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  • Blockchain Technology: Prospects and Challenges

    What are Blockchain Funds?

    Prelims Only | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Indian Economy

    The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has ruled that Indian mutual funds (MFs) cannot invest in crypto-related products until government regulations on are clear.

    What are Blockchain Funds?

    • Blockchain is a digital ledger system that facilitates the process of recording transactions and tracking assets in a network.
    • It is possible to have blockchain without crypto, but in practice the two are highly interlinked.
    • Cryptocurrency tends to power the resources needed for a public blockchain network.
    • Unlike specific crypto-based investments, blockchain funds invest in multiple companies that are driving sustainable earnings from blockchain businesses.
    • Some key companies in this ecosystem are US-based Coinbase Global Inc and Advanced Micro Devices Inc, and Japan’s GMO internet Inc.

    Why has SEBI blocked Blockchain funds?

    • Absence of regulations: SEBI concerns stem from unclear regulations around cryptocurrencies in India.
    • Unclear future: While investing, trading and holding crypto assets are allowed in India as of now, the laws are still not clear as to how they are regulated and taxed.
    • Possible ban: There is a possibility that the government may ban trading in crypto altogether or come up with stringent thresholds for investors to delve into this new asset.
    • Taxing the gains: For taxation purposes, short-term capital gains from individual crypto investing are taxed at personal taxation rates, however, there are no clear guidelines for fund investing.

    Are blockchain funds good investments?

    • The technology is creating value by revolutionizing the way assets and digital records are managed and transferred.
    • Many companies, particularly in financial services, are investing millions of dollars in researching and building Blockchain infrastructure.
    • Although the technology is still in the nascent phase in India, its potential across the board is huge.

    Back2Basics: Mutual Funds

    • A mutual fund is a company that pools money from many investors and invests the money in securities such as stocks, bonds, and short-term debt.
    • The combined holdings of the mutual fund are known as its portfolio. Investors buy shares in mutual funds.
    • Each share represents an investor’s part ownership in the fund and the income it generates.

    Mutual funds are a popular choice among investors because they generally offer the following features:

    • Professional Management. The fund managers do the research for you. They select the securities and monitor the performance.
    • Diversification or “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.” Mutual funds typically invest in a range of companies and industries. This helps to lower your risk if one company fails.
    • Affordability. Most mutual funds set a relatively low dollar amount for initial investment and subsequent purchases.
    • Liquidity. Mutual fund investors can easily redeem their shares at any time, for the current net asset value (NAV) plus any redemption fees.

    Risks with MFs

    • With mutual funds, one may lose some or all of the money invested because the securities held by a fund can go down in value.
    • Dividends or interest payments may also change as market conditions change.
    • The more volatile the fund, the higher the investment risk.

     

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  • Monetary Policy Committee Notifications

    What is the Regression Theorem?

    Prelims Only | Economics | Mains Paper 3:

    This newscard is an excerpt from the original article published in the TH e-paper edition.

    Regression Theorem

    • The regression theorem refers to a theory of the origin of money.
    • It states that money must have originated as a commodity with intrinsic value in the marketplace.
    • The idea was first proposed by Austrian economist Carl Menger in his 1892 work “On the Origins of Money.”
    • This theory is offered as an alternative to the state theory of money which states that money (fiat money) can come into existence only when it is backed by the government.

    Evolution of Money

    • The regression theory argues that money comes into existence through a gradual process of evolution in the marketplace, without the need for any government sanction.
    • Economists who try to explain the regression theory generally start with the question of why money, particularly fiat money which is simply just a piece of paper, has any value at all in the marketplace.
    • The most common answer to this question is that fiat money can be used to buy other useful goods such as houses, cars etc.
    • But this answer is insufficient —it tries to tackle the question of why fiat money can buy other useful goods by simply saying that it can buy other useful goods.

    Why is fiat money, which has little intrinsic value, considered valuable?

    • In real life, people accept money in exchange for goods in the present because they are aware that money was accepted as a medium in exchange for other goods in the past.
    • For example, people accept wages in the US dollar today because they are aware that the dollar was used to buy cars, groceries and other goods in the market yesterday.
    • This gives them confidence in the value of their money.

    What made people accept money in exchange for other useful goods in the past?

