FRIDAY 18 APRIL 2025 www.thestatesman.com Pages 12 |` 5.00|LC X.com/thestatesmanltd. Fb/thestatesman1875 SINCE 1818 KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR KANCHA GACHIBOWLI CASE: BRS DEMANDS INDEPENDENT PROBE ‘INDIA WILL BE THE NO. 1 COUNTRY BY 2047’ P5 SENSEX 78,553.20 p1,508.91 WEATHER PARTLY CLOUDY SKY.STRONG SURFACE WINDS (SPEED 20-30 KMPH GUSTING TO 40 KMPH). THE MAXIMUM AND MINIMUM TEMPERATURES WOULD BE AROUND 39 AND 25 DEGREES CELSIUS RESPECTIVELY. RAINFALL: Nil RELATIVE HUMIDITY Max. 56 % TEMPERATURE SUN SETS 18:49 hrs MOON SETS 09:55 hrs THUMBNAILS A purple-rumped sunbird feeds her baby in Akola on Thursday. nANI Vadra appears before ED for third day in alleged land grab case; says govt misusing central agencies: For the third consecutive day on Thursday, businessman Robert Vadra appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) here for questioning in connection with the alleged land grab case in Haryana. He was accompanied by his wife and Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. Speaking to the media, Vadra said, “These are the same questions I was asked back in 2019, and I’ve already provided all the answers. There’s nothing new here.” Alleging that the government is misusing the central agencies, he added, “This is how the government runs its campaigns — by misusing agencies. But we have the strength to tolerate it, and we will continue to stand strong.” (Photo: Subrata Dutta) AGENCIES NEW DELHI, 17 APRIL The Supreme Court on Thursday allowed the “untainted” assistant teachers in West Bengal, whose appointments were cancelled due to largescale irregularities in the 2016 selection process, to continue in their positions till fresh recruitment is completed. Stressing that students must not suffer, a bench headed by CJI Sanjiv Khanna extended the relief for only such class 9-12 teachers, whose names were not linked to any irregularity. The CJI Khanna-led Bench asked the West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) to issue fresh advertisements latest by 31 May and complete the recruitment process by 31 December of this year. The court clarified that its order won’t benefit Group C and Group D employees and cautioned that if there is any delay in conducting the recruitment process, it will vacate its order in relation to class 9-12 assistant teachers. Recently, the Supreme Court upheld the Calcutta HC order cancelling 25,753 appointments in teaching and non-teaching posts made by the West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) in 2016. In an order passed in April last year, Calcutta High Court had nullified the appointment of 25,753 teaching and non-teaching jobs in state-run schools and asked the candidates selected from the expired panels to return the entire salary drawn during their tenures, along with an annualised interest of 12 per cent. GOLD `97,945.00 P12 SILVER `1,00,000 Waqf row: Apex court orders interim status quo till 5 May BRENT CRUDE (IN $) 66.81 How come a category beyond law has secured immunity: VP Dhankhar Govt assures SC no Waqf properties to be de-notified, no appointment of non-Muslims for now NEW DELHI, 17 APRIL Min: 25.7 °C SC extends tenure of ‘untainted’ Bengal teachers ` vs $ 85.41 P6 PARMOD KUMAR Min. 28 % Max: 40.6 °C (+3.8) (+4.1) SUN RISES 05:52 hrs MOON RISES 23:52 hrs P8 NIFTY 23,851.65 p414.45 RCB TAKE ON HIGH-FLYING PUNJAB KINGS ENIGMA THAT IS MUSK F aced with an unambiguous position of the Supreme Court on three contentious aspects of the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, the Central government on Thursday assured the top court that the key provisions of the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, including the nomination of non-Muslims in the Central Waqf Council and Waqf Boards and provisions on de-notifying Waqf properties will not be given effect to, for now. Recording the statement by the Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who appeared for the Central government, that till the next date of hearing, Waqf, including ‘Waqf by user’, which is declared by notification or registered, will not be de-notified, Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna, heading a bench also comprising Justice Sanjay Kumar and Justice KV Viswanathan, posted the matter for hearing in the week commencing on 5 May 2025. The central government also assured the top court that no appointments will be made to the Waqf Council or Waqf boards. Giving a week’s time to the central government, as sought by it, to file its reply to the petitions challenging the constitutionality of the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, the court in its order today said: “During the course of the hearing, the Solicitor General states that the Union (the Central government) would like to put a response within seven days. He further assures the court that no appointments will be made to the Council and the Board. Till the next date of hearing, Waqf, including Waqf by user, already registered or declared by way of notification, shall not be denotified. We take the statement on record.” As the matter was taken up for hearing during the post lunch session at 2.00 p.m, Mr Mehta urged the bench not to stay the provisions of Act, saying that the law was enacted after taking into account many representations and suggestions. “The Government is answerable to the people. The Government received lakhs and lakhs of representation. Villages and villages are taken as Waqf. So many lands are claimed as Waqf. It is a considered piece of legislation,” the Solicitor General told the bench. Mr Mehta said that the appointment of Board and Council members is in his hands and it will not happen. However, CJI Khanna said that states are also involved, they can make appointments in Waqf Boards. Addressing the concern of the court, Mr Mehta assured that “If any state makes any appointment till the court decides the case, it will be treated as void.” The bench also segregated the cases filed by some Hindu parties challenging