No plan to ban petrol, diesel vehicles: Gadkari allays auto sector fears

Agencies
September 5, 2019

New Delhi, Sept 5: Union minister Nitin Gadkari on Thursday assured the crisis-hit automobile industry of all possible support from the government, including taking up the demand of GST reduction with finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

Reiterating that the government would help the industry, the road transport and highways minister also said his ministry would give out 68 road projects worth up to Rs 5 lakh crore in the next three months to help generate demand for commercial vehicles.

With the impending price increase of vehicles and the upcoming of BS VI norms deadline, "it is your (industry's) demand that there should be reduction in tax of petrol and diesel vehicles. Your suggestions are good. I will take your message to the finance minister," Gadkari said at annual SIAM convention in New Delhi.

Even if it (GST) is reduced for some time, it will help, he added.

"I will follow it up with the finance minister. The sector needs help right now to increase vehicle sales," Gadkari said.

The minister said, like the way GST on electric vehicles has been reduced to 5 per cent from 12 per cent, he would propose to the finance ministry to extend the same benefit to hybrids vehicles.

"We have reduced GST in electric vehicles. Now I am trying that GST on hybrid vehicles is also reduced. I am following up regarding this with the finance minister," Gadkari said.

Gadkari, who had in 2017 stated the auto industry would be "bulldozed" if they didn't push for electric vehicles, also struck a reconciliatory note saying that the government has no intention to ban petrol and diesel vehicles.

"There have been talks that government is planning to ban petrol and diesel vehicles. I want to make it clear that the government has no such plan. We are not going to do anything like that," he said.

He also said he would take up a discussion with the finance minister for extending possible export incentives on automobile makers, as has been done for the sugar industry.

On award of road contracts, Gadkari said, in the next three months, "we are trying to... award road contracts worth Rs 5 lakh crore. We have selected 68 projects including various expressways... we have already acquired 80 per cent of land for these projects... this would help indirectly the auto industry".

The minister also asked automobile companies to have in-house finance companies to help generate sales.

CII President – Designate, MD and CEO of Kotak Mahindra Bank, Uday Kotak also urged automobile manufacturers to give emphasis on exports in order to create additional avenue to overcome the slowdown in the domestic market while stressing that a weaker rupee will make it even more favourable.

Speaking at the event earlier, SIAM President Rajan Wadhera had asked the government to consider reducing GST on automobiles to help it overcome the prolonged slowdown.

He also drew Gadkari's attention for government to consider a single nodal regulatory ministry for the auto industry, which currently comes under several ministers regarding various functions.

With the implementation of BS-VI norms from April next year, Wadhera said Indian auto industry will be at par with the best in the world when it comes to pollution; and therefore restrictions on different vehicles based on fuels must be removed.

He also asked the government to support the industry whenever courts decide otherwise.

Wadhera said due to the current downturn, 15,000 contractual jobs have been lost in the automobile manufacturing and around 2.8 lakh in dealerships, while components manufacturers are staring at 1 million job losses if the downturn continues.

Maruti Suzuki India CEO and Managing Director Kenichi Ayukawa, meanwhile, welcomed Gadkari's assurances to help the auto industry and said the industry was eagerly looking forward to concrete steps.

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News Network
May 10,2024

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New Delhi: In a big blow to Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, a Delhi court has ordered the framing of charges against the former Wrestling Federation of India chief in the sexual harassment allegations levelled by women wrestlers. The court has said there is sufficient evidence on record to do so, and the trial against him can now begin. 

Friday's order by the Rouse Avenue court comes days after the BJP decided not to repeat Mr Singh, who is the party MP from Uttar Pradesh's Kaiserganj, as the candidate from the constituency and decided to field his son Karan Bhushan Singh instead. 

The court has ordered the framing of charges under Indian Penal Code sections Ordered to frame charges against Brij Bhushan under sections 354 (outraging a woman's modesty), 354-A (sexual harassment) and 506 (criminal intimidation). The Delhi Police had filed a chargesheet against under these sections and one additional section - 354D (stalking) - on June 15 last year. 

