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CMYK
saturday, july 20, 2019 Delhi
City Edition
24 pages O ₹��10.00
Printed at . Chennai . Coimbatore . Bengaluru . Hyderabad . Madurai . Noida . Visakhapatnam . Thiruvananthapuram . Kochi . Vijayawada . Mangaluru . Tiruchirapalli . Kolkata . Hubballi . Mohali . Malappuram . Mumbai . Tirupati . lucknow . cuttack . patna
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The Sentence Review Board,which is headed by the Delhi Home Minister, on Fridayrejected the release pleas ofthe accused in the JessicaLal and Priyadarshini Mattoo cases.
In April 2018, Jessica’s sister Sabrina Lal, in a letter tothe welfare offi��ce of CentralJail, Tihar, had mentionedthat she had no objection tothe release of Manu Sharmaas he has spent 15 years inprison. He is serving life im
prisonment in the murdercase. It is the second timethe SRB has rejected thepremature release plea ofSharma.
The SRB also rejected therequest of premature release of Santosh KumarSingh, who is serving lifeterm for the 1996 rape andmurder of law student Priyadarshini Mattoo.
According to Delhi government sources, 205 cases were considered by thesevenmember Boardwhich, apart from the DelhiHome Minister, also consists
of a District and SessionsCourt judge, a Joint Commissioner of Delhi Police,the Home Secretary, theLaw Secretary, the DirectorGeneral of Prisons and anexternal expert.
59 cases approved“Of the total number of cases considered by it, theBoard was of the view thatrelease be recommended in59 cases and 145 cases wererejected. One case whichwas on the list is undergoingadjudication in the SupremeCourt, so it was not consi
dered by the Board,” a Delhigovernment source said.
Sharma’s lawyer AmitSahni said that his client hasundergone more than 22years of incarceration (withremission) and ought tohave been recommendedfor release. He said he willchallenge the rejection inDelhi High Court. “In spiteof fulfi��lling all parametersfor premature release, hiscase has been rejected yetagain, while convicts whodo not fulfi��l the parametersare released,” Mr. Sahnisaid.
Manu Sharma, Santosh Kumar Singh rebuff��ed by Sentence Review Board
Saurabh Trivedi
Jatin Anand
New Delhi
Release pleas of Jessica, Mattoo murder convicts rejected
Happiness is a universalvirtue worth acquiring. Itmust be shared, andlearning to embrace itcollectively can be muchmore invigorating, sobelieves the MadhyaPradesh government.
Soothing the tempers ofgovernment offi��cials since2017, the Rajya AnandSansthan (State HappinessDepartment) has nowopened its doors to thegeneral public.
“Before asking others towork on themselves, youshould work on yourself,”says Akhilesh Argal, CEO ofthe department. Abimonthly course on
introspection, Alpviram, canhelp you become a betterhuman not by means ofsermons, but by sharingexperiences.
Positive outlookAt daylong sessions everyfi��rst and fourth Saturday inBhopal, master trainersshare their journeys tohappiness. Until nowreserved for governmentservants, the sessions havebeen opened to the public at₹��200 per session. “There isno religious angle. Eachsession has a diff��erenttrainer,” says Mr. Argal.
The department plans toexpand the course to otherdistricts, where 50,000volunteers are running
programmes on happiness,supported by Initiatives ofChange, Panchgani.
Temporarily renouncinghome to rediscover oneselfand know others pursuing asimilar quest for happiness
can be revitalising, believesthe department. Now,others can accompanyoffi��cials, on governmentduty, to attend “AnandShivirs’ in Coimbatore,Bengaluru and Panchgani.
“If you attend a shivir aspart of a group instead ofindividually, there is supportand you never feel alone.You go there representingyour State and inculcate asense of cohesiveness,” saysMr. Agal.
Around 10 of the 3040seats are reserved for thepublic to attend courses on‘Building Capacity to Live aFulfi��lling Life’, ‘InnerEngineering Retreat’ and the‘Art of listening to Yourself ’.
Departments shell outaround ₹��20,000 for offi��cialsattending any of the fourdaylong courses. Others canalso avail of the subsidisedprice, but the registrationwindow for them closes atleast 10 days earlier.
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Now, learn to be happy along with govt. offi��cials
Sidharth Yadav
Bhopal
Bimonthly course on introspection opened to Madhya Pradesh public at ₹��200 per session
A session on introspection in progress in Bhopal. * SPECIAL
ARRANGEMENT
Mansoor Khan, prime
accused in Bengaluru
ponzi scam, arrested
page 8
U.P. puts SP leader
Azam Khan’s name
on list of land mafi��a
page 5
Forensic audit of IL&FS
credit rating agencies
fi��nds serious lapses
page 15
Lowry, Holmes in
lead; Shubhankar set
to make the cut
page 18
Despite two directions fromKarnataka Governor Vajubhai Vala to Chief MinisterH.D. Kumaraswamy to holdthe trust vote on Friday, theprocess got put off�� to Monday, with Speaker K.R. Ramesh Kumar adjourning theAssembly.
All eyes are now on theGovernor’s possible moves,while the CongressJD(S) government seems to have gota chance to hang on at leasttill Monday. Coalition leaders are hopeful of the tideturning in their favour in theSupreme Court.
The adjournment cameafter a protracted discussionon whether a Governor
could set such deadlines atall, but only after the Speaker extracted an assurancefrom the Chief Minister andCongress Legislature Party
leader Siddaramaiah that thetrust vote would not be postponed beyond Monday.
Karnataka trust vote on MondayGovernor’s second direction also ignored, Speaker adjourns Assembly
Special Correspondent
Bengaluru
Biding time: Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy holding talks with MLAs in the Assembly on Friday. * K. MURALI KUMAR
CONTINUED ON A PAGE 12
Long path to devotion: Devotees near Mahagunas Top in Anantnag district of Jammu andKashmir while on their way to visit the Amarnath shrine earlier this week. Over 6,000 pilgrims off��ered worship at the cave shrine of Lord Shiva on Friday, offi��cials said. * PTI
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Tough trek
The trial in the Babri Masjid demolition case, inwhich prominent BJP andSangh Parivar leaders suchas L.K. Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi and Uma Bharti are accused of criminalconspiracy, should be completed in nine months, theSupreme Court ordered onFriday.
Finish Babricase in ninemonths: SC
Legal Correspondent
NEW DELHI
TENURE EXTENDED A PAGE 12
A clutch of Congress leadersare planning to raise questions about the legitimacy ofan informal process underway for selecting a successor to Rahul Gandhi, whoresigned as party presidentin May. The MPs are likely tobegin a public battle demanding that the CongressWorking Committee be disbanded, and fresh elections
be held to put a new committee in place.
“If the president has resigned, the CWC has to beautomatically disbandedand there should be elections... If we can get electedunder such adverse circumstances, why should nominated members decide thefuture of the Congress?” aLok Sabha member said.
Dissent in Cong. oversearch for party chief‘Informal’ process questioned by MPs
Sobhana K Nair
New Delhi
CONTINUED ON A PAGE 12
Amid the political turmoil,Karnataka JD(S) presidentH.K. Kumaraswamy and theCongress Legislature Partyon Friday approached theSupreme Court withseparate applications. Mr.Kumaraswamy saidGovernor Vajubhai Vala wasintruding into the conductof the trust vote and waseven dictating the time itshould be held.
JD(S), Congressmove SC
Legal Correspondent
NEW DELHI
CONTINUED ON A PAGE 12
CONGRESS’S CHARGE A PAGE 12
The Supreme Court on Friday questioned the pleamade jointly by the Centreand Assam to indefi��nitely extend the deadline for the publication of the fi��nal NationalRegister of Citizens (NRC)from July 31 to conduct a“sample reverifi��cation” toquell the “growing perception” that lakhs of illegal im
migrants might have made itto the list.
The Centre and Assamhad urged the court formore time to crosscheck“wrong inclusions and exclusions” from the draft published on July 30, 2018.They said a 20% sample reverifi��cation of the names included in the draft should beconducted in districts bordering Bangladesh and a
10% reverifi��cation in the other districts. But the courtvoiced its scepticism. It referred to NRC CoordinatorPrateek Hajela’s reports andsaid reverifi��cation seemed tohave been done during thedisposal of claims.
Supreme Court questions needfor NRC sample reverifi��cation Centre, Assam had wanted July 31 deadline extended
Krishnadas Rajagopal
NEW DELHI
INCLUSION OVER EXCLUSION
A EDITORIAL
FEARS OF EXCLUSION A PAGE 13
CONTINUED ON A PAGE 12
Appeal fi��led to reopenSamjhauta case NW DELHI
A Pakistani woman has fi��led
an appeal in the Punjab and
Haryana HC against the
acquittal of all accused,
including Aseemanand, in the
2007 Samjhauta Express
blast case.
NATION A PAGE 9
DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD
NEARBY
A 24yearold foreign national was allegedly gangraped by an autorickshawdriver and his friend onThursday, the police saidon Friday. The two accusedhave been arrested, theysaid.
Foreign nationalgangraped
Special Correspondent
GURUGRAM
Three people were beaten todeath by a mob in Saran district of Bihar on Friday, alleging that they attempted tosteal a buff��alo, the policesaid. The families of the victims denied the allegation.
Raju Nat, Bides Nat andNaushad Qureshi were attacked at Nandlal Tola of Pithauri village in the Baniapurpolice station limits in the
early hours. Two of themwere killed on the spot.Another died of injuries onthe way to hospital, Superintendent of Police Har KishoreRai said. He said two or threepeople have been picked upfor interrogation.
DSP Ajay Kumar Singhrushed to the village as aclash erupted between the alleged attackers and the family members of the deceased
Three killed in Bihar over ‘buff��alo theft’Police detain two for interrogation
Press Trust of India
Chapra
DETAILS ON A PAGE 13
The gunning down of 10 tribal people by a village headand his associates over aland dispute in Uttar Pradesh’s Sonbhadra districton Wednesday, led to theunfolding of a political drama on Friday, with the Stategovernment preventingCongress general secretaryPriyanka Gandhi Vadrafrom travelling to the aff��ected area to meet the kin ofthe victims.
The day began with Ms.Vadra fi��rst visiting the BHUtrauma centre in Varanasiand meeting some of thoseinjured in the fi��ring.
Section 144However, when she movedtowards Ghorawal in Sonbhadra, 80 km south, government offi��cials stoppedher in Narayanpur on theway to Mirzapur. The administration also imposed Section 144 of the CrPC inSonbhadra, which restrictsassembly of more than four
persons.Flanked by her security
guards and Congress leaders, Ms. Vadra sat on theroad in protest and demanded that the offi��cialsshow her the order or citethe law under which she isbeing prevented from goingto Sonbhadra. She also offered to go there in a groupof four keeping in mind Section 144.
Ms. Vadra was then takento the Chunar guest housein a government vehicle.
She later tweeted thatshe was kept under arrestfor nine hours and asked tofurnish a bail bond of₹��50,000 to avoid 14 days ofjudicial custody.
She said she was prepared to go to jail but wouldnot backtrack on her standon meeting the kin of thevictims.
“We have only come hereto meet the families peacefully,” she said. She blamedthe government for ‘lapses’leading to the incident.
“A big atrocity has takenplace. What happened tothe tribals in Sonbhadra iswrong.”
Amid the development,Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath held the previous Congress governments responsible for the land dispute.
The then Congress government illegally transferred gram sabha land inthe name of Adarsh Cooperative Society on December17, 1955 through an order ofthe tehsildar, “to snatch therights of locals.”
Illegal arrest: RahulCongress leader RahulGandhi came to his sisterMs. Vadra’s support, sayingher ‘illegal arrest’ was ‘disturbing.’
In a tweet, he said: “Thisarbitrary application ofpower, to prevent her frommeeting families of the 10Adivasi farmers brutallygunned down for refusingto vacate their own land, reveals the BJP Govt’s increasing insecurity in UP.”
Priyanka stopped on way to U.P. villageCongress leader sits on road in protest, escorted to Chunar guest house
special correspondent
LUCKNOW
No going back: Congress general secretary Priyanka GandhiVadra sitting on a road in Mirzapur, Uttar Pradesh, on Fridayafter she was stopped from proceeding to Sonbhadra. * PTI
DETAILS ON A PAGE 3
CMYK
M ND-NDE
DELHI THE HINDU
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CITY
Titled Art in Fusion, a painting of Hazratbal Shrine in Sinagar and Humayun’s Tombin the Capital overlappingwith the domes of both monuments coming together asone, was created by studentsfrom The Dolphin International School, Pulwama, andBluebells School International in the Capital as a part of astudent exchangeprogramme.
The painting captures theessence of the initiative byboth schools which is beingcarried out as a friendshipbuilding exercise. Seven students from Classes VI and VIIfrom Pulwama have spenteight days in the Capital living with host families and attending classes at BluebellsSchool International.
Speaking about their experience, the students said theywere excited to visit the Capital, some of them for the fi��rst
time, and were eager as wellas nervous to travel by air forthe fi��rst time. “I really enjoyed the light show at IndiaGate at night, shopping atmalls and the food in Delhi. Iparticularly enjoyed the freedom with which we got toroam around at night as thisis not possible back home,said Zaira a Class VI student.
Soha, another Class VI student, said she felt completelyat home at her host Sohna’shouse “On the fi��rst day itself Istayed up till late at night
chatting with Sohna and herfamily and I told them aboutPulwama and my life backhome. The schedule is a littlediff��erent in both the schoolsbut overall it is quite similar.Delhi is really nice, especiallyBig Chill Cafe, where we hada nice meal,” Soha said.
Ayaan, who loves playingcricket, felt that it was unfortunate that people associatethe name (Pulwama) with terror attack. “Many teenagers,who did not know about Pulwama, now only think about
the terror attack when thename is mentioned. I thinkthat more student exchangeslike this will help show what anice place Pulwama is as theywill come visit and see forthemselves,” Ayaan said. Headded that he liked the hospitality of the people in Delhi.
Bonded well
The students of BluebellsSchool International werevisibly excited to not only payhost but also to visit Pulwamasoon.
On Friday, the students onexchange got to participate ina workshop organised by anNGO WISCOMP with fi��ve other schools in Delhi in whichthey were encouraged to pairup with someone they hadnever met before and sharestories about their life, hobbies and fears. They were also taught the concept of identity and how they could buildbridges and become ambassadors of peace.
Exchange programme bringstogether ‘ambassadors of peace’ Seven school students from Pulwama spend 8 days in Capital with host families
Jaideep Deo Bhanj
NEW DELHI
Students from Pulwama at the Bluebells School Internationalin the Capital on Friday. * R.V. MOORTHY
With monsoon disruptingthe supply of tomatoes tothe Capital, the Centre hasdirected governmentowned Mother Dairy to curbprice rise by increasing itsavailability and selling thevegetable for ₹��40 per kg atits own Safal shops.
Tomato price has doubled over the last week inthe NCR, now selling for atleast ₹��60₹��80 per kg in most
city markets. The price spike and sup
ply disruption were discussed at a highlevel InterMinisterial Committeemeeting chaired by Consumer Aff��airs Secretary Avinash K. Srivastava on Friday.Noting that tomato priceshave been rising sharplysince July 10, the committeedirected Mother Dairy to immediately begin sellingquality tomatoes through itsretail outlets at ₹��40 per kg.
As tomato price soars,Safal to sell it at ₹��40/kgSpecial Correspondent
NEW DELHI
Following a plea seeking directions against the operation of stone crushers nearschools in Mahendergarh,the National Green Tribunal(NGT) has constituted a jointcommittee to look into thepollution allegations andfurnish an action taken report on the same.
A Bench headed by NGTchairperson Justice AdarshKumar Goel said, “Let ajoint committee of CentralPollution Control Board, Haryana State Pollution Control Board and the DistrictMagistrate, Mahendergarhto look into the matter andfurnish a factual and actiontaken report within onemonth.”
NGT panel to check operation
of stone crushers near schoolsStaff Reporter
NEW DELHI
Talk: “Mind and Society: From Indian Studies to General Sociology”by J.P.S. Uberoi, Oxford UniversityPress at Seminar Rooms – I, II and III,Kamaladevi Complex, Main Building,India International Centre (IIC), 6:30p.m.
Music Talk: IHC Lok Sangeet Sammelan 2019 on the Folk Music ofMaharashtra. The Emergence of Folkthrough Classifi��cation of Music: TheCase of Lavani and Other Genres inMaharashtra. A scholarly lecturewith recorded music by musician andsociologist Dr. Urmila Bhirdikar,drawing on her research in Lavani,Marathi theatre and other forms atAmaltas Hall, India Habitat Centre(IHC), 7 p.m.
Dance: India International RuralCultural Centre (IRCEN) presents aKuchipudi dance recital by T. ReddiLakshmi at Govt. Girls Senior Secondary School, No.1, Roop Nagar, 9a.m, and Govt. Sarvodaya KanyaVidyalaya, Sarai Rohilla, 11 a.m.
Exhibition: “Pushpanjali”, an exhibition of paintings and drawings byartist Gouri Shankar Mukherjee atVisual Arts Gallery, India HabitatCentre (IHC), 11 a.m – 7 p.m
(Mail your listings for this column atcityeditordelhi@thehindu.co.in)
DELHI TODAY
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THE HINDU DELHI
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CITY
An insurance companybased on BarakhambaRoad approached the police after it discovered 12fake insurance cover notesissued in its name to vehicle owners.
The zonal manager ofthe fi��rm said they receivednotices from Motor Accident Claims Tribunal(MACT) to issue insuranceamount claimed by victimsinvolved in accidents withvehicles insured by thecompany.
“After a notice is received, the companychecks the genuineness ofthe claim... It has beenfound that fake insurancecover notes are being issued in the name of thecompany for insuring vehicles. The notes are forged,”he alleged.
In a genuine case, the accused party’s insurance
company gives the claimedamount to the victim’s party after the latter approaches the MACT.
The fi��rm shared detailsof the 12 cases in whichclaims were sought for andthe insurance cover werefound to be “forged”. Inmost of the cases shared bythe fi��rm, the accident victims are dead. They foundthat the vehicles whichcaused the accident andclaimed to have insurancepolicy document in the
fi��rm’s name did not exist intheir records.
The fi��rm, in their complaint, said that unidentifi��ed accused are suspectedto have been collecting money in the name of insurance policy premium andissuing fake policies. “Thepersons are not only cheating the company but alsoaccident victims withforged insurance policy because they will not be entitled to any insurance cover,”the complainant said.
FIR lodgedAdditional Deputy Commissioner of Police (NewDelhi) Eish Singhal said thata fi��rst information reporthas been registered underSections 420 (cheating),468 (forgery for purpose ofcheating) and 471 (using asgenuine a forged document) of the Indian PenalCode and an investigationhas been taken up.
Insurance fi��rm fi��nds fakecover notes in its nameLodges police complaint after receiving notices from MACT
Hemani Bhandari
NEW DELHI <> The persons are not
only cheating the
company but also
accident victims
with forged
insurance policy
because they will
not be entitled to
any insurance
cover
Insurance company
in its complaint to police
Traffi��c violaters can nowpay fi��ne onlineNEW DELHI
With the launch of e-challan
and e-payment system on
Friday, traffic violators can
now pay fines online from
anywhere, the police said.
Delhi Police Commissioner
Amulya Patnaik along with
Special.CP (Traffic) Taj
Hassan and DG (NIC) Neeta
Verma launched e-challaning
system and e-payment
gateway.
IN BRIEF
NDMC launches campaignto prevent dengueNEW DELHI
The New Delhi Municipal
Council on Friday said that it
has launched an intensive
campaign in collaboration
with representatives of RWAs,
MTAs, NGOs and other
government buildings to
prevent dengue. It said that
the drive would continue till
the end of the monsoon
season.
A 24yearold foreign national was allegedly gangrapedby an autorickshaw driverand his friend after she hiredthe threewheeler to reach ametro station late on Thursday, the police said on Friday. The two accused havebeen arrested, they said.
The woman, a hair stylist,had hired the autorickshawfrom outside Sahara Mallaround midnight to reachGuru Dronacharya metrostation. She had come fromDelhi to visit a night club at
the shopping mall on MehrauliGurugram Road andwas returning home whenthe incident happened, thepolice said.
The driver’s friend wasthere on the rear seat of theautorickshaw when the woman boarded the vehicle.The accused took the womanto a room in Sheetla Mala Colony and then allegedly tookturns to rape her.
The woman, however,managed to open the door ofthe room without the knowledge of the accused and escaped around 3 a.m. She
stayed at a friend’s place andapproached the police during the day on Friday to fi��le acomplaint. A case was registered on charges of rape atSector 5 police station in thisconnection.
Her medical examinationwas conducted and statement recorded before a Magistrate under Section 164 ofthe CrPC.
Several police teams wereformed and the driver’sfriend was arrested fromCRPF Chowk. The driver waslater arrested and his vehiclewas impounded.
Gurugram Police Spokesperson Subhash Boken saidthat the accused have confessed to having gangrapedthe woman. The accused,both autorickshaw drivers,live in rented accommodations in Gurugram. Mr. Boken said that they would beproduced before the courton Saturday.
The M.G. Road stretch inGurugram, dotted with shopping malls, is infamous forcrime against women. Manycases of abduction and rapehave been reported in thisarea.
Foreign national gang-raped by 2 auto driversShe had hired the vehicle to reach a metro station; accused arrested
Special Correspondent
GURUGRAM
Safdarjung Tomb, the Mughal-era monument, glows in a new light after sunset on Friday.The illumination project has been completed by the Archaeological Survey of India. Itcomprises simple yellow and static lighting that accentuates the silhouette of themonument with the interplay of light and shade. The tomb will be illuminated from 7 p.m.to 11 p.m. daily. * SHIV KUMAR PUSHPAKAR
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Glow-ry
International PoliceConference heldNEW DELHI
The International Police
Conference-2019 under the
theme ‘Challenges to
strengthen peace and
security’ was organised at
Pragati Maidan on Friday. The
event will end on
Saturday.Manufacturers and
technology players from 25
countries have participated in
the event
Snag hits Delhi Metro’s Violet LineNEW DELHI
Services on the Delhi Metro’s
Violet Line were affected for
over an hour on Friday due to
some technical snag, officials
said. There was slow
movement of trains between
JLN Stadium and Khan Market
stations. Many passengers,
deboarded trains at JLN
Stadium stations.
Take challenges asopportunities: JNU VCNEW DELHI
Addressing new students at
an orientation programme,
JNU Vice-Chancellor M.
Jagadesh Kumar said that the
real challenge was not
getting into JNU but to equip
themselves and develop skills
to be able to address the
modern challenges that the
country is facing.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, the Delhi governmentsaid in a statement on Friday, has directed that ₹��500crore be released for developmental work at unauthorised colonies across theCapital.
The statement said thatthe Urban Development(UD) Department has released ₹��500 crore to the Irrigation and Flood Control
(I&FC) department for thepurpose and of the total₹��1500 crore for the presentyear’s budgetary allocation,₹��700 crore had already beenreleased to the departmentin the fi��rst quarter of the ongoing year.
“The fund has been transferred to the I&FC under thehead of ‘Development of Unauthorised Colonies’ for thefi��nancial year 20192020.Mr. Kejriwal directed the UDDepartment to ensure that
there is no fi��nancial constraint for the developmentwork and funds must be released on time,” the statement also said.
The work of providingbasic developmental facilities, which include sewers,drains, roads and lanes, thestatement said, is being carried out on a “war footing”in unauthorised coloniesand water distribution linesare being laid by the Delhi JalBoard.
CM orders release of ₹��500 crore forunauthorised colonies’ development‘Facilities include sewers, drains, roads, laying of water lines’
Staff Reporter
New Delhi
Zee Media Corporation Limited has fi��led a criminaldefamation case againstTrinamool Congress MPMahua Moitra.
Taking the complainton record, AdditionalChief Metropolitan Magistrate posted the case onAugust 1 forconsideration.
Similar complaintThe MP has also fi��led a similar complaint againstthe news channel and itseditorinchief SudhirChaudhary for allegingthat her speech in the LokSabha on the “seven signsof fascism” wasplagiarised.
“Ms. Moitra had on July3 made defamatory statements against the company. She knowingly madeseveral frivolous, false,malicious and derogatorystatements,” the complaint by the said newchannel alleged.
“The intentional hatecampaign of the accused[Ms. Moitra] has tarnishedthe reputation of the complainant [news channel],”the complaint furthersaid.
The channel has soughtprosecution of the MP under Sections 499 and 500of the Indian Penal Code.
News channelfi��les defamationcase againstMahua Moitra
Nirnimesh Kumar
New Delhi
A 24yearold man, identifi��ed as Munna Khan, allegedly shot his stepfatherAnis dead in Narela Industrial Area on Friday, thepolice said.
DCP (Outer) GauravSharma said that Munnahas been arrested and hesaid that he killed Anis ashe allegedly used to beatMunna’s mother. The weapon of off��ence has been recovered, police said.
Man shot deadby stepson,accused held
STAFF REPORTER
New Delhi
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DELHI THE HINDU
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CITY
A 24yearold CRPF man waskilled and two others wereinjuries after a luxury cardriven by a teenager jumpeda red light on BRT andrammed into their vehicleon Thursday, the police said.
The injured persons, whowere deployed for the PrimeMinister’s security, wereheading home after completing their duty.
Vijay Kumar, DCP (South),said that the PCR received acall at 11 p.m. on Thursdayregarding a road accident atArchana crossing on BRT. Apolice team rushed to thespot and took the injuredpersons to AIIMS for treatment where one of them,identifi��ed as Narendra, succumbed to injuries. He added that the injured CRPFpersonnel, Vinod Kumarand Babulal, were dis
charged after treatment.Mr. Vinod was driving thecar.
Mr. Kumar said that ablack luxury car and anotherhatchback were found at theaccident spot. The driver ofthe luxury car, SanidhyaGarg (19) was caught by apasserby and handed overto the police. He is a residentof Model Town in Delhi andhis father owns a factory inNoida. He is pursuing grad
uation from a college inLondon.
“Eyewitnesses told thepolice that the luxury car,which was coming from SiriFort side, hit the victims’ carafter it jumped the red lightat Archana crossing. Another car involved in the accident was coming from Mool
chand side and goingtowards Chirag Delhi,” saidMr. Kumar.
“On the complaint of Vinod, an FIR was registeredat Greater Kailash policestation under IPC Sections279 [rash driving] and 304A [causing death by negligence]. Accused Sanidhyahas been arrested in thecase and has been medically examined. No tracesof alcohol were found ineither of the drivers involved in the accident,”said Mr. Kumar. The driver
of the luxury car was givenbail in the case. He was goingto meet his friends after visiting his grandmother, the police said.
The police have obtainedCCTV footage of the accident. Mr. Kumar said thatthe vehicles have been impounded for forensic surveyadding that probe is on.
CRPF man killed, 2 injured as teenrams luxury car into their vehiclePasser-by nabs accused, hands him over to police; drunk driving ruled out
The vehicle in which thevictims were travelling.
* SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
STAFF REPORTER
NEW DELHI
EDMC to hold megaparent-teacher meetNEW DELHI
The East Delhi Municipal
Corporation (EDMC) will hold
a mega parent-teacher meet
on Saturday, the civic body
said. The meeting will focus
on the all-round
development of children,
spreading awareness on
cleanliness and vector-borne
diseases, the EDMC said in a
statement.
Self-defence module for girl studentsNEW DELHI
The Directorate of Education
on Friday announced that
with the assistance of Delhi
Police, it has prepared a
training module on self-
defence for girls studying in
Delhi government schools.
Father-in-law of deceasedmeets with accidentNEW DELHI
The father-in-law of the CRPF
constable, who was killed on
Friday, was hit by a bus in
Manesar near Gurugram while
he was on the way to the
national capital after being
informed about the tragic
incident, his family members
said. Shri Ram (55), a resident
of Alwar district in Rajasthan,
was coming to the city to
collect the body of his son-in-
law when the accident
happened.
Delhi University releasedthe fi��fth cutoff�� list for meritbased undergraduateprogrammes on Friday.The cutoff��s will be displayed on the noticeboards of colleges onSaturday.
While admissions to several courses at DU haveclosed, cutoff��s for severalothers have been reduced.Among these, B.Com andB.Com (H) courses, two ofthe most popular subjectsat DU, remain open at several colleges. B.A Economics remains open at SRCCwith a cut off�� of 98.62%.
This is the last list of cutoff��s the university hadscheduled to release.
DU releasesfi��fth cutoff�� list
Staff Reporter
New Delhi
Delhi University has released the second cutoff��sfor undergraduate programmes under the NonCollegiate Women’s Education Board (NCWEB) onFriday.
With this, admission toonly two courses off��eredacross 26 colleges haveclosed.
The courses closed foradmissions to unreservedstudents include B.A. programme with economicsand political science at Miranda House which hadposted the highest cutoff��of 85% (along with threeother courses) and thesame programme at Rajdhani College.
Second cutoff��for NCWEB out
Staff Reporter
New Delhi
Eighteen Rajya Sabha members on Friday have writtento Prime Minister NarendraModi, condemning the “intimidation” of the Delhi University’s Academic Councilby the ABVP activists.
The parliamentarians, belonging to the CPI, CPI(M),Congress, DMK, RJD and SP,have expressed concern overthe reports of the ABVP’s forcible entry into the VC’s offi��ce complex on Tuesday,and allegations of threatsmade to the council members. “We have learnt thatthe intention behind this
forced entry was to intimidate professors of certain departments to coerce them into making certain changes intheir syllabi that would makeit acceptable to the ideologyand values endorsed by theRSS,” the letter stated.
The MPs said that the atmosphere of physical threatraised questions about thestate of law and order, freespeech and debate in publicinstitutions and demandedthat the PM intervene to ensure the academic autonomyof DU at the earliest.
Saikat Ghosh, professor ofthe English department andmember of the Academic
Council claimed that the UGCurriculum Revision Committee had sent another listof corrections. earlier. “TheNDTF and ABVP may be successful in their nefariousagenda as they are more powerful than the university.Academic arguments are notbeing heard and the university is following their diktats”he alleged.
Meanwhile, the ABVP hasdecided to start a “satyagrah” from Monday till theExecutive Council Meetingon Tuesday to protest what ittermed “propagandisticallyintroduced changes in thecurriculum”.
RS members condemn ‘intimidation’of DU council by ABVP activistsSeek PM’s intervention to ensure autonomy of university
Staff Reporter
New Delhi
Govt. politicising fundallocation: councillors NEW DELHI
Several councillors of the
South Delhi Municipal
Corporation sat on a protest
at Chandagi Ram Akhara on
Friday over the
“politicisation” of fund
allocation to the civic body by
the Delhi government.
