Air India passenger claiming to be 'international criminal lawyer' verbally attacks crew after being denied wine

The woman was taken into custody once the plane landed. (iStock)

An irate business-class passenger who identified herself as an "international criminal lawyer" was filmed yelling at and threatening – allegedly while intoxicated – an Air India crew on a Saturday flight from Mumbai to London after they refused to serve her more wine.

FLIGHT ATTENDANT DRAWS WINDOW FOR PASSENGER STUCK IN WINDOWLESS SEAT

WARNING: Clip contains extremely graphic language.

The passenger, a 50-year-old woman from Ireland, according to The Sun, is seen in the video yelling at cabin crew and demanding to speak to the pilot because flight attendants won't serve her.

In the video, the unidentified passenger screams in a flight attendant's face, telling him she is a lawyer for "the Palestinian people" and then goes on to say "I am working for all of your people." It is unknown what nationality the flight attendant is, though the flight reportedly originated in Mumbai, India, and not in the Middle East. The woman went on to say she works for the "Rohingya" and "all nations" before stating she "do[esn't] get any money for it" and demanding another glass of wine.

She goes on to threaten to "boycott" the airline for not serving her "a wee bottle of wine."

WARNING: Clip contains extremely graphic language.

FLYBE PILOT WHO DEVELOPED FEAR OF FLYING WAS UNFAIRLY DISMISSED BY AIRLINE

The flight attendant remains calm as the woman turns to other crew members, who are allegedly writing a report about her, and starts screaming "f--- off" before eventually jumping up and down and appearing to flip them off with her middle fingers.

The woman eventually makes her way back into the cabin, where she appears not to remember which airport the plane is flying into.

In another video, the woman continues her rant, this time berating other passengers in business class. At one point she turns to the camera and threatens the person recording, saying she has ties to the "Irish Republican Army. You'll be f---ing shot."

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London Metropolitan Police confirmed to The Daily Mail that the woman was taken into custody once the plane landed at Heathrow Airport.

"At approximately 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, 10 November, a 50-year-old woman was arrested after an Air India flight had landed at Heathrow Airport," a police spokesperson told MailOnline. "She was arrested on suspicion of racially aggravated public order, common assault and drunk and disorderly and taken to a west London police station. She was subsequently released under investigation."

Alexandra Deabler is a Lifestyle writer and editor for Fox News.

Chance for India to seal semifinal spot

Coming to the back end of the group stages, Group B could possibly see India joining Australia as the two to advance to the semifinal of the women's T20 World Cup when they play Ireland at Providence today.

History will be made as it is the first time these two sides will face each other in the format and so far, India has had a good showing in the Women's World T20 tournament, sealing two wins in as many matches, compared to their opposition who remain winless in the same amount of matches.

The vastly different results for the two sides in the International Cricket Council tournament can be readily underlined by their team choices, the Asian side has been fixed and settled while the Irish team has chopped and changed their XI…..

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Judge rules some absentee ballots must be counted in Georgia gubernatorial election

A federal judge ruled Wednesday that the results of Georgia's gubernatorial race cannot be certified until certain absentee ballots have been counted.

The ruling by U.S. District Judge Steve Jones came hours after Republican Brian Kemp claimed to have an "insurmountable lead" over Democrat Stacey Abrams, who is seeking to become the first black woman elected governor in the U.S.

Jones ruled that each county's certified vote tally must include absentee ballots on which the voter's date of birth is missing or incorrect, an order that stems from a request in a lawsuit filed by the Abrams campaign over the weekend. However, Jones declined Democratic requests to extend the period during which evidence could be submitted to prove the eligibility of voters who cast provisional ballots. He also declined to order that provisional ballots cast by voters who went to a precinct in the wrong county be counted.

Kemp currently has 50.27 percent of the vote, compared to 48.79 percent for Abrams. Abrams' campaign believes she needs a net gain of 17,759 votes to pull Kemp below the 50 percent threshold and force a Dec. 4 runoff. Kemp's campaign said even if every vote that Abrams campaign is arguing for is granted by the courts and counted for her, she cannot overcome his lead or force a runoff.

Both sides have accused the other of wrongdoing, with Democrats casting doubt on any vote count that ends with Kemp -- Georgia's former secretary of state -- being certified as the winner.