    Ans. Intrinsic Value

    • Economists who advocate the regression theory of money argue that money must have originated as a useful commodity like gold or silver or the barter system.
    • This is the only way, they argue, it could have possibly been accepted by people in exchange for other useful goods at some point in the past.
    • If a thing did not possess any intrinsic value, it is unlikely that people in the marketplace would have accepted it in exchange for other goods and services.
    • So, commodities like gold and silver must have been traded in exchange for other goods and services at some point in history purely because they offered some kind of personal utility to people.
    • For example, these precious metals could have been used to make ornaments, to fill teeth, etc., which gives them intrinsic value.
    • They maintain value over time because their supply cannot be easily ramped up as mining gold involves significant production costs.

     

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  • Historical and Archaeological Findings in News

    Back in news: Aryan Invasion Theory

    Prelims Only | | Mains Paper 1: Arts & Culture

    The 2022 calendar of the IIT, Kharagpur on the theme of “evidence” for “rebutting the Aryan invasion myth” has caused controversy.

    What is the Aryan Invasion Theory?

    • It has always been understood that the Aryans migration from the Steppe happened after 2000 BCE.
    • In 1953 Mortimer Wheeler proposed that the invasion of an Indo-European tribe from Central Asia, the “Aryans”, caused the decline of the Indus Civilization.
    • As evidence, he cited a group of 37 skeletons found in various parts of Mohenjo-daro, and passages in the Vedas referring to battles and forts.
    • However, scholars soon started to reject Wheeler’s theory, since the skeletons belonged to a period after the city’s abandonment and none were found near the citadel.

    Basis of this theory

    • This was first propounded when linguistic similarities between Sanskrit and the major European languages were discovered by European scholars during the colonial era.
    • This tool was used by the colonizers to legitimize their rule in India.
    • The theory hypothesizes that during 2000BC Aryans from Europe invaded or migrated into the Asian subcontinent.
    • It states these ‘invaders’ killed the original Dravidians and set up the Aryan race in the South-Asian subcontinent.
    • The Aryan Invasion Theory claimed that these ‘invaders’ were the root of modern Indian civilization, not the Harappan civilization.

    Its rebuttal

    • Recent studies have debunked the theory after DNA samples from 5000-year old Harappan remains were proven to be similar to modern Indians’ DNA as part of the Rakhigarhi Project.

    Who were the Harappans then?

    • The Harappans who created the agricultural revolution in northwestern India and then built the Harappan civilization were a mix of First Indians and Iranians who spoke a pre-Arya language.
    • The Arya were central Asian Steppe pastoralists who arrived in India between roughly 2000 BCE and 1500 BCE, and brought Indo-European languages to the subcontinent.
    • The new study says the Iranians arrived in India before agriculture or even herding had begun anywhere in the world.
    • In other words, these migrants were likely to have been hunter-gatherers, which means they did not bring a knowledge of agriculture.

    Try this PYQ:

    Q With reference to the difference between the culture of Rigvedic Aryans and Indus Valley people, which of the following statements correct?

    1. Rigvedic Aryans used the coat of mail and helmet in warfare whereas the people of Indus Valley Civilization did not leave any evidence of using them.
    2. Rigvedic Aryans knew gold, silver and copper whereas Indus Valley people knew only copper and iron.
    3. Rigvedic Aryans had domesticated the horse whereas there is no evidence of Indus Valley people having been aware of this animal.

    Select the correct answer using the code given below:

    (a) Only 1

    (c) 1 and 3 only

    (b) 2 and 3 only

    (d) 1, 2 and 3

     

    Post your answers here.

     

     

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  • Higher Education – RUSA, NIRF, HEFA, etc.

    Atal Ranking of Institutions on Innovation Achievements (ARIIA), 2021

    DOMR | Governance | Mains Paper 2: Health & Education

    Atal Ranking of Institutions on Innovation Achievements (ARIIA) 2021 has been recently released.

    About ARIIA

    • ARIIA is an initiative of erstwhile Ministry of HRD, implemented by AICTE and Ministry’s Innovation Cell.
    • It systematically ranks all major higher educational institutions and universities in India on indicators related to “Innovation and Entrepreneurship Development” amongst students and faculties.
    • ARIIA 2020 will have six categories which also includes special category for women only higher educational institutions to encourage women and bringing gender parity in the areas of innovation and entrepreneurship.
    • The other five categories are 1) Centrally Funded Institutions 2) State-funded universities 3) State-funded autonomous institutions 4) Private/Deemed Universities and 5) Private Institutions.