the earlier 1995 Waqf law and the amendments made in it in 2013. The court said that they will be listed separately. The court also changed the cause title of the case as “Re: Waqf (Amendment) Act.” Yesterday (Wednesday, 16 April), the top court had proposed to pass an interim order, indicating that it may stay certain key provision of the Waqf (Amendment) Act including the inclusion of nonMuslims in Central Waqf Council and Waqf Boards, provisions on denotifying the properties declared as Waqf and the powers of Collectors on deciding dispute over Waqf properties. Chief Justice Khanna had observed yesterday that “government cannot rewrite history” through the changes brought in by the amendments to the Waqf law while referring to the scope under the new Act to de-notify properties declared as Waqf long ago, say 100 or 200 years ago, and not registered. The top court had also questioned the government on how Waqf-by-user can be disallowed as many will not have requisite documents to get such Waqfs registered. “When a public trust is declared to be a Waqf 100 or 200 years ago… suddenly you say it is being taken over by the Waqf board and declared otherwise,” the bench had said yesterday. As the Chief Justice was about to dictate the order yesterday, the Solicitor General and other counsels who were appearing for parties defending the Waqf Amendment law, said they should be heard before passing the interim order. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for or Maulana Arshad Madani, the President, Jamiat Ulema-I-Hind, had said that a Collector is the officer designated to decide whether a property is Waqf or not if there is dispute, this person is a part of the government and is thus a judge in his own cause. Standing for the Waqf (Amendment) Act, BJP-led state governments in Rajasthan, Haryana, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Assam, Uttarakhand, and Chhattisgarh have also approached the top court opposing the challenge to its constitutionality. ‘Pak needs to act and bring to justice other perpetrators of Mumbai attacks’ STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 17 APRIL The government on Friday came down heavily on Pakistan after it dissociated itself from Pakistani-Canadian businessman Tahawwur Rana, an accused in the 26/11 terror attacks, saying his extradition is a reminder to the neighbouring country to act and bring to justice at the earliest other perpetrators of the Mumbai mayhem. "Pakistan may try very hard, but its reputation as the epicentre of global terrorism will not diminish. Extradition of Rana serves as a reminder to Pakistan that it needs to bring to justice other perpetrators as soon as possible,'' Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said at a media briefing. Rana was recently extradited to India by the United States to face Indian law for his role in the planning and execution of the terror attacks in which over 160 people were killed. On Pakistan Army chief Asim Munir dubbing Jammu and Kashmir as Islamabad's “jugular vein”, the spokesperson shot back: ''How can anything foreign be in a jugular ‘Nowhere in book have I written that Farooq supported Article 370’ AGENCIES NEW DELHI, 17 APRIL Amid a controversy over his new book The Chief Minister and the Spy, former RAW Chief Amarjit Singh Daulat, on Thursday dismissed claims that former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah supported the abrogation of Article 370, stressing that the leader was deeply pained by the move and was never taken into confidence by the Centre. Mr Dulat is a former IPS officer who served both the Intelligence Bureau and RAW and has long experience working in Kashmir. Speaking to agencies on whether his and Dr Abdullah's friendship has been impacted, Mr Dulat emphasised: "This book is not about Article 370; rather, it's an appreciation of Farooq Abdullah, the great man." The former RAW Chief recalled that when Article 370 was abrogated, "Dr Sahab" (Farooq Abdullah) was heartbroken over what had happened to them. Further, when asked whether the claims of the National Conference chief backing the abrogation of Article 370 are true, Mr Dulat said that Farooq never supported it. "Nowhere in the book have I written that Farooq supported Article 370. That is nonsense and just a media stunt," Mr Dulat added. vein? This is a Union Territory of India. Its only relationship with Pakistan is the vacating of illegally occupied territories by that country." Kailash Mansarover Yatra to resume soon: The government on Thursday suggested that the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra will resume soon. At a press briefing here, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said: ''We will soon issue a notice for the public on the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra. There is a possibility of resumption of the Yatra soon.” In January, India and China had decided to resume the yatra and agreed in principle to restore direct flights. The decisions were announced after Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri held wide-ranging talks with Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Sun Weidong in Beijing. Asked if direct flights between India and China will also resume soon, the spokesperson said technical teams of the two countries are in regular touch in this regard. However, no timeline can be given for the resumption of the flights, he added. AGENCIES NEW DELHI, 17 APRIL Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Thursday expressed dismay at the turn of events following the incident of a large amount of cash allegedly being found at the Delhi residence of a High Court judge and questioned the constitutional validity of the Supreme Court-appointed Commission probing the case. The Vice President also said the Constitution has accorded immunity from prosecution only to the President and Governors, and there cannot be a category beyond that. “It has now been over a month. Even if it is a can of worms. Even if there are skeletons