WEDNESDAY 26 MARCH 2025 www.thestatesman.com X.com/thestatesmanltd. Fb/thestatesman1875 SINCE 1818 Pages 12 |` 5.00 KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR ‘ANNOUNCEMENT ON AUTONOMY SOON TO UPHOLD STATE’S RIGHTS’ FADNAVIS ALLEGES SULE'S LINK TO BLACKMAILERS OF BJP MINISTER P4 P5 SENSEX 78,017.19 p32.80 WEATHER Mainly clear sky. Maximum and Minimum Temperature most likely to be around 34˚C and 24˚C respectively. RAINFALL: 0.0 mm RELATIVE HUMIDITY Max. 91% ` vs $ 85.69 Min: 23.7˚C (-0.4) KOLKATA, 25 MARCH W SUN SETS 17:49 hrs MOON SETS 13:38 hrs New Moon on 29 March THUMBNAILS Security forces continue the cordon and search operation in the Saniyal area of Hiranagar on Tuesday for the second consecutive day after receiving input regarding the presence of terrorists in Kathua. nANI Rekha Gupta presents 'historic' Delhi Budget with Rs 1 lakh crore allocation: Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Tuesday presented the newly-elected BJP government's maiden budget in the state Assembly, allocating Rs 1 lakh crore for the development of the national capital with a focus on women's safety, water supply and sanitation, infrastructure, and cleaning of the Yamuna river. The outlay is Rs 24,000 crore higher than the budget estimates of the previous year when the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) was in power, marking an increase of 31.58 per cent. Presenting the budget, the chief minister called it a "historic budget" and claimed that it marks the highest increase in budget allocation in the nation. “This is not an ordinary budget. Delhi and the whole country is watching this. They all have great hopes from the new government. The budget is not just an account or a ledger; it is a transformation from a bad economy to Viksit Delhi," she stated. She asserted that this is not just a budget document but a roadmap for making the national capital self-reliant. est Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today made a compelling case for investment in the state at the business summit Opportunities in West Bengal, held at St. James’ Court in London. Addressing UK-based industrialists, investors, and dignitaries, she highlighted Bengal’s industrial potential and assured them of a business-friendly environment. The summit, which began at 7 p.m. IST, showcased Bengal’s strengths through a special video presentation, Dhonilo Ahoban, illustrating the state’s progress in industry, infrastructure, employment, sports, and culture. Indian High Commissioner to the UK, Vikram K. Doraiswami, emphasised Bengal’s strate- gic location as the gateway to Northeast India, Bangladesh, and Nepal. In a significant development, Manchester City, reigning champions of the English Premier League, announced plans to open a football school in Kolkata. During Banerjee’s visit, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the British club and Techno India, owned by Satyam Roy Chowdhury. NEW DELHI, 25 MARCH The Lok Sabha on Tuesday passed the Finance Bill, 2025 with 35 amendments, one of which eliminates the 6 per cent digital tax on online advertisements. Replying to the debate on the bill, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said: "I have proposed to remove (the) 6 per cent equalisation levy for advertisements. Equalisation levy on online advertisements to be abolished to address uncertainty in international economic conditions." Earlier in the day, the minister presented the amended Finance Bill, 2025, seeking approval for key Budget pro- STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 25 MARCH TMC and Congress MPs held a protest in Parliament on Tuesday against the Union government for allegedly stopping transfer of MNREGA funds to West Bengal. Congress MP and Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and lawmaker Priyanka Gandhi also joined the protest for a short period of time. Speaking to reporters on the issue, TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee said: "We have been saying that Central funds due to West Bengal should be given to the state... Shivraj Chouhan (Union Agriculture Minister) is against the Bengali people. They have been trying to form a government there posals. Marking a significant shift in digital taxation policy, the Finance Bill 2025-26 has proposed to withdraw the 6 per cent Equalisation Levy on online advertising services starting 1 April 2025. The proposal to remove the Equalisation Levy on online advertisements is believed to be aimed at showing an accommodative stance to the US, which has threatened to introduce reciprocal tariffs from 2 April. "The Finance Bill, 2025 provides unprecedented tax relief to honour taxpayers," said Sitharaman. The Finance Minister informed the House that the new Income Tax Bill will be taken up for discussion in the Monsoon session