Business
Our approach is ‘India First’ in trade talks with US, says Piyush Goyal

New Delhi, March 14: Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal on Friday on Friday said that he “had a forward-looking discussion with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer on a mutually beneficial Bilateral Trade Agreement” between India and the US.
“Our approach will be guided by ‘India First’, ‘Viksit Bharat’ and our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership,” Goyal posted on X along with a photo of his meeting Greer.
Goyal had previously met Greer and US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick during his visit to the US last week. This followed US President Donald Trump and PM Narendra Modi’s talks on negotiating the first tranche of a mutually beneficial, multi-sector Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) by the fall of 2025.
The two leaders resolved to deepen the US-India trade relationship to promote growth that ensures fairness, national security, and job creation. To this end, the leaders set a bold new goal for bilateral trade – “Mission 500” – aiming to more than double total bilateral trade to $500 billion by 2030.
US Trade Secretary Lutnick said recently that he was keen to negotiate a broad-based trade agreement with India, taking into account the entire trade relationship rather than individual products.
Meanwhile, the government has informed the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs that India has not made any commitment to reduce tariffs on goods imported from the USA.
In a briefing on the issue, Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal told the Parliamentary committee that negotiations between India and the US were still ongoing and that no trade agreement had been finalised.
The Commerce Secretary’s clarification came in the wake of US President Trump’s statement that India has agreed to bring “way down” its tariffs on US goods.
Barthwal said: “One cannot go by the US President’s claims and on media reports as the bilateral trade agreement talks between the two nations are still on. India has not committed to anything on trade tariffs to the US.”
He also made it clear that India’s interests were of paramount importance and would be taken care of during the trade negotiations.
Barthwal said that India was in favour of increasing bilateral trade with the USA but would not indiscriminately lower tariffs, especially in sectors crucial to its domestic economy.
“India prefers to negotiate tariff reductions bilaterally rather than multilaterally to ensure national interests are upheld,” Barthwal told the committee.
Trump’s ‘America First’ policy has the potential to disrupt world trade as the US President has accused trading partners of unfair practices and threatened to impose punitive tariffs on a large scale. He has accused India of levying massive tariffs on US goods.
National
BJP wants to grab land in every UP district, alleges Akhilesh Yadav

Lucknow, June 28: Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Saturday launched a scathing attack on the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh, alleging that it was trying to usurp land in every district of the state.
Addressing a press conference, Yadav said the BJP was misusing bulldozers and government machinery, with the active support of party workers and the local administration, to forcibly acquire land.
He particularly pointed to Gorakhpur, the home turf of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, claiming irregularities in land registration there.
“The people of Gorakhpur should ask in whose name the maximum number of registries have been done,” Yadav said.
“If the truth about Gorakhpur comes out, the government will have to build a custody corridor there instead of passing on any inheritance. Compensation for land and houses is not being given fairly. The administration is pressuring locals into signing consent papers, using the police to instill fear, just so they don’t have to pay proper compensation,” Akhilesh Yadav alleged.
Accusing the government of cheating locals, he added, “People lost land in Ayodhya, came close to losing it in Banaras, and now Gorakhpur is next. It’s not just Gorakhpur’s land that’s being targeted — this mindset was also visible in Lucknow. Even their own advisor had to resign. I don’t know who he was colluding with — those he aligned with have now fled the country.”
Yadav also took aim at the RSS, criticising its demand to remove the words ‘Socialist’ and ‘Secular’ from the Preamble of the Constitution.
“Those who oppose the reservation don’t say it openly. Instead, they target the concepts of secularism and socialism. Their opposition to reservation is masked in these attacks,” he said.
Yadav accused the BJP and its ideological allies of trying to polarise voters. “They want to get votes by spreading hatred,” he alleged.
National
Need to educate youth so that Emergency is not repeated: Delhi CM Rekha Gupta

