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India is poised to bid for the 2030 Commonwealth Games, with a strategic aim to reinstate the sports disciplines that have been dropped from the 2026 edition in Glasgow. The removal of hockey, badminton, wrestling, cricket, and shooting from the upcoming games is a significant blow to India’s medal prospects.

Nevertheless, the council is keeping in constant touch with the host city as the goal is to explain to them the importance of these events and help them reinstate them. The source confirmed that an informal proposal has been sent with the view that India’s medal tally doesn’t suffer in the sporting spectacle.

The council is maintaining informal communication with the host city to emphasize the significance of certain events and encourage their reinstatement. A proposal has also been submitted with the aim of minimizing the impact on India’s medal count at the sporting event.

“We are interested in hosting the 2030 Commonwealth Games and a formal interaction has taken place with the Commonwealth Games Federation on this. We have also proposed that all the disciplines that have been removed from the 2026 CWG be held in India,” a source told PTI confirming India’s interest on hosting the event.

“We are merely looking to ensure that our medal tally does not suffer. An informal proposal (to have axed disciplines in India) has been put across, we will see how the host city responds to it,” the source added when asked about the removal of certain disciplines.

Previously, during the 2022 edition of the Commonwealth Games, the host city Birmingham removed Archery and Shooting competitions. India then sent a formal proposal to consider those events and it was accepted by the governing body. Nevertheless, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the idea wasn’t executed in the end

Notably, Glasgow announced only 10 discipline events to make it budget-friendly. Apart from the abovementioned sporting events, Table tennis, squash and triathlon were also axed by Glasgow. As things stand, the 23rd edition of the Commonwealth Games will begin on July 23 and continue till August 2.

The Indian side responded a week after Erdogan made the comments in Islamabad following his talks with Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. The remarks were seen in New Delhi as a move away from Erdogan’s silence on the Kashmir issue for almost two years, a period during which the matter didn’t figure in his public comments at forums such as the UN General Assembly and the D8 bloc.

“We reject such objectionable comments on matters which are internal to India. We have lodged a strong protest with the Turkish ambassador in Delhi,” external affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said.

“Such unwarranted statements on India’s territorial integrity and sovereignty are unacceptable. Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India. No other country has any locus standi to comment on it.”

At a media interaction with Sharif in Islamabad on February 13, Erdogan said the Kashmir issue should be resolved through dialogue between India and Pakistan. “The Kashmir issue should be addressed according to the UN resolution through dialogue and keeping in mind the aspirations of the people of Kashmir,” he said.

“Our state and our nation, as in the past, stands in solidarity with our Kashmiri brothers today.”

Instead of speaking on India’s internal matters, Erdogan should have focused on Pakistan’s policy of supporting cross-border terror directed against India, Jaiswal said. Since the scrapping of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status in 2019, India has doubled down on its position that the Kashmir issue has been settled and that Pakistan has no role to play in the matter.

“Instead of commenting on internal affairs of another country, it would have been appropriate if Pakistan’s policy of using cross-border terrorism against India, which remains the biggest threat for the people of Jammu and Kashmir, had been called out,” Jaiswal said.

In response to another question regarding Pakistan’s parliament passing a resolution this week that urged India to conduct a plebiscite in Kashmir, Jaiswal said: “Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India, it always has been, and it will remain so. There should be no doubt or confusion about this.”

India’s opposition to Pakistan’s use of cross-border terrorism also figured in Jaiswal’s response to yet another question on calls by Bangladesh’s interim government to revive the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc). Jaiswal said such efforts by Bangladesh would “normalise terrorism”.

Saarc has been moribund since India pulled out of the grouping’s summit that was to be held in Islamabad in 2016 following an attack on an army camp in Kashmir that was carried out by Pakistan-based terrorists. Bangladesh’s interim government has been pushing for the revival of Saarc and Jaiswal acknowledged this matter had figured in a recent meeting between external affairs minister S Jaishankar and his Bangladeshi counterpart Touhid Hossain in Muscat.

“Everyone in South Asia is aware of which country and what activities are responsible for stymieing Saarc. [Jaishankar] conveyed that it is important that Bangladesh should not normalise terrorism,” Jaiswal said.

He said certain remarks made by de facto ministers in Bangladesh’s interim government were “not helpful”. He added, “It is for the concerned individuals to reflect on implications for their particular domain.”