"We believe that Brian Kemp mismanaged this election to sway it in his favor," Abrams' campaign manager Lauren Groh-Wargo said earlier Wednesday, surrounded by Democratic lawmakers at the Georgia Capitol.

For their part, Kemp's campaign repeated calls for Abrams to concede, accusing her and her supporters of using "fake vote totals," "desperate press conferences" and "dangerous lawsuits" to try to steal the election.

"After all of the theatrics, the math remains the same," Kemp campaign spokesman Cody Hall said in an email. "Abrams lost and Brian Kemp won. This election is over."

The lawsuit Jones ruled on Wednesday was one of several election-related complaints filed before multiple federal judges.

U.S. District Judge Leigh May ordered Gwinnett County election officials Tuesday not to reject absentee ballots just because the voter's birth year is missing or wrong. She also ordered the county to delay certification of its election results until those ballots have been counted.

Jones' ruling effectively extended May's order to the other 158 counties in Georgia.

U.S. District Judge Amy Totenberg late Monday ordered state officials not to do their final certification of election results before 5 p.m. Friday.

State law sets a Nov. 20 deadline, but secretary of state's office elections director Chris Harvey testified last week that the state had planned to certify the election results Wednesday, a day after the deadline for counties to certify their results. He said that would allow preparations to begin for any runoff contests, including those already projected in the races for secretary of state and a Public Service Commission seat.

Totenberg's order left untouched the county certification deadline. Candice Broce, a spokeswoman for the secretary of state's office, said Wednesday that all counties but Gwinnett have certified their totals.

Totenberg also ordered the secretary of state's office to establish and publicize a hotline or website enabling voters to check whether their provisional ballots were counted and, if not, why not. And she ordered the secretary of state's office to review or have county election authorities review the eligibility of voters who had to cast provisional ballots because of registration issues.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

'Not a Good Face for Dems in 2020': 'Special Report' Panel Reacts to Reported Avenatti Arrest

Los Angeles attorney Michael Avenatti, who is suing President Donald Trump on behalf of pornographic actress Stormy Daniels, was reportedly arrested Wednesday on a felony charge of domestic assault.

As Fox News reported:

The charges arose from an alleged Tuesday incident, prompting authorities to respond and take a report, an unidentified law enforcement official told The Associated Press. However, Avenatti was reportedly taken into custody on Wednesday.

When asked to confirm information on Avenatti's reported arrest, an LAPD public information officer would only confirm to Fox News that an individual had been taken into custody on domestic violence charges. The officer did not confirm that the individual was Avenatti, saying that the identity would be released after booking.

Avenatti did not immediately respond to Fox News' request for comment.

TMZ, which first reported on Avenatti, said that he had "kicked" his estranged spouse "out of the apartment."

The "Special Report" panel reacted to the news on Wednesday:

"'She hit me first' is not a very fulsome defense," Real Clear Politics editor Tom Bevan said. "His 2020 aspirations are pretty much over."

The initial TMZ report said Avenatti ran into his apartment building after the alleged incident, hollering "she hit me first, this is bulls--t."

'You're Exploiting Her and You Know That': Tucker Battles Avenatti LIVE on Set

WATCH: Tucker Responds to 'Especially Creepy' Avenatti After Attacks During 'The View'

Avenatti had been making statements that suggested he will seek to challenge Trump in 2020, and previously made trips to several key states like South Carolina.

"Federalist" editor Mollie Hemingway said Avenatti has a "track record of extremely questionable behavior" and that it is "surprising" that many leftist Democrats still stand with him.

Washington Post writer Charles Lane said Avenatti was never a top contender to challenge Trump, and that he is now "not a good face to put on the Democratic Party in 2020."

Late Wednesday, Avenatti spoke briefly to reporters in Los Angeles County and denied the allegations.

"I have never struck a woman. I never will strike a woman. I have been an advocate for women's rights my entire career... and I'm gonna continue to be an advocate. I am not going to be intimidated from stopping what I am doing," Avenatti said.

Watch more above.

Grassley Responds to Avenatti: 'That's What Generally Happens When Lawyers Don't Have Facts'

Avenatti 2020? 'The Five' Reacts to Attorney's First Political Ad

Mission to hunt aliens on Mars reveals landing site where extraterrestrial life most likely to be found

File photo: The Hellas Planitia region of Mars, where scientists believe small lakes came and went regularly. (NASA/JPL/USGS)

Scientists have picked the landing site of a robot mission to Mars which will search for signs of alien life.