    Major Indicators for consideration

    • Budget & Funding Support.
    • Infrastructure & Facilities.
    • Awareness, Promotions & support for Idea Generation & Innovation.
    • Promotion & Support for Entrepreneurship Development.
    • Innovative Learning Methods & Courses.
    • Intellectual Property Generation, Technology Transfer & Commercialization.
    • Innovation in Governance of the Institution.

    Key highlights of 2021 report

    • Seven IITs and the IISc, Bengaluru, are among the top 10 central institutions in promotion and support of innovation and entrepreneurship development.
    • The top rank has been bagged by the IIT, Madras followed by the IITs in Bombay, Delhi, Kanpur and Roorkee.
    • The IISc has bagged the sixth position in the ranking followed by the IITs in Hyderabad and Kharagpur, the NIT, Calicut.

     

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  • Coal and Mining Sector

    Places in news: Deucha Pachami Coal Mines

    India Mapping | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Infrastructure: Energy, Ports, Roads, Airports, Railways Etc.

    Thousands of Tribals fear displacement following the implementation of the project to mine coals and basalts from the Deucha-Pachami coal block in West Bengal’s Birbhoom district.

    Deucha-Pachami Mines

    • Deucha-Pachami-Dewanganj-Harinsinga coal block is the second-largest coal block in the world; it is the largest in India.
    • It is located in Deucha and Panchamati area under Mohamad bazar community Development Block of Birbhum district, West Bengal.
    • The block has a thick coal seam trapped between equally thick layers of rocks, mostly basalt. It has a great economic value.
    • The existence of these thick basalt layers, however, makes mining of coal difficult; foreign investment and technology will be hence needed for mining.

     

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  • Foreign Policy Watch: India-Middle East

    Vying for influence over Kabul

    op-ed snap | International Relations | Mains Paper 2: Bilateral, Regional and Global Groupings and agreements involving India

    Context

    On December 19, Pakistan hosted a special session of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to address the crisis in Afghanistan.

    The humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan and how regional countries are responding to it

    • The humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan is peaking with no basic amenities available for its population and a harsh winter ahead.
    • While Pakistan hosted the OIC, India played host to foreign ministers of Central Asian states where Afghanistan topped the agenda as well.
    • All the attending countries — Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Kyrgyzstan — also OIC members, chose to prioritise deliberations with New Delhi.

    Qatar’s growing influence in Afghanistan and implications for the region

    • Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Pakistan were the only three countries that had officially recognised the previous Taliban government in 1996, until its fall in 2001.
    • Fast forward to the 2010s, and it was the small but rich state of Qatar that became the mediating force on Afghanistan.
    • Doha hosted the official Taliban political office from 2013 to allow negotiations with the U.S.
    • Qatar’s new role on Afghanistan gave it significant diplomatic and political visibility the world over.
    • In West Asia, Qatar’s growing influence was causing unease in the traditional power centres in Abu Dhabi and Riyadh, specifically on issues such as the Qatari leadership’s support for political Islam and organisations such as the Muslim Brotherhood.

    Fundamental changes

    • Economic blockade: In 2017 the UAE and Saudi Arabia initiated an economic blockade against Doha in the hope of reigning the Kingdom in and disallowing it from pursuing its geopolitical designs that were challenging the long-held power status quos.
    • This four-year long impasse ended in 2021.
    • These four years created fundamental changes within the larger Arab Gulf construct.
    • Qatar mitigated risk and moved closer towards Turkey and Iran.
    • Today, both Qatar and Turkey are bidding to operate a landlocked Afghanistan’s airports under the Taliban regime.
    • For the Gulf specifically, Qatar’s punching-above-its-weight approach in geopolitics was also making it more powerful and influential with Washington D.C.
    • To mitigate this, the Saudis played a central role during the recent OIC special session.
    •  They repaired their broken relationship with Pakistan.

    Way forward for India

    • Over the past decade, India has recognised the importance of middle powers in the Arab Gulf to a fast-evolving global order, from fighting against terrorism to newer diplomacy challenges such as Afghanistan.