New Delhi: India’s Directorate of Enforcement (ED) has imposed a penalty of ₹3.44 crore on BBC WS India for alleged foreign direct investment violations, a person informed about the development said on Friday. 

The levy of penalty is part of an adjudication order issued on Friday. Besides the penalty, the ED also imposed a fine of ₹5,000 for every day after 15 October 2021 till the date of compliance, the person said on condition of not being named.

The investigating agency that looks into violations of India’s Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) and Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) also fined nearly ₹1.15 crore each on three executives of BBC WS India for their alleged roles in overseeing company operations during the period of contravention, the person said. 

The case against BBC India is related to alleged non-compliance with the country’s foreign direct investment limit of 26% for digital media, which is allowed with government approval, as per a press note issued by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) in 2019. 

“BBC WS India, which is a 100% FDI company engaged in uploading/streaming news and current affairs through digital media, did not reduce their FDI to 26%, and kept it at 100% in gross violation of regulations issued by government of India,” the person mentioned above said.

Queries emailed to ED and to BBC on Friday evening seeking comments for the story remained unanswered at the time of publishing.

BBC’s India rejig 

Legal proceedings on the matter were initiated after a notice was issued to BBC WS India in August 2023, the three directors, and the finance head of the company, the person quoted above said. 

In December 2023, BBC announced a restructure of its India operations to comply with India’s FDI rules. The restructure entailed forming a wholly Indian-owned company, Collective Newsroom, containing the BBC’s Indian language services. 

That followed the Income Tax department’s visits to BBC’s New Delhi and Mumbai offices earlier in the year. BBC had previously aired a two-part documentary on the 2002 Gujarat riots, which was critical of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who at that time was the chief minister of Gujarat.

Collective Newsroom was founded by four of BBC’s most senior employees in India. With more than 250 journalists in the country, it brings content in seven languages and is the BBC’s sole provider of content for its Indian language websites and social media platforms, according to information available from its website. 

Collective Newsroom planned to diversify its offerings with audio podcasts and TV news bulletins and was looking to partner with news entities beyond BBC, Mint reported on 9 April 2024 quoting the broadcaster. Its complete Indian ownership aligns with the country’s 26% FDI cap in the digital media space, the report said.

The agency has also fined the directors of BBC – Giles Anthony Hunt, Indu Shekhar Sinha and Paul Michael.

The Enforcement Directorate has levied a penalty of ₹3.44 crore on BBC India for violating the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA).

The agency has also fined the directors of BBC – Giles Anthony Hunt, Indu Shekhar Sinha and Paul Michael – of ₹1.14 crore for their roles in overseeing company operations.

This is a developing story.

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US President Donald Trump has stirred a hornets’ nest by questioning the former Biden administration’s move to provide $21 million to India for the ostensible reason of enhancing “voter turnout”. Addressing a summit in Miami on Thursday, Trump said, “Why do we need to spend $21 million on voter turnout in India? I guess they were trying to get somebody else elected. We have got to tell the Indian Government… This is a total breakthrough.”

At his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida, Trump said, “Why are we giving $21 million to India? They got a lot more money. They are one of the highest taxing countries in the world in terms of us; we can hardly get in there because their tariffs are so high. I have a lot of respect for India and their Prime Minister, but giving $21 million for voter turnout? In India? What about voter turnout here?” Let us try to interpret the message that Trump was trying to convey. He wants to tell that the money that was funnelled through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) was used to defeat Narendra Modi and his party BJP in last year’s Lok Sabha elections.

Trump’s remarks came a few days after the US Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), headed by billionaire Elon Musk, stopped USAID funding to different countries to the tune of $ 486 million. DOGE released a list of funds that were channelled through USAID to different countries of the world for various purposes. Out of this, $21 million was earmarked for boosting “voter turnout” in India.

DOGE also said, $29 million was earmarked for “strengthening the political landscape in Bangladesh”, where former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was unseated after a violent nationwide agitation led by students and backed by the main opposition BNP and Islamic fundamentalist party Jamaat-e-Islami. At that time, there were allegations that the US “deep state” was involved in ousting Sheikh Hasina from power.

