The Times of India opens with a four-page advertisement on the upcoming Defence Expo in Uttar Pradesh. The lead story on Chinese staffers missing the Expo says, “Hundreds of Chinese nationals…will now sit in their hotel rooms…” Also, an exclusive on the Modi government-SC collegium stand-off says, “Centre appears to have blocked the appointment of Karnataka judicial officer P K Bhat as a high court judge despite the CJI-led panel iterating its recommendation a record third time in three years.” And male troops’ refusal “to accept women commanders” in the other lead, is because of the predominantly rural background of the soldiers “not yet mentally schooled to accept women in command”.
The Indian Express has a half page Airbus ad, which leaves space for only a few reports. On the central government’s “No NRC decision”, the report adds it moved to “allay fears over personal data being collected for the pre-Census updation of the NPR by making clear that no document will be collected during the exercise”. No coronavirus report here: instead it celebrates the U-19 cricket team’s victory against Pakistan. Contrasting the opening batsmen who had an unbeaten partnership, it notes their backgrounds: “One sold pani-puris on the road not so long ago, the other went to a famous cricket academy.”
HT’s front page covers AAP’s manifesto, but more interesting is PM Modi’s comments in “Delhi needs a govt that supports CAA”. The report elaborates— “Without naming the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) at the rally in Dwarka, Modi urged people to ‘vote out’ those who had ‘raised doubts over surgical strikes’, supported anarchism and stalled the Centre’s development schemes in Delhi.” It also reports on the proposed visit by US President Donald Trump to India, saying the trade deal with a possibility of “deal on medical devices, farm products” could see “final touches” next week when US Trade representative Robert Lighthizer is due in Delhi.
The Hindu’s anchor story, “Recovery of lost Kishore Kumar film has buffs agogs”, is the eye-catcher of the day. The lost film, Begunah, “was considered the ‘Holy Grail’ of rare collectibles as it was believed that prints of the film did not exist any more.” The second lead is on the disqualification of Tamil Nadu MLAs “and 10 other AIADMK MLAs for voting against the confidence motion moved by Chief Minister Edappadi Palaniswami in February 2017”. The paper also notes that while ‘love jihad’ is not “defined under law”, according to the central government, the National Investigation Agency had investigated two cases of “inter-faith marriages”.
The Telegraph becomes even more extreme with its lead headline today. The opening paragraph reads, “The BJP has floated a campaign jingle whose tune makes it sound more like a war song than a prayer for votes for the Delhi Assembly elections on Saturday.” Worth reading is the report on the Seattle City Council’s resolution opposing the CAA — note the alliterative headline. “Although there was some opposition from people favouring the CAA during the deliberations, the resolution — moved by Indian-American council member Kshama Sawant — was adopted unanimously by voice vote.”
The New Indian Express lead on the Indian embassy in Beijing cancelling the visas of Chinese nationals to the Defense Expo appears dated given that Chinese delegates are cooling their heels in Delhi hotels, according to TOI. More interesting is the report based on an interview with Disinvestment SecretaryTuhin Kanta Pandey, who stated that a foreign airline was keen on acquiring Air India but doesn’t reveal its identity. In welcome news, the Tamil Nadu government has decided to do away with board exams for Class 5 and class 8 students following criticism from educationists and activists.
Mumbai Mirror’s lead story reads, “The director General of Home Guards and Civil Defence has asked police chiefs across the state to stop assigning work to home guards, endangering over 45,000 jobs.” These home guards earn a meagre salary of “Rs 670-a-day with 180 work days guaranteed in a year.”
Unlike Express and HT, Tribune’s report about the MHA’s clarification on NRC highlights the part in which the ministry said, “No document will be required for the NPR (National Population Register)”. Read the important report on former Jammu and Kashmir chief ministers Farooq Abdullah, Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti completing six months in detention “but there is no indication yet about their release”. Also, note a small item about Australian High Commissioner Harinder Sidhu stressing that “New Delhi needs to join the Regional Economic Partnership (RCEP)”. The anchor story takes a page from the paper’s own history — “How The Tribune shaped Rabindranath Tagore’s decision to return knighthood”.
The Economic Times has good news for the markets — benchmark indices jumped by 2 per cent after the 2.7 per cent decline on Budget day. An interview with Central Board of Direct Taxes chairman P.C. Mody, explains, “Taxpayers (save for business owners) can switch back and forth between the existing income tax regime and the new one”. Bharti Airtel is in dire straits as it has “reported a consolidated net loss of ₹1,035 crore in the October-December quarter, it’s third in succession”. Also, the Indian Council of Medical Research is developing a drug “in line with the Chinese protocol” for the coronavirus infection — not a day too soon.
Mint also interviewed Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) chairman P.C. Mody. Here, he warned that the income tax department will keep a close watch on “high-value transactions of individuals”. The government is also looking to amend the Customs Act in order to give it wider powers “to ban imports and exports that may hurt the local economy”. There’s a small item about Tony Fernandes leaving his role as AirAsia chief for two months amidst corruption claims. The anchor story is on “Dewan Housing Finance Corp. Ltd (DHFL), India’s first non-bank lender to face bankruptcy proceedings, has a curious mix of operational creditors”.
Business Standard says the upsurge in the markets is mainly because of a “sharp drop in oil prices, coupled with a rally in global equities…”. On the Budget, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman says “We expect you to be an equal engine to pull the economy forward,” to India Inc. In some heartening news, a snippet on the Central Board of Direct Taxes’ clarification that the 10 per cent TDS will only be on dividend payment by mutual funds.