in the cupboard, time to blow up the can. Time for its lid to go out. And time for the cupboard to collapse. Let the worms and skeletons be in the public domain so that cleansing takes place,” he said while addressing the 6th batch of Rajya Sabha interns at the Vice-President’s Enclave. He was referring to an incident where burnt currency notes were allegedly found at the residential premises of a Delhi High Court judge last month. He said: “Let me take the most recent incidents. They are dominating our minds. An event happened on the night of the 14th and 15th of March in New Delhi, at the residence of a judge. For seven days, no one knew about it. We have to ask questions to ourselves. Is the delay explainable? Condonable? Does it not raise certain fundamental questions? In any ordinary situation, and ordinary situations define the rule of law - things would have been different. It was only on 21st March, disclosed by a newspaper, that people of the country were shocked as never before. They were in some kind of limbo, deeply concerned and worried at this explosive, alarming exposé.” “Thereafter, fortunately, in the public domain, we had input from an authoritative source, the Supreme Court of India. And the input indicated culpability. Input did not lead to doubt that something was amiss. Something required to be investigated. Now the nation waits with bated breath. The nation is restive because one of our institutions, to which people have always looked up with highest respect and deference, was put in the dock.” Indian economy to be bigger than Germany, Japan in three years, says NITI Aayog CEO STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 17 APRIL NITI Aayog CEO B V R Subrahmanyam on Thursday said the Indian economy will be bigger than Germany's and Japan's in the next three years, and it could become the second largest economy by 2047. While speaking at an event, Mr Subrahmanyam said India can become an education hub for the world as the single biggest advantage it has, keeping all other things aside, is its democracy. "Currently, the Indian economy is the fifth largest in the world. End of next year, we will be the fourth largest. Year after that (we) will be the third largest," he said. “We will be bigger than Germany and Japan in three years' time. By 2047, we could be the second largest economy (USD 30 trillion)," he added. The CEO urged Indian companies, including law firms and accounting firms to aspire to become world leaders. Further, he also noted that problems faced by middleincome countries are very different from those in a low- income country. "It is nothing about feeding the poor or, you know, clothing the naked. It is about how you become a knowledge economy," he said. The NITI Aayog CEO also highlighted demographic shifts worldwide and said, “The world has never seen a situation where population shrinks.” "India will be a stable supplier of working age people across the world...this is going to be our single biggest strength," he added. He cited examples of Japan and Germany actively recruiting Indian healthcare professionals, stating: “Japan is taking 15,000 Indian nurses, Germany is taking 20,000 healthcare workers as they do not have people, and the family systems have broken down there.” PM chairs high-level meeting on Yamuna rejuvenation STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 17 APRIL Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Thursday, chaired a comprehensive review meeting at his residence at 7, Lok Kalyan Marg to assess the current status of the Yamuna River and discuss the ongoing and future plans for its cleaning and rejuvenation. He called for the use of real-time data and space technology to track drain flows and sewage plant performance, which are very important factors for the pollution of the river. The prime minister, while emphasising the need to create a 'people-river connect' to inculcate respect for the river and make the river a part of the lives of citizens, said the experience of the people of Delhi while celebrating the festival of Chhath Puja should improve. In addition to the Delhi stretch, special attention should also be paid to the culturally rich area around Braj, making the Braj Yatra part of the river-people movement, he added. The prime minister said the best available technology should be harnessed to gather micro level real-time data to measure the flows in the drains as well as monitor the functioning of the sewage treatment plants. He said the planning and implementation of pollution abatement infrastructure should be based on the data and the same should be used for improving governance to ensure that the existing infrastructure is functioning effectively. He also advised the use of space technology for the purpose. The PM also stressed the need for a Jan Bhagidari Movement in this regard, enlisting volunteers for river rejuvenation and public events around the river. Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Union Minister for Jal Shakti, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, and senior officials were present in the meeting. The agency-wise action plan to clean the river was reviewed during the meeting that included short-term activities (three months) medium-term activities (three months to 1.5 years), and long-term activities (1.5 to 3 years). The urgent need to rehabilitate Delhi’s drinking water system to reduce leakages and non-revenue water was also emphasised. It has been decided that Delhi should prepare an Urban River Management Plan for holistic water management and integrate it with the City Master Plan. Discussions were also held on the the actions to be taken for Drain Management, Solid Waste Management, Sewage Management, Septage and Dairy Waste Management, Industrial Waste Management, gap identification of waste water treatment infrastructure and monitoring measures, improving the flow in the river Yamuna, flood plain Protection, green river front development and public outreach, with specific timelines.