Today in Politics: Electoral bonds hearing begins from today in SC, govt says ‘citizens don’t need to know fund source’

A Bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices Sanjiv Khanna, B R Gavai, J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra is scheduled to take up for hearing four pleas, including those filed by Congress leader Jaya Thakur and the CPI(M).

Ahead of the hearing, Attorney General (AG) R Venkataramani, in a statement filed before the court, said that citizens do not have the right to information under Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution regarding the source of funds.

Congress leader P Chidambaram alleged on Monday that the BJP has made its intentions clear that it will raise its funds from big corporates in an “opaque, secretive and conspiratorial manner”. The answer to this is transparent crowd-funding from small donors through recordable digital transactions, the former Union minister added.

Lalmani Verma detailed the stand taken by the BJP, Congress and the Left on the issue.

A day after offering prayers at the temple of Goddess Amba in Ambaji town of Gujarat’s Banaskantha district, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will participate in a Rashtriya Ekta Diwas programme on Tuesday at Kevadiya in Narmada district on the birth anniversary of the country’s first home minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.

On Monday, after his Ambaji temple visit, the PM launched various development projects worth Rs 5,950 crore, covering 16 districts of Gujarat, before addressing a gathering.

In a separate development, the PM chaired a meeting of the Shree Somnath Trust, which manages the affairs of the famous Somnath temple in Gujarat. The trust later said Modi’s tenure as the chairman of the trust was extended by another five years.

In Maharashtra, amid an escalation in the Maratha quota protest, legislators in Maharashtra faced the heat as agitators targeted their homes and offices on Monday, while two Lok Sabha MPs of the ruling Shinde Sena resigned in support of the demand.

Hingoli MPs Hemant Patil submitted his resignation to the Lok Sabha secretariat in New Delhi on Monday, while Nashik MP Hemant Godse sent his resignation letter to Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.

Meanwhile, angry quota protesters torched and vandalised the homes or offices of three MLAs — two of the NCP and one of the BJP – besides targeting a municipal council building and disrupting road traffic across the state, said police, adding that no casualties were reported. The violence and the extent of anger being faced by legislators were detailed in reports by Vallabh Ozarkar, Ajay Jadhav, Shubhangi Khapre and Alok Deshpande.

The protests have been fuelled by quota activist Manoj Jarange-Patil’s continued indefinite fast in support of the reservation demand at a village in Jalna district.

Trying to douse the flames of protest, CM Shinde on Monday told reporters in Mumbai that a committee formed to examine how to issue Kunbi caste certificates to the Maratha community, will submit its report on Tuesday, which will be discussed in the Cabinet. He also said fresh Kunbi caste certificates will be issued from Tuesday to 11,530 people whose old records have been verified so far.

Shinde also said a government representative will hold talks with Jarange on Tuesday to persuade him to withdraw his agitation.

In the incessant saga of Maharashtra politics, the Supreme Court Monday once again pulled up Maharashtra Speaker Rahul Narwekar, directing him to decide on the disqualification pleas filed by rival Shiv Sena factions before December 31. Read more about it, here:

With last date for filing nominations for the November 17 Assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh over on Monday, scrutiny will take place on Tuesday. The last date for the withdrawal of candidature is November 2.

On the last day, CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan filed his nomination papers from his traditional Budhni seat. Chouhan, who led a roadshow on the occasion, urged people to “consider themselves Shivraj” and ensure his victory on the basis of welfare works he has done throughout his career.

He is pitted against the Congress’ Vikram Mastal, a resident of Salkanpur town in Budhni, who is known more for portraying Hanuman in the 2008 television serial Ramayan.