DAILY NEWS ANALYSIS

Syllabus subtopic: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.

News: The Centre on Monday asked the Supreme Court to refer to a seven­judge Bench the question whether the creamy layer concept should apply or not to the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes while providing them reservation in promotions.

Prelims and Mains focus: About the cases related to the issue, issues related, challenges and implications of the move

Background

On September 26 last year, a five­judge Bench in the Jarnail Singh case unanimously agreed with a 2006 judgment of another five-judge Bench in the M. Nagaraj case, which had upheld the application of the creamy layer principle in promotions.

The 2018 judgment, authored by Justice Rohinton F. Nariman, had also refused the government’s plea to refer the 2006 Nagaraj case judgment to a seven­judge Bench.

On Monday, however, Attorney General K.K. Venugopal urged the court to reconsider the ruling and refer the Nagaraj case judgment to a seven­judge Bench. A Bench, led by Chief Justice of India Sharad A. Bobde, agreed to hear the case after two weeks.

Plea rejected

The 2018 judgment, modifying the part of the Nagaraj case verdict which required the States to show quantifiable data to prove the “backwardness” of a Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe in order to provide quota in promotion in public employment, had, however, rejected the Centre’s argument that the Nagaraj case ruling had misread the creamy layer concept by applying it to the SCs/STs.

“The whole object of reservation is to see that the backward classes of citizens move forward so that they may march hand in hand with other citizens of India on an equal basis. This will not be possible if only the creamy layer within that class bag all the coveted jobs in the public sector and perpetuate themselves, leaving the rest of the class as backward as they always were,” Justice Nariman had said, upholding the Nagaraj case ruling. The 2018 judgment said that when a court applies the creamy layer principle to the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes, it does not in any manner tinker with the Presidential List under Article 341 or 342 of the Constitution. The caste or group or sub­group named in the list continues exactly as before, Justice Nariman had reasoned.

“It is only those within that group or sub­group, who have come out of untouchability or backwardness by virtue of belonging to the creamy layer, who are excluded from the benefit of reservation,” he had explained. He had observed that unless the creamy layer principle was applied, those genuinely deserving reservation would not access it and those who were underserving within the same class would continue to get it. The court held that the principle was based on the fundamental right to equality. “The benefits, by and large, are snatched away by the top creamy layer of the backward caste or class, keeping the weakest among the weak always weak and leaving the fortunate layers to consume the whole cake,” Justice Nariman had observed.

Syllabus subtopic: Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population by the Centre and States and the performance of these schemes; mechanisms, laws, institutions and bodies constituted for the protection and betterment of these vulnerable sections

News: Expressing concern over the recent sexual assault cases, the National Human Rights Commission on Monday issued notices to the Centre, States and Union Territories seeking reports on the standard operating procedure (SOP) for dealing with such cases and the use of the Nirbhaya Fund. The NHRC has asked the governments to respond in six weeks.

Prelims and Mains focus: about NHRC, SHRC, their composition, functions and limitations, about Nirbhaya Fund

Context:

Taking suo motu cognisance of media reports, the NHRC observed that there was a “dire need for all stakeholders to work jointly to get rid of this evil.”

The Commission’s action comes in the wake of the gang­rape and murder of a doctor in Hyderabad that has spurred a debate on the condition of women’s security in the country once again.

Remarks made by NHRC

Issuing the notices, the Commission said the “largest democracy of the world, which has adopted the longest written Constitution and has a rich cultural heritage of gender equality, is today being criticised for having the most unsafe environment for women.”

The NHRC said these cases were violations of the victims’ human rights.

“There have been constitutional and statutory provisions to ensure that women are not subjected to any kind of discrimination and harassment. But, there is an alarming trend indicating that things are getting worse, amounting to violation of right to life, liberty, dignity and equality of women across the country,” it said.

About NHRC:

• NHRC of India is an independent statutory body established on 12 October, 1993 as per provisions of Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993, later amended in 2006.

• NHRC has celebrated its Silver Jubilee (25 years) on October 12, 2018. Its headquarter is located in New Delhi.

• It is the watchdog of human rights in the country, i.e. the rights related to life, liberty, equality and dignity of the individual guaranteed by Indian Constitution or embodied in the international covenants and enforceable by courts in India.

