by admin | May 25, 2021 | Corporate, Corporate Governance, News, Politics
New Delhi : Parliament on Thursday passed The Payment of Gratuity (Amendment) Bill which seeks to empower the government to fix the period of maternity leave and the tax-free gratuity amount with an executive order.
The Bill got Parliament’s approval after it was passed by the Rajya Sabha through a voice vote. It was passed amid a din by the Lok Sabha on March 15.
After the passage of the Bill in Parliament, the government will be able to enhance the ceiling of tax-free gratuity to Rs 20 lakh from the existing Rs 10 lakh for employees under the Payment of Gratuity Act.
Labour Minister Santosh Kumar Gangwar moved The Payment of Gratuity (Amendment) Bill, 2017, which was passed by a voice vote without any discussion.
“I would urge the chair to pass the Bill without discussion,” said Gangwar while moving the Bill.
The Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972 allows for the payment of gratuity to employees in any establishment, factory, mine, oil field, plantation, port, railways, company, or shop employing 10 or more workers.
Employees are paid gratuity if they have provided at least five years of continuous service at the time of termination.
This Bill empowers the Central government to notify the period of maternity leave eligible for qualifying as continuous service and determine the amount of gratuity available to employees.
The maximum maternity leave, for the purpose of calculating continuous service under the Act, was based on the maternity leave provided under the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961.
The maximum maternity leave under the 1961 Act was changed from 12 weeks to 26 weeks by the Maternity Benefit (Amendment) Act, 2017. The Bill removes the reference to 12 weeks and empowers the Central government to notify the maximum maternity leave.
Under the Act, the maximum amount of gratuity payable to an employee cannot exceed Rs 10 lakh. The Bill removes the existing ceiling and states that the ceiling may be notified by the Central government.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | Interviews
By Mohd Asim Khan,
New Delhi : The government is ready to discuss the triple talaq bill in the Rajya Sabha and was open to suggestions from the opposition — but referring it to a Select Committee made no sense, Union Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi has said.
The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill — commonly called the triple talaq bill as it criminalises “instant” divorce among Muslims — is scheduled to be taken up in the Rajya Sabha in the coming week as part of the government’s business.
“Let’s discuss the bill in the House and the members can move amendments. Nobody can stop a member from moving any amendment,” Naqvi told IANS in an interview.
“But where is the sense in insisting on refering the bill to a select committee of the House? What will the Select Committee do? Even the House can scrutinise legislation,” he added.
The Select Committee may also invite suggestions from stakeholders such as various Muslim organisations and women’s bodies, which the government has apparently not done.
The opposition, Muslim bodies and women’s rights groups have accused the government of “unilaterally” drafting the legislation without seeking any opinion from the stakeholders or those who would be directly affected by the proposed law.
However, Naqvi said: “We have said it earlier too and reiterate that the government is open to suggestions on the bill from the opposition and others.”
But on the question of negotiating the penal provision — which is the main bone of contention — the minister said the bill would make no sense without this as the practice of triple talaq continues even after the Supreme Court banned it.
Under Section 4 of the bill, “Whoever pronounces talaq upon his wife by words, either spoken or written or in electronic form or in any other manner whatsoever, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years and fine.”
It also provides for a subsistence allowance for a divorced woman and her children as determined by a magistrate and provides custody of the minor children to the woman in case of divorce.
The government had introduced the triple talaq bill in the Rajya Sabha on January 3 this year during the winter session of Parliament. The Lok Sabha had earlier passed the bill.
Almost all the opposition parties have objected to the penal provision in the bill and had insisted it be sent to a Select Committee of the Rajya Sabha for closer scrutiny. Congress leader Anand Sharma and Trinamool Congress member Sukhendu Shekhar Roy had moved amendments to this effect.
Sharma even suggested the names of the 17 members of the select panel from the opposition’s side, leaving it to the government to give its names.