IN BRIEF
CMYK
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THE HINDU DELHI
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DELHI Timings
Saturday, July 20
RISE 05:36 SET 19:19
RISE 21:46 SET 08:23
Sunday, July 21
RISE 05:37 SET 19:19
RISE 22:18 SET 09:16
Monday, July 22
RISE 05:37 SET 19:18
RISE 22:50 SET 10:08
Samajwadi Party MP AzamKhan’s name has been puton an online list of land mafi��a by the district administration here following FIRs registered against him,drawing strong protest fromhis party. The SP raised theissue in the Legislative Council alleging that he is beingframed in “fake” cases.
The State government dismissed the allegations, saying that it was treating everyone the same and theaction was not driven by anypolitical vendetta.
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath alleged that Rampurwas an example of “landgrabbing” culture under theprevious SP government.
“The name of the RampurMP has been put on the listof antiland mafi��a portal ofthe State government onThursday after FIRs werelodged against him on landgrabbing charges,” Additional District Magistrate (Administration) J.P. Gupta said.
“The listing was done bythe SDM Sadar,” he said.
The former State Ministerwas named in the FIRslodged in connection withalleged forcible acquisitionof land for Mohammad AliJauhar University, of whichhe is the founder andChancellor.
District Magistrate A.K.
Singh said the “farmers hadclaimed that Azam Khan hadacquired their land for University through coercion”.
“The name of those whohave acquired someone’sland with alleged criminalacts and continue to havepossession over it are included in the list,” the DM added.
The SP, however, allegedthat the move was a conspiracy by the Rampur DM todefame Mr. Khan and theuniversity.
21-member panelSP president Akhilesh Yadavhas constituted a 21membercommittee, led by the Leader of the Opposition in theLegislative Council, AhmadHasan, to “probe fake cases”against Mr. Khan.
Proceedings in the Legislative Council were disrupted on Friday as the SP members protested against theissue. As soon as the House
assembled at 11 a.m., Mr. Hasan raised the issue, saying,“The most painful thing isthat Khan has taken land forbuilding a university and notfor any personal gains. Inwhich direction is the government going? Azam Khanis part of the land mafi��a?”
Leader of the House andDeputy Chief Minister Dinesh Sharma termed theSP’s allegations “baseless”.“The government is treatingeveryone in the same manner, and it is not an act ofvengeance.”
“The allegations are baseless, and do not have anylink with the policy and intention of the government,”he said. He added that sinceMr. Khan is not a member ofthe House, the matter cannot be raised. Following this,Mr. Hasan requested theChair that an allparty committee be formed, but Mr.Sharma opposed it.
Amid unruly scenes, theDeputy CM sought cooperation of the Opposition to runthe House. But the agitatedSP members trooped intothe Well, prompting Chairman Ramesh Yadav to adjourn the House till 12 noon.When the House reassembled, Mr. Hasan raised thematter and SP memberscame into the Well of theHouse. Later, the Chairmanadjourned the House tillMonday.
U.P. puts Azam Khan’sname on list of land mafi��aGovt. rejects SP charge of him being framed in fake cases
Press Trust of India
Rampur (U.P.)
Samajwadi Party MPAzam Khan. * FILE PHOTO
The Opposition in Punjabhit out at the Congress government on Friday, accusing it of not having any concrete policy to fi��ght thedrugs menace prevalent inthe State.
The criticism came a dayafter the State governmentbrought back IPS offi��cerHarpreet Singh Sidhu aschief of the antidrugs Special Task Force, nearly ayear after he was removedfrom the post following reports of a tussle betweenhim and the then DGP.
Leaders of the Aam Aadmi Party, the principal Opposition, said the State government’s decision of yetagain change the STF chiefshows lack of planning andconcrete policy.
“The Congress has beenin power for over two yearsnow, yet the problem ofdrugs continues unabated.It’s time for taking decisive
action, but the governmentis busy in ‘cosmetic' movesto save its face,” said seniorparty leaders Kultar SinghSandhwan, Sadhu Singh andGurdit Singh Sekhon in ajoint statement here.
CM targetedThe leaders also took potshots at the Chief Minister.“The government shouldgive the reason why Mr. Sidhu was removed earlier andwhy now he is beingbrought back. While we donot question Mr. Sidhu’s determination towards his duty, the Chief Minister’s intentions are under cloud,”said the leaders.
Punjab BJP chief ShwaitMalik said that the purposeof setting up the STF was only to corner political opponents. “Replacing offi��cersonly proves that if anyonedoes not cooperate with thegovernment’s whim andfancies, he or she should bemoved,” he told reporters.
Opposition blasts Punjabgovt. over drugs issueQuestions Sidhu’s return as STF chief
SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
CHANDIGARH
HC stays meet to holdmunicipality trust vote KOLKATA
The High Court on Friday
stayed a meeting for holding
a vote of confidence in the
chairman of the Halisahar
Municipality on a plea by a
councillor that the provision
is being misused by the head
of the civic body to get
protection. PTI
IN BRIEF
Odisha Assembly SpeakerSurjya Narayan Patro on Friday directed Revenue andDisaster Management Minister Sudam Marndi to make astatement on the defi��cit rainfall situation in the Statewithin two days.
The Speaker gave the ruling after Leader of the Congress Legislature Party Narasingha Mishra andCongress MLA SantoshSingh Saluja expressed concern over the defi��cit rainfallin Bolangir district. Both theleaders are from diff��erentconstituencies in Bolangir.
Mr. Saluja said one farmer’s death by suicide due tocrop loss in the Sadar blockof the Bolangir district thisweek has already been reported.
All the blocks of the district were facing droughtlike situation, he added.
Delayed actionMr. Mishra also blamed theState government for delaying action to tackle the situation thus arising.
The State governmenthad been falsely claimingthat 33% of the cultivableland in Bolangir had assuredirrigation, he said.
Mr. Mishra also demanded fi��nancial assistance forthe farmer who had died inBolangir due to loss of hiskharif crop.
On Thursday, ruling BijuJanata Dal MLA Ananta Dasfrom Bhograi had alsoclaimed that a droughtlikesituation was prevailing incoastal Balasore district.
At least 17 of the 30 districts in the State have recorded defi��cit rainfall so far,according to weather experts. As a result, agricultural operations have beenbadly hit in many parts ofthe State, including districtsof Jagatsinghpur and Jajpur.
Odisha Speaker directs Revenue Minister Sudam Marndi
Special Correspondent
BHUBANESWAR
‘Make statement on defi��cit rainfall’
Terming the BJP and the RSScasteist outfi��ts, Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati onFriday asked the former party to make public the sourceof funds deposited in itsbank accounts during theelection.
“The BJP and the RSS arecasteist outfi��ts that do notwant to see people of the deprived sections progress ineducation and business,”the BSP chief said here.
The former Uttar PradeshChief Minister’s remarkscame a day after the IncomeTax Department attached a‘benami’ commercial plotworth ₹��400 crore in Noidabelonging to her brotherand his wife.
The BSP president said after coming to power underNarendra Modi and AmitShah, the BJP had boughtproperties worth millions ofrupees. “From where hasthis money come to the BJP?Why are the BJP and the RSSafraid of giving their account? Is this massivewealth not BJP’s benamiproperty,” she asked.
The BSP chief said whentheir own people becamewealthy overnight, they hadno problem but they couldnot tolerate it when people
from the deprived sectionsprogressed, especially in business.
She said the BJP usedpower and government machinery against them toserve its casteist rivalry. Shesaid the BJP had not madepublic the source of ₹��2,000crore deposited in its accounts during the election.“It is not clear who gave themoney and everyone wantsto know its source. Is itbenami?”
“This money was used toinfl��uence voters from thepoor and deprived sectionsduring the election. All areaware of it,” Ms. Mayawatiadded.
Warning that the attemptto crush the voice of the deprived people would notsucceed, Ms. Mayawati saidthe BSP was with them.
On the attachment proceedings against Ms. Mayawati’s brother, U.P. DeputyCM Dinesh Sharma said,“The government will notact against anyone in a prejudiced manner. There willbe an impartial and transparent probe.”
Mayawati asks BJP toreveal source of funds‘BJP, RSS casteistoutfi��ts, don’t wantdeprived peopleto progress’
Press trust of India
Lucknow
Mayawati * FILE PHOTO
Ishrat Jahan, a petitioner inthe triple talaq case, on Friday claimed that she had notreceived police protectiondespite her representationearlier this week allegingthreat to her life.
She also alleged that herlandlord was exerting pressure on her to move out ofher house.
In a complaint lodged atGolabari police station inHowrah on Wednesday, Ms.Jahan had accused her landlord and brotherinlaw ofabusing her and threateningto kill her for attending a‘Hanuman Chalisa’ recital ina hijab. She also alleged thatthe two had threatened tothrow her out of her houseand had sought policeprotection.
“My landlord is still pressuring me to vacate thehouse... I have no place togo... I am yet to receive police protection,” Ms. Jahansaid.
The police, however, saidan offi��cer visits her housedaily to check on her. “Nopoliceman has been postedoutside her house, but an offi��cer visits her house everyday,” an offi��cer said.
No protection given: triple talaq case petitionerPress Trust of India
Kolkata
Punjab Local GovernmentMinister Brahm Mohindraon Friday held a meetingwith senior department offi��cials to take stock of thewaterlogging at many places in the State following incessant rain.
Mr. Mohindra said thatPunjab has been badly hitby torrential rain in the lastfew days. “Some of the cities of the State have asaucershaped topography,which resulted in fl��oodingas it is not possible to drainoff�� rainwater with naturalgravity,” he said.
The Minister said the department is keeping a closewatch on the ground situation. “Bathinda has beenbadly aff��ected as it received 178 mm rainfall onJuly 16, which created afl��oodlike situation. All theaccumulated water wasdrained out on July 18 andthe situation is under control,” he said.
Punjab badlyhit by heavyrain: Minister
SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
CHANDIGARH
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THE HINDU DELHI
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WEST
Amid talks of him being theShiv Sena’s contender forchief minister’s post, YuvaSena president AadityaThackeray said on Friday it isthe people who will have todecide whether he is readyfor the top job or not.
Speaking during his JanAshirwad Yatra, Mr. Thackeray said his immediate priority, however, is to listen tothe people’s voice and fulfi��lpromises made by Shiv Sena.
The 29yearold chief ofthe Shiv Sena’s youth wing ison a mass outreach programme ahead of Assemblypolls due inSeptemberOctober.
Shiv Sena’s Rajya SabhaMP Sanjay Raut, who is accompanying Mr. Thackeray,had said on Thursday thatthe Yuva Sena leader wouldbe chief minister if the postcomes to Shiv Sena.
The Shiv Sena currentlyshares power with the BJP atthe Centre and in the State.
“It is the people who will
have to decide whether I amready to occupy the post ornot. I can’t talk about it asthis is the only thing which isnot in my hand. What is inmy hand is to fulfi��l the promises the Shiv Sena makes,”Mr. Thackeray told Marathinews channels here.
The young politician, sonof Shiv Sena chief Uddhav
Thackeray, has embarked onthe yatra “to thank” thosewho voted for the party inthe recent Lok Sabha pollsand “win over hearts” ofthose who didn’t.
The Shiv Sena had won 18of the 23 Lok Sabha seats itcontested in Maharashtra.
“My fi��rst priority and dutyis to listen to the voice of the
people. Whether we are inpower or not, the Shiv Senais the only party whichstands with the people allthe time,” he said.
During an interactive session with students at a citycollege, organised as part ofthe yatra, a student askedMr. Thackeray if he wouldlike to be the education minister to solve the academicproblems faced by youngsters. To this he said, “Yes.The home ministry is considered as the most importantdepartment in the country.But equally important is theeducation department if wewere to look at the future. Idefi��nitely would like to workin that department,” headded.
He pitched for encouraging research and innovationin the country.
The yatra, which will cover four districts of northMaharashtra, was launchedin Jalgaon on Thursday andwill cover Nashik and Ahmednagar districts over thenext two days.
People will decide if I am readyto be chief minister: Aaditya Says Shiv Sena is the only party which stands with the people all the time
Yuva Sena president Aaditya Thackeray interacting withcollege students at Jaihind College in Dhule on Friday, thesecond day of his Janadesh yatra. * SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
Press Trust of India
Dhule
Eleven years after thebruised body of British teenager was found at the Anjuna beach here, the HighCourt of Bombay at Goa onFriday sentenced a shackworker to 10 years rigorousimprisonment.
A Division Bench of Justices R.D. Dhanuka and Prithviraj Chavan had held SamsonD’Souza guilty on July 17 for“culpable homicide notamounting to murder” andmolestation, among othercharges.
The Bench had overturned the verdict of GoaChildren’s Court which hadacquitted D’Souza. It however upheld the acquittal ofthe second accused PlacidoCarvalho.
The 15yearold victim,who was holidaying in Goawith her mother and siblings, was found dead onthe popular beach on February 18, 2008. The cause ofdeath, according to the autopsy report, was drowning.
Initial investigation wasconducted by Goa Police.However, the victim’s mother alleged that the probe was“shabby”. The State then
handed over the case to theCentral Bureau ofInvestigation.
D’Souza, who worked at abeachside shack, and Carvalho, a suspected drugdealer, were fi��rst arrested,based on witness accounts,by Goa Police.
The CBI named both in itscharge sheet, claiming theydrugged the girl and sexually abused her. Trial courtjudge Vandana Tendulkaracquitted them in 2016,which the CBI challenged.
The high court two daysago held D’Souza guilty under IPC Sections 328 (for administering drugs), 354 (outraging modesty), 304
(culpable homicide notamounting murder) and 201(destruction of evidence)and for child abuse undersection 8 (2) of the Goa Children’s Act.
D’Souza was present inthe courtroom on Friday.His lawyer sought a stay tothe sentence for 12 weeks sothat he could fi��le an appealin the Supreme Court.
The Bench rejected theplea. D’Souza was sent tojudicial custody and will beshifted to a prison at Colvalein North Goa district.
Senior lawyer Vikram Varma, who represented thevictim’s mother, said justicehas been fi��nally delivered.
Press Trust of India
Panaji
Policemen escorting Samson D'Souza from court in Panaji onFriday after he was sentenced for 10 years for the rape andmurder of a British teenager in 2008. * AFP
Beach shack worker gets 10 yearsfor rape, murder of British teen
The Bombay High Court onFriday dismissed a petitionseeking a ban on the phrase‘Alibaug se aaya hai kya?’,observing that there wasnothing derogatory in it andit should not be taken as ahumiliation.
As per the plea, the
phrase is commonly used inMaharashtra to address someone who is consideredfoolish or naive.
A Division Bench of ChiefJustice Pradeep Nandrajogand Justice N.M. Jamdar dismissed the public interest litigation (PIL) fi��led by Rajendra Thakur, a resident ofAlibaug.
“Jokes are made on everycommunity...SantaBanta jokes...Madrasi jokes andjokes on north Indians. Havefun... don’t get humiliated,”Chief Justice Nandrajog said.
“We do not fi��nd anythingderogatory in this,” theBench added.
In his plea, Mr. Thakursaid that the phrase is “unfair and humiliating” as it
projected people of Alibaugas illiterates.
Mr. Thakur’s plea statesthat Alibaug is a welltodoplace, a major tourist attraction, and that it has severalgood schools and a high literacy rate. It also says that Alibaug has a rich culture andhistory.
“Alibaug is bestowed withnature with scenic beauty. Inspite of having such a richbackground fi��lled with history, culture, industry, tourism, medical facilities, nature and education, it is
highly objectionable to ridicule the people of Alibaug byprojecting them as ‘illiterate’who do not have commonsense,” the plea said.
Mr. Thakur had urged thecourt to direct State authorities to get public refrainfrom making such acomment.
He had also urged thecourt to ensure that fi��lms,documentaries, TV serials,among others, that have theabove phrase as part of itsdialogue, are not grantedcensor certifi��cate.
HC junks plea seeking ban on ‘Alibaug se aaya hai kya?’ Have fun... don’tget humiliated,says Chief Justice
Press Trust of India
Mumbai
A case of cheating has beenregistered by police inChinchwad town near hereagainst a couple for allegedly duping chairman ofBVG group Hanmant Gaikwad of over ₹��16 crore.
Mr. Gaikwad (46) lodgeda complaint on Fridayagainst Vinod Jadhav andhis wife Suvarna Jadhav,who allegedly own severalfi��rms.
In the complaint, Mr.Gaikwad said that in 2011the couple persuaded himand his wife to invest over₹��16 crore in their fi��rms SavaMedica, Biodeal Laboratories and Anagha Pharma,promising high returns.
“Gaikwad allegedly didnot get the assured returnsand felt duped, so he approached police. We haveregistered a case under IPCsections 406 (criminalbreach of trust) and 420(cheating),” said an offi��cialattached to the Chinchwadpolice station.
Nobody has been arrested in the case, he added.
Businessmanfrom Punefi��les cheatingcomplaint Press Trust of India
Pune
CMYK
M ND-NDE
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DELHI THE HINDU
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SOUTH
‘Mohanlal secured ivoryownership certifi��cate’ KOCHI
The Kerala Forest
Department has informed the
Kerala High Court that
though it was found during
an inquiry that actor
Mohanlal and others were in
illegal possession of two
pairs of ivories, the
investigation officer did not
submit the inquiry report
before the magistrate court
due to subsequent issue of
ownership certificate for
them by the government.
IN BRIEF
Narrow escape forpassengers at ReniguntaTIRUPATI
As many as 40 passengers of
a private bus, travelling from
Visakhapatnam to Bengaluru,
had a narrow escape when
the bus tilted while stopping
at a coffee kiosk, near the
Renigunta checkpost on
Friday. CCTV footage showed
the driver was making a sharp
curve. The vehicle swerved to
its left and tilted sidewards. It
could have overturned, but
leaned on a cargo vehicle
parked next to it.
Cardinal’s supportersdraw flak from forumKOCHI
The Archdiocesan Movement
for Transparency (AMT) treats
with contempt statements of
All Kerala Catholic Congress
and KCBC Laity Commission,
belittling the relay hunger
strike against Cardinal George
Alencherry, launched on
Thursday by the priests of the
ErnakulamAngamaly
Archdiocese of the Syro
Malabar Church, AMT general
secretary Riju Kanjookaran
said on Thursday. Those
treating the strike with
disdain could be among the
beneficiaries of the land deal
involving the archdiocese, he
said.
Journey halted: Fishermen unloading nets from a boat after rough seas forced it to return to the Vizhinjam harbour inThiruvananthapuram, Kerala. Seven fi��shermen have gone missing since Wednesday. Heavy rain on Friday claimed two lives. TheMet Depatment has issued a red alert for most of the districts as rain is expected to continue till Tuesday. * S. GOPAKUMAR
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Sea power
The Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly witnessedpandemonium over the Polavaram project on Friday.The ruling YSR Congress Party and Opposition TeluguDesam Party (TDP) got into aheated argument on the issue.
TDP protestsTDP members were on theirfeet all through QuestionHour, demanding a “properreply” to their queries. Several attempts made bySpeaker Tammineni Sitaramto placate them went in vain.Ignoring the obstruction, theSpeaker went ahead with theagenda. TDP members, however, chose to continue the
protest instead of participating in a discussion on thequestions raised by them.
Intervening, Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddysaid the expert committeeconstituted by the government would reveal the shoddy and corrupt deals in con
tracts relating to thePolavaram project. The committee was examining thecontracts in detail. “The project turned out to be full ofscams. The rates were enhanced and the contractswere awarded to close associates of TDP ministers andChandrababu Naidu in thename of subcontracts and[on] nomination basis,” healleged.
According to preliminaryestimates, the savings wouldbe at least 15%20%, Mr. Jagan claimed, and on worksworth ₹��6,500 crore, the government could save ₹��1,500crore. Reverse tenderingwould be undertaken oncethe expert committee submitted its report, he said.Prequalifi��cation criterion
would be relaxed so that many fi��rms could participate inthe tenders, the CM added.
‘Wrong priorities’Mr. Jagan further said theprevious government shouldbe held responsible for thedelay in the progress of theworks. Wrong priorities hadimpacted progress and fourmonths were lost, he alleged. The government, however, was committed tocompleting the Polavaramproject by 2021, and workswould begin by November,he said.
Water Resources MinisterP. Anil Kumar said only3,900 of 1.06 lakh displacedfamilies had been rehabilitated during the TDP’s fi��veyear tenure in the State.
Pandemonium over Polavaram project Andhra CM tells Assembly that previous government was responsible for delay
Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy
Staff Reporter
AMARAVATI
Revolutionary writer Varavara Rao’s wife P. Hemalata demanded better facilities forthe former in Yerawada Central Prison of Pune, as he isbeing allegedly kept underpathetic jail conditions.
According to her, 79yearold Varavara Rao is beingforced to sleep on the fl��oorand not provided adequatefacilities, including a cot andchair. “After repeated appeals, the prison offi��cialshave installed a ceiling fan inhis barrack in the end ofsummer, which had a switchoutside,” she said.
On Friday, Ms. Hemalatawrote to Maharashtra Governor Ch. Vidyasagar Rao asking him to intervene in the
matter and direct the government to provide basicamenities to her septuagenarian husband, keeping inview his age and deteriorating health.
Addressing a press confe
rence on Friday, she saidthat Mr. Varavara Rao, a Telugu poet and lecturer forthe past six decades, is beingdenied to read or write in hismother tongue, Telugu.“The prison staff�� has allowed him books only in English. We request the government to let him read Telugubooks and newspapers,” shesaid.
Mr. Varavara Rao andeight others, including civilrights activist Sudha Bhardwaj and Sudhir Dhawale,were arrested by Pune policelast year for allegedly plotting to assassinate Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Theyare also accused in a case related to the BhimaKoregaonviolence in Maharashtra in2017.
“I came to know throughthe media that Varavara Raoand his eight coaccused hadwritten a letter to you (Mr.Vidyasagar Rao) and waitingfor your response for the lastone month. However, neither did I get any responsefrom the media nor wasthere any improvement inthe conditions in Pune jail.That’s why I chose to write toyou once again,” Ms. Hemalata said in her letter. She reminded the Maharashtra Governor of his associationwith Mr. Varavara Rao during the Emergency days inprisons.
Over 30 people, includingeducationalists, poets, writers, journalists and socialactivists hadextended theirsupport in the letter.
‘Varavara Rao kept under pathetic condition’ Wife writes to Maharashtra Governor again, demands better facilities in prison
Varavara Rao
STAFF REPORTER
HYDERABD
The Brindavana of Sri Vyasaraja Tirtha that was destroyed early on Wednesdayby suspected treasure hunters was rebuilt by devoteeson the same spot at NavaBrindavana at Anegondi inKarnataka on Friday. A teamfrom Vellore, Tamil Nadu,helped in reconstructing theBrindavana. Employees ofthe Archaeological Survey ofIndia assisted architect Neeraj in the reconstruction andrestoration. The reconstruction was initiated on a warfooting on Thursday soon after Sri Vidya Shreesha Tirthaof Sosale Vyasaraja Muttrushed to the spot fromMysuru.
“The actual grave of SriVyasaraja Tirtha is intact.
Only the superfi��cial stonestructure on the grave is destroyed. It is a matter of relieffor all of us that the miscreants could not reach theactual grave,” Sri Vishwesha
Tirtha of Pejawar Mutt saidin Gangavati.
After the reconstruction,the seers performed ritualsto restore the sanctity ofBrindavana.
It was destroyed by suspected treasure hunters
Staff Reporter
KOPPAL
Restoring sanctity: Sri Vidya Shreesha Tirtha of SosaleVyasaraja Mutt off��ering puja to the Brindavana of SriVyasaraja Tirtha after it was reconstructed. * RACHAIAH S.S.
Brindavana of VyasarajaTirtha rebuilt in Karnataka
Governor P. Sathasivamsummoned ViceChancellorof Kerala University V.P. Mahadevan Pillai to the Raj Bhavan on Friday in connectionwith the scandal surrounding the alleged use of stolenanswer sheets by leaders ofthe Students Federation ofIndia (SFI) to cheat in theexaminations.
Offi��cials said the Governor, who is the Chancellor,sought an explanation fromMr. Pillai at the onetoonecloseddoor meeting.
Mr. Pillai purportedlybriefed the Governor aboutthe progress of the varsity’sprobe to trace the provenance of the answer sheets.He is also believed to have
explained the steps taken sofar to fi��x accountability andelaborated on the measuresconsidered by the universityto prevent such anomalies infuture.
An offi��cial said the Governor made a rare break withuniversity customs by summoning Mr. Pillai directly.
The police had chancedupon the stolen answerbooks during their raid onthe house of SFI leader Sivarenjith last week.
He is the main accused ina case relating to the nearfatal knife attack on UniversityCollege student Akhil Chandran on July 12.
Governor summons KeralaUniversity ViceChancellorSpecial Correspondent
Thiruvananthapuram
The police on Friday saidthey retrieved the penknifeused in the nearfatal attackon University Collegestudent Akhil Chandran onJuly 12.
Investigators recovered
the weapon from under apile of dry leaves near anopen stage the StudentsFederation of India (SFI)had expropriated as its unitcommittee offi��ce.
The Kerala campusviolence had occurredduring a recess.
Police recover penknife Special Correspondent
Thiruvananthapuram
A sevenyearold boy, Pavan, studying in the government school at Pothukunta in Anantapur districtwas bitten by a snake. He isfi��ghting for life in a hospital. The incident took placewhen he went out of theschool compound to answer nature’s call.
The incident happenedthree days ago, but thematter was allegedly suppressed by the school authorities. When he was admitted to the paediatricward of the GovernmentGeneral Hospital in Anantapur, the matter came tolight. The doctors saidwhen the boy was broughtto the hospital he was unable to open his eyelidsand this would happen only when the venom enteredthe nerves. He was put on aventilator and was beingtreated with best possiblemedicines, but he was stillunconscious, doctors said.
Schoolboybitten bysnake in A.P.
Special Correspondent
ANANTAPUR
In a major benefi��t to the urban poor under the New Telangana Municipalities Act,2019, Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Raoannounced in the State Assembly that no municipalapproval was needed forconstruction of Ground plus1 houses in plots of up to 75sq. yards.
Home owners will have topay just ₹��1 for registrationand ₹��100 as property tax tobring them on municipalrolls for house numbers andprovision of water connection and other civic amenities. The government, hesaid, also proposed to givenew door numbers to allhouses with ‘QR’ code in theState for safety and security.
As part of citizenfriendlyurban governance, one neednot go to a municipal offi��cefor building construction
permissions in an area up to500 sq m and 10 m of height.Online permission will be given automatically if everydocument is in order withinstipulated time or it will bedeemed approved.
The Act brought in heavypenalties for violations ofthe rules. For property tax,online self certifi��cation willbe enough but if the fl��yingsquads led by Collector detect any discrepancy, thenthe property owner will beslapped with a penalty of 25times the accurate amount.
Signifi��cantly, the Act hasstrict provisions for demolition of illegal constructionswithout notice.
Another major feature isthat layout approvals withselfcertifi��cation will be given by the Collector who isgiven ample powers of regulation by the Act to rid theState of land mafi��a and illegal layouts. Common spacesin a layout for roads, parksshould be registered to themunicipality before fi��nallayout approval is given.
“I am there in every sentence of the Act draftedwithout aff��ecting the spiritof the Constitution,” said Mr.Rao, explaining the Actwhich has provisions inplace to bring about transparency, remove corruptionfor issuing birth, death andother bonafi��de certifi��cates,and reduce human interference in sanctioning approvals and permissions.
Municipal approval not neededfor houses of urban poorNew rules will bring about transformation in Telangana: KCR
Special Correspondent
HYDERABAD
K. Chandrasekhar Rao
DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD
Karnataka Chief MinisterH.D. Kumaraswamy used thedebate on the confi��dencemotion moved by him as anopportunity to insist that hewas “not clinging on to power” and narrated the political ordeals he has had to endure since he came to headthe coalition government in2006 and during the Opposition BJP’s recent attempts totopple the present coalitiongovernment.
Mr. Kumaraswamy saidthat 14 months of the JD(S)Congress coalition was nowapproaching its fi��nal stage.He reiterated that he was notinterested in offi��cial positions and it was the Congressthat had urged him to become Chief Minister after thefractured mandate in 2018.
Political turbulence“Power is not permanent.Power comes and goes,” Mr.Kumaraswamy said. “TheBJP may have won 303 seatstoday. But I would like to remind the BJP that the late Rajiv Gandhi had won a mandate with more than 400seats. But what happened later? Let them not assumepower is permanent,” hesaid.
Recalling episodes of political turbulence during the20082013 BJP government,he said it was the BJP thatstarted a new chapter in theState’s history by gettingMLAs to resign to circumvent the antidefection law.Arguing that it only led to instability in the BJP government, he said: “I want to seehow stable a governmentyou will give after all this exercise.” Alleging that the BJPhad been making attempts totopple the coalition government from day one, theChief Minister said: “You arehaving a good time now, butit’s temporary. You will alsoface trouble in future.”
He sought a detailed debate on the allegations theOpposition had madeagainst his government, andthe manner in which the BJP
had systematically been circumventing the antidefection law and thereby our democracy. “It needs to berecorded for posterity,” hesaid.
He insisted that thereshould not be a sense of urgency in the voting on thetrust vote. He recalled thatthe former Prime MinisterA.B. Vajpayee took 10 days todebate and put the motion ofconfi��dence to vote in 1999.“Why such a big hurrynow?” he asked.
Responding to allegationsthat the government was effecting transfers before hehad proved that he enjoyedthe confi��dence of the House,the Chief Minister said hehad not taken any policy decisions. The government wasstill in offi��ce and transferswere regular business.
‘I am not clinging on to power’Karnataka Chief Minister narrates his ordeal as head of the coalition government
Special Correspondent
Bengaluru
Karnataka Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy and Deputy CMG. Parameshwara at the Assembly session. * K. MURALI KUMAR
Charges of horsetradingdominated the KarnatakaAssembly proceedings inthe fi��rst half of the day onFriday, with legislators ofthe governing JD(S)Congress coalition making serious allegations againstBJP leaders, accusing themof buying MLAs to destabilise the government.
Srinivas Gowda, JD(S)MLA for Kolar, made apointed allegation that theBJP off��ered him ₹��5 crore.“Malleswaram MLA C.N.Ashwath Narayan, Yelahanka MLA S.R. Vishwanath, and former MLA C.P.Yogeshwar came to myhouse and off��ered ₹��5 croreto cross over. I refused andsaid I am not a person whocan be bribed. Now, theyare off��ering me ₹��30 crore.If they say it is false, I willprove it is otherwise. Iwant to ask them if peoplevoted for us to be purchased with money,” hesaid.
