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Wednesday, August 7, 2024

Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh: How US Diplomat Donald Lu, whom Rahul Gandhi met during ‘secret visit’ to White House, has mastered regime change operations The global reactions over the sudden and chaotic developments have again underscored the fact that there are multiple things at play, behind the scenes, and there is more than what meets the eye. Amidst all the preliminary observations, the role of one man, Donald Lu, is emerging as a critical factor in sealing the outcome of events in Bangladesh.

 

Read how US Diplomat Donald Lu, whom Rahul Gandhi met during ‘secret visit’ to White House, has earned mastery in regime change operations (Image Source - OpIndia Hindi)

In Bangladesh, thousands of rioters succeeded in their ‘regime change’ plans as they created unrest throughout the country demanding the resignation of the democratically elected Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. As thousands of rioters marched towards her official residence in Dhaka, Gana Bhawan, she was forced to flee the country for her safety and take temporary refuge in India. In the meantime, the celebrating protesters stormed her house, ransacked and looted everything they could lay their hands on. While some of the rioters waved looted animals, others displayed her sarees and undergarments as spoils of war. 

However, in India, the Islamists, left-leaning journalists and other usual suspects have been peddling this as some sort of a ‘victory of democracy and youth’, despite numerous reports of targeted attacks against Hindus, their houses and their temples coming out from Bangladesh. Additionally, several Hindu leaders and journalists have been killed in the so-called protest for upholding democracy. 

Nonetheless, the protest which initially began with the demand to end the reservation for the families of freedom fighters ‘liberation warriors’ of Bangladesh, finally culminated in ‘regime change’ in India’s eastern neighbour. As more pictures and videos have been emerging out of Bangladesh, the apprehensions of persecution of minority communities, particularly, the Hindus are increasing alarmingly. 

However, the global reactions over the sudden and chaotic developments have again underscored the fact that there are multiple things at play, behind the scenes, and there is more than what meets the eye. Amidst all the preliminary observations, the role of one man, Donald Lu, is emerging as a critical factor in sealing the outcome of events in Bangladesh.

Who is US Diplomat Donald Lu who made a sudden visit to India during the Lok Sabha elections; Rahul Gandhi reportedly also met him during a secret visit to the White House

Donald Lu is an American diplomat who currently serves as the Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs since September 2021. Earlier, he was the US Ambassador to Albania and Kyrgyzstan. He has a controversial track record and is notorious for interfering in the political processes of other countries.

The self-anointed Human Rights, democracy and virtue-signalling Police of the World, the United States of America has earned infamy for meddling in the internal affairs of other countries, their election process and their key policy measures in the garb of Human Rights reports and sermons thereof. Donald Lu is the American equivalent of a ‘Chinese wolf warrior’. He had often expressed concerns about Human Rights issues (read warnings to countries that do not toe US dictation) in India under the tenure of the Modi government as well as several other countries around the world.  

Taking a step further, he made a sudden visit to India when the Lok Sabha elections in 2024 were in full swing. Interestingly, he didn’t land in the National Capital, New Delhi but he visited Chennai, the capital of Tamil Nadu, so far which is said to be a stronghold for Dravidian politics and a bastion where BJP is considered weak. The leaders of the DMK party had often raised the secessionist demand for a separate nation, ‘Dravida Nadu’. Regarding his visit, the US had released a controversial press release claiming that Donald Lu embarked on a visit to Chennai to ‘strengthen bilateral relations with South India’.

Back then, a Geopolitical expert Dr. Anant Bhagwat had said that the Biden administration did not want a stable government in India, because during the ten years of the stable Modi government, India followed a strong and independent foreign policy and it was undeterred by external pressures. 

Strikingly, last year, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi reportedly had a secret meeting at the US White House where he met Donald Lu as well as other officials of the Biden administration. Incidentally, during his US trip, the Congress leader made several contentious remarks including seeking ‘foreign intervention’ to restore ‘democracy in India’ as it was a global public good. 

Regarding Donald Lu, the founder of Pune-based ‘Global Strategy Foundation’, Bhagwat said, “Donald Lu is a hated figure in India due to his interference attempts in Indian democracy. Last year, he entertained Indian opposition leader Rahul Gandhi at the White House.” However, the Ministry of External Affairs of India did not have any information related to this.

