Current Affairs for IAS Exams – 19 November 2016

:: National ::

Apprehending “riots,” the SC refused the government’s plea to stay cases filed against inconveniences caused by demonetisation in High Courts and lower courts across the country.
Bench led by Chief Justice of India T.S. Thakur observed that the very fact that cases are being filed in courts all over is a signal that the problem is “serious and of magnitude.”
“They are going to the courts for relief. We cannot shut our doors to the people,” Chief Justice Thakur said, refusing the government’s plea.
“This is very serious. This will require great consideration. People have become frantic, people are affected... There may be riots,” the Bench, also comprising Justice Anil R. Dave, told Attorney-General Mukul Rohatgi.
“That is completely wrong. People are patiently standing,” Mr. Rohatgi protested.

The Supreme Court Collegium, led by Chief Justice of India T.S. Thakur, refused to accept the government’s rejection of 43 names it handpicked for judicial appointments in various High Courts.
The battle lines were drawn when the Supreme Court informed the government that it had reiterated every one of the 43 names that was sent back by the Centre to the Collegium for re-consideration. The Collegium had met on November 15.
The government is now on a sticky wicket as the new Memorandum of Procedure (MoP) is yet to be finalised.
The prevalent procedure is that once the Collegium has reiterated its recommendations, as in this case, the government is bound to clear the names for appointment as judges.
The government had returned the 43, out of a total 77 names, recommended by the Collegium. The appointments of the remaining 34 names have already been completed by the government.

President-elect Donald Trump is moving ahead with filling key posts in his administration, picking Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions for the job of attorney general and Rep. Mike Pompeo as head of the CIA.
The announcements came on the heels of Mr. Trump’s decision to tap former military intelligence chief Michael Flynn as national security adviser.
There could be some hurdles for Sessions, even with Republicans in control of the chamber.
When Mr. Sessions was nominated to be a federal judge in 1986, he was dogged by racist comments he was accused of making while serving as U.S. attorney in Alabama.
Mr. Sessions later withdrew from consideration, though he went on to become State Attorney General and won election to the Senate in 1996.
Rep. Pompeo is a conservative Republican and a fierce critic of President Barack Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran.
Mr. Flynn was a fierce critic of President Barack Obama’s military and foreign policy long before he began advising Trump on national security issues during the presidential campaign.
Mr. Trump is a foreign policy novice and his early moves on national security are being closely watched both in the U.S. and overseas.
He’s said to be considering a range of officials with varying degrees of experience to lead the State Department and Pentagon.

The shortage of cash due to demonetisation could result in a drastic slowdown in GDP growth for 2016-17 to 3.5 per cent from an earlier projection of 6.8 per cent, according to an Ambit Capital report.
The report predicted that the second half of this financial year will see a GDP growth of only 0.5 per cent, down from the 6.4 per cent forecast by Ambit in the first half of the year.
Official estimates for the first quarter of the year pegged the GDP growth at 7.1 per cent, the slowest in six quarters.
However, the government has been optimistic of clocking higher growth in 2016-17 than the 7.6 per cent recorded in 2015-16.
The report predicts that GDP growth in 2017-18 will also be affected by demonetisation, slowing to 5.8 per cent from an earlier estimate of 7.3 per cent.
Ambit also said that demonetisation could result in small businesses in the informal sector becoming unviable.
It added that the effect on the real estate sector could also be severe based on its estimate that 30-40 per cent of the value of purchases take place using black money.
There could also be a detrimental effect on the Sensex, Ambit said, adding that it had scrapped its March 2017 Sensex target of 29,500 and was instead predicting a target of 29,000 for March 2018.
One positive effect of demonetisation could be on interest rates. Ambit predicts the RBI will cut interest rates by 25-50 basis points in the second half of this year.

India and Cyprus signed the revised bilateral tax treaty under which capital gains tax will be levied on sale of shares on investments made after April 1, 2017, bringing the island nation on a par with Mauritius in terms of tax treatment.
The new agreement also provides for exchange of banking details and allows the use of such information for purposes other than taxation with prior approval of competent authorities of the country.
The new DTAA provides for source-based taxation of capital gains arising from alienation of shares, instead of residence-based taxation provided under the existing DTAA.
However, a grandfathering clause has been provided for investments made prior to April 1, 2017, in respect of which capital gains would continue to be taxed in the country of which taxpayer is a resident.