Vijay Mohan

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 5

Dashing hopes of ex-servicemen embroiled in legal battles over disability benefits, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) today stated in Parliament that it would not withdraw appeals pending in such cases before the Supreme Court.In June last year, the MoD had issued orders to the defence services headquarters restricting the filing of fresh appeals against the orders of the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT) or the high court in cases where the law has been settled.In a large number of cases where illness, disability or death was initially held “neither attributable to nor aggravated by military service (NANA)” by the sanctioning executive authority, the AFT or the HCs had granted relief to the affected individuals. Many of such orders were also upheld by the Supreme Court, but the MoD continued to file appeals against such judgments even on issues where the point of law has been well settled. There are thousands of cases pending before the apex court as well as the HCs and the AFT that pertain to disability.“The Ministry of Defence do not propose to withdraw such pending appeals in the Supreme Court….It is the considered view of the ministry to await the orders of the Court in Civil Appeals filed in ‘NANA’ cases,” the Minister of State for Defence, Dr Subhash Bhamre, said in the Rajya Sabha today while replying to a question by Rajeev Chandrasekhar, an MP from Kerala.Service and legal experts said the MoD’s statement contradicts the spirit of the national policy of reducing litigation and PM’s statements on excessive litigation.

New Delhi, February 10

The Defence Ministry has sanctioned Rs 1,487 crore to the Army to fortify its bases in Jammu and Kashmir, NorthEast and several other places to plug gaps and protect them from terror attacks.Clearing the project, Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has set a deadline of 10 months for the Army to carry it out. The Army headquarters has been told to monitor implementation.(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)
Perimeter security will be strengthened at Army bases under six commands. A security audit of military bases was carried out on the recommendation of a committee headed by Lt Gen Philip Campose, set up after the daring terror attack on the Pathankot Air Force base in 2016.Following the audit, revised standard operating procedures were sent to the commands of the three services.A total of 3,000 sensitive bases, including 600 highly sensitive installations, of the Army, Navy and Air Force, were identified. Last year, the government delegated financial powers to the Army, Navy and IAF to strengthen perimeter security. — TNS

File photo of Rafale fighter jet.

New Delhi, February 9

Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Friday accused Finance Minister Arun Jaitley of speaking a “lie” about UPA Defence Ministers not having disclosed cost of defence purchases, and demanded the government disclose the price of each Rafale fighter plane.G

Dear Mr Jaitlie,

You said the UPA never released prices of Defence purchases?

To nail your lie, here are 3 Parliamentary replies by the UPA with full transparency on pricing.

Now do ask our Raksha Mantri to tell India how much each RAFALE jet cost.

Gandhi, in a tweet in which he addressed Jaitley as “Jaitlie”, posted three written answers given by former Defence Minister A.K. Antony in which he gave acquisition cost of 42 Sukhoi-30 MKI aircraft, the upgrade cost of Mirage 2000 and acquisition cost of Admiral Gorshkov (now INS Vikramaditya).

“Dear Mr Jaitlie, you said the UPA never released prices of Defence purchases? To nail your lie, here are 3 Parliamentary replies by the UPA with full transparency on pricing. Now do ask our Raksha Mantri to tell India how much each Rafale jet cost,” he said.

Jaitley had on Thursday slammed the Congress for “manufacturing” corruption charges against the government in questioning the deal to purchase Rafale fighter jets from France.

In his reply to the debate on the Budget, he had also said he had with him responses from Defence Ministers of previous United Progressive Alliance governments who had not shared details of armament purchases due to security concerns.

Congress lists questions on Rafale for govt, says India demands answers

Meanwhile, Congress communications in-charge Randeep Surjewala also accused the government of “doublespeak” and “sacrificing” national interests.

He cited instances during the previous UPA government when details of every defence deal were made public and placed before Parliament.

“As the Modi government stumbles and fumbles, hides and conceals, indulges in doublespeak, sacrifices national interest and refuses to answer on loss to public exchequer, India will continue to demand answers,” he told reporters.

He listed a series of questions for the government, including on the price, the secrecy surrounding the deal, the government’s silence on the issue and alleging that prior permission of the Cabinet Committee on Security was not taken.

“What is the price per aircraft of the 36 Rafale aircrafts being purchased by the Modi government? Did Raksha Mantri Nirmala Sitharaman not agree to share the price of Rafale aircrafts in a press conference at the Raksha Bhawan on November 17, 2017? Why are the Prime Minister, Defence Minister and Finance Minister hiding the ‘purchase price’?” he asked.

