SATURDAY 12 APRIL 2025 www.thestatesman.com X.com/thestatesmanltd. Fb/thestatesman1875 SINCE 1818 Pages 16 |` 5.00 | LC KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR ‘RANA’S EXTRADITION CRITICAL STEP TOWARDS ENSURING JUSTICE’ MONETARY PUSHBACK P5 SENSEX 75,157.26 p1,310.11 WEATHER Partly cloudy sky. Possibility of rain/thundershower in some areas. RAINFALL: 0.0 mm P9 ` vs $ 86.15 Min. 54% Shah clears the air, EPS to lead NDA in TN polls BRENT CRUDE (IN $) 63.35 India prepared for high degree of urgency in talks for trade pact with USA: Jaishankar STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 11 APRIL TEMPERATURE Max: 32.4˚C (-3.3) Min: 21.4˚C (-4.2) SUN RISES 05:20 hrs MOON RISES 16:38 hrs P16 SILVER `98,000 GOLD `96,345.00 Shah attacks DMK govt as being steeped in corruption, slams law & order situation RELATIVE HUMIDITY Max. 91% P8 NIFTY 22,828.55 p429.40 LSG TO TAKE ON GUJARAT TITANS AT HOME ‘CONG WILL WIN GUJARAT’S TRUST’ SUN SETS 17:55 hrs MOON SETS 04:14 hrs Full Moon on 13 April THUMBNAILS STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE CHENNAI, 11 APRIL One thousand and eight women take part in milk pot procession on the occasion of the 'Panguni Uthiram' festival, at the Murugan Temple in Chennai on Friday. nANI Long-Range Glide Bomb (LRGB) ÂGauravÊ undergoes successful trial: The release trials of Long-Range Glide Bomb (LRGB) 'Gaurav' from the Su-30 MKI aircraft was successfully conducted by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), recently. An official from the Ministry of Defence stated that during the trials, the weapon was integrated to multiple stations in different warhead configurations, with land targets on Island. The trials successfully demonstrated a range close to 100 kms with pin-point accuracy. LRGB ‘Gaurav' is a 1,000 kg class glide bomb which is designed and developed indigenously. B ack in the BJP-led NDA, the AIADMK under former Tamil Nadu chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS), will lead the combine and take on the ruling DMK in the assembly election early next year, BJP stalwart and Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on Friday. “It is EPS who will lead the NDA in Tamil Nadu,” he said in response to a question at a press conference in the evening before concluding his twoday visit to Tamil Nadu. Against the backdrop of the NDA banner, Mr Shah addressed the media flanked by EPS and two other former AIADMK min- isters, SP Velumani and KP Munusamy, on one side and outgoing BJP state president K Annamalai and state president designate Nainar Nagendran on the other side. “Elections at the national level are fought under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi and the state election in Tamil Nadu under EPS,” he clarified further. To a question on the demands made by the AIADMK for returning to the NDA fold, Mr Shah said: “AIADMK has not set any demands or conditions. We too will not interfere in the internal affairs of the AIADMK. The revival of the alliance is for the benefit of the AIADMK as well as the NDA.” With Mr Shah clearing the air on who will lead the NDA in the assembly polls, he had ensured the return of the Dravidian major into the saffron combine. However, other potential NDA allies like the OBC Vanniyar-dominant PMK or the DMDK of Premalatha Vijayakanth have given a miss, making it an unfinished job as of now. The PMK had made it clear that it is not in a tearing hurry to decide on the alliance issue. “It will be decided by the PMK Executive Committee by the year end,” PMK founder S Ramadoss had said the other day before Mr Shah landed in Chennai. Making things difficult, Mr Ramadoss had taken over the reins of the party, demoting his son and former Union Minister Anbu- Only focus on Parivar ka Saath, Parivar ka Vikas: PM Modi’s swipe at Opposition in Varanasi AGENCIES VARANASI, 11 APRIL Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday took a sharp swipe at the Opposition for carrying forward the legacy of dynastic politics, accusing them of prioritising the interests of their own families over the welfare of the people and compared it to that of the BJP, which he stated, focuses on inclusive development. Addressing a massive public gathering in his parliamentary constituency of Varanasi, Mr Modi laid the foundation stone and inaugurated developmental projects worth Rs 3,880 crore. In a direct dig at rival political parties, Mr Modi said that some political parties are more focused on "seizing power" for their families rather than working for the public. "We are taking forward the idea of 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas'. However, there are some whose only focus is to conspire to grab power, their only resolve is 'Parivar ka Saath, Parivar ka Vikas'," he said. Mr Modi's reference to 'Parivarvad in politics' came while he was addressing the gathering after inaugurating and laying the foundation stone of 44 development