Generous Bounty

BJP benches in Lok Sabha could not stop thumping the desks when Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced that incomes up to 12 lakh would be exempt from income tax at the end of her Budget speech. The wave of jubilation was because the relief offered exceeded the expectations of most BJP MPs who felt the limit might at best be raised to 10 lakh, although many felt it could be lower. The sentiment among BJP MPs was unanimous that Sitharaman had done the right thing by erring on the side of generosity. “If you want to give something, do it well, don’t hold back. And that is what Prime Minister Modi has done by backing the tax cut,” said a senior MP. There was relief in the BJP camp as MPs could sense the resentment of middle-class voters over the tax burden they shoulder and unhappiness about gaps in government services. The sticky nature of inflation since the Ukraine war began has added to the woes of people having to deal with higher costs of living and the Budget break could not have been better timed. The view in BJP circles is that Sitharaman has flipped the price rise debate and the deep silence in the Opposition aisles when the income tax exemption was announced was revealing. As the finance minister later told the media, the changed slabs benefit everyone. Even people in the highest bracket will pay 1.1 lakh less annually.

Rahul’s China Math

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s comments on the India-China border issue have often been contentious but his assertion that the Army chief has accepted Chinese forces are on Indian territory was unprecedented. In his speech in Lok Sabha on the President’s Address, the leader of the Opposition did not specify which Army chief he was referring to. Earlier, Gandhi had met the Chinese envoy when the Doklam standoff was unfolding in 2017 and confirmed the meeting after Congress had initially denied it. During his visit to the US in September 2024, he had said the Chinese have occupied 4,000sqkm in Ladkah, an area the size of Delhi, and repeated the charge in Parliament. The Delhi government’s economic survey states the city’s area is just around 1,500sqkm.

Crumbling Delhi

As the Delhi election closed, AAP leaders felt they had done enough to ward off the BJP challenge. While free electricity, water and bus travel have strong traction, the congestion, unsanitary conditions and disrepair of roads were also part of the voter conversation. Irrespective of the result, observers wondered whether Delhi colonies deserved to be in such a state. When AAP’s government was formed in 2015, there was hardly any debt burden on the Delhi government. Almost any development agency, such as JICA, World Bank or ADB, would have been a ready lender to upgrade the capital’s infrastructure. It will take a long time to mend Delhi.

Vij’s Dilemma

BJP’S comfortable electoral victory in Haryana in October last year was hailed as an opportunity to ring in change. While the result consolidated the leadership of Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini not everyone is pleased. Veteran Anil Vij, who holds the energy and transport portfolio, has alleged that a person close to Saini worked against him in the assembly polls. The outspoken leader had created problems for former chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar too. BJP seems to have missed the chance to deny Vij a ministerial berth and he is unlikely to be satisfied being an also-ran for chief minister.

WHO in the Dock

US President Donald Trump’s decision to pull out of WHO and shut down USAID have created more than a few ripples in India. Some commentators argue healthcare in the developing world will suffer. Others, with the experience of watching WHO at close quarters, insist the organisation must be more accountable. During the Covid pandemic, WHO delayed recognition to India’s Covaxin on specious grounds while green-lighting China’s Sinovac which has an efficacy rate of barely 50 per cent. WHO, under its chief Tedros Ghebreyesus, also cleared Pfizer’s vaccine. The company was later sued for misrepresenting the shot’s effectiveness. The recipients of USAID’s largesse are also disappointed as the funds were part of a gravy
train that has now lost
some of its appeal.

Johannesburg Swaminarayan

The BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Hindu Mandir and cultural complex in Northriding, Johannesburg, officially opened its doors this week following the Prana Pratishtha ceremony led by Mahant Swami Maharaj, BAPS’ global spiritual leader. A BAPS release said the new mandir, an overdue development, is the largest in the southern hemisphere spanning 5.9 hectares and 37,000 sq m of built-up area. The sect said the mandir is currently hosting a 12-day festival of ‘Hope and Unity’, a celebration of art, culture and heritage that shows the connections between Indian and African traditions. Deputy President Paul Mashatile attended the event.

Donald TrumpFinance Minister Nirmala SitharamanIndian politicsRahul GandhiShri Swaminarayan Hindu MandirUnion Budget 2025WHO