CMYK THURSDAY www.thestatesman.com 26 NOVEMBER 2020 FIND US ONLINE Scan this with your smartphone twitter.com/TheStatesmanLtd facebook.com/thestatesman1875 Pages 12 |` 5.00|LC* KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR DECIPHERING THE RISE OF TEJASHWI YADAV US READY TO LEAD THE WORLD AGAIN: JOE BIDEN P10 Partly cloudy sky. Maximum and minimum temperature most likely to be around 27°C and 17°C respectively. P6 P12 States, UTs allowed to impose local restrictions, will have to consult Centre for lockdown outside containment zones STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 25 NOVEMBER RAINFALL: Nil RELATIVE HUMIDITY TEMPERATURE P7 Centre releases December guidelines WEATHER Max. 95 % ‘DUO’S ABSENCE NO SKIN OFF MY NOSE’ ROTI HINDUS? Min. 51 % Max: 27.2 °C (-2) Min: 17.1 °C (-1) SUN RISES SUN SETS 05:56 hrs 16:51 hrs MOON RISES MOON SETS 14:00 hrs 01:30 hrs Full moon on 30 November THUMBNAILS Heavy smog at Vijay Chowk, in New Delhi, on Wednesday.  SUBRATA DUTTA Cabinet clears Lakshmi Vilas Bank merger: The Union Cabinet on Wednesday gave its approval to the Scheme of Amalgamation of crisis-hit Lakshmi Vilas Bank Limited (LVB) with DBS Bank India Limited (DBIL). With this step, the government said there will no further restrictions on the depositors regarding the withdrawal of their deposits. The government also assured depositors that Rs 20,000 crore of deposits with LVB are fully secured and they should not worry. The government had earlier on November 17 on the advice of the RBI imposed a 30-day moratorium on the crisis-ridden LVB restricting cash withdrawal at P8 Rs 25,000 per depositor. he Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) today allowed States and Union Territories (UTs) to impose local restrictions to contain the spread of Covid-19, and asked them to ensure strict observance of standard operating procedures (SOPs), with accountability of officials. In its December guidelines to fight the pandemic, the MHA took note of the recent spike in fresh Covid-19 cases in some States, and asked the States and UTs to focus on “Surveillance, Containment and Caution,” while strictly following the prescribed strategy. Local district, police and municipal authorities shall be responsible to ensure that the prescribed containment measures are strictly followed and State and UT Governments “shall ensure the accountability of the officers concerned in this regard,” the guidelines said. State and UT Govern- T STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE India has rejected as a “dossier of lies” the socalled evidence provided to the UN by Pakistan of New Delhi's involvement in terrorism in that country while reminding Islamabad of how it hosted the world's largest number of UN-proscribed terrorists, including Osama bin Laden who was killed by US special forces at Abbottabad (Pakistan) on 2 May, 2011. India's Permanent Representative to the UN T S Tirumurti’s strong words Amaravati scam FIR: SC stays HC media gag STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE HYDERABAD, 25 NOVEMBER The Supreme Court today stayed the order of the Andhra Pradesh High Court restraining the media from reporting on the FIR on the Amaravati land scam lodged by the Anti-corruption Bureau (ACB) of the state police which was investigating the case. The FIR had named 13 persons, including the former advocate general of AP Dammalapati Srinivas, his wife and the two daughters of a Supreme Court judge for purchasing land in the core area of the proposed capital allegedly taking advantage of their prior knowledge that the TDP government was going to set up a greenfield capital at Amaravati. The apex court passed the order while hearing an appeal  For observance of social distancing in crowded places, especially in markets, weekly bazaars and public transport, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) will issue a SOP, which shall be strictly enforced by States and UTs, MHA said.  Amending its earlier order, the MHA allowed States to reduce the ceiling of persons from 200 to 100, or lower, for religious, sports and other events in closed halls ments shall take all necessary measures to promote Covid-19 appropriate behaviour and “to ensure strict enforcement of wearing of face masks, hand hygiene and social distancing.” “In order to enforce the core requirement of wearing of face masks, States and UTs may consider administrative actions, including imposition of appropriate fines, on persons not wearing face masks in public and work spaces,” the MHA order said. For observance of social India rejects Pak ‘dossier of lies’ NEW DELHI, 25 NOVEMBER Farooq's sister in Roshni Act list: National Conference president