    Conclusion

    The Arab Gulf is poised to become an important player once again in Afghanistan under the shadow of the Taliban.

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  • Health Sector – UHC, National Health Policy, Family Planning, Health Insurance, etc.

    Put out the data, boost the dose of transparency

    op-ed snap | Governance | Mains Paper 2: Governance, Transparency & Accountability, Citizens Charters

    Context

    The Government must make COVID-19 data including that for vaccine regulatory approvals and policy available.

    Kay decisions

    • On December 25, the Prime Minister of India announced two key decisions.
    • Vaccination of children: All children in the 15-17 age bracket will be eligible to receive COVID-19 vaccines from January 3, 2022.
    • Third shot: All health-care workers, frontline workers and the people aged 60 years and above (with co-morbidities and on the advice of a medical doctor) can get a third shot, or ‘precaution dose’.
    •  The eligibility for the precaution dose will be on the completion of nine months or 39 weeks after the second dose.
    • Teenage children whose birth year is 2007 or before will be eligible for COVID-19 vaccines.
    • Children will receive Covaxin, the reason being (according to the note) it is the only emergency use listed (EUL) World Health Organization vaccine available for use in this age group in India.

    Issues with the decision

    • Lack of scientific evidence: The decision is said to be based on ‘advice of the scientific community’.
    • A few members of the National Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (NTAGI) in India,  have written or spoken publicly about not having enough scientific evidence to administer booster doses and vaccinate children in India.
    • Successive national and State-level sero-surveys have reported that a majority of children in India had got natural infection, while staying at home and thus developed antibodies.
    • The studies have shown that children rarely develop moderate to severe COVID-19 disease.
    • Targeted vaccination approach not adopted: Most public health and vaccine experts favour a ‘targeted vaccination approach’ by prioritising high-risk children for COVID-19 vaccination.
    • However, such an approach is likely to face an operational challenge in the identification of the eligible children.
    • Consultation cost:  A majority of the elderly have one or other comorbidities. Of the 14 crore elderly population in India, an estimated 7 to 10 crore people could have co-morbidities.
    •  If they have to seek advice from a physician, in order to get vaccinated, this essentially means that there would be up to 10 crore of medical consultations, which would come at a cost —  all of which is avoidable.

    Suggestions

    • Do away with prescription: The conditionality of comorbidities and the need for advice/prescription by a doctor for ‘the precaution shot’ in the elderly should be done away with.
    • Third dose to all immunocompromised adults: There is scientific evidence and consensus on administering the third dose for immunocompromised adults.
    • The Indian government should urgently consider administering a third dose for all immunocompromised adults, irrespective of age.
    • Third dose on a different vaccine platform: Studies have found that a heterologous prime-boost approach — third shot on a different vaccine platform — is a better approach.
    • Identify policy questions: Various pending policy questions on COVID-19 vaccine need to be identified urgently.
    • The technical expert should be given complete access to COVID-19 data for analysis and to find answers to those scientific and policy questions.
    • Vaccine supply and stock management: Vaccination for teenage children, exclusively with Covaxin (which means 15 crore doses for this sub-group) has other implications.
    • Covaxin will also be needed for people coming for their first shot, returning for their second shot, and then for their ‘precaution dose’ if a third shot of the same vaccine is allowed.
    • Focus on primary vaccination: The precaution dose and vaccination for children should not divert attention from the task of primary vaccination, which continues to be an unfinished task in India; 46 crore doses are still needed for the first and second shots.
    • Make data public: It is time the Union and State governments in India make COVID-19 data — this includes clinical outcomes, testing, genomic sequencing as well as vaccination — available in the public domain.
    • This would help in formulating and updating COVID-19 policy and strategies and also assess the impact of ‘precaution dose’ as well as vaccination of children.

    Conclusion

    The Indian government urgently needs to make COVID-19 data available, including the one used for regulatory approvals of vaccines and for vaccine policy decisions. This will bring transparency in decision making and increase the trust of the citizen in the process.

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  • Judicial Reforms

    ‘Indianizing’ the Legal System and SC’s Views

    | Polity | Mains Paper 2: Executive & Judiciary

    At least two Supreme Court judges have in the past few months openly expressed the need to “Indianize” the legal system.

    What is the news?