Charge of‘₹��5 crore off��er’creates furore
Special Correspondent
Bengaluru
I Monetary Advisory (IMA)Group founder and managing director MohammedMansoor Khan, accused ofcheating investors of over₹��2,500 crore, was arrestedby the Enforcement Directorate (ED) after he landed atthe Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi fromDubai early on Friday. TheSpecial Investigation Team(SIT) set up by the Karnataka
government said in a statement that it tracked Khan toDubai after he fl��ed the country on June 8. It then persuaded him to return to India and submit himselfbefore the law, said the statement. Police offi��cials expectthe ED to present Khan in alocal court before bringinghim to Bengaluru on Saturday.
Khan fl��ed the city a daybefore a complaint was fi��ledagainst him, leaving behind
an audio clip in which hethreatened to commit suicide, apart from accusingpoliticians of borrowing money from him.
As the furore over thecase increased, he releasedanother video where he offered to return to India andcooperate with the probe.
The IMA is accused of running a ponzi scheme that defrauded thousands by promising them returns of over50%.
IMA founder Mansoor returns, held by ED
Mohammed Mansoor Khan
Staff Reporter
Bengaluru
In a fi��rst, women personnel of the CentralReserve Police Force(CRPF) who have toface riotous mobs willsoon get a body gearthat fi��ts them.
Since Independence, the women per
sonnel had to compromisewith bulky, oversized bodyprotectors designed for men.Around 300 women CRPFpersonnel posted in Srinagarto control the stonepeltingincidents are to benefi��t fromthese gears, a CRPF offi��cialsaid.
The full body protectorhas been designed by a teamof scientists of the Defence
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THE HINDU DELHI
SATURDAY, JULY 20, 2019 9EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
CMYK
NATION
Weather WatchRainfall, temperature & air quality in select metros yesterday
Temperature Data: IMD, Pollution Data: CPCB, Map: INSAT/IMD (Taken at 18.00 Hrs)
Forecast for Saturday: Heavy to very heavy rainfall likely at isolated places over Kerala, Mahe, Karnataka, Lakshadweep, Konkan,Goa, Vidarbha, east Rajasthan, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Gujarat, Marathawada, coastal Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, centralMaharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Karaikal
city rain max min city rain max min
Agartala............. 6.4....34.2....26.5 Kozhikode............. 146.0....26.4....23.0
Ahmedabad ........... —....39.1....28.4 Kurnool ....................... —....36.5....25.2
Aizawl.............. 20.0....29.3....21.5 Lucknow...................... —....37.3....28.6
Allahabad.............. —....39.5....29.0 Madurai ....................... —....38.6....27.3
Bengaluru .......... 1.0....28.4....21.6 Mangaluru ................ 6.9....28.6....24.1
Bhopal .................. —....35.0....25.4 Mumbai .................... 1.6....36.2....26.6
Bhubaneswar.... 12.5........ —....26.7 Mysuru ........................ —....31.0....21.4
Chandigarh......... 0.1....31.5....27.4 New Delhi................. 3.6....36.4....25.0
Chennai................. —....34.2....28.6 Patna........................ 4.0....37.6....28.4
Coimbatore ........... —....32.2....23.4 Port Blair.................. 0.3....32.4....25.4
Dehradun .............. —....33.0....23.6 Puducherry .................. —....34.1....26.6
Gangtok ............. 7.6....24.0....18.0 Pune............................ —....33.3....22.4
Goa.................... 4.6....29.4....23.8 Raipur .................... 13.3....36.6....24.8
Guwahati .............. —....35.0....27.2 Ranchi ......................... —....33.2....24.0
Hubballi ................ —....27.0....22.0 Shillong .................... 1.2....25.1....16.9
Hyderabad ............ —....35.0....25.2 Shimla ...................... 2.4....20.2....16.5
Imphal .................. —....34.4....17.5 Srinagar.................... 3.1....29.3....17.4
Jaipur ................... —....35.8....25.6 Thiruvananthapuram.... 29.1....27.6....23.0
Kochi ............... 90.0....27.0....23.8 Tiruchi...................... 3.2....38.5....26.6
Kohima ............ 12.4....25.0....17.4 Vijayawada ............. 64.2....36.7....25.5
Kolkata ................. —....35.8....28.6 Visakhapatnam........... 5.8....34.2....27.0
(Rainfall data in mm; temperature in Celsius)
Pollutants in the air you are breathing Yesterday
CITIES SO2 NO2 CO PM2.5 PM10 CODE
In observation made at 4.00p.m., Loni Dehat, UttarPradesh recorded an overallair quality index (AQI) scoreof 247 indicating anunhealthy level of pollution.In contrast, Haldia, WestBengal recorded a healthyAQI score of 23
Ahmedabad..... 105 134 67 ... 70 .....— ....*
Bengaluru ....... ...9 .64 89 ... 45 .104 ....*
Chennai .......... .11 .32 55 ... 87 .....— ....*
Delhi .............. .18 .51 57 . 106 .298 ....*
Hyderabad ...... .46 .33 16 ... 81 .114 ....*
Kolkata........... ...2 .17 .7 ... 39 ...43 ....*
Lucknow ......... ...4 .29 50 . 172 .....— ....*
Mumbai .......... .13 .17 .9 ... 43 .120 ....*
Pune............... .68 ...8 67 ... 68 ...68 ....*
Visakhapatnam .12 .58 53 . 103 ...97 ....*
Air Quality Code: * Poor * Moderate * Good (Readings indicate average AQI)
SO2: Sulphur Dioxide. Short-term exposure can harm the respiratory system,
making breathing difficult. It can affect visibility by reacting with other air
particles to form haze and stain culturally important objects such as statues
and monuments.
NO2: Nitrogen Dioxide. Aggravates respiratory illness, causes haze to form by
reacting with other air particles, causes acid rain, pollutes coastal waters.
CO: Carbon monoxide. High concentration in air reduces oxygen supply to
critical organs like the heart and brain. At very high levels, it can cause
dizziness, confusion, unconsciousness and even death.
PM2.5 & PM10: Particulate matter pollution can cause irritation of the eyes,
nose and throat, coughing, chest tightness and shortness of breath, reduced
lung function, irregular heartbeat, asthma attacks, heart attacks and premature
death in people with heart or lung disease
India, China to have jointexercise in DecemberNEW DELHI
The annual joint army
exercise between India and
China will be held in
December at Umroi, near
Shillong. “The twoweek long
companylevel exercise will
take place in the second half
of December. The planning
conference to finalise the
modalities will be held in
August,” said an Army source.
ED attaches assets ofDevas Multimedia NEW DELHI
The Enforcement Directorate
(ED) has attached movable
assets worth ₹��3.1 crore of
Devas Multimedia Private
Limited in a case of alleged
illegal agreement with Antrix
Corporation, the commercial
arm of the Indian Space
Research Organisation (ISRO).
It had earlier attached assets
worth ₹��79.76 crore in the
same case.
A Pakistani woman has fi��ledan appeal in the Punjab andHaryana High Court againstthe acquittal of all accused,including former RashtriyaSwayamsevak Sangh (RSS)member Aseemanand, inthe 2007 Samjhauta Expressblast case.
Sixtyeight people, including 10 Indians, werekilled in the terror attack.
The accused were acquitted by a special NIA court inPanchkula on March 20.The court had said: “NIAmiserably failed to prove thecharges framed against theaccused.”
The appellant Rahila Wa
kil, 35, is the daughter ofMohammad Vakil, a Pakistani who was killed in the attack on the Samjhauta Express near Panipat, whenthe train was on its wayfrom Delhi to Lahore.
Ms. Wakil fi��led the appealthrough her maternal uncleMahroof, a resident ofShamli in Uttar Pradesh.
Pakistan woman fi��les plea in HC
special correspondent
New Delhi
Aseemanand
Appeal to reopen
Samjhauta case fi��led
The Supreme Court on Friday asked the AttorneyGeneral of India to be served acopy of a writ petition fi��ledby advocate Ashwini Upadhyay, who is seeking directions to the government toeither frame guidelines foridentifi��cation of minoritiesat the States’ level or, in thealternative, to “declare Hindus as ‘Minority’ in Stateswhere they are a realminority”.
A Bench, led by Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi,
was hearing the petitioner,represented by senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, challenging a notifi��cation issuedon October 23, 1993 underthe “unbridled powers” ofSection 2(c) of the NationalCommission for MinoritiesAct of 1992.
The petition said the October 1993 notifi��cation declared Muslims, Christians,Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsisas ‘Minority’ communitywithout conducting any study, research or homework.
Plea to frame guidelines on identifying ‘minorities’SC asks AG to be served copy of advocate’s writ petition
Legal Correspondent
NEW DELHI
Ashwini Upadhyay
Institute of Physiology andAllied Sciences (DIPAS), aunit of the Defence Researchand Development Organisation (DRDO).
Dr. Bhuvnesh Kumar, Director, DIPAS said, “The gearcovers all soft parts of human body such as ribcage,back of the arm, inner calf,thigh and groin area of females deployed in riot control.”
Scientist Dr. Shweta Rawat, who led the designingteam, said anthropometricdata was used to design thethe gears which ensure protection of vital organs ofwomen.
“The gear is antistab, antiacid. The prototype hasbeen tested and soon we will
go for mass production. Itwill increase the effi��ciency ofwomen as the protectors being used earlier were designed for men and the easeof operation was lacking,”said Anupam Kulshreshtha,IG, CRPF.
Ms. Kulshreshtha addedthat the idea for genderspecifi��c protective gears wasfi��rst mooted at the NationalConference for Women in2016.
“It will be available in all
sizes and the material used isthe same as that used in malebody protectors. It will ensure better mobility. It has also paved the path for furtherresearch and developmentin the fi��eld of womenspecific body armours and vests,”said Moses Dhinakaran, DIGand spokesperson, CRPF.
Another offi��cial said oncethe mass production starts,the gears will be available forother central armed policeforces and State police forcesalso. It will weigh around 6kg.
Around 8,000 women deployed in the antiriot RapidAction Force (RAF) will getthe body protectors. TheCRPF is likely to place an order for 9,000 such pieces.
Women in CRPF will soon getspecially designed body gear Idea fi��rst mooted in 2016; they have been using gear designed for men
<> The gear is anti-stab,
anti-acid. The
prototype has been
tested
Anupam Kulshreshtha
IG, CRPF
Vijaita Singh
New Delhi
The Southwest monsoonhas fi��nally covered thewhole country, the IndiaMeteorological Department(IMD) said in a statement onFriday. That makes it fourdays behind its normal schedule of July 15.
“Due to favourable monsoon circulations, there hasbeen light to moderate rainfall with isolated heavy fallsover West Rajasthan duringthe past 24 hours. Thus, theSouthwest monsoon hasfurther advanced into re
maining parts of West Rajasthan and hence covered theentire country today,” theIMD said in a release.
This year, the southwestmonsoon set over Kerala onJune 8, against its normaldate of June 1. The delay andthe eff��ect of cyclone Vayusubstantially delayed themonsoon’s advance intosouth, central and east Indiaand led toa defi��cit of about33%.
Rainfall has been signifi��cantly below normal insouth India, with the shortfall at almost 27%.
Monsoon now coversentire country, says IMD Cyclone Vayu delayed advancement
SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
NEW DELHI
Hari Singh’s birthday tobe a holiday in J&KSRINAGAR
In a rare move, the Jammu
Municipal Corporation has
passed a resolution to
declare the birth anniversary
of Dogra monarch Maharaja
Hari Singh on September 23
as a State holiday, days after
the State paid tributes to
people killed during his rule
in 1931 in the Valley.
IN BRIEF
Pilot suspended fortransmitting hijack codeNEW DELHI
The DGCA on Friday
suspended an AirAsia India
pilot for a period of three
months for erroneously
transmitting the ‘hijack code’
to the Air Traffic Services
during a DelhiSrinagar flight
on June 9. “Capt. Ravi Raj was
supposed to transmit the
emergency code 7700 to the
ATS. Instead, he erroneously
‘squawked’ the hijack code
7500,” said sources. PTI
The National Human RightsCommission (NHRC) has issued a notice to the Gujaratgovernment, urging it to actwithin eight weeks over thedeath of a forest labourerand injuries to two others ina lion attack in the DevaliaSafari Park in the Gir forestof Junagadh last November.
Acting on a petition fi��ledby wildlife activist Ajay Dubey, the NHRC, in a letterdated July 4 and addressed
to the Secretary, State Department of Forest and Environment, directed the authorities concerned to “takeappropriate action withineight weeks associating thecomplainant/victim and inform them of the action taken in the matter”.
At noon on November 29,2018, two lions attacked Rajnish Keshwala and DineshShokhat, daily wage labourers employed by the ForestDepartment who were leading the big cats to their cage.
While the lions draggedKeshwala into the forest andkilled him, Mr. Shokhatmanaged to escape with injuries. He informed offi��cialsof the department about theincident, after which 50 foresters began a search forKeshwala, whose body wasrecovered two hours later.Another labourer, was attacked while recovering thebody. Mr. Dubey alleged thatthe park had been functioning without permission fromthe Central Zoo Authority.
Gujarat must act on Devalialion attack death, says NHRC Labourer was killed, 2 others were mauled inside safari area
Staff reporter
Bhopal
Frowning upon the practice of private medical colleges charging exorbitant fees from students gaining admission under the managementquota, as compared to those admitted under the government quota,the Madras High Court held thatthere should not be any diff��erentiation in the fee structure for studentsadmitted under the two quotas.
A Division Bench of Justices R.Subbiah and C. Saravanan said,“The only discrimination that is permissible is regarding fees that canbe charged from students admittedagainst the seats allocated under theNRI quota, which has been peggedat 15% of the total seats available inevery medical institution.”
Asserting that merit should notbe given the goby even while making admissions under the NRI quota, the judges said that the fees collected should be used only forsubsidising education of studentsfrom economically weaker sections.
Orders refund
Sounding a note of caution on thepossibility of medical institutionsmisusing the NRI quota to make money, the Bench suggested that eitherthe Assembly could pass a law to
regulate such admissions or the government could issue executive instructions on the subject.
“So long as the State does not doit, it will be for the fee fi��xation committees, constituted pursuant to thedirections of the Supreme Court inthe Islamic Academy of Educationcase in 2003, to regulate,” the judges clarifi��ed, while ordering two private medical colleges in Puducherryto refund excess fees collected fromstudents.
Authoring the judgment, JusticeSaravanan said that the need forconstitution of fee fi��xation committees, headed by retired High Courtjudges, in every State and UnionTerritory of the country had arisenon account of the tendency of private colleges to charge exorbitantfees in their quest to commercialisehigher education and generateprofi��ts.
“Higher fee amount can be collected only from students admittedfrom the NRI quota and such excessmoney collected from those students can be used for subsidisingthe fees of students coming from theeconomically weaker sections of society. Once fee is fi��xed, approved bythe committee concerned and notifi��ed, it cannot be tampered with,”they concluded.
Management quota studentscan’t be charged more: HC‘Higher fees applicable only to NRI category’
Mohamed Imranullah S.
CHENNAI
The Tamil Nadu governmenttold the Assembly on Fridaythat it opposed the provisionin the National Medical Commission (NMC) Bill proposing a common fi��nalyearMBBS exam, to be known asNational Exit Test (NEXT),for admission to postgraduate medical courses.
In his reply to the issueraised by DMK presidentand Leader of the Opposition M.K. Stalin in theHouse, Health Minister C. Vijayabaskar said the State government favoured NEXTonly for candidates whocompleted their undergrad
uate medical courses in foreign countries.
He said some of the provisions in the Bill went againstthe federal principles andrights of States.
The decision of the UnionCabinet on the NMC Bill,which, among others, proposed NEXT was yet to becommunicated to the Stategovernment, Dr. Vijayabaskar said and added that theruling AIADMK and the Opposition DMK were on thesame page on the issue.
The Minister recalled theAIADMK MPs’ oppositionwhen the Bill was proposedto be introduced in Parliament in 2016.
When the Centre invitedinputs from Tamil Nadu onthe proposal in 2018, theState government had givenits suggestions to the standing committee concerned.
Raising the issue in theHouse, Mr. Stalin referred tothe Union Cabinet’s approval for conducting NEXT andadded that some of the provisions of the draft NMC Billwere against the principlesof federalism and the States’rights.
As for National MedicalCommission, there has notbeen suffi��cient representation to Tamil Nadu, whichhas a large number of medical colleges, Mr. Stalin said.
AIADMK, DMK on the same page on the issue: Vijayabaskar
Special Correspondent
CHENNAI
Tamil Nadu govt. opposesNEXT for MBBS students
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DELHI THE HINDU
SATURDAY, JULY 20, 201910EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
CMYK
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EDITORIAL
Naveen P. Singh &
Ranjith P.C.
India’s dream of becoming a $5trillion economy by 2024 is nowin the open with a ‘blue sky’ vi
sion envisaged in the EconomicSurvey this year. The documentlays down a clear strategy to augment the growth of key sectors byshifting gears as the current economic conditions are smooth interms of macroeconomic stabilityto expand growth. However, unless there are adequate investmentreforms in primary sectors, stepstaken to augment growth in othersectors would be futile.
Investment is the keyAccording to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), insuffi��cient investment in the agriculturesector in most developing countries over the past 30 years has resulted in low productivity andstagnant production.
In India, with a steadily decreasing share of 14.4% in Gross ValueAdded since 201516, the sector’scontribution to a $5trillion economy would be around $1 trillion —assuming a positive annual growthrate hereafter.
Investment is the key to unlocking the potential of a developingeconomy. However, the myopic
policy regime in the past severaldecades has resulted in sluggishinvestment growth in the farm sector. Therefore, strengthening thesector with an enabling investment package (both public andprivate) is critical.
First, the wave of investmentshould touch segments such asagroprocessing, and exports,agristartups and agritourism,where the potential for job creation and capacity utilisation is farless. Integrating the existing tourism circuit with a relatively newarea of agritourism (as a hubandspoke model), where glimpses offarm staff�� and farm operations aredisplayed to attract tourists, wouldhelp in boosting the investmentcycle and generate insitu employment.
Second, investment needs to bedriven to strengthen both publicand private extension advisorysystems and the quality of agrieducation and research throughcollaboration and convergence. Itwould also serve as a stage to demonstrate resource conservationand sustainable use through organic, natural and green methods,and also zero budget natural farming.
Third, given that India has thehighest livestock population in theworld, investment should be madeto utilise this surplus by employingnextgeneration livestock technology with a strong emphasis not only on productivity enhancementbut also on conservation of indigenous germplasm, disease surveillance, quality control, waste utili
sation and value addition. Thiswould lead to a sustained increasein farm income and savings withan exportoriented growth model.
Fourth, investment in renewable energy generation (using smallwind mill and solar pumps) on fallow farmland and in hilly terrainwould help reduce the burden ofdebtridden electricity distribution companies and State governments, besides enabling energysecurity in rural areas.
Fifth, a farm business organisation is another source of routingprivate investment to agriculture.Linking these organisations withcommodity exchanges would provide agriculture commoditiesmore space on international trading platforms and reduce the burden of markets in a glut season,with certain policy/proceduralmodifi��cations.
Pivotal role for dataFinally, data is the key driver ofmodern agriculture which in turncan power artifi��cial intelligenceled agriculture, emarkets, soilmapping and others. Currently,there are issues of enumeration,maintenance and accessibility tohelp maintain agridata on various
fronts. There also needs to be acentralised institutional mechanism to help maintain farm leveldata available for real time (virtual)assessment, while also helpingplug the loopholes in subsidy distribution, funding and unrealisticassumption in production estimation. This will help in eff��ectivelyimplementing and monitoring various schemes for a pragmaticfood system.
It is widely accepted that resource conservation comes withbehavioural change, which needsdedicated investment in behavioural farm research sets. Perhapsthis would help fi��nd a way to leverage nudge policies/choice architecture for resource conservation,fertilizer use, irrigation and electricity consumption. Above all,there is a need to converge fragmented investments (public, private and foreign) to address thestructural weaknesses in the agriculture sector, enunciated in theEconomic Survey 201617.
Trickledown eff��ectThough economic transition hasseen signifi��cant growth contribution from services and industry,agriculture remains the most trusted sector in helping alleviate poverty, hunger and malnutritionand ensuring better incomedistribution.
An earlier experience of BRIC(Brazil, Russia, India and China)nations has shown that a 1%growth in agriculture is at leasttwo to three times more eff��ectivein reducing poverty than similar
growth in nonagricultural sectors. Public investment in agriculture research and development interms of percentage share in agriGVA stands at 0.37%, which is fairly low in comparison to between3% and 5% in developed countries.
Also, in real terms, current investment can create an enablingenvironment to route private investment in R&D. Therefore, public investment in agricultureshould see a commensurate risewith a healthy mix of education,research and extension encouraging ‘bluesky thinking’ in all segments, while pushing for a targeted pruning of public expenditureson subsidies, kind transfers, loanwaivers and populist measures.
Agriculture and its allied sectorsare believed to be one of the mostfertile grounds to help achieve theambitious Sustainable Developmental Goals (SDGs). However,with the current pace of agriculture growth, India requires ‘patient capital’, as fi��nancial returnsto investment are unlikely to materialise in the initial years. An inclusive business model facilitatingstrong investorfarmer relationsshould be created, with a legal andinstitutional framework for governance. Expanding institutions isessential to accommodate the developmental impacts of foreignagricultural investment.
Naveen P. Singh and Ranjith P.C. are with
the ICAR-National Institute of
Agricultural Economics and Policy
Research, New Delhi. The views expressed
are personal
Green shoots of economic growthWithout factoring in agriculture, the vision of a $5-trillion economy will remain a distant dream
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more letters online:
www.hindu.com/opinion/letters/
Afew months ago, a school
principal told me about herconversation in the morning
assembly with children of the middle (Grades VIVIII) section. Shehad asked them for suggestions toturn the school into heaven. Somechildren suggested a garden, withtrees, grass, and fl��owers blossoming all year round. Others pointedout that the school already had anice garden. They suggested thatheaven should have peace, so weshould end all fi��ghts. The assembly ended with everyone taking avow to stop all fi��ghting in theschool to make it like heaven. Ashort while later, two boys camescuffl��ing into the principal’s offi��ce,quarrelling and seeking her intervention. On inquiry, one of themsaid, “Ma’am, didn’t you say youwant our school to be like heaven?” Then he pointed at the otherboy and asked, “What is he doinghere, Ma’am? He fi��ghts with me allthe time.”
This story came back to mewhen I started reading the sectionon higher education in the 480page draft of the National Education Policy (NEP). I had completedmy reading of the section onschool education, so I was ready tobe told how a future generationthat spends its school years underthe guidance of the proposed newpolicy will spend its college years.For improvement in learning atschool, the draft NEP wants critical thinking and creativity to betreated as the cornerstones of intellectual development from earlychildhood onwards. As a term,
critical thinking or inquiry hasgained enormous popularity oflate. It does not mean ‘critical’ inthe common sense. How the termhas evolved in recent educationaltheory implies the ability to placeideas and problems in a largercontext in order to locate creativelinks and clues by using information and concepts drawn from different subjects. Imagine ouryoungsters proceeding to highereducation after this kind of intellectual training at school: you canpicture a transformed collegeclassroom.
Pivotal to reformIn the draft NEP, the section forhigher education opens with ‘liberal arts’ as the key to reform. Thisis another term that has been gaining currency in India over recentyears, but its history is rather diff��erent from that of critical thinking.In India, owing to our colonial history, we are more used to the term‘liberal’. In modern education,‘liberal arts’ refers to undergraduate courses in America’s eliteprivate universities. For years, Ihave been looking for a suitableterm in my mother tongue, i.e.Hindi, to convey the many layersof meaning underlying the word‘liberal’. The common translationis ‘udaar’ or largehearted. (I amsure this is the term they will usewhen the draft NEP is made available in Hindi.) The idea of liberalism as largeheartedness or intellectual generosity ran into troublewhen ‘neoliberalism’ gainedcentrestage in economic policy.The only way one might noticesome generosity in it was by recognising the state’s willingness toloosen its grip. Neoliberalism hasnow settled in, transcending ideological boundaries, but its impacton liberal arts education in America is far from clear. Many scholarshave suggested that the turn to
wards neoliberal policies has weakened critical thinking in liberalarts courses. This matter has suddenly become relevant for us inthe wake of the draft NEP proposing both critical thinking and liberal arts, virtually in the samebreath.
Applying critical thinkingImplementing the draft NEP in myown mind, I thought of using critical thinking to refl��ect on the prospects of liberal training. The lateProfessor Ravinder Kumar, aneminent historian of modern politics, was a selfavowed liberal. Ionce heard him explain why liberalism is the hardest social doctrineto practice. He said the capacity totolerate your adversaries, with curiosity to understand them, callsfor a mutual agreement. If there isno such consensus, i.e. liberal outlook is practised by one side only,it can be frustrating, and mighteven lead to a tragic failure of liberalism itself. When I hear aboutliberal arts courses being off��eredin private universities, I often wonder what future awaits them. Howwill they face a world in which the‘narrow domestic walls’ are risinghigher and higher? This metaphorwas used by Tagore, a bold liberal,who wanted India to become a‘heaven of freedom’. ‘Whereknowledge is free’, the same poem
said. The liberal arts undergraduate courses I am referring are tocost ₹�8 lakh per year.
The draft NEP’s support for liberal arts comes with a plea for increased public funding. It alsocites employability as a justifi��cation. Even more interestingly, theargument excavates historicalgrounding. It says: “Indian universities such as Takshshila and Nalanda... defi��nitively emphasisedthe liberal arts and liberal education tradition.... The critical Indian concept of liberal arts has indeed become extremelyimportant in the modern day employment landscape of the 21stcentury, and liberal arts educationof this kind is already being extensively implemented today (e.g. inthe United States in Ivy Leagueschools) with great success. It istime India also brought back thisgreat tradition back to its place oforigin.” (pp. 223224).
The resounding, elaborate commendation of liberal arts in thedraft NEP brought me back to theprincipal’s story about turning herschool into heaven. The boy whoasked her about his classmate —“What is he doing here, Ma’am?” —was asking a fundamental question pertinent to the future of liberal values. The youngster’s querydemonstrates that he has internalised the spirit of the age. Manychildren do that. Their questionscarry valuable material to understand our times better and moreobjectively than we might be ableto do as adults, submerged as weare in our ethos, feeling forced tocope with it. The boy’s query contained the hope that principalMa’am, being the custodian of heaven, will exercise her authority toadjudicate in his fi��ght. What wereher choices? There were mainlytwo: to expel the alleged fi��ghter orto ask the complainer to talk to hisadversary. Only the latter would
qualify as a liberal administrativemeasure.
Perhaps this is what the draftNEP also wants in its push for theliberal arts, as a futuristic substitute for the monochromatic ‘BA’our system is used to and stuck in.Since the draft NEP is committedto critical thinking, surely its writers had cast a glance at the largerethos and noticed the demise ofseveral bastions of liberal education. Had they evinced even moderate concern, their endorsementof the liberal arts would havegained credibility. Unless liberalarts graduates are to be producedexclusively for export, their training would have to include thesmartness to not let anyone knowwhat exactly you believe in. Onesuspects that their Americancounterparts already receive suchtraining.
Let me get back to the heavenalluded to in the principal’s story.Trees and peace apart, a schoolturned into heaven will surelyhave to resolve the problem offear, so endemic to our educationsystem. The boy who wanted theprincipal to adjudicate was notafraid of indicating to her his ownpreferred solution. It was impliedin the question: ‘What is he doinghere?’ This stance also carries thehope of impunity from beingcharged of intolerance. As agrownup he might say: ‘If we wantto preserve our neatly fenced heaven, why can’t we expel from it thepeople we don’t appreciate?’ Wemight add: isn’t this already beingargued in many liberal countries,so why should we hesitate? Myprincipal friend, however, followed her instinctive good senseand sent the two boys away, askingthem to talk it over and play without a quarrel together.
Krishna Kumar is a former director of the
NCERT
The NEP and liberal arts educationThe draft’s endorsement of critical thinking would have gained credibility if it had promoted liberal values
Krishna Kumar
GE
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Betrayal of verdictThe political conundrum inKarnataka, and the apexcourt’s reaction to it, comeas a disappointment to theState’s electorate (Frontpage, “Karnataka CM askedto prove majority onFriday,” July 19). Legislatorsget elected because of thebacking of their party andvoters choose a party morethan the candidate. Hence,it is unethical for MLAs toswitch loyalties midwayinto a term. To preemptsuch crises, theRepresentation of PeopleAct should be amended andthe new rule shouldstipulate that once acandidate gets elected froma given party’s ticket, hisresignation, stepping downor demise will result in theparty nominating adiff��erent member. This
would ensure that themandate given to a party isnot sabotaged by individualpoliticians and also save theexpenditure incurred inconducting bypolls.B. Sundar Raman,
Coimbatore
■ The antidefection law hasbeen often misused by somelegislators to suit theirunethical and immoralpolitical intentions. However,deleting the 10th Schedulewill amount to throwing outthe baby with the bathwater.Also, the suggestion thatlegislators who act inunscrupulous ways shouldbe voted out in subsequentelections may not work inIndia as polls are fought noton the merits of a candidatebut on extraneous factorslike caste and money power.The everincreasing numbers
of legislators with criminalrecords vindicates this point(Parley, “Does the antidefection law serve anypurpose?” July 19).The Karnataka crisis hasturned into a streetfi��ght withlegislators switching sidesand throwing barbs at eachother. The parties care lessabout what the people what;winning the crown is all thatmatters to them. TheSupreme Court’s bizarreverdict on the rebel MLAshas only come as the cherryon the cake. The commonman is left scratching hishead in baffl��ement.A.V.S. Shubhangi,
Bengaluru
ICJ reprieveThe International Court ofJustice’s directive to Pakistanto reconsider the case ofKulbhushan Jadhav can be
construed as an indictmentof Islamabad’s militarycourts and its system ofdispensing roughandreadyjustice. However, though the ICJ hashalted Mr. Jadhav’s executionpending a review of his trial,it has not entertained India’srequest for either hisacquittal or a retrial incivilian courts. Theinternational court did nothave the jurisdiction to ruleon such matters. Both thethe countries must nowmove forward and pursuediplomatic channels to bringclosure to the case.K.S. Jayatheertha,
Bengaluru
Abolish sedition lawSection 124A of the IPC,introduced by the British tocurb dissent, is a draconianprovision. It is condemnable
protecting national securityare open knowledge(Editorial page, “OIC’scurious record on Xinjiang,”July 19). The writer’sobservations on howcountries in the Organisationof Islamic Cooperation (OIC)work may have somesubstance but it won’t beappreciable for India toindulge in ‘whataboutery’.The OIC’s silence onrestrictions in Xinjiangdoesn’t absolve India of itsown responsibilities. If NewDelhi wants to get morerespect in the internationalarena, it needs to raise thebar when it comes toprotecting the human rightsof all its citizens andresidents.Bitra Raghuveer,
Mangalagiri, Andhra Pradesh
that more than 70 yearssince India’s Independence,the state is deploying it notjust to settle political scoresbut also to silence journalistswhen they report on issueslike the Maoist insurgencyand communal violence(Editorial, “Sword againstpen,” July 18). The seditionprovision is not just ananachronism in thedemocratic setup of thecountry, it also runs counterto the freedom of speech andexpression enshrined inArticle 19 1(a) of theConstitution. It is high timethe government of the dayabrogates the provision.Vijay Singh Adhikari,
Nainital, Uttarakhand
Violation of rightsThe Indian state’s violationsof human rights in Jammuand Kashmir in the name of
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
Avisceral debate on racism and immigration has
again gripped the United States, after President
Donald Trump attacked four Democratic Con
gresswomen of colour, asking them to return to the “to
tally broken and crime infested places from which they
came”. His tweets raised a furore over their racist tenor
and exacerbated the sense of bitter polarisation, given
the strident ongoing debate over Mr. Trump’s zerotole
rance approach toward undocumented migration. The
House of Representatives, under Democratic control,
voted to condemn Mr. Trump’s remarks as racist, mark
ing the fi��rst such reprimand of a sitting President in ov
er a century. Not only did that Congressional rebuke to
Mr. Trump pass mostly along partisan lines, by a vote of
240 to 187, but other senior Republicans including Se
nate majority leader Mitch McConnell defended the
President against the racist label. Nevertheless, Mr.
