last month, the government limited the hike in ATF price to Rs 15 per litre for domestic operations, but for international operations, the price rose by Rs 73 per litre.
The airlines said the situation has practically made international operations, along with domestic operations, completely unviable and resulted in significant losses for the aviation sector in April.
Seeking urgent intervention on the current ATF ad hoc pricing, FIA said the current situation is creating a severe imbalance in domestic and international operations and rendering airline networks unviable and unsustainable.
"The airline industry in India is under extreme stress and is on the verge of closing down or of stopping its operations."
The federation has pitched for a transparent pricing framework under the crack band mechanism (USD 12–22/BBL) that was implemented in October 2022, saying there was a fair and reasonable margin for Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs).
According to FIA, the country's largest aviation hub Delhi has the second-highest value-added tax (VAT) of 25 per cent on jet fuel, while the highest rate is 29 per cent levied in Tamil Nadu.
"The other major aviation cities, viz. Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, and Kolkata range between 16 per cent and 20 per cent. These 6 cities cover more than 50 per cent of airlines' operations within India," the federation said.
