CMYK MONDAY www.thestatesman.com 11 FEBRUARY 2019 FIND US ONLINE Scan this with your smartphone twitter.com/TheStatesmanLtd facebook.com/thestatesman1875 Pages 16 |` 5.00|LC* KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR P10 WEATHER Mainly clear sky. Maximum and minimum temperature will be around 28 and 15 degrees Celsius respectively RAINFALL: Nil RELATIVE HUMIDITY Max.84% TEMPERATURE Max: 26.1°C (-3) SUN RISES 06:10 hrs MOON RISES 10.06 hrs P9 Min: 16.7°C (-1) SUN SETS 17:31 hrs MOON SETS 22:56 hrs Modi takes on Naidu on TDP chief’s turf Next moon quarter on 16 February THUMBNAILS Indian sadhus walk in a procession towards Sangam - during the auspicious day of 'Basant Panchami' at the Kumbh Mela in Allahabad on Sunday. SNS Five killed in encounter: Five militants belonging to Hizbul Mujahideen and Lashkar-eTaiba (LeT) were killed on Sunday in an encounter with security forces in Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district , police said. The gunbattle broke out after militants opened fire on a search party of the security forces in Kulgam's Kellem village this morning, a police officer said. The slain militants were identified as Waseem Ahmad Rather, Aqib Nazir Mir, Parvaiz Ahmad Bhat, Idrees Ahmad Bhat and Zahid Ahmad Parray, the officer said. Chinooks delivered for IAF: American aerospace major Boeing Sunday announced the arrival of first batch of four Chinook military helicopters for the Indian Air Force at the Mundra port in Gujarat. A statement from the company said the CH47F (I) Chinooks will be ferried to Chandigarh, where they will be formally inducted into the Indian Air Force later this year. The Chinook is a multi-role, verticallift platform, which is used for transporting troops, artillery, equipment and fuel. It is also used for humanitarian and disaster relief operations and in missions such as transportation of relief supplies and mass evacuation of refugees. Two arrested over hooch tragedy: Two people were arrested Sunday in connection with the hooch tragedy that claimed over 70 lives in two adjoining districts in Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh, police said. The death toll in Uttarakhand rose to 36 on Sunday, with 11 more people succumbing after consuming the spurious liquor in a village in Haridwar district. According to an Uttar Pradesh government statement released Saturday evening in Lucknow, 36 died in Saharanpur district which adjoins Uttarakhand. According to the police, the arrested two, Fakira and Sonu, told investigators that they had procured the spurious liquor from UP and sold it in Balupur. STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE HYDERABAD, 10 FEBRUARY erming the TDP government at the state as one of father and son Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a scathing attack on chief minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu at his first rally in Andhra Pradesh after the TDP left NDA and blamed him for the difficulties faced by the state while accusing him of misusing central funds for increasing his personal wealth, fuelling the rise of his own son and turning his back on the legacy of party founder NT Rama Rao to bow before the Congress chief. The sparring began early on as TDP decided to forego protocol as neither the chief minister nor his ministers were present to welcome the Prime Minister at Gannavaram airport. Mr Modi first dedicated the strategic crude oil storage facility at Visakhapatnam with a capacity of 1.33 million ton and built at a cost of Rs 1125 crore and inaugurated ONGC’s Vasashista and S1 development project in Krishna- T Godavari off shore basin. In addition, he laid the foundation stone for coastal installation facility at Krishnapatnam port at a cost of Rs2280 crore. The major part of his hour-long speech was however devoted to criticising Mr Naidu on whom he heaped sarcasm, ridicule and scorn and referred to him as the “father of Nara Lokesh” and “U-turn chief minister” in his address to BJP supporters. Mr Modi said that Mr Naidu was indeed his “senior” who has considerable experience in the art of changing parties and alliance partners, backstabbing, political opportunism, claiming central schemes NEW DELHI, 10 FEBRUARY Alleging conflict of interest, the Congress on Sunday requested Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) Rajiv Mehrishi (photo) to recuse himself from auditing the deal to purchase 36 Rafale fighter aircraft as he, as the then finance secretary, was part of the negotiations. The opposition party also said that it would be improper on the part of Mehrishi to present the report in Parliament. The CAG report on the controversial deal is likely to be tabled in Parliament on Monday. In a press statement, the Congress alleged that the government compromised “national interest” and “national security” in the purchase of the aircraft and said the CAG has a constitutional and statutory duty to under- take a forensic audit of all defence contracts, including the Rafale deal. “It is an act of gross impropriety for you to deal with the audit of the 36 Rafale aircraft deal on account of patent conflict of interest...You are constitutionally, legally and morally disentitled to either conduct an audit or to present a report before...Parliament. We urge upon you to recuse yourself and publicly accept the gross impropriety committed by you in initiating the audit...,” it said. Senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal told reporters that Abu Dhabi includes Hindi as third official court language DUBAI, 10 FEBRUARY In a landmark decision, Abu Dhabi has included Hindi as the third official language used in its courts, alongside Arabic and English, as part of a move designed to improve access to justice. The Abu Dhabi Judicial Department on Saturday said it has extended the adoption of interactive forms