Morning Brief: Collegium Breakthrough; Stock Markets Cheer Big BJP Victory; Trump Go-Ahead For Drone Attacks

Good Morning, Swarajya Readers! Here's What You Need To Know Today.

Collegium Breakthrough: The Supreme Court collegium has finalised the memorandum of procedure for appointment of judges to constitutional courts, overcoming serious differences within itself, as well as with the Centre. The collegium, headed by Chief Justice J S Khehar and comprising Justices Dipak Misra, J Chelameswar, Ranjan Gogoi and Madan B Lokur agreed to the contentious national security clause that the Centre had insisted upon as one of the grounds for determining the eligibility of judges for appointment to the apex court and high courts.

A Big Thumbs Up From The Stock Markets: Euphoric stock markets on Tuesday surged 1.71 per cent to a record high while the rupee hit a 16-month peak, as a big win for the Bharatiya Janata Party in the state elections, especially Uttar Pradesh, was seen as bolstering Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s economic reform agenda. The National Stock Exchange Nifty Index settled higher by 152.45 points, or 1.71 per cent, at a life-time high of 9,087, surpassing its previous record of 8,996.25 on 3 March 2015.

Election Results Not Bad, Says Rahul Gandhi: Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi broke his silence on Tuesday, acknowledging that structural and organisational changes were needed in his party. He stressed that the Assembly poll results were “not bad” though the party was “a little down” in Uttar Pradesh. He hailed the role of regional leaders who had fought Assembly polls and emerged victorious.

New Bill To Set Up Single Tribunal On Inter-State Water Disputes: Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti introduced the Inter-State River Water Disputes (Amendment) Bill, 2017 in the Lok Sabha, calling it a revolutionary step. It would pave the way for the setting up of a single standing tribunal to resolve water related disputes between states. As of now, there are multiple tribunals that more often than not end up delaying the process of dispute resolution.

Parliament Go-Ahead For Amending Enemy Property Act: The Lok Sabha on Tuesday passed the long-pending Enemy Property (Amendment and Validation) Bill, 2016, which provides power to the government to seize properties left behind by those who migrated to Pakistan or China after wars. The lower house passed the bill through a voice vote after amendments passed by the Rajya Sabha earlier were incorporated. The upper house had passed the bill on Friday.

Uber Launches Real-Time ID Check: Cab-aggregator Uber has launched a real-time ID check in India that prompts drivers to take a selfie before they accept rides. "It protects riders by building another layer of accountability into the app to ensure the right person is behind the wheel. We believe this new initiative will go a long way in keeping our riders and drivers in the city safe," said Joe Sullivan, chief security officer, Uber. The feature is available in New Delhi, Mumbai, Bangaluru, Hyderabad and Kolkata.

Shedding Colonial Imprints: The Shiv Sena on Tuesday demanded renaming of Mumbai’s five railway stations having a colonial imprint. Shiv Sena member Arvind Sawant said in Lok Sabha that the Mumbai Central railway station should be renamed after Jagannath Shankar Seth for his contribution to the city and the growth of railways in its pioneering years. Apart from Mumbai Central, Sawant also demanded Charni Road station be renamed as Girgaum, Elphinstone Road as Prabhadevi, Curry Road as Lalbaug and Sandhurst Road as Dongri.

Forced Conversion Is A Crime In Islam, Says Sharif: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Tuesday said that no religious discrimination will be allowed to exist in Pakistan, adding that it is a crime to forcibly change anyone’s religion. Addressing an event to celebrate Holi with Hindus, he insisted that it was not anyone's job to decide who will go to hell or heaven. In his inclusive message to minorities in Pakistan, he said "no one can force others to adopt a certain religion."

Trump Go-Ahead For Drone Attacks: US President Donald Trump has reportedly given CIA necessary authorisation to carry out drone strikes against terror groups, a move that could have implications for Pakistan. This is a change from the policies of the previous Obama Administration under which the Department of Defence was authorised to carry out such strikes and the CIA used drones to gather intelligence information, sources said.

MUST READ OP-EDS

What Should Narendra Modi Do Now And Why? The Modi government has, even if it has not articulated it well, identified the right buttons that need to be pushed – either by design or by accident. More is needed.

A Successful India Is Good For The World: Environmental sustainability will provide a more sustainable future for India’s people – for their sake and for the contribution a successful India would make to the world. It is wonderful to see signs of this future on display in India today.

The Tables Have Turned In Uttar Pradesh: In 1951, the Bharatiya Jan Sangh secured two seats in UP with a vote share of 6.45 per cent; 56 years later, the Congress has won seven seats with a vote share of 6.2 per cent. The tables have truly turned in UP.

Towards A Zero-Defect India: A pursuit of recognition as a high-quality producer of goods and services requires a unique standards architecture and corresponding physical infrastructure.

SWARAJYA SPECIAL

Hindu Consolidation In UP May Be Route To Bigger Modi Majority In 2019: Narendra Modi’s reforms priorities in the first term have been muted due to the need for a second term. Right now, his politics are leading to the possibility of an even more powerful NDA comeback in 2019.

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

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