Researched by: Rachel John, Aarthi Ramnath & Anannya Parekh
Hemant Soren is in jail
The Jharkhand Chief Minister was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on charges of money laundering—in a land scam case. The ruling alliance of Jharkhand Mukti Morcha and Congress has a replacement ready—JMM leader Champai Soren. But the governor is yet to approve his appointment—even though the alliance has a comfortable majority of 47 seats. Hemant was arrested right before Rahul Gandhi’s yatra is slated to enter the state. Indian Express has more on what this latest blow means for the INDIA alliance. (The Telegraph)
Elon Musk’s big fat pay cut
The context: In 2018, Tesla gave its CEO Elon Musk a 10-year compensation package worth $55 billion. It was the biggest-ever pay deal in US history—and was key to making Musk one of the richest men in the world. In 2018, Tesla shareholders filed a lawsuit claiming he was grossly overpaid—and said investors had not received sufficient information before approving the deal.
What happened now: A Delaware court has cancelled the deal—calling it “unfathomable”. In her 201-page judgement, Judge Kathaleen McCormick wrote:
Swept up by the rhetoric of ‘all upside,’ or perhaps starry eyed by Musk’s superstar appeal, the board never asked the $55.8 billion question: Was the plan even necessary for Tesla to retain Musk and achieve its goals?
She said the pay package was not necessary to nor motivate him either because he already owned Tesla shares worth tens of billions of dollars. The judge also pointed to his personal ties to members of the compensation committee.
The fallout: for Musk will be ‘significant’. His fortune is expected to drop to $154.3 billion, which will make him the third-richest person in the world. Oh the horror! FYI: He can and likely will appeal the verdict. Fallout for Tesla:
The decision also raises questions about how Tesla’s board will deal with a demand by Mr. Musk this month for an even greater stake in the company. Mr. Musk said he needed to own 25 percent of Tesla to avoid takeovers and have enough control of the company as it develops robots and other artificial intelligence technology. If his demands are not met, Mr. Musk said, he will pursue unspecified ventures outside Tesla.
Expect full-blown drama ahead. (BBC News)
Universal Music declares war on TikTok
The world’s biggest music company announced that it will be pulling its songs off the platform—after its current deal expired. Universal Music accused TikTok of negotiating in bad faith—proposing “a rate that is a fraction of the rate that similarly situated major social platforms pay.” This is a huge blow to TikTok as UMG controls a third of all music in the world—and is home to some of the biggest artists in the world including Taylor Swift, Harry Styles, Ariana Grande and many more.
Data point to note: “Although TikTok… has more than one billion users, it accounts for just 1% of Universal's total revenue”—underscoring how little it compensates artists on its platform. TikTok, meanwhile, dismissed the allegations as “false narrative and rhetoric”. Why this matters more to indie artists:
TikTok does have clear promotional value, and for years it has been a powerful engine for turning songs, sometimes obscure ones — like Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” — into hits, which then sometimes make more money for artists on other platforms than they do on TikTok.
NPR has lots more analysis.
Also notable about TikTok: The platform may be playing hardball with the music industry because it has turned its focus to e-commerce. The company is testing a feature that identifies products in a video—and links to similar products on its shop. The social media platform aims to grow its e-commerce play to as much as $17.5 billion this year. (TechCrunch)
A big RBI blow to Paytm
The Reserve Bank of India ordered Paytm Payments Bank to stop accepting fresh deposits in its accounts and popular wallets after February 29. The reason: Unspecified “persistent non-compliances.” Specifically:
The RBI had, on March 11, 2022, directed PPBL to stop onboarding new customers with immediate effect. However, it was found that the bank was continuing to onboard customers through an offline mode in violation of the RBI directive, necessitating further action.
Paytm said it expects to lose Rs 5 billion (500 crore) due to the order. The Hindu has lots more on the RBI order. India Today explains what it means for you.
Blowback from US assassination plot case
The context: In November last year, an explosive indictment filed by the Justice Department accused an unnamed Indian official of orchestrating a plot to kill a prominent Khalistani supporter—Gurpatwant Singh Pannun. This official allegedly recruited Nikhil Gupta—facing charges of drugs and weapons trafficking. He in turn hired a hitman to do the job. Sadly for Gupta, the hitman turned out to be an undercover agent. What was truly damning: It came on the heels of Canadian PM Justin Trudeau’s allegation that New Delhi had orchestrated the assassination of a Canadian Sikh—Hardeep Singh Nijjar. Our Big Story has all the details.
What happened now: New Delhi continues to deal with fallout of the allegations. A deal to buy 31 high-altitude drones appears to be stuck in Congress—due to concerns expressed by lawmakers:
Today, “the purchase is stuck in the US Congress because of anger over the brazen attempt to assassinate Pannun. US representatives have frozen the legislative movement needed for proceeding with the sale,” a highly-placed source in Washington told this reporter. The source, who operates at the top layer of US policymaking, cannot be identified as he is not authorised to speak to the media.
