09 November 2022

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS ANALYSIS

1 – G 20: GS II – Topic International Relations

Context:

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated in his address to the nation on November 8 that India’s impending G20 chairmanship is a source of pride and a fantastic opportunity for the nation in its 75th year of independence.

About the G20:

• Leaders from the nations with the biggest and fastest-growing economies come together annually for the G20 conference.
• Two-thirds of the world’s population and 85% of its GDP are made up of people in this category.
• The “Summit on Financial Markets and the World Economy” is the official name of the G20 Summit.

Establishment:

• The G7 finance ministers saw the need for large developing market nations to participate in discussions on the global financial system in the wake of the 1997–1998 Asian Financial Crisis and resolved to create the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors conference in 1999.

Presidency:

• Because the G20 lacks a permanent staff, a country from a rotating zone takes over as leader every December.
• The following summit and any subsequent smaller gatherings must be scheduled for the following year by that nation.
• They might also decide to welcome tourists from other nations.
• In the wake of an East Asian financial crisis that had an impact on the entire world, the first G20 summit was convened in Berlin in 1999.

Members of the G20:

• Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States, and the European Union are a few of the countries featured on this list.

Its applicability in the present:

• Prior G20 summits have concentrated on a broad range of international issues, including development, climate change and energy, health, counterterrorism, as well as migration and refugees, that have a significant impact on the global economy. In addition to macroeconomics and commerce, there are also these difficulties. With the advancement of globalisation and the interconnectedness of multiple difficulties, the importance of these most recent summits has increased.
• Through its efforts to address pressing global concerns, the G20 has aimed to realise a just and sustainable society.

Source The Hindu

2 – CAA: GS II – Topic Indian Constitution

Context:

• The treatment of journalists and human rights defenders, the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA), and similar problems are expected to dominate India’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) before the Human Rights Council in Geneva on Thursday.

About CAA:

• The CAA grants citizenship based on religion to six undocumented non-Muslim communities (Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis, and Christians) who entered India on or before December 31, 2014 and are from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh.
• The citizens of the six groups have legal protection thanks to the Passport Act of 1920 and the Foreigners Act of 1946, respectively.
• The two Acts specify the penalties for entering the country without authorization and remaining there while in possession of a valid visa or authorization.

CAA issues:

• Targeting a Particular Community: It is feared that the CAA will benefit non-Muslims who are not included on the planned citizens’ registry, while Muslims who are not included will have to substantiate their citizenship. The countrywide compilation of the National Register of Citizens will come after the CAA (NRC).
• The violation of the Assam Accord of 1985, which requires that all illegal immigrants arriving from Bangladesh after March 25, 1971, regardless of faith, be deported, has created concerns in the North-East.
• An estimated 20 million illegal Bangladeshi immigrants reside in Assam, irreversibly altering the state’s demographics and straining its resources and economy.
• Arguments against Fundamental Rights: Critics assert that it goes against Article 14 of the Constitution, which safeguards the right to equality for both citizens and foreigners, and the preamble’s secularism idea.
• Discriminatory in nature: Hindu Rohingya from Myanmar and Tamils from Sri Lanka are among the other refugees in India. They are not covered by the Act.
• Administration Obstacle: It will be difficult for the administration to differentiate between persons who are being persecuted and illegal immigrants.
• The Act draws attention to the prevalent religious discrimination that prevails in these three countries, which could be detrimental to our bilateral relations with them.

Way Forward:

• India has a highly developed civilization. It represents a new drive to support those who are being accused in the area. The methods must, however, uphold the spirit of the Constitution.
• To relieve any concerns people may have about the CAA rules, MHA should make them as open as feasible.

