‘PM should raise us snooping with Obama’
New Delhi: CPI leader Gurudas Dasgupta on Tuesday asked the Government to clarify whether reports about US National Security Agency snooping on India by directly tapping into Internet servers to get information, were correct. In a letter to PM Manmohan Singh, he also urged him to raise the issue with US President Barack Obama why such activities were being carried out, if such reports were correct. Maintaining that he had raised the issue in the last Parliament session and alleging that the Government had not taken note of it, Dasgupta said the latest report “is more outrageous”.
SC dismisses Swamy’s plea against PC
New Delhi: The Supreme Court has dismissed BJP leader Subramanian Swamy’s curative petition against its verdict declining to make Finance Minister P Chidambaram a co-accused in the 2G Spectrum allocation scam. “We have gone through the curative petition and the relevant documents. In our opinion, no case is made out within the parameters indicated in the decision of this court in Rupa Ashok Hurra Vs Ashok Hurra & Anr.... Hence, the curative petition is dismissed,” a four-judge Bench headed by Chief Justice P Sathasivam said.
Cabinet enhances cap on ex-gratia bonus
New Delhi: The Cabinet approved the proposal of the Department of Posts to enhance ceiling for calculation of ex-gratia bonus payable to Gramin Dak Sevaks from `2,500 to `3,500 same as that prescribed for regular departmental employees. The decision will be applicable from accounting year 2012-13 payable in 2013-14. The increase in bonus calculation ceiling will restore long established parity between regular departmental employees and Gramin Dak Sevaks on issue of payment of bonus. This decision will benefit 2.63 lakh Gramin Dak Sevaks, who play a very vital role in providing postal, financial and insurance services in rural, hilly and tribal areas of the country.