Twitter India head quits, Balaji Krish new interim chief
New Delhi, Sep 5: Taranjeet Singh, who was elevated as Twitter's Country Director for India in May 2017, has decided to move on.
In a series of tweets late on Tuesday, Singh announced his resignation, saying that Balaji Krish, Twitter's Global Head of Revenue Strategy and Operations, will become the interim country head.
"Hello everyone, after four amazing years, I have decided to move on from @TwitterIndia -- from being one of the first @Twitter employees in #India, to building up the sales team from the ground up, to leading our expansion and investments as the India Country Director," Singh said.
He was earlier leading the charge for sales and marketing support for Twitter's advertisers in India.
"India is one of our largest and fastest growing markets worldwide today. We have hired many Tweeps at @TwitterIndia, diversified our client base across the country and continue to be the pulse of Indian society," Singh said.
Before joining Twitter, Singh was sales director, South Asia for BBC Advertising. Prior to the BBC, he held various positions at Outlook Publishing.
"I'll spend the next month transitioning my country duties to colleague and friend @BalajiKrish, our global head of revenue strategy and operations.
"He's coming from the US to be interim country lead until my replacement is hired," Singh informed.
During his career, he saw the launch of "Twitter Lite", a more accessible, faster and affordable way to get real-time information.
When it comes to Twitter's alignment with the government, the micro-blogging platform is working with the government on real-time citizen engagement through "Twitter Seva".
"As an India-first innovation, 'Twitter Seva' is currently being used by the Ministry of Commerce (@DIPPGOI), the Ministry of Railways (@RailMinIndia) and the Department of Telecommunications (@Dot_India) under the Ministry of Communication," Singh had said in an IANS interview.
Twitter also explored new revenue streams and ways of innovation in India during Singh's career.
"The launch of Twitter Data' services in APAC with Discovery Networks Asia Pacific as the first client in the region is one such step and India is one of the focus markets for this," Singh said.
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Parliament passes Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025
New Delhi (PTI): Parliament early Friday passed the contentious Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025, after it was approved by the Rajya Sabha.
The Lok Sabha had on Thursday approved the Bill after over a 12-hour debate.
In Rajya Sabha, the Bill got 128 votes in its favour and 95 against after all the amendments moved by the opposition were rejected.
In the lower house, the bill was supported by 288 MPs while 232 voted against it.
Participating in a debate in the Rajya Sabha, Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said the Bill was brought with a number of amendments based on suggestions given by various stakeholders.
"The Waqf Board is a statutory body. All government bodies should be secular," the minister said, explaining the inclusion of non-Muslims on the board.
He, however, said the number of non-Muslims has been restricted to only four out of 22.
Rijiju also alleged that the Congress and other opposition parties, and not the BJP, were trying to scare Muslims with the Waqf Bill.
"You (opposition) are pushing Muslims out of the mainstream," he added.
He said for 60 years, the Congress and others ruled the country, but did not do much for Muslims and the community continues to live in poverty.
"Muslims are poor, who is responsible? You (Congress) are. Modi is now leading the government to uplift them," the minister said.
According to the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, Waqf tribunals will be strengthened, a structured selection process will be maintained, and a tenure will be fixed to ensure efficient dispute resolution.
As per the Bill, while Waqf institutions' mandatory contribution to Waqf boards is reduced from 7 per cent to 5 per cent, Waqf institutions earning over Rs 1 lakh will undergo audits by state-sponsored auditors.
A centralised portal will automate Waqf property management, improving efficiency and transparency.
The Bill proposes that practising Muslims (for at least five years) can dedicate their property to the Waqf, restoring pre-2013 rules.
It stipulates that women must receive their inheritance before the Waqf declaration, with special provisions for widows, divorced women and orphans.
The Bill proposes that an officer above the rank of collector investigate government properties claimed as Waqf.
It also proposes that non-Muslim members be included in the central and state Waqf boards for inclusivity.