Trump hit back again at the four Congresswomen —
who have adopted the moniker “the Squad” — on Twit
ter for what he called their “horrible and disgusting ac
tions”, “racist hatred”, and for being “antiAmerica”,
“antiSemitic”, and possibly communist sympathisers.
Stepping back from the immediate, acerbic terms of
this exchange, the bigger concern is that these hateful
comments risk damaging the fabric of American socie
ty further, as they are an unmistakable and painful hint
from their President that legal immigrants, especially
people of colour, are not welcome. Yet, there can be no
denying the signifi��cance of immigrants as a demograph
ic cohort of the country. More than 44.5 million immi
grants, at least 13.7% of the overall population, reside in
the U.S.; one in seven U.S. residents is foreignborn.
Mexicans, Indians and Chinese immigrants are respec
tively the largest subgroups within this cohort. It was
little surprise then, that Ilhan Omar, one of Mr. Trump’s
targets, situated the comments in the agenda of white
nationalism, arguing that given the direct contraven
tion of U.S. constitutional values implied, it was time to
consider impeaching him. Yet impeachment would be
an option only if the Senate were also to come under
Democratic control, or if there might be some conceiv
able reason why Republicans would break with their re
cent record of siding with Mr. Trump no matter how
egregious his conduct. A more tedious, but deeproot
ed approach would be for liberals of all hues to engage
in a meaningful dialogue with their conservative de
tractors, over what they could agree on as a common
minimum agenda and values that could anchor their
nation’s march into the 21st century. If a nationwide
conversation of this sort, aimed at discovering a reason
able middle ground is not undertaken, the very idea of
the American dream, of a meritocracy built on harness
ing talent from around the world, will unravel fast.
Unpresidential slantTrump’s racist tweets risk damaging
the fabric of American society further
With the Supreme Courtled process of updat
ing the National Register of Citizens in Assam
nearing its deadline of July 31, the complexi
ties involved in the gargantuan exercise have dawned
upon the executive. Both the Central and State govern
ments have sought an extension. But it remains to be
seen whether the Court, which has insisted on sticking
to the timelines, would relent when it hears the matter
on July 23. The fi��rst draft NRC published on the inter
vening night of December 31 and January 1, 2018 had
the names of 19 million people out of the total 32.9 mil
lion who had applied for inclusion as citizens. The se
cond draft NRC, published on July 30 last, upped it to
28.9 million but left out four million found ineligible.
Around 3.6 million of them subsequently fi��led citizen
ship claims. An “additional exclusion list” was issued
last month containing 1,02,463 names included earlier
in the draft list. In anticipation of millions being ulti
mately left out, the Assam government is moving to set
up 200 Foreigners’ Tribunals to handle cases of people
to be excluded from the fi��nal NRC, as part of a larger
plan to establish 1,000 such tribunals. The State go
vernment is also preparing to construct 10 more deten
tion centres; six are now running out of district jails.
A humanitarian crisis awaits Assam whether the fi��nal
NRC is published on July 31 or after. In the runup to the
fi��nal publication, case after case has emerged of per
sons wrongfully left out of the list. The process has left
no group out of its sweep, be it Marwaris or Biharis
from elsewhere in the country, people tracing their an
tecedents to other Northeastern states, people of Nepa
li origin, and caste Hindu Assamese. The prime targets
of this exercise, however, are Hindu Bengalis and Ben
galiorigin Muslims of Assam — more than 80% of the 4.1
million people named in the two lists belong to these
two groups. Yet, the rationale of the Centre and State in
seeking a deadline extension, as found in their submis
sions in the Supreme Court, betrays an exclusionary
bias. The joint plea sought time to conduct a 20% sam
ple reverifi��cation process in districts bordering Bangla
desh and 10% in the rest of the State to quell a “growing
perception” that lakhs of illegal immigrants may have
slipped into the list. This, despite the State NRC Coordi
nator’s reports to the apex court suggesting that up to
27% of names have been reverifi��ed during the process
of disposal of claims. It hasn’t helped that the Central
government keeps holding out the prospect of unleash
ing a nationwide NRC to detect and deport illegal aliens,
when it has no index to base such an exercise on — the
1951 register was exclusive to Assam. The accent should
be on inclusion, not exclusion. The wheels of justice
cannot pander to the suspicions of a vocal majority
without giving the excluded access to due process.
Inclusion over exclusionFears of a vocal section should not override
the rights of NRC claimants to due process
EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
THE HINDU DELHI
SATURDAY, JULY 20, 2019 11EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
CMYK
M ND-NDE
GROUND ZERO
Dressed in a grey shirt and blacktrousers, Amal*, 21, walks intothe room with a big smile. No
one would be able to guess that he waslocked up in a drug rehabilitation centrein Muvattupuzha in eastern Ernakulamfor over a fortnight. Amal was acquainted with drugs when he was just 13 yearsold. He was in danger of “losing hismind”, he says, before he controlled hisimpulses in order to get his life back ontrack. Gentle prodding by the excise offi��cials who had nabbed him as well ashis mother’s tears paved the way for hisrehabilitation.
Amal looks composed. “It feels likewaking up from a nightmare,” he says.“Earlier, I could not smile, enjoy jokes,or have a normal conversation. I was ina diff��erent world. I could beat anyone topulp and feel nothing about it. I feelmore human now.”
While his little hamlet Manjali in Ernakulam district is famous for its halwaand biryani, it was ganja that Amal fellin love with as a teenager, infl��uenced byhis peers. “But I never got addicted to it.The ganja that we get here is of low quality. Once, during an online chat, afriend and I shared some pictures of thegrass we smoked. And he snubbed mefor savouring trash,” he says.
Like several others, Amal went on totrade ganja for headier stuff��, all becauseof a friend who was into “real stuff��” andkept the source of his supply close to hischest. Soon, Amal was catapulted to alife of perpetual high, riding on a cocktail of meth, MDMA, and LSD.
His family, comprising an indiff��erentfather, clueless mother and a youngerbrother, had known that something wasamiss with him. But it took his mothertime to fi��nd out what was going on.
Vishal*, 19, was on the verge of depression at 15 when his learning disability isolated him from his competitivepeers. At his school in suburban Ernakulam, neither his teachers nor his peerscame to his rescue. His aloofness, however, attracted the attention of a peddler who introduced him to ganja. Bythe time his dependence on drugs wasdetected by the family, Vishal had become an addict. He went through a deaddiction routine, which proved futile.But four years since his fi��rst experiencewith ganja, Vishal is slowly piecing together his life. A bad accident whichconfi��ned him to bed for about threemonths was what fi��nally pulled himaway from the clutch of drugs.
An emerging hub for narcotics It is hardly a coincidence that Amal andVishal hail from places near Aluva,which is to the north of Kochi in Kerala.Located on the banks of the Periyar river, the town is in the news almost everyother day for its unenviable profi��le as anemerging hub for narcotics traffi��c and
use. Easy availability of drugs, peer patronage, mobile phoneaided access todope networks, and lack of care from family or society are egging on the trade.The users are mostly students who arebarely out of school and college.
“It was after considering the vulnerability of these students that we begantwo enforcement drives in Aluva: Operation Holiday with a focus on studentswho stayed back in hostels during thesummer vacation, and Operation Monsoon to sensitise newcomers at the startof the new academic year,” says K.Chandrapalan, Deputy Excise Commissioner, Ernakulam district.
‘Sniff��er Sheikh’, a wellknown supplier of Nitrazepam tablets to the students of a college in Aluva, was caughtduring Operation Holiday. Nitrazepamis a psychotropic drug prescribed foranxiety and insomnia, but is a hitamong the youth.
“He had thick, lustrous hair and a feminine face. He used to cleverly use thatto enter girls’ hostels too. He ran a wellentrenched network assisted by fouraides for the Statewide supply of Nitrazepam tablets which he sourced in bulkfrom neighbouring States,” says N.D. Tomy, a Civil Excise Offi��cer who was partof the drive and was awarded by the Excise Minister for exemplary enforce
ment work. Two months into Operation Mon
soon, excise offi��cials conducted anawareness session at a school in Aluvawhen a section of students tipped themoff�� about an icecream vendor who soldtoff��ees to senior students. The sleuthssent a student to purchase toff��ee, sold inthe range of ₹��30 to ₹��50. The toff��eeturned out to be ganja parcelled inwrappers. The seller had purchased thewrappers in bulk from Tamil Nadu.“Aluva is perhaps ideally located fortransporting, storing and supplying thecontraband across the district,” says Tomy.
From Aluva, the shadowy networkhas cast its spell over Kochi. Former Excise Commissioner Rishi Raj Singh hadwarned a few years ago that Kochiwould become home to the second biggest community of drug addicts afterAmritsar. He wasn’t completely off�� themark.
Despite the spike in demand for designer drugs, ganja continues to have astranglehold over drug abusers — perhaps because it is cheap and readilyavailable. “Ganja largely comes from theNaxalinfested areas of Andhra Pradesh,Chhattisgarh and Odisha. This is wherea few ganja farmers from Idukki districthave migrated and it is from these places it is smuggled in via Namakkal, Cumbum and Theni in Tamil Nadu. A colonynamed Uthamapuram, located betweenNamakkal and Cumbum, is notoriousfor ganja trade but remains out ofbounds for enforcement agencies,” saysT.A. Ashok Kumar, Assistant ExciseCommissioner (Enforcement).
The business model for ganja is simple. A couple of kilograms for a fewthousand rupees are smuggled in, splitinto numerous small packets, and marketed under the brand name, IdukkiGold, to leverage the popular perception that ganja from Idukki is the best,says Kumar.
Vying with ganja in terms of volumeare the Nitrazepam tablets. These aresmuggled from Tamil Nadu and Karnataka where they can be bought frommedical shops without a prescription. Astrip of Nitrazepam tablets bought foraround ₹��40 is sold for as high as ₹��500making it a highly lucrative businessproposition, Kumar says.
There are other types of drugs too.Early this year, an excise squad in Ernakulam made arguably the biggestever haul of hashish in Kerala. Over six kilos of hashish valued at ₹��13 crore in themarket were seized from a man whoused to smuggle the substance from Nepal via Uttar Pradesh.
In September last, 30 kg of MDMA, also known as Ecstasy, worth around₹��200 crore, was seized after it landed ata courier company in Kochi from Chennai while on way to Malaysia. Aluva is
transforming into a transit point, a cogin the wider scheme of internationaldrug cartels.
The antinarcotics squads have alsonoticed a unique but disturbing trend inthe State where abusers double up ascarriers. And this is forcing the squadsto keep a tab on youngsters commutingbetween Kochi and places like Bengaluru and Goa. “A sense of adventure getsthe better of many youngsters whenthey are away from home. They try outdrugs thinking it’s going to be a onetime thing, but soon fi��nd themselveslinked to the rackets as the trade fetcheseasy money,” says a squad member.
Spike in casesThe number of narcotic cases registeredin Kerala by the Excise Departmentalone spiked from 2,033 in 2016 to 5,946in 2017 and 7,573 (nearly 1,000 in Ernakulam district alone) in 2018. In the fi��rstfi��ve months of 2019, 3,316 cases were registered, of which Ernakulam accountsfor 421. The fi��gure has already surpassed the total number of cases for thewhole of 2016.
The police registered 6,501 narcoticcases in 2016, 9,359 cases in 2017, 9,521in 2018, and 3,970 cases till May thisyear. The volume of ganja seized by theExcise Department for the corresponding periods stood at 502 kg, 1,333 kg,1,885 kg, and 1,365 kg. Seizure of hashish dropped from 10.79 kg in 2016 to1.98 kg in 2017 before soaring to 65.94kg in 2018 and 40 kg till May this year.
The most perceptible rise was in theseizure of Nitrazepam tablets — from1,500 tablets in 2016, it rose to 7,800 in2017, 10,700 in 2018, and 3,100 in 2019.
“The seizures account for just a fraction of the drugs smuggled in,” says SamChristy Daniel, State Additional ExciseCommissioner (Enforcement). “Theapex court decree that the informantand the investigation offi��cer should notbe the same person has further dentedthe enforcement drive of the Excise Department which is already aff��ected bymanpower shortage. The enforcementwing of the Excise Department is restricted to 58 circle inspectors and 14 Deputy Excise Commissioners for 138 excise range offi��ces across the State.”
While contraband drugs always hadtheir presence in the State, the proliferation of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substance cases is attributed by largesections to the previous government’sdecision to close down bar hotels belowthe fourstar category towards the endof its term in 2015.
Constitutional expert Sebastian Paulthinks that the growing menace of drugsis a fallout of the liquor ban. “Enforcingprohibition without laying the groundwork will not only lead to its failure butgive rise to other more serious societalproblems. History is replete with evi
dence to that eff��ect. The advent of bootlegging and consequential law and order problems in America in theaftermath of prohibition is a classiccase,” he says.
By the time the decision to closedown bars was reversed by the new government in 2016, drug peddlers hadspread their tentacles far and wide.
A long journey to de-addictionAt the rehabilitation centres, counsellors have a tough time dealing with theaddicts. “In most cases involving ganja,the users gather a lot of wrong information on the perceived benefi��ts of cannabis. Ganja is found to be the most common gateway to synthetic drugs andintravenous (IV) drug abuse using stuff��like Buprenorphine. Once people reachthat stage, chances of recovery are veryremote,” says Faris Basheer, Medical Offi��cer at the Vimukthi deaddictioncentre run by the Excise Department atMuvattupuzha.
Set up six months ago, the centre hasso far treated 462 outpatients and 62 inpatients. The Vimukthi deaddictioncentres are manned by a psychiatristsocial worker, a medical offi��cer, a psychologist, a counsellor and three nursing and security staff�� each. The centresfollow a protocol starting with detoxifi��cation of victims, a personality studyand motivational sessions leading toeventual rehabilitation and mainstreaming during a threeweeklongstay, free of cost.
Psychiatrist C.J. John, who has overthe years dealt with several drug abusevictims from all age groups and familybackgrounds, says that there is a newtrend among the youth. “The theory forlong has been that youngsters withemotional problems and from dysfunctional families are most vulnerable todrugs. While that theory still holds water, a new tendency seems to be on therise where youngsters from perfectlynormal families are turning to drugssolely for recreational purposes. As wefocus more on treatment and rehabilitation, the most critical area of early detection is often overlooked,” he says. Hesays there is a need for an enforcementprotocol in dealing with the youthcaught in drug trade so that they are notstigmatised for the rest of their lives.
Stringent laws and severe punishment do not seem to have worked as adeterrent for peddlers. The NarcoticDrugs and Psychotropic Substances Acthas two schedules dealing with narcotics drugs and psychotropic substances.The punishment varies with the kind ofdrug and the quantity of seizure. “It isonly in the case of contraband drugslike ganja that less than one kg is treatedas a small quantity and bail is granted.As for psychotropic drugs, even a fewmilligrams are considered the commer
cial quantity, and anyone found possessing that much even inadvertently orout of ignorance lands up behind thebars for years,” says M. Revi Krishnan, alawyer in the Kerala High Court. “Thestatute is rigorous. With the judiciary also taking a serious note of the drug menace, even procedural lapses are not taken as a ground for bail,” he adds.
State-led initiatives Eff��orts are under way at various levelsto deal with the crisis. Student PoliceCadet, a novel initiative of the Keralapolice, has emerged as an eff��ective toolin countering the problem. There areabout 60,000 student police cadetsacross school campuses in the State andone of their major tasks is to ensure thatthe immediate vicinity of their schoolsis tobaccofree. These cadets also passon information about substance abuseamong their peers to teachers to ensuretimely, corrective intervention.
Besides, a campaign named Our Responsibility to Children, run by the StatePolice and the Women and Child Development Department, is under way forearly detection of children vulnerableto drugs. Under the programme, 15,000teachers have been trained to detect potential victims early on, intervenewhere correction is needed, and ensuretheir integration into the mainstream.Over 100 psychiatrists and psychologists and 2,000odd social mentors arealso associated with the programme.
Then there is Hope, a programme introduced a couple of years ago, which isaimed at extending academic and career support to students who failed toclear the 10th standard exam. “You canimagine the state of mind of these students. They are the most vulnerable asthey crave for acceptance. This makesthem perfect targets for antisocial elements and drug networks,” says P. Vijayan, Inspector General of Police (Administration), Police Headquarters.
School Protection Groups operatedjointly by the Education, Police and Excise departments and wardlevel Vimukthi Senas with fi��ve volunteers eachare some of the other initiatives beingtried out by the State to keep its youngergeneration away from drugs.
The number of addicts and seizure ofdrugs shows that it requires sustainedeff��orts to curb the new scourge.
*Names have been changed to protect identities
“Stringent laws and severe punishment do not seem to have worked as a deterrent for peddlers.” * THULASI KAKKAT
Ecstasy and the agony The small town of Aluva in Kerala is emerging as a hub for narcotic traffi��c and use. The State is stepping up its eff��orts to curb the problem, but easy availability andaccess to drugs is spurring the trade, reports M.P. Praveen
<> The theory for long has been
that youngsters with
emotional problems and from
dysfunctional families are
most vulnerable to drugs. Now
youngsters from perfectly
normal families are also
turning to drugs solely for
recreational purposes.
C.J. John
Psychiatrist
<> Earlier, I could not smile, enjoy
jokes, or have a normal
conversation. I was in a
diff��erent world. I could beat
anyone to pulp and feel
nothing about it. I feel more
human now (after rehab).
Amal
Manjali resident
CMYK
M ND-NDE
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DELHI THE HINDU
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NEWS
FROM PAGE ONE
and circumstances convey“a very sorry state of affairs.”
However, the debatethrough the day in theHouse was around the Governor’s right to set deadlines when the process oftrust vote is under way inthe House. The Chief Minister took exception to the letter and said, “The Governorcannot act as an ombudsman of the legislature.” Hesaid that he was “pained bythe second love letter fromthe Governor.”
Rural Development Minister Krishna Byre Gowdasaid the Governor could notset deadlines once the ChiefMinister has moved the confi��dence motion and accusedthe BJP of “misusing” Constitutional offi��ces, amidshouts of “Go back Governor” from the treasurybenches.
While the Governor’s fi��rstletter to the Chief Ministersent on Thursday had set1.30 p.m. on Friday as thedeadline to prove his majority, the stronglyworded second one gave him time tillthe end of the day. The Governor had also sent a communiqué to the Speaker theprevious day stating he desires a fl��oor test by the endof Thursday.
In his second letter to theChief Minister, the Governorexpressed suspicion that“detailed debates and discussions appear to be merely to delay the fl��oor test.”
He said, “I am receivingvarious reports about the attempts being made forhorsetrading. This can beaverted only and only if theexercise of conducting fl��oortest is conducted at the earliest and without any delay.”
He added that these facts
Confi��dence vote to be held on Monday
and the trust vote should beheld before 1:30 pm on19.07.2019”. The application, fi��led by advocate SunilFernandes, said, “It is respectfully submitted that nosuch direction could havebeen issued by the Hon’bleGovernor when the confi��dence motion has alreadybeen initiated. The debateson the motion are currentlyongoing and the House is insession. The Speaker hasopined that the Division willtake place only at the end ofthe debate.”
Notwithstanding the fi��rstcommunication, the Governor sent a second one. Thistime, he demanded that thetrust vote be held at 6 p.m.on Friday.
Both Mr. Kumaraswamy andthe Congress, through itsState president Dinesh Gundu Rao, sought a clarifi��cation from the court on its July 17 order allowing 15dissident MLAs liberty toopt out of the Assemblysession.
They said this freedomworked to whittle down theconstitutional right of theparties to issue whip againstthem. It was also in the teethof the Tenth Schedule (antidefection law) of the Constitution, they noted.
In his fi��vepage application, Mr. Kumaraswamycomplained that the Governor sent his fi��rst communication on July 18 “directingthat the confi��dence motion
JD(S), Congress moveSupreme Court
not truly refl��ect the realityon the ground. “They musthave done excellent work,but mistakes have crept in.The quantum of people included in certain areas ismore... Wrongful inclusionsare manifold in the bordering districts, lakhs of illegalimmigrants have been included in the draft NRC list.The problem in the borderdistricts is more,” he submitted. He said the wrongfulinclusions may be becauselocal offi��cers were used inthe NRC process.
The Bench adjourned thecase to July 23. It asked Mr.Mehta to go through whatMr. Hajela had to say on theissue of reverifi��cation in hisreports to the SupremeCourt on July 10 and 18.
“Mr. Hajela’s report sayswhile disposing of claims,80 lakh names have been reverifi��ed. That means at least27% of names have been reverifi��ed, and you are askingfor 20%... So, is there needfor a sample reverifi��cation?If we are satisfi��ed that verifi��cation has been done properly, then there is no needfor a sample reverifi��cation,isn’t it,” Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi, who is accompanied by Justice Rohinton Nariman on the SpecialBench, told Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearingfor both Assam and theCentre.
‘Mistakes have crept in’Mr. Mehta said the fi��ndingsin Mr. Hajela’s reports may
SC questions need forNRC reverifi��cation
of selecting the new president.
Rahul Gandhi resigned asparty president on May 24,during the CWC to discussthe Lok Sabha election results. More than a month later, on July 3, he wrote anopen letter calling an end tospeculation that he maywant to continue.
Two MPs from LSTill now, the process of consultations to bring in a newregime has been limited tothe CWC.
Together with 24 members, 19 permanent inviteesand 10 special invitees, theCWC has 53 persons.
There are only two LokSabha MPs in the committee. CWC members wereasked for their preferencefor the president’s post, andit was decided that based onthese deliberations, a meeting of the committee will becalled to pick a provisionalpresident, who will thenchair the elections for a newpresident.
A group, that includes bothLok Sabha MPs and partyfunctionaries, has decidedthat once the Karnataka political crisis ends, a publicbattle will be mounted toraise the demand for freshelections to the CWC. “Thedelay is hurting us as theCongress president’s chairhas not been vacant for solong in the past,” anotherMP said.
The group has both elected members as well as senior Congress functionaries, a source said.
The last time Congresssaw a contest for the post ofpresident was in October2000 when Jitendra Prasadastood against present United Progressive Alliancechairperson Sonia Gandhi.Ms. Gandhi was contestingfor the president’s post forthe fi��rst time. Of the 12,000votes cast, Mr. Prasada secured less than 1,000 votesat the time.
Because of the situationin Karnataka, the Congresshas put on hold the process
Dissent in Cong. oversearch for party chief
Members of the Rajya Sabha on Friday welcomed aresolution moved by BJPmember Vijay Pal Singh Tomar, seeking the setting upof a National Farmers’Commission with constitutional status. However, hewithdrew it following thegovernment’s assurancethat all possible steps werebeing taken for the farmers’ welfare.
Mr. Tomar sought an increase in the funds provided to farmers under the Kisan Samman Nidhi schemefrom ₹��6,000 a year to₹��10,000 a year till the timefarming turned remunerative. He urged the government to educate farmerson the latest technologiesand ensure proper implementation of the crop insurance scheme. MemberSukhendu Sekhar Rayraised the issue of farmers’land being grabbed.
BJP MP’sproposal getsRS support
Special Correspondent
NEW DELHI
The Lok Sabha on Fridaypassed the Protection of Human Rights (Amendment)Bill, 2019 by voice vote.
The Bill expedites theprocess of appointment ofChairperson and membersof the National HumanRights Commission (NHRC)and provides for, amongothers, including the chairpersons of the NationalCommission for BackwardClasses, the National Commission for the Protection ofChild Rights and the ChiefCommissioner for Personswith Disabilities as members of the NHRC.
In his reply in the House,Minister of State for HomeNityanand Rai said the government was sensitive tothe rights of humanity andwas committed to strengthening the commission.
Promises transparency“With this Bill, every sectionof society has now receivedrepresentation. We are a government that stands for thehuman rights of victims notof terrorists and perpetrators of sexual crime. Theamendment will ensuretransparency in the appointment of chairman andmembers of the commissionand will help fi��ll all the vacancies,” he said.
The debate witnessedsharp exchanges betweenthe Opposition and Treasury benches.
Congress leader ShashiTharoor, initiating the debate, said there were severalgaps in the Bill, and asked
the government to bring afresh one. He said the Billwas “piecemeal andcosmetic”.
Mr. Tharoor alleged thathuman rights were beingviolated in the detention tribunals in Assam over theNational Register of Citizens, and said that 57 people committed suicide afterfailing to produce citizenship documents.
BJP MP and former Mumbai Police Commissioner Satya Pal Singh alleged thathuman rights activists oftentargeted the police and government institutions andtake foreign funding. “Theynever speak against terrorists, they will never speakagainst Naxals,” he said.
Mr. Singh’s commentsthat he believed Indianswere descendants of greatsages (rishis), and not monkeys, drew sharp criticism.
“My ancestors are notany rishis. And I was bornout of Sudras ... We are herebecause of the fi��ght of socialjustice system,” DMK leaderKanimozhi said, and urgedthe House to uphold scientifi��c temperament.
Lok Sabha clears Billon NHRC constitutionPiecemeal and cosmetic, says Tharoor
Special Correspondent
NEW DELHI
Nityanand Rai speaking in the Lok Sabha. * PTI
The last fi��ve working days ofthe fi��rst session of the 17thLok Sabha is going to be jampacked with pending legislation as government plans tointroduce 13 Bills and takeup the triple talaq ordinanceamid speculation about extending the session thatends on July 26 to August 2.
Detailing the business fornext week, Minister of Statefor Parliamentary Aff��airs V.Muraleedharan told the Rajya Sabha that the government planned to move 13Bills in the Lok Sabha, whichwould go to the UpperHouse.
Other than these, there
are pending ordinancessuch as the Muslim Women(Protection of Rights on Marriage) Ordinance, 2019 thatneeded to be taken up. TheUpper House also has to debate and pass the Budget,
which was cleared by theLok Sabha on Thursday.
There is no clarity yet onwhether the governmentwill indeed extend the session. According to sources,the Opposition is not onboard as the session hasbeen on for nearly a monthnow.
No scrutiny: OppositionThe Opposition alleged thatnone of the legislation hadpassed the scrutiny of standing committees as the panelshad not been formed yet.“Except the Motor VehiclesBill, none of the Bills hasbeen scrutinised,” Trinamool Congress fl��oor leaderDerek O’Brien said.
Five more hectic days
for govt. in ParliamentIt plans to introduce 13 Bills and take up talaq ordinance
Special Correspondent
New Delhi
The Rajya Sabha has todebate and pass the Budget.
A Supreme Court Bench ledby Justice Rohinton Narimanextended the tenure of theSpecial Judge conducting thejoint trial of the Babri Masjiddemolition and criminalconspiracy cases.
The judge, who was scheduled to retire on September30, had sought more time tocomplete the trial.
On April 19, 2017, the apexcourt gave the judge twoyears to complete the trial after reviving the criminal conspiracy charge against prominent BJP and Sangh
Parivar leaders such as L.K.Advani, Murli Manohar Joshiand Uma Bharti in connection with the demolition ofthe 16th century mosque onDecember 6, 1992.
The court evoked themaxim ‘Let justice be donethough the heavens fall’ tofl��ex its extraordinary constitutional powers under Article 142 of the Constitution tobring the cases to justice. Itextolled its “power, nay, theduty to do complete justicein a case when found necessary. In the present case,crimes which shake the secular fabric of the Constitu
tion of India have allegedlybeen committed almost 25years ago” in a 40pagejudgment.
Rae Bareilly case In 2017, the Supreme Courttransferred the Rae Bareillycase, languishing in a magistrate court, to the CBI courtin Lucknow for trial alongwith the Lucknow case,which is against “lakhs of unknown kar sevaks” and dealswith the actual act of demolition and violence. It was being investigated by the CBI.
The Rae Bareilly case accuses the BJP and Sangh Pa
rivar leaders of having givenspeeches to promote enmityand threatened nationalintegration.
With the clubbing of thecases and revival of the conspiracy charge, the accusedpolitical leaders would betried under the compositecharge sheet fi��led by the CBIon October 5, 1993. TheBench agreed with the chargesheet’s fi��nding that boththe criminal conspiracy bythe leaders and the actualdemolition by kar sevakswere part of the “same transaction” and warranted ajoint trial.
SC extends tenure of Babri case judgeHe sought more time to conclude trial of Masjid demolition, conspiracy casesLegal Correspondent
New Delhi
Prime Minister NarendraModi’s 15point programme for minorities is acomplete “nonstarter”,said Samajwadi Party MPJaved Ali Khan on Friday inthe Rajya Sabha.
Mr. Khan said the monitoring committees that hadbeen set up from the district to Centre level had notmet in the last fi��ve years.
“When I entered RajyaSabha in 2014 I got a letterfrom the Minority Ministryappointing me as a member of the monitoring committee for my district. Ihave not been invited evenonce in these years for themeeting,” he said duringthe zero hour and demanded that the programme bescrapped.