Donald Lu and his observations about India, ‘concerned’ about Jammu and Kashmir, Human Rights and more

When Donald Lu appeared before the US ‘Senate Foreign Affairs Committee’ in March 2023, he expressed concern about human rights issues in India. He had expressed concern over the absence of assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir and ‘ongoing human rights violations’.

After the abrogation of Article 370 and 35 A, Ladakh was carved out of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir and the remaining part was given the status of a Union territory. Post the abrogation, there has been a marked reduction in stone pelting, on average over 2 crore tourists have visited the UT in a year. While elections were held in the valley for the first time for third-tier governance, the USA expressed concerns that India was not holding elections for the J&K assembly. 

Regarding Jammu and Kashmir, Donald Lu told the US Senate, “We are closely monitoring reports of discrimination against Muslim communities and other religious minority groups as well as limits on free speech and NGOs.” 

He added that it is critical that India’s partners speak up when they “witness troubling events”, however, stating that they also support India’s democratic institutions which are the country’s key defence against the erosion of human rights. 

He added, “We have not seen the holding of Legislative Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir.” He had also expressed concerns about the arrests of ‘prominent journalists’ in the Kashmir valley. 

It is pertinent to note here that so far, over 70 government employees have been dismissed in Kashmir for helping terrorists or for involvement in anti-India activities. For example, the editor of a media organisation named ‘Kashmir Wala’ was jailed because Fahad Shah had glorified terrorism. Despite these grave concerns for India’s national security and territorial sovereignty, the US ‘expressed concerns’ on these arrests of ‘prominent journalists’ despite it being the internal matter of its “ally” country.

During the Senate hearing, he also gave his observations about India-Taiwan relations.  

“We have seen the Indian Navy sail into the Taiwan Straits. I think that’s symbolically very important at the time when we all are looking to provide reassurance to Taiwan about their security,” he said.

While India has maintained that the USA is an important partner, the USA which is driven by a hegemonistic worldview, has been co-opting its partners/allies to play its junior partner or even a second fiddle and act as its weapon against China. 

During the same trip, he also visited Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. 

By the time of his visit to Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina came back to power for the fourth time. US Ambassador to Bangladesh Peter Haas has been accused of supporting the opposition party Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), which had boycotted the last elections.

People close to Sheikh Hasina then believed that America was mounting pressure on Dhaka to follow the anti-China line. In the Indo-Pacific frontier, the USA was continuously trying to court Bangladesh on its side. For this, it had also expressed ‘concerns’ (read warnings for Independent foreign policy) about human rights issues in Bangladesh, before the elections. 

Donald Lu’s involvement in other countries

Additionally, in Pakistan, the elected Prime Minister Imran Khan was ousted in April 2022 and a temporary government was established after he was publicly seen at odds with the US administration. He was ousted by the Pakistani military and replaced by a coalition of several parties. 

The ousted Pakistan PM Imran Khan had alleged that he was removed because of ‘foreign interference’ and had mentioned the name of Donald Lu as the facilitator. However, Lu had termed all these allegations as false and rubbished it as a ‘conspiracy theory’. 

It is said that even though the US imposed sanctions on Russia in the wake of its war against Ukraine, Imran Khan was improving diplomatic ties with Russia, which angered the USA. 

All this indicates that the deep state of the United States of America has increased its meddling and intervention efforts in South Asia. 

Furthermore, Donald Lu had also mentioned ‘political reforms’ in Bangladesh. Sheikh Hasina’s party ‘Awami League’ had raised the issue of US support to their rival party, BNP and its leader Khaleda Zia. In the current unrest in Bangladesh, the mobs of violent protesters have been targeting ‘Awami League’ leaders and have killed several of them. 

Incidentally, similar unfortunate scenes had emerged from Sri Lanka in July 2022 as it got trapped in the US-China rivalry. Back then, violent protesters had stormed the Rashtrapati Bhavan of Sri Lanka and indulged in vandalism and loot. It is said that as Sri Lanka was getting deeper in the Chinese debt trap, America desperately wanted to stop Chinese influence in the island nation.  

The Sri Lankan protests yielded the same outcome as it did in Bangladesh, President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa had to resign from his post and leave the country. Likewise, his brother Mahinda Rajapaksa had to leave the post of Prime Minister. 

