FRIDAY 21 MARCH 2025 www.thestatesman.com X.com/thestatesmanltd. Fb/thestatesman1875 SINCE 1818 Pages 16 |` 5.00 | LC KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR 3 CMS AND K’TAKA DY CM CONFIRM PARTICIPATION IN DELIMITATION MEET JITENDRA SINGH, BILL GATES DISCUSS BIOTECH COLLABORATION P12 SENSEX 76,348.06p899.02 NIFTY P6 23,190.65p283.05 Mostly cloudy. Thundershowers expected. Maximum and minimum temperatures likely to be around 32°C and 22°C respectively. ` vs $ 86.36 TEMPERATURE C Min: 22.1˚C SUN SETS 17:47 hrs MOON SETS 09:46 hrs New Moon on 29 March THUMBNAILS People resort to umbrellas under the blistering sun at Red Fort in New Delhi on Thursday. n ANI Defence acquisition proposals worth `54,000 cr cleared: The Defence Acquisition Council, under the chairmanship of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, has accorded Acceptance of Necessity to eight capital acquisition proposals amounting to over Rs 54,000 crore. These include the procurement of Airborne Early Warning and Control Aircraft Systems for the IAF, Varunastra anti-submarine torpedoes for the Navy, and an engine upgrade for the Army’s T-90 tanks. (Page 13} hief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday accused the Opposition of attempting to vilify her image ahead of her trip to the United Kingdom, labelling them as “enemies of the people”. Speaking at a press conference, Miss Banerjee also announced the formation of two task forces to manage the state’s affairs in her absence during her trip to the UK. One will comprise secretaries from various departments, including the Home Department, while the other will consist of five ministers. These task forces will manage the administration in close coordination with the Chief Minister and her team during the trip. The ministerial task force will include Chandrima Bhattacharya, Sashi Panja, Sujit Basu, Arup Biswas, and Firhad Hakim. They will monitor the state’s situation, coordinate with the administrative task force, and update the Chief Minister on policy decisions or emergencies that may arise. The administrative task force will include Vivek Kumar, Additional Chief Secretary of Land and Land Reforms; Prabhat Kumar Mishra, Finance Secretary; Nandini Chakraborty, Home Secretary; DGP Rajeev Kumar; and Kolkata Police Commissioner Manoj Verma. Alleging a concerted effort to tarnish her image before her UK trip, Miss Banerjee claimed that the Opposition was orchestrating a smear campaign by sending defamatory emails. “I am being targeted by a slander campaign initiated by a section of the Opposition to tarnish my image through emails just before my trip to the UK. This doesn’t happen when other leaders travel abroad, but in my case, fake news is being circulated to humiliate me,” she alleged. Miss Banerjee added: “We do not engage in offensive actions against leaders travelling abroad. We maintain decorum and respect their dignity. However, it is unfortunate that some enemies of the people (‘Ganasatru’) in our country and state are spreading falsehoods through WhatsApp groups, emails, or drafts to defame our state. Criticise me as much as you want, but please do not harm the state’s reputation.” Targeting the Left parties, she said: “Those who have been reduced to irrelevance in the political scenario are making the most noise. There is hardly any difference between the Leftists and communal parties now.” Regarding her trip, Miss Banerjee said: “The central government has given us clearance. It was the Prime Minister who, during the Niti Aayog meeting, encouraged leaders to travel abroad and attract investments.” Outlining her itinerary, she said: “We are leaving on 22 March. On 24 March, we have a programme organised by the Indian High Commission. On 25 March, there will be a business conclave, followed by an industries meeting on 26 March. On 27 March, I will address Oxford University, and we will return on 28 March.” 