‘India to deploy S-400 systems next month’

A lethal weapon

• The S-400 is considered one the most potent long-range air defence systems in the world with the capability of detecting and destroying missiles and aircraft.
• Russia claims S-400’s radar can even detect stealth fighters such as America’s most advanced F-35s.

US intel

• India is pursuing an extensive military modernisation effort encompassing air, ground, naval and strategic nuclear forces, Lt-Gen Scott Berrier, director of Defence Intelligence Agency, told the Senate Armed Services Committee.
• India continued to develop its own hypersonic, ballistic, cruise and air defence missile capabilities, conducting multiple tests in 2021.
• The Pentagon noted that “India’s long-standing defence relationship with Russia remains strong” and “India has maintained a neutral stance on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine” More details here

CAATSA

• India started receiving the delivery of the S-400 systems from Russia in December last year, despite US warnings against the procurement.
• The US can sanction countries under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) for buying Russian weapons, which Washington considers detrimental to its national security.
• Turkey, a NATO ally, was punished by the Trump administration under CAATSA over its S-400 deal.

Meanwhile…

• India on Wednesday successfully test-fired its first homemade air-launched anti-ship missile from a Navy helicopter. More details here

Article 142

• The SC invoked Article 142 of the Constitution that deals with the top court’s power to exercise its jurisdiction and pass order for doing complete justice in a case. Previously, it was used in the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid case.

What SC said

• A bench headed by Justice L Nageswara Rao said the Tamil Nadu state cabinet’s advice recommending the premature release of all seven convicts in the case was binding on the governor.
• The apex court also discarded the Centre’s argument that the president exclusively has the power to grant pardon in a case under section 302 the IPC, saying this would render Article 161 (power of governor to grant pardon) functionless.
• On March 9, the SC had granted bail to Perarivalan while taking note of his long incarceration and no history of complaints when out on parole.

The case

• The former prime minister was assassinated on the night of May 21, 1991 at a poll rally in Tamil Nadu’s Sriperumbudur by a woman suicide bomber, identified as Dhanu.

Cong ‘disappointed’

• Expressing the party’s disappointment over the SC verdict, Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said, “If those guilty of terrorism, and assassination of a (former) prime minister are going to be released like this, then who will uphold the majesty and the integrity of law in this country?”

Who was he?

• Baijal, a former IAS officer of the 1969 batch, took over as the LG on December 31, 2016 following the sudden resignation of his predecessor, Najeeb Jung. He had previously served as vice chairman of the Delhi Development Authority (DDA), Union Home Secretary in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government, CMD of the now defunct Indian Airlines and also as CEO of the Prasar Bharati Corporation.

What led to his exit?

• Even as Baijal cited personal reasons, it’s no secret that the LG, as a representative of the Union government, had been butting heads with the state government led by AAP and Arvind Kejriwal over who could exercise control over the city-state’s administration.
• Kejriwal had in fact gone on a protest by organising a sit-in in the LG’s official residence in 2018, demanding that he order the IAS officers attached to the Delhi government end their strike, which had been called after the chief secretary was allegedly assaulted at the CM’s residence by AAP MLAs.
• Later, the Supreme Court had ruled that the LG could not act independently without the advice of the AAP government even as it clarified that land, police and public order will remain with the Centre. However, the SC was unable to decide on who could exercise control over the administrative services in the national capital and referred the issue to a larger constitutional bench.

Conditions apply

• While ruling that Mukerjea “is entitled to be released on bail subject to the satisfaction of the trial court”, the SC said her bail is not a reflection “on the merits of the case” and added that “the same conditions imposed on Peter Mukerjea will also be imposed on her.”
• Peter, who was co-accused in the murder of Bora along with Indrani and another ex-husband of hers, Sanjeev Khanna, was granted bail in March 2020 by the Bombay High Court (HC) on a surety of Rs 2 lakh. The trio was accused of murdering Bora, with the help of Indrani’s driver Shyamvar Rai — who tunred approver — for her live-in relationship with Peter’s son from an earlier marriage, Rahul Mukerjea.

Sixth time lucky?

• Indrani had applied for bail on five previous occasions — in 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2020 — all of which were rejected by the Special Court, which first cited her own safety as the reason for denial of bail and then citing apprehension that she could tamper with evidence and witnesses or influence them.
• Her last bail plea, in November 2021, was rejected by the Bombay HC which had noted that the lengthy period of trial “cannot be a ground for release in the present case, particularly given the nature of the offence alleged to have been committed by Mukerjea.” Ironically, while the HC denied her bail citing circumstantial evidence, the SC granted her bail, citing exactly that reason — that “this case is based on circumstantial evidence.”

What next

• The completion of bail formalities is likely to take a day or two, as Indrani will have to file a release plea before the trial court, which will set the bail amount — with Indrani’s lawyer saying that she will try to apply for release tomorrow.

