Sorry if we have hurt Sonia Gandhi's feelings: Veerappa Moily

News Network
August 25, 2020

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Bengaluru, Aug 25: "If we have hurt her (Sonia Gandhi's) feelings, we are sorry for it," M Veerappa Moily, one of the 23 senior Congress leaders who sought urgent organizational reforms, said on Tuesday, asserting they never questioned her leadership.

At the same time, the former union minister defended being a signatory to the letter addressed to the interim Congress president, as he stressed the need for rejuvenating and restructuring the party. Moily also disapproved of the media leak of the letter and called for an internal party enquiry to find out those behind it and wanted them to be punished.

The former Karnataka chief minister asserted that none of 23 leaders have any intention to leave the Congress. "We have never questioned the leadership of Soniaji," Moily told PTI in an interview, a day after the Congress Working Committee in a meeting prompted by the letter unanimously resolved to strengthen the hands of Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi in every possible way.

The partys top decision-making body also made it clear no one will be permitted to undermine or weaken the party and its leadership. "Soniaji is like a mother to the party. We revere her even now. There is no question of any intention to hurt her feelings. If we have hurt her feelings, we are sorry for it," Moily said. In her concluding remarks at the CWC meeting,

Sonia had agreed to continue but said this arrangement cannot remain "open ended", as the new party chief has to be selected soon. She had also said that she does not hold anything or any kind of "ill-will" against any of her colleagues irrespective of how hurtful were the remarks made by them. Noting that the party is passing through difficult times, Moily said "We can't afford to lose the Congress party which we have nurtured by our perspiration, dedication and sacrifice."

"We do recognise the sacrifice made by Soniaji, she was reluctant (earlier to take up the post), but she gave life to Congress party. Nobody can be ungrateful to Soniaji. And we still treat her as our own mother and guide the destiny of the party and also destiny of the nation," he said.

"That respect will continue to be there. But at the same time, the party needs to be rejuvenated. Our main theme of the letter itself is rejuvenation of the Congress at all levels. That does not mean she should not be President. Her becoming interim President again is welcome. We all love her." He said wholehearted efforts should be made to rejuvenate the party, adding, the organisation will have to be properly restructured.

Moily claimed some mischievous elements leaked the letter written by the leaders. "I dont know from which end it was released. That was not correct. We dont approve of that, none of us approve of it," he said adding none of the signatories leaked it.

Moily said the leak had occurred "somewhere after it is given to...I dont want to go into that. I think a proper inner party enquiry will have to be done and those who have leaked it will have to be punished, he added.

On some senior Congress leaders, including Kapil Sibal and Shashi Tharoor, meeting at their senior colleague Ghulam Nabi Azads house in Delhi on Monday evening after the CWC meeting,

Moily said he did not know about it as he was not in the national capital. He added: "There is no question of any one of us thinking to condemn the party or be away from the party. No question. Question of joining hands with the BJP does not arise at all. We hate BJP, we continue to hate BJP and policies of (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi."

Without naming anyone, Moily attacked 'betrayers' of the Congress. "There are many people who betrayed the Congress many a times, they think that they are more loyal than us," he said. Moily said he joined the Congress in 1968 and had remained loyal to the party.

"There are some people who really let Indira Gandhi, and the Congress party down... they think they are more loyal than the King whereas many of us stood by Congress party and fought in most difficult times for the Congress party," he added.

After a marathon seven-hour-long meeting, the CWC on Monday decided that Sonia Gandhi will continue as the party's interim president and effect necessary organisational changes while an AICC session will be called at the earliest to start the process of electing a new chief.

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News Network
April 1,2025

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As the new financial year begins, several significant financial and tax-related changes take effect from April 1, 2025. Many of these updates were announced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in the Union Budget 2025 and have now been officially approved as part of the Finance Bill 2025.

Some of the key changes include income tax exemption on annual earnings up to Rs 12 lakh, deactivation of UPI for long-unused mobile numbers, and suspension of dividend payouts for individuals who haven’t linked their PAN with Aadhaar. Below is a comprehensive look at all the important updates.

1. Income Tax Exemption & New Tax Slabs
Under the revamped tax regime:
✅ Individuals earning up to Rs 12 lakh per year will be completely exempt from income tax.
✅ For salaried employees, a standard deduction of Rs 75,000 raises the effective tax-free limit to Rs 12.75 lakh.
✅ To claim a rebate of up to Rs 60,000, taxpayers must file their returns on time.
✅ The new tax structure applies to income earned between April 1, 2025 – March 31, 2026, and will be reflected in ITR filings for FY 2025-26 (AY 2026-27).

2. Major Changes in TDS & TCS Rules
To provide tax relief and streamline transactions, several TDS (Tax Deducted at Source) and TCS (Tax Collected at Source) amendments have been introduced:
🔹 TDS on bank interest for senior citizens has doubled from Rs 50,000 to Rs 1 lakh.
🔹 TDS on dividend income has increased to Rs 10,000.
🔹 TCS on overseas remittances under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) has been raised from Rs 7 lakh to Rs 10 lakh.

3. UPI Deactivation for Inactive Mobile Numbers
The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) will start unlinking UPI IDs associated with inactive mobile numbers. If your number has been inactive for a long period:
🔸 Your bank may remove it from their records.
🔸 You could face disruptions in Google Pay, PhonePe, or any UPI-based transactions.
🔸 This change enhances security by preventing unauthorized access to old UPI-linked accounts.

4. New GST Rules
Several Goods and Services Tax (GST) updates take effect:
🔹 Multi-factor authentication (MFA) is now mandatory for logging into the GST portal, improving online security.
🔹 E-way bills can only be generated for documents issued within the last 180 days, ensuring better compliance.
🔹 Hotel room tariffs above Rs 7,500 per day are now classified as "Specified Premises," attracting an 18% GST on restaurant services.