Trump’s remarks had a political fallout in India. It is known to all that much of the USAID funds are channelized through outfits floated by another billionaire George Soros. Soros is on record of having said that he wanted to encourage moves to unseat Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The USAID money that was earmarked was to persuade Dalit and OBC voters in India to come out and take part in voting. At around the same time, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi raised his demand for a nationwide caste census. Rahul Gandhi went to the US where he said, “Democracy has been under attack in India, and it has been very badly weakened.” At that time Rahul Gandhi had met several top officials of the Biden administration and US lawmakers.

After Trump’s remarks, senior BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad on Thursday said that Trump has confirmed that $21 million was given to influence voters’ turnout in India. “We have all along been alleging that Rahul Gandhi was trying to weaken Indian democracy and what Congress has done is a matter of disgrace for the country “, he said. Congress described Trump’s claim as “nonsensical”. In a hard-hitting post on X, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh demanded a white paper from the Modi government about USAID support given to various government organizations and NGOs in India.

What Trump has said leaves no scope for doubt. The fact is that USAID funds came from America to India in the name of increasing voters’ turnout, but they were used to destabilize the Modi government. I salute the sagacity of the voters of India who were not influenced by this campaign funded by the US. The people of India voted Modi to power for the third time.

It is an open secret that Rahul Gandhi and his party benefited and the Congress tally in Lok Sabha increased. What Trump has revealed is a clear admission that the US government has been bringing about changes in governments in other countries by funnelling money. The same was sought to be done in India, but that move failed. What happened in our neighbouring countries like Bangladesh and Pakistan in recent months is known to all.

Trump has put a full stop to this game. The US President does not want to spend his government’s money on destabilizing governments in other countries. This is a 360-degree turn in US policy. You can see its effects in Ukraine. Former President Biden’s administration was providing massive support to Ukraine in its war with Russia. Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was getting military and monetary support from the US in his war against Russia. The US gave $300 billion support to Ukraine, but now Trump has taken a U-turn and has opted to cut a deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

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BJP leader Gaurav Bhatia launched a scathing attack on the Congress party on Thursday, accusing it of being “anti-India” and working against the country’s interests. He cited former US President Donald Trump’s recent allegations that American aid funds were being used to interfere in India’s electoral process to oust Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

“Donald Trump has revealed that US aid funds were allegedly used to interfere in India’s elections with the aim of removing the world’s most popular leader, PM Modi. Why should any foreign entity interfere in our internal matters? RahuI Gandhi is repeatedly found engaging in anti-India activities,” Bhatia said.

Congress accused of destabilising India for ‘personal gains’

Bhatia further alleged that Congress does not want political stability in India because the party has grown accustomed to “corruption and commission-based politics.”

“They don’t just hate Modi; they hate the Indian people who vote for stability and development. After Trump’s statement, sections of the media and some newspapers have started covering up the issue, acting as agents of the Gandhi family,” he alleged.

‘Rahul Gandhi must answer’

Bhatia also challenged Rahul Gandhi to respond to Trump’s claims and accused fact-checkers of being aligned with the Congress ecosystem.

“Rahul Gandhi does not have the courage to answer these questions. So-called fact-checkers, many of whom receive foreign funding, are busy whitewashing the matter, claiming that the $21 million US aid has no connection to India,” he said.

Foreign links: George Soros and allegations of external influence

Bhatia also linked the issue to billionaire financier George Soros, alleging that the Congress leadership is influenced by foreign forces.

“This is connected to George Soros, and now the term GANDOS (Gandhi + Soros) is being discussed. Rahul Gandhi met US Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, seeking support to remove Modi. When questioned, he never clarifies his ties to such foreign figures,” Bhatia stated.

Unanswered questions on Congress’s China ties

The BJP leader further raised concerns over Congress’s alleged undisclosed agreements with China’s Communist Party (CCP).

“Rahul Gandhi still hasn’t revealed the details of his Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the CCP. Even Congress leader Sam Pitroda has called China a friend,” he said.

Congress’s Kashmir stand and Pakistan connection

Bhatia also cited past instances where Congress leaders allegedly worked against India’s sovereignty.

“Sonia Gandhi was co-chairperson of FDLAP, where a proposal for Kashmir’s separation from India was passed. Similarly, Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar had sought Pakistan’s help to defeat PM Modi,” he alleged.

The BJP’s fresh attack on Congress comes amid growing political tensions as India gears up for the upcoming general elections.