• It was established in conformity with the Paris Principles, adopted for the promotion and protection of human rights in Paris (October, 1991) and endorsed by the General Assembly of the United Nations on 20 December, 1993.

The Protection of Human Rights (Amendment) Bill 2019 passed by the Parliament aims to accelerate the process of appointment of chairperson and members of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC).

Salient Features of the Act:

The Act amends the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993. It provides for a National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), State Human Rights Commissions (SHRC), as well as Human Rights Courts.

Composition of NHRC: Under the Act, the chairperson of the NHRC is a person who has been a Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. The Bill amends this to provide that a person who has been Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, or a Judge of the Supreme Court will be the chairperson of the NHRC.

Inclusion of woman member: The Act provides for two persons having knowledge of human rights to be appointed as members of the NHRC. The Bill amends this to allow three members to be appointed, of which at least one will be a woman.

Other members: Under the Act, chairpersons of various commissions such as the National Commission for Scheduled Castes, National Commission for Scheduled Tribes, and National Commission for Women are members of the NHRC. The Bill provides for including the chairpersons of the National Commission for Backward Classes, the National Commission for the Protection of Child Rights, and the Chief Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities as members of the NHRC.

Chairperson of SHRC: Under the Act, the chairperson of a SHRC is a person who has been a Chief Justice of a High Court. The Bill amends this to provide that a person who has been Chief Justice or Judge of a High Court will be chairperson of a SHRC.

Term of office: The Act states that the chairperson and members of the NHRC and SHRC will hold office for five years or till the age of seventy years, whichever is earlier. The Bill reduces the term of office to three years or till the age of seventy years, whichever is earlier. Further, the Act allows for the reappointment of members of the NHRC and SHRCs for a period of five years. The Bill removes the five-year limit for reappointment.

Powers of Secretary-General: The Act provides for a Secretary-General of the NHRC and a Secretary of a SHRC, who exercise powers as may be delegated to them. The Bill amends this and allows the Secretary-General and Secretary to exercise all administrative and financial powers (except judicial functions), subject to the respective chairperson’s control.

Union Territories: The Bill provides that the central government may confer on a SHRC human rights functions being discharged by Union Territories. Functions relating to human rights in the case of Delhi will be dealt with by the NHRC.

Benefits:

1. The Amendment will strengthen the Human Rights Institutions of India further for effective discharge of their mandates, roles and responsibilities.

1. Moreover, the amended Act will be in perfect sync with the agreed global standards and benchmarks towards ensuring the rights relating to life, liberty, equality and dignity of the individual in the country.

1. The amendment will also make National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) more compliant with the Paris Principle concerning its autonomy, independence, pluralism and wide-ranging functions in order to effectively protect and promote human rights.

Functions and Powers of NHRC

• NHRC investigates grievances regarding the violation of human rights either suo moto or after receiving a petition.
• It has the power to interfere in any judicial proceedings involving any allegation of violation of human rights.
• It can visit any jail or any other institution under the control of the State Government to see the living conditions of the inmates and to make recommendations thereon.
• It can review the safeguards provided under the constitution or any law for the protection of the human rights and can recommend appropriate remedial measures.
• NHRC undertakes and promotes research in the field of human rights.
• NHRC works to spread human rights literacy among various sections of society and promotes awareness of the safeguards available for the protection of these rights through publications, media, seminars and other means.
• The Commission takes an independent stand while providing opinions for the protection of human rights within the parlance of the Constitution or in law for the time being enforced.
• It has the powers of a civil court and can grant interim relief.
• It also has the authority to recommend payment of compensation or damages.
• NHRC credibility is duly reflected in large number of complaints received every year and the trust reposed in it by the citizens.
• It can recommend to both the central and state governments to take suitable steps to prevent the violation of Human Rights. It submits its annual report to the President of India who causes it to be laid before each House of Parliament.

