Current Affairs 28 November 2025
NJAC Act, 2014
- Constitutional Amendment: Established by the 99th Constitutional Amendment to replace the Collegium system for higher Judiciary appointments.
- Composition: Appointments to be recommended by a six-member commission: the CJI, two senior Supreme Court judges, the Union Law Minister, and two eminent persons.
- Judicial Verdict: Struck down in the Fourth Judges Case (2015), for violating ‘Basic Structure’ (Judicial Independence).
- Concerns with the Collegium
- Opaqueness and Accountability Deficit: Collegium decisions are not answerable to any external authority—neither Parliament nor the executive.
- Exclusionary Nature: Collegium has been criticised for under-representation of women judges, inadequate presence from marginalized communities, etc.
- Constitutional ambiguity: Collegium system emerged from judicial interpretation (Three Judges Cases) undermining the principle that Parliament should determine institutional design.
- Vacancy: Persistent standoffs between the Collegium and Executive delay appointments.
Commonwealth Games
- A quadrennial multi-sport event among Commonwealth nations, inaugurated in 1930.
- India hosted the XIX Games in 2010.
- Ahmedabad has been formally declared as the host city for the Centenary Commonwealth Games 2030.
- About Commonwealth
- Originated in the 1926 Imperial Conference where Britain and the Dominions agreed that they were all equal members of a community within the British Empire.
- London Declaration (1949) laid the foundation of modern Commonwealth stated that republics and other countries could be part of the Commonwealth.
- Membership: 56 countries.
Article 141
- It states that the law declared by the Supreme Court is binding on all courts in India.
- Uniformity: It ensures consistent interpretation of law across states and lower courts.
- Authority: Supreme Court rulings on statutory and constitutional matters carry final legal weight.
- Scope: Only the core reasoning, or ratio decidendi, is binding while obiter dicta (comments or observations made “by the way”) are not mandatory.
What Rules Govern Political Donations in India?
- Representation of People Act (RPA), 1951: Section 29B of the RPA, 1951 permits political parties to receive voluntary contributions from individuals and companies (excluding government companies and foreign sources).
- Companies Act, 2013: Any company—except a government company or one that is less than three years old—can donate any amount, directly or indirectly, to a political party. However, it is capped at a maximum of 7.5% of their average annual net profit over 3 years.
- Income Tax Act, 1961: Indian companies and individuals can claim tax deductions on donations made to political parties or electoral trusts under Sections 80GGB and 80GGC.
- Foreign Contributions (Regulations) Act, 2010 (FCRA): Generally, foreign donations are prohibited. However, the definition of a foreign source was amended to exclude Indian companies with foreign investment (an Indian company with foreign shareholding beyond 50% is not treated as a foreign source). This allows companies (including foreign subsidiaries) to donate, provided they comply with FEMA sectoral caps.
- Electoral Trusts Scheme, 2013: An Electoral Trust is set up by companies to collect donations from individuals and firms and distribute them to political parties.
- It can retain up to 5% of its funds (for administrative expenses), must distribute 95% to eligible parties (registered under section 29A of the RPA, 1951), and cannot accept cash donations.
How is Custodial Violence Regulated in India?
- Constitutional Provisions
- Article 21: Guarantees the right to life and personal liberty, which includes the freedom from torture and other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment.
- Article 20(1): It states that no person can be convicted for an act that was not an offence under the law at the time it was committed, thereby prohibiting excessive or retrospective punishment.
- Article 20(3): Protects an individual from being compelled to self-incriminate, safeguarding the accused from coerced or forced confessions through torture or pressure.
- Legal Provisions
- Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (2023): It penalizes those who intentionally cause hurt or grievous hurt to extract confessions, information, through violence or coercion.
- Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS, 2023): It mandates that arrests and detentions follow valid reasons, documented procedures.
- Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (2023): It invalidates confessions made under inducement, threat, coercion, or promise.
- International Safeguards
United Nation Charter, 1945: It mandates that prisoners be treated with dignity, affirming that their fundamental rights and freedoms remain protected under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (India ratified the ICCPR in 1979).
- Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948): It protects individuals from torture, cruel treatment, and enforced disappearances, ensuring the right to dignity and security.
HAMMER
- About: It is a precision-guided air-to-ground weapon developed by French Safran Electronics & Defence.
- It converts unguided bombs into precision-strike weapons using a modular guidance + propulsion kit.
- Key Features: Has a stand-off range of up to 70 km, enabling attacks from outside hostile air defence zones.
- Maintains high accuracy even in GPS-denied or electronic warfare conditions.
- Effective against stationary and moving targets.
- Operational Use: It was effectively used by India during Operation Sindoor and compatible with the French Rafale and India’s Tejas light combat aircraft.
- Importance for India: Enhances India’s precision strike capability and deep offensive potential.
- Enables stand-off strikes without exposing aircraft to enemy air defence.
- Indigenisation is expected to rise to 60%, covering electronics and mechanical components, and it strengthens India–France defence ties, including fighter jet engine development and Rafale Marine procurement.
