FRIDAY 21 FEBRUARY 2025 www.thestatesman.com X.com/thestatesmanltd. Fb/thestatesman1875 SINCE 1818 Pages 16 |` 5.00 | LC KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR MAHA AGRICULTURE MINISTER SENTENCED TO TWO-YEAR PRISON TERM LOKAYUKTA CLEAN CHIT TO SIDDARAMAIAH TRIGGERS POLITICAL SLUGFEST P6 SENSEX 75,735.96q203.22 NIFTY TRUMP WARNS ZELENSKYY TO QUICKLY NEGOTIATE P5 22,913.15q19.75 P10 ` vs $ 86.65 GOLD 89,200.00 Generally clear. Hazy in the evening. Maximum and minimum temperatures likely to be around 30°C and 22°C respectively. Rekha sworn in as Delhi CM; six ministers too RAINFALL: NIL RELATIVE HUMIDITY NIKHIL VYAS Max. 84% Min. 70% NEW DELHI, 20 FEBRUARY Min: 29.3˚C SUN SETS 17:36 hrs MOON SETS 11:05 hrs R WEATHER TEMPERATURE Max: 36.2˚C SUN RISES 06:04 hrs MOON RISES 00:18 hrs New Moon on 29 February THUMBNAILS India got off to an emphatic start in the ICC Champions Trophy, beating Bangladesh by six wickets, thanks to a century from Shubman Gill and a five-wicket haul by Mohammed Shami, in Dubai on Thursday. n ANI (Match report on Page 16) Kash Patel confirmed as FBI Director by US Senate: The US Senate has approved Indian-origin Kash Patel's nomination as the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Patel secured the confirmation with a 51/47 vote, as per C-Span. This came despite opposition from the Democrats, who warned that Patel, a Republican, could use the agency to target the president's perceived political enemies. Cabinet decides to implement Ayushman Bharat, table CAG reports ekha Gupta, a firsttime BJP legislator, was on Thursday sworn in as the Chief Minister of Delhi at the head of a seven-member ministry, marking the return of the saffron party to power in the national capital after 27 years. The last BJP government in Delhi was from 1993 to 1998. Ms Gupta is the ninth chief minister of Delhi, and was sworn in at a grand ceremony at Ramlila Maidan. She is also the fourth BJP chief minister in the national capital, after Madan Lal Khurana, Sahib Singh Verma and Sushma Swaraj. Ms Gupta and her six Cabinet colleagues were administered the oath of office and secrecy by Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena at a grand ceremony at the historic Ram Lila Maidan, attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, top BJP leaders and NDA chief ministers. The six ministers are Parvesh Verma, Ashish Sood, Manjinder Singh Sirsa, Ravinder Indraj Singh, Kapil Mishra, and Pankaj Kumar Singh. Ms Gupta, the 50-yearold legislator from Shalimar Bagh, is the fourth woman Chief Minister of Delhi. Sushma Swaraj (BJP), Sheila Dikshit (Congress), and Atishi (AAP) are the other women who have led governments in Delhi. Ms Gupta, who represents the strong Bania community in the national capital, was elected from the Shalimar Bagh Constituency in the recently held Assembly elections. Her selection for the top post was seen as reflecting the party leadership’s commitment to women empowerment. It was also in keeping with Prime Minister Narendra Modi penchant for springing surprises when it comes to naming party chief ministers. Shortly after the swearing-in ceremony, the PM wrote on ‘X’: “Congratulations to Smt. Rekha Gupta Ji on taking oath as Delhi’s Chief Minister. She has risen from the grassroots, being active in campus politics, state organisation, municipal administration, and now MLA as well as Chief Minister. I am confident she will work for Delhi’s devel- opment with full vigour. My best wishes to her for a fruitful tenure.” Hours after taking the oath, Ms Gupta formally assumedchargeofheroffice in the Secretariat here. She also presided over the first meetingoftheDelhiCabinet, which approved the implementationoftheAyushman Bharat Scheme in Delhi and the tabling of CAG reports pertaining to the tenure of the previous AAP governments in the National Capital Territory. The chief minister, while briefing the media after the meeting, said that the two main agendas were unanimously approved by the Cabinet after a discussion along with the allocation of the portfolios to the ministers. She said that the formalities of the Ayushman Bharat scheme would be completed before being implemented at the earliest. Ms Gupta added that the tabling of the 14 CAG reports was pending for long since the previous government had not put them forward. (Photo: Subrata Dutta) SC stays Lokpal’s order on its power to Manipur Governor issues ultimatum to probe complaints against HC judges PARMOD KUMAR NEW DELHI, 20 FEBRUARY The Supreme Court on Thursday stayed the 27 January 2025 order of the Lokpal which ruled that it has jurisdiction