30 Maoists, jawan killed in twin encounters in Chhattisgarh STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE RAIPUR, 20 MARCH Ambikapur INDIA A CHHAT G CHHATTISGA HATTISGARH T GARH Bilaspur 4 Maoists killed in Chhotebethiya area of Kanker district RAIPUR Kanker Odisha 26 Maoists and a police Narayanpur Narayanpur a p pu jawan killed in Gangaloor Bijapur area of Bijapur Dantewada Dantewada ewa ew ew wad wa district Andhra And ra Telangana T Te Prad Pradesh ades a while Bijapur Superintendent of Police Jitendra Yadav stated that the operation is progressing as planned. Dantewada SP Gaurav Rai reported that security personnel from Hiroli had advanced strategically to strengthen the siege. In a parallel operation along Drawing a Red Line w R ave The central and Chhattisgarh govern nments ha intensified efforts to dismantle Maoist network with Un ma ks, nion Home Minister Amit Shah sett ng a target to make India Maoist-free by 31 March S tin I 2026. S Since the beginning of 2025, se e ecurity forc have killed at ces least 73 Maoists, while in 2024, appro ts oximately 300 were eliminated y in various encounters. ou l Among the most significant encounters this year was the killing ng of 31 1 Ma Mao aoists in Bijapur’s Indravati National Park on 9 February. the Kanker-Narayanpur border in southern Chhattisgarh, security forces killed four Maoist insurgents in a fierce ongoing firefight. Acting on intelligence of a significant Maoist gathering, the security forces encircled a large insurgent group, leading to the gunbattle. l On 16 January, security forces eliminated 18 Maoists at y th Chhattisgarh-Telanga border. he ana . l On 12 January, five Mao O oists, inclu udi two women, were killed in an opera wo n atio in Bijapur’s Madded area. n . Union Home Minister Amit Shah hailed Thursday's operations as a si ignificant milestone in the Naxal-f fre In ndia campaign. reaffirming the go ovt ze ero-tolerance policy toward insur rge w who reject surrender and rehabilita at offers. Security forces recovered four weapons, including an automatic SLR, from the encounter site. As forces tighten their grip and press deeper into the area, authorities expect the Maoists' death toll to rise, with the situation still unfolding and heavy exchanges of gunfire Musk-owned X charges Central govt with ‘arbitrary censorship’ STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE BENGALURU, 20 MARCH The Elon Musk-owned social media platform, X, has charged the central government with arbitrary censorship through misuse of its Information Technology Act while moving the Karnataka High Court on Thursday to take away the power of the government to issue blocking orders. In a petition moved in the Karnataka High Court, X challenged the use of Section 79 (3) (b) of the Information Technology Act to block content on its social media platform and sought restriction of enforcement of orders from the Sahyog Portal. Basically, what the social media platform wants is that Section 69 A remains the sole statutory mechanism for online content blocking. Interestingly the petition comes at a time when the SILVER 1,14,000 GOLD 91,105.00 STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE KOLKATA, 20 MARCH Min. 59% Security forces in Chhattisgarh killed at least 30 Maoists in two separate encounters in Bijapur and Kanker district on Thursday in a continuing crackdown on the left-wing extremists. A District Reserve Guard (DRG) jawan also died in the line of duty. Acting on intelligence inputs regarding a significant Maoist presence in the Gangaloor region at the Dantewada-Bijapur border, joint forces launched an operation that led to a prolonged exchange of fire. resulting in the elimination of 26 Maoists. District Reserve Guard (DRG) jawan, Raju Oyami, was also killed in the operation. The bodies of all slain Maoists have been recovered. The encounter is ongoing, with intermittent gunfire reported from both sides. Bastar Inspector General Sundarraj P confirmed that security forces have penetrated deep into the Maoist stronghold, P16 BRENT CRUDE (IN $) 71.04p0.26 Parl adjourned sans business over DMK’s mode of protest Two task forces to manage state affairs during CM’s absence in UK RAINFALL: NIL RELATIVE HUMIDITY Max: 32.4˚C SUN RISES 05:39 hrs MOON RISES 23:18 hrs IPL 2025: RIYAN PARAG TO LEAD RAJASTHAN ROYALS IN FIRST 3 MATCHES P10 Don’t try to tar Bengal’s image abroad: Mamata WEATHER Max. 75% FRENCH CITIZEN FREED AFTER OVER 880 DAYS IN PRISON IN IRAN Central government has asked for a clarification on responses generated by X's AI chatbot, Grok. The petition alleged that the government was misusing Section 79 (3) (b) of the Information Technology Act for content blocking. It alleged that the government was bypassing the statutory safeguards outlined in Section 69 A to issue block- ing orders, which created an arbitrary censorship, and more