Ex-Pak PM Imran Khan praises India's foreign policy, plays EAM Jaishankar's video at a rally
Lahore, Aug 14: Pakistan's ousted prime minister Imran Khan has once again heaped praise on India for pursuing an "independent foreign policy" and lauded Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar for standing firm to the sustained US pressure over buying cheap oil from Russia.
While addressing a rally here on Saturday, on the eve of the country's 75th Independence Day, Khan said that while India bought oil from Russia because it was in its people's interest, the current dispensation under Shehbaz Sharif said Pakistan couldn't survive without Washington's support.
"If India which got independence at the same time as Pakistan and if New Delhi can take a firm stand and make their foreign policy as per the need of its people then who are they (Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif government) who are towing the line," Khan said at the rally.
Khan, the 69-year-old cricketer-turned-politician was voted out of power last month through a no-confidence motion, which he alleges was masterminded by the US with the help of local players over his pursuance of an independent foreign policy.
This is not the first time that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party chairman has praised India for pursuing an independent foreign policy.
In May, Khan praised India for pursuing its "independent" foreign policy and said the US cannot dare to dictate to India because it is a free country.
"India is buying oil and weapons from Russia but the US does not say anything to it because it (India) is an independent country. India is also doing trade with Iran but the US does not object to it," he had said.
Khan played out External Affairs Minister Jaishankar's video clip at Saturday's rally to elucidate his point further.
"India's foreign minister was told by them (referring to the US) not to buy oil from Russia. He (Jaishankar) categorically told them Who are you to tell us what to do'. The Indian foreign minister told them if Europe is buying gas from Russia...who are you to tell us (India) not to buy oil from Russia," Khan said, while asserting that India is a sovereign country and has the courage to protect the interest of its people.
Jaishankar had made the following remarks at the GLOBSEC 2022 Bratislava Forum in Slovakia in June on the topic 'Taking Friendship to the Next Level: Allies in the Indo-Pacific Region'.
Khan also slammed the Sharif government for bowing down to US pressure on buying Russian oil.
"India forms it's (foreign) policy keeping in view the interest of its people but those who are imposed on us (Sharifs and Zardaris) they watch only their interests," he said, adding that if India can safeguard the interests of its people, why cannot the Pakistani government do the same?
Khan also regretted that he wanted to buy cheap oil from Russia to benefit the poor, but his government was sent packing through a conspiracy hatched by the US and its three stooges -- Sharif, Asif Zaradri and Fazlur Rehman.
Khan said that he is not "anti-American and wants a "friendly relationship with the US, instead of becoming their "slave.
Khan said he had enjoyed "good ties with former US president Donald Trump as he was "respectable during his visit to the US.
"Ask anyone from the Pakistan-American community they will testify that no one before me had gotten the protocol that Trump gave to me, he claimed.
During the rally, Khan shared his party's "roadmap for Haqeeqi Azadi (real freedom) to counter the federal government and push towards early elections.
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Single higher education regulator bill tabled in LS; Oppn flags ‘centralisation,' JPC likely
New Delhi: A bill to set up a 13-member body to regulate institutions of higher education was introduced in the Lok Sabha on Monday.
Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan introduced the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, which seeks to establish an overarching higher education commission along with three councils for regulation, accreditation, and ensuring academic standards for universities and higher education institutions in India.
Meanwhile, the move drew strong opposition, with members warning that it could weaken institutional autonomy and result in excessive centralisation of higher education in India.
The Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, 2025, earlier known as the Higher Education Council of India (HECI) Bill, has been introduced in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
The proposed legislation seeks to merge three existing regulatory bodies, the University Grants Commission (UGC), the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), and the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE), into a single unified body called the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan.
At present, the UGC regulates non-technical higher education institutions, the AICTE oversees technical education, and the NCTE governs teacher education in India.
Under the proposed framework, the new commission will function through three separate councils responsible for regulation, accreditation, and the maintenance of academic standards across universities and higher education institutions in the country.
According to the Bill, the present challenges faced by higher educational institutions due to the multiplicity of regulators having non-harmonised regulatory approval protocols will be done away with.
The higher education commission, which will be headed by a chairperson appointed by the President of India, will cover all central universities and colleges under it, institutes of national importance functioning under the administrative purview of the Ministry of Education, including IITs, NITs, IISc, IISERs, IIMs, and IIITs.
At present, IITs and IIMs are not regulated by the University Grants Commission (UGC).
Government to refer bill to JPC; Oppn slams it
The government has expressed its willingness to refer it to a joint committee after several members of the Lok Sabha expressed strong opposition to the Bill, stating that they were not given time to study its provisions.
Responding to the opposition, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said the government intends to refer the Bill to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) for detailed examination.
Congress Lok Sabha MP Manish Tewari warned that the Bill could result in “excessive centralisation” of higher education. He argued that the proposed law violates the constitutional division of legislative powers between the Union and the states.
According to him, the Bill goes beyond setting academic standards and intrudes into areas such as administration, affiliation, and the establishment and closure of university campuses. These matters, he said, fall under Entry 25 of the Concurrent List and Entry 32 of the State List, which cover the incorporation and regulation of state universities.
Tewari further stated that the Bill suffers from “excessive delegation of legislative power” to the proposed commission. He pointed out that crucial aspects such as accreditation frameworks, degree-granting powers, penalties, institutional autonomy, and even the supersession of institutions are left to be decided through rules, regulations, and executive directions. He argued that this amounts to a violation of established constitutional principles governing delegated legislation.
Under the Bill, the regulatory council will have the power to impose heavy penalties on higher education institutions for violating provisions of the Act or related rules. Penalties range from ₹10 lakh to ₹75 lakh for repeated violations, while establishing an institution without approval from the commission or the state government could attract a fine of up to ₹2 crore.
Concerns were also raised by members from southern states over the Hindi nomenclature of the Bill. N.K. Premachandran, an MP from the Revolutionary Socialist Party representing Kollam in Kerala, said even the name of the Bill was difficult to pronounce.
He pointed out that under Article 348 of the Constitution, the text of any Bill introduced in Parliament must be in English unless Parliament decides otherwise.
DMK MP T.M. Selvaganapathy also criticised the government for naming laws and schemes only in Hindi. He said the Constitution clearly mandates that the nomenclature of a Bill should be in English so that citizens across the country can understand its intent.
Congress MP S. Jothimani from Tamil Nadu’s Karur constituency described the Bill as another attempt to impose Hindi and termed it “an attack on federalism.”
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