The ExoMars rover is due to be blasted into space in 2010 but not land on the Red Planet until March 2021 and drill into its surface to search for any evidence of life that may have existed.

Experts working on the joint European-Russian project have picked an area called Oxia Planum, as it is thought the site once contained a large body of water billions of years ago.

CLICK ON THE SUN FOR MORE

The other main contender was Mawrth Vallis – a channel formed by huge flooding between the southern highlands and the northern lowlands.

Aram Dorsum which is found in the highlands of Arabia Terra, north of the Crommelin crater, was also on the shortlist of possibilities.

The decision is expected to be officially confirmed next year when it is signed off by the heads of the project.

Group member Professor John Bridges from the University of Leicester said after four years of careful study the site had been picked because its fine sediments would be ideal for the rover's drill.

He said: "With an enormous catchment area the sediments will have captured organics from a wide variety of environments over a long period of time, including areas where life may have existed.

"A large group of scientists have been working on proposing, characterizing and down selecting the sites, all of which had fascinating aspects, but Oxia Planum is the clear winner on both science and engineering constraints."

Layers of clay-rich minerals found in the area also suggest it was once the location of a massive lake.

It is hoped the rover will drill two meters below the planet's surface hunting for signs there was life on the planet around four billion years ago when there was water on the planet.

Jorge Vago, a ExoMars project scientist with the European Space Agency (ESA), said: "With ExoMars we are on a quest to find biosignatures.

"While both sites offer valuable scientific opportunities to explore ancient water-rich environments that could have been colonized by microorganisms, Oxia Planum received the majority of votes."

Landing a robot on Mars has proved difficult in the past so the choice had to consider where the most likely sites were against the chances of being able to actually land a craft in the area.

It is thought the low-lying Oxia Planum area will provide more time for a parachute to slow the robot's descent onto the surface.

ESA's head of space exploration Sue Horne said: "Our end goal is in sight and it is getting very exciting."

This story originally appeared in The Sun.

Arizona Senate vote count settlement reached; counties given extension to cure ballots

Republicans and Democrats in Arizona reached an agreement in court Friday that gives all counties in the state until this coming Wednesday to address problems with ballots, as vote tallying for the state's tight Senate race continues.

As of 8:15 p.m. ET Friday, Democratic candidate Kyrsten Sinema led Republican candidate Martha McSally by roughly 20,000 votes statewide, according to the Arizona Secretary of State's Office. Sinema has received 991,189 votes and McSally 970,986, the office said.

As the ballot count continued, Sinema for Arizona campaign manager Andrew Piatt issued a statement saying: "Once again, today's data confirmed our expectation that as the ballots are counted, Kyrsten will steadily build her advantage and be elected to the U.S. Senate. Nine counties reported today - five of which are counties where McSally is favored and where she needed to perform very well in order to regain even a narrow path to victory. That didn't happen and since election night, Kyrsten netted 38,258 votes and now is leading by 20,203 votes - or 1 percent. She will win this race."

The settlement comes after Republicans filed a lawsuit Wednesday in a bid to prevent Maricopa and Pima counties – the two biggest counties in the state – from using procedures that permit mail-in ballot fixes to occur beyond Election Day, arguing that the practice was improper.

Four local Republican parties filed the lawsuit.

FLORIDA AT CENTER OF EXPLOSIVE POST-ELECTION FIGHT, AS NEW ARIZONA SENATE TALLY GIVES EDGE TO DEM

If the signature on the voter registration doesn't match that on the sealed envelope, both Maricopa and Pima County allow voters to help them fix, or "cure" it, up to five days after Election Day.

Many other counties allow voters to cure only until polls close on Election Day.

However, now all counties may cure ballots until Wednesday.

Roughly 272,000 votes remained uncounted, the Arizona Secretary of State's Office reported Friday.

JUDGE SIDES WITH FLORIDA'S RICK SCOTT, CITES 'VIOLATION' OF STATE CONSTITUTION BY ELECTION OFFICIALS

"We know there's urgency out there, but we want to get it right, not quick," Maricopa County Recorder Adrian Fontes said, according to the Associated Press.

President Trump tweeted about the Arizona election ahead of Friday's settlement.

"Just out — in Arizona, SIGNATURES DON'T MATCH. Electoral corruption - Call for a new Election? We must protect our Democracy!"