The Hindu’s attempts to get a response from the US Embassy appeared to confirm The Wire’s reporting:
We continue to discuss with U.S. Congress the potential sale consistent with standard processes and policies guiding such arm sales decisions,” a U.S. Embassy spokesperson said on Wednesday, when asked to comment. The response indicates that the Congressional clearance is still a work-in-progress and could come through, but significantly, it didn’t contain a denial of the report that one or more U.S. lawmakers had placed a hold on the sale.
The Hindu has more on exactly why and how this deal went south. The Wire offers the original report.
Coming soon: Puja at Gyanvapi mosque
The context: The Gyanvapi mosque—located inside the Kashi Vishwanath temple complex—has been a legal lightning rod. Last year, Hindu petitioners claim that a ‘shivling’ has been uncovered on its premises—thanks to a lower court-ordered survey. The masjid committee tried to block the survey—by moving the Supreme Court—but to no avail. Last week, a report by the Archaeological Survey of India claimed to have uncovered 55 sculptures of Hindu deities inside the mosque complex.
What happened now: Within days of the ASI report, the Varanasi District Court greenlit Hindu prayers to be offered inside a sealed basement area of the mosque. The court directed the local administration to make arrangements to start the puja within seven days. This is different from the case where five women sued for the right to perform puja on the premises. This one is a dispute over ownership:
The basement was in the possession of the Vyas family till 1993 and they used to keep puja materials there. The family used to live in an old building near the mosque but it was declared unsafe and they were shifted to a nearby house.
Pathak, who belongs to the Vyas family, had filed the petition in the district court on September 25 last year claiming that “a portion of the basement of Gyanvapi was our property and my ancestors were traditionally the priest of Gyanvapi, a holy pond where the Hindus used to worship”.
The masjid committee will challenge the ruling in the Allahabad High Court. The Hindu has lots more on what’s next.
Imran Khan can’t catch a break
A day after being sentenced to 10 years in prison for allegedly compromising state secrets, the former Pakistan Prime Minister and his wife were convicted for the illegal sale of state gifts. The sentence: 14 years in jail plus a fine of $5.3 million. More significantly, Khan has been barred from contesting elections for the next 10 years. A reminder: The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief is already serving a three-year sentence on another corruption charge.
A bleak future for Khan: Pakistan is set to go to polls on February 8—so these sentences are all about timing. As Reuters notes, most of his party’s leaders are in jail or in hiding.
There are a number of candidates backed by Khan and his party that are contesting next week's election, but there are no big political names to carry his party in his absence. PTI is temporarily being led by a little known lawyer, Gohar Ali Khan, who is also Khan's legal counsel. Even if PTI-backed candidates win, as independents they are not bound to stay with the party and are open to joining other parties—and Khan remaining in jail for the foreseeable future increases the chances of this.
Our Big Story lays out the laundry list of charges against Khan. Al Jazeera has more on the latest case.
Coming soon: Theme park in central Mumbai
The context: The 211-acre Mahalaxmi Race Course is the biggest open green space in Mumbai. It is jointly owned by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and the state government—but has been on lease to the Royal Western India Turf Club (RWITC) since 1914. This lease expired in 2013 and has not been renewed due to a power struggle between the BMC and RWITC over the land. BMC wants to kick out the racecourse entirely.
What happened now: Early in January, the BMC announced that it will renew the lease with RWITC only if it hands over nearly 120 acres—keeping 91 acres for the racetracks, stables etc. The proposal has now been approved by the club. While club members insist the municipal commissioner has promised that no construction will be carried out “even on the single inch” of the 120 acres, the plan is to build a “theme park.” BMC's civic chief and administrator Iqbal Singh Chahal says:
When an artificial lake is created in a park birds visit, which changes its ambience. London’s Hyde Park has an artificial lake — it’s a theme park and not an amusement park. A theme park typically has thick bushes in one or two acres in one corner, with a slight contouring of the land on the other side. Chandigarh’s Rose Park or Rose Garden is one such. Some places in Mahalaxmi Racecourse will have thick plantation like an urban forest while some areas will be reserved for a garden for children.
What’s next: A significant section of the RWITC, environmental activists and opposition parties are staunchly against the move. There are several petitions filed in the Bombay High Court to block it. India Today has lots more on the significance of the Mahalaxmi Racecourse. Hindustan Times interviewed BMC civic chief Iqbal Singh Chahal—who shared the vision for the theme park. (Indian Express)
Two things to see
One: On January 2, cattle-herders were stopped by Chinese soldiers in the Kakjung area of Ladakh along the Line of Actual Control. The soldiers stopped them from grazing their sheep—and herders retaliated by throwing rocks. Why this matters: There were no Indian soldiers in sight in an area that is supposedly controlled by India. See the vid of the confrontation below. (The Hindu)
Two: Universal Orlando Resort unveiled the first official look at one of five new lands slated to be part of its Universal Epic Universe. The Celestial Park is “a land that embodies the literal ‘park’ experience with lush, living gardens, shimmering waterways and stroll-worthy paths alongside astronomical and mythological-inspired architecture.” It will serve as a gateway to the other themed parks that include Super Nintendo World, Ministry of Magic (Harry Potter) and Isle of Berk (How to Train Your Dragon). You can see the concept vid below. (The Hollywood Reporter)