Limitations of NHRC

• NHRC does not have any mechanism of investigation. In majority cases, it asks the concerned Central and State Governments to investigate the cases of the violation of Human Rights
• It has been termed as ‘India’s teasing illusion’ by Soli Sorabjee (former Attorney-General of India) due to its incapacity to render any practical relief to the aggrieved party.
• NHRC can only make recommendations, without the power to enforce decisions.
• Many times NHRC is viewed as post-retirement destinations for judges and bureaucrats with political affiliation moreover, inadequacy of funds also hamper its working.
• A large number of grievances go unaddressed because NHRC cannot investigate the complaint registered after one year of incident.
• Government often out rightly rejects recommendation of NHRC or there is partial compliance to these recommendations.
• State human rights commissions cannot call for information from the national government, which means that they are implicitly denied the power to investigate armed forces under national control.
• National Human Rights Commission powers related to violations of human rights by the armed forces have been largely restricted.

About Nirbhaya fund

The Rs 1,000 crore Nirbhaya Fund was announced in Union Budget 2013 by the then Finance Minister P Chidambaram.

1. The corpus was to be utilised for upholding safety and dignity of women.
2. Ministry of Women and Child Development apart from several other concerned ministries were authorised to work out details of structure, scope and application of this fund.
3. The Fund is administered by Department of Economic Affairs of the finance ministry.

Issues with Nirbhaya Fund:

The government has been accused of keeping Nirbhaya Fund unutilised. With rise in cases of sexual harassment and crimes against women there is a crying need for implementation of such funds.

Syllabus subtopic: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.

News: The Rajya Sabha approved a country-wide ban on electronic cigarettes on Monday.

Prelims and Mains focus: about the key features of the Bill, its merits and challenges in implementation

Background

The Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes (Production, Manufacture, Import, Export, Transport, Sale, Distribution, Storage and Advertisement) Bill, 2019 was passed by a voice vote amid concerns that it was brought under pressure from the tobacco lobby.

The Bill, which got the Lok Sabha’s nod last week, will replace the Ordinance promulgated on September 18.

What does the law say?

The law categorises production, manufacture, import, export, transport, sale, distribution, storage and advertisement of e-cigarettes as cognisable offences.

Any contravention of the law will be punishable with imprisonment of up to one-year, or a fine of up to Rs 1 lakh, or both. For any subsequent offence, it provides for imprisonment of up to three years along with a fine of up to Rs 5 lakh.

Govt’s stand on the Ordinance route taken earlier

Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan assured the House that there are no “vested interests” or “ulterior motives” behind the legislation. “Our intentions are absolutely pious and very clear that we want to nip this problem in the bud itself,” he said, pointing out that only 0.02 per cent Indians use e-cigarettes.

Justifying the government decision to impose the ban through an Ordinance, the minister said it was the “need of the hour”. “We wanted to implement it because we knew that big companies had planned everything… They were just going to start their manufacture,” Harsh Vardhan said.

Concerns of the Oppositon:

Members of the Opposition alleged that the Bill was brought under pressure from the tobacco companies since e-cigarettes could hurt their market share. “It seems like it’s okay to have cigarettes and tobacco products, but not e-cigarettes. What is it about e-cigarettes that you had to bring in such a law? Please let us in on this secret,” Congress MP Digvijaya Singh said.

“If the idea is to address health problems related to consumption of tobacco then all tobacco products should be banned. Why just e-cigarettes?” asked Ravi Prakash Kumar of Samajwadi Party.

Opposition members also questioned whether a blanket ban was the right way since the prohibition of alcohol in Gujarat and Bihar had no effect on the supply of the banned substance.

Nadimul Haque (TMC) said the mandate of the Bill should be extended to all tobacco products including gutkha and pan masala. Vijila Sathyananth of the AIADMK said the government should ban all kind of cigarettes.

Govt’s response

The Health minister replied, “In a country as vast as India, you see once a particular product has a very big consumer base and social acceptance, it is, in fact, very, very difficult to ban it… Once you have a very huge consumer base… we are not able to do it (implement ban) for cigarettes, for so many things, because 28 per cent of the people are involved with that.

Syllabus subtopic: Parliament and State Legislatures - structure, functioning, conduct of business, powers & privileges and issues arising out of these.

News: With two legislators forced to apologise for their remarks in the two sessions of the 17th Lok Sabha, its Ethics Committee is all set to form a code of conduct for MPs in the Lower House. After BJP MP Pragya Singh Thakur triggered a controversy with her remarks on Nathuram Godse, the Ethics Committee initiated discussions on it on Monday.