The agreement would affect only a few thousand votes, the AP reported.

Fox News' Dan Springer, Melissa Chrise and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Trump tweets defense of Whitaker appointment from Paris

President Trump continued Friday to defend his choice of Matthew Whitaker as acting attorney general following the resignation of Jeff Sessions earlier in the week.

In a series of late-night tweets from Paris, Trump seemed to continue statements he made in Washington earlier in the day in defense of Whitaker, who served as Sessions' chief of staff until his boss resigned Wednesday at the request of the president.

Just before leaving for Paris, where he will take part in events commemorating the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I, Trump said he "didn't know" Whitaker but the former U.S. attorney from Iowa was "highly thought of."

His remarks contradicted comments he made on Fox News last month when he said Whitaker was a "great guy" and "I mean, I know Matt Whitaker."

"Matthew G. Whitaker is a highly respected former U.S. Attorney from Iowa. He was chosen by Jeff Sessions to be his Chief of Staff. I did not know Mr. Whitaker. Likewise, as Chief, I did not know Mr. Whitaker except primarily as he traveled with A.G. Sessions. No social contact...," the president tweeted Friday.

He later tweeted that Iowa Gov. Joni Ernst, U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and U.S. Ambassador to China Terry Branstad were among those who thought "very highly" of Whitaker.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., predicted Friday that Trump will nominate a permanent attorney general "pretty quickly" and said Whitaker would be a "very interim AG."

"The president has said repeatedly he's not going to dismiss the Mueller investigation," McConnell told reporters at Kentucky's Capitol in Frankfort. "He's said repeatedly it's going to be allowed to finish. That also happens to be my view."

Whitaker's selection has roiled Democrats, who believe he could undermine Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into possible links between the Trump election campaign and Moscow.

Eighteen state attorneys general signed a document Thursday calling on Whitaker to recuse himself from overseeing the probe, citing critical comments he made about the investigation during media appearances before joining the Justice Department last year.

Trump has brushed off those concerns, saying Friday, "This only comes because anybody that works for me, they do a number on them. All the time I'm watching many different people go on many different shows saying many different things. That doesn't mean they're unqualified."

Some of Whitaker's criticisms of the Russia probe include an op-ed article in which he said Mueller would be straying outside his mandate if he investigated Trump family finances and a radio interview where he said no evidence of collusion between Russia and the Trump campaign existed.

Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, on Friday said she wants the Senate to debate placing restrictions on Trump's ability to remove Mueller.

Speaking in Brunswick, Collins said Whitaker's comments on the probe had her "very concerned" about his appointment, adding that a bill would pressure Trump to let the investigation run its course.

"I recognize that the president is never going to sign such a bill, but I think Senate debate and passage of the bill would send a very strong message to the president," she said.

In a statement to Justice Department employees, Whitaker said Friday: "As we move forward, I am committed to leading a fair Department with the highest ethical standards, that upholds the rule of law, and seeks justice for all Americans."

Some have publically wondered if Whitaker is even eligible for the job. Trump argues that since Whitaker was confirmed 14 years ago as the U.S. attorney for southern Iowa, he doesn't need Senate confirmation.

Then there's his association with a Florida company that Federal Trade Commission said bilked thousands of consumers out of millions of dollars by promising lucrative patent agreements to investors, the New York Times reported.

The company, World Patent Marketing, was shut down by a federal judge last year.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

Florida election official requests emergency hearing after judge's ruling

A Florida supervisor of elections who was ordered to turn over any duplicate, "overvoted" or "undervoted" ballots by Saturday morning has requested an emergency hearing and filed for an extension, a move that's been condemned by Republican Rick Scott's campaign as "embarrassing and unacceptable."

Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Susan Bucher filed on Friday, asking that a hearing be held in response to the judge's earlier decision in favor of Scott.

Circuit Judge Krista Marx ruled that Bucher must provide the county canvassing board with any duplicate ballots and any "overvoted" or "undervoted" ballots that it doesn't already have by no later than 10 a.m. Saturday.

Bucher, whose requested hearing was scheduled for 8:30 a.m. Saturday, has asked for more time to comply with the judge's directive.

JUDGE SIDES WITH FLORIDA'S RICK SCOTT, CITES 'VIOLATION' OF STATE CONSTITUTION BY ELECTION OFFICIALS

The move was slammed by Scott's campaign.