Charges should also be framed against the former assistant secretary of the Federation, Vinod Tomar, under Section 506, the court said. 

Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Priyanka Rajpoot said the charges will be framed against Mr Singh for sexually harassing five wrestlers and that he stands discharged in the allegations levelled by the sixth.

The six-time MP has been at the centre of a huge political storm since last year, when sexual harassment charges were levelled against him and protesters had hit the streets led by Olympic medallists Sakshee Malikkh and Bajrang Punia, as well as Commonwealth Games and Asian Games medallist Vinesh Phogat.

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News Network
May 6,2024

Bengaluru, May 6: Arrested JD-S MLA H.D. Revanna, the son of former PM H.D. Deve Gowda, on Sunday said that there is no evidence against him in the sex video scandal kidnapping case and that it was a "conspiracy" against him.

Talking to the media, while being taken for a medical test before being produced in front of a court here, Revanna stated that a kidnapping case had been lodged against him though he does not have 'one black mark' against him in his entire career of 40 years.

"Without evidence, I have been targeted... All allegations against me are false. My arrest has been made out of ill intention," he claimed.

"The case was lodged on April 28, then, they did not have any evidence. Later, the fake evidence was created on May 2 and I was fixed," he alleged.

Home Minister Dr G. Parameshwara stated on Sunday that a Blue Corner notice has already been issued against Revanna's son and MP Prajwal Revanna, the prime accused in the sex video scandal, as he is believed to be abroad.

"The Interpol will communicate to all nations and he will be located. Once he is located, the SIT will take a call on how he should be secured and brought back to India," he added.

Revanna was arrested on Saturday on charges of kidnapping one of the victims of the sex video scandal.

Parameshwara further maintained that the arrest of Revanna has saddened JD-S leaders and if action was not taken, the SIT would be blamed too.

Meanwhile, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge refused to comment on the alleged sex video scandal involving Prajwal Revanna.

About Revanna's arrest, he said that the SIT would initiate action as per the law. "Those indulging in such acts must be taught a lesson and justice should be given to the families of victims. No one can escape the law. No one should use this case politically," he stated.

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May 17,2024

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Hubballi, May 17: Karnataka Police have arrested the killer, Vishwa, also known as Girish, in the sensational Anjali Ambigera murder case, police said on Friday.

Preliminary investigations reveal that Vishwa was a habitual thief who exploited innocent young women. The accused is also a drunkard and was caught while attempting to commit theft. He was also part of a gang which stole bikes.

The accused targeted gullible young women, enacting a drama of love and playing the emotional card to forcefully extort gold, silver, and cash from them. When Anjali did not agree to any of his attempts to rob her and outrightly rejected his offer to go with him to Mysuru city, he brutally killed her.

The police had formed two teams to hunt down the killer. One of the teams was searching in the south Karnataka region, and another team, which launched a hunt in Davanagere, nabbed him. The accused was arrested by the police on Thursday.

The police could not catch him sooner as the killer did not carry a mobile phone and did not use his phone for 15 days, before murdering Anjali. The jurisdictional Bendigeri Police were aware of the killer's history, but even after the complaint by the girl’s family, they showed "utter negligence".

The 24-year-old Vishwa entered Anjali Ambigera's (20) residence at 5.30 A.M. on Wednesday and stabbed the young woman multiple times before she could react. Vishwa dragged Anjali Ambigera all over the house, kicking and stabbing her. Later, he pushed her into the kitchen where he stabbed her repeatedly.

Despite efforts by Anjali’s grandmother and two sisters to stop the attacker, he killed her and managed to flee. The incident occurred in the Veerapura Oni area within the jurisdiction of the Bendigeri Police Station.

Vishwa had been blackmailing Anjali and pressurising her to accompany him to Mysuru without informing her parents. The incident which took place close on the heels of MCA student Neha Hiremath’s brutal murder by the jilted lover has raised concern over the safety of women all across the state.

The BJP had demanded the resignation of Home Minister G. Parameshwara while the Congress leaders have also demanded that the Hubballi-Dharwad Police Commissioner Renuka Sukumar should be transferred for failing to sensitise the police force regarding issues of women’s safety.

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