FRIDAY 02 2.09 MAY, 2025 LAKH CRORE IS THE NET GST COLLECTION AFTER REFUNDS epaper.morningstandard.in facebook.com/TheMorningStandard ‘OVERALL OUTLOOK REMAINS OPTIMISTIC’ X.com/TheMornStandard While a moderation in absolute GST collections is anticipated next month due to the global economic climate, the overall outlook for Indian economy is optimistic, said EY Tax Partner Saurabh Agarwalclear if Russia is on board TRUMP MIKE WALTZ ON WAY OUT IN 1ST SHAKEUP Marking the first major staff shakeup of President Donald Trump’s second term, White House NSA Mike Waltz is set to depart the administration. PAGE 9 A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS Hegseth backs India’s right to defend itself  NEW DELHI  J8.00 PAGES 12  GROSS GST COLLECTIONS CLOCK ALL-TIME HIGH OF `2.36 LAKH CRORE Goods and Services Tax collections rose 12.6% year-on-year to an all-time high of `2.37 L cr in April, with a net mop-up of `1.92 L cr DOMESTIC REVENUE RISES TO `1.9 LAKH CR GST revenue from domestic transactions rose 10.7% to about `1.9 lakh crore, while revenue from imported goods was up 20.8% to `46,913 crore. “The figures showcase the resilience of the Indian economy and the effectiveness of cooperative federalism,” Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said, while expressing her gratitude to the taxpayers | P10 WAVES will serve as a major platform where creativity meets coding, software blends with storytelling, and art merges with augmented reality Pahalgam attack was barbaric and merciless... PM Narendra Modi is a fighter. He will meet any challenge... He will bring peace in J&K and glory to our country Veteran stars Mohanlal, Rajinikanth, Hema Malini, Chiranjeevi, Akshay Kumar and Mithun Chakraborty at the WAVES summit on Thursday | X Global community needs to call out Pak’s heinous terror acts: Rajnath to US def secy M AYA N K S I N G H @ New Delhi AMID rising tensions between India and Pakistan in the aftermath of the April 22 Pahalgam ter ror attack, the US on Thursday assured India that Washington supports New Delhi’s right to defend itself. The US stands in solidarity with India, US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth told Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday during a telephonic conversation. During the call, the two leaders discussed the Pahalgam terror attack, in which terrorists shot dead 26 people. “The US Secretary of Defense Pete He gseth called Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to express his sympathies and condolences for the tragic loss of innocent civilian lives in the recent dastardly attack by terrorists in Pahalgam, Jammu & Kashmir,” the Ministry of Defence said. “During the conversation, the Defence Minister told Hegseth that Pakistan has a history of supporting, training and funding terrorist organisations,” it added. Singh told Hegseth that Pakistan has been exposed as a rogue state, fuelling global terrorism, and destabilising the Allu Arjun @ New Delhi THE Supreme Cour t on Thursday refused to examine a PIL seeking a judicial probe into the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, saying such petitions could demoralise the defence forces fighting terrorism. A bench of justices Surya Kant and Justice N Kotiswar Singh also castigated the petitioners for seeking a commission headed by a retired SC judge saying judges are not experts in investigation. The plea was filed by Mohammad Junaid, a resident of Kashmir, along with Fatesh Kumar Sahu and Vicky Kumar. “Be responsible before filing such PILs. You have some duty towards the country also. This is the way you are trying to demoralize the forces in this hour of crisis and KS Chithra Shreya Ghoshal MM Keeravani Shah Rukh Khan Deepika Padukone Alia Bhatt Aamir Khan Rajinikanth, Veteran star Shantanu Narayen, Adobe ORANGE ECONOMY TO MAKE WAVES: PM Rajnath Singh and Pete Hegseth Shah vows to hunt down all terrorists Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday vowed to hunt down each and every terrorist involved in the Pahalgam attack and said all of them will be made answerable for the heinous act. Shah assured the government will not spare any terrorist region. “The world can no longer turn a blind eye to terrorism,” the defence minister told his American counterpart, while urging the global community to “explicitly and unequivocally condemn and call out” such heinous acts of terrorism. Hegseth’s call to Rajnath comes after US Secretary of State Mark Rubio spoke to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar urging India to de-escalate tensions in the South Asian region. P8 SC: DON’T DEMORALISE FORCES DURING CRISIS S U C H I T R A K A LYA N M O H A N T Y Naga Chaitanya Given the size and breadth of the creative opportunity that AI unlocks, it’s fair to say that India’s next growth will not be in software code but in creativity juncture?” the bench said. Refusing to pass any orders on the PIL, the bench said: “Tell us, since when have retired High Court and Supreme Court judges become experts in investigation? We only decide disputes… Don’t ask us to pass orders on such kinds of petitions. Don’t