‘Scheme forminorities anonstarter’
Special Correspondent
New Delhi
Bahujan Samaj Party MPKunwar Danish Ali has demanded that the events unfolding in Karnataka andinside the Assembly be discussed in the Lok Sabha asthey concerned “the independence of thelegislature”.
Mr. Ali, who was previously with the Janata Dal(S), is considered one ofthe architects of the CongressJD(S) coalition inKarnataka.
Speaking to The Hindu,Mr. Ali also demanded a relook into the antidefectionLaw and the 10th Scheduleof the Constitution.
“What is happening inKarnataka is a farce. If onebuys MLAs wholesale, it’snot defection, retail shopping of MLAs or if oneswitches allegiance becomes defection. It’s amockery of the 10th Schedule of the Constitution,”he said.
DiscussKarnataka inLS: Danish Ali
Special Correspondent
NEW DELHI
The political turmoil in Karnataka was raised in the LokSabha on Friday with Congress members repeatedlyraising slogans against theBJP for “conspiring” to bringdown the CongressJanataDal (Secular) government inthe State.
Leader of the Congress inthe Lok Sabha Adhir RanjanChowdhury wanted to raiseobjection regarding the Karnataka Governor issuing directions to the Speaker, andalleged that the BJP was conspiring to bring down governments in States whereOpposition parties were inpower.
Speaker Om Birla allowedMr. Chowdhury to raise theissue in the House, but madeit clear he could not speakabout any Assembly or theperson who was sitting in a
Constitutional post.“Sir, suppose the Presi
dent of India issues a directive to you and tells you ‘thiswon’t happen or this willhappen’, you will not like itas you have autonomy. Simi
larly, every Assembly and itsSpeaker has its own autonomy,” Mr. Chowdhury said.
He said what was happening in Karnataka was a“threat to the independenceof legislature and democracyis being killed in the State”.
As soon as the LowerHouse began proceedings,Congress members wantedto talk about the situation inKarnataka, but the Speakerdid not entertain the request. This prompted Congress and DMK MPs to troopto the Well of the House.
Over 30 members fromthe Congress, DMK and a fewother parties were in theWell for over 15 minutes withsome members displayingplacards, saying “Savedemocracy”.
Opposition MPs, manyfi��rsttimers among them,were heard shouting “Wewant justice” slogans.
Congress alleges plotagainst Karnataka govt.MPs protest after Speaker disallows discussion on issue
SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
NEW DELHI
<> What is happening
in Karnataka is a
threat to the
independence of
legislature
Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury
Congress leader in LS
A new Bill that seeks to empower the transgender community and another legislation to crack down on Ponzischemes were introduced inthe Lok Sabha on Fridayamid protests from Opposition members over the Karnataka political turmoil.
The Transgender Persons(Protection of Rights) Bill,2019, introduced by SocialJustice and EmpowermentMinister Thawarchand Gehlot, provides a mechanismto empower the transgender community socially andeconomically, along withtheir educationaladvancement.
Though Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla called out thename of the Congress’sShashi Tharoor, he couldnot speak as members fromhis party were protesting over the Karnataka politicalcrisis.
The Transgender Persons
Bill gives a person the rightto choose to be identifi��ed asa man, woman or transgender, irrespective of sex reassignment surgery and hormonal therapy.
Clause droppedWhile the legislation provides for a person to gothrough a district screeningcommittee and the districtmagistrate to get certifi��ed asa transgender, a contentiousprovision that criminalisedbegging by transgenders hasbeen dropped. The Transgender Bill had been introduced in the 16th Lok Sabhabut had lapsed.
The Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Bill,2019, will replace an ordinance. It seeks to help crackdown on illicit deposit taking activities exploiting regulatory gaps and lack ofstrict measures to dupepoor and gullible people. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman introduced the Bill.
Bills to help transgenders,depositors introducedRuckus prevents debate in Lok Sabha
SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
NEW DELHI
A unique modus operandiof smuggling heroin intothe country has come tolight following a Delhi police crackdown on an international drug syndicate operating in the Capital.
Deputy Commissioner ofPolice (Special Cell) ManishiChandra said fi��ve persons,including two Afghan nationals, have been arrestedand 150 kg of Afghan heroinworth ₹��600 crore in the international market recovered from theirpossession.
Heroin-soaked sacksThe fi��ve men were allegedlyextracting the narcoticfrom jute sacks soaked inheroinladen solution,dried and packed with spices to be transported to India from Afghanistan, thepolice said.
The accused have beenidentifi��ed as Shinwari Reh
mat Gul (30) and AkhtarMohammad Shinwari (31),both residents of Afghanistan’s Jalalabad, VakeelAhmed (36) and RaeesKhan (43) from Delhi andDheeraj alias Deepak (21)from Faridabad.
A senior police offi��cersaid the syndicate was busted after a tipoff�� from a Special Cell offi��cer living in disguise in Jamia Nagar a few
months ago regarding aconvoy of luxury cars moving late at night in the congested area at intervals of1015 days.
Cars interceptedSteppedup surveillance revealed that the convoy wastransporting drugs and aheroin processing unit waspossibly being set up.
Based on a specifi��c input
that the convoy would assemble near Ashram fl��yover around 12.30 a.m. onThursday, a trap was laidand two cars interceptedwith Deepak and Raees inthem. Sixty kilos of heroinwere recovered from a cavity between the back seatand the boot of the twocars, the police said.
Processing unitThe duo allegedly told thepolice about a threestoreybuilding in Zakir Nagarwhere the processing unitwas being set up. “A raidwas conducted and the twoAfghan nationals were arrested from the building,”Mr. Chandra said.
He added that anotherconsignment of 60 kg of heroin was recovered fromthe place. Vakeel was arrested from the spot withanother 30 kg of heroinwhich he was loading in hiscar, the police said.
Pistols, cartridges, four
luxury cars and 40 mobilephones were recovered inthe raid.
“The mobile phoneswere disposed of after delivery of each consignment,”said an offi��cer.
Spice tradeDuring interrogation, theaccused confessed to takingadvantage of the spice tradebetween India and Afghanistan, said the police.
The jute sacks, onceempty, were picked upfrom the mandis by gangmembers and brought tothe processing unit, wherethey were put in chemicalsand the heroin extracted.The narcotic was thenpacked and transportedacross the country, especially to Punjab, and also toSri Lanka, the police said.
The Indian mastermindof the syndicate has beenidentifi��ed and a searchlaunched for him, the police added.
Drug haul unveils unique smuggling strategyFive arrested, heroin worth ₹��600 crore seized in latenight raid by Delhi police
Hemani Bhandari
New Delhi
The police seized 150 kilos of Afghan heroin from thepossession of the fi��ve accused. * SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
CMYK
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THE HINDU DELHI
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NEWS
An apex body of the scheduled tribes(STs) of Assam has resented the “snub”by the Centre while constituting a highlevel committee on the implementationof Clause 6 of the Assam Accord.
This clause of the Assam Accord,signed in August 1985 to end a sixyearagitation for the ejection of illegal migrants from the State, says “constitutional, legislative and administrative safeguards, as may be appropriate, shall beprovided to protect, preserve and promote the cultural, social, linguistic identity and heritage of the Assamesepeople”.
The Centre had formed the 12member committee headed by retired Gauhati High Court judge Biplab Kumar Sarmaon Tuesday. None of the members belong to any of the more than 20 scheduled tribes of Assam accounting for atleast 15% of the population.
“We appreciate the Centre’s move,but a panel for safeguarding the interestsof the indigenous people is ridiculouswithout the real sons of the soil – the tribal people who have been marginalisedmore than any other group. The Centrehas insulted us,” All Assam Tribal Sanghasecretarygeneral Aditya Khakhlari said.
Mr. Khakhlari is a Bodo, the largest STcommunity in the Kachari group that isconsidered the earliest inhabitants of Assam.
The tribal body demanded the inclusion of a retired civil servant or any othercapable person from among the tribes.
Assam tribal bodyseeks inclusion of STson 12member panel
SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
Guwahati
Three people were beaten todeath by a mob in Saran district of Bihar on Friday, alleging that they attempted tosteal a buff��alo, the policesaid. The families of the victims denied the allegation.
Raju Nat, Bides Nat andNaushad Qureshi were attacked at Nandlal Tola ofPithauri village in the Baniapur police station limits inthe early hours. Two of themwere killed on the spot.Another died of injuries onthe way to hospital, Superintendent of Police Har Kishore Rai said. He said two orthree people have beenpicked up for interrogation.
Deputy SP Ajay KumarSingh rushed to the village asa clash erupted between thealleged attackers and the family members of the deceased. The relatives said the
victims had gone out to relieve themselves when theywere beaten to death.
“We can say it with certainty that this is not one ofthose incidents of moblynching. The animal allegedly being stolen was a buff��a
lo. The attackers and the attacked belonged to the samesocial groups,” Mr. Singhsaid.
Police have been deployed in the village, whilepeople from both sides wereat the police station to lodge
complaints. The families ofthe victims “created a ruckus” at the Sadar hospital,where the bodies were takenfor postmortem, promptingpolice to use “mild force” tobring the situation undercontrol, offi��cials said.
Three killed in Bihar over ‘buff��alo theft’ Police detain twofor interrogation;kin of victimsdeny charge
Press Trust of India
Chapra
A cry for help: Relatives of the victims of the mob attack pleading with police offi��cers at Chaprain Bihar on Friday to take action in the case. * REUTERS
Amid protests by the Opposition parties, a Bill toamend the Right to Information (RTI) Act and give theUnion government the power to set the service conditions and salaries of Information Commissioners wasintroduced in the Lok Sabhaon Friday.
The Bill was eventuallyintroduced after the Treasury benches won a vote with224 MPs supporting it andnine opposing.
Though the Congress opposed the introduction ofthe Bill with senior leaderShashi Tharoor calling it an“RTI elimination Bill”, theparty chose to walk outwhen Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi demanded avote.
Power with CentreThe new Bill seeks to changethe status of the InformationCommissioners who are ona par with the Election Commissioners, and states thatthe term of offi��ce, salaries,allowances and other termsand conditions shall be “asprescribed by the Centralgovernment”. Currently,Section 13(5) of the Act provides that these are equivalent to that of the Chief Election Commissioner for theChief Information Commissioner and to an ElectionCommissioner for an Information Commissioner.
“The functions being carried out by the ElectionCommission and the Central and State InformationCommissions are totally different. The Election Commission of India is a constitutional body... On the otherhand, the Central Information Commission and StateInformation Commissions
are statutory bodies established under the Right toInformation Act, 2005,” theBill said.
Introducing the amendment, Minister of State inthe Prime Minister’s Offi��ceJitendra Singh said the Bill isaimed at institutionalisationand streamlining of the RTIAct. He said it strengthenedthe overall RTI structure,corrected anomalies anddescribed it as an enablinglegislation for administration purposes.
“Has it ever happenedthat the CIC has the status ofa Supreme Court judge butthe judgment can be appealed in a High Court,”asked the Minister as theOpposition protested.
Leader of the Congress inthe Lok Sabha Adhir RanjanChowdhury said the draftlaw was a threat to the independence of the Central Information Commissionwhile Mr. Tharoor said thisBill was actually an “RTIelimination Bill” removingtwo greater powers of institutional independence.
Trinamool Congress leader Saugata Roy sought thatthe Bill be referred to a parliamentary standing committee. He said only 26%Bills were referred to suchpanels in the last Lok Sabha.
RTI Bill introducedamid Opposition fl��ak
Centre to set service terms of panelSPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
NEW DELHI
Radha Mohan Singh tohead panel on BJP polls NEW DELHI
BJP president Amit Shah on
Friday named party veteran
Radha Mohan Singh head of
the BJP’s organisational
elections panel to put a new
president in place. The
elections are expected to
conclude in December. Mr.
Singh will be assisted by
former MP Hansraj Ahir,
Karnataka MLA C.T. Ravi and
Lok Sabha member Vinod
Sonkar, who heads the party’s
Scheduled Caste Morcha.
IN BRIEF
Vivek Kumar appointedPrivate Secretary to PMAHMEDABAD
Vivek Kumar, currently
Director of the Prime
Minister’s Office, was
appointed Private Secretary
to Prime Minister Narendra
Modi on Friday after the
Appointments Committee of
the Cabinet, headed by Mr.
Modi, cleared his new role.
Mr. Kumar, an Indian Foreign
Service (IFS) officer of the
2004 batch, replaces Sanjeev
Kumar Singla, who is taking
over as India’s Ambassador to
Israel. Mr. Singla is from the
1997 batch of the IFS.
Centre’s assurance onbanking sector soughtNEW DELHI
Rajya Sabha member Jairam
Ramesh on Friday sought an
assurance from the Centre
that public sector banks
would not be privatised.
During a special mention at
the Parliament, Mr. Ramesh
said, “I welcome the
announcement of the Finance
Minister on the
recapitalisation of public
sector banks to enable them
to meet prudential norms. At
the same time, I urge the
government to come out with
a categorical statement in
Parliament that privatisation
of public sector banks will not
take place.”
Minority organisations in Assam apprehend a largescaleexclusion from the fi��nal National Register of Citizens(NRC) to be published on July 31. They have attributed itto the alleged pressure on offi��cers handling the vettingprocess to be strict in accepting certain documents issued in other States, including in the northeasternregion.
Vetting, or careful exami
nation of documents, is thelast and most crucial phaseof the exercise. It has twostages.
The revenue circle offi��cerstake care of the fi��rst and the
Deputy Commissioners ofthe districts handle thesecond.
Expected to be completedby Saturday in some districts, vetting entails critical
ly investigating the opinionsof some 3,300 disposing offi��cers for inclusion or exclusion of the applicants.
The draft, published in July 2018, excluded 40.07 lakhpeople, out of which 36.2lakh reapplied for inclusion.Another 1.02 lakh nameswere removed from the NRCand put on an additional exclusion list on June 26, butthey were allowed toreapply.
The fear that the applications of most of those whoreapplied — primarily theBengalispeaking Hindusand Muslims and Gurkhas —could be rejected hasstemmed from the NRC auth
ority’s alleged instruction totreat certain documentswith “utmost suspicion”.These include birth certifi��cates issued in States such asNagaland and refugee registration and citizenship certificates issued in Tripura andWest Bengal, besides Assam.
“Despite the SupremeCourt allowing these documents..., we have come toknow that offi��cials handlingthe vetting process havebeen told not to entertainthem. There is a conspiracyto deliberately keep certaincommunities out of theNRC,” said a leader of the AllAssam Minority Students’Union.
NRC: minority outfi��ts fear largescale exclusion Vetting of papersnears completionin Assam
NRC offi��cials checking documents. * AFP
SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
GUWAHATI
Man dies after beingthrashed in RajasthanJAIPUR
A 28yearold Dalit man died
after allegedly being
thrashed by a mob at Phalsa
village, near Bhiwadi, in
Rajasthan’s Alwar district
following a road accident in
which his motorcycle hit an
elderly woman. The injured
woman’s relatives and
villagers allegedly thrashed
Harish Jatav and fled, after
which he was taken to
hospital. The Alwar police are
investigating the case.
Mistaken for thief, Dalitman set afire in U.P.LUCKNOW
A 28yearold Dalit man on
Friday sustained injuries after
some people mistook him for
a thief and allegedly set him
on fire when he entered a
house to avoid stray dogs in
Uttar Pradesh’s Barabanki
district, the police said. The
victim, Sujit Kumar, was
rushed to a hospital, where
his condition is stated to be
stable, they said, adding that
two of the four accused
named in the FIR had been
arrested. The incident took
place in Raghopur village.
Unknown gunmen killed thepersonal security offi��cer ofPeoples Democratic Party(PDP) leader Sajad Mufti outside a mosque after Fridayprayers in the Bijbehara areaof Anantnag.
“Policeman Farooq Ahmad Reshi sustained criticalgunshot injuries. He wasevacuated to hospital formedical treatment. However, he succumbed to his injuries,” the police said.
Mr. Mufti was inside the
mosque when the gunmenstruck outside and snatchedthe service rifl��e from theconstable, police offi��cialssaid.
The attack came just sixdays after National Conference (NC) leader Peer Tauqeer Shah’s guard was killedin an attack in the Kokernagarea of Anantnag.
Heavy pricePDP president MehboobaMufti, a close relative of Mr.Mufti, said, “Such dastardlyacts only add to the woes of
the masses. Either ways,Kashmiris are paying a heavyprice.”
Several parties have condemned the attack.
NC’s view“Another police bodyguardkilled in the line of duty insouth Kashmir. I condemnthe attack,” National Conference vicepresident OmarAbdullah said.
The Congress, in a statement, demanded that theauthorities “ascertain theidentity of the killers for sev
ere punishment”. The Jammu and Kashmir
Pradesh Congress Committee described the incident asa “mindless and shamefulact on the part of killers”.
“Violence in any form andmanifestation is condemnable. Such incidents are inhuman and unfortunate andthe perpetrators of violencehave achieved nothing except for rendering irreparable loss to the victim family,”Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami, Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader, said.
Constable gunned down in J&KHe was the personal security offi��cer of PDP leader Sajad Mufti
special correspondent
Srinagar
CMYK
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DELHI THE HINDU
SATURDAY, JULY 20, 201914EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
SUDOKU
Solution to puzzle 12682 Solution to yesterday’s Sudoku
3 Dunk in sauce that's cold (6)
5 Rub on the back softly (4)
6 Failing man penned sad
notebooks (2,3,3)
7 Judges change heart, eject
violently (5)
8 They can leave you in stitches
by running errands (7)
11 Seat of old dynasty in Turkey
(7)
14 One casts aspersions on Queen
departing Great Britain and
Ireland? (7)
17 Sense of endless mist,
possibly? (9)
18 At home, a lungi is worn about
the groin (8)
19 When baby boomers were
born in, i.e., stiff conditions
(7)
21 Right, ask him about a place in
North India (7)
22 Cold outcome of partners
securing last grade in
engineering branch (6)
24 Study accounts of auto fi��rm,
Tesla (5)
26 Gape at fl��ight turning north
(4)
13 Software engineer's
uncontrollable itch to
consume drug (ecstasy) (6)
15 Short skirt invites endless
disapproval, again! (4)
16 These can give rise to shocks
(10)
19 Undoubtedly, Faraday by and
large was working out Newton
(3,3,4)
20 Taking top off, search a person
for hazard (4)
23 Wind not inspiring the States
(6)
25 Forks out behind old insects
(8)
27 Where a lion is (lair?) mostly
withdrawn, rejective (2,6)
28 Trade in cherry gives me
energy for promotion (6)
29 Rent lettings for occupation
(8)
30 A 30sec video before release
of Joker (6)
■ DOWN
1 Use a tee in home (7)
2 An insect showing
hesitation — Roach, possibly
(9)
(set by Scintillator)
■ ACROSS
1 Obstacle being chic? (6)
4 Captive sailors went round in
circles (8)
9 Complex vitamin bonds in
lettuce (6)
10 Publicityseeking noisemaker
— one can go on and on (8)
12 Pay attention to opinion and
reputation (4,4)
THE HINDU CROSSWORD 12683
Trump picks Scalia forLabour Secretary’s postWASHINGTON
U.S. President Donald Trump
has selected lawyer Eugene
Scalia to be his new Labor
Secretary. Previous secretary
Alexander Acosta had
resigned over his handling of
a plea deal with fi��nancier
Jeff��rey Epstein in 2016. AP
ELSEWHERE
In chapter 14 of the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna tells Arjunahow the three gunas — sattva, rajas and tamas — keep the atma bound to samsara, said Valayapet Ramachariar in a discourse. The Lord says that what He is now going to tell Arjuna is uttamam jnanam — the best form of knowledge. Notonly should we acquire knowledge of the gunas, but wemust also be devoted to God to attain moksha. Those whohave knowledge of the gunas and worship Him become likeHim, in the sense that they are not born during creation — naupajAyante. Nor do they lose their jnana at the time of pralaya — na vyathanti. The Lord has already spoken aboutprakrti and purusha. So, we should view this knowledge ofthe gunas together with that. So, knowledge of prakrti, purusha and gunas gives liberation from births and deaths.“Such atmas become similar to Me,” says the Lord. They donot attain onement with the Supreme One. The distinctionbetween jivatmas and the Paramatma is not lost, even whenthe jivatmas reach Sri Vaikuntha.
Just as a seed is planted in the Earth, the Lord plants a jivain Prakrti. Prakrti is the place where the jiva has experiencesaccording to its karma. This applies to all, whether it is Brahma or a blade of grass. Lord Krishna is responsible for allbirths. In this sense He is the father, for He is the One whoplants the jivas on this earth. Every birth is according to thejivatma’s karma, and for each of these births Lord Krishna isthe father. Sattva, rajas and tamas cannot be understood byobservation. Can we tell if something is poisoned just bylooking at it? Only when the eff��ects of the poison begin toshow up in a person who consumes it do we realise that thefood was poisoned. In the same way, we can understand thethree gunas only from the eff��ects they manifest.
FAITH
The three gunas
DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD
Eight individuals, includingSubhash Kapoor whoachieved notoriety on allegations of antiques traffi��cking,were charged in a Manhattancourt last week in connection with the looting and traffi��cking of antiquities, a criminal complaint fi��led by theManhattan District Attorney’s offi��ce revealed.
Kapoor is allegedly thering leader of a network thattraffi��cked in thousands of antiquities from India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Nepal,Thailand and Cambodia, asper the complaint fi��led byprosecuting attorneys Matthew Bogdanos and Christopher Hirsch, both Manhattan Assistant District
Attorneys. Kapoor, 70, is currently in jail in Tamil Nadu,as he awaits trial on similarcharges. He was arrested inGermany in 2011 and extradited to India thereafter.
Loot of over two decadesThe idol and antiques traffi��cking occurred over a period of at least two decadesfrom 1986, when Kapoor’scompany Art of the Past wasincorporated, to October 26,2016, when it was dissolved.The total value of the antiques stolen exceeded$14,35,17,000 (about ₹��988crore), the court documentsrevealed.
In addition to Kapoor, individuals named in the complaint are Sanjeev Asokan,Dean Dayal, Ranjeet Kanwar,
Aditya Prakash, Vallabh Prakash, Richard Salmon andNeil Perry Smith.
The charges broughtagainst these individuals include knowingly possessingstolen property in excess of$1,000,000 with the intentto benefi��t a person otherthan the owner and to impede recovery of said property by the owner.
‘False legitimacy’ The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s HomelandSecurity Investigations (DHSHSI) investigation led to theseizure of over 2,600 antiques, documents and computers related to Kapoor’sand his employees’ businessdealings for Art of the Past.
The complaint said that
Kapoor loaned antiquities tomajor museums and institutions, thereby creating a falseveneer of legitimacy, describing the laundering process as “the creation of a
tigation should be conducted. Sadly, it’s precisely thislack of qualifi��ed work bothon the technical supportfrom the Archaeological Survey of India and even support from a legal standpointthat has allowed looters toescape from the clutches ofthe law despite the thousands of idols he sold,” saidS. Vijay Kumar, a Singaporebased art enthusiast and cofounder of the India PrideProject.
“Further, this fi��ling exposes the dark underbelly of theart world using Hong Kong asan important transit pointand also the criminal nexusbetween professional restorers in London and America.”(With inputs from R. Sivara-man in Chennai)
Cy Vance’s offi��ce and hecame to the Consulate notlong ago and handed overtwo extraordinarily valuablepieces. As a result of thecooperation, several traffi��cked antiquities have beenreturned to India and somemore are in the pipeline. Theindictment is a very positivestep and will discourage other traffi��ckers,” Mr. Chakravorty said.
Faces 86 countsKapoor faces 86 counts, including grand larceny, criminal possession of stolen property and scheme to defraudin the fi��rst degree.
“The case fi��ling by the U.S.law enforcement is a lessonfor our own law enforcementon how meticulous an inves
false history of an antiquity –generally through forged invoices and letters — attemptsto cleanse an antiquity of itsillegal past”.
“There is absolutely nodoubt that Subhash Kapoorand his accomplices havewreaked havoc on our historical sites and temples. Theyhelped create an obnoxiousmarket for antiquities andhurt us very badly,” India’sConsul General in New York,Sandeep Chakravorty, toldThe Hindu.
“The happy part of thisstory is the extraordinarycooperation we receivedfrom the Americans and theauthorities in India and several police departments. Ihave worked personally withManhattan District Attorney
DA fi��les complaint in U.S. court against art dealer for traffi��cking antiquities Subhash Kapoor and 7 others smuggled artefacts, worth about ₹��988 cr., from India, Pak., Afghanistan, Nepal and other countries, say court documents
Subhash Kapoor, 70, iscurrently lodged in prison inTamil Nadu. * M. MOORTHY/FILE
Sriram Lakshman
Washington
An Israeli spyware fi��rm hastold clients it can scoop userdata from the world’s top social media, the FinancialTimes reported on Friday.
The Londonbased newspaper wrote that NSO grouphad “told buyers its technology can surreptitiouslyscrape all of an individual’sdata from the servers of Apple, Google, Facebook, Amazon and Microsoft, according to people familiar with itssales pitch”.
Denies linkAn NSO spokesperson, however, denied the allegation.“There is a fundamental misunderstanding of NSO, itsservices and technology,” itsaid.
“NSO’s products do notprovide the type of collection capabilities and accessto cloud applications, services, or infrastructure as listed
and suggested in today’s FTarticle.”
In May, FacebookownedWhatsApp said it had released an update to plug asecurity hole in its messaging app that allowed insertion of spyware that could beused to spy on journalists,activists and others.
It said the attack bore “allthe hallmarks of a privatecompany that works with anumber of governmentsaround the world”.
It did not name a suspectbut Washingtonbased analyst Joseph Hall, chief technologist at the Center for Democracy and Technology,said at the time that the hackappeared related to theNSO’s Pegasus software.
It is normally sold to lawenforcement and intelligence services.
Friday’s FT report, citingdocuments it had viewedand descriptions of a product demonstration, said the
programme had “evolved tocapture the much greatertrove of information storedbeyond the phone in thecloud, such as a full historyof a target’s location data, archived messages or photos”.
NSO says it does not operate the Pegasus system, onlylicensing it to closely vettedgovernment users “for thesole purpose of preventingor investigating seriouscrime including terrorism”.The group came under thespotlight in 2016 when researchers accused it of helping spy on an activist in theUAE.
NSO is based in Herzliya,near Tel Aviv. It says it employs 600 people in Israeland around the world.
Pegasus is an invasive toolthat can reportedly switchon a target’s cell phone camera and microphone, and access data on it, eff��ectivelyturning the phone into apocket spy.
Israel spyware fi��rm can hackdata from social media: report NSO told buyers it can scoop user data from servers of Apple, Google, Facebook
Agence France-Presse
Jerusalem
Cyber threat: The tool can access history of a target’s locationdata, archived messages and photos. * GETTY IMAGES/ISTOCKPHOTO
Kosovo PM resigns aftersummons from war courtPRISTINA
Kosovo Prime Minister
Ramush Haradinaj, a wartime
commander of the Kosovo
Liberation Army, resigned on
Friday after being called as a
suspect before a war crimes
court in The Hague. AFP
Iran on Friday denied President Donald Trump’s claimthat a U.S. warship destroyed an Iranian dronenear the Persian Gulf.
The Iranian military saidall its drones had returnedsafely to their bases and denied there was any confrontation with “USS Boxer” naval vessel the previous day.
“We have not lost anydrone in the Strait of Hormuz nor anywhere else,”tweeted Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.
Mr. Trump on Friday insisted the U.S. had takendown an Iranian drone thatwas threatening a U.S. navalvessel in the strategic Straitof Hormuz. “No doubt aboutit, no — we shot it down,” Mr.Trump said.
Mr. Trump on Thursdaysaid that the vessel took action after the drone ignoredcommands to stay away andcame too close to it.
Trump reiterates U.S. warship shot it down for coming too close
Associated Press
Tehran
In troubled waters: A fi��le photo of USS Boxer. * AFP
Tehran dismisses U.S. claimof destroying Iranian drone
Pakistan suff��ered a whopping $50 million loss afterit closed its airspace withIndia for nearly fi��vemonths following the Balakot air strikes in February,according to the country’sAviation Minister.
Pakistan closed its airspace on February 26 afterthe Indian Air Force strucka JaisheMohammed campin Balakot in retaliation forthe Pulwama attack.
Pakistan’s Minister forAviation Ghulam SarwarKhan said that the CivilAviation Authority suff��ereda loss of Rs. 8.5 billion ($50million), but underlinedthat this restriction “hit India harder than Pakistan”.
Airspaceclosure costsPak. $50 mn
Press Trust of India
Karachi
At least eight people werekilled and dozens morewounded on Friday when abomb detonated near KabulUniversity while studentswere waiting to take an exam, offi��cials said.
The blast comes amid awave of violence across Afghanistan, where civiliansare being killed almost everyday in the country’s gruelling confl��ict, now in its 18thyear.
The Taliban denied any
involvement in Friday'sblast.
Health Ministry spokesman Wahidullah Mayar saidthe death toll had reached
eight, with another 33 injured. “Wounded have beenreceiving the required medical and surgical treatment,”he said on Twitter.
Kabul University blast kills 8Students were waiting to take an examination at the time
Agence France-Presse
Kabul
Security personnel at the site of a bomb explosion in front ofKabul University on Friday. * AFP
German Chancellor AngelaMerkel on Friday condemned President DonaldTrump’s xenophobic tweetsagainst four minority Democratic Congresswomen, saying the U.S. leader’s attacks“go against what makesAmerica great”.
“I fi��rmly distance myselffrom (the attacks) and I feelsolidarity towards” the women, she told journalists.
“In my view, the strengthof America lies in that people from diff��erent (origins)
contributed to what makesthe country great.”
Mr. Trump on Sundayurged a group of four progressive Democratic congresswomen of colour — allAmerican citizens and threeof them U.S.born — to “goback” to their countries oforigin.
Despite a domestic uproarover the comments whichwere deemed “racist” by theHouse of Representatives,Mr. Trump repeatedly renewed his attack.
“If you’re not happy here,you can leave... This is about
love for America, certain people hate our country,” hetweeted on Tuesday, whilerepeating the same messageto a rally on Wednesday.
International condemnation has rained down overthe comments. British PrimeMinister Theresa May calledthem “completely unacceptable”. New Zealand’s leaderJacinda Ardern said she“completely and utterly” disagreed with Mr. Trump.
While usually refrainingfrom commenting on othercountries’ domestic politics,Ms. Merkel on Friday hadmarkedly sharp words aboutMr. Trump’s latest attacks.
