Interviews Financial News

Narendra Modi has accused the opposition parties of «spreading lies» over the electoral bonds scheme, which has been struck down by the Supreme Court, and said «everyone will regret it when there is an honest reflection». In an interview with ANI, PM Modi said the electoral bonds scheme was aimed at curbing black money in elections and said the opposition wants to run away after making allegations. He said of the 16 companies who gave donations after action by probe agencies, only 37 per cent of the amount went to the BJP and 63 per cent to opposition parties opposed to the BJP.

Modi said that the maximum number of cases registered by the Enforcement Directorate are against those persons and entities who have no connection with politics. In an interview with ANI, Prime Minister Modi said that honest person has nothing to fear about but those involved in corruption has «Paap ka dar» (fear of sin). «How many opposition leaders are in jail? No one tells me. And is this the same opposition leader… who used to run their government? There is fear of sin (paap ka dar hai). What fear does an honest person have? They had put my Home Minister in Jail when I was Chief Minister. The country should understand that political leaders are involved in only 3 per cent of the ED cases and 97 per cent of cases are registered against the ones who do not belong to the politics,» Prime Minister said.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman says: “Whether it is aimed at employment or not, it is certainly aimed at helping the MSMEs and the small ticket loan seekers. The small ticket loan seekers are the people who cannot give collaterals at all. We had extended a lot of help for them.” Excerpts from the interview

Ranveer Singh and Kriti Sanon and fashion designer Manish Malhotra were recently spotted in the holy city of Varanasi. They visited the Kashi Vishwanath temple to offer prayers, before walking the ramp for Malhotra on the banks of Varanasi. Both the stars were seen flaunting traditional wear at the Dashashwamedh Ghat. The ‘Crew’ actress looked glorious in a golden-coloured kurta and pajama, while the ‘Bajirao Mastani’ star looked like a million bucks in a pristine white khadi kurta. In an interview with ANI, Singh revealed that he was a devotee of Lord Shiva and had always wanted to visit the temple. “I cannot express in words the experience I have had today. Lifelong I have been a devotee of lord Shiva and I have come here for the first time. Next time I want to come here along with my mother.”

Dr Ravi Singh, SVP - Retail Research, Religare Broking, sees Sensex breaching the 1 lakh mark in the next 5 years. In an interview, the expert believes that now is the time to book some profits considering the volatility we will be seeing in the coming time due to corporate results and Lok Sabha elections. He advised investors to allocate 40 percent of their portfolio to large-cap stocks for stability and 30 percent each to small and midcaps for alpha generation over a longer time horizon.

Revanth Reddy has made predictions regarding the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, suggesting that Prime Minister Modi's party may not achieve the landslide victory it seeks. Despite the bold slogan «Ab Ki Baar, 400 Paar,» Reddy anticipates a more modest outcome for the ruling party. In an interview on Rajat Sharma's show «Aap Ki Adalat,» Reddy said, «There are 129 LS seats in the South. In Karnataka, they can win at most 10 to 12 seats and in Telangana they can win only two seats this time, compared to four in 2019.» Reddy further elaborated, «Even if they score 100 per cent, they can win only up to 300. ...The remaining 100 seats they can win only in Pakistan, not in Hindustan.»

Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Bishnu Pada Ray, a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader from Andaman and Nicobar Islands has claimed that India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, "gifted" the Coco Islands, a part of northern Andaman Islands to Myanmar. Ray, who is the BJP's Lok Sabha candidate from the region also criticised the Congress for its allegedly "historical anti-India stance", in an interview with ANI on April 14. Ray claimed that Nehru had reportedly given the Coco Islands to Myanmar as a gift, the publication reported.

Between mid-December and the end of March, police inspected about 400 shipping containers at the Port of Montreal and found nearly 600 stolen vehicles, most of them from the Toronto area.The operation showed how Canada’s second-largest port has become a key transport hub for stolen vehicle exports. Police say that’s because of the port’s strategic location and large container volume.

