Mission 2024
Nitish wants to reunite old Janata Dal splinters
Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar has been in touch with the leaders of the erstwhile Janata Dal’s splinters to try and unite them before the next Lok Sabha elections. The four breakaway parties of the old Janata Dal had recently come together on one platform at a public meeting organised by Om Prakash Chautala’s Indian National Lok Dal (INLD). Sources close to Kumar said that he wants a merger of his Janata Dal (United), Lalu Yadav’s Rashtriya Janata Dal, Akhilesh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party, Deve Gowda’s Janata Dal (Secular) and the INLD. This, he feels, will provide an all-India alternative to the BJP in the 2024 general elections. Nitish Kumar wants this united Janata Dal to ally with the Congress to challenge the might of the BJP which appears assured of a victory in the absence of a credible national alternative. Nitish had recently met Congress president Sonia Gandhi along with Lalu Yadav where he had raised the issue of alliance. Sonia asked him to discuss the issue with the new party president after the conclusion of the party’s organisational elections.
Rise of Rupee
India to sign rupee trade deal with UAE, Nigeria
India is close to signing a deal with the United Arab Emirates and Nigeria to facilitate trade in rupee with the two countries. Sources said that the deals with the two countries will be on the lines of the Indo-Russian rupee-rouble deal. The trade with the two countries will reportedly be conducted using the US dollar as the benchmark for the exchange rate. India has of late been facing trouble in making payments for the Russian oil. Payment for Russian oil in Emirati Dirham has been stopped after US reportedly tightened screws on UAE’s Mashrek Bank which was handling these payments for the Indian companies. With the US sanctions making it difficult for India to make payments for the Russian oil, India now plans to buy oil from UAE and Nigeria by making payment in rupee once the deal comes through. Indian officials have been working with their counterparts in UAE and Nigeria and the deal is likely to be announced in October 2022.
Legal Notes
Why Rohatgi refused to head govt’s legal team
More than the appointment of R Venkataramani as the new Attorney General, the legal fraternity has been talking about Mukul Rohatgi’s refusal to take up the post of government’s top law officer. Sources said the top-notch senior advocate was all set to take up the job. A message was reportedly conveyed to him about the appointment, and he had given his consent. Rohatgi had handled the responsibility in 2014, when the Narendra Modi government first came to power, and an encore was considered a smooth affair. Arrangements were being finalised for the crowning and news of the impending appointment was splashed all over the media. But Rohatgi suddenly declined the offer and R Venkataramani was appointed as the Attorney General. The reason as to why he refused the offer has been a subject of hot debates among the black gowns. Sources said that Rohatgi was told by his friends that 2022 is not 2014, and Kiren Rijiju is not Arun Jaitley! Rohatgi was told that a law officer, who holds an important position in the central government’s legal team, wields all the power in the current regime as he enjoys the same level of confidence among the top Union ministers as Rohatgi enjoyed during Jaitley’s tenure. As a result, his tenure may not be as smooth as the previous one, he was told. Rohatgi reportedly found merit in the input and decided to stay away from the A-G’s post.