Prelims and Mains focus: About the Parlimentary Committees and their functioning, significance and ways to improve their working

Context:

The panel, headed by BJP’s Vinod Kumar Sonkar, met on Monday and decided to seek suggestions as well as views from all political parties for the code that would oversee the moral and ethical conduct of the MPs.

In the meeting, the 14-member committee decided to study code of conduct for the lawmakers in the US, UK and other countries.

A code of conduct had come into force for the Rajya Sabha MPs in 2005.

Instances of violation

SP leader Azam Khan had created controversy in the first session of the 17th Lok Sabha with a sexist remark against BJP’s Rema Devi, who was then in the chair,

The ongoing winter session witnessed uproarious scenes when Thakur made a remark about Mahatma Gandhi’s assassin Godse.

While Thakur’s remarks were expunged, the Opposition protests forced the ruling BJP to direct her to tender an apology twice on the floor of the House.

Need

The two incidents have made it necessary to lay down a format on code of conduct, especially in the backdrop of new technologies in the communication sector. Unlike in the past, the remarks on the floor of the House spread fast, even if they are expunged from the records. So the MPs will have to follow certain decorum in speaking inside the House as well as outside.

Issues raised by MPs

During the meeting, members warned that such a code will have long lasting impact and thereby it should be “carefully discussed and deliberated in detail”. The political parties would be asked to give their opinions and suggestions, the source said.

The discussions have just begun and no time frame has been finalised to come up with a format. However, they indicated that no decision would be taken in a hurry without proper study.

With proceedings getting disrupted often in the Rajya Sabha, Vice President and Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu has suggested changes in the code so that “disruptive activities” in whatever form can be brought down.

About Ethics Committee

Each of the two houses of the Parliament has an Ethics Committee. They deal with the member’s conduct.

Role of Ethics Committee

Besides overseeing the moral ethical conduct of the members, ethics committee also prepares Code of Conduct for members, which are amended from time to time. The ethics committee in Lok Sabha has 15 members. In Rajya Sabha, this number stands at 10.

Who can file complaint?

Any person may make a complaint to the Committee regarding alleged unethical behaviour or breach of Code of Conduct by a member or alleged incorrect information of a member’s interest. The Committee may also take up matters suo motu.

Punishment

Where it has been found the member has indulged in unethical behaviour or there is other misconduct, or a member has contravened the rules, the Committee may recommend imposition of one or more of the sanctions. This may include censure, reprimand, suspension, from the House for a specific period or any other sanction determined by the Committee.

Significance of parliamentary committees

1. Parliament is the embodiment of the people’s will. Committees are an instrument of Parliament for its own effective functioning.
2. Committees are platforms for threadbare discussion on a proposed law.
3. The smaller cohort of lawmakers, assembled on the basis of the proportional strength of individual parties and interests and expertise of individual lawmakers, could have more open, intensive and better-informed discussions.
4. Committee meetings are ‘closed door’ and members are not bound by party whips, which allows them the latitude for a more meaningful exchange of views as against discussions in full and open Houses where grandstanding and party positions invariably take precedence.
5. Members of Parliament may have great acumen but they would require the assistance of experts in dealing with such situations. It is through committees that such expertise is drawn into lawmaking.
6. Executive accountability to the legislature is enforced through questions in Parliament also, which are answered by ministers. However, department standing committees go one step further and hear from senior officials of the government in a closed setting, allowing for more detailed discussions.
7. This mechanism also enables parliamentarians to understand the executive processes closely.

Types of committees

1. Most committees are ‘standing’ as their existence is uninterrupted and usually reconstituted on an annual basis; some are ‘select’ committees formed for a specific purpose, for instance, to deliberate on a particular bill. Once the Bill is disposed of, that select committee ceases to exist. Some standing committees are departmentally related.
2. Financial control is a critical tool for Parliament’s authority over the executive; hence finance committees are considered to be particularly powerful. The three financial committees are the Public Accounts Committee, the Estimates Committee and the Committee on Public Undertakings.

Powers:

Parliamentary committees draw their authority from Article 105 (on privileges of Parliament members) and Article 118 (on Parliament’s authority to make rules for regulating its procedure and conduct of business).

Significance:

Committee reports are usually exhaustive and provide authentic information on matters related to governance. Bills that are referred to committees are returned to the House with significant value addition. Parliament is not bound by the recommendations of committees.