According to Surjewala, while Sitharaman refused to disclose the price on grounds of a “secrecy agreement”, Jaitley did not do so for reasons of “national security”.

“Isn’t a full disclosure of price of Rafale aircrafts in national interest? Why are two ministers of the government speaking in two different voices? Who are they trying to shield? Why is the price of aircrafts shrouded in secrecy and cover-up?” he asked.

Surjewala wanted to know whether the per aircraft price of Rafale, according to international bids opened on December 12, 2012, comes to USD 80.95 million (Rs 526.1 crore) as against the Modi government’s per aircraft negotiated price of USD 241.66 million (Rs 1,570.8 crore) as per current exchange rates.

He also asked whether Qatar had purchased 12 Rafale fighter jets in November 2017 for USD 108.33 million per aircraft (Rs 694.80 crore), according to current exchange rates.

“If this is correct, why has the Modi government paid such an astronomically higher price for Rafale aircrafts?” According to Surjewala, Rafale and Eurofighter Typhoon aircrafts were found equal on all technical requirements by the Indian Air Force.

Did Eurofighter Typhoon give a written offer to then Defence Minister Arun Jaitley on July 4, 2014, offering to reduce prices by 20 per cent, he asked.

“Why did PM Modi and Defence Minister then not ask both the companies to submit fresh bids through the ‘inter-governmental agreement route’ so as to get the lowest price in favour of India’s public exchequer?”

“Why was no prior permission of the Cabinet Committee on Security taken by PM Modi? Why was the Defence Procurement Procedure violated with impunity? Why are the Prime Minister, Defence Minister and Finance Minister completely silent on this issue?” he went on to pose.

The Congress leader also questioned the government on why Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd, a government PSU, was superseded for a Rs 30,000 crore ‘offset contract’ in favour of a private company.

This was despite the fact that HAL had already signed a ‘work share agreement’ on March 13, 2014 with Dassault Aviation, he said.

The government has denied the Congress charge that there is a huge scam in the procurement of 36 Rafale fighter jets from France. PTI

File photo of the Bofors Howitzer gun. AFP

New Delhi, February 4

A parliamentary panel looking into the Bofors gun deal for almost 27 years is likely to finalise its report on the issue in the current Budget Session, members said.

The CAG report on Bofors is the oldest “pending” matter before the Public Accounts Committee (PAC).

The main function of PAC is to examine an audit report of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India after it has been placed in Parliament.

The six-member PAC sub-committee on defence is looking into the non-compliance of certain aspects of the CAG report of 1989 and 1990 on the Bofors Howitzer gun deal.

The report has been delayed as action taken notes were not submitted before the panel by the ministry concerned and government organisations, said a member of the sub-committee, chaired by the BJD’s Bhartruhari Mahtab.

While deliberating over the defence deal, the panel had asked several top government officials to appear before it and to brief the members about the matter.

The drafting of the report has been initiated and is likely to be finalised during the Budget Session, said another PAC member, who added that the report would be comprehensive and clear misconceptions about the deal.

After the report is finalised by the PAC’s sub-committee it will go to the main committee for its approval, where, a member said, Congress MPs may oppose portions of the report.

The main committee is headed by Mallikarjun Kharge of the Congress.

The Bofors scandal, relating to the alleged payment of kickbacks in the procurement of Howitzer artillery guns, had triggered a massive political storm and is believed to have led to the fall of the Rajiv Gandhi government in 1989.

Recently, the CBI filed a petition in the Supreme Court challenging a 2005 order of the Delhi High Court quashing all charges against those accused in the politically-sensitive pay-off case.

The filing of the appeal assumes significance as Attorney-General K K Venugopal had recently advised the agency against moving a petition 12 years after the high court’s verdict. PTI