of Parliament. She said the new income tax bill, which was introduced in the House on 13 February, is currently being vetted by the Select Committee. The Select Committee has been mandated to submit its report by the first day of the next session of Parliament. The Monsoon session of Parliament is usually convened in July and runs through August. With the passage of the Finance Bill 2025, the Lok Sabha has concluded its role in the Budget approval process. The Bill will now move to the Rajya Sabha for consideration. After the Rajya Sabha approves the Bill, the Budget process for 2025-26 will be complete. AGENCIES NEW DELHI, 25 MARCH mers impersonate law enforcement officials to falsely accuse individuals of crimes and extort money or personal information by threatening arrest or imprisonment. Since 2021, Mr Kumar said, a Citizen Financial Cyber Fraud Reporting and Management System for reporting financial frauds and stopping siphoning off funds by fraudsters has saved more than Rs 4,386 crore in more than 13.36 lakh complaints. Clarifying that the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) does not separately compile or publish specific data regarding 'digital arrest' scams, the MoS said the MHA has set up the I4C as an attached office to deal with all types of cyber crimes in the country, in a coordinated and comprehensive manner. Sharing details of avenues for citizens to report 'digital arrests' and other cyber crimes, he said the ‘National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal’ (https://cybercrime.gov.in) has been launched, as a part of the I4C, to enable the public to report incidents pertaining to all types of cyber crimes. (West Bengal), but they will not be able to do so... They are not doing anything for the poor. Shivraj Chouhan is a 'Dalal' for the rich people. He never worked for the poor in Madhya Pradesh." Opposition MPs, including Congress' Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and LoP Gandhi, joined their party colleagues on the issue on Parliament premises. Party's MP Shashi Army denies reports of drone straying into Chinese territory PARWINDER SANDHU NEW DELHI, 25 MARCH The Indian Army has categorically denied reports suggesting that an Army Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) veered into Chinese-controlled territory in the Eastern Theatre and was subsequently hacked by the People's Liberation Army (PLA). A report published by alphadefense.in claimed that an Indian drone, operating near the eastern sector of the Indo-China border, unexpectedly drifted into Chinese airspace. The article, which did not specify the exact date of the alleged incident, further claimed that the Chinese Army temporarily took control of the UAV, operated it for a short duration, and then returned it to their Indian counterpart. The report also speculated that the drone in question was of Israeli origin, along with its data link and ground control station. In response to these claims, the Indian Army dismissed the article as "completely baseless and factually incorrect," stating that no such incident had occurred. “We urge media houses and social media users to refrain from carrying unverified and misleading content, which could create unnecessary alarm and misinformation in the public domain. The Indian Army remains fully committed to the security and operational integrity of all its assets,” a military source stated. Tharoor and K C Venugopal were among others who joined the demonstration. However, amid opposition MPs' protests in the Lok Sabha against the alleged delay in the payment to some states for the rural employment scheme, the government asserted that it has never discriminated against any state in the release of MGNREGA funds. P12 SILVER `1,01,000 BRENT CRUDE (IN $) 72.79 Dhankhar holds all-party meeting on judiciary STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 25 MARCH An all-party meeting was held in Parliament on the issue of Justice Yashwant Varma of the Delhi High Court under the chairmanship of Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar. Leader of the House JP Nadda and Leader of tbe Opposition in the upper house Mallikarjun Kharge were present in the meeting, along with floor leaders of the DMK, BJD, BRS, CPM, UBT, AGP, TMC, Congress, and BJP, sources said. According to the sources, the discussion in the meeting centred on key judicial matters in light of the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) Act being struck down by the Supreme Court even as it was passed by Parliament and approved by 16 states in 2015. According to the sources, the Modi government is exploring the revival of the NJAC. As soon as the Rajya Sabha met for the day, Mr Dhankhar said: ''It concerns the sovereignty of Parliament, the supremacy of Parliament, and whether we are at