India and the European Union (EU) are gearing up for the 14th round of free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations in Brussels on Monday, as both sides aim to smoothen out the differences and finalise the deal by the end of the year.Senior officials from India and the 27-member bloc will hold a five-day round of talks, beginning from October 6. An official said the discussions will aim to resolve outstanding issues to help conclude the negotiations at the earliest.Commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal recently expressed confidence that the two sides will sign the agreement soon. He is also expected to meet EU trade commissioner Maros Sefcovic in South Africa later this month to assess the progress, with December set as the deadline to wrap up the talks, PTI reported. The pact seeks to boost two-way commerce and investments.Last month, Sefcovic and European commission agriculture commissioner Christophe Hansen travelled to India to meet Goyal and review developments in the negotiations.The proposed trade pact, revived in June 2022 after an eight-year pause, seeks to boost trade and investment flows between India and the EU. Earlier talks were suspended in 2013 over disagreements on market access.The EU is pressing for steep tariff cuts on automobiles and medical devices, lower taxes on products such as wine, spirits, meat and poultry, and stronger intellectual property protections. For India, the deal could make its exports, including ready-made garments, pharmaceuticals, steel, petroleum products and electrical machinery, more competitive in the European market, according to PTI.Negotiations cover 23 policy areas, including goods and services trade, investment, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, technical barriers to trade, rules of origin, customs and trade facilitation, competition, trade remedies, government procurement, dispute settlement, intellectual property rights, geographical indications and sustainable development.The EU is currently India’s largest trading partner for goods. Bilateral trade reached $136.53 billion in 2024–25, with Indian exports worth $75.85 billion and imports worth $60.68 billion. The bloc accounts for around 17% of India’s total exports, while India makes up 9% of the EU’s global exports.In services, bilateral trade stood at $51.45 billion in 2023.

Vedanta Ltd, led by Anil Agarwal, has postponed the completion of its demerger to March 31, 2026 due to pending approvals from the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) and government authorities.The company made the announcement in a filing this week.“Given that the conditions precedent in the Scheme, including approval of the National Company Law Tribunal, Mumbai Bench (NCLT) and approvals from certain government authorities are in the process of being completed, the board of the company and the resulting companies…have decided to extend the timeline for fulfilment of the conditions precedent from September 30, 2025 to March 31, 2026,” Vedanta said.This is not the first extension as the deadline was earlier extended from March 31, 2025 to September 30 2025.Once approved, the demerger will allow the company’s different business units to operate as independent entities, PTI reported.Vedanta Resources CEO Deshnee Naidoo had earlier expressed confidence that the demerger of Vedanta’s Indian unit could be done within this financial year, but stressed that her main priority is restructuring the company.The NCLT had postponed the hearing on Vedanta’s demerger plan to October 8 after the ministry of petroleum and natural gas raised concerns over missing disclosures.The company had earlier revised its demerger plan, choosing to retain its base metals business within the parent company. Initially, the mining firm had proposed creating six separate companies: Vedanta Aluminium, Vedanta Oil & Gas, Vedanta Power, Vedanta Steel and Ferrous Materials, Vedanta Base Metals, and Vedanta Ltd, but this plan was later updated, PTI reported.Vedanta Ltd, a subsidiary of Vedanta Resources, is a major global player in natural resources, critical minerals, energy, and technology. The company has a global reach, operating in India, South Africa, Namibia, Liberia, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Korea, Taiwan, and Japan, with businesses in oil and gas, zinc, lead, silver, copper, steel, and aluminium.

KARACHI:

Legal Adviser to the President of Pakistan Justice (Retd) Irfan Qadir has said that the president’s decision on appeals against rulings of the Banking Mohtasib (Ombudsman) holds great importance.

“Banks can appeal to the president against the ombudsman’s decision,” he said while addressing a conference on Saturday, marking the completion of 20 years of the establishment of Banking Mohtasib Pakistan and themed “Work Ethics”.

He said that once the president delivers a decision on an appeal, banks cannot challenge that ruling in a court of law. According to the law, judges cannot hear cases against the president’s decisions on such appeals.

The legal adviser pointed out that Section 18 of the Federal Ombudsman Institutional Reforms Act 2013 bars judges from hearing such cases. If a judge hears a case against the president’s ruling, a reference can be filed against them. He said that banks have approached courts against the president’s decisions, but despite such violations of the law, no reference has been filed against any judge so far.

Irfan Qadir added that during fiscal year 2024-25, the president endorsed more than 500 decisions of the Banking Mohtasib. The president provided more than 100% relief to victims of bank fraud. He stressed that the ombudsman is of vital importance as it helps restore confidence in the banking sector.

He noted that cases of ATM misuse, digital transaction fraud, e-commerce frauds and account closures have been observed in the country. The Banking Mohtasib not only provided relief to almost 100% of fraud victims but also safeguarded the rights of ordinary citizens. Most banks have accepted and implemented the ombudsman’s decisions.

Speaking at the event, Pakistan Banks’ Association President Zafar Masud said that negative outlook has become common in society, where even good actions are often viewed with suspicion. He said there are examples showing that when arrogance sets in, decline soon follows. Therefore, it is necessary to control one’s desires and strictly adhere to the code of ethics in work.

He recalled the tragic plane crash he survived, saying that at first he thought the plane would land safely, but when he looked out the window and saw buildings dangerously close, he realised the gravity of the situation. The incident deeply affected him for four months. He said that no one in society is mentally fully healthy. He himself has never feared death, a trait he said he inherited from his father. After the plane crash, he has become even more fearless.