• Wall collapse kills 12: Twelve workers at a salt packaging factory in Gujarat’s Morbi were killed on Wednesday when a 3-metre high wall collapsed on them. Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief over the tragedy and announced a compensation of Rs 2 lakh each for the kin of the deceased. The state CM also announced relief for affected families. A probe has been ordered to ascertain if it was an accident or a disaster caused by human negligence.
• 2 dead in Bengaluru: Two persons were killed in Bengaluru as heavy rain bettered the city, flooding streets and houses in different areas. Karnataka CM Basavaraj Bommai on Wednesday announced a compensation of Rs 5 lakh to the family of the deceased.

…And in northeast

• More than 5 lakh people have fled their homes in Assam to escape heavy floods triggered by pre-monsoon rains, a minister told Reuters.
• The Indian Army retrieved more than 2,000 people trapped in the district of Hojai. Water levels in the mighty Brahmaputra are expected to rise further, authorities said.
• The Assam government has constructed 40 new scientifically designed highlands to save the wildlife of the Kaziranga National Park, the world’s biggest habitat of one-horned rhinos. More details here

• Hardik Patel, who was inducted into the Congress with great fanfare with a photo-op with Rahul Gandhi just before the 2019 Lok Sabha election, quit the party on Wednesday writing a stinging letter to Congress president Sonia Gandhi.
• Hardik Patel complained that the top leaders “were distracted by their mobile phones” while those in the Gujarat Congress were more interested in arranging “chicken sandwiches” for them.
• He had been sulking in the Congress for quite some time. In mid-April, Patel said he felt like a “groom forced into nasbandi [vasectomy]” in the Congress complaining that he was harassed by the Gujarat Congress leaders and Rahul Gandhi did not address his grievances.

BJP next stop?

• Alluding to Rahul Gandhi, the former Gujarat Congress working president said “our leader was abroad when he was needed in India during critical times” and that the leadership “strongly dislikes Gujarat” – a charge similar to one often levelled by the BJP.
• The Congress countered Patel saying his resignation letter was “dictated by the BJP” with its Gujarat unit leader Shaktisinh Gohil saying, “Our leaders who have gone to the BJP have told us that they were given a script to write. Hardik’s words are BJP’s words and there is no truth in them.”

Gujarat election

• Gujarat will go to the polls in November-December this year with the BJP aiming to extend its election winning streak in the state. The Congress, which has been out of power for more than two decades, is eyeing to make a comeback.

Timing

• Patel’s resignation has come days ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Gujarat visit to bolster the BJP’s election prospects. More details here

• The Yogi Adityanath government on Wednesday approved a proposal for stopping state grants to new madrasas in Uttar Pradesh in a reversal of policy adopted by the Akhilesh Yadav government during 2012-17, news agency ANI reported.
• In official figures, Uttar Pradesh has 16,461 madrasas. Of these, 558 madrassas have been getting state grants for a long time for which Rs 479 crore was allocated in the 2021-22 budget.
• In 2013, the Akhilesh Yadav government moved to add 146 more madrasas in the list of grant recipients but only 100 could be added to the list and final decision on the rest could not be taken.
• The Yogi government has not added a new madrasa to this list since coming to power in 2017. Now, it has approved a proposal to reverse the Akhilesh government’s decision to extend grants to 100 new madrasas.
• A week ago, the UP government made singing the national anthem in all the madrasas mandatory for all students and teachers before commencing the classes every day.
• In April, the Yogi government ordered physical verification of infrastructure in the state-aided madrasas under the madrasa modernisation scheme.

• The Supreme Court on Wednesday allowed implementation of the OBC quota in the Madhya Pradesh local body polls. The SC modified its May 10-ruling to allow OBC quota in the polls accepting the backward classes commission’s revised report for the election.
• In its previous order the SC had directed the state election commission to notify the local body polls without the OBC quota.

A precedence?

• Earlier, the Supreme Court had nullified the Maharashtra government’s decision to implement a 27% quota for the OBCs in the polls. The court asked for empirical evidence to prove that the quota was backed by empirical evidence for the composition of the population of the state.
• Madhya Pradesh’s OBC quota bid was cancelled for the same reason by the court, which set a triple test that any such move needed to pass. Madhya Pradesh’s case may now set a fresh precedent for the OBC quota in the polls.

Triple test

• In March 2021, the SC set a three-layered test for states to qualify for implementing the OBC quota in the local body polls.
• They needed to set up a commission for collecting empirical data for population composition, specify the quota plan based on the commission’s report and the overall quota must not exceed the 50% ceiling.

Poll and politics

• Madhya Pradesh’s commission put the OBC population at 48%, recommending a quota limit of 35% for the category.
• The SC directed the state poll panel to notify local body elections within a week.
• Minutes after the court order, MP Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan launched a scathing attack on the Congress saying the party conspired to block the OBC quota – after they failed to get it in Maharashtra.