New Delhi, February 1

Giving relief to the salaried class, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today proposed a standard deduction of Rs 40,000 in lieu of transport allowance and medical reimbursement entailing a revenue sacrifice of Rs 8,000 crore. The minister, however, did not propose any change in the tax slabs or rates for individual taxpayers.“In order to provide relief to salaried taxpayers, I propose to allow a standard deduction of Rs 40,000 in lieu of the present exemption in respect of transport allowance and reimbursement of miscellaneous medical expenses,” Jaitley said while presenting the Budget 2018-19 in Parliament today.The standard deduction, which is provided to salary earners, was discontinued from the assessment year 2006-07. However, it will provide little relief to salaried class as benefits under the proposed Rs 40,000 standard deduction will be neutralised to a large extent by inclusion of transport and medical allowances and 1 per cent hike in health and education cess.Already the individual tax payer was getting benefit of Rs 19,200 under transport allowance and Rs 15,000 crore under the medical allowance. Both these components add to the tax benefit of Rs 34,200 crore per annum.So, the effective tax gain is to the tune of Rs 5,800 per annum with the introduction of standard deduction.According to Parizad Sirwalla, partner (tax), KPMG, the withdrawal of annual tax free transport allowance and medical reimbursements has squared off the benefit on account of standard deduction.“An annual incremental net reduction of Rs 5,800 in income results into tax savings of Rs 302 and Rs 2,081,” Sirwalla said.At the same time, Sirwalla said, maximum tax rate overall has increased to 35.88 per cent from existing 35.53 per cent taking into account 1 per cent increase in education cess.“In order to provide relief to salaried taxpayers, I propose to allow a standard deduction of Rs 40,000 in lieu of the present exemption in respect of transport allowance and reimbursement of miscellaneous medical expenses,” Jaitley said in his Budget speech.This decision to allow standard deduction shall significantly benefit the pensioners also, who normally do not enjoy any allowance on account of transport and medical expenses, he said.Jaitley also noted that there is a general perception in society that individual business persons have better income as compared to salaried class. However, income tax data analysis suggests that major portion of personal income-tax collection comes from the salaried class, he observed.The total number of salaried employees and pensioners who will benefit from this decision is around 2.5 crores. — PTI

Experts opine

Reintroduction of standard deduction will help salaried employees get some parity with respect to businessmen and other self-employed professionals, who can claim a number of expenses such as rent, staff expenses and driver’s salary etc. as business expenditure and reduce tax burden.No change in income tax slabsThe Finance Minister did not propose any change in the tax slabs or rates for individual taxpayers. He said the government had made many positive changes in the personal income-tax rate applicable to individuals in the last three years. “Therefore, I do not propose to make any further change in the structure of the income tax rates,” he said.Investment limit up in vaya yojanaIt is proposed to extend the Pradhanmantri Vaya Vandana Yojana (PMVVY) scheme till March 2020. It has also proposed to increase the current investment limit to Rs 15 lakh from the existing limit of Rs 7.5 lakh per senior citizen.  PMVVY was launched on May 4, 2017, and was initially meant to be available for one year from the launch.Team-based scrutiny of I-T returnsIn order to bring in greater transparency and accountability, the Budget proposed to introduce team-based assessment to determine tax payable or refunds to be issued to an assessee from April 1. An e-assessment of tax returns was introduced on pilot basis in 2017 and extended to 102 cities later.No bills required to claim deduction

• Salaried taxpayers and pensioners need not have to furnish any bills or documents to claim the standard deduction of Rs 40,000, according to CBDT chief Sushil Chandra
• Till now, this category of taxpayers had to furnish medical bills and an undertaking for conveyance expenses to get benefit of Rs 19,200 under transport allowance and Rs 15,000 crore under the medical allowance
• Chandra said the new measure will benefit all salaried employees, without the hassle of filing supporting documents or bills. The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) is the policy-making body of the Income Tax Department

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Former Afghan President Hamid Karzai speaks at a session during Jaipur Literature Festival 2018 at Diggi Palace in Jaipur on Friday. PTI

