Sex Ratio Falling But NITI Aayog Declares Beti Bachao Beti Padhao A Success; The Tribal Politics Behind Manipur Conflict

Senthil Balaji case challenges ED’s investigative powers, Doha mission costs up 11,254% but no use to former Navy men in custody, Indian orders boost Rafale business globally, data breaches are dearer

A newsletter from The Wire | Founded by MK Venu, Seema Chishti, Siddharth Varadarajan, Sushant Singh, Sidharth Bhatia and Tanweer Alam | With inputs from Kalrav Joshi | Editor: Pratik Kanjilal

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Snapshot of the day

July 25, 2023

Pratik Kanjilal

The Chandigarh Tribune reports that following a meeting of the INDIA alliance in the chamber of Mallikarjun Kharge, the Opposition may move a no-confidence motion against the government in the Lok Sabha. Though the alliance is outnumbered, it is a way to put pressure on the Prime Minister to make a proper statement on Manipur in the House. He has got away with an evasive statement to the press which referred to sexual violence in other Opposition-run states.  

The Congress is baiting PM Modi, who used to disparage Manmohan Singh as ‘Mauni Baba’. It says that he is afraid to speak about Manipur in Parliament, and that his leaders are protecting him like “bouncers protect celebrities”. Home Minister Amit Shah had offered a discussion, but Jairam Ramesh of the Congress says that he isn’t doing anyone any favours. Anyway, it’s a distraction, because Shah has said nothing about the INDIA alliance’s demand for a statement from the PM.  

Modi has come out fighting, saying that INDIA means nothing, since it is a component in the names of the East India Company, the Popular Front of India and the Indian Mujahideen. Some people find it odd that the PM’s mind turned first to these, since India is a component of perfectly respectable institutions like the Indian Institutes of Engineering, and India Gate. “Call us whatever you want,” but “we are INDIA,” responded Rahul Gandhi.    

Mizoram Chief Minister Zoramthanga has said that neither his state government nor the MNF is afraid of the NDA government at the centre, though the party is an NDA constituent. He has had differences with the Union government from the time when refugees from Myanmar, who are ethnically related to the Mizos, started crossing the border following the military crackdown. Delhi had wanted to freeze out refugees, but Mizoram had given them safe haven. 

A women’s rally outside the Imphal residence of Union minister RK Ranjan Singh turned ugly when protesters threw stones at it demanding that he speak in Parliament about the situation in the ethnic strife-affected state.

Rafales have been outselling all combat aircraft except the Lockheed Martin F35, and India’s repeat order during PM Modi’s visit will give it a boost, says the Financial Times. “This consolidates India’s position as a major partner in what we can call the Rafale club of countries,” an French official said to The Financial Times. “India, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates — it’s a real group now and a political axis on which we can work.”

In Marathwada, farmer suicides have been accelerating almost every month this year, and the tally is already 483. 

IBM Security reports that a data breach in India does damage worth Rs 17.5 crore on average, which is almost a third higher than the figure for 2000. Phishing is the commonest technique used in India (almost 22%), followed by stolen or compromised credentials (16%). Social engineering produced the costliest breach (Rs 19.1 crore), followed by malicious insider threats, (18.8 crore). A large part of the cost escalation owes to deeper and more expensive analysis of breaches ― a sign that companies are doing better diligence on fiduciary functions.

In Kerala, the marriage of a couple has been registered years after their death. It’s a special measure mandated by the state government to ensure that their child, who was a minor in care when they died, can inherit their property.