"Tonight, Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Susan Buchar (sic) announced that she is refusing to comply with a court order to submit overvotes and undervotes to the Palm Beach County Canvassing Board for review under the court-ordered deadline," Chris Hartline, Scott for Florida spokesman, said in a statement. "Susan Buchar (sic) has consistently refused to follow state law and comply with legally required deadlines and regulations."

Hartline continued: "Whether it's gross incompetence or intentional disregard for the rule of law is irrelevant at this point. Either way, it is embarrassing and unacceptable."

FLORIDA RACES COULD HEAD TO RECOUNT: A LOOK AT PAST EFFORTS IN US HISTORY

Scott – who is narrowly leading in the state's election for a U.S. Senate seat against longtime incumbent Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson – filed a lawsuit with the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) against Palm Beach County. They alleged that Bucher illegally used her own discretion to determine voter intent when reviewing damaged or incorrectly filled-out absentee ballots while refusing to allow impartial witnesses to monitor the process.

Scott's complaint against Bucher alleges that officials illegally refused to allow Republicans, or any witnesses, to monitor Palm Beach County's handling of damaged absentee ballots.

"Even more alarmingly," Scott claims, Bucher "failed to allow the Palm Beach County Canvassing Board" to determine, as required by law, which damaged or improperly filled-out absentee ballots were valid and how the voters of those ballots had intended to vote. Instead, Scott and the NRSC argue, Bucher and her staff simply used their own judgment when determining voters' intent.

Scott and the NRSC also filed a lawsuit against Broward County.

Fox News' Heather Lacy and Alex Pappas and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Death toll rises to 9 as fierce, fast Northern California wildfire incinerates town

A fierce wildfire in Northern California incinerated most of a town of about 30,000 people with flames that moved so fast there was nothing firefighters could do, authorities said Friday. Nine people died in what quickly grew into the state's most destructive fire in at least a century.

Only a day after it began, the blaze near the town of Paradise had grown to nearly 140 square miles (362 square kilometers), had destroyed more than 6,700 structures — almost all of them homes — and was burning completely out of control.

"There was really no firefight involved," Capt. Scott McLean of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said, explaining that crews gave up attacking the flames and instead helped people get out alive. "These firefighters were in the rescue mode all day yesterday."

With fires also burning in Southern California , state officials put the total number of people forced from their homes at about 250,000. Evacuation orders included the entire city of Malibu, which is home to 13,000, among them some of Hollywood's biggest stars.

President Donald Trump issued an emergency declaration providing federal funds for Butte, Ventura and Los Angeles counties.

When Paradise was evacuated, the order set off a desperate exodus in which many motorists got stuck in gridlocked traffic and abandoned their vehicles to flee on foot. People reported seeing much of the community go up in flames, including homes, supermarkets, businesses, restaurants, schools and a retirement center.

Rural areas fared little better. Many homes have propane tanks that were exploding amid the flames. "They were going off like bombs," said Karen Auday, who escaped to a nearby town.

McLean estimated that the lost buildings numbered in the thousands in Paradise, about 180 miles (290 kilometers) northeast of San Francisco.

Saudi-led coalition in Yemen requests end to US refueling

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – The Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen said early Saturday it had "requested cessation of inflight refueling" by the U.S. for its fighter jets after American officials said they would stop the operations amid growing anger over civilian casualties from the kingdom's airstrikes.

The decision by Americans to pull out also comes amid outrage by U.S. lawmakers from both political parties over the Oct. 2 slaying of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul.

It wasn't immediately clear what impact the U.S. withdrawal from air refueling operations would have. American officials earlier said Saudi forces now handled some 80 percent of their refueling operations, which crucially allow aircraft to fly longer sorties over possible targets and eases the pressure on quick strikes.

Yet even with that refueling support, Saudi Arabia has faced widespread international criticism over its campaign of airstrikes in the coalition's war in Yemen, targeting Shiite rebels known as Houthis who hold the capital, Sanaa.

Saudi strikes have hit public markets, hospitals and other nonmilitary targets, killing scores of civilians. One such Saudi-led airstrike in August in Yemen's Saada province hit a bus and killed dozens of people, including schoolchildren wearing backpacks.

U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity Friday to discuss the decision before its announcement, said the end to refueling wouldn't stop American training and military assistance. The Post first reported the Trump administration's desire to end the refueling.

