[The following is not meant to be an exhaustive List. Only an indicative one.]
I. <<The Right to Information (RTI) act, which was passed by the UPA government in 2005, came back to haunt them during the UPA’s second term. NGOs and journalists, still allowed to function rather freely, were able to dig up several cases of corruption. As stories of scams broke out, people of India were naturally disgusted and were eagerly looking for a clean alternative. This was also the period when US diplomatic cables had been published by Wikileaks and had taken the world by storm. Suddenly, there was a new story circulated on Indian social media, which claimed that according to Wikileaks’s founder Julian Assange, “America Fears Narendra Modi, because they know he is incorruptible”. Lo and behold, a new messiah was born, who captured the imagination of a large number of “frustrated” Indians. This image was not only peddled by the usual culprits of BJP IT cell on social media, but also by the man himself. Mr Narendra Modi pushed the same claim via his blog on Mar 22 2011 (< http://www.narendramodi.in/i-am-glad-that-america-admits-modi-is-incorruptible-hon%E2%80%99ble-cm-3902 ). [Screenshot] For nearly three years, this story was spread and sold aggressively to Indians via social media and several sections of mainstream media. But, was there any truth to it? In March 2014, Wikileaks finally issued a denial. Turns out, our “incorruptible” saint and his bhakts had merely been spreading a lie. Neither Julian Assange, nor US diplomats had made any such remarks in the Wikileaks cables. [Screenshot] So much for the “honesty” of our “incorruptible” saint !>> (Excerpted from: 'THE MYTH OF AN INCORRUPTIBLE MR MODI' at < https://saafbaat.com/politics/myth-incorruptible-mr-modi>.) II. <<The turnover of a company owned by Jay Amitbhai Shah, son of Bharatiya Janata Party leader Amit Shah, increased 16,000 times over in the year following the election of Narendra Modi as prime minister and the elevation of his father to the post of party president, filings with the Registrar of Companies (RoC) show. Company balance sheets and annual reports obtained from the RoC reveal that in the financial years ending March 2013 and 2014, Shah’s Temple Enterprise Private Ltd. engaged in negligible activity and recorded losses of Rs 6,230 and Rs 1,724 respectively. In 2014-15, it showed a profit of Rs 18,728 on revenues of only Rs 50,000 before jumping to a turnover of Rs 80.5 crore in 2015-16. ... In 2013-14, Temple Enterprise did not own any fixed assets and had no inventories or stock. It also got an income tax refund of Rs 5,796. In FY 2014-15, it earned Rs 50,000 as revenue. However, in 2015-16, the firm’s revenues jumped to over Rs 80.5 crore, a growth of 16 lakh percent. Reserves and surplus jumped to Rs 80.2 lakh from Rs 19 lakh the previous year. Trade payables were Rs 2.65 crore, up from Rs 5,618 the previous year. The assets of the company were only Rs 2 lakh. The firm had no fixed assets the year before. Short-term loans and advances were Rs 4.14 crore, up from Rs 10,000 the year before. Inventories were Rs 9 crore, up from zero the previous year, according to the firm’s filings.>> (Excerpted from: 'The Golden Touch of Jay Amit Shah' at < https://thewire.in/185512/amit-shah-narendra-modi-jay-shah-bjp/>.) III. <<Jewellery purchases exceeding Rs 50,000 won’t require the income tax permanent account number (PAN) to be provided after the government reversed an earlier notification on Friday, providing a big festive cheer for the sector and potential customers. Jewellers will also not be required to inform authorities about jewellery purchases of over Rs 50,000 after the government rescinded a notification issued on August 23.>> (Excerpted from: 'Now no PAN card required for jewellery purchase of over Rs 50,000' at: < http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/60973541.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst >.) IV. <<The brazenness with which the government clubbed non-money related clauses in a money bill to avoid a debate in the Rajya Sabha is only half the story. Among the contentious amendments that have failed to get adequate attention, is the one on political donations. ... Not only has the government removed the limit on the amount companies can donate to political parties, it allows it do so without naming the political party. As PRS, a legislative research firm, explains: "Currently, a company may contribute up to 7.5 percent of the average of its net profits in the last three years to political parties. The company is required to disclose the contributions made to political parties in its profit and loss account, along with the name of the political parties to which such contribution was made. "The amendments to the Finance Bill 2017 propose to remove: (i) the limit of 7.5 percent of net profit of the last three financial years, for contributions that a company may make to political parties. (ii) The requirement of a company to disclose the name of the political party to which a contribution has been made." ... Essentially, under this new system, a company can now channel large sums of money into a political party through electronic means and maintain anonymity. We, the people, remain oblivious as to which company is wielding how much influence on which political party that may or may not be in government or shaping our country’s agenda.>> (Excerpted from: 'The Big Corporate Takeover of Political Funding' at < https://www.thequint.com/news/politics/finance-bill-2017-anonymous-political-donations >.) V. <<Anna Hazare, whose anti-corruption protest attracted a huge outpouring of support in 2011, on Monday threatened a rerun of his crusade as he denounced the Modi government over its “failure” to appoint a Lokpal and create a corruption-free India. ... “The movement I started for appointing a Lokpal is incomplete, which is why there is a need for another agitation. The government failed to appoint a Lokpal in the last three years. In fact, it has weakened the Act (The Lokpal and Lokayukta Act, 2013),” he told reporters at a press conference at the New Maharashtra Sadan here. ... He accused the government of not fulfilling its promises of bringing back black money stashed abroad and implementing the Swaminathan Commission report. The promise of bringing back black money remains unfulfilled, the number of farmer suicides is increasing at an alarming rate, the Swaminathan Commission report has not been implemented yet, and corruption in the country is on the rise, Hazare said in a letter to the prime minister Monday. Citing media reports, the social activist claimed that corruption had increased over the last 15 years. “He (the prime minister) has shown no interest in appointing a Lokpal. When he was the chief minister of Gujarat, he did not want a Lokayukta. So he went to the high court against the move and later approached the Supreme Court,” he claimed. Hazare has written several letters to Modi in the past over the appointment of a Lokpal. Asked whether he had received a response from the government, Hazare said, “There has been no response to my letter. Why will they write back to me? They only respond to industrialists.” The Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act was enacted in 2013. The Act was amended in 2016 to allow extension of the time given to public servants and trustees and board members of non-government organisations (NGOs) receiving government funds of more than Rs1 crore or foreign funding of more than Rs10 lakh to declare their assets and those of their spouses. Referring to the amendment, Hazare alleged that the amendment diluted the provisions of the Act and it was passed in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha in three days “without holding discussions”.>> (Excerpted from: 'Anna Hazare says Narendra Modi averse to appointing a Lokpal' at < http://www.livemint.com/Politics/PpnTI41QK3UGJYDxlTIdvK/Anna-Hazare-says-Narendra-Modi-averse-to-appointing-a-Lokpal.html >.) Forget about Anna Hazre, just look into the issues raised. Just a few glimpses. 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