of statement of claims filed before courts by including the Hindi language alongside Arabic and English in labour cases. This is aimed at helping Hindi speakers to learn about litigation procedures, their rights and duties without a language barrier, in addition to facilitating registration procedures via unified forms available through the ADJD website, the judicial body said. According to official figures, the UAE population is estimated to be around nine million of which 2/3rd are immigrants from foreign countries. as his own and shattering the aspirations of the people. Mr Naidu has repeatedly mentioned in the past that despite being a senior in politics he had often bowed and scraped before Mr Modi for funds to develop AP after bifurcation. “The chief minister of this state has a problem. Your watchman ~ my government has asked him to furnish the accounts. Earlier he was never asked to do so in Delhi but now he must say what he has done with the funds earmarked for development of AP and account for each paisa of the tax payer’s money. It is this which is troubling him,” said Mr Modi. All of Mr Naidu’s projects Cong asks CAG to recuse himself from Rafale audit PRESS TRUST OF INDIA The Indian community in the UAE, numbering 2.6 million, constitutes 30 per cent of the total population and is the largest expatriate community in the country. The Indian community in the UAE, numbering 2.6 million, constitutes 30 per cent of the total population and is the largest expatriate community in the country. Yousef Saeed Al Abri, undersecretary of the ADJD, said the adoption of multilingual interactive forms for claim sheets, grievances and requests, aims to promote judicial services in line with the plan Tomorrow 2021, and increase the transparency of litigation procedures. “This is in addition to facilitating registration procedures to the public through simplified and easy forms and raising litigants' legal awareness via interactive forms of the statements of claims, to ensure access to the legal materials related to the subject of the dispute,” Al Abri was quoted as saying by the Khaleej Times. He indicated that the extension of the adoption of interactive forms in several languages comes under the directives of Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs and ADJD Chairman. Al Abri explained that the adoption of new languages comes as part of the bilingual litigation system, the first phase of which was launched in November 2018, through the adoption of procedures requiring the plaintiffs to translate the case documents in civil and commercial lawsuits into English, if the defendant is a foreigner. “The foreign investor receives the case files translated, thus contributing to the provision of a global judicial service that meets the requirements of residents in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi,” he added. SHARMA FINDS POSITIVES DESPITE SERIES LOSS P2 Naidu senior in backstabbing, betrayal, says PM in no-holds barred attack Min. 32% PRESS TRUST OF INDIA CONG LAUNCHING FAKE CAMPAIGNS, SAYS JAITLEY TURKEY CONDEMNS CHINA’S TREATMENT OF UIGHURS MAY OFFERS ‘MEANINGFUL’ VOTE Mehrishi is likely to present the report on the Rafale deal in Parliament on Monday. Sibal said that Mehrishi was the finance secretary from 24 October 2014 to 30 August 2015 and in between Prime Minister Narendra Modi went to Paris on 10 April 2015 and announced the signing of the Rafale deal. “...Finance Ministry plays an important role in these negotiations...Now it is clear that the Rafale deal happened under Rajeev Mehrishi. Now he is CAG. We met him twice on September 19 and October 4, 2018.We told him about the scam.We told him that the deal should be probed because it is corrupt. But how can he initiate a probe against himself,” Sibal said.“He obviously cannot probe decisions he took as finance secretary. He will protect himself first and then his government.” from Amravati to Polavaram are aimed at creation of his own personal wealth, he thundered. He also accused Mr Naidu of using every word in the Telugu dictionary to heap abuses on him and predicted this “baap-bete ki sarkar(government of father-son) is all set to go. He claimed TDP workers have predicted his own victory, sending him back to Delhi with “Modi go back slogans”. The black balloons displayed by them were the black dot to protect him from the evil eye. Wearing a black shirt in protest Mr Naidu has hit back at Mr Modi, saying that he has only peddled lies and all figures of expenditure are available with the accountants. He criticised Mr Modi for personal attack while saying that as a family man he was proud to be a father, grandfather and husband. He referred to Yashoda Ben saying that the PM cannot give answers about his personal life despite outlawing triple talaq. He also said that Mr Modi has sidelined his mentor LK Advani who had stood beside him after Godhra. P12 Trinamul MLA’s murder: Mukul Roy named in FIR STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE KOLKATA, 10 FEBRUARY BJP leader Mukul Roy has been named in a police complaint filed in connection with the killing of Trinamul Congress MLA Satyajit Biswas, amidst an intense blame game between the TMC and the BJP even as two persons , were arrested in the case. Roy, a former TMC general secretary who joined the BJP last year following differences with party supremo Mamata Banerjee, denied the allegation, claiming that Biswas was a “victim” of the TMC's internal feud. And amidst allegations that there was no security cover despite the presence of the MLA and a minister at the venue of a Saraswati Puja where the incident occurred, the officer incharge of local Hanskhali police station and the personal security officer of Biswas were suspended. A departmental inquiry has also been initiated against the OC and the PSO, who was reportedly on leave on