Farooq Abdullah's sister and two prominent hoteliers including a Congress leader figure in the second list of 130 people who have availed land under nowscrapped Roshni Act. According to the fresh list uploaded on the website of Divisional Commissioner, Kashmir, majority of the beneficiaries including a former bureaucrat and his wife legalised their residential places under the scheme, while there are also names of dozens of businessmen who have got the ownership of their commercial buildings. The administration uploaded a list of 35 beneficiaries which included former finance minister Haseeb Drabu, some of his relatives and top hoteliers and a former bureaucrat earlier. RULE BOOK came after Islamabad gave to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres a dossier accusing India of ‘stoking’ terrorism in Pakistan. Islamabad acted just a day after India provided a dossier to representatives of key countries in New Delhi, suggesting that four Pakistan-based Jaish-eMohammad (JeM) terrorists, who were killed in an encounter with Indian security forces on 19 November at Nagrota, planned to organise a major terror attack on the anniversary of the 26/11 Mumbai attack. distancing in crowded places, especially in markets, weekly bazaars and public transport, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) will issue a SOP which shall be strict, ly enforced by States and UTs, MHA said. Amending its earlier order, the MHA allowed States to reduce the ceiling of persons from 200 to 100, or lower, for religious, sports and other events in closed halls. Allowing local restrictions, based on the assessment of the situation, the guidelines said States and UTs “may impose local restrictions, with a view to contain the spread of COVID-19 such as night curfew.” However, there will be no local lockdown outside the containment zones, without prior consultation with the Central Government. States and UTs also need to enforce social distancing in offices, the guidelines said. In cities where the weekly Case Positivity Rate is more than 10 per cent, States and UTs have been asked to consider implementing staggered office timings to reduce the number of employees attending office at the same time. States and UTs will ensure careful demarcation of Containment Zones by the district authorities. There shall be intensive house-to-house surveillance by surveillance teams formed for the purpose. Listing of contacts will be carried out in respect of all persons found positive, along with tracking, identification, quarantine and follow up of contacts for 14 SNS & PTI NEW DELHI/KOLKATA, 25 NOVEMBER India's Covid-19 caseload went past 92 lakh with 44,376 new cases reported in a day, while the number of recoveries surged to 86.42 lakh, the health ministry said on Wednesday. The total number of coronavirus cases rose to 92,22,216 in the country, while the death toll due to the disease climbed to 1,34,699 with 481 new fatalities, the data updated at 8 am showed. The active caseload shot up to 4,44,746, an increase of 6,079 cases from Tuesday, even though it remained below five lakh for the 15th consecutive day, days (80 per cent of contacts to be traced in 72 hours). There will be quick isolation of Covid-19 patients in treatment facilities or home (subject to fulfilling the home isolation guidelines). STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE CHENNAI, 25 NOVEMBER Normal life was hit on Wednesday due to incessant rain and wind caused by cyclone Nivar, which intensified into a very severe cyclone by evening. Severe Cyclonic Storm Nivar has intensified into Very Severe Cyclonic Storm (VSCS) and is currently around 90 kilometres from Cuddalore, 150 kilometres from Puducherry and 220 kilometres away from Chennai, as per the latest bulletin issued by the India Meteorological Department (IMD). The cyclone is expected to make landfall between Karaikal and Chennai witnesses heavy rains triggering flood-like situation due to the effect of Nivar on Wednesday.  