Questions over racism areparticularly sensitive in Germany given its Nazi past.
Says Trump’s tweets against Congresswomen “go against what makes America great”
Angela Merkel
Agence France-Presse
Berlin
Merkel shows solidarity with lawmakers
‘China home to worsthuman rights crisis’WASHINGTON
U.S. Secretary of State Mike
Pompeo has said China was
home to one of the worst
human rights crisis of the
present times, slamming
Beijing for violations against
minorities. PTI
A 51year old Indianoriginwoman was sentenced tothree years’ imprisonmentand ordered to forfeit morethan $7 million for her rolein smuggling hundreds ofundocumented people,primarily from India, intothe U.S. for fees rangingfrom $28,000 to $60,000per person.
Last year, Hema Patelpleaded guilty to smuggling of people for fi��nancialgain.
Indian jailedfor smugglingpeople into U.S.
Press Trust of India
New York
Iran said on Friday it hascaptured a Britishfl��aggedoil tanker, Stena Impero,in the Gulf.
The website of Iran’sRevolutionary Guard saidthe tanker was seized for“noncompliance withinternational maritimelaws and regulations” andwas taken to an Iranianport. The report did notsay which port.
Iran says it hasseized tanker Associated Press
TEHRAN
Gibraltar's Supreme Courtruled on Friday that aseized Iranian tankersuspected of breachingsanctions by shipping oilto Syria can be detainedfor 30 more days.
The Grace 1 supertankerwas intercepted by BritishRoyal Marines andGibraltar's police on July 4as it was on watersclaimed by Gibraltar.
Gibraltar extendsIran tanker’s stayReuters
LONDON
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THE HINDU DELHI
SATURDAY, JULY 20, 2019 15EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
NIFTY 50
PRICE CHANGE
Adani Ports. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 405.50. . . . . . . . -6.90
Asian Paints. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1369.10. . . . . . -15.85
Axis Bank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 729.25. . . . . . -11.15
Bajaj Auto . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2558.25. . . . . . -72.55
Bajaj Finserv. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7566.35. . . -281.30
Bajaj Finance . . . . . . . . . .. . . . 3323.10. . . -144.55
Bharti Airtel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339.95. . . . . . . . -2.55
BPCL. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 351.00. . . . . . . . . 1.75
Britannia Ind . . . . . . . . . .. . . . 2749.15. . . . . . -71.70
Cipla . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 536.70. . . . . . -10.30
Coal India . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221.90. . . . . . . . . 1.60
Dr Reddys Lab . . . . . . . .. . . . 2613.15. . . . . . -42.40
Eicher Motors. . . . . . . . .. 17664.00. . . -742.00
GAIL (India). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137.60. . . . . . . . -4.35
Grasim Ind . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 879.95. . . . . . -27.75
HCL Tech. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1015.60. . . . . . . . -2.95
HDFC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2303.55. . . . . . -41.60
HDFC Bank. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2375.65. . . . . . -36.25
Hero MotoCorp . . . . . .. . . . 2387.40. . . . . . -92.05
Hindalco . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 196.00. . . . . . . . -4.55
Hind Unilever . . . . . . . . .. . . . 1720.40. . . . . . -18.75
Indiabulls HFL . . . . . . . .. . . . . . 634.95. . . . . . -24.15
ICICI Bank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 410.30. . . . . . . . -8.35
IndusInd Bank . . . . . . . .. . . . 1422.15. . . . . . -49.30
Bharti Infratel . . . . . . . .. . . . . . 259.50. . . . . . . . -3.65
Infosys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 785.40. . . . . . . . -7.30
Indian OilCorp . . . . . . . .. . . . . . 146.50. . . . . . . . -1.10
ITC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268.30. . . . . . . . -4.70
JSW Steel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259.05. . . . . . . . -7.05
Kotak Bank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1498.90. . . . . . -39.35
L&T . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1411.55. . . . . . -23.65
M&M . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 571.30. . . . . . -26.10
Maruti Suzuki . . . . . . . . .. . . . 5769.10. . . -113.25
NTPC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129.90. . . . . . . . . 2.85
ONGC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143.90. . . . . . . . . 0.50
PowerGrid Corp . . . . .. . . . . . 205.70. . . . . . . . . 0.35
Reliance Ind . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1249.00. . . . . . -12.85
State Bank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 356.00. . . . . . . . -7.65
Sun Pharma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 421.35. . . . . . . . -4.85
Tata Motors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154.85. . . . . . . . -5.90
Tata Steel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 458.05. . . . . . . . -8.55
TCS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2076.95. . . . . . . 11.00
Tech Mahindra . . . . . . .. . . . . . 675.05. . . . . . -12.15
Titan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1091.05. . . . . . . 11.05
UltraTech Cement. .. . . . 4522.95. . . . . . -78.80
UPL. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 643.45. . . . . . -11.30
Vedanta . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161.25. . . . . . . . -1.80
Wipro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264.70. . . . . . . . -4.40
YES Bank. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83.25. . . . . . . . -2.55
Zee Entertainment . . . . . . 352.95. . . . . . . . -7.15
EXCHANGE RATES
Indicative direct rates in rupees a unitexcept yen at 4 p.m. on July 19
CURRENCY TT BUY TT SELL
US Dollar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . 68.60. . . . . . . 68.92
Euro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . 77.10. . . . . . . 77.46
British Pound. . . . . . . . . . . . .. . 86.00. . . . . . . 86.41
Japanese Yen (100) . .. . 63.73. . . . . . . 64.03
Chinese Yuan . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . 9.97. . . . . . . 10.02
Swiss Franc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . 69.79. . . . . . . 70.12
Singapore Dollar . . . . . . .. . 50.49. . . . . . . 50.73
Canadian Dollar. . . . . . . . .. . 52.59. . . . . . . 52.84
Malaysian Ringitt . . . . . .. . 16.68. . . . . . . 16.77
Source:Indian Bank
BULLION RATES CHENNAI
July 19 rates in rupees with previousrates in parentheses
Retail Silver (1g) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44.6. . . . . . . (43.8)
22 ct gold (1 g) . .. . . . . . . . . . . . 3363. . . . . . (3332)
market watch
19-07-2019 % CHANGE
Sensex dddddddddddddddddddddd 38,337 ddddddddddddd-1.44
US Dollardddddddddddddddddddd 68.80 ddddddddddddd-0.24
Gold ddddddddddddddddddddddddddd 35,950 ddddddddddddddd0.78
Brent oil ddddddddddddddddddddd 62.02 ddddddddddddddd0.04
The forensic audit report oncredit rating agencies (CRAs)of IL&FS has alleged seriouslapses on the part of suchagencies that had concernsrelated to the operations ofthe entity way back in 2012but chose to downgrade ratings only in 2018.
The report, prepared byGrant Thornton, also raisesquestions on the protocolsfollowed by CRAs while stating that credit rationale reports, made by the agencies,were modifi��ed by key employees of IL&FS.
The report has also statedthat IL&FS Group and its senior staff�� provided favours torating agency offi��cials.
As per the report, RameshBawa, former CEO, IFIN, facilitated the purchase of a vil
la for Ambreesh Srivastava ofIndia Ratings. Similarly,Arun Saha, former CEO,IL&FS Ltd., arranged RealMadrid football match tickets for Brickwork Ratings’ D.Ravishankar. The IL&FSGroup also donated ₹��25 lakhto Sameeksha Trust whosemanaging trustee D.N.Ghosh was also the ICRAchairman.
The report cited instanceswhere the CRAs initially decided to downgrade IL&FSbut did not actually do it after meeting senior offi��cials ofIL&FS. “We identifi��ed multiple emails which indicatethat credit rating agencieshad raised multiple issueswith regard to the operationof the IL&FS group, mainlyITNL (IL&FS TransportationNetworks Limited), IFIN(IL&FS Financial Services Li
mited), and IL&FS Limited.The emails identifi��ed are over the period from 2008 to2018,” stated the report.
“... it was noted that although credit rating agencieshad concerns/issues with theoperations of the IL&FS
group (including potentialstress and liquidity indicators) during June 2012 toJune 2018, the ratings assigned were consistentlyhigh and the same were reversed/downgraded onlypost June/July 2018,” it ad
ded. The report also statedthat “the credit rating rationale, which is supposed to bedrafted by the rating agencies, was materially modifi��edby or signifi��cant suggestionsfrom the former key employees of IL&FS were incorporated to provide and support good ratings given bythe CRAs.” In the case of CareRatings, the report has alsoalleged a possible confl��ict ofinterest as IL&FS Limitedand IFIN owned about 5.9%stake in the CRA which, asper the report, could have affected the “independence ofthe rating agency.”
The report said IL&FS offi��cials pressurised CRAs forgood ratings and even intentionally provided incorrector incomplete information toavoid a downgrade. “We noted instances where, if the
then key employees of IL&FSdid not receive the desiredrating..., they used to potentially pressurise CRAs to either withdraw the rating or approach other CRAs [for] thedesired ratings,” said the report. Queries sent to Crisiland Care Ratings remainedunanswered till the time ofgoing to press. “We are reviewing the... report; however, we cannot comment onthe accuracy of the information at present,” said an ICRAspokesperson.
“The report... ignores thefact that the government hascharged the former management of IL&FS with engagingin... fraud and producing‘falsifi��ed, spruced up’ fi��nancial statements, which allCRAs rely on to produce accurate ratings,” said an IndiaRatings spokesperson.
How villas, donations eased IL&FS’ way to ratingsForensic audit also fl��ags possible confl��ict of interest via IL&FS’ stake in an agency; says NBFC’s offi��cials infl��uenced ratings
ASHISH RUKHAIYAR
MUMBAI
Shades of grey: Credit rationale reports, prepared by CRAs,were modifi��ed by key staff�� of the beleaguered group. * REUTERS
IndiGo on Friday reportedits highestever quarterlyprofi��t of ₹��1,203 crore for thequarter ended June, a 43times jump over the sameperiod last year.
The airline’s revenue fromoperations stood at ₹��9,420.1crore for the quarter, an increase of of 44.7% over theyearearlier period.
Its expenses rose 22% to₹��8,277 crore. Passenger ticket revenue rose 46.4% to₹��8,445 crore and ancillaryrevenue stood at ₹��902 crore,an increase of 32.2% over theyearearlier period.
IndiGo’s CEO RonojoyDutta attributed the strongrevenue performance partially to the cessation of operations by Jet Airways, optimisation of the airline network
as well as a 35% increase inrevenue from cargo with theairline adding a range of products for its cargo belly.
“This quarter also saw ahigh percentage of bookingsin the 015 day window withclosing fares also holding upand helping our revenue per
formance,” he said in a conference call with analysts
Giving an outline of itsplans for international expansion, the CEO said that itwill connect Vietnam andMyanmar next quarter.
The board meeting preceding the announcement of
the results was much awaited because of the ongoingspat between copromotersRakesh Gangwal and RahulBhatia. The former hadsought SEBI’s interventioninto alleged governance lapses as well as related partytransactions between Mr.Bhatia’s InterGlobe Enterprises and IndiGo. “Therewas a fulsome discussion onall the issues,” said Mr. Dutta.
Woman director mulledHe said the board also discussed the appointment of awoman independent director to comply with the law,another issue highlighted byMr. Gangwal.
The airline has respondedto SEBI’s request for detailsand will be replying to theMinistry of Corporate Aff��airsby the end of next week.
IndiGo clocks highestever quarterly netProfi��t surges to ₹��1,203 cr., aided in part by cessation of operations by Jet Airways
SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
NEW DELHI
Reliance Industries Limited(RIL) reported a 6.8% growthin its fi��rst quarter net profi��tto ₹��10,104 crore, the slowestgrowth in 10 quarters, as lower gross refi��ning margins(GRMs) and a sluggish petrochemical business continuedto weigh on earnings, a trendpartly off��set by the growth inconsumer businesses.
The energytotelecomconglomerate saw its GRMs(the amount a refi��ner earnsfor every barrel of crude processed) falling to $8.1 per barrel, the lowest in the last 18quarters, compared to GRMsof $10.5 per barrel in the yearago period.
The profi��ts came on theback of a 22.1% growth in revenues to ₹��1,72,956 crore,with the consumer businessaccounting for 32% of totalrevenues. RIL’s exports dur
ing the quarter fell 4.5% to₹��50,158 crore.
Deep integrationRIL chairman Mukesh Ambani said, “Our fi��rst quarterearnings were strong despitea weak global macroeconomic environment and challenging hydrocarbon market conditions. Our downstreambusinesses delivered resilient performance in an environment of slower demandgrowth and incremental supplies. The performance refl��ects the benefi��ts of deep refi��ning and petrochemicalsintegration, chain economicsand feedstock fl��exibility.”
RIL, which became India’smostvalued fi��rm by marketvalue last week, saw its refi��ning and petrochemicals businesses contributing ₹��8,810crore and ₹��5,152 crore to theEBITDA respectively. Organised retail and digital services contributed ₹��2,049 croreand ₹��4,908 crore to the company’s EBITDA respectively.
“The company continuesto make major strides in itsretail and digital services businesses, led by focus ongrowth markets with off��erings in the right product segments and compelling valueproposition. We are pleasedwith the robust growth bothin revenues and operating income for Reliance Retail. Our
digital services business continues to transform the mobility market in India, whilescaling newer milestones,”Mr. Ambani added.
RIL had an outstandingdebt of ₹��2,88243 crore as onJune 30, 2019 against cashand cash equivalent of₹��1,31,710 crore.
Commenting on the results, investment adviser S.P.Tulsian told The Hindu, “Overall, good results with a bitof disappointment on theGRM side. The petchem EBITmargins have improved by120 basis points. Retail andJio have done considerablywell.”
RIL shares on the BSE declined 1.01% to close at ₹��1,249in a weak Mumbai market onFriday, valuing the companyat ₹��7,91,750.71 crore.
The results were announced after the closure ofmarket hours.
RIL reports slowest growth in 10 quarters, Q1 net at ₹��10,104 cr.Gross refi��ning margins slump to $8.1 per barrel, sluggish petrochemical business weighs on earnings; exports fall by 4.5%
Special Correspondent
MUMBAI <> The company
continues to make
major strides in its
retail and digital
services businesses
Mukesh Ambani,
Chairman, RIL
Reserve Bank of India Governor Shaktikanta Dasmet chief executives of public sector banks (PSBs) onFriday where the need fora deeper rate cut by thebanks was discussed.
The meeting, ahead ofthe monetary policy review announcement onAugust 7, discussed variousissues, including challenges of credit fl��ow to the productive sectors of theeconomy.
“The Governor acknowledged discernible improvements in the bankingsector while underscoringthat several challenges stillremain to be addressed,particularly with regard tothe stressed asset resolution and credit fl��ows toneedy sectors,” the RBIsaid in a statement.
RBI’s Das, PSBchiefs discussrate cut
SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
Mumbai
The proposed merger withGruh Finance will enableBandhan Bank to achievebetter geographical balance, said the bank’s MDand CEO Chandra ShekharGhosh.
Addressing a press meet,he said that the bank wastrying to increase its presence in States where it wasweak. This would includethe southern and somewestern States. The Gruhportfolio will enable it tomark a strong presence inMaharashtra and Gujarat.
Mr. Ghosh said that Bandhan Bank had closed thefi��rst quarter with a 45.4%rise in posttax profi��t to ₹��701crore on the back of a 36.1%rise in net interest income to₹��1,411 crore.
Total advances grew by
39.4% to ₹��45,420 crore,while total deposits increased by 42.3% to ₹��43,701crore.
Bandhan Bank’s net NPAswere at 0.56% against 0.58%a year ago. “The year hasstarted on a promisingnote,” he said, adding thathe expected it to get betterthrough the subsequentquarters.
Mr. Ghosh said the merger was now awaiting the approval of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT)after getting approval fromthe Reserve Bank of India,the Competition Commission of India and the Securities Exchange Board ofIndia.
“During the year, we expect the Gruh merger to getconsummated, which willbring diversifi��cation andadd to growth,” he said.
‘Merger with Gruh willhelp Bandhan expand’Bank eyes presence in south, west
Special Correspondent
KOLKATA
In what could spark thesouring of ties between theCentre and the Securitiesand Exchange Board of India (SEBI), the Finance Ministry has refused pleasfrom the capital marketsregulator to amend the provision that mandates thatabout 75% of its surplus betransferred to the Centre’scoff��ers.
The Finance Bill 2019,passed by the Lok Sabha onThursday, has a provisionstating that the SEBI mustset up a reserve fund intowhich 25% of its surplus is tobe transferred. The remaining amount is to be transferred to the Centre.
“The [SEBI] Board shall
constitute a reserve fundand 25% of the annual surplus of the general fund inany year shall be credited tosuch reserve fund and suchfund shall not exceed the total of annual expenditure ofpreceding two fi��nancialyears,” the Finance Bill says.
“After incurring all the expenses… and transfer to reserve fund… the surplus ofthe general fund shall betransferred to the consolidated fund of India,” the Billadded.
This decision has beenopposed by SEBI, withChairman Ajay Tyagi meeting Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman earlier thisweek.
(With Ashish Rukhaiyarin Mumbai)
Bill says 75% surplus meant for Centre
TCA Sharad Raghavan
NEW DELHI
Centre rejects SEBI pleaon transfer of reserves
Private sector RBL Bank(erstwhile Ratnakar Bank)saw its share price plunging almost 14% despite reporting a 41.5% rise in itsnet profi��t for the AprilJunequarter. This was becauseof the management’s guidance that asset qualitymay worsen signifi��cantlyover the next 69 monthsand credit costs may rise.
According to VishwavirAhuja, MD & CEO, RBLBank, the lender could incur additional 40 bps credit costs on account ofstress in some of the corporate lenders and gross nonperforming assets could goup to 22.5%.
“Given the diffi��cult environment, we do expect toface some challenges onsome of our exposures inthe near term,” he said.
RBL shares fallon asset qualityconcerns
SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
MUMBAI
Sundaram Finance Ltd.(SFL) will focus on its coremarkets and segments whilesimultaneously exploringopportunities in newer geographies, said a top offi��cialwhile addressing the shareholders at the 66th annualgeneral meeting.
During 201819, SFL posted a 9.3% growth in disbursement to ₹��17,170 crore dueto sharper focus on the rapidly growing constructionequipment and intermediate and light commercialvehicle segments and thedeepening of its presence innew geographies and market segments, said S. Viji,chairman, SFL.
He also said that SFL wasable to counter pricing pressure in the fi��ercely competitive vehicle fi��nance segment
on account of the strongcustomer relationships thatit had built and nurtured over the decades and its abilityto raise resources at competitive rates.
T.T. Srinivasaraghavan,managing director, SFL,said that in recent years, thefi��rm had ventured into newStates and geographies.Now, it would expand itspresence in these markets.
“Over the years, SFL hasgrown on the basis of prudence. Our growth this yearwill be cautious, withoutcomprising on quality,” hesaid.
On the outlook, Mr. Vijisaid that the uncertaintiessurrounding market liquidity, interest rates, global oilprices and the imminent introduction of the BSVIemission norms renderedforecasts diffi��cult.
Sundaram Finance tofocus on core marketsDisbursements grow 9.3% to ₹��17,170 cr.
Special Correspondent
CHENNAI
Extending losses for the second consecutive session,market benchmark BSESensex plunged 560 pointson Friday after the government thwarted hopes of atax relief for FPIs.
Led by a selloff�� in autoand banking stocks, the 30share index cracked 560.45points or 1.44% to settle at38,337.01. The broaderNSE Nifty sank 177.65points to 11,419.25.
On Thursday, FinanceMinister Nirmala Sitharaman had said the proposedhike in tax on individualsearning more than ₹��2 crorewill not impact FPIs, provided they organise themselves as a company.
Sensex tanks560 points;bank, autostocks bleed
Press Trust of India
Mumbai
A $10million interim fundinfusion into Jet Airways andappointment of consultants— to value the company’s assets and to decide the eligibility criteria for the bidders— were among the resolutions approved by the Jet Airways’ Committee of Creditors in an evoting process asper provisions.
The bidding process forJet Airways is likely to startfrom Saturday with AshishChhawchharia, the InterimResolution Professional(IRP) appointed for Jet Airways (India) Ltd. by the National Company Law Tribunal, planning to releaseadvertisements inviting Expression of Interest (EoI). Aperson privy to the development confi��rmed this.
The window for evotingunder the IBC opened onThursday and closed on Friday. In a fi��ling with the exchanges, Jet Airways said,“We wish to inform that theevoting for the First Meetingof Committee of Creditors ofJet Airways (India) Limitedconcluded at 4 pm IST on July 19, 2019, in accordancewith the Regulation 26 of theInsolvency & Bankruptcy
Board of India (InsolvencyResolution for CorporatePersons) Regulations, 2016,wherein all the resolutions,including appointment of Interim Resolution Professional Mr. Ashish Chhawchhariaas Resolution Professional,have been approved by requisite majority.”
“Further, resolution toraise interim fi��nance andkey terms for the eligibilitycriteria for prospective resolution applicants have beenalso approved by the requisite majority of votingshare,” it added.
This clears the way for inviting the EoI by setting theterms and conditions.
Currently, only the consortium of Jet Airways employees and U.K. based AdiPartners are serious playersin the fray.
CoC okays resolution on $10mninterim funding for Jet AirwaysEvoting for fi��rst meeting ends, bidding process from today
Lalatendu Mishra
MUMBAI
Reliance Jio has reported a45.6% increase in net profi��t to ₹��891 crore during theJune quarter.
The average revenueper user fell to ₹��122 duringthe quarter even as thesubscriber base increasedto 331.3 million. In anotherdevelopment, Canada’sBrookfi��eld Asset Management has agreed to invest₹��25,215 crore in the unitsproposed to be issued byTower Infrastructure Trustof Reliance Industries(RIL), making it among thelargest foreign investmenttransactions in an Indian
infrastructure vehicle.In a regulatory fi��ling,
RIL said its wholly ownedsubsidiary Reliance Industrial Investments andHoldings Limited (RIIHL)has entered into an agreement with BIF IV Jarvis India Pte Limited, an affi��liateof Brookfi��eld Asset Management Inc. (Brookfi��eld)for the investment.
Jio has pipped BhartiAirtel (32.03 crore mobilesubscribers) to become thesecond largest mobile operator with 32.29 croresubscribers and 27.80%market share in May, according to TRAI data.
(With PTI inputs)
Jio net up 45.6% to ₹��891 cr.Brookfi��eld to invest in RIL tower arm
Special Correspondent
MUMBAI
Amid a push for electricvehicles, Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Fridaysaid India will continue torely on petrol and dieselfor running automobiles,and needs to expand its oilrefi��ning capacity by 80%.
“EV is a priority but theincremental requirementof fuel will have to be metthrough a combination of(ultraclean) BSVI gradepetrol and diesel, CNG andbiofuels alongside EVs,” hesaid at an event here.
India would need a combination of cleaner dieseland petrol, compressednatural gas (CNG), biofuelsand electric vehicles (EVs)for meeting its transportation needs, he said.
‘India’s refi��ningcapacity needsto expand’
Press Trust of India
New Delhi
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Bharat Arun has been a quietachiever as India’s bowlingcoach, putting together anaggressive wicketminded attack that can sting.
Despite India’s shock exitin the ICC World Cup semifi��nal, chiefl��y caused by a batting collapse in the fi��rst 10overs, Arun, in a conversation with The Hindu, feltthere were many positivesfor Virat Kohli’s men fromthe competition. On India topping the 10team group stage: We performed with consistency andaggression and were theteam of the World Cup tillthe semifi��nal, topping in agruelling format revived after 1992. On the semifi��nal defeatagainst New Zealand: Thewhole team was heartbroken. Just 45 minutes of badcricket saw us out. Also Indiabatting on the second dayhurt us. The ball always doesthings in the mornings in England and it moved. On dayone, the pitch actually easedout and the momentum waswith us.On the format for theknockout stages: Thereshould be some incentive forthe teams that fi��nish fi��rst andsecond in this long, demanding league phase. We shouldhave playoff��s like in the IPL. On the criticism directedat M.S. Dhoni: It was veryunfair. He has contributed somuch to the Indian team, is alegend. In fact, on many oc
casions, Virat Kohli bouncesoff�� ideas off�� Dhoni, respectshim. In the semifi��nal, wewere all confi��dent till Dhoniwas there. We could see hewas lining himself up for thebig hits in the fi��nal over. Sadly, the run out happened. On the harmony withinthe teammanagementand the support staff��: It’snot that we agree on everything. We have our argumentsand discussions on variousaspects like the compositionof the team and the strategy.Everyone voices his opinion.But, at the end of the day, theother person’s view is respected and a collective deci
sion is taken. On the relationship between skipper Kohli andvicecaptain Rohit Sharma: It has to be seen to bebelieved. Rohit often runs upto Kohli to discuss things.They get along very well,share great admiration foreach other’s ability. Kohli ledthe side well, is maturing as acaptain and it’s nice that hehas Rohit for support. Thespirit in the camp was wonderful throughout. On the Indian bowling inthe World Cup: Many feltwe were the bowling side ofthe tournament. JaspritBumrah was brilliant with
his pace and variations. Hishardtopick shortpitcheddeliveries skid on to the batsmen.
Bhuvneshwar [Kumar]showed character, movedthe ball. Hardik Pandya wasa revelation with his changes
of pace and eff��ective shortpitched deliveries. He waskeen to pull his weight as abowler and often completedhis 10 overs. And the extremely talented, multidimensional Ravindra Jadejashowed fi��ngerspinners hada role to play too. It was a diffi��cult decision to leave outMohammed Shami in thesemifi��nal but had we made itto the fi��nal at Lord’s hewould have been in the eleven as the fourth paceman.On wristspinners nothaving a great WorldCup: The conditions did notreally suit them, it was cold.The batsmen also playedthem well, a lot off�� the backfoot. On the eff��ective deliveries in the tournament:The deliveries on a goodlength that moved. The slower off��cutter bouncers, thequick bouncer and the crossseam deliveries. On how the fi��nal concluded: I agree with Sachin Tendulkar that one more SuperOver could have beenplayed. Why look only atboundaries when there areso many methods to makeruns? Looking at the numberof wickets lost is the best wayto decide.
‘We should have WC playoff��s like the IPL’Arun says the teams that fi��nish fi��rst and second in the league phase deserve some incentive
S. Dinakar
Chennai
Top bunch: B. Arun said many felt that India was the bowling side of the World Cup. * AP
EXCLUSIVE
Ten days have passed withbated anticipation after M.S.Dhoni returned to the OldTraff��ord dressing room falling a run outvictim to Martin Guptill in the World Cupsemifi��nal against New Zealand.
The cricketing fraternity,somewhat disappointedwith the way he batted in theWorld Cup, believed that hewould announce his retirement from whiteball cricketafter having bid adieu fromthe traditional Test cricketafter the second Test of the2014 series against Australiain Melbourne.
Those who have wishedDhoni well right though hisspectacular career believethat he would not allow hisprocrastination to be a stumbling block to the Indianteam selection.
With the BCCI presidentand secretary rendered irrelevant by certain actions ofthe Committee of Administrators (CoA), only the chiefselector M.S.K. Prasad cantalk it over with Dhoni abouthis future with the nationalteam.
Selection on SundayIt may have already happened or will happen beforethe selection committeemeets here on Sunday topick the Indian team for theWest Indies tour that involves three ODIS and T20Iseach and two Tests, all fromAug. 3 to Sept. 3.
The committee is looking
at a basket that’s not reallyfull, but off��ers options. Oneis Andhra’s wicketkeeperbatsman K.S. Bharat. The rationale is that performancesfor IndiaA should be givenmeaning and recognition.
If there is an award for anIndiaA player of the year,the 25yearold Bharat wouldbe among the frontrunners.Rishabh Pant, though,would be the fi��rstchoicewicketkeeper for the Test series. He scored an unbeaten
159 in the fourth and fi��nalTest against Australia in Sydney. In fact, Pant should fi��gure in all three teams.
The Prasadled selectioncommittee has chosen Bengal’s Wriddhiman Saha andBharat in the IndiaA teamfor the three multidaymatches against the West IndiesA to be played in JulyAugust in Antigua, Port ofSpain and Tarouba.
Saha, 34, is trying to stagea comeback after an injuryforced him out of the teamafter the fi��rst Test againstSouth Africa at Cape Town inJanuary 2018. Saha returnedto active cricket during theIPL and, most importantly,in the Mushtaq Ali T20 tournament for Bengal.
In the last 12 months, Bharat has played 11 unoffi��cialTests against the ‘A’ teams ofWest Indies, South Africa,Australia, New Zealand, SriLanka and England Lions,scored 686 runs with threecenturies and two halfcenturies, held 41 catches andeff��ected six stumpings.
Impressive recordOverall he has an impressiverecord of 65 First Classmatches, 3798 runs witheight centuries, 20 fi��fties and223 catches and 27 stumpingand thus has made a strongclaim for a Test squad spot.
He has scored three centuries against AustraliaA(106 at Alur), England Lions(142 at Wayanad) and SriLankaA (117 at Hubli), andthese good numbers cannotbe ignored.
Saha on comeback trail too; Pant likely fi��rstchoice ’keeper
G. Viswanath
Mumbai
West Indies tour: Bharat in the race for Test spot
Wicketkeeperbatsman K.S. Bharat. * FILE PHOTO
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B Bharat has played 11unoffi��cial Tests against the‘A’ teams of West Indies,South Africa, Australia,New Zealand, Sri Lanka andEngland Lions, scored 686runs, held 41 catches andeff��ected six stumpings
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Indian batting icon SachinTendulkar has been inducted into the InternationalCricket Council’s Hall ofFame alongside South African pace legend Allan Donald. Joining Tendulkar andDonald in the Hall of Famewas twotime World Cupwinning Australian womancricketer CathrynFitzpatrick.
“It’s a huge honour forme,” Tendulkar said at theinduction ceremony heldhere on Sunday night. The46yearold former righthand batsman is regardedthe greatest to have played
the game along with Sir Donald Bradman and remainsthe top runaccumulator inboth Tests and ODIs. He has34,357 runs across formatsand is the only batsman tohave 100 internationals hundreds under his belt.
The 52yearold Donald isone of the fi��nest bowlers tohave played the game andhad 330 Test and 272 ODIwickets to his credit beforecalling it quits in 2003.
Fitzpatrick is the secondhighest wickettaker of alltime in women’s cricket with180 ODI scalps and 60 inTests. As a coach, she guidedthe Australian women’s teamto three World Cup titles.