The Saudi statement, carried early Saturday on the state-run Saudi Press Agency, did not acknowledge the Trump administration's decision.

"Recently the kingdom and the coalition has increased its capability to independently conduct inflight refueling in Yemen," the statement read. "As a result, in consultation with the United States, the coalition has requested cessation of inflight refueling support for its operations in Yemen."

It also said it hoped upcoming United Nations sponsored talks "in a third country" would help end the war.

___

Associated Press writers Lolita Baldor and Matthew Lee in Washington contributed to this report.

‘Wrath of Markets?' New Delhi Pokes at India's Central Bank

[unable to retrieve full-text content]An uneasy truce between Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government and the central bank was tested two days after the administration said it respects the central bank's autonomy. "Rupee trading at less ...

Xiaomi can’t beat Apple in India even after selling 10 times more phones

Apple and Xiaomi's rivalry in India is a juicy paradox.

In the financial year ending March 2018, the Chinese firm sold over 10 times more smartphones in the country than the iPhone maker. Apple's revenue stood at Rs13,098 crore—just a little over half of Xiaomi's Rs23,000 crore, according to regulatory filings sourced by data platform Tofler.

Yet, at Rs896 crore, the US tech giant made approximately three times the Beijing-based firm's profits (Rs293 crore).

The Cupertino-based company can thank its steep price points and high margins for this.

View photos

View photos

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The Chinese firm, with its cheap devices, is winning the sales numbers game in the country. "Xiaomi has a much bigger market to capture than Apple," said Anchal Agarwal, co-founder and CEO of Tofler.

The market leader's brands hope to build a strong installed base by selling value-for-money products at razor-thin margins, said Rushabh Doshi, research manager at Singapore-based market research firm Canalys. Eventually, Xiaomi looks to "generate revenue via services like advertising, OTT, and so on," Doshi said.

Whereas, Apple's business model is to purely target the rich who are looking for status based on their devices, according to Pavel Naiya, senior analyst at Hong Kong-based Counterpoint Research.

Story Continues

In short, Xiaomi may have the volumes but Apple is the higher-value player.

View photos

In fact, Apple, which generates over 95% of its revenues from products alone, is losing customers in India. By the first half of 2018, its market share had halved from 2.5% a year ago, according to Navkendar Singh of International Data Corporation (IDC) India. Still, it keeps making more money.

And this isn't an India-specific phenomenon. The world over, Apple accounts for nearly 90% of smartphone makers' profits despite controlling less than 20% of the market.

"With Apple, the aspirational value is very, very high. Consumers are paying for brand equity and are willing to pay more and more," said Tarun Pathak, associate director at Counterpoint. "With Xiaomi, the moment prices increase, fickle consumers in the segment will buy an alternative."

Though the iPhone remains Apple's most lucrative bet in India, rising from 2.45 million units sold in the financial year 2017 to 2.85 million the next year, its other devices, too, are showing growth. Between April 2017 and March 2018, desktop sales may have grown at just 4%, but notebook and tablet shipments both rose by double digits.

View photos

Apple has also made a key move in curbing costs in India. Since earlier this year, it has consolidated distribution channels and cut back on the number of retail partners, multiple experts told Quartz.

Another change in Apple's India narrative is that, earlier, even three- and four-generation old iPhone models in the sub-$300 price band used to fly off the shelves. "That is being stopped now," Singh of IDC said. "Older models like the 6S and even the 7 are going to be phased out much faster now, driving up the average selling price."

 

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Why India's Modi wants to increase control over the central bank

MUMBAI/NEW DELHI (Reuters) - An incendiary speech by a top Reserve Bank of India (RBI) official last Friday blew the lid off an increasingly toxic dispute between the central bank and the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi over monetary policy and who controls the institution's reserves.

Narendra Modi, India's prime minister, speaks during a news conference in Tokyo, Japan October 29, 2018. Kiyoshi Ota/Pool via Reuters

While historically there have been differences between the RBI and the nation's governments, the extent of the rift and its public nature are unprecedented.

By Wednesday morning, there were Indian media reports saying that RBI Governor Urjit Patel was about to resign. The RBI declined comment.

This followed three letters to the RBI from the finance ministry threatening to invoke Section 7 of the R BI Act that would allow the government to dictate policy to the central bank, according to a senior source with direct knowledge of developments.

