Jaitley calls Yashwant Sinha a ‘job applicant at 80’

News Network
September 29, 2017

New Delhi, Sept 29: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Thursday tore into former finance minister and BJP veteran Yashwant Sinha for his criticism of the government’s handling of the economy. Without mentioning Mr Sinha, Mr. Jaitley referred to him as a ‘job applicant’ who appeared to be working in tandem with another ex-finance minister P. Chidambaram and had the ‘luxury of being a columnist’.

“I have some very distinguished predecessors in my present job, one of whom is a former president (Pranab Mukherjee), one is a former Prime Minister (Manmohan Singh) — and I am certainly not referring to them. The others have decided to act in concert. Speaking on persons and then bypassing the issues is very easily done,” the Minister said after launching a book co-edited by the Chairman of the Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council and Niti Aayog member Bibek Debroy and Press Secretary to the President, Ashok Malik.

“Probably, a more appropriate title for your book would have been ‘India at 70, Modi at 3.5 and a job applicant at 80’,” Mr Jaitley told Mr Debroy and Mr Malik, whose book is titled ‘India at 70, Modi at 3.5 – Capturing India’s transformation under Narendra Modi.’

Stressing that the government’s efforts over the past three years have been focused on ensuring that the benefits of growth percolate to the poor and improve their quality of life while dispelling the policy paralysis, Mr. Jaitley red-flagged the abandonment of the centrist space by the Congress and the emergence of an ideological polarisation in the country caused by a convergence between the ultra-left and extreme Jihadi elements.

The decisive nature of the government will help revive private investments, Mr. Jaitley said, contrasting it to the ‘indifference in dealing with that problem when it was taking place during 2012-14.”

“Just looking the other way is not the approach of the government. …It’s a situation I am sure we will be able to respond to appropriately. India at 70 is an India which we look up to, where we want to continue to occupy the space of a fast growing economy.”

“We want each village to be connected by road by 2019, electrified by early next year, and each house to get a power connection by 2018-end… The entire additional resources that come from growth are blended with the needs of this section. This is how we visualise India at 70. Obviously, when India is at 70, there are always attempts to change the narrative,” he said.

“I must confess that I do not have the luxury as yet of being a former finance minister; nor do I have the luxury of being a former finance minister who’s turned columnist. Therefore, I can conveniently forget a policy paralysis, I can conveniently forget the 15% NPAs (non-performing assets) of 1998-2002, I can conveniently forget the $4 billion forex reserves left in 1991 and I can switch over and change the narrative,” Mr Jaitley said, in an oblique reference to Mr Sinha’s article questioning the Finance Minister’s performance.

Recalling BJP veteran L.K. Advani’s advice to him after his first intervention in Parliament in 1999 over the Bofors case, Mr. Jaitley said: “He made an interesting comment: ‘When you speak in Parliament or outside, speak on issues. Avoid speaking on persons.’ I have breached this rule once in a while, but I try to follow it as far as possible.”

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
November 27,2025

imrankhan.jpg

Authorities at Pakistan’s high-security Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi on Wednesday dismissed speculation about the condition of imprisoned former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, rejecting rumours that he had been moved out of the facility or was in danger. Officials said Khan was in “good health” and described the viral death claims as “baseless.”

“There is no truth to reports about his transfer from Adiala Jail,” the Rawalpindi prison administration said in a statement, according to Geo News. “He is fully healthy and receiving complete medical attention.”

Amid swirling rumours on social media, Imran Khan’s party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), urged the federal government to issue an official clarification and demanded that authorities allow his family to meet him immediately, Dawn reported.

The frenzy began after Khan’s three sisters called for an impartial probe into what they described as a “brutal” police assault on them and other PTI supporters outside Adiala Jail last week. Soon after, several social media handles circulated unverified claims alleging that Khan had been “killed” inside the prison.

The rumours intensified when a handle named “Afghanistan Times” claimed that “credible sources” had confirmed Khan’s “murder” and that his body had been moved out of the jail — allegations that have not been verified by any credible agency.