ask to pass orders for the Supreme Court judge to investigate.” The SC asked the petitioners to realise the sensitivity of the issue and not make any prayer in the court that may demoralise the forces. “This is a crucial hour when every Indian has joined hands to fight terrorism,” it said. The counsel for the petitioner, then, pleaded for directions to protect Kashmiri stud e n t s s t u dy i n g o u t s i d e Jammu and Kashmir. The bench was unmoved and declined to entertain the plea, but allowed the petitioner to withdraw the plea. DOPING SHAME As many as 186 adverse analytical findings were recorded between April 2023-Jan 2024; Gujarat, UP top Khelo India funding list: Ministry’s annual report | P11 S U D H I R S U R YA W A N S H I A N D PA R V E Z S U LTA N @ Mumbai/ New Delhi PRIME Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday exuded optimism about the growth of India’s creative economy, saying it will in future hold a significant share in the country’s GDP or Gross Domestic Product. He was addressing the crème de la crème among artists and creators, policymakers and world leaders from the media and entertainment industry at , the inaugural of the first edition of the World Audio Visual and Entertainment Summit (WAVES) in Mumbai. “Today, in Mumbai, artists, innovators, investors, and policymakers from over 100 countries have gathered under one roof. Together, they are laying the foundation for a global ecosystem that celebrates talent, creativity, and innovation on an international scale... India is emerging as a global hub for film production, digital content, gaming, fashion, music and live concerts... This is the dawn of the Orange Economy in India,” said Modi. Orange economy is a global phrase that encapsulates the creative sector. Modi said India’s Orange Economy stands on three strong pillars — content, creativity and culture. In , Crème de la crème of creative sector in attendance Veteran actor Anupam Kher outlined the vision behind the WAVES initiative. Singers M M Keeravani, Shreya Ghoshal and Mangli performed the welcome song. WAVES advisory board members, including Mohanlal, Hema Malini, Kartik Aaryan, S S Rajamouli, Rajinikanth, Anil Kapoor, Bhumi Pednekar, Ranbir Kapoor, Aamir Khan, Reliance chairman Mukesh Ambani and Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen their shared their thoughts during the event the coming years, the country’s creative economy will hold a significant share in the GDP . This newspaper was the first to report in July last year that the government planned to host WAVES on the lines of the annual World Economic Forum held in Davos to establish India as a global content hub. The global animation market is currently worth over $430 billion and is expected to double in the next 10 years. The WAVES summit will open new doors of success for India’s animation and graphics industry, he said, adding this was the right time for “create in India, create for world”. Modi underscored India’s deep-rooted artistic and spirit- ual heritage. Indian mythology has always expressed divinity through music and dance, he said, citing Lord Shiva’s damru (drum) as the first cosmic sound, Goddess Saraswati’s veena as the rhythm of wisdom, Lord Krishna’s flute as an eternal message of love, and Lord Vishnu’s shankha (conch) as a call for positive energy . “In India, growth has been witnessed in the OTT platform. The screen size may be getting smaller but the scope is infinite. The screen is getting micro, but the message is mega so youth can play a major role,” the prime minister said, adding there are no boundaries or baggage in the youth’s spirit and working style. P8 Amid water war with Haryana, ‘... functioning in own Punjab steps up dam security bubble’: HC rebukes H A R P R E E T B A J W A @ Chandigarh PUNJAB and Haryana are again at odds over their longstanding water dispute after the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) ordered the release of 8,500 cusecs to Haryana from the Bhakra dam on “humanitarian grounds.” Punjab has stepped up security at the regulator end of Nangal dam in anticipation of a law-and-order problem. The Punjab government also called an all-party meeting on Friday and convened a special Assembly session on Monday on the BBMB giving Haryana additional water. The BBMB made the decision on Wednesday which Pun, jab officials strongly objected to, claiming that the neighbouring state had already utilised its share and that there was no surplus to spare. Punjab reportedly found itself cornered as three BJPruled partner states in BBMB (Haryana, Rajasthan and Delhi) allegedly joined hands to press for the demand. The other partner state, Himachal Pradesh, ruled by Congress, remained neutral. Punjab’s ruling AAP has announced state-wide protests against BBMB’s decision. Earlier in the day, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann reached the Nangal Dam accompanied by local MLA and Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains and said they would not tolerate the “robbery” of Punjab’s rights. He asked Punjab BJP president Suni Jakhar and Union Minister