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Budget 2025-26: CII seeks cut in income tax, 3-tier Customs duty to spur growth

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New Delhi, Dec 30: Apex business chamber CII on Monday urged Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to reduce personal income tax for individuals earning up to Rs 20 lakh per annum, introduce a three-tier customs duty structure with higher tariffs on finished goods and go for a 25 per cent increase in government capex in the Union Budget 2025-26 to spur growth in the economy.

At a meeting held here with the Finance Minister in the run-up to the Budget, CII president Sanjiv Puri CII suggested the adoption of a 3-tier customs tariff structure with rates of inputs at 0 – 2.5 per cent, intermediates at 2.5 – 5.0 per cent, and final goods at 7.5 per cent over a period of time, with certain exceptions.

CII also underlined the need to build on the success in manufacturing in certain sectors, with similar targeted interventions for sectors, that can create large-scale employment, like readymade garments, footwear, furniture, tourism, real estate and construction.

CII said FTAs with countries like the EU and the UK should be expedited and lower duties should be levied on imports of raw materials like cotton.

The introduction of Next Gen reforms, particularly Labour reforms would go a long way in unlocking the potential of such labour-intensive sectors, according to the CII presentation.

CII emphasised the need for a continued increase in the government’s capex spending by 25 per cent over the Rs 11.1 lakh crore budget for FY 25, with an enhanced focus on rural infrastructure which would have a multiplier effect on the economy and spur growth.

CII further emphasised the need to develop an integrated foreign trade, investment and industrial policy. An expert group under the Finance Minister’s leadership could be constituted with industry participation to draft the policy, the chamber said.

The CII presentation favours a fiscal deficit at 4.5 per cent for FY26 as a sharper contraction could impact demand.

Debt targeting from FY27, with a glide path to bring the Central government’s debt to below 50 per cent of GDP by 2030-31. This is likely to have a positive impact on India’s sovereign credit rating and interest rates, the CII presentation states.

Various measures to boost consumption suggested by CII include a reduction in excise duty on fuel to reduce overall inflation and boost disposable incomes. Reducing marginal tax rates for personal income up to Rs 20 lakh per annum to trigger the virtuous cycle of consumption, higher growth and higher tax revenue.

The CII presentation also favours the divestment of government stakes in select PSEs to retain 51 per cent to unlock about Rs 10 lakh crore which could be utilised for — enhancing public capex, retiring government debt, and setting up a Sovereign Wealth Fund for investing in strategic assets overseas towards acquiring critical technologies and minerals.

CII is of the view that the fundamentals of the Indian economy remain strong given the sound economic policies that India has pursued. Despite some softening of domestic demand in the first half, a progressive recovery is expected. However, global uncertainties, including excess capacity in China, a climate emergency and consequent food inflation, are clearly challenges.

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Vijay Mallya Files Petition In Karnataka High Court Seeking Loan Recovery Accounts

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Bengaluru: Fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya has filed a petition in the Karnataka High Court seeking loan recovery accounts from banks. Senior advocate Sajan Poovayya appeared on behalf of Mallya.

About The Petition

According to Mallya’s counsel Rs 6,200 crore was to be repaid, but Rs 14,000 crore has been recovered. Mallya’s counsel claimed that this was informed to the Lok Sabha by the Finance Minister.

Mallya’s counsel has argued that the loan recovery officer stated that Rs 10,200 crore has been recovered. He claimed that even though the full loan amount has been cleared, the process is still ongoing. Therefore, a request has been made to direct the banks to provide a statement of the recovered loan amount.

Based on Mallya’s petition a notice was issued to banks and loan recovery officers by the High Court bench led by Justice R Devadas.

Mallya is currently living in London and he is the subject of extradition efforts from the Government of India for alleged loan defaults.

Earlier on December 18, 2024, Vijay Mallya had claimed that banks have recovered Rs 14,131.60 crore from him “against the judgement debt of Rs 6203 crore” but he continues to be “an economic offender”.

He said in a post on X that unless the Enforcement Directorate and banks can legally justify how they have taken more than two times the debt, he is entitled to relief.

Tweet Of Vijay Mallya

“The Debt Recovery Tribunal adjudged the KFA (Kingfisher Airlines) debt at Rs 6203 crores including Rs 1200 crores of interest. The FM announced in Parliament that through the ED, Banks have recovered Rs 14,131.60 crores from me against the judgement debt of Rs 6203 crores and I am still an economic offender. Unless the ED and Banks can legally justify how they have taken more than two times the debt, I am entitled to relief which I will pursue,” Mallya said.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had listed several major cases where the Enforcement Directorate has from time to time attached properties of individuals and companies connected to economic offence cases.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman On The Debate On Supplementary Demands For Grants

Replying to the debate on Supplementary Demands for Grants – First Batch for 2024-2025, she apprised the Lok Sabha Tuesday evening that the central enforcement agency has successfully restored properties worth around Rs 22,280 crore — only the major cases included.Of those restored, the complete attached property worth Rs 14,131.6 crores of fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya has been restored to the public sector banks, the minister said.