5. Toll Tax Hike Across National Highways
From April 1, 2025, toll charges across various highways will increase:
🚗 Delhi-Meerut Expressway, NH-9: Toll for cars will rise by Rs 5 to Rs 170.
🚛 Trucks and buses will now pay Rs 580 on major highways.
🚗 Delhi-Jaipur Highway: The Kherki Daula toll plaza will maintain current rates for cars, but the monthly pass for larger vehicles will rise by Rs 20 to Rs 950.

6. End of Equalisation Levy on Digital Transactions
The Finance Act 2025 removes the Equalisation Levy, which previously imposed a 2% tax on e-commerce and 6% on online advertisements. This change aims to:
✅ Reduce tax burden on digital service providers.
✅ Attract foreign investments in India’s digital economy.

7. Positive Pay System for Cheque Payments
To prevent bank fraud, the Positive Pay System requires account holders to:
✅ Electronically submit cheque details for payments above Rs 50,000.
✅ Ensure the details match before the cheque is processed.

8. KYC Mandatory for Mutual Fund & Demat Accounts
🔹 KYC (Know Your Customer) verification is now compulsory for mutual fund and demat accounts.
🔹 Nominee details will also undergo re-verification to enhance security.

9. Major Credit Card Perk Reductions
Credit card users will see major perk reductions, particularly with SBI, IDFC First, and Axis Bank:
❌ SBI Cards will remove complimentary insurance coverage for accidents (Rs 50 lakh for air, Rs 10 lakh for rail).
❌ Reward points on SBI Cards will be slashed from 15% to just 5%.
❌ IDFC First Club Vistara cardholders will lose milestone benefits and Club Vistara Silver membership perks.
❌ Axis Bank is discontinuing Maharaja Club tier memberships and premium vouchers.

10. Minimum Balance Rules for Bank Accounts
📌 Major banks like SBI, PNB, and Canara Bank have updated their minimum balance requirements based on account location:
🏙 Urban branches will require higher minimum balances.
🏡 Rural and semi-urban accounts may have lower minimum balance thresholds.
🚨 Failing to maintain the required balance will result in penalty charges, varying by bank.

11. Unified Pension Scheme (UPS) for Government Employees
The Unified Pension Scheme (UPS), introduced in August 2024, takes effect:
✅ Central government employees under NPS can opt for UPS.
✅ Those with at least 25 years of service will receive 50% of their average basic salary as a monthly pension.

Final Thoughts

These changes, introduced as part of the Union Budget 2025, mark a significant shift in India's tax, banking, and digital transaction landscape. With higher tax exemptions, updated TDS & TCS rules, stricter banking security, and GST amendments, the new financial year aims to simplify compliance while improving financial security and economic efficiency.

Stay informed and ensure all necessary updates to your financial accounts to avoid disruptions.

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Agencies
March 26,2025

The airstrikes led by the United States have killed at least 25 civilians in Yemen over the past week, marking the deadliest week of bombing on the country since the final months of the Washington-backed Saudi war in January 2022.

In a report released on Tuesday, the Yemen Data Project said the 25 civilians were the victims of 38 US-led aerial assaults on March 15-21, adding that 28 people were also injured in the attacks.

The independent tracker also said that 21 out of the 38 US air raids hit non-military, civilian targets.

“Civilian targets hit included: a medical storage facility, a medical center, a school, a wedding hall, residential areas, a cotton gin facility, a health office, Bedouin tents, and Al-Eiman University,” it said.

The deadliest US strike in the first week of US bombing campaign struck a residential area in Yemen’s northwestern Sa'ada province, killing 10 civilians and wounding 11 others, among them children.

The US began bombing Yemen on March 15, a few days after Yemen resumed its operation against Israeli-linked ships in response to Israel’s Gaza aid blockade that violated a ceasefire with the Hamas resistance group.

The Yemeni Armed Forces began their anti-Israel naval campaign in November 2023, a month after the occupying regime waged a genocidal war on the Gaza Strip.

The Yemeni forces halted their attacks in solidarity with the Palestinians in January, when Israel accepted a three-phase Gaza ceasefire.

Two months later, however, Israel unilaterally broke the Gaza truce and resumed its brutal onslaught on the besieged territory.

On Tuesday, Yemeni media reported 17 US strikes on Sa'ada and two more on the nearby 'Amran province.

The reports said American warplanes carried out "aggressive air raids... causing material damage to citizens' property," but gave no details of casualties.

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News Network
April 7,2025

Mangaluru, Apr 7: The long-standing demand for a separate Beary Development Corporation has hit a wall — the Karnataka government has officially stated that no such proposal is currently under consideration.

Beary-speaking people, mainly settled across Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, and parts of Kodagu, have been urging the government to set up a dedicated body for the welfare of their community and the promotion of their unique 1,200-year-old language. But during the recent legislative session, Minority Affairs Minister B.Z. Zameer Ahmed Khan confirmed that his department has not received any proposal on this matter.

The clarification came in response to a question by MLC Ivan D’Souza, who highlighted the community’s cultural richness and a population of over 25 lakh. “The community has raised this demand several times to support education and social upliftment, but the government hasn’t taken any concrete steps,” he said.

In his reply, the minister pointed out that the Karnataka Minorities Development Corporation (KMDC) already runs various welfare schemes for Muslim, Christian, Jain, Buddhist, Sikh, and Parsi communities. Since Beary speakers are considered part of the Muslim community, they are eligible for benefits under these existing programs, he added.

Still, many in the Beary community feel that without a separate development body, their identity, language, and specific needs risk being overlooked.

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