Jaipur, January 26

Supporting US President Donald Trump’s tough stance against Pakistan on dealing with terrorism, former Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai on Friday voiced hope that he will follow his words with action.Speaking at the ongoing Jaipur Literature Festival here, the Afghan leader even talked about his love for Bollywood films, music, and the Indian culture at large.Karzai said that actor Naseeruddin Shah would be the right person to play him if somebody plans to make a film about his life.Responding to a question regarding being termed “anti- American”, Karzai, who was made the interim leader of Afghanistan in 2001 and became the first popularly elected president in 2004 following the fall of the Taliban, said that he was in fact opposed to the US way of dealing with insurgency that left the country hurt and destroyed.Asked about Trump’s recent statements, he said, “It’s one of the few sensible decisions that Trump has taken. We do support President Trump’s statement on Pakistan’s use of extremism and we hope that they will take action, that they will walk the talk this time.”In a scathing attack on Pakistan, Trump had accused it of “lies and deceit” and of fooling US leaders while sheltering terrorists. He also suspended all security aid to the longtime US military ally.While speaking strongly against Pakistan’s support to extremist forces, Karzai today stressed that he had nothing against the Pakistani people.”Yes, the insurgents were getting support from Pakistan, but they not from Pakistani people. The Pakistani people treated us equally like themselves, like brothers and sisters when we were refugees.”My complaint is not to the Pakistani people. I love them just like I love Indian people. The complaint is with the military intelligence establishment there,” he said.The former Afghanistan president was speaking at a session titled “The Great Survivor”.He also spoke of factors that contributed to the rise of Al-Qaeda, saying it was a “very deliberate radicalisation for political gains” and that “Al-Qaeda wouldn’t have happened without the support of the CIA”.”Sometimes I am termed an anti-American. No, I am not. I am very pro-American, pro-western person. I am an eastern man without eastern attributes and qualities.”My opposition to America was because they were hurting Afghanistan by bombing our country, by hitting our villagers, by taking our people prisoners. We were getting hurt, we were getting destroyed, that made me against the American policy,” he said.He said there had been in the past “very deep cooperation” among the US, some western allies and Pakistan “when they tried to use religion to defeat the former Soviet Union”.”And the Pakistanis and the Americans and some Gulf countries joined hands to use Islam. And the more they used it the more radicalised it became.”Al Qaeda wouldn’t have happened without the support of the CIA. It was them who did it. It was a very deliberate radicalisation for political gains,” he alleged.He hoped Pakistan “would agree to peace” so that a dialogue could be initiated between the country and Taliban.On Bollywood and Indian culture, Karzai said, “I can possibly talk more about Dev Anand, Hema Malini, Zeenat Aman, Rafi, Mukesh than most people here.”I have read Kalidas, Rabindranath Tagore and bought books on Mirza Ghalib’s work during my visit to Khan Market in Delhi.” — PTI

Naik Jagadish

Tribune News Service

Jammu, January 24

A soldier, injured in Pakistani shelling last week, succumbed to his injuries today in a military hospital, taking the death toll due to recent ceasefire violations to 13.The soldier, identified as Naik Jagadish, sustained grievous splinter injuries on January 20 during unprovoked ceasefire violation by Pakistan in the Krishna Ghati sector in Poonch district. “The soldier was immediately evacuated and provided intensive medical care in military hospital. Despite all efforts, the gallant soldier succumbed to his injuries in the early hours today,” said defence spokesperson Col NN Joshi. Naik Jagadish (34), who belonged to Gandashu village in Chamoli district of Uttarakhand, is survived by his wife Usha Devi and two young children. “Naik Jagadish was a brave and sincere soldier. The nation will always remain indebted to him for the supreme sacrifice and devotion to duty,” spokesperson added. With the death of Naik Jagadish, the number of casualties of security forces personnel has reached six. Seven civilians have also died in Pakistani shelling since January 17.Pakistan has violated the ceasefire agreement over 100 times this month

Lt Gen TS Shergill,PVSM,Chief Advisor to CM Punjab and Sr Vice Chairman GOG along with DC and ADC development were present at the closing day of the training at  Pathankot at Today’s  function with Khushali the Rakhen Distt Pathankot/

Gurdians of Goverance (GOG) Trg was carried out from 15 Jan to 19 Jan 2018 at DS Farm Sarna(Pathankot).

235 GG were appointed and trained.

There are 402 Panchyat with Pathankot Distt.

Present lots will looks after all the Panchyat.

Subsequently one GG will be appointed for each Panchyat beside few supervisors at Dist and Tehsil level.

Col Sunit Pathania,Col RK Salaria,Col Gumukh Singh from ASR and Col B.S. Bhangoo from Ludhiana attended  the function

Guardians of Governance to ensure transparency in execution of developmental works::Lt Gen TS Shergill

As we are aware that  GOG is a dream project of  Capt Amarainder Singh  CM Punjab Said  Lieutenant General TS Shergill and   exhorted the Guardians of Governance (GoG) to dedicate their services for strengthening the communal harmony and brotherhood in the state.  Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh has bestowed a great responsibility upon the shoulders of ex-servicemen to work as eyes and ears of the state government for ensuring complete transparency in the execution of the developmental works.

Ex-servicemen have been appointed as GoGs in five districts of Punjab now Pathankot included as 6th Distt and others will be added as per the training schedule

Lt Gen TS Shergill said that the GoG project launched in the state was foreseeing 18 departments connected with the people adding that GoGs were the real custodians of public exchequer.He said that one GoG would be appointed for each village. GoGs were here to ensure that each and every penny sanctioned by the state government was fully utilised for the well being of the general public.He said that besides enhancing transparency and accountability of the government, the biggest task before the GoGs was to put the state back on high growth trajectory. He said that unfortunately Punjab which was once number one state in the country was now 19th in the country. Lieutenant General Shergill asked the GoGs to work zealously for accomplishing the mission of the Chief Minister to carve out a progressive Punjab.