FOLLOW US: @TheStatesmanLtd @thestatesmanltd thestatesman1875 www.thestatesman.com People’s Parliament, Always in Session India’s National Newspaper since 1818 | Pages 12 | ` 5.00 | KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR | Friday, 28 November 2025 SPORTS WORLD HK towers burn for 2nd day, toll hits 65 EDITORIAL PAGE NATION How Sengottaiyan’s exit will alter BJP-AIADMK equation Ash in the Air Page 9 Page 6 BRIEFLY Assam Assembly passes Bill to prohibit polygamy: STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE Our youth’s innovation, risk-taking ability, & entrepreneurship are soaring to new heights, driving India towards self-reliance and leadership on the global stage. New Delhi, 27 November P Guwahati: Assam Legislative Assembly passed 'Assam Prohibition of Polygamy Bill, 2025' on Thursday with strict punishment such as jail-term upto 10 years on a second marriage. Speaking at the assembly after the bill was tabled, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma cited the example of Turkiye to justify the need for the bill. He said that the bill is "not against Islam" and urged people to back the bill and be a "true Muslim." The bill passed in the Assam Assembly prohibits and eliminates practices of polygamy and polygamous marriage in the state of Assam and matters connected therewith and incidental thereto. Page 8 ED arrests WinZO Games directors: New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested Soumya Singh Rathore and Pawan Nanda, directors of WinZO Games Private Ltd, under relevant sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). They were presented at the judge's residence in Bengaluru on Wednesday night. The court has remanded them to ED custody. The court has ordered the accused to be produced again on Thursday for a hearing on the arguments regarding the remand application filed by the ED. This action follows recent searches conducted by the ED. rime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday declared that India is now moving towards opening up the nuclear sector, underlining that the private sector will play a strong role in this field. Opening the nuclear sector to private players will create opportunities in small modular reactors, advanced reactors, and nuclear innovation, he said, adding that the move will give new strength to India’s energy security and technological leadership. The PM was inaugurating the cutting-edge Infinity Campus of Skyroot Aerospace in Hyderabad, marking a milestone in India’s rapidly expanding private space industry. Sp e a k i n g v i a v i d e o conference, he praised India’s youth and entrepreneurs for propelling the nation to the forefront of global innovation. “This is an unprecedented time for India’s science and Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks during the virtual inauguration of Skyroot’s Infinity Campus at Hyderabad, in New Delhi on Thursday. AGENCIES technology landscape,” PM Modi said. “Our youth’s innovation, risk-taking ability, and entrepreneurship are soaring to new heights, driving India towards self-reliance and leadership on the global stage.” Spanning approximately 2,00,000 square feet, the Infinity Campus is equipped to design, develop, and test multiple launch vehicles, with the capacity to produce one orbital rocket each month. Founded by IIT alumni and former ISRO scientists Pawan India stays on high growth path in FY26, says FinMin UNITED NEWS OF INDIA STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE The West Bengal School Service Commission (SSC) on Thursday released a complete list of 1,806 candidates from the 2016 recruitment panel who were previously identified as “tainted and disqualified” by the courts. The publication follows a directive from the Calcutta High Court, which ordered the commission to disclose not only the names but also the full personal details of the candidates concerned. The development comes after the state government had earlier submitted a list of disqualified candidates to the Supreme Court. Based on that submission, the apex court directed that THE LIST PUBLISHED BY THE SSC INCLUDES THE NAME OF THE CANDIDATE, ROLL NUMBER, SUBJECT, FATHER’S NAME AND THE DATE OF BIRTH OF THE CANDIDATE. the individuals be blacklisted and barred from appearing in any future recruitment examinations. However, controversy erupted when results of the SSC’s recent recruitment tests for Classes XI–XII showed the names of several disqualified individuals listed as candidates ~ and in one case, even included in the interview shortlist. This prompted a petition before the Calcutta High Court. • More details: Page 4 DK’s cryptic post, Siddaramaiah son’s claim intensify K’taka power tussle STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE Bengaluru, 27 November The ongoing power tussle between Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his deputy D K Shivakumar is refusing to die down despite the direct intervention of Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge. Mr Kharge recently acknowledged the leadership change issue in the southern state where the Congress is in power and said that the party high command will deliberate on this and clarify the situation soon. However, a fresh social media post from Mr Shivakumar has given a new twist to the situation. In a post on X, Mr Shivakumar posted a black and white picture of himself and wrote: Chandana and Bharath Dhaka, Skyroot made history in November 2022 with Vikram-S, India’s first private sub-orbital rocket launch. PM Modi reflected on India’s space journey, noting ISRO’s decades-long tradition of excellence. “From carrying rocket parts on bicycles to missions to the Moon and Mars, India’s progress speaks to our determination and innovation,” he remarked. Highlighting government reforms, the Prime Minister announced the launch of a SSC publishes full list of ‘disqualified candidates’ from 2016 exam panel Kolkata, 27 November “Keeping one’s word is the greatest strength in the world!” The image also carried another message, “Word Power is World Power. The biggest force in the world is to keep one’s word. Be it a judge, president or anyone else including myself -- everyone has to walk the talk.” The post is seen as pointed reference to the unofficial power-sharing formula between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar, which has fueled the ongoing Page 12 Page 4 India to open nuclear sector to private players: PM Modi power tussle. When the Congress won 2023 Assembly elections in Karnataka, the Siddaramaiah-Shivakumar duo were the contenders for the CM post. Although, the Congress went with Siddaramaiah to lead the state, there were reports of a power-sharing formula the party apparently reached to pacify Shivakumar. As per the alleged formula, Siddaramaiah would lead the state for the first 2.5 years and Shivakumar would take over. However, neither the Congress nor the two leaders publicly confirmed any such agreement. With Siddaramaiah's 2.5 years completing in November, speculation about a leadership change in Karnataka has intensified. New Delhi, 27 November The confluence of well-anchored inflation expectations, sustained public capital expenditure, and firming rural and urban demand places the Indian economy on a stable footing, positioning it to navigate emerging risks and preserve its growth momentum through the remainder of FY26, according to the Finance Ministry’s Monthly Economic Review released on Thursday. India’s overall macroeconomic environment remains stable, supported by easing inflation, resilient domestic demand, and continued policy momentum. PRIME MINISTER NARENDRA MODI Rs 1 lakh crore Research, Development, and Innovation Fund aimed at fostering high-risk, high-impact projects. He also unveiled plans for India to host the Global AI Summit in February 2026, furthering initiatives like the India AI Mission focused on ethical, human-centric AI development. PM’s address celebrated India’s startup revolution, with over 1.5 lakh registered startups innovating across fintech, agritech, healthtech, and defence sectors. After series loss to SA, Pant vows to come back stronger Action-packed Winter Session expected with big bills, Opposition pushback VIBHA SHARMA • Senior ministers met on Thursday to finalise the NDA’s floor strategy focusing on managing a potentially combative session. New Delhi, 27 November With the Winter Session of Parliament set to begin on 1 December, senior Union ministers gathered at Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s residence on Thursday to fine-tune the ruling NDA’s floor strategy. Party president J.P. Nadda, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, and other key leaders, including Dharmendra Pradhan, Bhupender Yadav, Man-sukh Mandaviya, and Manohar Lal Khattar ~ were present. Sources indicate that the meeting centred on the legislative agenda and the strategy to navigate an expectedly combative session. The government is preparing to introduce a number of reform bills while resistance is expected from the Opposition INDIA bloc on various issues, especially the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. The Opposition is gearing up to tackle the government over the process that has already drawn sharp criticism from states like Bengal, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala with allegations of voter list manipulation. The issue is also expected to be raised at the all-party meeting scheduled for Sunday, and again inside both Houses. The ruling side maintains that the priority is to ensure smooth functioning and high legislative productivity in the session, which otherwise is unusually short. Running from 1 to 19 December with only 15 working days, it is one of the briefest winter sittings since 2014. Opposition parties have accused the Centre of delaying and curtailing the session, arguing that limited time will