Election Commission wants same trauma for entire country: Congress
The party also demanded the EC shelve its plan for a nationwide special intensive revision, calling it 'unconstitutional'.
The apex court on Thursday allowed the Election Commission of India to continue with its special intensive revision of electoral rolls in Bihar, calling it a 'constitutional mandate'.
The Congress said it is satisfied by the Supreme Court order as it has 'validated' the Aadhar card, the voter identity card and the ration card as a proof of identity which roughly covers 90 percent of the people who could be affected by the SIR condition of producing proof of citizenship.
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Time of India
20 minutes ago
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Margao: In a major blow to the practice of comunidades to settle court cases with tenants through the sharing of disputed land, the Supreme Court has held that such arrangements violate both the Tenancy Act and the Land Use Act, effectively circumventing statutory protections for agricultural land. The SC, in its judgment delivered on Monday, dismissed an appeal by the comunidade of Tivim, upholding a lower court's decision to deny permission for a proposed 60:40 land-sharing compromise with agricultural tenants. The verdict of Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and K Vinod Chandran said that the proposed compromise terms 'fall foul of both the statutes' — the Goa, Daman and Diu Agricultural Tenancy Act, 1964, and the Goa Land Use (Regulation) Act, 1991. The court said that such arrangements create 'freehold ownership rights over tenanted land, without resorting to the procedure contemplated for the purchase of such land by the tenant'. The arrangements, the SC said, allow parties to use agricultural land for non-agricultural purposes, which is 'expressly barred by the Land Use Act'. The dispute arose over two properties, Oiteil-De-Madel and Levelechy Aradi, belonging to the comunidade of Tivim, which were leased to tenants in 1978. After the tenants' predecessor was declared an agricultural tenant by a trial court in 2017, the comunidade appealed against the decision. During the pendency of the appeal, the comunidade's general body meeting in March 2021 resolved to compromise by offering a 60:40 land division — 60% to the tenants and 40% to be retained by the comunidade. However, the administrative tribunal denied permission for this compromise under Article 154(3) of the Code of Comunidades, which requires the tribunal's approval for any compromise involving comunidades. The high court upheld this decision, which was subsequently challenged in the SC. The apex court observed that the proposed compromise constituted an 'abuse of the process of law'. The court said that the consent terms effectively granted 'full ownership rights' to both parties and allowed them to use the land 'for any purpose whatsoever', directly violating statutory restrictions. Justice Dhulia, writing for the bench, observed that the compromise would 'wipe out tenancy rights' that were legally declared by the trial court and bypass the specific procedures laid down in the Tenancy Act for the termination of tenancy and purchase of land by tenants.
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Time of India
24 minutes ago
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From Gutka oath to FIRs: Drug debate turns personal in Punjab vidhan sabha as Harpal Singh Cheema, Partap Singh Bajwa exchange barbs
Chandigarh: The Punjab assembly turned into a battleground on Tuesday as a fierce and deeply personal debate unfolded over the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) govt's war on drugs. What began as a discussion on the war against drugs led by finance minister Harpal Singh Cheema soon spiralled into a flurry of allegations, counter-allegations, and emotional outbursts, dragging in leader of opposition Partap Singh Bajwa, Congress MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira, and others. Cheema kicked off by delving into the roots of the drug menace, tracing it to the tenures of previous regimes. He accused the Congress (2002–2007), led by then CM Captain Amarinder Singh, and the SAD-BJP govt (2007–2017) under Parkash Singh Badal and Sukhbir Singh Badal, of allowing drugs to infiltrate Punjab. "Before 2007, people only knew opium and 'bhukki'. After that, heroin, smack, and 'chitta' became household terms," said Cheema, holding former Capt Amarinder Singh, and the Badals responsible for the mushrooming of drug cartels. He claimed that under the SAD-BJP rule (2007–2017), drug mafia expanded unchecked, forcing families to send their children abroad. Cheema lambasted Congress for failing to act even after Capt Amarinder Singh, ahead of the 2017 assembly elections, swore on the Gutka Sahib to eliminate drugs within four weeks. "He failed to act. The Congress high command replaced him with Charanjit Singh Channi, yet the problem remained," Cheema said. Defending AAP's efforts, he highlighted that during 'Yudh Nasheyan Virudh' (war against drugs), which began on March 1, 13,665 cases were registered against drug traffickers and 21,977 arrests were made, with Rs 11 crore seized in drug money. "When action was taken against prominent offenders, Congress leaders jumped to defend them," he said. Cheema attempted to play a video of former CM Channi allegedly linking Majithia to drugs, but Bajwa objected, asking under which rule a video of a non-member could be played in the vidhan sabha. "Is this a movie theatre?" he asked. Cheema stopped the clip but referenced past debates where, he claimed, Channi equated "chitta" with Majithia. Bajwa accused Cheema of vendetta politics and retaliated: "You filed an FIR against me for a TV interview where I said 50 bombs entered Punjab—18 exploded, 32 are unaccounted for. On whose behest was the FIR registered, Awami League of Pakistan?" asked Bajwa. Cheema fired back: "Bajwa has ties with Pakistan's Awami League. If you mess with us, we will respond firmly." Later, Cheema shared a post by Bajwa on X, accusing him of siding with Manjithia. "It shows you are with them," he said. "We are not afraid of FIRs. Even if Bajwa joins BJP and files a murder case, we will not back down," Cheema said. Bajwa clarified his position in the doctored video circulated by AAP leaders Cheema, Aman Arora, and others, which resulted in FIRs against them. "The original video was mine. I supported MLA Ganieve Kaur Majithia over the manner of the raid at her home. I never extended support to her husband," Bajwa said. "Under no circumstances am I with Bikramjit Singh Majithia." He reminded the house that he was the first to move court against Majithia when he was PPCC president 11 years ago and asked the then CM, Parkash Singh Badal, to get the Bhola drug case probed by CBI. "I said then, and I say now, we will tie a noose around Majithia's neck. I never got the chance to act—but if I had, I would have done it long ago," he said. Bajwa held that an NDPS case was registered against Majithia during the Congress govt, but the Supreme Court granted him relief as elections were around the corner. Bajwa added he was arrested by the AAP govt and was released on bail and was later again arrested. Bajwa said Majithia's subsequent arrests under the DA case instead of NDPS had weakened the campaign against him. Punjab rural development and panchayats minister Tarunpreet Singh Sond said the state govt's campaign had significantly weakened the nexus. Cheema vs Khaira: NDPS Case Reignites Cheema targeted Congress MLA Sukhpal Singh Khaira over his name in a 2015 NDPS case involving his aide Gurdev Singh Dabi. Khaira rebutted, stating that the Supreme Court stayed the trial, and pointed out that even Bhagwant Mann, then an MP, called it "political vendetta". Cheema responded, "A stay is not an acquittal." Tempers Flare: Avtar Singh Junior's Outburst Congress MLA Avtar Singh Junior lost his cool after a treasury bench member allegedly accused him of being involved in the drug trade. Avtar resorted to using foul language, drawing strong objections from treasury benches. After commotion, speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan directed a review of the proceedings, during which the use of inappropriate language by the Congress legislator was confirmed, what Avtar admitted. The speaker then sought a resolution for action against the legislator. However, leader of opposition Partap Singh Bajwa intervened, explaining the circumstances that led to the outburst. He also tendered an apology on Avtar's behalf, which was accepted. SAD's Ayali for collective fight SAD MLA Manpreet Singh Ayali took a more assuaging tone, saying no govt can support sacrilege or drug trade, but stressed that any political leader involved in drugs must face strict action—regardless of their position. He called for cross-party unity to fight the menace.