Indian firms are likely to step up mergers and acquisitions (M&As) this year, with deals worth $75 billion estimated in 2024 against about $60 billion last year, said Ganeshan Murugaiyan, head, corporate coverage and advisory, BNP Paribas, India. In an interview to ET, the veteran investment banker pointed out acquisition opportunities in areas where geopolitical volatility had rendered some industries uncompetitive. Edited excerpts: The previous year was a lean one for M&A activity everywhere. What are clients saying about 2024? Last year, volumes were down almost 30-35% from what we saw in prior years. There were many factors, but if you look at 2024, the momentum is building up quite a bit. One is that clearly you have a lot of M&As within India. When I say domestic, a big component which has got added now is private equity. In a lot of assets, controlling stake by private equity may change hands this year. In India, my guess is that M&As should be somewhere around $75 billion versus around $60 billion last year.

Bridgerton approaches, Claudia Jessie, known for her portrayal of Eloise Bridgerton, reveals a surprising insecurity she harbored about her role. Despite her success on the Regency-era Netflix series, Jessie confessed to feeling certain that she would be let go from her role as Eloise. In an interview with The Guardian, Jessie candidly shared her apprehensions, stating, «Even going back for season three, I thought I was going to be s**t, that they were going to fire me. It's something that never goes away.» Despite her stellar performance, Jessie's persistent nervousness reflects the vulnerability of even seasoned actors in the competitive world of television.

Rebecca Ferguson, the leading star and executive producer of Apple TV+'s hit series Silo, recently shared significant insights into the show's future trajectory. Based on Hugh Howey's Silo trilogy, which includes the novels Wool, Shift, and Dust, Silo delves into the complexities of life within an underground silo amid a miserable outside world. Ferguson portrays Juliette, an engineer determined to uncover the dark truths lurking within the silo's depths.

WASHINGTON—Sen. Maria Cantwell said she wants to end China’s control of TikTok. She also wants such legislation to hold up in court.

Nazara Technologies for an investment. He’s had a range of guests, from comedian Tanmay Bhatt to Oyo founder Ritesh Agarwal and venture capitalists such as Karthik Reddy of Blume Ventures.

India has lost much of its power due to disunity, Nobel laureate Amartya Sen said the Congress has many organisational problems that need remedying. In an interview with PTI, Sen said that a caste census might be an exercise to consider, but India needs greater empowerment for the underprivileged through better education, healthcare, and gender equity. The noted economist said he is «enormously proud» to be a citizen of a democratic country like India, but there is a need to «work harder to enhance the nation's democratic nature». Sen said the opposition bloc INDIA failed to gain much traction, with its important allies such as JD(U) and RLD walking out.

India has added a record renewable energy capacity of 18.48 GW in 2023-24, which is over 21 per cent higher than 15.27 GW a year ago, according to the latest data of the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy. However, industry experts said there is a need to add at least 50 GW of renewable energy capacity annually for the next six years to meet the ambitious target of 500 GW of renewables by 2030. According to the data, India's installed renewable energy capacity is 143.64 GW as of March 31, 2024, excluding 47 GW of large hydropower capacity (each plant is more than 25 GW or above). They pointed out that renewable energy capacity stood at around 190 GW, including large hydro projects, and therefore, India needs to add 310 GW in the next six years or at an average of 50 GW per annum.

National Conference leader Omar Abdullah on Saturday said both India and Pakistan should create conditions conducive to the resumption of dialogue. Abdullah, the former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir, slammed those saying India should use force to take back Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and asserted that when push comes to shove, the final mile is always crossed through dialogue. «Let me put it this way, you will not get a solution to any problem through just the use of force. Ultimately, when push comes to shove, the final mile is always crossed through dialogue,» Abdullah told PTI in an interview. «That said, creating conditions for dialogue is the responsibility of both sides, not India alone,» he added.