restrict debate and scrutiny. Despite the tight schedule, the NDA government is expected to push forward an ambitious • The Opposition plans to strongly challenge the government, especially over the SIR, citing alleged voter list manipulation. legislative lineup, including the Atomic Energy Bill, which would open the nuclear energy sector to private participation; the Higher E ducation Commission Bill, aimed at overhauling existing regulatory b o dies; and prop ose d constitutional amendments enabling simultaneous elections and clarifying disqualification rules for ministers facing custody. Other legislation related to corporate governance, insurance sector reforms, and infrastructure development are also on the agenda. BJP accuses Congress of using ‘foreign-operated’ X accounts to ‘influence narratives, demean India’ STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE There are several such accounts of Left and Congress influencers whose accounts are based in Pakistan and Bangladesh. New Delhi, 27 November The BJP on Thursday accused C ongress of using foreign-operated social media accounts to “influence narratives and demean India”, alleging that several X accounts linke d to the Opposition party and its leaders were being operated from outside the country. Addressing media persons here, BJP MP Sambit Patra said ever since Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to power in 2014, Congress leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, have been insulting him and the country. The ecosystem was now reinforced by accounts run from Bangladesh, Pakistan, Southeast Asia, West Asia, Europe, and the US, he claimed, alleging that the narrative of ‘vote chor, gaddi chhor’ was also set in foreign countries. “It is worrisome how far the Congress and its ecosystem can go,” he added. The BJP leader said there are multiple examples of misleading tweets related to ‘vote chori’. “When Indian institutions are being given chairmanships, Congress and its ecosystem are planning such conspiracies, everything is in the public domain. These are fake accounts made by the Left-Congress ecosystem to demean India, to come to power and make Rahul Gandhi the Prime Minister one way or another. These people do not really exist, these are fake names and accounts,” he said. According to Mr Patra, the new X feature that shows the country of operation reveals that many prominent Congress members are based abroad and named several BJP MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT SAMBIT PATRA Left-leaning and fact-checking platforms to allege that their accounts are operated from countries like Malaysia and the US. “There are several such accounts of Left and Congress influencers whose accounts are based in Pakistan and Bangladesh,” he also claimed. Long peace is declining: COAS flags global volatility, pushes for rapid military reform STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE New Delhi, 27 November Chief of Army Staff General Upendra Dwivedi on Thursday called for accelerated transformation of the Indian Army to meet the demands of an increasingly volatile global security environment. Addressing the gathering on the opening day of Chanakya Defence Dialogue (CDD) 2025, General Dwivedi said that the world is transitioning through a turbulent phase where major powers are “continuously jostling and competing.” “The world has moved from the Cold War’s bipolarity, through a brief unipolar moment, into an uncertain and fractured order,” he said. “With over 50 ongoing conflicts, to say we live in turbulent times may actually be an understatement.” He stressed that as global geopolitics tilts toward deterrence, national security, and warfighting preparedness, India must ask itself a fundamental question: How must the Indian military transform to remain decisive and ready? The Army Chief detailed a long-term transformation blueprint designed to build an integrated and technologically advanced force. He also outlined four key “springboards” that will propel the Indian Army’s next phase of transformation, including Deepening Self-Reliance, Accelerated Innovation, Adaptation and Ecosystem Reform, and Military-Civil Fusion. Highlighting the need for “deep cross-domain synergy,” he said warfighting capability development must be a multi-agency and multimodal effort. “The military is shedding inhibitions, opening ranges, funding start-ups and joining national technology missions,” he said. He stressed that academia, industry and the military must collaborate to build long-term global partnerships. Based on the theme “Reform to Transform: Sashakt, Surakshit aur Viksit Bharat,” the CDD is being organised by the Indian Army, in collaboration with the Centre for Land Warfare Studies (CLAWS). Speaking about the conclave, the COAS said that CDD’s first edition was instituted in 2023 by his predecessor, General Manoj Pandey, after he declared the year of transformation for the Indian Army.