projects, during 50th visit to his Parliamentary constituency. Highlighting the success of the Ayushman Bharat scheme, Mr Modi said the programme not only ensures free medical treatment for senior citizens but also restores their dignity and peace of mind. He shared his personal experience of distributing Ayushman Vaya Vandana Cards to elderly citizens, stating, "Just a short while ago, I had the opportunity to hand over Ayushman Vaya Vandana Cards to several elderly citizens here. The expression of satisfaction on their faces was, for me, the greatest success of this scheme." Reflecting on the region's transformation over the past decade, the Prime Minister recalled the state of healthcare facilities before 2014. "The condition of medical facilities in Purvanchal before the last decade is also well known. Today, the situation is different. My Kashi is becoming a health capital," he said. "The big hospitals of Delhi and Mumbai have now come close to your homes. This is true development - when facilities come to people," Mr Modi added. He noted that in the past ten years, the government has not only increased the number of hospitals but has also ensured that patients are treated with dignity. "The Ayushman Bharat scheme is no less than a boon for the poor brothers and sisters. This scheme provides not just medical treatment but also trust." mani as working president from the post of president. Neither the DMDK is very eager to jump into the NDA bandwagon. Launching a scathing attack on the DMK, the BJP veteran accused the Stalin government of being steeped in corruption with deteriorating law and order situation. “Besides the liquor scam (TASMAC scam) to the tune of Rs 39000 crore, there are the ELCOT scam, sand mining scam, transport scam and money laundering scam. The government is answerable and people of Tamil Nadu are asking questions at Stalin and his son and Deputy CM, Udhayanidhi,” he alleged and expressed confidence at the NDA securing a landslide victory in the assembly elections. Hitesh Jain named full-time member of 23rd Law Commission NEW DELHI, 11 APRIL Senior Advocate and Vice President of BJP Mumbai, Hitesh Jain, has been appointed as a full-time member of the 23rd Law Commission of India by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The son of renowned advocate SK Jain, Hitesh earned an LLM from the London School of Economics in 1996. He has practiced in the Supreme Court of India, various High Courts, and District Courts as well as various quasi-judicial forums and tribunals. SNS Only in exceptional cases: SC on when courts should call in the CBI for a probe AGENCIES NEW DELHI, 11 APRIL The Supreme Court has reiterated the view that a CBI investigation should not be directed by courts in a routine manner or just because some allegations have been made against the local police, but only in exceptional cases. A bench of Justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and K. Vinod Chandran gave the guideline while hearing a special leave petition filed by an accused against an order of the Punjab and Haryana High Court transferring an investigation from the Haryana Police to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) at the instance of the complainant. The main ground taken by the complainant before the high court was that the police officials were acquaint- ed with the appellant-accused, and those officers may also be involved in the case. The complainant, a pharmaceuticals businessman, alleged that the accusedappellant impersonated an Inspector General of the Intelligence Bureau (IB) and threatened him to make him transfer Rs 1.49 crore into his account, apart from coercing him to do business with the accused’s associates and friends. "What is difficult for us to comprehend is that when the present FIR itself was filed on 22.10.2022 and the investigation itself was in its initial stage, then what was the burning hurry for the complainant to approach the High Court under Section 482 CrPC as early as January 2023 seeking an investigation by CBI instead of local police," the Justice Dhulia-led Bench said. "The complainant had admitted that he knew the appellant since 2019 as they were doing business together, and even if we assume that the appellant was impersonating himself as an IPS officer, it is difficult to believe that the complainant was not able to find out the truth till October 2022," it added. The apex court said that the Punjab & Haryana High Court ought to have been slow in interfering with the investigation, as this was not a case which should have been handed over to the CBI at the initial stage itself. "One should also take note that the allegations are not against some high-ranking IPS officer but against a person who was allegedly impersonating himself as an IPS officer! The complainant has raised some allegations that high-ranking police officials of Haryana Police are in connivance with the appellant (accused), but such bald