The government, however, vociferously objected to the proposal, citing various technical reasons. The opposition even demanded voting on the issue on the day the bill was introduced as well as the next day, January 4.
However, on the first day, the treasury benches members created a ruckus, forcing the chair to adjourn the House for the day, saying voting could not be done unless the House was in order.
The next day, the government listed the bill at the bottom of the day’s business, prompting loud protests from the opposition, which wanted it to be taken up early and a vote taken. The chair said he could not help as it was the government’s prerogative at which position to list a bill. Amid pandemonium, the House was adjourned for the day.
The winter session concluded the next day on January 5, and the triple talaq bill is still pending in the upper House.
On March 16, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Vijay Goel, while announcing the coming week’s business, also listed the triple talaq bill for considering and passing.
(Asim Khan can be contacted on mohd.a@ians.in )
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | News, Politics
Kahkashan Parveen
New Delhi : Rajya Sabha Chairman M. Venkaiah Naidu on Friday appointed Kahkashan Parveen, a JD-U member from Bihar, to the panel of Vice Chairman.
The appointment comes after various members of the House urged the Chairman to appoint a female member in the panel on the occasion of International Women’s Day.
On Thursday, the Congress’ Viplove Thakur had pointed out that there were no women in the Vice-Chairman’s panel.
“I have decided to appoint Kahkashan Parveen to the panel of Vice Chairman with effect from April 3 in place of Basawaraj Patil, who is retiring from the House in April,” Naidu announced.
Parveen was chairperson of the Women’s Commission in Bihar and had unsuccessfully contested the Assembly election in 2010 from Kahalgaon in Bhagalpur district and had also served as Mayor of Bhagalpur.
The Rajya Sabha Chairman nominate from amongst the members of the Council a panel of not more than six Vice Chairmen, any one of whom may preside over the Council in the absence of the Chairman and the Deputy Chairman.
Besides Patil, Satyanarayan Jatiya, Tiruchi Siva, T.K. Rangarajan, Bhubaneswar Kalita and Sukhendu Shekhar Ray are the current members of the panel.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | News, Politics
By Mohd Asim Khan,
New Delhi : Come April, the opposition in the Rajya Sabha may lose its edge in the numbers game and the power to stall any government bill, as the ruling BJP-led NDA coalition is set to catch up with its rivals, though a clear majority will elude them for a while more.
As 58 MPs, including three Nominated and one Independent, are set to retire in April, the Rajya Sabha math is going to change. It is set to favour the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), and the trend may continue in the elections to the Upper House later too with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) having solid majorities in a number of state assemblies, especially the ones it won after the 2014 Lok Sabha polls.
With this, while the Congress-led opposition’s numbers will come down to around 115 from the present 123, the numbers of the BJP, its allies and sympathisers together would climb to around 109 from the present 100-odd members.
And the gap, once wide enough to let the opposition invariably have its say, will keep narrowing further in the coming months.
Of the 55 retiring members (excluding those Nominated), 30 belong to the opposition camp while 24 belong to the BJP and allies. Of them, a large number of NDA candidates are set to return while the opposition will lose a chunk of its members.
As things stand now, the Congress-led opposition has 123 MPs (including 54 of the Congress) in a house of 233 elected members (apart from 12 Nominated), while the NDA has 83 members (including 58 of BJP) plus four Independents who support the BJP (these include MPs Rajeev Chandrashekhar, Subhash Chandra, Sanjay Dattatraya Kakade and Amar Singh).
Also, for all practical purposes, the All India Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), that has 13 members in the Rajya Sabha, is also with the NDA. This means the NDA’s effective strength in the upper house of Parliament is 100.
The gap was wider till just a few months ago. This meant that during any battle between the government and the opposition in the Upper House over bills and major issues, it was the opposition that invariably had its way. The recent example was the triple talaq legislation that the opposition stalled in the upper house, demanding that it be referred to a Select Committee.