Meanwhile, this year, Donald Lu has claimed that Sri Lanka is now making a comeback. Now, America is funding the Colombo West Terminal Port. Financial assistance was given to Sri Lanka through USAID. USAID is an ‘International Development’ organisation, however, it has also been accused of funding regime change. 

Incidentally, while praising the ‘new’ Sri Lanka, Donald Lu had warned India-Bangladesh regarding Rohingya. Notably, illegal Rohingya immigrants have become a major problem for law and order and national security in India as they have been found committing crimes and many of them have been living in India on forged documents. 

Now the question arises whether Donald Lu wants to carry out similar ‘regime change’ operations or colour revolutions in India that he is accused of orchestrating in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka? However, such an operation is very difficult in India as it involves more complexities with every state and UTs having their own unique issues and strengths. In India, the sources of income and priorities of people keep changing in every region, with agriculture being the only profession that unites the entire country.

US deep states and why it is irked that the Modi government is in power in India

It is an open secret that majorly all global powers follow a containment strategy and want to ‘check’ the progress of other countries including their allies and the US has a similar stance towards India, especially led by a stable and progressive government which has a Nationalistic worldview. Having said that, the US deep state would obviously prefer a weak coalition anti-BJP government in India rather than a strong Modi government. For this, propaganda and global smear campaigns against India are in full swing.  

On the internal front, all efforts have been made to spread confusion and chaos by provoking sentimental issues be it Agniveer, regarding which false claims were openly made even inside the Parliament. A concerted campaign is going on to divide the Hindu community on caste lines with Rahul Gandhi promising inside Parliament that the opposition would carry out a nationwide caste census. 

During the ‘Farmers Movement’, the country witnessed how ‘protesters’ rampaged Delhi on Independence day and Khalistani flags were seen on the Red fort. Additionally, the protesters gheraoed the national capital for over 1 year. Even today many farmers are sitting on the Shambhu border of Punjab-Haryana.

These are all such issues which can be used to instigate a large section of the people of the country. Incidentally, journalists, particularly Pakistani journalists expressing concerns about Indian democracy, pose questions to the ‘prepared’ spokesperson of the Biden administration on every trivial matter or protest which is and should have been left to India to tackle as it is the country’s internal matter.   

As an ambassador in Albania-Kyrgyzstan, Donald Lu instigated people to overthrow the government

Apprehensions take flight especially when a notorious US diplomat like Donald Lu is in charge of such things who has a tainted tenure in Albania. During his tenure in Albania, he publicly provoked people to overthrow the country’s government. He had asked the public to pose questions to the leaders and change the government.

Provoking the public in the garb of genuine issues like parliamentary and judicial reforms, he asked the Albanian youth to put pressure on their government to lead a better life than their parents, adding that otherwise, they should overthrow the government.  

Additionally, the American Ambassador then toured several cities of the small country and held ‘discussions’ with the youth. 

Similarly, when Donald Lu was the US Ambassador to Kyrgyzstan, political tensions prevailed in that country. He stayed there from 2018 to 2021, and in between his tenure, Kyrgyzstan witnessed a major protest. In June 2019, lawmakers voted to open a criminal case against then-President Sooronbay Shiripovich Jeenbekov.

He finally had to resign in 2020, as there were many protests against him. Something similar happened there too as there were allegations of rigging in the elections held in October 2020. It is said that America also had a hand in pressuring President Sooronbay Shiripovich Jeenbekov to resign. Protests are still going on in Albania to remove Prime Minister Edi Rama. Force had to be used to stop the demonstrations in many cities. Because of these developments, Donald Lu is also credited for the unrest in Kyrgyzstan and Albania.




Compute tax either at 12.5% without indexation or 20% with indexation on realty transactions: Govt proposes amendment :-ET

 

In a big relief to real estate industry, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will move an amendment in the Finance Bill to let taxpayers select either 12.5 per cent LTCG rate without indexation or 20 per cent rate with indexation for property acquired before July 23, 2024.

As per the amendments to Finance Bill, 2024, circulated to the Lok Sabha members on Tuesday, individuals or HuF who bought houses before July 23, 2024, can compute his/her taxes under the new scheme [@12.5 per cent without indexation] and old scheme [@20 per cent with indexation] and pay such tax which is lower of the two.

