Expresso Top National and International Headlines of the Week on 2 September 2023

In top national news: The two offshore shell companies registered in the British Virgin Islands (BVI), named by Financial Times as vehicles that invested in Adani stocks, are linked to the Adani Group, according to records of offshore corporate service provider Trident Trust accessed by The Indian Express as part of the Pandora Papers investigation with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. According to Financial Times, based on documents accessed by Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Network, a global journalists’ network, the two individuals behind these firms were associates of Adani Group chairperson Gautam Adani’s brother Vinod Adani: United Arab Emirates national Nasser Ali Shaban Ahli and Taiwan national Chang Chung-Ling.

On a day when a news report by Financial Times and The Guardian, based on documents accessed by Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), levelled fresh allegations of stock manipulation against the Adani Group, opposition Congress leader and Lok Sabha MP Rahul Gandhi questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “uncomfortable” silence and denial to order Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the matter, claiming India’s “reputation” was at stake. Addressing a press conference on the sidelines of the third meeting of the opposition Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA), Gandhi said, “Why is Prime Minister Narendra Modi quiet about this? Why is there no probe? Why are agencies like CBI and ED not probing into this.”

In a surprise announcement, the government said it will hold a special session of Parliament from September 18 to September 22, over five sittings. “Special Session of Parliament (13th Session of 17th Lok Sabha and 261st Session of Rajya Sabha) is being called from 18th to 22nd September, having 5 sittings. Amid Amrit Kaal looking forward to having fruitful discussions and debate in Parliament,” Parliamentary Affairs Minister Prahlad Joshi posted on X. Although sources in the Lok Sabha secretariat were tight-lipped about the agenda of the session, they said it could meet in the new Parliament House building, which was inaugurated in May.

In other news: India’s GDP clocked a growth rate of 7.8 per cent in the April-June quarter of FY24 as compared to 13.1 per cent in the year ago period, data released by the National Statistical Office stated. The country’s real GDP came in line with economists’ estimate of 7.7-8.5 per cent. Meanwhile, India’s nominal GDP in Q1FY24 showed a growth rate of 8 per cent as compared to 27.7 percent in Q1 FY2022-23. India’s growth rate is expected to moderate in the coming quarters, given the effect of the El Nino on the monsoon, weakness in mining output, and sluggish exports, and a possible slowing in the momentum of government capex as Lok Sabha elections approach.

In top international news: Former President Donald Trump has pleaded not guilty and waived arraignment in the case accusing him and others of illegally trying to overturn the results of the 2020 election in Georgia. That means he won’t have to show up for an arraignment hearing that Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee had set for next week. Trump and 18 others were charged earlier this month in a 41-count indictment that outlines an alleged scheme to subvert the will of Georgia voters who had chosen Democrat Joe Biden over the Republican incumbent in the presidential election.

In news from Belgium: The Belgian government said Wednesday it is imposing a ban on providing shelter for single men seeking asylum, arguing its insufficient reception capacity should be freed for families, women and children first. Aid organisations condemned the move as reneging on international commitments. Belgium has long come under criticism for failing to provide enough shelter to the thousands of people who are seeking protection from persecution back home and long lines of tents along streets outside the main processing centre in Brussels have become a stain on Belgium’s reputation. On Wednesday, Asylum State Secretary Nicole de Moor said she “absolutely wants to avoid that children will end up in the streets this winter.”

In news from China: China will no longer require a negative COVID-19 test result for incoming travellers starting Wednesday, a milestone in its reopening to the rest of the world after a three-year isolation that began with the country’s borders closing in March 2020. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin announced the change at a briefing in Beijing on Monday. China in January ended quarantine requirements for its citizens travelling from abroad, and over the past few months has gradually expanded the list of countries that Chinese people can travel to and increased the number of international flights. Beijing ended its tough domestic “zero COVID” policy only in December, after years of draconian curbs that at times included full-city lockdowns.

Lastly, The Taliban will use security forces to stop women from visiting one of Afghanistan’s most popular national parks, according to information shared by a spokesman for the Vice and Virtue Ministry. The ministry alleges that women have not been observing the proper way to wear the hijab, or Islamic headscarf when going to Band-e-Amir in the central Bamiyan province. This comes a week after the minister, Mohammad Khalid Hanafi, visited the province and told officials and religious clerics that women haven’t been adhering to the correct way of wearing the hijab, asking security personnel to stop women from visiting the tourist hotspot.