For over less than four years, the Narendra Modi government had faced quite a few embarrassments in the Rajya Sabha thanks to the majority of the opposition, forcing it often to take the money bill route to avoid a clash in the house. Under the Constitution, a money bill needs to be passed only in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha cannot stall it.
However, after April, the NDA will be in a far better position.
Of the 100 BJP-allies MPs, 24 are retiring. Which means, the government will be left with 76 MPs (including AIADMK). But at least 30 from the NDA are set to get re-elected. So the number will rise to 106.
Add three members that the government would nominate to the upper house and the final NDA tally will roughly be 109 MPs.
Further, there are fence-sitters such as the Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS), the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) and the YSR Congress, which are not virulently against the BJP and would not oppose the government unless for very compelling reasons.
Now, for the Congress and the rest of the opposition, they are set to lose 30 MPs (including one Independent, A.V. Swamy) through retirement and would be left with around 93 members. The Opposition may win roughly 22 seats, which means that its final tally after April is likely to be around 115 members.
The gap has clearly narrowed and the government may not be at the mercy of the opposition during crucial votes and can have its way in the Rajya Sabha if it musters its numbers by deftly wooing “floater” MPs.
The three newly-elected Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) members may remain equidistant from both the BJP and the Congress, though the party is friendly with some of the major opposition parties like the Trinamool Congress.
In an interesting development recently, the AAP actively participated in the opposition’s walkout and the day-long boycott of the Rajya Sabha over long intra-day adjournments of the Upper House by Chairman M. Venkaiah Naidu.
The AAP, which was not welcome at any opposition meetings earlier, particularly those held in Parliament House, was invited to speak at a joint opposition media interaction on the day. But nobody can be sure as to how long this bonding would last.
Partywise tally of those retiring in April-May from the opposition’s side include 13 from the Congress, six from the Samajwadi Party, three of the Trinamool Congress, two each of the Nationalist Congress Party and Biju Janata Dal and one each of the CPI-M, the Bahujan Samaj Party and the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha.
From the ruling side, 17 MPs of the BJP, three of the Janata Dal United, one of the Shiv Sena and two of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) are retiring.
In terms of state-wise vacancies to be created in April, the highest number is from Uttar Prdaesh (9), followed by Maharashtra (6), Madhya Pradesh (5), Bihar (5), Gujarat (4), Karnataka (4), West Bengal (4), Rajasthan (3), Odisha (3), Andhra Pradesh (3), Telangana (2), Uttarakhand (1), Himachal Pradesh (1) and Chhattisgarh (1).
(Asim Khan can be contacted on mohd.a@ians.in )
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | News, Politics
All India Muslim Personal Law Board’s joint Press conference at the conclusion of 26th plenary session at Hyderabad on Sunday.
Opposed to its penal correction and preferred societal correction
By Pervez Bari,
Hyderabad : The 26th general session of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board, (AIMPLB), concluded here at Salar-e-Millat Auditorium, Owaisi Hospital and Research Centre, Kanchanbagh, in Hyderabad on Sunday reiterating its firm stand on Babri Masjid issue of no outside court settlement but judiciary pronouncement in the case.
Addressing a joint Press conference after the conclusion of the AIMPLB general session the office-bearers and members of the Board said that they will no stone unturned to prevent the Muslim Women (Protection on Marriage) Bill, which envisages to criminalise instant Talaq-e-Biddat (instant Triple Talaq), from being passed in the Rajya Sabha to become an Act. The board members said during the general session, they had resolved to carry out more such campaigns and also gather all parties opposed to government’s Bill, which they termed unconstitutional.
Members of the law board also said they had conveyed their reservations about the Bill to the government. They also said they would approach the courts if the Bill is passed.
The AIMPLB while terming the practice of Triple Talaq unacceptable, said it was opposed to its penal correction and preferred societal correction.