    • This week, Justice S. Abdul Nazeer underscored the need to embrace the great legal traditions as per Manu, Kautilya, Katyayana, Brihaspati, Narada, Parashara, Yajnavalkya and other legal giants of ancient India.
    • Continued neglect of their great knowledge and adherence to alien colonial legal system is detrimental to the goals of our Constitution and against our national interests, he said.
    • He emphasized the need for Indianization of the legal system to decolonize the Indian legal system.
    • He concluded that this colonial legal system is not suitable for the Indian population.

    Background of the case

    Then CJI P.N. Bhagwati in the M.C. Mehta Case way back in 1986 has said that-

    • We cannot allow our judicial thinking to be constricted by reference to the law as it prevails in England or for the matter of that in any other foreign country.
    • We no longer need the crutches of a foreign legal order.
    • We are certainly prepared to receive light from whatever source it comes from, but we have to build up our own jurisprudence.

    Indianization of Judiciary

    • Last month, CJI N.V. Ramana called for the “Indianization” of the legal system to provide greater access to justice to the poor as the “need of the hour”.
    • CJI emphasized this as an adaptation to the practical realities of our society and localize our justice delivery systems.
    • For example, parties from a rural place fighting a family dispute are usually made to feel out of place in the court, the CJI clarified.

    Major suggestions by CJI:

    (A) Simplification

    • The simplification of justice delivery should be our pressing concern.
    • It is crucial to make justice delivery more transparent, accessible and effective.
    • Procedural barriers often undermine access to justice.
    • The Chief Justice said both judges and lawyers have to create an environment which is comforting for the litigants and other stakeholders.

    (B) Alternate dispute mechanisms

    • The CJI said alternate dispute mechanisms like mediation and conciliation would go a long way in reducing pendency, unnecessary litigation and save resources.

    Major suggestions by CJI:

    (A) Simplification

    • The simplification of justice delivery should be our pressing concern.
    • It is crucial to make justice delivery more transparent, accessible and effective.
    • Procedural barriers often undermine access to justice.
    • The Chief Justice said both judges and lawyers have to create an environment that is comforting for the litigants and other stakeholders.

    (B) Alternate dispute mechanisms

    • The CJI said alternate dispute mechanisms like mediation and conciliation would go a long way in reducing pendency, unnecessary litigation and save resources.

    Recent moves of Indianization

    • Supreme Court judgments show that the Indian legal system had made an early start at consciously getting rid of the “crutches” of colonial influence.

    (1) General principles laid by the SC

    • The evolution of laws in India has been through legislation and the binding precedents of the Supreme Court under Article 141 of the Constitution.
    • Article 142 of the Constitution of India deals with the Enforcement of decrees and orders of the Supreme Court.

    (2) Public Interest Litigation

    • The public interest litigation mechanism is truly Indian.

    (3) Reference to Indian texts

    • Several judgments since the 1980s refer to the works of Manu and Kautilya.
    • In the privacy judgment, Justice S.A. Bobde (retired), referred to how “even in the ancient and religious texts of India, a well-developed sense of privacy is evident”.
    • He mentions that Kautilya’s “Arthashastra prohibits entry into another’s house, without the owner’s consent”.

    Issues with Ancient Texts

    • In the Sabarimala Case, the court pointed to the Manusmriti to observe that in these “ancient religious texts and customs, menstruating women have been considered as polluting the surroundings”.
    • It went on to hold that practices that legitimize menstrual taboos, due to notions of purity and pollution, limit the ability of menstruating women to attain the freedom of movement and the right of entry to places of worship.

    Way forward

    • It is time for courts to wake up from their colonial stupor and face the practical realities of Indian society.
    • Rules and procedures of justice delivery should be made simple.
    • The ordinary, poor, and rural Indian should not be scared of judges or the courts.

     

     

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  • Capital Markets: Challenges and Developments

    SEBI tweaks share sale norms for IPOs

    Prelims Only | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Indian Economy

    The Securities & Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has approved amendments to a slew of regulations to tighten the Initial Public Offering (IPO) process and norms governing the utilization of IPO proceeds by promoters.

    What is an IPO?

    • Every company needs money to grow and expand.
    • They do this by borrowing or by issuing shares.
    • If the company decides to opt for the second route of issuing shares, it must invite public investors to buy its shares.
    • This is its first public invitation in the stock market and is called the Initial Public Offering (IPO).

