16-hour discussion in LS on Operation Sindoor next week
The decision was taken at the meeting of the Business Advisory Committee. Though the Opposition initially objected to the timing of the debate, the Congress said that it will abide by the proposal of the government.
While the government's floor managers pointed out that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be abroad from June 23-26, the Opposition insisted that the discussion should start immediately followed by the PM's reply.
Later in the evening, at a meeting of floor leaders, the Congress decided that it will wait until Modi's return for the discussions on the Pahalgam attack and Operation Sindoor to take place. 'We will ask the government to hold the discussions as soon as the PM returns from the trip,' said a leader who attended the meeting. The leader told this paper that the party will hold a meeting with the floor leaders of INDIA bloc leaders on Tuesday and will take a final call.
At the BAC meeting, Opposition members protested that the government's agenda for the week did not mention their demand on Operation Sindoor. Some Opposition members also called for a debate on the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in Bihar and the situation in Manipur.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
28 minutes ago
- Time of India
India, US BTA not signed yet, 5 rounds of talks held: Govt to Parliament
The Monsoon Session of the Parliament begins on Monday marking the first sitting since Operation Sindoor, India's precision airstrikes on terror camps in Pakistan. India and the US are currently engaged in negotiations for a Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA), with five rounds of talks completed as of now. Simultaneously, India's Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the UK, finalized in May, aims for deeper economic integration and tariff concessions, benefiting various sectors including textiles, IT, and agriculture. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads New Delhi: India and US are negotiating a Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) which has not been signed as yet and five rounds of negotiations have been held till now, the government informed Parliament on BTA negotiations were launched in March 2025.'India and the US are negotiating a Bilateral Trade Agreement which has not been signed as yet,' minister of state, commerce and industry ministry, told Lok Sabha in a written a separate reply, he also said that the last round of talks was held from July 14-18 in minister also said that India's free trade agreement (FTA) with the UK is a modern, comprehensive and landmark agreement which seeks to achieve deepeconomic integration along with trade liberalisation and tariff concessions.'The FTA ensures comprehensive market access for goods, across all sectors, covering all of India's export interests. The FTA seeks to promote good regulatory practices and enhance transparency that are in sync with India's own focus on domestic reforms to enhance the ease of doing business,' he that the government takes care of all the sensitivities associated with the FTA and ensures that India's interests are protected, he said: 'Every FTA is unique and is based on specific dynamics of trade and is aimed at maximizing benefits for both nations.'More than 99% of Indian exports are expected to benefit from tariff liberalization under the FTA including improved export opportunities in labour-intensive sectors such as textiles, leather, gems and jewellery, engineering goods, auto parts, and FTA will also support services exports due to commitments across trade in services such as IT/ITeS, financial services, professional services, other businessservices and educational agreement will benefit Indian farmers, fishermen, workers, MSMEs, startups and innovators,' he the India-UK FTA negotiations concluded in May, the talks with the EU are ongoing. Twelve rounds of negotiations have been held till recently, the last being from July 7-11 at Brussels.
The Hindu
28 minutes ago
- The Hindu
Income Tax Appellate Tribunal rejects Congress' appeal against tax demand on ₹199 crore income
The Income Tax Appellate Tribunal on Tuesday (July 22, 2025) has rejected the Indian National Congress' appeal against an income tax demand on an income of ₹199.15 crore, saying that the party filed its returns past the deadline for availing of exemptions due to political parties, and that it also violated cash donation limits. 'We thus conclude that the assessee's return filed on 02.02.2019 is not within the 'due' date to make it eligible for the impugned exemption,' the ITAT said in its order. According to the order, the Congress filed its income tax return for the financial year 2017-18 on February 2, 2019. As per the Income Tax Act, 1961, political parties are allowed a later deadline for filing their returns. For the financial year 2017-18, that deadline was December 31, 2018. In its return, the Congress had declared nil income for 2017-18 after claiming an exemption of ₹199.15 crore under Section 13A of the Income Tax Act, 1961. However, the ITAT ruled that, since the return was filed late, it was not eligible for this exemption. In addition, the assessing officer also found that the Congress had received ₹14.49 lakh as cash donations, which exceeded the limit of ₹2,000 per individual. According to changes made to the Income Tax Act made through the Finance Act 2017, political parties can receive donations above ₹2,000 only through formal banking channels, not cash. Overall, the party's declared total receipts of ₹199.15 crore against expenses of ₹197.43 crore, thereby showing a surplus of ₹1.71 crore. However, the Income Tax Department's assessment order on July 6, 2021, denied that the income could be exempted from tax, making the full receipt amount taxable. The Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) then upheld this decision on March 28, 2023, following which the Congress approached the Appellate Tribunal.
The Hindu
28 minutes ago
- The Hindu
BSF raises 'drone squadron' for Indo-Pak border post-Operation Sindoor
The Border Security Force (BSF) is raising a maiden "drone squadron" for deployment along the India-Pakistan border even as it has begun "hardening" its defences and posts against lethal UAV attacks in the wake of lessons drawn during Operation Sindoor. The squadron, to be based in specific border outposts (BoPs) at this front, will comprise an assortment of reconnaissance, surveillance and attack drones or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and specially-trained personnel who can operate these machines, official sources in the security establishment said. The squadron will be navigated by a control room based in the western command headquarters of the BSF in Chandigarh, the sources said. The BSF is primarily tasked to guard the India-Pakistan international border (IB). The decision to raise the unit was taken after a recent review of the strengths, weaknesses and threats facing the force post-Operation Sindoor. The operation was launched by India to strike at terrorist and defence bases in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) as a retaliation against the Pahalgam attack of April 22 in which 26 people, mostly tourists, were killed in the Baisaran meadows. The BSF actively participated in the operation, launched on May 7, along with the Army. Pakistan sent thousands of drones, including a swarm of these flying objects, in response to Operation Sindoor to target Indian bases as well as civilian areas along the western front. On May 10, a bomb-laden Pakistani drone dropped explosives at its border post Kharkola in the RS Pura sector of Jammu. Two BSF personnel and an Army jawan deployed at the post were killed while four troops were critically injured, with one of them undergoing a leg amputation during treatment. Sources said the BSF drone squadron will be located in a specific number of BOPs located along the more than 2,000-km-long India-Pakistan border running from Jammu in the north to Punjab, Rajasthan and Gujarat on the western side of the country. The squadron will be equipped with a variety of small and large surveillance, reconnaissance and attack drones that will be launched during operations or any 'hot war' like situation similar to Operation Sindoor, the sources in the security establishment said. A small team of about 2-3 personnel each will be deployed in "vulnerable and specified" BOPs. Some drones and gadgetry are being procured for the maiden squadron and the personnel chosen for the task are being trained in batches, they said. The BSF, learning from the May 10 drone attack, has also begun hardening its defences and bunkers, along the border with Pakistan to fend off attacks in which enemy drones cross over and drop bombs and explosives. The roofs and walls of the BOP bunkers are being strengthened using alloy sheets. Some more measures are being taken to fortify the posts that are vulnerable to drone attacks, sources said as they refused to elaborate, citing operational confidentiality. A BSF officer deployed along this front added that the force is in touch with defence research and intelligence agencies to deploy counter-drone machines at select border posts so that "rogue or armed drones" flying in from across the frontier can be neutralised. Union Home Minister Amit Shah had said that the BSF destroyed more than 118 Pakistani posts and "completely dismantled" their surveillance system during Operation Sindoor.