IANS Mahabalipuram by midnight tonight or in the early hours of November 26. The Tamil Nadu government, which announced a public holiday today, has extended it tomorrow too in 16 districts. Chennai Airport has suspended operations from 7 p.m. on Wednesday to 7 a.m. on Thursday. A total of 27 trains were also cancelled by Southern Railway as a precautionary measure. The state government also cancelled bus services to and within seven districts, which were expected to face the cyclone's fury. KEVADIA (GUJ), 25 NOVEMBER Citing court verdicts on firecrackers and denying the executive a role in the appointment of judges, Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu on Wednesday said some judgments gave a distinct impression of the judiciary's overreach. He stressed that the legislature, the executive and the judiciary are bound to work within their respective domains as defined in the Constitution. Addressing the 80th All India Presiding Officers' Conference on “Harmonious Coor- dination between Legislature, Executive and Judiciary - Key to Vibrant Democracy”, Naidu said harmony lies in each organ doing its job, without interfering with that of the others. This warrants a spirit of mutual respect, responsibility and restraint. Unfortunately, there have been several instances of crossing the boundaries, he said. Naidu said there have been quite a few judicial pronouncements that gave a distinct impression of an overreach. “Since independence, the Supreme Court and the high courts have delivered sever- Bengal sees 3,528 new cases: West Bengal today registered 3,528 fresh Covid cases and 51 deaths due to the infection. The total Covid case count is 4,66,991 and death toll is 8,172 in the state till now while there are 24,752 active cases. In the last 24 hours, 3,605 patients were discharged from hospitals taking the number of recovered patients to 4,34,067. There shall be no restriction on inter-State and intra-State movement of persons and goods. There is no change in the travel rules or cinemas. Vulnerable persons, i.e., persons above 65 years of 92,22,216 4,44,746 44,376 37,816 1,34,699 UNION HEALTH MINISTRY FIGURES AS OF 8.00 A.M. WEDNESDAY 25 NOV 2020 age, persons with co-morbidities, pregnant women, and children below the age of 10 years, are advised to stay at home, except for meeting essential requirements and for health purposes, the guidelines said. According to a bulletin released by the IMD at 4.30 p.m. onWednesday, cyclone Nivar“is very likely to move north-westwards and cross Tamil Nadu and Puducherry coasts between Karaikal and Mamallapuram around Puducherry during midnight of 25th and early hours of 26th November 2020 as a very severe cyclonic storm with a wind speed of 120-130 kmph gusting to 145 kmph.” Under Nivar’s influence, fairly widespread to widespread rains and thunderstorm activity is very likely over coastal and north interior Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Karaikal, south coastal Andhra Pradesh and Rayalaseema for two days, according to the IMD. Incessant and heavy rains lashed several areas of Chennai and its suburbs since yesterday evening. The rains, which started yesterday morning, was very heavy at times. It rained almost all through the night and the spells continued this morning also, leaving many areas inundated. The PWD authorities, meanwhile, opened the sluice gates of the Chembarambakkam reservoir, which was fast filling to its full level of 24 ft. Official sources said flood warning was issued to people living in low-lying areas along the Adyar river. Cong strategist Ahmed Patel passes away Soccer great Maradona is dead at 60 NEW DELHI, 25 NOVEMBER Senior Congress leader and the party's top strategist Ahmed Patel died in a Gurugram hospital on Wednesday due to multi-organ failure. He was suffering from complications related to Covid-19. Patel (71), who was critical for a few days, was admitted to the Medanta hospital in Gurugram on November 15 after he developed complications. “With profound grief & sorrow, I regret to announce the sad and untimely demise of my father, Mr. Ahmed Patel at 25/11/2020, 03:30 AM. After testing positive for Covid-19 around a month back, his health worsened further due to multiple organ failures. May Allah grant Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala pays tributes to Ahmed Patel at the AICC headquarters in the Capital on Wednesday.  SNS him Jannatul firdaus, inshallah,” his son Faisal said in a tweet. He also urged all wellwishers to adhere to the Covid-19 regulations by avoiding mass gatherings. “AP” to his friends and “Ahmed Bhai” to colleagues, Patel was one of the closest aides of Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and her political secretary for a long time. He was the trouble-shooter of the Congress and had steered the party out of tick- lish situations many a time. He was the grand old party's pointsman for building consensus on key issues with other parties and leaders. A soft-spoken and affable man, Patel was well respected and had friends across the aisle and in different spheres. Patel was currently a member of the Rajya Sabha from Gujarat. He was an eight-time parliamentarian. He was currently the Congress treasurer, a post that he occupied thrice. President Ram Nath Kovind, Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, besides Congress leaders, including party