Source The Hindu

3 – NOTA: GS II – Topic Election-related issues

Context:

• Rutuja Latke, a candidate for the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) coalition and the Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray), sailed to a predicted victory in the Andheri East Assembly byelection, the results of which were released on Sunday.
• When the race became vital following Sena MLA Ramesh Latke’s dying in May of this year, there was a high-voltage buildup. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the party in power, initially named Murji Patel as Ms. Latke’s opponent. However, in an act of “magnanimity,” he later withdrew his name.
• Latke garnered 66,530 votes (EVM plus postal ballots), however the NOTA category came in second with 12,776 votes. The Uddhav group said that in an effort to discredit the MVA nominee, the BJP secretly campaigned against Ms. Latke and actively urged voters to select NOTA.

Use of NOTA during elections:

• For the Lok Sabha and assembly elections in 2013, the SC imposed the NOTA option. India therefore became the fourteenth country to employ negative voting.

Why even have NOTA if it has “no electoral value”?

• Through NOTA, people can express their disapproval with the candidates for office.
• This reduces the amount of invalid votes and increases the possibility that more voters, regardless of their passion for a specific candidate, will turn out to cast their ballots.
• According to the Supreme Court, voting against candidates could also cause “a structural shift in surveys and political parties would be pushed to portray clean candidates.”

NOTA for Rajya Sabha Elections:

• The NOTA option is only designed for general adult suffrage and direct elections, not for elections that use the Rajya Sabha’s single transferable vote method of proportional representation, according to a 2018 Supreme Court decision.
• The court ruled that applying NOTA to the Rajya Sabha elections violates both PUCL v. Union of India and Article 80(4) of the constitution (2013).
• This is because NOTA undermines the legitimacy of indirect elections, downplays the significance of voters in such elections, disregards the principles of democracy, and encourages irregularities like corruption and desertion.

Source The Hindu

4 – Age of Consent: GS II – Topic Social Issues:

Context:

• On November 4, the Dharwad Bench of the Karnataka High Court dismissed a case brought under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses Act, 2012, noting that the Law Commission of India would need to look into the age restrictions in order to take into account the actual scenario. It was stated that if the Indian Penal Code and/or the POCSO Act were actually broken, the issue of permission given by a girl who is 16 but under the age of 18 would have to be taken into account.

Adolescent consent age:

• The minimum age at which a person can legally consent to having sexual contact with someone who is assumed to be minor is known as the age of consent.
• Regardless of whether consent is given, the Indian Penal Code forbids having sex with girls under the age of 18.
• According to the Indian Penal Code’s exception to the rule, “intrusive sexual intercourse with a girl between the ages of 15 and 18 only on the pretext that she is married” is legal (rape).
• The 2013 Criminal Law (Amendment) Act stipulates the exception.
• The 2012 Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses Act is broken here (POCSO).
• POCSO treats girls under the age of 18 like children.
• For the purposes of the exception to Section 375 of the IPC, she is no longer recognised as a child if she marries.
• This is completely nonsensical because a female under the age of 18 is still a child whether or not she is married.

How successful is POCSO?

• Many young couples who were in healthy, non-exploitative relationships ended themselves in the criminal judicial system as a result of the implementation of POCSO.
• Consensual sexual encounters with or among minors are put on the same footing with rape under the POSCO standards because they disregarded a “minor’s” permission.

It establishes two distinct levels of law enforcement:

• Boys and young men are frequently accused of committing sexual offenses.
• Girls who reject their parents or whose parents won’t accept them are institutionalised and treated as victims in children’s homes.
• The couple’s only option when facing criminal accusations and imprisonment is to ask the High Court to dismiss the case using its inherent authority under Section 482 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the high courts.
• This is done to “prevent abuse of the proceedings of any Court or otherwise to defend the interests of justice,” as stated in Section 482 of the IPC.

About POCSO Act 2012:

• This comprehensive statute safeguards all minors (those under the age of 18) from crimes involving sexual harassment, sexual assault, and pornography.

Specifications and features:

• At every stage of the legal process, it offers expedited trials through special courts and child-friendly practices.
• In two months, the inquiry and the trial are both finished.
• Fast Track Special Courts (FTSCs) exist and are capable of dispensing justice swiftly.
• includes criminals who hold positions of authority in the police, government, or other organizations.

Source The Hindu