FOLLOW US: @TheStatesmanLtd @thestatesmanltd thestatesman1875 www.thestatesman.com People’s Parliament, Always in Session India’s National Newspaper since 1818 | Pages 16 | ` 5.00 | KOLKATA LC | NEW DELHI | MUMBAI | BHUBANESWAR | LUCKNOW | SILIGURI Sensex, Nifty jump over 1 pc after 3-day losing streak Page 12 BRIEFLY Rajya Sabha polls for 37 seats across 10 states: New Delhi: Voting for the biennial elections to 37 seats in the Rajya Sabha took place on Monday, with polling scheduled from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., and counting of votes beginning at 5:00 p.m. the same day, according to the ECI. The ECI has put in place a detailed schedule to ensure the smooth conduct of the electoral process. Elections are being held to fill 37 Rajya Sabha seats across 10 states. The seat distribution includes seven seats from Maharashtra, six from Tamil Nadu, five each from Bihar and West Bengal, four from Odisha, three from Assam, two seats each from Telangana, Chhattisgarh and Haryana, and one seat from Himachal Pradesh. These seats are falling vacant as the terms of the sitting members from these states are set to expire in April, prompting the biennial elections to fill the vacancies in the Upper House. Ramesh slams govt ‘silence’ on US-Israel actions in Iran Jannik Sinner and Aryna Sabalenka claim their first titles at Indian Wells Page 5 Trump wants help in securing Strait of Hormuz Page 16 NATION Page 11 Mamata tears into BJP as Bengal poll battle begins STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE Kolkata, 16 March W ithin 24 hours of the dates of the forthcoming Assembly election being announced on Sunday, Trinamul Congress chairperson Mamata Banerjee kick-started theparty’scampaignbylaunching a scathing attack on the BJP. She took part in a rally protesting against the sharp rise in the prices of domestic andcommercialgasthisafternoon. The rally started from College Square and ended at Dorina Crossing, where she addressed a gathering. She said, “Before the 2011 Assembly election I had raised the slogan Badla noy, Badal chai (no revenge, we want change). In 2026 our slogan is ‘boycott BJP’. Jotoi koro hamla, ebar jitbe Bangla (you may attack, but Bengal will win),” she said, adding, “Rest assured, Trinamul Congress will get more seats in the 2026 Assembly Tuesday, 17 March 2026 SPORTS WORLD BUSINESS | election.” Coming down heavily on the Election Commission of India, she said, “The state Chief Secretary has been changed without consulting the state government. I got the information around midnight that Nandini Chakrabarti has been changed. They are trying to give postings to officers who are close to the BJP. Why has the Commissioner of Kolkata Police, Supratim Sarkar, been changed? Is it because he will stop the influx of money from other states? I urge my workers to keep a tab on those who are staying in different guest houses in the city. The BJP cannot win by doing this,” she maintained. Ms Banerjee cautioned people against what she described as the divisive politics the BJP is trying to play. “They will play the communal card. They will try to divide Hindus and Muslims. They will try to divide Bengalis and non-Bengalis. I request you not to get swayed by the divisive politics of the BJP. Stay calm and do not take law and order into your own hands. Do not fall into their trap,” she maintained. Ms Banerjee alleged that the BJP is trying to disturb communal harmony and peace in Bengal. “Peoplefromdifferentcommunities have lived peacefully and happily in Bengal for generations and no one can disturb our long-cherished philosophy,” she said, adding, “Bengal knows how to protest and is not scared of any evil forces.” Coming down heavily on the saffron party, she said, “I heard some BJP leader saying that, like Dr Shashi Panja’s residence, they will try to attack my residence in Kalighat. Try this and see what happens,” she said. She said, “The Prime Minister will have to answer how many jobs he has given till today. Before criticising the Trinamul Congress government, conduct self-analysis. The BJP is submerged in corruption,” she said. She urged people to unite and defeat the BJP in the forthcoming election. “See you in Nabanna,” she said. Talks with Iran ensured safe passage for Indian ships: EAM STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE New Delhi, 16 March External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has hailed India’s direct talks with Iran as the most effective way to restart shipping through the Strait of Hormuz amidst the ongoing war in West Asia. In an interview to the Financial Times, Jaishankar, who is currently on a visit to Brussels, pointed out that negotiations between New Delhi and Tehran which helped two Indian-flagged gas tankers to pass through the Strait on Saturday were an example of what diplomacy could bring. “I am at the moment engaged in talking to them and my talking has yielded some results. This is ongoing. If it is yielding results for me, I would naturally continue to look at it. Certainly, from India’s perspective, it is better that we reason and we co-ordinate and we get a solution than we don’t. So if that sort of allows other people to engage, I think the world is better off for it,” he said. Iran’s new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei, said last week the country’s military would continue to block the narrow waterway, through which roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil and gas used to transit. France and Italy are among European countries that have opened talks with Tehran about a possible diplomatic solution that would allow for energy shipments to restart. Asked if European countries could ape India’s arrangement with Iran, Jaishankar said, ‘’each relationship frankly, in a way stands on its own merits. So now, it’s very hard for me to compare this with some other relationship which may or may not have these. I’d be happy to share with [EU capitals] what we are doing… I know many of them have had conversations [with Tehran] as well.’’ The minister said there was no “blanket arrangement” with Iran for Indian-flagged ships and that “every ship movement is an individual happening”. He denied that Iran had received anything in exchange, and cited a “history of dealing’’ between the two countries. “It’s not an exchange issue,” he said, adding, “India and Iran have a relationship. And this is a conflict that we regard as something very unfortunate. These are still early days. We have many more ships there. So while this is a welcome development, there is continuing conversation because there is continued work on that.”