What these committees do?

• Support Parliament’s work.
• Examine ministerial budgets, consider Demands for Grants, analyse legislation and scrutinise the government’s working.
• Examine Bills referred to by the Chairman, Rajya Sabha or the Speaker, Lok Sabha.
• Consideration of Annual Reports.
• Consideration of national basic long term policy documents presented to the House and referred to the Committee by the Chairman, Rajya Sabha or the Speaker, Lok Sabha.

Advantages of having such committees:

• The deliberations and scrutiny by committees ensure that Parliament is able to fulfil some of its constitutional obligations in a politically charged environment.
• They also help in obtaining public feedback and building political consensus on contentious issues.
• They help develop expertise in subjects, and enable consultation with independent experts and stakeholders.
• The committees perform their functions without the cloud of political positioning and populist opinion.
• These committees allow the views of diverse stakeholders.
• They function through the year.
• They also offer an opportunity for detailed scrutiny of bills being piloted by the government.
• They increase the efficiency and expertise of Parliament.
• Their reports allow for informed debate in Parliament.

How can these committees be made more effective?

1. Parliamentary committees don’t have dedicated subject-wise research support available. The knowledge gap is partially bridged by expert testimony from government and other stakeholders. Their work could be made more effective if the committees had full-time, sector-specific research staff.
2. The national commission to review the working of the Constitution has recommended that in order to strengthen the committee system, research support should be made available to them.
3. Currently, the rules of Parliament don’t require every bill to be referred to a parliamentary committee for scrutiny. While this allows the government greater flexibility and the ability to speed up legislative business, it comes at the cost of ineffective scrutiny by the highest law-making body. Mandatory scrutiny of all bills by parliamentary committees would ensure better planning of legislative business.

Syllabus subtopic: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization of resources, growth, development and employment.

News: The government’s decision to cut corporate tax rates for domestic companies, including new manufacturers, was taken in the context of companies exiting China amid the trade war between Washington and Beijing, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman told Parliament on Monday.

Prelims and Mains focus: about the recent economic slowdown, Corporate tax cuts and other measures taken by the government

Remarks made by the FM

Sitharaman, who moved the Taxation Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2019, in the Lok Sabha for passage, said that several southeast Asian nations have lowered their corporate tax rates, while some were contemplating rate cuts. Singapore has a 17% tax rate, she added. The Lok Sabha passed the bill on Monday.

“Keeping in mind the trade war between the US and the People’s Republic of China and indications that many multinational companies wanted to get out of China, although the budget FY20 had been passed shortly before this, we thought of reducing the corporate tax rate. The ordinance route was taken because the House was not in session,” the minister said while placing the bill for the consideration of the House.

About the Bill

The ordinance promulgated in September offered a lower 22% corporate tax rate for companies that do not avail tax incentives and 15% for new manufacturers starting production before March 2023.

The move was aimed at reversing the economic slowdown. The government had also lowered the rate of minimum alternate tax (MAT) from 18.5% to 15% for businesses that continue to avail exemptions. The Bill clarified that the lower MAT rate of 15% will be applicable from 1 April, 2019, a move that tax experts welcomed.

The bill placed before the Lok Sabha on Monday also contains certain proposals that were not part of the ordinance. It clarifies that new mining companies, software producers, gas bottling plants, and book printers are not eligible for the 15% corporate tax rate announced in September. It allows companies indulging in other business activities along with manufacturing operations to claim the concessional tax rate of 15%, though the income arising on account of non-manufacturing activities shall be taxable at the rate of 22% on a gross basis without deduction of any expenditure, said Girish Vanvari, founder of advisory firm Transaction Square.

Concerns raised by the Opposition

During the discussion, opposition members accused the government of not being able to manage the economy well.

K. Subbarayan, a Communist Party of India member from Tamil Nadu, alleged the bill was pro-business. The MP highlighted the initial estimate of the ?1.45 trillion revenue that will be forgone because of the reduction in tax rates.

India’s economic downturn deepened in the second quarter with growth losing steam to 4.5%, the lowest since March 2013, as manufacturing output contracted, official data showed last month. The economy had expanded at 5% in the first quarter. The slowdown has proved to be a weak point for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, which has set itself the goal of doubling the size of the economy to $5 trillion over the next five years.