Today in Politics: SC verdict in Adani-Hindenburg case likely to trigger another BJP-Opposition row

The Supreme Court on March 2, 2023, asked market regulator SEBI to continue the probe initiated in the wake of the Hindenburg report to examine “whether there was any manipulation of stock prices in contravention of existing laws”. It also set up a six-member expert committee to “investigate if there was a regulatory failure”. In May, the expert committee said there was no evidence of regulatory failure on the part of SEBI and that there was “no coherent pattern of abusive trading”. The court in November reserved its judgment on the batch of petitions in the case.

In context: The allegations against the Adani Group came at a time when the Opposition had yet to come together against the BJP and pushed it towards what became the INDIA alliance a few months down the line.

The Opposition united on the issue and attempted to corner the BJP during the Budget Session, linking the rise of industrialist Gautam Adani’s conglomerate to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s elevation in national politics. A group of Opposition parties demanded a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) inquiry into the Hindenburg report but the ruling party pushed back by seeking an apology from Congress MP Rahul Gandhi over his remarks during a visit to the UK on the state of Indian democracy. As a result, the Budget Session in 2023 was the least productive in five years and the gridlock ensured that the 17th Lok Sabha would most likely end up recording the lowest-ever number of sitting days.

The judgment will, in all likelihood, trigger a row between the BJP and the INDIA bloc. Both sides, depending on what the verdict is, will look to score political points given that the Lok Sabha elections are just a few months away.

BJP protest in Karnataka

The BJP is set to hit the streets of Karnataka on Wednesday in protest against the arrest of a 60-year-old Hindu activist in connection with the 1992 Hubballi riots in the lead-up to the demolition of Babri Masjid in Ayodhya.

In context: In an attempt to starve the BJP of issues that it can use to its advantage ahead of the parliamentary elections, the Congress has kept away from dealing with three controversial matters that date back to the BJP’s time in power: it has not repealed an anti-conversion law and a law banning cattle slaughter, and clarified in the last week of December that it had not passed an order lifting the hijab ban. But as the BJP protests against the arrest, this “pragmatic approach” will face a major test.

Kejriwal and Soren’s ED troubles

With the Enforcement Directorate (ED) summoning Arvind Kejriwal for questioning for the third time in the Delhi excise policy case, the question in the power corridors is if the Chief Minister will skip it again. In all likelihood, he will —like on the previous two occasions — and instead send a written response.

The AAP officially maintains that it will “act as per the law” but it also seems to be digging in politically. On Monday, the party said an overwhelming majority of respondents in last month’s “Main bhi Kejriwal” outreach were of the opinion that the CM should not resign and “if he is falsely implicated, he should run the government from jail”. The party will also launch a public dialogue campaign in every ward of the National Capital on Thursday.

Meanwhile, Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren has convened a meeting of the ruling coalition led by his party JMM at 4.30 pm at his residence in Ranchi. Sources said the meeting had been convened to formulate a strategy in light of the ED’s seventh notice to the CM in a money laundering case linked to an alleged land scam.

The resignation of JMM MLA Sarfaraz Ahmad from the Assembly on Monday led the BJP to allege that he had been forced to step down so that Soren’s wife Kalpana could get elected from Ahmad’s seat Gandey and take over as CM in case the ED acts against her husband. But Soren on Tuesday dismissed it, telling PTI that it was “complete imagination” of the BJP.

— With PTI inputs