Indian-American foreign policy expert Tellis arrested for retaining national defence information
Washington (PTI): Ashley J Tellis, a prominent Indian-American strategic affairs expert, has been arrested on charges of unlawfully retaining national defence information.
A respected voice in Washington's foreign policy establishment, Tellis is currently a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, specialising in international security, defence, and Asian strategic issues.
"Tellis, 64, of Vienna, VA, was arrested over the weekend in Vienna, Virginia, and charged by criminal complaint with the unlawful retention of national defence information," the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia said in a statement on Tuesday.
“The charges as alleged in this case represent a grave risk to the safety and security of our citizens,” US Attorney Lindsey Halligan said, adding that the office remained “fully focused on protecting the American people from all threats, foreign and domestic”.
If convicted, Tellis faces up to 10 years in prison, a fine of up to USD 250,000, a USD 100 special assessment and forfeiture, the statement said.
“The facts and the law in this case are clear, and we will continue following them to ensure that justice is served,” it said.
A federal district judge will determine any sentence after considering the US Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors, the statement said.
Born in Mumbai and educated at the University of Chicago, Tellis has been a prolific writer and adviser on defence and Asia policy. He was closely involved in shaping the landmark India-US civil nuclear agreement during the George W Bush administration that transformed bilateral ties in the mid-2000s.
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Sensex, Nifty tumble as Budget proposes to raise Securities Transaction Tax to 0.05 pc on commodity
Mumbai (PTI): Stock market benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty tumbled on Sunday afternoon trade after the Budget proposed to raise Securities Transaction Tax to 0.05 per cent on commodity futures from 0.02 per cent.
The government will tax buyback proceeds for all types of shareholders as capital gains, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Sunday.
After fluctuating in early trade, the 30-share BSE Sensex later bounced back but pared all gains amid the Budget presentation.
It later plunged 2,370.36 points, or 2.88 per cent, to slip below the 80,000-mark to 79,899.42 during the afternoon trade. The 50-share NSE Nifty tanked 748.9 points, or 2.95 per cent, to 24,571.75.
From the 30 Sensex firms, Bharat Electronics tanked 6.50 per cent. State Bank of India, HCL Tech, Tata Steel, Asian Paints, and Eternal were also among the laggards.
Sun Pharma, Sun Pharma, Kotak Mahindra Bank, and Tata Consultancy Services were the gainers.
"The increase in Securities Transaction Tax (STT), especially in futures and options, is likely to act as a marginal negative for foreign portfolio investor (FPI) flows in the near term, particularly for high-frequency and derivative-focused global funds," Aakash Shah, Technical Research Analyst at Choice Equity Broking, said.
Foreign institutional investors bought equities worth Rs 2,251.37 crore on Friday, according to exchange data.
Asian markets are closed on Sunday due to holidays. US markets ended lower on Friday.
On Friday, the Sensex declined 296.59 points, or 0.36 per cent, to settle at 82,269.78. The Nifty dropped 98.25 points, or 0.39 per cent, to end at 25,320.65.