important was harming its ability to operate in the country. In its petition, X Corp asserts that the misuse of Section 79 (3) (b) infringes on Constitutional rights, specifically Article 14, which guarantees equality before the law, and Article 19(1)(a), which ensures freedom of speech and expression. Further, the company is seeking a judicial declaration that Section 79 (3)(b) does not grant the government authority to issue blocking orders and wants all takedown orders under it invalidated. Incidentally, the Sahyog Portal, of the Union Home Ministry, allows police and various government departments to issue takedown requests and in this, it does not follow due process. The result is that thousands of officials issue content takedown requests, without due process, and it is unregulated censorship, the X petition maintained. The other issue that the X has is the requirement to appoint a nodal office, responsible for compliance with directives coming from Sahyog Portal. The matter has been posted for further hearing on 27 March. continuing unabated. These operation are part of a sustained crackdown on Maoist insurgency in Chhattisgarh. Since the beginning of 2025, security forces have killed 73 Maoists, while in 2024, approximately 300 were eliminated in various encounters. Failed honey trap on K’taka state minister triggers political storm STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE BENGALURU, 20 MARCH Alarming allegations are being made in Karnataka Assembly; now honey-trapping as a political tool is what has got the House agitated after Karnataka Public Work Minister Satish Jarkiholi claimed that two such attempts were made on a senior Congress minister. Fortunately for the minister, the attempts failed. Mr Jarkiholi claimed that two such attempts were made on a state minister and sought an investigation into the matter. As the honey trap issue, which sources said appeared to be linked to an internal Congress tussle, began to gain momentum, state Home Minister G Paramwshara ordered an investigation into the whole affair. (Details on Page 13) STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 20 MARCH Both Houses of Parliament were adjourned for the day without transacting any business on Thursday amid pandemonium, created after DMK members entered Parliament in T-shirts with anti-delimitation slogans displayed on them. The DMK members arrived wearing the controversial T-shirts as soon as the Houses met for the day. Disapproving the mode of protest, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla said it was not acceptable and against Parliamentary rules and decorum. He adjourned the proceedings thrice – once till 12 Noon, then again till 2 p.m, and finally for the day – over the issue. Mr Birla directed the members to leave and return in proper attire, stressing that "however big a leader is, such undignified attire is not acceptable inside the House". He said it was not right to wear T-shirts with slogans written on them. Proceedings in the Rajya Sabha too were adjourned four times before adjournment for the day over the same issue. 25 nationals on death row in UAE, 11 in Saudi Arabia, executions pending: Govt AGENCIES NEW DELHI, 20 MARCH As many as 25 Indian nationals in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and 11 in Saudi Arabia have been awarded death sentence but the judgement is yet to be implemented, the government informed Parliament on Thursday. Citing the "informal information" available with the local Indian Mission, the government also detailed that no Indian national has been executed in the UAE between 2020-2024. Replying to a question in the Rajya Sabha on ‘Indians languishing in prisons in foreign countries’, Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh said in a written response that, as per the information available with the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), the number of Indian prisoners, including undertrials, in foreign prisons at present stands at 10,152. While revealing the country-wise list, the minister highlighted that, due to strong privacy laws prevailing in many countries, the local authorities do not share information on prisoners unless the person concerned consents to the disclosure of such information. Even countries which share information do not generally provide detailed information about the foreign nationals imprisoned, he mentioned.