Explaining reservation about the Bill Dr. Asma Zehra, convenor of Women’s Wing of the AIMPLB said: “The Bill is defective. We have received representations from several women organisations who want us to point out the problems. The AIMPLB has organised awareness programmes to educate men and women about Islamic provisions on marriage and divorce”.
The board’s members also said efforts are under way to push a model Nikahnama in the States, which carry a clause signed by the groom. The clause makes it binding on the groom to refrain from issuing Triple Talaq.
Advocating societal pressure, members argued that the proposed law would harm women’s interests, as a husband may neither agree to divorce nor fulfil his responsibilities towards his wife if he were booked.
The board also informed that efforts to put together a financial assistance fund for women affected by Triple Talaq are under way.
Later in the evening, members addressed a massive public gathering at the headquarters of AIMIM, where they urged men to refrain from issuing triple talaq and recognise rights of women. The board maintained that it is open to social reform in tune with changing times.
Meanwhile, president of AIMPLB, Maulana Rabey Hasani Nadvi, presided over the three-day general session which was attended by around 400 members/special invitees from different spheres of life which included Ulemas, intellectuals, social and political personalities.
The general session during the three days had discussed and decided to protect the Islamic Shariah. It was decided:
1. “Babri Masjid is an essential part of faith in Islam and Muslims can never abdicate the Masjid nor could they exchange land for Masjid or gift the Masjid land. Babri Masjid is a Masjid and it shall remain a Masjid till eternity. By demolishing Babri Masjid, it never loses its identity as a Masjid. And according to Shariah, it always remains a Masjid. Without any doubt, we make it clear that the struggle for the reconstruction of Babri Masjid continues and the appeal in Supreme Court is being fought rigorously with all the resources available at the disposal of the Board. The AIMPLB fully supports and endorses the reform movement launched by the Board and it is also decided that state-wide committees and district-level committees will be formed. These will be under the aegis of the central body.
2. The Muslim Women (Protection on Marriage) Bill, moved by the Central government is anti-women. It will create more difficulties for women. It is against Shariah and it is against the Constitution. The efforts made by the Board will continue to stop this Bill in the Rajya Sabha. The Board will start a country-wide awareness campaign against this Bill and will also coordinate with the opposition parties which are opposing the Bill. Country-wide, women’s empowerment meetings will be continuously held.
3. The plenary, various committee reports were discussed and the members present expressed their satisfaction on their working of the Board.
4. On this occasion, the President of the Board, in his presidential address, said that the Islamic laws are based on the Holy Quran and the Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him). The Muslims will not accept any amendments or any proposals for amendments in the Shariah. India is a secular, democratic country which allows the Muslims and other communities to practise their religion according to their religious laws and customs. In the present circumstances, the Board will focus its energies on Islah-e-Mashaira (Social Reform movement), for empowerment and implementation of the rights of Muslim women, to ensure that every reconciliatory step is taken to protect the sanctity of marriage, to ensure that all steps are taken so that the rights of the Muslim women divorcees are taken care by their families.
5. The Board will take up campaigns to create awareness among the masses and, in particular, among the Muslims, as how the present government, under the garb of Instant Talaq Bill (Muslim Women Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2017 wants to put restrictions on the Muslims.
6. On Babri Masjid case, the Board is taking every legal step for the reconstruction of the Masjid.
7. To create awareness and understanding of the Shariah, the Board will start a country-wide campaign for this purpose, so that the Muslims are made to understand about Nikah, Talaq, Inheritance and how everything should be done according to the Shariah laws.
Lastly, the General Secretary of the Board, Maulana Wali Rahmani, presented the general secretary’s report and gave a message that the real strength of the community lies in its unity. We have to save ourselves from disunity so that we remain as an honourable community of the country.
The present environment in the country reminds us that at all costs, we must remain united, ignore our minor differences and adopt the path of moderation and through our writings, words and deeds; we must create unity and peace in the country.
Meanwhile, a “Hyderabad Declaration” was also released at the end of the 26th general session of the AIMPLB.