    What does it mean for investors to buy shares?

    • When one buys such shares, he/she makes an IPO investment.
    • He/she gets ownership in the company, proportionate to the value of your shares.
    • These shares then get listed on the stock exchange.
    • The stock exchange is where you can sell your existing shares in the company or buy more.

    How does an IPO work?

    • The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) regulates the entire process of investment via an IPO in India.
    • A company intending to issue shares through IPOs first registers with SEBI.
    • SEBI scrutinizes the documents submitted, and only then approves them.

    Who can hold IPOs?

    • It could be a new, young company or an old company that decides to be listed on an exchange and hence goes public.

    What are the recent regulations?

    • In its board meeting, SEBI approved conditions for sale of shares by significant shareholders in the Offer-For-Sale (OFS) process via an IPO and has extended the lock-in period for anchor investors to 90 days.
    • Shares offered for sale by shareholders with more than 20% of pre-issue shareholding of the issuer, should not exceed 50% of their holding.
    • If they hold less than 20%, then the offer for sale should not exceed 10% of their holding of the issue.
    • These changes are as per proposals recommended by SEBI’s Primary Market Advisory Committee.

    Also read:

    [Sansad TV] The IPO Boom

     

    Try this question from CSP 2019:

    Q.In India, which of the following review the independent regulators in sectors like telecommunications, insurance, electricity, etc.?

    1. Ad Hoc Committees set up by the Parliament
    2. Parliamentary Department Related Standing Committees
    3. Finance Commission
    4. Financial Sector Legislative Reforms Commission
    5. NITI Aayog

    Select the correct answer using the code given below:

    (a) 1 and 2

    (b) 1, 3 and 4

    (c) 3, 4 and 5

    (d) 2 and 5

     

    Post your answers here.

     

     

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  • Parliament – Sessions, Procedures, Motions, Committees etc

    Tussle over the election of Maharashtra Assembly Speaker

    | Polity | Mains Paper 2: Federalism

    Maharashtra Governor and the incumbent government are locked in a tussle over the election of the Speaker of the Assembly. The Governor has not given his consent to the election program decided by the Cabinet.

    Election of Speakers to the Assembly

    • Article 178 of the Constitution provides for every Legislative Assembly to choose two members of the Assembly to be respectively Speaker and Deputy Speaker.
    • The Constitution does not specify the process of holding these elections; that is left to the state legislatures.
    • It also does not set a timeframe other than to say the elections should be held “as soon as maybe”.

    Some states lay down timeframes

    • In Haryana, the election of the Speaker must be held as soon as possible after the Assembly election, and the Deputy Speaker must be elected within another seven days.
    • In UP, the Speaker’s election is required to be held within 15 days if the post falls vacant during the term of the Assembly.
    • The date for the Speaker’s election is notified by the Governor.

    A crucial case in Maharashtra

    • As per Rule 6 of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly Rules, “The Governor shall fix a date for the holding of the election and the Secretary shall send to every member notice of the date so fixed.”
    • A former Secretary of the state Assembly said the election of the Speaker can take place only after the Governor fixes the date for it.

    What are the recent amendments?

    • The govt has moved a motion in the Assembly seeking amendments to Rules 6 (election of Assembly Speaker) and 7 (election of Deputy Assembly Speaker) by voice vote instead of a secret ballot.
    • The amendments excluded the words “holding of the election” and included the words “to elect the Speaker on the recommendation of the Chief Minister” in Rule 6 of Maharashtra Assembly Rules.

    What are the objections to these amendments?

    • The Opposition accused the govt of running the “most insecure government” that does not trust its MLAs and fears there would be cross-voting in the election of the Speaker.
    • It argued that the Rules cannot be amended in the absence of the Speaker.

    What is the government’s position?

    • The government has argued that the amendments are in line with the Rules that are in practice in Lok Sabha, the Upper House of the state legislature, and in the Assemblies of several others states.
    • It has also been said that the amendments would put an end to horse trading.

    What is the way ahead?

    • The govt can explore legal options to see whether the election of the Speaker could be held without the consent of the Governor.
    • However, the situation is very odd.
    • While Rule 6 mandates that the Governor should fix the date for the election, the amendment says that the Governor should fix the date on the advice on the CM.

     

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