all relevant. If we effect an amendment in the Constitution, and that is not executable. If a constitutional amendment is not executable, I have no doubt the Parliament is possessed of the power. Any power...in any institution to ensure what emanated from the Indian Parliament, sanctified by a requisite number of State Legislatures, holds the field.'' He said the Upper House, keeping its dignity in mind, demonstrating dignified conduct, unanimously created a legal system in 2015, and that constitutional structure that emanated unanimously with one abstention from Parliament endorsed by state legislatures should be the rule of law because it was sanctified by the President by appending her signatures under Article 111. ''Now is the befitting occasion for all of us to reiterate that because that was a visionary step endorsed by Parliament. And imagine if that had taken place, things would have been different,'' he said. Seeking members' suggestions on a very important point, he noted: ''What emanated from Indian Parliament as a historic development with rare convergence of unity since independence found acceptance by needed State Legislatures. We need to reflect on what happened to that.'' India rejects Pak references to J&K at UN debate on peacekeeping STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 25 MARCH 83,668 WhatsApp accounts used for Digital Arrest blocked: Home Ministry The ‘Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre’ (I4C) set up by the Ministry of Home Affairs has identified and blocked more than 83,668 WhatsApp accounts and 3,962 Skype IDs used for 'Digital Arrest', Parliament was informed on Tuesday. Apart from this, over 7.81 lakh SIM cards and 2,08,469 IMEIs have been blocked by the Government after receiving police complaints, Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Bandi Sanjay Kumar said in a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha. A 'Digital Arrest', so-called, is a cybercrime where scam- Representing Techno India at the signing was Debdut Roy Chowdhury, Satyam’s son. Manchester City officials also presented a club jersey to Mamata Banerjee as a token of appreciation. During her speech, Banerjee expressed gratitude to Manchester City for their initiative and highlighted Bengal’s passion for football and cricket. She frequently references Bengal’s sporting culture during her foreign visits, and this occasion was no exception. Mr Doraiswami praised Bengal’s economic growth under Miss Banerjee’s leadership, citing the state’s contributions to India’s GDP, its thriving iron and steel industries, and its prominence in agriculture, particularly Darjeeling tea and jute production. He encouraged British businesses to invest in key sectors such as IT, healthcare, tourism, and manufacturing, assuring them of full support from the Indian High Commission. Miss Banerjee reaffirmed Bengal’s commitment to fostering an industry-friendly ecosystem, mentioning the formation of a special committee, led by the Chief Secretary, to facilitate investments. She stressed that Bengal offers world-class infrastructure and a skilled workforce, making it an ideal destination for international investors. TMC, Congress protest in Parliament against delay in release of MGNREGA funds to Bengal LS passes Finance Bill 2025 with 35 govt amendments; new IT Bill in Monsoon Session STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE GOLD `90,330.00 CM attends industry meeting in London STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE SUN RISES 05:36 hrs MOON RISES 02:35 hrs P9 EPL champs Manchester City announce plan to open football school in Kolkata Min. 41% TEMPERATURE Max: 33.0˚C (-1.7) NIFTY 23,668.65 p10.30 KKR, ROYALS AIM TO BOUNCE BACK TRUMP OFFICIALS TEXTED WAR PLANS TO A GROUP CHAT India slammed Pakistan for making repeated references to Jammu and Kashmir at a UN debate on peacekeeping reforms, asserting that the region "was, is, and will always be an integral part of India". Speaking at the Security Council, India's Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Parvathaneni Harish, snubbed the neighbouring country for attempting to "divert attention" from the core discussions on peacekeeping. "India is compelled to note that the delegate of Pakistan has yet again resorted to unwarranted remarks on the Indian Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. Such repeated references neither validate their illegal claims nor justify their state-sponsored cross-border terrorism," the Indian diplomat said. He said Pakistan itself is illegally occupying a part of Jammu and Kashmir and must vacate the territory. "Pakistan continues to illegally occupy the territory of Jammu and Kashmir, which it must vacate," he said, asserting that India would not allow its sovereignty to be questioned at global forums.