Daily briefing / March 24, 2020

Chouhan takes oath as Madhya Pradesh CM

Just 15 months after losing power, BJP leader Shivraj Singh Chouhan was back as Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister for a record fourth term. The 61-year-old MLA from Budhni took oath of office in a simple function at Raj Bhawan, where he was sworn-in by governor Lalji Tandon on March 23. In the 230-member house, the BJP currently has 107 legislators. The Congress strength got reduced to 92 following the resignations of 22 of its MLAs. Madhya Pradesh Assembly Speaker N.P. Prajapati resigned hours after Chouhan took oath as CM. Chouhan passed the floor test in the state Assembly on March 24 by voice vote. No member of the opposition Congress was present in the House. Soon after taking oath as 32nd CM of Madhya Pradesh, Chouhan got down to business and held a meeting with officials to review steps taken to contain the spread of coronavirus, his first major challenge.

Jharkhand Assembly passes resolution against NRC 

The Jharkhand Assembly on March 23 passed a resolution that the NRC will not be implemented in the state and the NPR exercise should be carried out using the 2010 format, joining a number of other states where such resolutions were passed earlier. The Jharkhand legislature joins the list of the assemblies such as those of Puducherry, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, Bihar, West Bengal, Telangana and Delhi in passing resolutions either against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) or the National Register of Citizens (NRC) or the National Population Register (NPR). The resolution, which was the last business of the day, was moved in the afternoon amidst vociferous protest by BJP members. It was passed by voice vote before the House was adjourned sine die.

LS productivity at 90% in Budget Session

The productivity of Lok Sabha was about 90 per cent and that of Rajya Sabha 74 per cent in the Budget Session of Parliament which was curtailed nearly two weeks before schedule due to the coronavirus pandemic. Both Houses of Parliament were adjourned sine die on March 23. The Budget Session commenced on January 31 and was scheduled to conclude on April 3. Both the Houses adjourned for recess on February 11, and reassembled on March 2. In a statement, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi said the first part of the Budget Session yielded a total of nine sittings of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, and in the second part of the Session, there were 14 sittings of both Houses. During this Session, a total of 19 Bills (18 in Lok Sabha and one in Rajya Sabha) were introduced. As many as 15 Bills were passed by Lok Sabha and 13 by Rajya Sabha. Total number of Bills passed by both Houses of Parliament were 12. 

US slashes $1 billion aid to Afghanistan

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced a $1 billion cut in US aid to Afghanistan after he failed to convince President Ashraf Ghani and his political foe to end a feud that has helped jeopardize a US-led peace effort. The US also is prepared to cut 2021 assistance by the same amount and is conducting “a review of all of programmes and projects to identify additional reductions, and reconsider pledges to future donor conferences for Afghanistan,” Pompeo said in a statement. Pompeo’s statement came as he flew home from a fruitless day-long effort in Kabul to end competing claims to the presidency by Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah and win their agreement to form “an inclusive government”. He said, the US would continue backing Afghan security forces while continuing a phased “conditions-based” troop withdrawal as specified in a deal signed with the Taliban in Doha on February 29.

Construction of Ram temple begins in Ayodhya 

The construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya was initiated on March 23 with special prayers to shift idols of the deity to a temporary structure. The idols will remain at the temporary structure till the completion of the temple. The special prayers were held in the presence of Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Theertha Kshetra Trust members Bimlendra Mishra and Anil Mishra. The trust was constituted by the Centre in February, days before the expiry of three-month deadline set by the Supreme Court. On March 25, the idols will be placed on a 9.5-kg silver throne made by artisans from Jaipur.

Omar Abdullah’s eight-month detention ends

Former Jammu & Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah’s eight-month detention ended on March 24 after the administration revoked the stringent Public Safety Act (PSA) against him. The National Conference leader, who turned 50 on March 10, has been under detention since August 5, when the Centre announced the revocation of Jammu & Kashmir’s special status under Article 370 and its bifurcation into the Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir, and Ladakh. The order revoking the PSA against him was issued by home secretary Shaleen Kabra. Abdullah was booked under the stringent act on February 5, hours before his six-month custody under preventive detention was to end. His father, former chief minister Farooq Abdullah, was also charged under the PSA and released on March 13 after 221 days in detention. PDP leader and former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti continues to be under detention. 

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