The development of Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government comes after facing backlash from the real estate sector. The stakeholders cautioned the Centre on indexation proposal introduced in Budget 2024 will hurt the growth of the sector.

In Budget 2024 presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, the government proposed eliminating indexation benefits for homeowners.

Indexation rule in Budget 2024:

In the recently Union Budget by Sitharaman, it was proposed to slash LTCG tax on property to 12.5 per cent from 20 per cent, while removing the benefit of indexation for properties purchased on or after April 1, 2001. Indexation allow taxpayers to adjust the acquisition cost for inflation before computing capital gains, thereby bringing down the overall tax outgo. A Cost Inflation Index (CII) is notified by the Central Board of Direct Taxes for its computation. There were worries about the retroactive impact for taxpayers

Previously, indexation benefits allowed homeowners to increase the property's cost basis to account for inflation, thereby reducing the net profit and the associated tax liability.

Earlier, ET had reported that higher tax rate with indexation or a lower rate of 12.5% without indexation, as well as some form of grandfathering for ancestral properties are proposed. The suggestions are being examined at the finance ministry and will be discussed with the Prime Minister’s Office, people familiar with the matter told ET.

The finance ministry held one round of discussions on the concerns raised in several quarters over the move, including a possible rise in black money transactions.

The Lok Sabha has begun discussion on the Finance Bill after the Appropriation Bill for the central government's expenditure for 2024-25 was passed by the House on Monday. The passage of the Finance Bill by Parliament will complete the budget process.


Friday, August 2, 2024

MAJOR COMLIANCE DUE DARES FOR AUGUST 2024

 

Sharing the major compliance due dates for August 2024. 
 
DateDayActParticulars
01.08.2024ThursdayGST
  • Opening of window for opt-in/opt-out of QRMP Scheme for 3rd Quarter (Oct-Dec 2024) (This option will remain open upto 31/10/2024)
05.08.2024MondayFEMA
  • AD Category – I Banks shall upload the data in respect of number of applications received and the total amount remitted under LRS on XBRL System.
07.08.2024WednesdayIncome Tax
  • Deposit tax deducted (TDS) / tax collected (TCS) for the month of July 2024.
  • Submission of Declaration in Form-27C for no TCS as obtained from manufacturer to the CIT/CCIT.
07.08.2024WednesdayFEMA
  • Report actual ECB transactions through Form ECB-2 return.
10.08.2024SaturdayGST
  • GSTR -7 by TDS Deductor for the period of July 2024
  • GSTR -8 by TCS Collector (E Commerce Operator) for the period of July 2024
11.08.2024SundayGST
  • GSTR -1 (Statement for furnishing details of outward supplies) for month of July 2024 by taxpayers whose aggregate turnover exceeds Rs. 5 crores in the previous FY or those who have not opted for QRMP
13.08.2024TuesdayGST
  • GSTR-5 by Non-Resident Taxpayers (13th of the next month or within 7 days after the expiry of the registration, whichever is earlier)
  • GSTR-6 by Input Service Distributor for month of July 2024.
  • GSTR-IFF: to furnish B2B Supplies (Optional) for the month of July 2024 by taxpayers who opted for QRMP Scheme.
14.08.2024WednesdayIncome Tax
  • Issue TDS Certificate for tax deducted u/s. 194-IA, 194-IB, 194S and 194M in the month of June 2024.
15.08.2024ThursdayIncome Tax
  • Furnish Form 24G by an office of the Government where TDS/TCS for the month of July, 2024 has been paid without the production of a challan.
  • Furnish statement in Form No. 3BB by a stock exchange in respect of transactions in which client codes been modified after registering in the system for the month of July 2024.
  • Furnish Quarterly TDS Certificate (Other than Salary) for tax deducted in quarter ending June 30, 2024.
15.08.2024ThursdayP.F/E.S.I.
  • Deposit of ESI & PF collected during the month of July 2024.
20.08.2024TuesdayGST
  • GSTR-3B for the month of July 2024 by taxpayers whose aggregate turnover exceeding 5 Crore in the previous FY or those who have not opted for QRMP.
  • GSTR-5A by OIDAR services provided for month of July 2024.
  • GSTR-1A: To add or amend particulars, other than GSTIN, furnished in GSTR-1 of the current tax period.
(Available after filing of GSTR-1 & upto due date/actual filing of GSTR-3B, whichever is earlier)
25.08.2024SundayGST
  • PMT-06: for Monthly Tax Payment for the month of July 2024 under QRMP Scheme.
25.08.2024SundayP.F.
  • Filing of Provident Fund Return for the month of July 2024.
30.08.2024FridayIncome Tax
  • ​​Furnish Challan cum statement for TDS u/ss 194-IA, 194-IB, 194 -S, 194-M in the month of July 2024.
31.08.2024SaturdayIncome Tax
  • If the assessee (broadly charitable trust) is required to submit return of income on October 31, 2024, furnish:
    • Form 9A: for exercising the option available under Explanation to section 11(1) to apply income of previous year in next year / future
    • Form 10: Statement to accumulate income for future application under section 10(21) or section 11(1).