Imran Khan, PTI’s patron-in-chief, has been lodged in the Rawalpindi prison since August 2023 in multiple cases. For over a month, an undeclared restriction has prevented family members and senior PTI leaders from meeting him. Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sohail Afridi has reportedly been denied access despite making seven attempts.

In a letter to Punjab Police Chief Usman Anwar, Khan’s sisters — Noreen Niazi, Aleema Khan, and Dr. Uzma Khan — said they were “peacefully protesting” outside the jail when police allegedly launched an unprovoked assault after streetlights were switched off.

“At 71, I was seized by my hair, thrown to the ground and dragged across the road,” Noreen Niazi said, alleging that other women present were also slapped and manhandled.

Adiala Jail officials reiterated that speculation over Imran Khan’s health was unfounded and insisted that his well-being was being ensured, Geo News reported.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
November 30,2025

The United Nations Committee against Torture (CAT) has condemned the Israeli regime for enforcing a policy of “organized torture” against Palestinians.

In a report published on Friday, CAT stated that the occupying regime enforces a deliberate policy of “organized and widespread torture and ill-treatment” against Palestinian abductees, particularly since October 7, 2023, when Israel launched its genocidal war on Gaza.

The committee expressed “deep concern over repeated severe beatings, dog attacks, electrocution, water-boarding, use of prolonged stress positions [and] sexual violence” inflicted on Palestinians.

Palestinian prisoners were degraded by “being made to act like animals or being urinated on,” systematically denied medical care, and subjected to excessive restraints, “in some cases resulting in amputation,” the report added.

CAT also condemned the routine application of “unlawful combatants law” to justify the prolonged detention without trial of thousands of Palestinian men, women, and children.

More than 10,000 Palestinians, including women and children, are currently held in Israeli prisons, according to Palestinian and international human rights groups, with 3,474 Palestinians in “administrative detention,” meaning they are imprisoned without trial for indefinite periods.

The report highlighted the “high proportion of children who are currently detained without charge or on remand,” noting that while Israel sets the age of criminal responsibility at 12, even younger children have been abducted.

Children designated as security prisoners face severe restrictions on family contact, may be subjected to solitary confinement, and are denied access to education, in clear violation of international law.

The committee further suggested that Israel’s policies across the Occupied Territories constitute collective torture against the Palestinian population.

“A range of policies adopted by Israel in the course of its continued unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory amounts to cruel, inhuman or degrading living conditions for the Palestinian population,” the report said.

On Thursday, the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas condemned the systematic killing and torture of Palestinian abductees in Israeli prisons, urging international action to halt these abuses.

Citing human rights data, Hamas stated that 94 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli prisons since the start of Tel Aviv’s genocidal war on Gaza.

“This reflects an organized criminal approach that has turned these prisons into direct killing grounds to eliminate our people,” the resistance movement said.

Hamas called on the international community, the UN, and human rights organizations to immediately pressure Israel to end crimes against prisoners and uphold their rights as guaranteed by all international conventions and norms.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
December 4,2025

Udupi: A 40-year-old NRI from Udupi has reportedly lost more than Rs 12.25 lakh in an online investment scam operated through Telegram.

According to a complaint filed at the CEN police station, Leo Jerome Mendonsa, who has been working in Dubai for the past 15 years in computer accessories sales, maintains NRI accounts in Karkala and Nitte.

On November 12, 2025, Mendonsa was added to a Telegram group called Instaflow Earnings by unknown individuals. Users identified as Priya and Dipannita persuaded him to invest in “Revenue Tasks.” Initially, Mendonsa transferred Rs 1,100 multiple times and received the promised returns, encouraging him to continue.

On November 14, another user, Nishmitha Shetty, directed him to register on a website, digitvisionuoce.cc, and invest Rs 4 lakh in various shares. Over the next few days, he made multiple transfers totaling Rs 12,25,000, including Rs 50,000 via Google Pay, believing the scheme was legitimate.

After receiving the money, the alleged handlers stopped responding, and neither the invested amount nor the promised profits were returned.

The CEN police have registered a case under Sections 66(C) and 66(D) of the IT Act and Section 318(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), and investigations are ongoing.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.