Tendulkar and Donald in ICC Hall of Fame
Allan Donald. * LAURENCE
GRIFFITHS/GETTY IMAGES
Sachin Tendulkar.* FILE PHOTO
Press Trust of India
London
England allrounder BenStokes, who broke millionsof Kiwi hearts in the recently concluded World Cup,has been nominated forthe ‘New Zealander of theYear’ Award.
New ZealandbornStokes has been nominatedfor the award along withBlack Caps captain KaneWilliamson, Newstalk ZBhost Simon Barnett, former league star Manu Vatuvei and one of the heroes ofthe Christchurch mosqueattacks, Abdul Aziz, reports New Zealand Herald.
New Zealander of theYear Awards chief judgeCameron Bennett saidboth Stokes and Williamson had received severalnominations after the dramatic World Cup fi��nal.
“He might not have beenplaying for the Black Capsbut, having been born inChristchurch, where hisparents now live, and withMaori ancestry, there’sclearly a few Kiwis aboutwho think we can stillclaim him,” Bennett said ofStokes.
Stokes — NewZealander of the Year?IANS
Wellington
International cricket captains will no longer run therisk of being suspended forslow overrates, with theICC deciding instead todock points and fi��ne theentire side for any such violations, starting with theupcoming World TestChampionship.
The recommendationsof the ICC Cricket Committee were approved by itsboard in order to curb themenace of slow overrates.The world Test championship, which runs from 2019to 2021, gets underwaywith the Ashes, starting August 1. “In World TestChampionship matches ateam that is behind the required over rate at the endof a match will have twocompetition points deducted for each over it is behind,” the ICC said in statement here.
No suspensionfor overrateoff��ences: ICCPress Trust of India
London
India’s men and women overcame England in contrastingfi��nals to repeat their lastyear’s team championshipdoublegold medal feat atCommonwealth Games bylifting the glittering trophieson the third day of the 21stCommonwealth table tennischampionship.
While the women rolledover England 30 in an onesided aff��air to win a historicfi��rst gold for India in the tournament’s 48year history, A.Sharath Kamal’s boys made astunning comeback to edgepast England 32 and retained their team title.
Challenging The men’s fi��nal turned out tobe far more challenging thanIndia anticipated. VeteranSharath suff��ered a shock defeat to England’s promisingyoungster Tom Jarvis. G.Sathiyan then led 20 againstEngland’s top paddler SamWalker but the latter ralliedto help England double thelead, leaving the gallery spellbound with his powerfulbackhand winners.
Harmeet Desai then survived tense moments beforeovercoming England’s DavidMcBeath to celebrate hisbirthday in style. An aggressive Sathiyan and a composed Sharath then saw Indiahome by making short workof Jarvis and Walker, respectively, to help India win itsthird team championship.
Women, however, had iteasy. After breaking eighttimes defending championSingapore’s run in the semifi��nals, Manika Batra, ArchanaKamath and Madhurika Pat
kar sailed past the Englandgirls without breaking sweat.
The results: Team Championship: Men: Final: India bt England 32 (A. Sharath Kamallost to Thomas Jarvis 711, 811,411; G. Sathiyan lost to SamuelWalker 115, 119, 411, 811, 811; Harmeet Desai bt DavidMcBeath 411, 115, 811, 118,118; Sathiyan bt Jarvis 112, 611, 114, 114; Sharath bt Walker1513, 1210, 116).
Semifi��nals: India bt Singapore30 (Sharath bt Pang Yu EnKoen 115, 811, 118, 115; Sathiyan bt Chew Zheyu Clarence116, 118, 1311; Desai bt Beh
Kun Ting 119, 1012, 119, 118);England bt Malaysia 31 (Walker bt Wong Qi Shen 115, 112, 911, 116; Jarvis bt Ashraf Muhamad Rizal 1214, 117, 116, 117;McBeath lost to Leong CheeFeng 119, 411, 115, 1012, 711;Walker bt Rizal 811, 117, 117,112).
Final standings: India, England,Singapore, Malaysia, Nigeria,Wales, Australia, Sri Lanka, Cyprus, South Africa, Bangladesh,Scotland.
Women: Final: India bt England30 (Archana Kamath bt Ho TinTin 811, 1311, 119, 119; Manika Batra bt Denise Payet 116,
114, 113; Madhurika Patkar btEmily Bolton 119, 117, 116).
Semifi��nals: India bt Singapore30 (Batra bt Wong Xin Ru 711,119, 911, 113, 1311; Kamath btGoi Rui Xuan 711, 112, 118,115; Patkar bt Lim Eunice oe116, 117, 117); England bt Nigeria 30 (Ho bt Cecilia Akpan119, 113, 114; Payet bt Offi��ongEdem 1012, 118, 116, 911,116; Bolton bt Ajoke Ojomu 711, 117, 211, 115, 119).
Final standings: India, England,Singapore, Nigeria, Malaysia,Australia, Wales, Sri Lanka, Cyprus, Scotland, Bangladesh,South Africa.
Double delight for Indian paddlersMen’s and women’s teams get past England in contrasting styles
Amol Karhadkar
CUTTACK
Total success: India’s men’s and women’s teams pose withtheir rewards. * BISWARANJAN ROUT
Despite leading India’swomen paddlers to ahistoric fi��rst gold medal,Manika Batra had mixedemotions while cheeringher male counterparts intheir fi��nal versus England,here.
After all, the bug hasforced her to withdrawfrom all the individual
events. “I am very sad because
I really wanted to playand win but I didn’t knowthat this (infection) willhappen. But it’s okay as Ihave to take care of myhealth as well,” said Batra.
“I pushed myself in theteams (championship)and we won, so I amhappy after winning agold medal in teams.”
Manika pulls out ofindividual eventsAmol Karhadkar
CUTTACK
C’WEALTH TT
Ireland’s Shane Lowryproved master of the Dunluce links for the second successive day to move into ashare of the halfway leadwith American J.B. Holmes atthe British Open on Friday.
A fl��urry of birdies early ina sizzling outward nine of 31looked like giving the 32yearold from across the border the outright lead but abogey at the 18th left him oneight under after successiverounds of 67.
Holmes, the overnightleader, had the better of the
weather earlier in the dayand consolidated his challenge with a 68.
They will play together inthe last group on Saturday inwhat promises to be a battleof the beards.
Tough terrainOnce again the par71 layouton the Antrim coast provedtough terrain for the world’sbest golfers, although therewere some low numbers on acongested leaderboard.
English duo Tommy Fleetwood and Lee Westwood,both looking for their fi��rstMajors, made hay withrounds of 68 moving them toseven under while SouthAfrican Justin Harding’s posted the lowest round of theday, six birdies and an eaglehelping him to a sixunder 65to move three off�� the lead.
Alongside Harding areAustralian Cameron Smith,
who scored a 66, and England’s Justin Rose after a 67.
South Africa’s Dylan Frit
telli, who only secured hisplace last week, was also onsix under after his charge
was tempered by a doublebogey at the 17th.
Shubhankar Sharma has
assured himself of the weekend action after signing fora oneoverpar 72 in the second round. It will be the second time he would makethe cut in as many starts atthe Open. With 7072, he waseven par for 36 holes andT51.
WellplacedHolmes left several other biggername Americans in theshade again although BrooksKoepka, the world numberone, and 2017 winner Jordan
Spieth, are wellplaced tochallenge on fi��ve under.There will be no trademarkTiger Woods charge on Saturday, however, after he missed the cut.
Woods looked more like a15time Major champion onFriday after his openinground 78 but his oneunder70 was in vain.
Phil Mickelson was alsocut, meaning it is the fi��rsttime in the 83 Majors inwhich the two Americanheavyweights have both appeared that neither survivedfor the weekend.
Late in the day all eyesturned to local favourite Rory McIlroy who produced athrilling counterattack in abid to make the cut after hisnightmare 79 on Thursday.
After 12 holes McIlroy wasfi��ve under for his round andjust two shots off�� the oneover cut mark.
Shubhankar in line to make cut; no such luck for Woods, Mickelson; Frittelli’s charge tempered by a doublebogey at the 17th
Reuters
PORTRUSH (Northern Ireland)
Lowry surges with a sizzling outward nine, Holmes consolidates
Digging deep: Shane Lowry’s push for sole lead suff��ered due to a bogey at the 18th that put himeight under after successive rounds of 67. * STUART FRANKLIN/GETTY IMAGES
<> I’m disappointed
with the bogey but
I’m where I want to
be and happy. I
knew the rain was
coming so I wanted
to get a fast start. I’m
very, very excited for
tomorrow
Shane Lowry
CMYK
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THE HINDU DELHI
SATURDAY, JULY 20, 2019 19EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
SPORT
North Korea winsIntercontinental Cup AHMEDABAD
North Korea triumphed in the
second edition of the
Intercontinental Cup football
tournament, beating
Tajikistan by a solitary goal in
the final here on Friday. Pak
Hyon Il scored the match
winner for North Korea in the
71st minute after coming on
as a substitute. The champion
was richer by $50,000 while
the runnerup received
$25,000. PTI
Rutuja & Strakhovaduo bow outOLOMOUC (CZECH REPUBLIC)
Thirdseeded Rutuja Bhosale
and Valeriya Strakhova of
Ukraine were outplayed 61,
60 by Anastasia Detiuc and
Johana Markova of the Czech
Republic in the doubles
quarterfinals of the $25,000
ITF women’s tennis
tournament here.
Commonwealth TT: DDSports, 10 a.m.Indonesia Open badminton: Star Sports 1 (SD & HD),10.30 a.m.The Open golf: DSport, 3.30p.m.PKL: Star Sports 1 & 2 (SD &HD), 7.30 p.m.
TV PICKS
BENGALURU: Gift Of Grace, who is infine nick, may score an encore in theNawab M. Arshad Ali Khan Memorial Cup (1,400m), the featureevent of the races to be held here onSaturday ( July 20). False rails (widthabout 4m from 1,600m to the winning post) will be in position.
1 DELHI CUP (DIV. II), (1,400m),rated 00 to 20, 200 pm: 1. Savisa
(12) S. Shareef 60, 2. Above The Rest(2) R. Manish 58.5, 3. Jersey Storm(11) Chetan K 58, 4. Odyssey (8) M.Kumar 57.5, 5. Winx (9) T.S. Jodha57, 6. Duty Call (6) B. Harish 56, 7.Purity (10) Antony 56, 8. Aafrikaan(5) Darshan 54.5, 9. String Of Pearls(4) A. Merchant 54.5, 10. Turf Prospector (1) Md. Asif Khan 54.5, 11.Romantic Haven (7) Nazerul 53.5and 12. South Bell (3) Irvan 53.1. ABOVE THE REST, 2. PURITY,
3. JERSEY STORM
2 MYSORE CUP (1,200m), maiden3yo only, (Terms), 230: 1.
Desert Combat (5) M. Naveen 56, 2.Mzilikazi (8) Akshay K 56, 3. Awesome Girl (3) A. Merchant 54.5, 4.Cipriani (6) Ranjeet Singh 54.5, 5.Donna Bella (9) P.S. Chouhan 54.5,6. Mrs Thatcher (1) Sandesh 54.5, 7.Queen Regnant (4) Bhawani Singh54.5, 8. Radiant Beauty (7) Suraj 54.5and 9. Skiathos (2) Zervan 54.5.1. MZILIKAZI, 2 RADIANT BEAUTY,
3. DONNA BELLA
3 DELHI CUP (DIV. I), (1,400m),rated 00 to 20, 300: 1. Chinese
Princess (9) Ranjeet Singh 60, 2.Three Wishes (6) Sandesh 60, 3. AllBy Myself (5) S. Shareef 59.5, 4.Honey Trap (3) John 59, 5. Show Girl(2) P.S. Chouhan 59, 6. Lovemyboss(7) Akshay 58, 7. Ocean Park (11) T.S.Jodha 57.5, 8. Aleef (1) Md. Asif Khan57, 9. Great Celebration (8) Akshay K57, 10. Hunters Moon (10) Sai Vamshi57, 11. Natalie (4) M. Naveen 57 and12. Irish Prince (12) M. Prabhakaran56.1. SHOW GIRL, 2. THREE WISHES,
3. HONEY TRAP
4 K.N. GURUSWAMY MEMORIAL
TROPHY (1,600m), rated 60 &above, 330: 1. Ultimate Warrior (6)Chetan Gowda 64, 2. Buscadero (5)Sai Vamshi 58, 3. Magistero (1) Darshan 58, 4. Psychic Force (3) Zervan57.5, 5. Shesmyscript (4) P.S.Chouhan 57, 6. Corybantic (10) Arshad 55, 7. Punjabi Girl (12) Akshay K55, 8. New Creation (2) Sandesh 54,9. Dr Logan (11) S. Shareef 53.5, 10.Mr Handsome (8) S.A. Amit 52.5, 11.Blue Moon (7) T.S. Jodha 51 and 12.Ambrosio (9) Trevor 50.1. AMBROSIO, 2. PUNJABI GIRL,
3. NEW CREATION
5 NAWAB M. ARSHAD ALI KHAN
MEMORIAL CUP (1,400m), 3yoonly, (Terms), 400: 1. BreakingBounds (1) Trevor 57, 2. Roma Victor(5) Akshay K 55, 3. Mystic Bay (4)Yash 52, 4. Star Cavalry (8) Darshan52, 5. Victorious Sermon (3) Sandesh52, 6. Abira (6) Neeraj 50.5, 7. Gift OfGrace (2) Zervan 50.5 and 8. PalmReader (7) P.S. Chouhan 50.5.
1. GIFT OF GRACE, 2. ABIRA,
3. MYSTIC BAY
6 CHENNAI CUP (DIV. I), (1,100m),rated 15 to 35, 4yo & over, 430:
1. Ultimate Speed (10) Darshan 60, 2.Charmaine (7) Trevor 59, 3. MischiefFlyer (3) A. Ramu 58.5, 4. Papadokia(11) A. Imran 58.5, 5. Flicka (2) AshokKumar 58, 6. Princess Holly (6)Rajesh K 57, 7. Simply Magical (5)Yash 57, 8. Lagopus (4) Tauseef 56.5,9. Kasauli (8) Arshad 56, 10. BoldRunner (9) Akshay K 54.5 and 11.Perfect King (1) Irvan 54.
1. BOLD RUNNER, 2. CHARMAINE,
3. MISCHIEF FLYER
7 ANGEL DUST TROPHY (1,200m),rated 30 to 50, 500: 1. Tzar (3)
Rayan 60, 2. Venus Bay (7) Zervan60, 3. Mega Ikon (8) A. Imran 58.5,4. Spanish Beauty (10) Sandesh 58,5. Animal Queen (5) Suraj 57.5, 6.Commodus (4) Trevor 55, 7. ScarletPrincess (6) M. Prabhakaran 55, 8.Bernardini (12) Akshay K 54.5, 9.Desert Rose (1) Arshad 54.5, 10. Halfsies (11) S.A. Amit 54.5, 11. No Opinion (2) R. Manish 54.5 and 12. TonysPet (9) P.S. Chouhan 53.5.
1. COMMODUS, 2. BERNARDINI,
3. ANIMAL QUEEN
8 CHENNAI CUP (DIV. II), (1,100m),rated 15 to 35, 4yo & over, 530:
1. Midnight Sky (6) Adarsh 60, 2. Perfectgoldenera (11) M. Kumar 59.5, 3.Air Of Distinction (5) Bhawani Singh57, 4. Galvarino (3) Akshay K 56.5, 5.Grecian Light (12) S. Shareef 56.5, 6.Princess Pride (9) Shobhan 56.5, 7.Winning Force (1) Suraj 56, 8. Colonel Harty (8) Rajesh K 55, 9. Skybound (10) Vaibhav 54.5, 10. Admirable (7) Irvan 54, 11. Mayurana (2)Md. Asif Khan 53.5 and 12. Commandpost (4) R. Manish 53.5.
1. GALVARINO, 2. WINNING FORCE,
3. PRINCESS PRIDE
Day’s best: GIFT OF GRACE
Double: MZILIKAZI — COMMODUS
Jkt: 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8; Tr (i): 3, 4 and 5;(ii): 6, 7 and 8.
Gift Of Grace may repeat
HYDERABAD: N R I Power (KuldeepSingh up) won the first division of S.Malakonda Reddy Memorial Cup, thefeature event of the races held hereon Friday ( July 19). The winner isowned by Mr. Ravinder Reddy Maleand trained by Robin Reddy.
1 NIZAMABAD PLATE (1,100m),maiden 3yo only (Cat. II),
(Terms): SOVET PRIDE (Trevor) 1,Southern Lady (Ashhad Asbar) 2, Excelsior (Suraj Narredu) 3 and Safra (N.Rawal) 4. 5, shd and nose. 1m, 5.98s.₹��17 (w), 7, 5 and 7 (p), SHP: 17, FP: 42,Q: 14, Tla: 131. Favourite: SouthernLady. Owners: M/s. Y. Damodar &Ashok Kumar Gupta. Trainer M. Srnivas Reddy.
2 NELSTON PLATE (DIV. I) ,(1,200m), 5yo & over, rated 20 to
45 (Cat. III): PLATINUN CLAASZ (AfrozKhan) 1, Humaaghar (G. Naresh) 2,New Comer ( Jitendra Singh) 3 andThundering (Trevor) 4. Not run: JoyOf Giving. 11/4, 1/2 and nk. 1m, 13.85s.₹��24 (w), 8, 7 and 13 (p), SHP: 17, FP:145, Q: 60, Tla: 1,394. Favourite:Thundering. Owner: Mr. Syed AbdulSubhan. Trainer: M.F. Alikhan.
3 TINTINNABULATION PLATE
(1,600m), 3yo & over, (Cat. II),(Terms): WAVE RIDER (Akshay Kumar) 1, Rikki Tikki Tavi (SurajNarredu) 2, Doroteo (Koushik) 3 andNimble Mind (Nakhat Singh) 4. 1/2, 21/2 and 2. 1m, 39.85s. ₹��15 (w), 5 and 6(p), SHP: 19, FP: 30, Q: 7, Tla: 156. Favourite: Rikkii Tikki Tavi. Owners: Dr.Peddi Reddy Prabhakar Reddy, M/s.P. Prabhakar Reddy & Rama SeshuEyunni. Trainer: R.H. Sequeira.
4 NAWAB MEHDI JUNG BAHADUR
MEMORIAL CUP (1,200m), 3yo &over, rated 20 to 45 (Cat. III): MON
GENERAL (Gaurav Singh) 1, VictoryParade (Trevor) 2, Liberate (SurajNarredu) 3 and Kamyar (Santosh Raj)4. 1/4, 31/4 and 21/2. 1m, 12.02. ₹��26(w), 8, 6 and 7 (p), SHP: 19, FP: 76, Q:21, Tla: 260. Favourite: VictoryParade. Owner: Mr. S.R. Sanas.
Trainer: M. Srinivas Reddy.
5 S. MALAKONDA REDDY MEMORIAL
CUP (DIV. I), (1,400m), 4yo &over, rated 40 to 65 (Cat. II): N R I
POWER (Kuldeep Singh) 1, Nayadeep(P. Sai Kumar) 2, Miss Lily (Trevor) 3and One One One (Abhay Singh) 4. 11/4, 11/4 and 13/4. 1m, 25.85s. ₹��35 (w),8, 10 and 5 (p), SHP: 34, FP: 352, Q:164, Tla; 627. Favourite: Miss Lily.Owner: Mr. Ravinder Reddy Male.Trainer: Robin Reddy.
6 NELSTON PLATE (DIV. II),(1,200m), 5yo & over, rated 20 to
45 (Cat. III): MARINA DEL REY
(Umesh) 1, Proud Warrior (P. Sai Kumar) 2, Actually Surya Prakash) 3 andFreedom Fire (B. Nikhil) 4. 51/4, 31/2and shd. 1m, 12.67s. ₹��15 (w), 6, 12 and8 (p), SHP: 37, FP: 190, Q: 117, Tla: 570.Favourite: Takisha. Owners: M/s.Gautam Chand Jain, Prakash ChandJain, Rahul Jain & Pratik Jain. Trainer:L. D’Silva.
7 S. MALAKONDA REDDY MEMORIAL
CUP (DIV. II), (1,400m), 4yo &over, rated 40 to 65 (Cat. II): ACE ACE
ACE (Koushik) 1, Siyabonga (AkshayKumar) 2, Golden Fortune (Ajeeth Kumar) 3 and Dunkirk (Afroz Khan) 4.Shd, 2 and 3/4. 1m, 25.63s. ₹��18 (w), 6,6 and 8 (p), SHP: 16, FP: 38, Q: 12, Tla:131. Favourite: Siyabonga. Owner: Mr.M. Ramachandra Rao. Trainer: R.H.Sequeira.
8 WANDERING STAR PLATE
(1,400m), 4yo & over, rated upto25 (Cat. III): DELMONICO (Ajeeth Kumar) 1, N R I Flame (Kuldeep Singh) 2,Symbol Of Star’s (Akshay Kumar) 3and Brave Warrior (Koushik) 4. Hd, 11/2 and nk. 1m, 28.22s. ₹��150 (w), 17, 10and 7 (p), SHP: 20, FP: 1,911, Q: 804,Tla: 6,315. Favourite: Symbol ofStar’s. Owner and trainer: Mr. M.P.Ananta Vatsalya. Jackpot: ₹��2,22,936 (three tkts.), Runnerup: 1,637 (175 tkts.), Mini Jackpot:40,332 (three tkts.), Tr (i): 532 (82tkts.), (ii): 867 (46 tkts.), (iii): 3,292 (37tkts.).
N R I Power wins
P.V. Sindhu stormed into thesemifi��nals of the IndonesiaOpen badminton tournament after beating Japan’sNozomi Okuhara in straightgames on Friday.
Sindhu, seeded fi��fth,hardly had to break a sweatas she posted a comfortable2114, 217 win over the thirdseeded Japanese shuttler.
The Indian will face secondseeded Chen Yu Fei ofChina in the lastfour clash ofthe BWF World Tour Super1000 tournament.
Meanwhile in Vladivostok,Meghana Jakkampudi progressed to the semifi��nals ofboth mixed and the women’sdoubles at the Russian OpenBWF Tour Super 100tournament.
However, it was curtainsfor Rituparna Das and SirilVerma in singles quarterfi��nals.
Rituparna lost 2110, 1621,2116 to top seed Kirsty Gil
mour of Scotland, while Sirilwent down 2111, 2927 to Ihsan Maulana Mustofa ofIndonesia.The results (quarterfi��nals):
Indonesia Open: Women’s singles: P.V. Sindhu bt NozomiOkuhara (Jpn) 2114, 217.
Russian Open: Men’s singles:Ihsan Maulana Mustofa (Ina) btSiril Verma 2111, 2927.
Women’s singles: Kirsty Gilmour (Sco) bt Rituparna Das 2110, 1621, 2116.
Doubles: Meghana Jakkampudi& Poorvisha S. Ram bt ViktoriiaKozyreva & Mariia Sukhova(Rus) 2119, 2111; Erina Honda& Nozomi Shimizu (Jpn) btAparna Balan & Prajakta Sawant 2117, 2111
Mixed doubles: Meghana &Dhruv Kapila bt Maksim Makalov & Ekaterina Riazantceva(Rus) 213, 2112; Evgenij Dremin & Evgenia Dimova (Rus) btKrishna Prasad Garaga & Poorvisha 2111, 2114.
Sindhu makes last fourGets the better of Okuhara in straight games
Press Trust of India
JAKARTA
Smooth sailing: P.V. Sindhu had it easy against NozomiOkuhara in the quarterfi��nals. * AP
BADMINTON Less than six years after taking to chess, Prithu Guptabecame the country’s 64thGrandmaster on Thursdaynight.
The citylad, aged 15years, four months and 10days, met all technical stipulations needed to be a GMfollowing the fourth roundof the Portugese League.
Earlier this month, in thePorticcio Open, Prithu madehis third and fi��nal GM normto go with the ones made inthe 2018 Gibraltar Mastersand the 2018 Biel Masters.On Friday, he touched therating stipulation of 2500points by beating Germany’sLev Yankelevich.
Pat from Anand
Reacting to Prithu’s feat,country’s fi��rst GM and fi��vetime World champion Viswanathan Anand tweeted:“And we are complete. 64thGM!! Welcome our newestGM Prithu Gupta!”
Prithu responded bytweeting: “Thank you Anand
Sir… You have always beenthe biggest inspiration.”
A milestone
A boy of very few words,Prithu’s initial reaction onreaching the landmark was,“Call it a milestone in myjourney. Nothing more. Thejourney has just begun. Iknow, I have a long way togo.”
A Class X student of Modern School (Vasant Vihar),Prithu made ripples earlylast year when he became anInternational Master before
his 14th birthday.
His incredible rise can begauged from the fact that hegained a whopping 1300 rating points in quick time —from being 1187 in October2013 to July this year.
Unlike children of his age,Prithu is very selective aboutthe events he participates in.Last year, he played in onlysix tournaments and collected two GM norms besidestaking his rating from 2373 to2462!
According to his coach,International Master RoktimBandyopadhyay, “Prithu hasa good positional understanding and plays imaginatively. He loves to work hard.Now that the GM title is outof the way, I expect him toplay freely and scale greaterheights.”
Prithu Gupta is India’s 64th GM ‘The journey has just begun. I know, I have a long way to go’
RAKESH RAO
NEW DELHI
Prithu Gupta.* SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
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B A Class X student ofModern School (VasantVihar), Prithu made ripplesearly last year when hebecame an InternationalMaster before his 14thbirthday
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Aishwarya Pratap SinghTomar clinched the goldwith a junior world record459.3 score in the fi��nal inthe rifl��e 3position event atthe Junior World Cup onFriday. The earlier recordof 458.7 was shot by FilipNepejchal of the Czech Republic in the Beijing WorldCup in April.
After qualifying in thefourth place with a total of1171, Tomar beat Zalan Pekler of Hungary by 4.5points for the gold. Thequalifi��cation topper ZhangChanghong of China, whohad shot 1181, was pushedto the bronze medal.
India was on top of thetablewith 10 gold, nine silver and four bronze. The results: Junior men: 50mrifl��e 3position: 1. AishwaryaPratap Singh Tomar 459.3WRJ (1171); 2. Zalan Pekler(Hun) 454.8 (1170); 3. ZhangChanghong (Chn) 442.8(1181); 18. Harshrajsinhji Gohil1163. Team: 1. China 3502; 2.Norway 3490; 3. Russia3488; 6. India 3479.
Aishwaryatakes goldwith record Sports Bureau
Suhl (Germany)
IN BRIEF
CMYK
M ND-NDE
SHOWCASE
Book launchAuthor and playwright, Sarabpreet Singh will
launch his latest book titled, The Camel Merchant
of Philadelphia, this evening. The book, which
examines the life of Maharaja Ranjit Singh will be
released in the presence of Lt. Gen.(Dr.) D.D.S.
Sandhu - PVSM ADC (Retd), and Aanchal
Malhotra, an author and historian.
Venue: Bhai Vir Singh Sahitya Sadan, Gole Market
Time: 4 p.m.
EVENT
FundraiserThis Sunday, Saints N Sinners is holding a
fundraiser concert called A Song for a Voice. In
its second edition, the event will feature
performances by four bands comprising
teenagers. This includes a band from the One
World College of Music. The proceedswill be
utilised for the education of unprivileged girls.
Venue: GF-21 Global Foyer, Sector 43, Gurugram
Time: 6 p.m. onwards
CONCERT
Kargil DiwasOn the occasion of 20th anniversary of Kargil
Diwas, Select Citywalk has organised a two-day
event called Let’s Not Forget, in honour of Indian
soldiers. This will feature a thematic installation,
film screening, cultural show, and dance and
music performances. Collected funds will go
towards the Army Wives Welfare Association.
Venue: Select Citywalk, Saket
Time: 5 p.m.- 8:30 p.m.
TRIBUTE
Sunday brunchJaypee Vasant Continental at its all-day dining
Canadian concept restaurant, Eggspectation, has
introduced a specially curated Sunday brunch.
The menu offers some seasonal ingredients and
features starters, salads, assorted cold cuts,
Arabic mezze, farm house cheese, pasta, dim
sum, briyani, all served with soft beverages.
Venue: Jaypee Vasant Continental, Vasant Vihar
Time: 12:30 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.
FOOD
Documentary on the ParsisKriti Film Club will screen the national award
winning documentary, Qissa-e Parsi: The Parsi
Story, in English. Directed by Shilpi Gulati and
Divya Cowasji, the film explores the history of
the Parsi community, their relationship with the
Indian state, and their association with the city of
Mumbai.
Venue: Kriti, A-15, Tara Apartments, Alaknanda
Time: 6 p.m.
FILM
5 EVENTS WORTH YOUR WHILE
Singer-songwriter-music composer Akhil Sachdeva
sprang to fame with his hit song Humsafar in the film
Badrinath Ki Dulhania in 2017. Since then, he's done
concerts, an album and worked for a movie, until
Kabir Singh, hit the screens this year. Now, the Delhi
boy is back in the city with his Sufi rock band, Nasha,
ready for his five-city Tera Ban Jaunga India Tour.
Edited excerpts from a short chat.
When did you know you wanted to compose music
and sing for a career?
I didn’t realise anything or choose anything , it just
happened to me. I participated in the All India Level
Competition by TATA Indicom in 2010. I was a solo
artist and I won that competition. I found my
bandmates who are playing with me right now, there.
They used to play in a different brand then — Nasha
happened from there. And Nasha was the first song I
wrote in my life. I feel was destined to become a
musician. It's the only thing gives me happiness and
decided I should do this all my life.
Which do you prefer: singing live with Nasha or
playback singing in Bollywood?
Both have their own charm; the more I sing as a
playback singer, the more it will help my band to
more shows. I’m a stage artist, a performer. I’d say
stage is the biggest high ever.
Do you keep in touch with music artists in Delhi?
Any plan to collaborate with them?
I'm open to collaborating with good artists. A lot of
people started at the same time that I started my
music career. I was the first ever guy in India to start
a Sufi Rock band. I love collaborations, especially
when there are a lot of people involved. I’m vocal
about how independent bands shouldn’t be in
competition but should collaborate to put the best
music forward.
Have you got a chance to practise with Nasha?We will practise on 19th July for the show as half of
the band is in Mumbai and half in Delhi. It’s important
as it is a part of Tera Ban Jaunga India Tour, and the
first one is going to happen in Delhi today.
At Imperfecto Ruin Pub, Ansal Plaza; 9 p.m. onwards;₹��1,000 onward; tickets at BookMyShow.com.
unnati saini
Back with the band
Akhil Sachdeva is back in the city, to perform with
his old group Nasha
PEOPLE
For a listing or to be featured here, email usat delhimetro@thehindu.co.in
I suddenly woke up and realised that my life was socrowded and busy, where
would I be fi��tting a husbandand family into it? Life wasgood the way it was,” the72yearold says.