CA. Pramod Jain
B. Com (H), FCA, FCS, FCMA, LL.B, DISA (ICAI), MIMA, Insolvency Professional


Monday, July 29, 2024

NICAI UPDATES


1. An amendment in the Black Money Act will give taxpayers relief from penalty in case they fail to disclose overseas assets worth Rs 20 lakh, however the obligation to report the transaction is not done away with. The Black Money Act amendments in Section 42 and 43 will be a part of the Finance Bill.

2. Black Money (Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets) and Imposition of Tax Act, 2015 aims to curb black money, or undisclosed foreign assets and income and imposes tax and penalty on such income. Currently under the Act, even if the taxpayers fail to disclose a foreign asset worth Rs 5 lakh, they have to pay a Rs 10 lakh penalty on it.

3. At present if the taxpayer is holding any asset abroad, which is not declared in the income tax return then there is a penalty of Rs 10 lakh. An amendment in the Black Money Act is proposed that If the value of the overseas asset is up to Rs 20 lakh, and is not disclosed, there will be no penalty if it's a bonafide mistake on the part of the taxpayer.

 4. Budget 2024 proposes an amendment to Section 206C of the Income-tax Act, addressing concerns from entities with tax-exempt income facing difficulties with tax collected at source (TCS) on their transactions.  

5. The new amendment, effective from October 1, 2024, will enable the Central Government to notify specific persons, institutions, or classes of entities for whom TCS may be either exempted or applied at a reduced rate. This provision aims to alleviate the tax burden on organizations that are not required to file income tax returns due to their exempt status, thereby simplifying compliance and reducing undue financial strain. 


Sunday, July 28, 2024

ITR filing 2024: Filing returns at the last minute? Know the list of crucial documents you would need :-money control news

 

Income tax: Why you must gather all your vital documents before filing returns at the last minute

The due date for filing income tax returns for the financial year 2023-24 – July 31 - is nearly here.

There is absolutely no time to lose. According to the income tax department, over 5 crore tax-payers have already filed their returns so far and you need to act right now to prevent last-minute glitches from derailing the exercise.

Even before you log on to the official e-filing portal - www.incometax.gov.in - you need to start with gathering all the documents critical to the process. This will help you complete the process faster when you are filing at the last minute.

Here’s a list of essential documents that you must start obtaining right away:

ITR filing 2023-24: Must-have documents

The relevant ITR form – ensure that you file returns using the right form, else your return will be considered defective.

  • Bank TDS certificates

  • Bank account statements

  • Aadhaar and PAN – ensure that these two are linked

  • Form-26AS

  • Annual Information Statement (AIS)

  • Tax return filing documents that salaried individuals need

  • Form-16 issued by employers – all the forms if you have switched jobs during the FY

  • Past tax returns filed

  • Salary slips, including income earned abroad, if any

  • Rent agreements and receipts to claim HRA

  • Foreign bank account statements if you were deputed abroad

  • Transaction statements of foreign investments made to make the relevant disclosures

  • Form 67 if you are claiming credit of taxes paid in a foreign country with which India has double taxation avoidance treaty

  • Details of your assets and liabilities if your income exceeds Rs 50 lakh and you have to file returns using ITR-1, which contains AL (asset-liability) schedule Tax deduction documents

Do note that you need not attach these documents with your ITR form when you submit returns. However, preserve these documents to address any queries that may arise due to any mismatch in Form-16 and Form-26AS or AIS. This is particularly the case if you have chosen the new regime in your proposed investment declarations submitted to the employer but wish to switch to the old regime while filing returns.