chief Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, and Union ministers condoled Patel's demise. Obituary, Page 5 Some judicial observations gave impression of overreach: VP PRESS TRUST OF INDIA accounting for 4.82 per cent of the total cases. The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 86,42,771, pushing the national recovery rate to 93.72 per cent, while the Covid-19 case fatality rate stands at 1.46 per cent. Nivar intensifies into very severe cyclonic storm PRESS TRUST OF INDIA filed by the AP government against the order of the High Court on 15 September which ordered a stay on investigations as well as reporting by the media. The bench comprising Justices Asok Bhushan, Subhash Reddy and MR Shah said AP High Court shall not decide till January-end on the matter related to alleged irregularities in land transactions in Amaravati. However, it refused to stay the other directions of the High Court, including that on investigations at this stage. While no notice was issued to chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy the bench has sought responses from the AP DGP and former state advocate general Dammalapati Srinivas on the High Court’s bar on investigations which was challenged by the state government. India’s Covid-19 caseload crosses 92 lakh al far-reaching verdicts in furtherance of socio-economic objectives, besides making correctional interventions. But occasionally, concerns have been raised as to whether they were entering the domains of the legislative and execu- tive wings. “There have been debates as to whether some issues should have been more legitimately left to the other organs of the government,” he said. The higher judiciary deciding on Diwali fireworks, denying the executive any role in the appointment of judges through collegiums, invalidating the National Judicial Appointments Commission Act seeking to enforce accountability and transparency were some of the instances of judicial overreach cited by the vice president. “There have been quite a few judicial pronouncements CMYK that gave a distinct impression of an overreach. These actions have resulted in an avoidable blurring of the contours demarcated by the Constitution,” Naidu said. “At times, the legislature too has tended to cross the line. The 39th Constitution amendment placing the election of president, vice president and prime minister beyond the scope of judicial scrutiny in the circumstances in 1975 is one such instance,” he said. “Violations of the rights and liberties of citizens by the executive at times are too visible for comfort,” he added. ASSOCIATED PRESS BUENOS AIRES, 25 NOVEMBER Diego Maradona, the Argentine soccer great who was among the best players ever and who led his country to the 1986World Cup title before later struggling with cocaine use and obesity, has died. He was 60. Maradona died two weeks after being discharged from a Buenos Aires hospital following brain surgery. Famed for the “Hand of God” goal in which he punched the ball into England’s net during the 1986 World Cup quarterfinals, Maradona captivated fans over a two-decade career with a bewitching style of play that was all his own. Although his reputation was tarnished by his addictions and an ill-fated spell in charge of the national team, he remained idolised in soccer-mad Argentina as the “Pibe de Oro” or “Golden Boy.” The No. 10 he wore on his jersey became synonymous with him, as it also had with Pele, the Brazilian great with whom he was regularly paired as the best of all time. Bold, fast and utterly unpredictable, Maradona was a master of attack, juggling the ball easily from one foot to the other as he raced upfield. Dodging and weaving with his low centre of gravity, he shrugged off countless rivals and often scored with a devastating left foot, his most powerful weapon. A ballooning waistline slowed Maradona’s explosive speed later in his career and by 1991 he was snared in his first doping scandal when he admitted to a cocaine habit that haunted him until he retired in 1997, at 37. Hospitalised near death in 2000 and again in ’04 for heart problems blamed on cocaine, he later said he overcame the drug problem. Maradona’s crowning achievement was at the 1986 World Cup, captaining Argentina in its 3-2 win over West Germany in the final and decisive in a 2-1 victory against England in a feisty quarterfinal match. Over the protests of England goalkeeper Peter Shilton, the referee let stand a goal by Maradona in which, as he admitted years later, he intentionally hit the ball with his hand, Four minutes later, he spectacularly weaved past four opponents from midfield to beat Shilton for what FIFA later declared the greatest goal in World Cup history.