Saturday, police said. Roy is among the four persons against whom an FIR has been lodged in connection with the killing Kolkata CP, Kunal grilled face to face SHILLONG, 10 FEBRUARY of Biswas, police said. A police officer said that two of the four people named in the FIR have been arrested. “A countrymade revolver used to shoot the MLA has also been recovered,” the officer said. The weapon was recovered from a ground near the place of the incident. Biswas (41), who represented Krishnaganj constituency, was shot from a point blank range by unidentified assailants Saturday evening inside a Saraswati puja marquee at Phulbari area. He was immediately taken to a local hospital where doctors announced him “brought dead”. His body was brought home from the hospital Sunday morning for last rites, amid a blame-game between the ruling party and opposition BJP leaders over who was responsible for the death. The CBI questioned Kolkata Police Commissioner Rajeev Kumar and former TMC MP Kunal Ghosh by making them sit face to face at the probe agency's office here in connection with the Saradha chit fund and Rose Valley scams, officials said Sunday. The marathon questioning of Kumar, that began at 10.30 am, was still on at 9.30 pm when this report was filed. The questioning by the CBI continued for the second day on Sunday. The Police chief was quizzed for nearly nine hours on Saturday by three senior CBI officers about his alleged role in tampering of crucial evidence in the case. Kumar had led the special investigation team set up by the West Bengal government to probe the Saradha scam before the case was handed over to the CBI by the apex court. PTI YESTERYEARS REVISITED PNB Housing Finance managing director Sanjaya Gupta flagging off the vintage and classic cars during the 53rd Statesman Vintage Classic Car Rally 2019, in the capital on Sunday. RITIK JAIN Gujjar stir: Police vehicles torched, trains disrupted PRESS TRUST OF INDIA JAIPUR/NEW DELHI, 10 FEBRUARY The Gujjar community agitation demanding five per cent quota in jobs and education turned violent Sunday with shots being fired and police vehicles torched in Dholpur district and protesters blocking road and rail traffic in many areas in Rajasthan. As a precautionary measure, authorities have imposed prohibitory orders under CrPc section 144 in Dholpur and neighbouring Karauli districts, police said. At least 20 trains were cancelled and seven diverted during the day as the protesters, led by the Gujjar Arakshan Sangharsh Samiti chief Kirori Singh Bainsla, continued their sit-in on railway tracks in Sawai Madhopur district for the third day on Sunday, officials said. The sit-in began on Friday evening and has affected the movement of over 250 trains through the region since. The agitators also blocked highways connecting major cities on Sunday. According to police officials, three cases have been registered in connection with the blocking of traffic. Violence broke out in Dholpur district as unidentified miscreants fired 8-10 rounds in the air while a blockade on the Agra-Morena Highway was in place, Superintendent of Police (SP) Ajay Singh told PTI. The protesters set afire three police vehicles -- two jeeps and a bus, he added. The SP said the protesters also pelted stones, injuring four personnel, adding that police had to lob tear gas shells to disperse the crowd. CMYK The Hindoli-Uniyara state highway was blocked in Bundi district, where hundreds of people demonstrated throughout the day. As traffic movement came to a halt, vehicles were diverted to other routes. The demonstrators, however, allowed the passage of ambulances and vehicles with patients or pregnant woman. Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot called the stone pelting and the torching of vehicles unjustified. “Holding protest is justified but sitting on railway tracks is not. Protesters should come forward for talks. The government is open for dialogue and has constituted a com- mittee,” he said. Referring to the violence in Dholpur, Gehlot said, “Antisocial elements have joined the protest. Administration and police will investigate the reasons of the incident. Gujjar leader Kirori Singh Bainsla has appealed to maintain peace so people should listen to him.” According to the Northern Railways, trains like 12953 Mumbai Central-Hazrat Nizamuddin August Kranti Rajdhani Express, 19022 Lucknow Jn.-Bandra Terminus Express, 12059/12060 Kota-Hazrat Nizamuddin-Kota Jan Shatabdi Express and 12909 Bandra Terminus-Hazrat Nizamuddin Garib Rath Express were among those which were cancelled. At least 13 trains were running late in the zone. The 22405 Bhagalpur-Anand Vihar Garib Rath Express, Mumbai-New Delhi Rajdhani Express, Howrah-New Delhi Poorva Express were delayed by around three hours while the Raxaul-Anandvihar Sadbhavna Express was running late by seven hours, it said. The Northern Railways said 19024 Firozepur-Mumbai Central Janata Express, Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra, 12472 Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra-Bandra Terminus Swaraj Express, 12450 ChandigarhMadgaon Goa Sampark Kranti Express and 12904 AmritsarMumbai Central Golden Temple Mail had been diverted. On Saturday, a state government delegation, including Tourism Minister Vishvendra Singh and senior IAS officer Neeraj K Pawan, had met Bainsla and his supporters to hold talks, but no agreement could be reached. Bainsla has said that the community will continue their protest demanding five per cent reservation to the Gujjars, Raika-Rebari, Gadia Luhar, Banjara and the Gadaria communities in government jobs and educational institutions as promised. “We will remain on dharna. We do not want to talk with the government. We are waiting for the government to give the order for five per cent reservation,” Vijay Bainsla, son of Kirori Singh Bainsla, said.