Morning Brief: ED Summons P Chidambaram’s Wife; US Agrees To Supply Armed Drones To India: Report; PM Modi’s Blitzkrieg In Karnataka To Start Today

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

ED Summons P Chidambaram’s Wife In Saradha Scam Case

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has summoned former Union Finance Minister and Congress Leader P Chidambaram's wife Nalini Chidambaram in connection with the Saradha chit fund scam case. According to reports, she has been asked to appear before the agency on 7 May. Earlier, the Madras High Court had dismissed a plea filed by her seeking quashing of the summons issued by the ED to appear as a witness in the money laundering probe linked to the Saradha chit fund scam case. In her plea, Nalini Chidambaram, a Supreme Court lawyer, had said that the ED could not summon a woman for investigation out of her place of residence under Section 60 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Justice S M Subramaniam, who heard the petition, rejected her claim, saying exemptions were not mandatory. The High Court had directed the investigating agency to issue fresh summons.

US Agrees To Supply Armed Drones To India: Report

The Trump Administration has agreed to provide India armed Predator-B drones capable of destroying targets across borders, Hindustan Times reports, citing Indian and US diplomatic officials. According to the report, the US has informed the Modi government about its willingness to supply armed unmanned aerial vehicles to India and it is up to New Delhi to take a call on the purchase. The matter was discussed during a meeting attended by National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale and Defence Secretary in Washington last month, the report says. Predator-B drones, manufactured by General Atomics, can be armed with air-to-land missiles, anti-ship missiles and laser-guided bombs.

Modi's Blitzkrieg In Karnataka Starts Today

In what is being called a “blitzkrieg campaign”, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address 15 rallies in five days across Karnataka ahead of assembly elections on 12 May. He will take the party's campaign into its final gear as he reaches Chamarajanagar, the southernmost district of Karnataka today. He will also campaign in Udupi and Belagavi, on the first day of his Karnataka tour. In Udupi, Modi is scheduled to visit Krishna Matha and meet the senior seer. With most pre-poll surveys indicating a hung assembly, the BJP is banking on Prime Minister’s popularity to get closer to the halfway mark of 113 seats. BJP President Amit Shah and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will also campaign in the final phase, addressing at least 30 and 20 rallies respectively.

GST Revenue Target Set At Rs 12 Trillion For FY19

The Goods and Services Tax Council has set the target of Rs 12 trillion for goods and services tax collections in the current financial year. The body has said that the average monthly receipt in the last fiscal was Rs 89,885 crore, marginally below the Rs 91,000 crore target, despite several disruptions. According to officials, the positive impact of the e-way bill system, implemented from 1 April, is expected to reflect by June or July. A few rule changes, which will soon be implemented to improve compliance, are expected to add momentum to revenue growth. To detect evasion, the authorities may soon link e-way bills with sales returns in GSTR 1 form.

BJP Candidate’s Pregnant Kin Allegedly Raped By TMC Activist

A relative of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s candidate for Panchayat polls in West Bengal was allegedly raped by Trinamool Congress (TMC) activists in Nadia district early on Sunday after the candidate refused to withdraw her nomination, the New Indian Express reported. The members of the ruling party allegedly broke into the candidate's house in the wee hours. The victim, who was first admitted to the sub-divisional hospital, has now shifted to a government hospital in Kolkata. According to the report, one of the five people named in the police complaint lodged by the victim’s family has been arrested. He has been identified as Bappa Sheikh. The TMC has refused the charges. Local TMC MLA has called it a “family matter”.

Yogi Government Orders 24x7 Power Supply During Ramzan

The Yogi Adityanath government has ordered round-the-clock supply of power to Muslim-dominated districts in the state during the month of Ramzan. State Power Minister Shrikant Sharma has confirmed having issued orders to all divisions in this regard. He has said that the state government was working in accordance to its motto of ‘sabka saath, sabka vikas’. The BJP, during the Assembly poll campaign, had accused the then Samajwadi Party government of appeasing the minority community by giving longer hours of power supply on Eid than Diwali.

Netanyahu Says He Has Proof of Iran's 'Secret' Nuclear Programme

Claiming that Iran had lied about never having pursued nukes, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he has proof which suggests that the country had continued to preserve and expand its nuclear weapons knowledge even after signing a 2015 deal with global powers. Speaking at a conference organised to address the issue, he showed pictures purporting to be of historic secret Iranian nuclear facilities, as well as Iranian documents and plans to develop atomic weapons.

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SWARAJYA SPECIAL

A Minimum Basic Income For Small And Marginal Farms May Just Be Affordable: One way to experiment with Universal Basic Income in India is to make it universal only for a specific group; and this group could be farmers with less viable farm sizes. The Modi government’s promise to double farm incomes will not become a reality unless this group’s incomes see a rise.

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