For Sections 80C and 80CCD(1B) deductions


For section 80D

  • Health insurance premium receipts

For Section 80E

  • Interest certificate from the bank that has extended the education loan

  • For Section 24B

  • Interest certificate from your bank to claim deduction of up to Rs 2 lakh under section 24(B)

For Section 80G


  • Receipts of donations to charitable institutions eligible for deductions under section 80G

  • Earn income from other sources? Keep these documents at hand

  • Capital gains/loss statements issued by mutual fund house or intermediaries, stock brokers etc

  • Bank account statements and TDS certificates

  • Virtual digital assets (VDA) transaction statements to make appropriate disclosures, particularly in the VDA schedule
MONEYCONTROL PF TEAM

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India considering Modi's visit to Ukraine in August :-The Economic Times

 

PM Narendra Modi is examining the possibility of a visit to Ukraine in August after his trip to Moscow early this month with a message on dialogue and diplomacy as the way forward to end the conflict.

No final decision has been taken on the trip and the two sides are examining the possibility of the visit in August, ET has learnt. While there are some suggestions to plan the visit on August 23, which is Ukraine's Independence Day, there has been no decision on this yet.

The visit is being explored in the backdrop of the Ukrainian Foreign Minister's recent China visit. During the visit the Ukrainian FM stated that Kyiv was prepared to negotiate with Russian representatives when Moscow is willing to hold talks "in good faith". Despite getting weapon systems from the West, Ukraine has not been able to make progress on the battlefield with Russia and a number of Western weapons have been jammed by the Russian military, military experts claimed.

Ukrainian officials have admitted that many American-made weapons relying on satellite guidance have been compromised by Russian jamming technology.

The PM held talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy last month on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Italy's Apulia. At that meeting, Modi conveyed to the Ukrainian president that India would continue to do everything within its means to support a peaceful solution to the Russia-Ukraine conflict and that the way to peace is through "dialogue and diplomacy".

Modi also told Zelenskyy that India believes in a "human-centric" approach to find a solution to the conflict in Ukraine. At the meeting, the Ukrainian president invited the PM to visit Kyiv.

The two NSAs and the two foreign ministers have been in touch this month.India on Thursday affirmed that it has a long-standing relationship with Russia that is based on mutuality of interests.



Friday, July 26, 2024

Budget 2024: New income tax regime vs old current old tax slab rates compared Income Tax Budget 2024: Mint

 

New income tax vs. old income tax slabs: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Narendra Modi 3.0 government's first budget on July 23. In sops for the middle class, FM hiked the standard deduction by 50 per cent to 75,000 and tweaked tax slabs under the new income tax regime to provide more money for the salaried class. The new tax slabs under the new income tax regime will be effective from April 1, 2024 (Assessment Year 2025-26).

Sitharaman said income of up to 3 lakh will continue to be exempted from income tax under the new regime.

As per the proposal, a 5 per cent tax will be levied on income between 3-7 lakh, 10 per cent between 7-10 lakh, 15 per cent for 10-12 lakh.

However, 20 per cent tax will continue to be levied on income between 12-15 lakh and 30 per cent for income above 15 lakh.

Under the existing new I-T regime, a 5 per cent tax is levied on income between 3-6 lakh, 10 per cent for income between 6-9 lakh.

Income between 9-12 lakh and 12-15 lakh is subject to 15 per cent and 20 per cent tax, respectively. A 30 per cent I-T would be applicable on income above 15 lakh.

However there were no changes announced for the old income tax regime

Budget 2024: New regime tax slabs

0- 3 lakh - Nil;

3-7 lakh - 5% ;

7-10 lakh - 10% ;

10-12 lakh - 15%;

12-15 lakh - 20%; and

Above 15 lakh - 30%

Budget 2024: Old regime tax slabs

1) Income up to 2.5 is exempt from taxation under the old tax regime.

2) Income between 2.5 to 5 lakh is taxed at 5 per cent under the old tax regime.

3) Personal income from 5 lakh to 10 lakh is taxed at a rate of 20 per cent in the old regime

4) Under the old regime, personal income above 10 lakh is taxed at a rate of 30 per cent.