Ravneet Bittu to support Punjab. He claimed that the Centre and the Haryana government hatched a conspiracy through the BBMB to deprive Punjab of water. Haryana CM Nayab Singh Saini accused Mann of politicising the issue, saying AAP was resorting to “dirty politics”. Delhi Minister Parvesh Sahib Singh Verma also flayed AAP for playing politics. Adding to the controversy di, rector of water regulation at Nangal Akashdeep Singh, from Punjab, has been transferred out of BBMB. He has been replaced by Haryana-cadre officer Sanjeev Kumar. BBMB has given a Rajasthan engineer the additional charge of security . Ramdev for fresh video bubble,” the judge said. In light of the HC’s strong obTHE Delhi High Court on servations, Ramdev’s lawyer Thursday strongly criticised agreed to delete the offensive Baba Ramdev for releasing yet parts of the latest video from all another video aimed at the food social media platforms within company Hamdard, despite 24 hours. The court also directearlier warnings. Last week, ed that a formal affidavit conHamdard filed a lawsuit against firming compliance be submitthe Patanjali co-founder for a ted within a week. The matter series of videos that alwill return to court on legedly singled out its Friday to confirm that popular drink, Rooh Ramdev has followed Afza, and included com- Not interested in the earlier directive. The controversy bemunal undertones. In his (Ramdev) response, Ramdev had political beliefs. gan on April 3 when Ramdev, while promotpromised to remove the This is about ensuring he ing Patanjali’s Gulab content, particularly a f t e r t h e H C s a i d doesn’t target Sharbat, launched an his comments were this company or attack on Rooh Afza. He its products accused the company deeply troubling. again. How can However, the HC was we make sure he of using its profits to informed on Thursday actually sticks fund religious institutions like mosques and that Ramdev had shared to the rules? madrasas, and used the a new video containing HC judge term “sharbat jihad” in more objectionable rethe video. Hamdard marks about Hamdard. Justice Amit Bansal expressed then moved court over what it disapproval of Ramdev’s con- viewed as defamatory and comduct and said that the court munal remarks. Following the assurance that was pre pared to issue a contempt notice and call him the latest video would be taken in for questioning. “He seems down, the HC held off on issuing to be functioning in his own a contempt notice, for now. S H E K H A R S I N G H @ New Delhi EXPRESS READ Minor raped, communal tension rocks Nainital ROYALS OUT OF RACE Mumbai Indians extended their winning streak to six matches with a 100-run rout of Rajasthan Royals in the IPL in Jaipur on Thursday, pushing the home team out of the race for playoffs. It was Royals’ eighth defeat in 11 games | PTI | P11 Notice to cops, govt on bomb threats in schools Communal tension broke out in Nainital after a 12-year-old girl was allegedly raped by a 60-yearold man, triggering protests and vandalism. The accused has been arrested, Uttarakhand police said. The Delhi High Court on Thursday issued notices to the Delhi chief secretary and police, after a plea accused them of failing to put in place a mechanism for handling bomb threats in schools. | P4 Top court stays relocation of deer from Hauz Khas park, calls for their proper upkeep S U C H I T R A K A LYA N M O H A N T Y @ New Delhi THE Supreme Court has restrained the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) and other authorities from shifting the deer in the Deer Park in Hauz Khas to forests in different states. In its interim direction on April 30, a two-judge bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan issued notice to the DDA’s horticulture director and other respondents seeking their response after hearing a plea opposing the relocation. “The issue involved in these Special Leave Petitions (filed by petitioner, NGO New Delhi Nature Society (NDNS)), as regards shifting of deer in Park at Hauz Khas, New Delhi. Issue notice, returnsable on May 16, 2025,” the top court said. The plea by NDNS claimed that around 600 deer in Hauz Khas were likely to be relocated without proper habitat assessments, vet checks, or safeguards for vulnerable groups like pregnant deer and fawns. The petitioner contended that three batches of deer had already been relo- cated hastily from Deer Park to sanctuaries in Rajasthan in contravention of wildlife protection laws. Invoking the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, NDNS claimed that using captive deer as prey amounts to cruelty , especially since Section 11 prohibits confining any animal in a manner that makes it an object of prey . “For now, we restrain the respondents from shifting the existing deer out of Deer Park... We also make it clear that the deer shall be properly looked after by the respondents,” the bench said in its order. The petition alleged that DDA has treated CZA’s withdrawal of recognition as a green signal to dismantle the park altogether without fulfilling legal requirements under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.