Congress on Saturday hit out at the Narendra Modi government on the issue of Chinese transgressions and said External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar's reported remark that «China has not occupied any of our land» is akin to giving another free pass to the neighbouring country. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said the EAM's statement is a «copy-paste» of Modi's clean chit to China after the Galwan skirmish in 2020, when 20 Indian soldiers were killed. Kharge responded to the remark in a post on X, «Wearing '56-inch' long Chinese Blinkers, on the 'Laal Aankh,' Modi Government has given a free pass to the Chinese, twice in a week's time.» He added, «First, @narendramodi ji's interview in foreign press where he failed to put forth India's case strongly at the global stage. Now, his Foreign Minister, handing over another Clean Chit to expansionist China.»

Omar Abdullah on Saturday said Manmohan Sigh was a true statesman and that Narendra Modi, at some stage, will have to start thinking about the kind of legacy he leaves behind. In an interview with PTI Videos, Abdullah, who is contesting the Lok Sabha polls from north Kashmir Baramulla constituency, said it was obvious that the Centre was using the probe agencies under it against the leaders of the opposition parties. «It is not apparent, it is obvious. When 95 per cent of the cases that are being investigated or charged by the Enforcement Directorate are against (opposition ) political leaders and political parties, that tells you. »At some point, the PM will start looking at his legacy. Right now, I think his aim is to be a PM for longer than Jawahar Lal Nehru. Once that aim is met, then, none of us get younger, we all get older. There comes a time when we have to leave the stage. I have no doubt that somewhere in the back of his mind, the PM will start thinking about what sort of a legacy he wants to leave," Abdullah said.

Congress leader P Chidambaram on Saturday asserted that his party would get more seats in the ensuing elections than in 2019 and predicted that the INDIA bloc would secure a resounding victory in Tamil Nadu and Kerala. In an interview with PTI, Chidambaram also said that neither Hinduism nor the Hindus were under any threat and it was the BJP's «calculated strategy» to paint the entire Opposition as «anti-Hindu» to project Modi as the «saviour of Hindus». He also described West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee as a «key player» in this election and said that her ability to hold the fort in the state will strengthen the INDIA bloc. «I cannot speak for all the states. I can confidently predict that the INDIA bloc will record a resounding victory in Tamil Nadu. In Kerala, the two fronts (UDF and LDF) will share the 20 seats, leaving nothing to the BJP. In Karnataka and Telangana, the Congress governments are popular and Congress will get many more seats than in 2019,» Chidambaram told PTI.

Purnea Lok Sabha seat, former MP Rajesh Ranjan alias Pappu Yadav asserted that he still considers himself «a soldier of the Congress» and will remain with the party till his last breath. According to a seat-sharing arrangement agreed upon by the opposition INDIA bloc constituents in the state, the RJD nominated JD(U) turncoat Bima Bharti from Purnea, denying the seat to the Congress. Yadav, who recently joined the grand old party, blamed RJD president Lalu Prasad for the apparent cracks in the opposition bloc in Purnea. «I am a soldier of the Congress and its leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi. I will remain (ideologically) with the party till my last breath. The ideology of the Congress is in my blood. I had never wanted a situation to emerge in Purnea where the INDIA bloc's constituents could be seen fighting each other, like in West Bengal and Kerala,» Yadav said in an interview with PTI.

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh claimed that Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma «would have been nowhere» without the grand old party which had given him «identity and position» during its rule in the state. The Congress general secretary, in an interview with PTI here, claimed that Sarma was among the first to quit the grand old party when it lost power and join the «washing machine of BJP». «The Congress gave him identity and position, along with authority and responsibility, during the tenure of former chief minister Tarun Gogoi but he chose to betray the party when it was not in power. It is a matter of great sorrow that those given a responsible position turn out to be opportunists. But that has not shattered our self-confidence,» he said. «Opportunists» leaving the Congress actually work in the party's favour, making way for ideologically committed youngsters, the Rajya Sabha MP said.