allegations are not sufficient to hand over the case to the CBI, without any kind of substantiation," it added. The Justice Dhulia-led Bench said that CBI investigation should be directed only in cases where material prima facie discloses something calling for an investigation by the central agency, and it should not be done in a routine manner or on the basis of some vague allegations. After going through the records of the case, the Supreme Court said that it was of the view that the present case was not one where the CBI investigation ought to have been directed, as it set aside the impugned order of the Punjab and Haryana High Court. Amid the ongoing negotiations between India and the United States for a trade deal, External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar on Friday indicated a high degree of urgency in India's approach towards the talks, keeping in mind the fact that the Trump administration is fundamentally changing America's approach in engaging with the world. In his keynote address at the Carnegie Global Technology Summit here, he acknowledged that the trade talks with the USA for a Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) would be challenging since the USA is very ambitious and the global landscape is very different from what it was a year ago. "This time around, we are certainly geared up for a very high degree of urgency…we see a window. So our trade deals are really challenging. And when it comes to trade deals, we have a lot to do with each other. I mean these are people very much on top of their game, very ambitious about what they want to achieve," Mr Jaishankar said, alluding to the US trade negotiators. The minister also said that just as the USA has a view of India, India, too, has a view of that country. "We did four years of talking in the first Trump administration. They have their view of us and frankly we have our view of them,” he said. He said technology has emerged as a central driver of how the USA engages with the world over the past year. There is a connect, he said, between US President Donald Trump's agenda - MAGA (Make America Great Again) - and technology, which has become clear now. “The US has fundamentally changed its approach to engaging the world, and it has consequences across every domain but the tech consequences, I believe, would be particularly profound, and it will be profound not just because the US is the largest economy, the main driver, in a way, of global tech advancements, but also because it's very clear that Tech has a big role in making America great again. So there is a connection between MAGA and tech, which perhaps was not so clear between 2016 and 2020," Mr Jaishankar said. Apart from the US, China has also advanced in the past year, he said. "The changes in the United States, which all of you are as familiar if not more than I, I think are one big shift in the last year. But there's the other shift, and that's an evolution, you can say. It's something which appears, even if it is not, more of an unfolding rather than dramatic events. And that is the advancement of China," he said. “Five years ago, I think Europe probably had the best geopolitical situation. It had worked out the ideal triangulation between the United States, Russia, and China. Today, every side of that triangle is under stress," he added. Referring to the summit's theme, Mr Jaishankar jocularly remarked that in addition to the obvious 'T' word (technology), they were at the conference to discuss the other 'T' word (tariffs). "We have gathered here today to discuss the other 'T' word. And I do want you to reflect on the connection between the first T and the second T. But we also are gathered in a very changed landscape from what it was just a year ago," he said. CM to hold meeting with Bengal imams next week on opposing Waqf Act AGENCIES KOLKATA, 11 APRIL West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will hold a meetingwithimams,muezzins, and religious leaders from the Muslim community in the state on 16 April to prepare the blueprint on how to oppose the recently promulgated Waqf Amendment Act. The venue of the meeting will be Netaji Indoor Stadium in central Kolkata. Firhad Hakim, the West Bengal Municipal Affairs and Urban Development Minister and the Mayor of Kolkata Municipal Corporation, will also be present at the meeting. Recently, at a programme of the Jain community in Kolkata, the Chief Minister gave a subtle message to the Union governmentthattheWaqfAmendment Act will not be implemented in West Bengal. She also described the Waqf Act as an “attempt to snatch others' property”. Political observers feel that the proposed meeting at Netaji Indoor Stadium on 16 April will be an extension of the Chief Minister's proclamation as regards the Act and the involvement of the religious leaders from the Muslim community is intended to ensure that future movements on this issue take a biggershapeinthecomingdays.