D K Shivakumar hits out at I-T dept over gifting phones
Bengaluru: Former minister and Congress leader D K Shivakumar on Sunday lashed out at investigating agencies for serving notices on him for gifting phones to a few MPs, including some from the BJP, and not on those who received the devices.
Shivakumar was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on September 3 in an alleged money laundering case and was in judicial custody at the Tihar Jail.
On Saturday, he returned to a rousing welcome from Delhi to Bengaluru after getting bail.
Holding a press conference at the party office on Sunday, Shivakumar said, As irrigation minister I had to deal with certain issues. Some people asked me to give them some latest phones, which I gave. Immediately I received a notice from the I-T department."
"Following the notice, I showed expenditure from personal account, not from any other," he said. He said barring three persons, all other people whom he gifted phones had accepted them.
"All those who gave statements (against me) have received phones from me. The notice should also be served to them, isnt it? Shouldnt notice be served on all those who received gifts above Rs 50,000? But I dont want to raise that issue," he said.
"I dont want to go to that level, a peeved Shivakumar told reporters. The former minister said he was under watch and his every step was closely monitored.
This is only an example how I was tortured. It has been going on for the past one year. I will bring these facts up in some forum. I will have to bring it to the knowledge of people, but at an appropriate time, Shivakumar said.
Shivakumar said he should be liable to punishment if he has done anything wrong. He claimed he never committed any and was ready to contest the allegations.
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India, China bear brunt of Trump's tougher visa policies: report
Washington (PTI): India and China bore the maximum brunt of tougher immigration policy unveiled by the Trump administration which issued 2.5 lakh fewer visas in the first eight months of 2025 compared with the same period in 2024, according to a media report.
From January to August 2025, the State Department approved 11 per cent fewer permanent resident and temporary visas compared with the same period a year before, according to State Department data released in early March.
These visas are generally issued for students, workers, and family members of citizens and legal residents.
The 11 per cent drop doesn't include tourist visas, which also fell during the same period, the Washington Post reported on Sunday.
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According to the report, visas for Chinese and Indian nationals fell by about 84,000 compared with the same period in 2024, largely reflecting a drop-off in international students and workers from those countries.
Business and tourism visas declined by about 3.4 per cent in the first eight months of 2025 compared with that period a year earlier, a drop of nearly two lakh visas.
Between January and August 2024, the US had issued more than 3.44 lakh student visas, the number declined to a little over 2.38 lakh during the same period in 2025.
The family preference visa, which includes adult children and siblings of US citizens fell by more than 27 per cent or by over 44,000.
The visas issued to sea and airline workers also reduced by 30,876, while those issued for culture exchange visitors declined by 29,594.
The visas issued to fiance/spouse declined from 37,229 in the first eight months of 2024 to 18,894 for the period under review in 2025.
White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said in a statement that “President Trump was elected with a resounding mandate to put American citizens first and every policy decision he’s made has reflected that priority.”
In a statement to The Washington Post, State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said: “A visa is a privilege, not a right. Unlike the Biden administration, President Trump is not willing to compromise the safety of American citizens to allow mass migration of unvetted foreign nationals into our country.”
