Rahul Gandhi targets Modi on black money
New Delhi, June 29 : Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Friday targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the issue of black money and said he had promised to bring back all illegal money stashed abroad but his government was now virtually saying that there was no illegal money in Swiss banks.
In a tweet, Gandhi referred to Interim Finance Minister Piyush Goyal's remarks earlier in the day about the latest data released by the Swiss National Bank that showed a rise in Indian deposits last year.
Gandhi said that the Modi government had carried out demonetisation to supposedly curb black money but its stance now was totally different.
"In 2014, he said: I will bring back all the "BLACK" money in Swiss Banks and put Rs 15 lakh in each Indian bank account. In 2016, he said: Demonetisation will cure India of "BLACK" money. In 2018, he says: 50 per cent jump in Swiss Bank deposits by Indians, is "WHITE" money. No "BLACK" (money) in Swiss banks!" the Congress chief said.
Goyal had maintained that under an agreement signed by the Modi government with Switzerland, all data from January 1, 2018, will be made available to the Indian government.
He was responding to a query about the data showing a rise in Indian deposits last year in Switzerland.
"From what I understand (from media reports) 40 per cent increase in foreign remittances are on account of the Reserve Bank's Liberalised Remittance Scheme brought during the previous (UPA) government under which a resident Indian can remit $250,000 per year," the Minister said.
"Then, there are also non-resident deposits... rest assured, if any wrongdoing is revealed, we will take action. With the various measures of this government against black money, Swiss bank deposits have been decreasing," he added.
The data showed that after falling for three years in succession, money parked by Indians in Swiss banks rose 50 per cent to Swiss Francs 1.02 billion in 2017 over the previous year.
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K’taka HC judge whose controversial remarks triggered controversy expresses regret before open court
Bengaluru: Karnataka High Court judge, Justice V Srishananda, on Saturday expressed regret in open court after facing backlash over his controversial remarks in his recent court hearings, reported Bar and Bench.
Two purported video clips from Justice V Srishananda’s court hearing that show him making inappropriate comments went viral across social media platforms.
On Saturday, Justice Srishananda invited members of the Advocates Association, Bengaluru, and senior lawyers to his courtroom at 2:30 PM, where he read out a note expressing regret for inappropriate comments.
Quoting Advocates Association President Vivek Subba Reddy, Bar and Bench wrote, “He expressed regret for the comments and clarified that it was not his intention to offend any community or members of the Bar. He also requested the association to relay this message to all members of the Bar.”
Reddy further stated, “We also advised him to encourage young lawyers in the courtroom and refrain from making any irrelevant remarks during hearings.”
Another senior lawyer present during the session confirmed to the legal news portal that Justice Srishananda also addressed comments directed at a woman lawyer, who was seen in one of the videos being reprimanded by the judge. The judge Justice Srishananda clarified that his remarks were not intended to target her (woman lawyer) specifically, but rather pertained to the appellant she was representing. “He explained that his comment was meant to imply that the appellant seemed to know a lot about the other party,” said the lawyer.
In addition, Justice Srishananda assured those present that he would avoid making such comments in the future.
The controversy came to light on September 19, when a video clip from an August 28 Court hearing surfaced on social media, showing Justice Srishananda referring to a Muslim-majority sub-locality in Bengaluru’s Goripalya as "Pakistan." Hours later, another video from the same courtroom emerged, in which the judge was seen making a gender-insensitive remark.
Following outrage over the viral videos, a Supreme Court bench led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, along with Justices Sanjiv Khanna, BR Gavai, Surya Kant, and Hrishikesh Roy, on September 20 took a suo motu cognizance and sought a report from the Karnataka High Court Registrar General in connection with the viral video.