to probe complaints against High Court judges. Taking a suo motu cognisance of the Lokpal’s 27 January order holding that the High Court judges were public servants and, thus, came within the ambit of the Lokpal Act, a special bench of Justice BR Gavai, Justice Surya Kant and Justice Abhay S. Oka issued notices to the Central government, the Registrar of the Lokpal anti-corruption ombudsman and the original complainant. Stating that the matter is of great importance concerning the independence of judiciary, Justice Gavai, heading the special bench, termed the reasons given by the Lokpal as “something very disturbing”. The Lokpal order was passed by a bench headed by a former Supreme Court judge, Justice Ajay Manikrao Khanwilkar. Both Solicitor General Tushar Mehta and senior advocate and the President, Supreme Court Bar Association, Kapil Sibal, criticised the Lokpal’s order. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the bench that the Lokpal's interpretation was wrong and a High Court judge was never intended to be brought under the Lokpal. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal also criticised the Lokpal's decision and requested the bench to stay it. The Lokpal’s order, which has now been put on hold, had come on a complaint against a High Court judge accused of allegedly influencing an Additional District judge and another High Court judge to favour a private party in a case. The Lokpal had ruled that a judge of the High Court would qualify as a person in a body established by an Act of Parliament within the sweep of Section 14(1)(f) of the Lokpal and Lokayukta Act. “It will be too naive to argue that a judge of a High Court will not come within the ambit of expression “any person” in clause (f) of Section 14(1) of the Act of 2013,” the Lokpal order had stated. deposit looted arms AGENCIES IMPHAL, 20 FEBRUARY Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla on Thursday asked people to deposit the arms and ammunition looted from government armouries during the 21 months of ethnic violence in the state with the government within seven days. Otherwise "strict action would be taken for possession of such weapons", the Governor stated in a statement issued on Thursday. The Governor said that the government is deeply concerned about the illegal circulation of arms and ammunition that were either looted or unlawfully taken from various places including state armouries. "These weapons pose a serious threat to the safety and security of the society,” he said. The Governor's appeal to give up the looted arms and ammunition came eight days after President Droupadi Murmu promulgated President’s Rule in the state and put the Manipur Assembly under suspended animation on 13 February. Mr Bhalla said that the people of Manipur, both in the valley and hills, have suffered immense hardship for the last 20 months due to a series of unfortunate incidents affecting peace and communal harmony. “In the greater interest of restoring normalcy, so that people can return to their normal day-to-day activities, all communities in the state must come forward to ensure the cessation of hostilities and maintenance of peace and order in the society,” he said. Mamata lays foundation stone of 1,100-bed Narayana Health City STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE KOLKATA, 20 FEBRUARY Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today laid the foundation of the Narayana Health City at New Town. She said the hospital will have 1,100 beds. In the first phase, 500 beds will be set up, followed by 600 beds in the second phase. The healthcare hub will cover 7.26 acres of land and is situated behind the Biswa Bangla Convention Centre in New Town. The estimated cost to set up the hospital, which is the biggest of its kind in eastern India, will be around Rs 1,500 crore. Thanking Dr Devi Shetty, the key person behind the Narayana Group, for his statement that "Bengal means business," Miss Banerjee said: “The Bengal Global Business Summit was held on 5-6 February, and within two weeks an investment has taken place in the health sector. In 2024, Dr Shetty had requested us to allot a plot of land. Within three months the plot was allotted, and within six months all the relevant documents were handed over.” In his welcome address, Dr Shetty said: “From the highest officials to the clerks in Bengal, everyone works efficiently and with passion as they believe in the slogan that Bengal means business.” Miss Banerjee said that after the Trinamul Congress came to power in Bengal in 2011, remarkable development has taken place in the health