But faced with declines in India's rupee currency and government bond prices as investors got unnerved, the government issued a statement supporting the RBI's autonomy while indicating it would still be pressing very hard to have its own way.

In Friday's speech, RBI Deputy Governor Viral Acharya said that undermining central bank independence could be "potentially catastrophic", and he even cited meddling by the Argentine government in the affairs of its central bank in 2010 – prompting big drops in that nation's financial markets - as a sign of how bad things can get.

The remarks were widely seen as a sign that the  RBI was pushing back hard against government pressure to relax its policies and reduce its powers ahead of a general election due by May.

Finance ministry and RBI spokespersons decli ned comment.

The RBI is not statutorily independent, as the governor is appointed by the government, but it has enjoyed broad autonomy in regulating the banking sector. It is mandated to control inflation within a 2 to 6 percent range while keeping in mind India's economic growth objective.

CASH GRAB

- The government has made repeated calls for the RBI to hand over more money from the RBI's reserves to help fund its fiscal deficit. The RBI currently hands over its profits earned from various activities in the form of a dividend. But the government also wants to tap a share of the RBI's 3.6 trillion rupees ($48.73 billion) of capital reserves. The RBI has consistently pushed back against the demand.

OUT OF THE SHADOWS

-The government wants the RBI to provide more liquidity to the shadow banking sector, which has been hurt by the defaults of major financing company, Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services (IL&FS). Those defaults triggered sel l-off in bonds and stocks of non-banking financial companies. The government has been asking the RBI for a dedicated liquidity window for these lenders similar to one allowed during the 2008-2009 global financial crisis.

JUST RELAX

-The government has also been urging the RBI to relax its lending restrictions on 11 state-run banks. The curbs were imposed because the banks had a low capital base and major bad debt problems. The 11 are barred from lending unless they reduce their bad debt levels, improve their capital ratios and become profitable. The government says the restrictions have gone too far and have reduced the availability of loans for small- and medium sized businesses.

ENCROACHING

- The RBI is also irked by the government's efforts to trim the central bank's regulatory powers by proposing to set up an independent payments regulator. Currently the RBI regulates all payments and settlements in the economy. The government says it wants a separate payment regulator which will be able to adapt to rapid changes in technology.

BOARD INFLUENCE

-The government appointed S Gurumurthy, a prominent BJP supporter and an affiliate of the Hindu nationalist Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), to the RBI board earlier this year along with Satish Marathe, a former banker with ties to the RSS. Such political appointments have been unusual in the past as the RBI board's external members have mostly been economists and industrialists. Traditionally, the RBI's board has approved decisions related to internal functions of the central bank and it has not interfered in its supervisory and monetary policy functions.

KEEPING MUM

-Senior government officials, as well as BJP and RSS officials, are angry that the RBI decided to go public over the quarrels. Acharya made it clear he had been asked to address the independence question by Patel and in a show of unity the three other deputy governors attended his speech. In its statement concern ing autonomy on Wednesday, the government stressed that it will keep discussions confidential.

FOR MODI

-The Modi government has been under pressure ahead of regional polls due at the end of 2018 because of weak farm prices and surging fuel costs, which have been hurting rural incomes. The government recently cut excise duty on gasoline and diesel, adding to pressure on its deficit.

    The budget is also being undermined by muted revenue collection from a recently introduced goods and service tax.

    Added to this, the IL&FS woes have led to a liquidity crunch across much of the shadow banking sector and throttled off some lending.

    All of this could slow a $2.6 trillion economy, the world's sixth largest, only months before the general election. To prevent that from happening, Modi is expected to spend more on populist programs, including boosts to rural wages, fuel subsidies and buying crops at a guaranteed minimum price.

Slideshow (2 Images)FOR INVESTORS

- The rift has created political and economic uncertainty. Investors want policy continuity from both the RBI and the government to ensure inflation is kept in check and economic stability is maintained.

    A persistent fall in the inflation rate since 2014 in a country that was used to volatile price pressures instilled confidence in the central bank and attracted investors. However, investors fear such hard-earned economic gains could be at risk if the government can pull the RBI's strings.

($1 = 73.8800 Indian rupees)

Additional reporting by Rajendra Jadhav in MUMBAI; Edited by Martin Howell and Raju Gopalakrishnan