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SIT set to expand ambit of probe into black money

February 10, 2015

New Delhi, Feb 10: The Supreme Court-appointed Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the black money cases is set to widen its inquiry in view of new names of Indians with Swiss bank accounts emerging on Monday.

SIT black money

The SIT, however, said legal action would be taken only after verification of facts.

“The scope of investigation will definitely be widened due to the (emergence of) new names. We will have to identify those names and scrutinise them,” SIT Chairman Justice (retd) M B Shah was quoted as saying by a news agency.

He said there were some old names, but some new names have also come out.

“We can't take action on the basis of news reports only. We will first verify the claims from our side and then take legal action,” he said.

The revelations by a collaboration of “The Indian Express” and “Le Monde” of Paris with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) brought out names ranging from the richest Indian industrialist Mukesh Ambani, having an average joint balance of Rs 164.92 crore along with his younger brother Anil Ambani, to NRI businessman Naresh Goyal and politician Narayan Rane.

The list also included the names of Dabur Chairman Anand Chand Burman; Anurag Dalmia of Dalmia Pvt Ltd; Yash Birla Group Chairperson Yashodhara Birla, Rajan Prasad Nanda of Escorts; and Harshavardhan Neotia of the Ambuja Group.

SIT Vice-Chairman Justice (retd) Arijit Pasayat, who attended a meeting of the high-powered panel, said that it would “consider all new cases where there is evidence of black money”.

“If any new name comes and whichever way we have authentic information, we will act on it,” he said after the over-two-hour meeting, where existing cases of this nature were also reviewed.

The SIT had in December submitted a report to the apex court revealing that people on the HSBC list held Rs 4,479 crore in Swiss banks. The court had directed the Centre to ensure that the ongoing probe was completed by March this year.

It had suggested quoting PAN for cash and cheque transaction for payments over Rs 1 lakh to curb cases of slush money. Unregulated mining, Ponzi schemes, iron-ore exports, and the misuse of the export-import route, were identified as major areas prone to black money transactions.

The new names reported by the ICIJ said their records, apparently obtained through leaks from a Geneva-based branch of the HSBC, show that there are 1,668 Indians on it, while the number of actionable cases stands at 1,195 after taking into account duplication and some other factors.

Collectively, these accounts had a balance of $4.1 billion (Rs 25,420 crore) till 2007. The SIT is likely to discuss the new data in its next meet.

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Agencies
August 2,2020

Ayodhya, Aug 2: With the foundation laying ceremony of the grand Ram temple around the corner, the work at the stone-carving workshop of Ram Janambhoomi in Ayodhya has reached its final stage.

Speaking to news agency, caretaker of Ram temple stone workshop Hanuman Yadav said, "Stonework is ready for the construction work till the first floor of the temple. Cleaning work is almost done but some work is still left which will be done soon after the trust's meeting."

Talking about the characteristics of the sandstone chosen work the construction, he said, "It was chosen for the construction as it can withstand rigours for thousands of years. These designated stones are minutely carved according to the need of the temple."

The stone-carving workshop for the Ram temple construction was established in Ayodhya by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) in 1990.

On August 5 when Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Ayodhya for rituals that will mark the beginning of Ram temple construction, Hanumangarhi is the first stop he would be visiting.

The construction of Ram temple will begin in Ayodhya after the ceremony to lay the foundation stone in which various dignitaries from the political and religious fields are likely to participate apart from RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat. 

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News Network
January 3,2020

Mumbai, Jan 3: The Shiv Sena on Friday targeted the Centre by questioning the "efficacy" of the 2016 surgical strike and said the perception that it would demoralise Pakistani terrorists remained an "illusion" as Indian soldiers continue to get killed in terror attacks in Kashmir.

Accusing the Modi government of boasting about how Pakistan was straightened out after the surgical strike, the Sena sought to know whether it has really happened.

It also observed that troubled borders were not good for the country's well-being.

The Sena's remarks come in the wake of the death of an Army soldier from Maharashtra, Naik Sandip Raghunath Sawant, who was killed during a counter-insurgency operation in Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday.

"The New Year did not begin on a positive note in Kashmir. Our jawan from Satara, Sandip Sawant, attained martyrdom in Kashmir along with two other soldiers. In the last one month, seven to eight jawans from Maharashtra were killed in the line of duty. The Maha Vikas Aghadi government in Maharashtra is not responsible for this," the Sena said in an editorial in party mouthpiece 'Saamana'.

The party also questioned whether the situation in Kashmir has improved after the surgical strike and abrogation of Article 370 provisions.

The party, however, maintained that scrapping Article 370 was a good move.

India had conducted the surgical strike on September 29, 2016, across the Line of Control (LoC) as a response to a terrorist attack on an Indian Army base in Uri sector of Jammu and Kashmir earlier that month.

Without naming the Centre, the Sena alleged, "Circulating news that only the Pakistanis were getting killed in Kashmir will not change the reality as tricolour-draped bodies of Indian soldiers, like Sawant, are reaching their respective villages."

"There is a bloodshed along the Kashmir border and mounting anger among the families of martyred jawans. The perception that surgical strike will demoralise Pakistani terrorists has turned out to be an illusion. In fact, the (terror) attacks have increased," it added.

The Uddhav Thackeray-led party accused the ruling BJP of boasting about straightening out Pakistan after the surgical strike.

"But has Pakistan been really straightened out? Rather Pakistan has been indulging in ceasefire violations along the LoC every day," it added.

The Shiv Sena also questioned the government's claim that the situation in Kashmir was under control after the nullification of Article 370.

"It is good that Article 370 was scrapped. Before that, surgical strike was carried out in Pakistan. But has the situation in Kashmir improved? The terror attacks continue. It's only that there is a control in reporting (these incidents)," it said.

The Sena also alleged that there was no clarity as to what was transpiring in Kashmir after the scrapping of Article 370 and only the media reports of soldiers sacrificing their lives have been coming out from that state

In a veiled attack on the BJP, its erstwhile ally, the Sena, also accused it of exploiting the surgical strike for political gains.

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Agencies
July 30,2020

Ahead of the grand foundation stone-laying ceremony of the Ram Temple on August 5, Ayodhya priest and 16 police personnel, involved in the mega event on August 5, have tested positive for COVID-19. Priest Pradeep Das is one of the four priests who regularly perform puja at the Ram Temple site in Ayodhya.

Das has been placed under home quarantine and contact tracing is underway, reported.

Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh police and Sashastra Seema Bal have been put on high alert in the districts bordering Nepal ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Ayodhya on August 5.

PM Modi likely to launch postal stamps on Ram Temple, Ramayana during Ayodhya visit: Report
Counterfeit products create Rs 1-lakh-crore hole in economy, incidents up 24% in 2019: Report
On July 29, Uttar Pradesh reported a record single-day spike of 3,570 COVID-19 cases, taking the infection tally to more than 77,000, while 33 fresh fatalities pushed the death toll to 1,530.

"There are 29,997 active COVID-19 cases in the state and 45,807 patients have been discharged after treatment," Additional Chief Secretary, Medical and Health, Amit Mohan Prasad told reporters. "The death toll due to the disease has reached 1,530," he said.

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