Children of legal immigrants in the US at risk of deportation: What's next for Indian Americans? Read more at: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com

 

Washington: There does not seem to any light at the end of the tunnel for children of legal immigrants, a significantly large number of whom are Indian Americans who came to the US as a young kid with their parents and now risk being deported back to the country where they don't know anyone because of them being aging out when they turn 21. There are around 250,000 of such children of legal immigrants, a significantly large number of whom are Indians. The White House on Thursday blamed the Republicans for this legislative impasse.

"I talked about the bipartisan agreement that came together from the Senate where we negotiated a process to help the so-called documented Dreamers. And sadly, Republicans, and I've said this many times already at this podium today, which is that they voted it down twice. They voted it down twice,' White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters at her daily news conference.

Last month led by Senator Alex Padilla, Chair of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, and Border Safety, and Representative Deborah Ross, a bipartisan group of 43 lawmakers called on Biden Administration to take urgent action to protect the more than 250,000 Documented Dreamers - children of long-term visa holders - who are at risk of aging out of their dependent status and are forced to self-deport if they are ineligible for another status.

"These young people grow up in the United States, complete their education in the American school system, and graduate with degrees from American institutions," wrote the lawmakers. "However, due to the long green-card backlog, families with approved immigrant petitions are often stuck waiting decades for permanent resident status," they said in a letter to the Biden Administration on June 13.

Last month, Improve The Dream, an organization representing these children of legal immigrants, met with over 100 congressional offices and senior administration officials.

"It is disappointing to see the lack of action and associated proposed regulations deprioritized and delayed. It is time for action and I hope President Biden and the administration see the support from this bipartisan letter and show they care about one of the most bipartisan issues in Congress and rectify the mistakes of the past,' said Dip Patel, founder of Improve The Dream comments.

At the same time, he expressed gratitude for the bipartisan members of Congress leading in a letter asking for urgent administrative policy improvements and who continue to champion a permanent solution through Congress.

"I was forced to start visa-hopping to be able to stay in this country when I was 20 years old, right before I aged out, as a junior at the University of Minnesota - Duluth. I am about to turn 27 this August. Soon, if my time visa-hopping was personified, they would be older than I was when I first came to the United States," Jefrina, currently a graduate student pursuing my MBA at the Saint Mary's University of Minnesota told PTI.

She came to the US from India in 2005 at the age of 7. "I arrived under a dependent H-4 visa. My family applied for permanent residency in 2010 when I was 12 years old, and I unwittingly fell in love with this country. In the last 19 years, Minnesota has undoubtedly become my home," she said.

"My young adult life has been a series of temporary fixes to avoid self-deportation. I graduate from my Masters program in December, and I'm yet again at the crossroads of leaving my family, pets, friends, and a myriad of unquantifiable reasons I call Minnesota my home," Jefrina said.

Praneetha, a Cloud Engineer based in Texas, who came to the US with her family when she was 8 years old as a dependent on her parents' work visa, and after living in the US for more than 15 years, is left with no clear path toward permanent residency and has to hop from visa to visa in order to continue living and working in the country.

Roshan was forced to leave the US last month. He was working with- an American semiconductor manufacturing company. He came to the US with his Mom and brother at the age of 10 on an H4 visa- he grew up in Boston and graduated from Boston College in 2021 with a degree in Economics.

Roshan grew up in the US for almost 16 years but aged out in 2019. He had to leave the US in June without a clear path for returning, living, and working in the only country that he has truly called home.

Patel said every day without action results in young adults, who have been lawfully raised in the United States by skilled workers and small business owners, to be forced to leave the country, separating them from their families and stopping their ability to contribute to the country.

The administration has heard countless stories and examples of American-raised and educated STEM and health care talent (which comprises 87% of all impacted by aging-out, according to Improve The Dream's survey) contributing in other countries now due to barriers in our legal immigration system.

"Our country is not only losing young talent who were raised and educated here, but we're also losing many of their parents, who have years of practical experience as small business owners or fields like medicine, engineering, and artificial intelligence. The economic case is clear and the moral case is clear. It is common sense," he said in response to a question.

"All major administrative actions have excluded this population from receiving benefit, despite the tools for such relief being available and being used for others. Until Congress can pass the bipartisan America's Children Act, we need urgent action by the administration to prioritize this issue, which has bipartisan support from Congress and the general public, and clear economic benefit," Patel told PTI.