New Delhi, June 28: Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Saturday recalled the murder of the Constitution during the Emergency imposed by former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1975, highlighting the need for reminding youth about the dark chapter of democracy.
“Just as we stage Ramlila every year to tell youngsters that they should not become like demon king Ravana, this annual commemoration of the Emergency is needed to prevent the return of the dark chapter in future,” she said at a mock parliament organised by Mahila Morcha of Delhi BJP.
Highlighting the Emergency-related changes made in the Constitution, forced sterilisation, restriction on media and films, she said, “The Congress has only worked to retain power over the past 70 years. Even in the Shah Bano case, the then Congress government brought in a law to appease a community at the cost of the exploitation of women.”
She described Prime Minister Narendra Modi as “Guardian” of the nation, showcasing his vision to start women-friendly schemes, free cooking gas, toilets, tap water, nutrition scheme for women and the quashing of ‘Triple Talak’.
“It started with Beti Padhao, Beti Bachao and today it is Beti Badhao,” she said, underscoring the encouragement for women in the BJP to take up leadership roles.
“Today, when the country is giving a big role to women in decision-making and governance, we will also need to raise our ability to respond to the situation,” Rekha Gupta said, highlighting that a common worker of the BJP like her could become a Chief Minister.
“Who other than Sonia Gandhi is a prominent woman politician in the Congress?” she asked, urging women workers of the BJP to ensure that they play a significant role to oppose any other attempt being made to impose an Emergency like that by former PM Indira Gandhi.
In Delhi, when people want delivery of good service after 27 years of misrule in the city, we as women politicians must have the capability to understand the needs of people and deliver the goods, CM Gupta said.
Earlier, the Delhi BJP released a short video on its X handle as part of the Emergency 50 protest. The video carried the message: “Democracy wasn’t just paused. It was strangled and put behind bars, beneath fear and silence.”
The video titled ‘Emergency Never Again – June 25, 1975, The night democracy died’ shows a character, purportedly similar to late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, walking away barefoot, leaving behind footprints on the ground that highlight the dark aspects of the Emergency.
As the character walks onto the screen, the ground highlights: “Constitution Torn, Democracy Strangled, Press Silenced, Voices Crushed, Opposition Arrested, Innocents Jailed, No Right to Life”.
Crime
Parents of Kolkata law college rape victim should be ready for long battle like us: RG Kar victim’s parents

Kolkata, June 28: In the midst of the outrage and politics over the rape of a woman in a Kolkata law college, the parents of the R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital rape and murder victim stated on Saturday that the law student’s parents should also be ready to fight a protracted legal battle.
Their comments came days after a Kolkata-based law college student became a victim of rape within the college premises on June 25 evening.
They stated that the woman’s parents should also be ready for a long battle considering the influential backing enjoyed by the three accused in the case.
The mother of the junior doctor who became a victim of a ghastly rape and murder in August last year, expressed apprehension that like the case of her daughter, there might be attempts to protect the accused in the law college rape case also in the due course.
Hence, they feel that what is required now is a mass movement exactly in line with what happened after the heinous crime with their daughter.
“What is even more shocking is that even after the tragedy with my daughter, there was not enough initiative to ensure the safety of women within educational institutions where they study. The administration and ruling party are now trying to shy away from their responsibilities over the crime in the law college rape. It is natural. But the reality is that the influential backing that the accused persons enjoyed gave them the courage to conduct such a heinous crime within the college premises,” the R.G Kar victim’s mother said.
The father of the R.G. Kar victim said that he fears that like the case of his daughter, there might be attempts by influential people and even a section within the administration to protect the accused.
“So I also feel that the parents of the victim in the law college case should also be prepared for a long battle like us. They should understand that the administration will not do anything and they will have to fight their own battle as we have been doing. What the victim’s parents need now is the spontaneous public support which we have received,” he said.
All the three accused in the case, namely Monojit Mishra, Zaib Ahmed, and Pramit Mukhopadhyay were linked to Trinamool Congress’ students’ wing Trinamool Chhatra Parishad (TMCP).
Pictures of Mishra with different top and heavyweight Trinamool Congress leaders have already flooded social media. While Mishra is a former student of the same law college, the other two are existing students.
All three of them, on Friday, were remanded to police custody till July 1.
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