sector. “The state government has spent Rs 2,000 crore on the treatment of Swasthya Sathi cardholders. There are around 9 crore people who have Swasthya Sathi cards. The card is issued in the name of the senior-most woman member in the family,” she said. Another Rs 12,000 crore has been spent on the Sishu Sathi project, where 32,000 children underwent surgeries. Under Chokher Alo, Rs 2.33 crore has been spent. More than 20.36 lakh people underwent cataract operations, and 28 lakh people were given spectacles. Miss Banerjee said institutional delivery has become a great success, and 99 per cent of the mothers now opt SHAMI BECOMES FASTEST INDIAN TO CLAIM 200 ODI WICKETS for institutional delivery. “There are areas where hospitals are situated far away. In such cases, the state government has set up Mother Hubs where expectant mothers can stay. They are taken to the hospital for delivery. It is a unique plan.” To ensure that every child takes polio medicine, Miss Banerjee said, she had enlisted the help of priests and imams, who created awareness among parents. “You will have to win the confidence of all sorts of people for the success of any project. We respect the people of all religions, caste, and sect and uphold the country’s longcherished philosophy of unity in diversity,” she said. Chief Secretary Mr Manoj Pant, former Chief Secretaries Mr Alapan Bandypadhyay and Mr HK Dwivedi, and Principal Secretary of the State Health Department Mr NS Nigam attended the function. P16 SILVER 1,09,000 BRENT CRUDE (IN $) 76.54p0.50 NDA leaders vow to put up united fight in Bihar, Bengal elections STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 20 FEBRUARY Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday chaired a key meeting of Chief Ministers of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA)-ruled states which was held in the National Capital, hours after the grand swearing-in of new Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta and her Cabinet ministers at the city’s iconic Ramlila Ground. The meeting was attended by the CMs of BJP-ruled states and those ruled by key constituents of the NDA alliance. TDP President and Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu attended the meeting. Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, however, was not present. Delhi CM Rekha Gupta also attended her first NDA meeting, presided over by PM Modi. After the NDA CMs meeting in Delhi, BJP general secretary Vinod Tawde said: "All CMs, Deputy CMs and leaders of NDA had come to Delhi for the oath ceremony. After the oath ceremony, there was a meeting of the NDA leaders in which all the NDA leaders congratulated the Prime Minister on the BJP's victory in Maharashtra and Delhi. “All NDA leaders also decided to fight together strongly in all the upcoming elections, be it in Bihar or West Bengal. They assured the PM that all parties together will fight elections under the banner of the NDA,” Mr Tawde added. After the meeting, Odisha Deputy CM Pravati Parida said: “It is our good fortune that we got a chance to have lunch with the BJP leadership and NDA CMs and Deputy CMs today. Together, we will work as Team Modi to achieve vision Modi. It is a matter of happiness for everyone that a woman is leading the heart of the country who will lead women-led development." BJP trains guns at LoP Rahul Gandhi over US ‘interference’ in Indian elections STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 20 FEBRUARY After US President Donald Trump questioned the allocation of $ 21 million by the previous administration for ‘voter turnout’ efforts in India, comparing it to concerns over foreign interference in American elections, the BJP on Thursday hit out at Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, alleging that the Congress MP acted as a “tool for foreign agencies” and aligned with global net- works to undermine the country’s interests. BJP IT cell chief Amit Malviya (photo) shared a series of old videos on X, including that of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, seeking to corroborate the comments by Mr Trump on the previous US ad ministration's role in infringing on democracies across the world. Mr Malviya also shared a video of Mr Gandhi’s 2023 interaction with journalists in London and wrote: “In March 2023, ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Rahul Gandhi was in London, urging foreign powers - from the US to Europe - to intervene in India’s internal affairs.” He aligned himself with global networks seeking to undermine India’s strategic and geopolitical interests, Mr Malviya claimed.