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Sensex closes lower as smallcaps shine; investors eye RBI MPC meet, Delhi poll results

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Mumbai, Feb 5: The Indian stock market on Wednesday closed lower after a volatile trading session as investors remained cautious amid global uncertainties.

All eyes are now on the RBI monetary policy committee (MPC) meeting on February 7, which could announce a rate cut for the first time in the last five years, as well as the Delhi Assembly election results to be out on February 8.

The BSE Sensex declined by 312.53 points, or 0.40 per cent, to settle at 78,271.28 after fluctuating between an intra-day high of 78,735.41 and a low of 78,226.26.

The NSE Nifty ended 42.95 points lower at 23,696.30 after touching a high of 23,807.30 and a low of 23,680.45 during the day.

Several stocks provided support to the market, with Adani Ports, IndusInd Bank, Tata Motors, Tata Steel, HDFC Bank, and ICICI Bank emerging as the top gainers. Their share prices increased between 0.4 per cent to 1.6 per cent during the session.

However, selling pressure was seen in Asian Paints, Nestle India, Titan Company, ITC, HUL, and L&T, with Asian Paints leading the decline with a 4 per cent drop.

The broader market performed better compared to the benchmark indices. The Nifty MidCap index rose by 1.13 per cent, while the Nifty SmallCap index saw a stronger gain of 1.99 per cent.

Most sectoral indices on the NSE ended in positive territory, except for Nifty FMCG, Realty, Auto, and Consumer Durable indices, which declined by up to 1.85 per cent.

On the other hand, buying interest was seen in PSU Bank, Metal, OMCs, and Media stocks, with these indices rising over 1 per cent each.

According to Aditya Gaggar of Progressive Shares, the markets opened strong but faced resistance around 23,800 levels and reversed.

Without a strong momentum, the Index moved between positive and negative before ending at 23,696.30 with a loss of 42.95 points. The Media and Energy sectors performed well, while the Realty and FMCG sectors saw a drop of more than 1.5 per cent, he mentioned.

Meanwhile, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is likely to cut the repo rate by 25 basis points, aligning with the budget’s objectives of stimulating economic activity while managing a prudent fiscal position.

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Indian stock market trades flat, all eyes on RBI MPC meet

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Mumbai, Feb 5 : The domestic benchmark indices traded almost flat early on Wednesday, after the stock market experienced a strong upward movement as the US trade tariff tensions eased.

After a positive opening, the Sensex and the Nifty were almost flat. At around 9.31 am, Sensex was trading at around 78,595.81, up marginally, while the Nifty was at 23,769.80, up almost 30 points or 0.13 per cent.

HDFC Bank, Infosys, Oil and Natural Gas Corp, Tata Consultancy Services and Bharat Petroleum Corp added to the Nifty 50 index.

On the other hand, Asian Paints, Larsen and Toubro, Titan and Nestle India weighed on the Nifty 50 index.

On NSE, nine sectors advanced, three declined out of 12. The NSE Nifty FMC declined the most, and the NSE Nifty Oil & Gas rose the most. The BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices were trading higher in early trade.

According to market watchers, after a positive opening, Nifty can find support at 23,600. On the higher side, 23,800 can be an immediate resistance, followed by 23,900 and 24,000.

After remaining net sellers for the 23 sessions, the foreign institutional investors (FIIs) turned net buyers on February 4, as they bought equities worth Rs 809 crore. On the contrary, 35 domestic institutional investors (DIIs) turned net sellers after remaining net buyers for the last 35 sessions, as they sold equities worth Rs 430 crore.

The strong buying interest helped the Nifty index close above the 23,700 mark. Additionally, global markets traded positively.

According to Sameet Chavan of Angel One, the US decision to pause tariffs triggered a strong recovery from lower levels in U.S. futures overnight, setting a positive tone for Asian markets.

“While the momentum remains positive, key overhead resistance levels need to be monitored at 23900 (89 DEMA), 24000 (200 DSMA), and 24250 (previous swing high),” he mentioned.

After a robust Union Budget, all eyes are on the RBI’s monetary policy committee (MPC) meeting on February 7 where a rate cut is expected.

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