Morning Brief: Trouble For Congress As UAE Set To Extradite AgustaWestland Scam Accused To India; UK Anti-Terror Units Raid Khalistan Activists; And More 

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

UAE To Extradite AgustaWestland Chopper Scam Accused To India

In a development that is likely to bring trouble for the Congress ahead of the 2019 elections and may bulldoze its offensive against the Rafale deal, a court in the United Arab Emirates has ordered the extradition of Christian Michel, a key accused in the Rs 3,600 crore AgustaWestland choppers scam, to India. According to reports, Michel was given around Rs 350 crore by AgustaWestland to bribe Indian politicians and get the company a deal from the government.

According to a report in The Pioneer in 2013, which cites Italian newspaper ‘Lettera 43’, Michel’s late father was “close to the Congress party”. Guido Ralph Haschke, the second middleman in the deal, was the Director of a real estate firm owned by relatives of Kanishka Singh, who is associated with a Congress high-up. A chargesheet related to this case, filed in an Italian court, talks about a “family” getting around Rs 200 crore as kickback from the helicopter manufacturer.

UK Anti-Terror Body Raids Homes Of Khalistan Activists

The counter-terrorism department of the United Kingdom (UK) has conducted raids on several properties as part of its investigation into the involvement of some outfits in ‘extremist activities’ in India. The raids, led by West Midlands counter-terrorism unit, were conducted with the support of Special Operations Unit. Sikh Federation UK, an extremist outfit which is leading the demand for the creation of an independent Sikh state, has said that its properties were raided.

Ahead of the Independence Day in August, Pakistan-sponsored Khalistan activists had staged a protest at London’s Trafalgar Square in support of ‘Referendum 2020’. About 2,500 pro-Khalistan supporters had gathered in the city to issue a “London declaration” in favour of the referendum. After the UK had refused to deny them the permission to protest, Indian groups in the UK had disrupted the march of the extremists with patriotic songs, dhols and flags.

Stock Investors Lose Rs 2.72 Lakh Crore In Two Days

In two days of market fall, stock investors have lost close to Rs 2.72 lakh crore, Mint has reported. Since Friday, the market capitalisation of BSE-listed companies has come down Rs 2,72,549.15 crore to Rs 1,53,64,470 as the index has dived almost 800 points. Due to increasing crude oil prices and mounting trade tension on Tuesday, Sensex tumbled by about 295 points to close at 37,290.

Over 20 stocks, including State Bank of India, Tata Motors, Bajaj Auto and Axis Bank, ended with losses. While 1,805 stocks declined, 881 advanced and 162 remained unchanged. At least 140 stocks hit their 52-week lowest."Selling pressure increased on the bourses due to spike in oil prices," Press Trust of India quoted Vinod Nair, head of research, Geojit Financial Services, as saying.

Will Not Conduct Polls According To ‘Whims, Fancies’ Of Congress: ECI

Slamming the Congress in an affidavit filed in the Supreme Court on Tuesday, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has said that the party’s petition on alleged irregularities in the voters' lists is “misconceived and malafide”. The poll panel, which was filing its response to the petition, said it will not conduct elections on the “personal whims and fancies” of the Congress of its leaders. The ECI also warned it against interference in the working of the “constitutional authority” and trying to dictate terms to it. Calling the petition “a gross abuse of the process of law”, it demanded that the Supreme Court dismiss it.

The poll panel also dismissed Congress’ proposal to use Electronic Voting Machines with Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail in 10 per cent of the booths. This development comes after the apex court had asked the ECI to file its response on the petition filed by Congress leaders Kamal Nath and Sachin Pilot alleging duplication of voters in the lists in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.

India, US Close To Reaching Package Deal To Eliminate Trade Issues

India and the United States are currently working on a package deal to eliminate long-standing irritants in trade ties between the two countries, Reuters has reported. According to the report, the two sides began talks in June and are expecting to close the deal in the next few weeks. The package deal, however, is not aimed at creating a bilateral free trade agreement.

This development comes at a time when US President Donald Trump has said that India had approached the United States to "start doing a trade deal”. The deal is likely to provide solutions to cover India’s concerns over US steel tariffs and US’ problems with Indian tariffs on imported IT equipment.

From Swarajya

With PNB In The Ditch, Government Chooses BoB-Vijaya To Do The Dena Rescue Act: With the BoB-Vijaya-Dena merger, the government is making up for lost time after it failed to act quickly to stem the bad loans problem.

The Uncertainties And What Needs To Be Done On Assam’s NRC: The NRC updation exercise presents a good opportunity to stem and reverse the growing radicalisation of illegal Bangladeshi Muslim immigrants.

The Holy Bell Of Venkateswara: Vedanta Desika’s legacy was taken forward by his disciples, but any state initiative to honour him is yet to materialise. In the 750th year of his birth, his work can be included in school syllabus.

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

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