However, she acknowledges that she had it easy, thanks to her unconventional family whodid not pressure her into marriage. With twoaunts who were unmarried themselves,it did not come as asurprise to her parents when their motorcycleridingdaughter decided togo down the sameroad.
In her essay, Delhibased Tyabjispeaks candidly
about the bouts of insecurity and loneliness
she experienced in her30s, particularly when
her friends got busy withparenting. But she’s over
that now. “Of course, fromtime to time you will feel a vacuum somewhere,” she admits. “But you fi��ll it with theresources you have, in thebest way you can.”
But even as more of usditch the image of the ‘old,moody spinster’, Tyabji believes that we have a long wayto go. “I think it’s a bit facileto say that just because societies in Delhi and Mumbai aremore open to the idea today,everything across the country is hunkydory. Women inrural India still face a lot ofchallenges and the situationis completely diff��erent,” shesays.
But that hasn’t stoppedsome of these women fromlooking “almost wistfully” ather when she visits villages inGujarat, Rajasthan, and Karnataka, on work. “They lookat me and say, ‘you’re solucky not to have to deal withan evil motherinlaw’,” shelaughs.
Living single in ruralIndiaTamil writer Bama’s decisionto stay unmarried was conscious. In her early 20s, shedecided that serving her community and becoming an activist were priorities thatwould only get diluted withmarriage.“I value my free
In a heartwarming essayfrom the upcoming book,Single by Choice, sports journalist Sharda Ugra recounts ascene from more than 10years ago. A male friend,upon walking into her Delhiapartment (where she livedalone), asked astonished,“Who did all this?”
“What provoked this question perhaps, was its sheernormalcy,” Ugra writes. Andpossibly the assumption thatunmarried women lead dark,forlorn, depressing lives. Butthe writer goes on to remindus that singlehood is, in fact,a normal experience.
It is no wonder then thatUgra’s essay sparked a conversation on social media —one which continues to resonate with many single women who ward off�� questionsabout their solitude and single state.
Published by Women Unlimited and edited by journalist Kalpana Sharma, Single byChoice is a compilation of 13essays penned by unmarriedwomen who are quite com
fortable — and more importantly, content — in their singlehood. Other contributorsinclude craft activist LailaTyabji, scientist Vineeta Baland Tamil Dalit writer Bama.
Peppered with humourand sober revelations inequal measure, the book addresses the liberation of being single, as well as the challenges of societal pressure,and loneliness. “The idea wasto bring together voicesacross age groups, and notjust older women who had
decided to stay unmarried,”says Sharma, who also authored the introductory essay.
Good the way it isFor craft activist Laila Tyabji,singlehood was more a natural process than a consciousdecision, despite the 15 proposals that came her way.Between her busy work schedule, social commitmentsand the added bonus of no familial pressure, life continued without the need formarriage, she says. “One day,
dom too much, and I cannotlive selfi��shly, dedicating mylife to one man and my children,” explains the author,whose fi��rst novel, Karukku(1992), established her as aDalit feminist. “By staying unmarried, I have the independence to dedicate my time,resources and fi��nances to acause that is dear to me.”
The decision came with itschallenges. As a young, unmarried woman, she struggled to fi��nd a job in her villageof Pudhupattii (where shestill lives), and then was refused accommodation. “Ieven lied about being married, and said that my husband worked elsewhere,” sheadmits. She also had to contend with loneliness, especially during bouts of illnessthat included a stint of pneumonia and later, a hysterectomy surgery.
Tackling pronounced unkindness in rural communities was another challenge.“In a village, people are moredirect. They will ask you toyour face, ‘Why are you notmarried? What is wrong withyou?’ And they treat you likea strange person. But in a city, almost everybody is astranger to the other in acrowd.”
The 60yearold has learntto laugh off�� the biting comments and snarky remarks.“After a point, I began ignoring their taunts. It wasn’t easy, but they too realised thatnothing is going to shake me.”
Single by Choice, published by Women Unlimited,will be available for ₹��275starting July 30
SOLOadvantageEssays from 13 unmarried women ondealing with the pressure to getmarried, and why they opted to staysingle
Bama“Women — like men — areprecious human beings. Awoman should be allowedto explore her potential andthe possibilities with herlife. That is what will helpbring her inner peace.”
Malavika
Balasubramanian
Laila Tyabji“Marriage is not an insu-rance for old age. I think thisis a very wrong idea incul-cated into women, till thisdate. There are several wo-men – not just me – who arequite happy living singleeven in their old age.”
Kalpana Sharma“Writing about being singleis not an easy subject, evenif you are a writer. It is a verydeeply personal decision,which not only involves you,but your family and sur-roundings as well. It prati-cally lays you open to thepublic.”
If you must put Uniqlo, the Japaneseapparel retailer, into a slot, it wouldride the tide of all things functional.No longer a concept bleached of attitude and devoid of meaning, products that fall into the functionalzone do more. Functional foods, forinstance, give you more than just abunch of vitamins and minerals —they may have probiotic value, too.In a marketplace that’s echoing current mindsets of longevity, responsibility and sustainability, functionalfashion is the logical corollary.
Uniqlo, born in 1984 in Hiroshima,enters India at a time when we’retired of shopping each time a fastfashion brand drops a sale. We’re going back to picking staples that will
last, and the brand hascome even as we are getting used to other Japanese labels like Muji and Asics.
DIY styleIn a Japaneseprecision style interview (where they stipulate 10 mi
nutes, apologiseabout running 10 mi
nutes late, but stickto the allottedtime), Yuki Katsuta,
head of researchand development,
says what’s baked into the philosophy isthat Uniqlo’s “clothesshouldn’t have toomuch attitude.... Ihope they createtheir individuality byusing us. We feel ourproducts are toolsfor everybody”.
There is no target audience,therefore, but italso makes ittricky for thebrand to getinto accesso
ries in the future, though Katsutadoesn’t rule that out,saying they’ll have to
be simple, highquality andlonglasting
in terms of design and wear (fi��ve to 10years) — all core values.
Their designs are meant to work arange of styles, which is also why thelabel has global appeal, he says. Withover 2,000 stores in 22 countries, itremains to be seen whether sizingwill work in the Indian market.
Tech on fabricThe fi��rst store in Delhi — at AmbienceMall, Vasant Kunj — to be opened inOctober, will be spread across35,000 sq ft and three fl��oors, and willhave everything that the Tokyo andNew York stores have. In India, thecompany has chosen to go as a whollyowned subsidiary, with 100% foreign investment in singlebrand retail model. Two more stores, in Saketand Cyber Hub, are planned.
Prices start at ₹��990, which putsthem in the Zara and H&M league,but Uniqlo asserts that they are notfast fashion. How they’ll communicate this to customers is not clear yet.They will get into ecommerce, theysay, though not immediately.
Except for their UT line (tees withpopular character tieups, like LionKing and Marvel Retro Gaming)they’re not into anything that couldbe construed as OTT. What they do istech with R&D on fabric. A red dress,made with a 3D knit technologycalled Whole Garment, has no seamsat all. UV Cut claims to cut out theharmful rays of the sun with refl��ec
tive materials and UVblocking components. The three technologiesthey’re best known for — ultralightdown jackets that are all aboutwarmth and lightness; Heattech forwarm innerwear; AIRism for drycomfort — are not fashionseasonspecifi��c.
Christophe Lemaire, the artisticdirector of the Paris R&D division,brings in the colours and silhouettesfor Uniqlo U. Denims, especially watersaving ones, are now researchedat their Jeans Innovation Centre inLos Angeles.
It’s not all rosy though. At thisyear’s UTGP: Uniqlo Tshirt GrandPrix, a competition that saw over18,000 global participants, the winner’s design had to be rejected afterbeing declared, because someonefound it had already been used by theartist. Also, some creations, such asthe AIRism for men are made frommicropolyester fi��bre (though the women's version uses cellulose fi��bre).
This year though, as the worldwatched Roger Federer — his Uniqlologo prominent on his tennis outfi��its —it seemed like the cleanlined Japanese brand was sitting beside theNikes and Lacostes.
“He’s such a great athlete but also agreat gentleman,” says Katsuta, whoshares that the brand is planningmore with collabs with the athlete,not just in terms of sport, but also inhumanitarian eff��orts.
Fighting fast fashion
Welcome to IndiaPieces from the label’snewest collection
* SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
Uniqlo, the Japanese retail giant, which isopening its fi��rst Indian store in Delhi,
wants its designs to stand the test of time
Sunalini Mathew
Apollo’s 50thIt has been five decades to the day since Neil
Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin took a giant leap for
mankind by stepping on the lunar surface. NASA’s
permanent exhibit at Langley, ‘Be the Astronaut’, is a
first-person experience that fuses video game
technology, simulators, and actual NASA
reconnaissance data. If you’d like to own a piece of
history, Sotheby's is auctioning first-generation
footage of the big event today (bidding starts at 8.30
pm IST on sothebys.com) and is expected to bring in
about $1 million.
FYI
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DELHI THE HINDU
SATURDAY, JULY 20, 201920EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
■ Across
1 Radiant — clever (6)
4 Vinegary (6)
8 Thin biscuit (5)
9 Make stronger (7)
10 In a moderately slow
tempo (7)
11 Say baa! (5)
12 One who talks in an
offensive way (9)
17 Muse of love poetry (5)
19 Edible root, eaten
cooked — fi��ls, say (anag)
(7)
21 Hardwearing twilled
cloth — it’s faun (anag) (7)
22 Glasses (abbr) (5)
23 Coming from Aden? (6)
24 Small animal with a
pouch (6)
■ Down
1 Archer (6)
2 Unbeliever (7)
3 Wading bird (5)
5 North American reindeer
(7)
6 Very short time (5)
7 North American wild
dog (6)
9 Forenames (anag)
(9)
13 Perfect (7)
14 Woman likely to
succeed? (7)
15 Launch an attack
on someone,
verbally (3,3)
16 Mineral used to
make plaster of
Paris (6)
18 Teagrowing state
in northeast India (5)
20 Cattlecatching
rope (5)
THE GUARDIAN QUICK CROSSWORD-13127
6
Solution will appearin The Hindu dated
July 22, 2019.
Solution No. 13126
POOCH CAFE
HAGAR THE HORRIBLE
TIGER
PEANUTS
CALVIN AND HOBBES
PEARLS BEFORE SWINE
WUMO
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THE HINDU DELHI
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CMYK
M ND-NDE
SHOWCASE
It’s a Jimmy Sheirgill doublebill this week. And he, alongwith a set of reliable veteranactors, remains the onlystrong reason to head to acinema. Family of Thakur-ganj has an army of polished performers. However,while they try to put theirbest foot forward, the fi��lm isunable to rise up to theircollective talent.
Basically the fi��lm is Dee-war redone. In a smalltown, peopled with ordinary folks, two brothersgrow up on either side ofthe law. Nannu (Sheirgill) isthe Robin Hoodesque fi��gure while younger brother,
Munnu (Nandish Singh) isthe righteous good boy.What’s interesting is the recasting of women — the wifeSharbati (Mahie Gill) as theshrewd, manipulative mind
behind Nannu and SupriyaPilgoankar does a NirupaRoy with a twist. Even Nannu’s young daughter is a devious one. Instead of dwelling a bit more on these
ladies with swag, Manoj K.Jha turns Family of Thakur-ganj into an unwieldy,pointless mess about agroup of gangsters and copsfi��ghting it to the fi��nish witha Baba Saheb at the centreas the bossman (SaurabhShukla) who is excellent, especially when asking hisgoons to speak better Hindi:“Character nahin to bhashasudhaaro (if you don’t havecharacter at least improveyour language)”.
There are some nice linesand wordplay in the fi��lm,but all of it gets overtakenby shootouts, killings andblood as people settlescores with each other.
Close on the heels of Sup-
er 30, Nandish Singh isagain seen managing acoaching centre on screen.This time on his own andnot for his brother. Heseems most comfortableplaying the manager but very ill at ease romancing hislady love Suman (PranatiRai Prakash). Bollywoodsongndance around thetrees is not so easy after all.
All about that bro code The cast of Family of Thakurganj is let down by the fi��lm they’re featured in
Namrata Joshi
Unwiedly mess The fi��lm is overtaken by people settlingscores with each other * SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
Family of Thakurganj
Director: Manoj K. Jha
Starring: Jimmy Sheirgill,
Nandish Singh, Mahie Gill,
Supriya Pilgaonkar, Saurabh
Shukla, Manoj Pahwa,
Mukesh Tiwari, Pavan
Malhotra, Raj Zutshi,
Yashpal Sharma, Sudhir
Pandey, Pranati Rai Prakash
Storyline: A small town,
some ordinary people and
two brothers on either side
of the law
Runtime: 133 minutes
This may sound too preposterous but throughoutJhootha Kahin Ka, I wasthinking of Hrishikesh Mukherjee. A bunch of his gentleand genteel comedies —Chupke Chupke, Golmaal,Jhooth Bole Kauwa Kaate —have sprung from mistaken
identities and harmless lies.Smeep Kang also tries tobuild his fi��lm on a similarweb of falsehoods and addselements of Luv Ranjan’sbrand of rom coms, toldfrom the point of view of callow young men. But, beyonda few inspired moments towards the end, the fi��lm refuses to fl��y.
Varun (Omkar Kapoor)can’t get along with his farmer dad Yograj (Rishi Kapoor)in Punjab and goes to Mauritius in search of a job. Soon,we fi��nd him lying to get married to Riya (Nimisha Mehta).One lie leads to another andit’s no holds barred when hisfather decides to come calling. Mukherjee’s humour
emerged organically fromthe kooky situations his characters would get caught inand he had an intrinsicallydignifi��ed way of jugglingwith even the risqué elements. Kang can’t stop thehumour turning loud andcrass with double entendres
slipping in, specially when itcomes to women. Not justsexist jokes — unlike Mukherjee’s sparkling ladies — buthere the women are rendered deliberately vapid andinconsequential.
The single biggest problem, however, is that theyoung cast is colourless tothe core, unable to leave animpression. Their onlystrength, so to speak, thatkeeps getting projected onthe big screen, is jiving with agroup of dancers in the background on the beach. Buteven that is utterly forgettable. It’s the older actors whomanage to somehow holdthe show together — Rishi Kapoor and Rajesh Sharmawith their brothersinlawbanter; Rakesh Bedi in asmall but eff��ective turn. Andthe reliable Jimmy Sheirgillas a sharpshooter calledTommy, who is the butt ofsome infantile mandogjokes that only he could havepulled off�� with his deadpancomic timing.
Sexism, lies and vapid women Jhootha Kahin Ka should’ve stuck to situational humour instead of getting trapped in crass jokes
Namrata Joshi
Loud humour only Kang’s fi��lm has very few inspired moments * SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
Jhootha Kahin Ka
Director: Smeep Kang
Starring: Rishi Kapoor,
Jimmy Sheirgill, Rajesh
Sharma, Manoj Joshi, Sunny
Singh, Omkar Kapoor,
Lillete Dubey, Nimisha
Mehta, Pujita Ponnad
Storyline: Varun (Omkar
Kapoor) can’t get along
with his farmer dad Yograj
(Rishi Kapoor) in Punjab
and goes back to Mauritius
in search of a job. Soon we
fi��nd him lying his way
through to get married to
Riya (Nimisha Mehta). One
lie leads to another and it’s
no holds barred when his
father decides to come
calling.
FILM REVIEWS
Be it traditional animationor contemporary photorealistic digital/computer animation, what has worked forThe Lion King is the “humanifi��cation” of animals. Iam deliberately not usingthe word humanising herebecause, as we are wellaware, it’s the animals whoare at most times more humane than the brutes thatthe human race hasbecome.
Humanifi��cation is to imply that what transpires onscreen transcends the animal kingdom; it is what oneassociates with the world ofwomen and men. Hence, something we can identifywith closely. There is a familiarity to the relationships,the clear divisions betweenthe good and the bad individuals, the situations andemotions, with each character personifying a feeling —love and pride (Mufasa); ambition, jealousy, treacheryand violence (Scar); loyalty,care and concern (Timon,Pumbaa and Zazu); loss,grief and the denial of it; theoverwhelming guilt, itspsychological ramifi��cationsand the battle in coming toterms with it (Simba).
The lion crown princeSimba’s jealous uncle Scarkills his father, King Musafa.Burdened with the misplaced guilt of being the reason for his killing, Simbagoes into exile in the company of Timon and Pumbaa,the meerkat and the warthog. But can the son of theking not be a king himself?He has to return to and reclaim his kingdom of GauravBhoomi.
It’s the angst of thewronged brother Scar —about being a commonerand life having been unfairto him — that has dramaticpotential before lapsing intothe clichéd bad man portrayal. And, towering overeverything else in the fi��lm is
the fatherson relationship.Simba’s heroworship of hisdad Mufasa and their mutual love gives the fi��lm itsemotional tug but the ideaof the ruler and his successor also makes it a trifl��e antediluvian. The fi��lm does tryto play down royalty by positing the king as a protector,the one who serves andgives instead of owns andtakes. The country can’t belong to one person.
The 2019 version prettymuch sticks to everything
from the original. However,a larger reinterpretation ofthe lineageinheritancetrope — why does the son ofa king have to take over fromhim — would have made it alittle less out of joint in thesetimes. However, having saidthat, it’s also a trifl��e ironicthat in India, the mostlooked forward to thingabout the fi��lm’s Hindi version has been the fact it’sShah Rukh Khan’s sonAryan Khan who has voicedSimba. Does the son of Bollywood’s Badshah have it inhim has been the mootquestion.
Well, the voice does havegravitas, fl��exibility and anability to articulate trauma.In fact the fi��lm hinges on theaural more than the visualmagic. The animation atlarge makes it seem asthough one is on a virtual safari into the jungle but thedigital animal visages themselves remain fl��at, two dimensional, not half as vividand layered as those in theoriginal. It’s the soundtrackand the star voices — both inthe English and the Hindiversions — that bring thingsalive, specially in some throwaway light moments, like aaffi��ancedbetrothed wordplay or a hornbill versuswoodpecker debate.
Circle of life The Lion King's new digital animation version stays loyal tothe original, though a few outdated tropes could well havebeen reinterpreted
Namrata Joshi
Aural magic The 2019 version stays true to the original fi��lm* SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
The Lion King
Director: Jon Favreau
Starring: Voices of Donald
Glover, Seth Rogen,
Chiwetel Ejiofor, James
Earl Jones, Beyonce
KnowlesCarter (English)
Voices of SRK, Aryan Khan,
Ashish Vidyarthi, Sanjay
Mishra, Aasrani, Shreyas
Talpade, Shernaz Patel,
Achint Kaur (Hindi)
Storyline: The lion crown
prince Simba’s jealous
uncle Scar kills his father,
King Musafa. Burdened
with the misplaced guilt of
being the reason for his
killing, Simba goes into
exile in the company of
Timon and Pumbaa, the
meerkat and the warthog.
But can the son of the
king not be a king himself?
CMYK
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DELHI THE HINDU
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The Walmiki brothers, Yuvrajand Devinder, recall the greathardships they had facedwhen they were young.
“Very often, I had to skipmeals so that Devinder hadsomething to eat. Our familylived in a small shanty inMumbai, with no electricity,water or even a proper roof,”Yuvraj, the elder of the two,tells The Hindu here onFriday.
Their life forever changedwhen Yuvraj scored a crucialtiebreak goal against Pakistan in the fi��nal of the 2011Asian Champions Trophyhockey tournament in China.“My parents had taken a lotof loans to help us pursue ourdream of playing hockey.When Yuvraj returned fromChina, he paid off�� all theloans — totalling around ₹��30lakh,” Devinder says.
Dream realised
Watching Yuvraj shine strengthened Devinder’s resolve tobreak into the Indian team.The ultimate dream was realised in 2015, when both Yuvraj and Devinder scored agoal each in a 30 win overPoland in the Hockey WorldLeague semifi��nal.
“All the newspapers carried a photo of me lifting andhugging Yuvraj, with a headline ‘Walmiki Brothers doIndia proud’. That was a trulymemorable moment,” Devinder says.
Along with the highs camethe lows as well, when injuries and other issues forcedYuvraj out of the 2012 and2016 Olympics. Devinder, onthe other hand, made it tothe 2016 Rio Games.
“We have one Olympian in
our house, which is something to celebrate,” Yuvraj says.
Out of favour
Devinder too has since fallenout of favour with the national selectors, but like Yuvraj,he hasn’t given up hopes ofmaking a grand comebackyet. “We still have international quality; all we need isone chance to prove ourselves,” Yuvraj says.
Regardless of what the future holds, the brothers cantake pride in what they haveaccomplished so far.
“When I started playinghockey in 1999, my motherstruggled to buy ice to treatmy injuries.
“She would wash mymatch jersey every single daywith her bare hands. When Iscored against Pakistan in2011, she watched the matchon our neighbour’s television. Right through school,Devinder and I studied undercandle light. Now we have atelevision, washing machine,air conditioner, lights andfans — things that my parentshave never owned in theirlives.
“Even now I get emotionalwhen I think of those days.From darkness to light — thatis our journey,” Yuvraj says.
The Walmiki brothers’ journey— from darkness to light Amazing success story of the siblings from Mumbai
Ashwin Achal
Bengaluru
HOCKEY
The stars: The Walmiki brothers, Devinder and Yuvraj, arekeen to get back into national reckoning. * G.P. SAMPATH KUMAR
A thunderous reversefl��ick from forward
Yuvraj gives BengaluruUnited Hockey Club thelead against South CentralRailway in the BengaluruHockey super divisionchampionship here onFriday.
His younger brother,midfi��elder Devinder, is
among the fi��rst to runover and congratulatehim.
“If Yuvraj doesn’t scorea goal, I get into troublebecause our motherscolds me for not passingthe ball and creatingchances for him,”Devinder laughs and says.
Yuvraj nods in
agreement. “I call mymother after every match.
“If I don’t score a goal,my mother bluntly saysthat I am not fi��t to be astriker. “So it’s imperativefor me to keep fi��nding thenet, or else we’ll be in bigtrouble when we return toour home in Mumbai,”Yuvraj says.
A mother’s diktat
Chhattisgarh Athletics Association was suspended andWest Bengal issued showcause notice as the AthleticsFederation of India’s annualgeneral meeting here became a day of chastisementfor state associations onFriday.
“We have decided to suspend the federation, forman adhoc body and give itsix months to conduct freshelections and fi��nd a new setof offi��cebearers. We cannotkeep giving warnings and also allotting competitions,”AFI Planning Committeechairman Lalit Bhanot saidcategorically.
The 2019 National YouthChampionships in Februaryhad been slammed for poorfacilities and organisationand also racked with agefraud controversy.
The state is supposed tohost the next NationalGames but athletes and offi��cials had complained ofpoor arrangements at the2017 national cross countrychampionships as well.
West Bengal, meanwhile,was issued notice for pullingout of hosting the nationalInterState Championshipswithout any satisfactory reason. “We have changed venues before but never beenforced to change the dates.Other than a natural calamity or Force Majeure, no other reason can be acceptable.
“We have had to postponethe tournament, the lastqualifying event for theWorld Championships, toend August (2730) in Lucknow. Once they reply, wecan suggest to the StateOlympic Association to rethink their affi��liation also,” AFIpresident Adille Sumariwalla said.
The AFI top managementmade no secret of its displeasure at the lack of accountability and performance atthe grassroots.
“A vast majority of dopingand agefraud issues happenat the state and district levelsand it is the state body’s responsibility to ensure itdoesn’t happen. If it does,they have to pay the price,”Bhanot slammed. The AFIhas provisioned for a oneyear suspension of the secre
tary if there are more thantwo cases of overage athletes from a state, a decisionthat saw many protesting tono avail.
In fact, the state unitswere squarely blamed formost of the ills in Indian athletes.
“It is not the job of the AFIto prepare athletes. The international federation onlyconducts events but we havetaken this responsibility because the states were not doing their job identifyingathletes and training them,providing good competitionand getting good coaches.
“They have to conductdistrict level meets and provide a strong foundation toathletes before they join theelite ranks. What we do atnational level, you have todo in states – scrutinise andconduct tests,” Bhanot added even as Sumariwallacautioned that there was increasing pressure from IAAFand WADA to get Indian athletics in order.
The AFI also unveilednew kits for Indian athleteswith the legendary SriramSingh and Anju Bobby George doing the honours.
Chhattisgarh suspended, West Bengal warned National Youth Championships slammed for poor facilities
ATHLETICS
Uthra Ganesan
Agra
Legendary honours: Sriram Singh and Anju Bobby George unveiled the new kits for Indianathletes at the annual general meeting of the AFI. * SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
The AITA Trust scholarshipcamp — to identify eight boysand girls for a per year scholarship of ₹��1,00,000 — got off��to a smooth start at the DLTAComplex here on Friday.
Davis Cupper and FedCupteam captain Vishaal Uppalmade it clear that scores andresults would only be one ofmany factors to be considered for selection.
Fed Cup coach AnkitaBhambri told the players torelax and enjoy their tennis.
Former national coachBalram Singh advised pa
rents not to neglect theirchildren’s education in pursuit of a tennis career.
“Education is very important for the development of aplayer, and kids will loseconfi��dence if they don’t getgood education,” he said.
Holistic
Every aspect of their gameand behaviour — in victoryand defeat, while playing attheir best or not — would allbe noted, the players weretold clearly.
Uppal was categorical instressing that it would be aholistic process.
Another seasoned coach,Nar Singh, who has rich experience of guiding the In
dian junior teams in manyevents over the years, requested the players to capitalise on the immense knowledge of the selectioncommittee trio.
“It is a challenge to playgood tennis in a adverse situation,” said Ankita.
Four groups
The 32 boys and girls weredivided into four groupseach. They will all play on aleague basis in the group, ina ‘best of 13 games’ format.Thereafter, all the No. 1players will get into onegroup, the No. 2 in the second group, etc. for anotherspell of matches.
The matches are being
kept short to help the youngsters tackle the heat and humidity on the hard courts,with minimal physicalstrain.
On the last two days, therewill be a fi��tness test whichwould also demand goodphysical condition of theplayers after a series ofmatches.
“We will also look at howhungry you are to become aworld class player,” Uppalsaid.
Talking to parents, Balram suggested that the children should be handled withcare, especially when theylose a match. “Don’t talk tothe child immediately. Talklater,” said Balram.
Smooth start to AITA Trust scholarship scheme TENNIS
Special Correspondent
NEW DELHI
The Athletics Integrity Unit(AIU) has handed a twoyearsuspension to 23yearoldlongdistance runner Sanjivani Jadhav for testing positive for probenecid, abanned substance under thecategory Diuretics and Masking Agents, incompetitiontwice last year.
Sanjivani, whose urinesamples collected during theTCS World 10k (Bangalore,May 27, 2018) and NationalinterState athletics championships (Guwahati, June29, 2018), said that she hadnot taken probenecidknowingly.
The AIU, which implements the IAAF antidopingrules, charged Sanjivaniwith committing antidopingrule violations and off��eredher an opportunity to eitheradmit the antidoping ruleviolation and accept a twoyear suspension or requesta hearing before a disciplinary panel.
Sanjivani admitted to thedoping violation.
She, nevertheless, requested for a reduction inher period of ineligibility ongrounds such as the concentration of probenecid wastoo low to be used as a masking agent, she suspected theprohibited substance mighthave entered her body dueto use of contaminated ayur
vedic medicines and shenever cheated.
While noting that Sanjivani “failed to disclose the useof ayurvedic medicines ondope control forms,” AIU, inits order released on Thursday, said there was no evidence to support her claimthat these medicines contained the bannedsubstance.
Considering that the athlete admitted to the dopingviolation, the AIU handedher two years’ suspensionfor her fi��rst off��ence.
It ordered that Sanjivani’sresults at the TCS World 10k,National interState meetand events following thatwould be “disqualifi��ed” andtitles, awards, medals,points and prizes won wouldbe forfeited.
As a consequence, Sanjivani will lose her 10,000mbronze medal achieved inthe Asian championships inDoha in April this year.
The decision is appealable.
Sanjivani gets two years for doping violation Set to lose her Asian 10,000m bronze medal
Y.B. Sarangi
KOLKATA
Sanjivani Jadhav. * FILE PHOTO
Bengaluru teenagers SohilShah and Tijil Rao tookpole positions in the MRFF1600 and Formula LGB1300 categories in the thirdround of the MRF MMSCFMSCI Indian National CarRacing Championship atthe MMRT here on Friday.
Sohil, 18, came up withhis best lap of one minute,39.218 seconds, muchquicker than his timings inthe two Free Practice sessions earlier in the day.
In the second spot wasNayan Chatterjee, followedby Manav Sharma and Nirmal Umashankar.
In the FIA Formula4SouthEast Asia series,Oman’s Shihab Al Habsitopped the practice sessionwith a fl��ying lap of01:37.862, while the threeIndians in the fray, YashAradhya, Mira Erda andSneha Sharma were fi��fth,seventh and eighth fastest.
Tijil (Momentum Motorsports), 16, put in a fi��neperformance in FormulaLGB 1300 with a hot lap of01:53.523, nearly a secondquicker than his best in thepractice sessions earlier.
Sohil and Tijiltake pole
Sports Reporter
Chennai
Former national championand WGM Swati Ghate andseventh seed WIM Priyanka Nutakki of Andhra Pradesh suff��ered shock defeats in the opening roundof the 46th National women’s chess championshiphere on Friday.
Senthamizh Yazhini ofTamil Nadu defeated Priyanka and Bindu Saritha(LIC) stunned Swati.
However, the otherseeded players had a relatively easy day out.
Playing the black side ofthe London System game,Swati blundered on the33rd move to hand overpiece advantage to her LICteammate and surrendered after fi��ve moremoves.
Meanwhile, WGM Soumya Swaminathan (PSPB),the top seed, got past V.Nanditha (Telangana) anddefending champion Bhakti Kulkarni (Air India)made short work of Ananya Bothra (West Bengal).
Swati andPriyankasuff��er defeats
Special Correspondent
Karaikudi
France’s Julian Alaphilippeclaimed an impressive victory in the 13th stage of theTour de France, a 27.2kmindividual time trial, to extend his overall lead onFriday.
The DeceuninckQuickStep rider clocked 35 minutes over the lumpycourse to beat defendingchampion Geraint Thomasby 14 seconds and BelgianThomas de Gendt by 36seconds.
Alaphilippebeats Thomasin 13th Stage
Reuters
PAU
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