Morning Brief: 125 ‘RSS-Linked’ Schools In Bengal Ordered To Shut Down; Support United India: Trudeau; RBI Panel To Curb Bank Scams

Good morning, dear reader! Here’s your morning news and views brief for today.

Mamata Banerjee Government To Shut 125 ‘RSS-Linked’ Schools

The Mamata Banerjee government has issued notices to shut 125 schools, alleging that they are run by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). Education minister Partha Chatterjee, speaking in the Assembly on Tuesday, alleged these schools did not have the necessary clearance from the education department. Earlier, he had reportedly accused these schools of spreading religious intolerance. According to him, around 493 ‘RSS-backed’ schools are under state government’s scanner. Most of these schools are run by three private trusts - Sarada Shishu Tirtha, Saraswati Shishu Mandir and Vivekananda Vidya Vikas Parishad (VVVP) - known to be close to the RSS. According to VVVP organising secretary Tarak Das Sarkar, notice issued to these schools does not indicate any problem with the curriculum.

Canada Supports 'One, United India', Says Trudeau

In response to criticism for supporting pro-Khalistan elements back home, Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Tuesday that he and his country "support one united India". Trudeau has received a lukewarm reception in India as some ministers in his cabinet allegedly have links to the Khalistan movement. Support for Khalistan has been on the rise in Canada. This issue has always figured prominently in Indo-Canada talks. In July 2016, India had raised the issue with Canada after Trudeau appeared in a Nagar Kirtan event in Toronto that featured Khalistani flags and posters of extremist leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale. Liberal Party government headed by Trudeau is considered as one that has often pandered to separatists.

RBI Forms Panel To Curb Bank Scams

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has constituted a five-member panel under former board member Y H Malegam to look into the reasons for fraud and set out a blueprint to curb them. The panel was set up soon after Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, in a veiled reference to the RBI, said, “Supervisory agencies need to assess as to what new system has to be put in place to detect irregularities. The agencies need to ensure stray cases are nipped in the bud and they are never repeated”.

The panel will likely look into the reasons for high divergence observed in asset classification and provisioning. A subject of criticism in some circles for its failure to detect scams, the RBI defended itself claiming that it had warned banks about the possible misuse of SWIFT system three times since August 2016. SWIFT system used by banks to facilitate cross-border transactions.

Maldives Ignores India’s Warning, Extends Emergency

In a move that the opposition has condemned as illegal, Maldives President Abdulla Yameen has extended a draconian state of emergency by a month. The initial emergency, that came into effect on 5 February, was imposed for a period of 15 days. In a statement issued yesterday, India had warned Yameen to not extend the emergency so as to allow the political process to resume immediately. The Maldives plunged into a major crisis soon after the nation’s Supreme Court ordered the release of nine political prisoners, including exiled former President Nasheed. It also overturned a previous ruling that disqualified 12 members of parliament after defection, giving the opposition a majority in the Majlis.

Delhi Chief Secretary Alleges Assault By AAP MLAs

Delhi Chief Secretary Anshu Prakash has claimed that he was assaulted by two Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLAs at Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s residence. According to Prakash, the incident happened when he was called to discuss the issue of distribution of ration and advertisements for government's three-year anniversary. The officer went straight to Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal's residence to complain about "misconduct and abuse" by the lawmakers, accusing MLAs Amanatullah Khan and Prakash Jarwal of being involved in the act. Police has arrested Jarwal. Since the AAP came to power, it has clashed with bureaucracy on a range of issues.

Nirav Modi Scam: I-T Notice To Abhishek Singhvi’s Wife

With the tax authority expanding its investigation into the Punjab National Bank fraud to include high-value clients of jewellery designer Nirav Modi, Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi’s wife Anita Singhvi has been issued a notice for allegedly buying jewellery in cash. The Bharatiya Janata Party has accused Singhvi of having links with Nirav Modi's companies. Nirav Modi's company was a tenant of a property at Parel owned by Adwait Holdings in which his wife and sons serve as directors.

BSF Jawan Killed in Pakistan Sniper Fire

A Border Security Force jawan was killed on Tuesday after being shot by a Pakistani sniper from across the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir's Tangdhar. Identified as Constable S K Murmu, the jawan succumbed to the "critical" injury of the gun shot at the Army hospital in Srinagar around 8:30 pm. He was deployed at a forward defended location along the LoC in Karnah sector of Tangdhar.

MUST READ OPINIONS AND COLUMNS

The Renewable Purchase Obligation Is Hurting: It is high time that the RPO policy was re-examined, and relief given to the industry.

Mother Language Day: The Bangla Connection: Only a few hundred languages are used in education systems and in the public domain, and less than a hundred are used in the digital world; this must change.

Privacy By Design For Financial Services: Addressing privacy issues during the initial design stage of a product is often simpler and less costly.

SWARAJYA SPECIAL

Shashi Tharoor’s ‘Why I Am A Hindu’ Is Driven By A Degree Of Schizophrenia On Hinduism: If Tharoor is a true Hindu, he should engage with real Hindu issues and concerns. His real challenge is to understand Hindutva on its own terms.
His book suggests that he is not yet upto the challenge.

We hope you enjoyed reading our morning brief. Have a great day ahead!

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