SATURDAY 12 JULY 2025 www.thestatesman.com Pages 12 |` 5.00| LC X.com/thestatesmanltd. Fb/thestatesman1875 SINCE 1818 KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR MAHA CM DEFENDS PUBLIC SECURITY BILL SENIOR CONG LEADER ASKS THAROOR TO CHOOSE HIS PATH P8 SENSEX 82,500.47 q689.81 WEATHER GENERALLY CLOUDY SKY. VERY LIGHT TO LIGHT RAIN ACCOMPANIED WITH THUNDERSTORM/LIGHTNING. THE MAXIMUM AND MINIMUM TEMPERATURES WOULD BE AROUND 35 AND 25 DEGREES CELSIUS RESPECTIVELY. RAINFALL: 001.0 mm RELATIVE HUMIDITY ` vs $ 85.87 Min: 25.6°C (-1.7) SUN SETS 19:22 hrs MOON SETS 07:40 hrs THUMBNAILS A gaggle of white geese swims in a pond to beat the heat as the temperature rises, at Jor-Pukhuri in Guwahati on Friday. nANI Govt extends tenure of Union Home Secy Govind Mohan: The Central Government has extended the tenure of Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan until 22 August next year. An order issued by the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, yesterday said that the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the extension in services of Goving Mohan, Indian Administrative Service officer of the 1989 batch as Home Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs beyond the date of his superannuation i.e 30.09.2025 upto 22.08.2026 or until further orders. ‘ D ebunking the claims in international media, especially The New York Times, in their the reportage on Operation Sindoor, National Security Adviser Ajit Doval on Friday dared them to provide one single image to prove that India suffered damages in the conflict with Pakistan. “Foreign press has written that Pakistan had done this and that. You show me one image or photograph on damage on the Indian side, even a glass pane having been broken,” he said, while addressing the 62nd convocation of the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras. “Would they carry the images of the 13 airbases of Pakistan before and after May 10, whether it was Sargoda, Rahim Yar Khan or Chaklala at Rawalpindi. These days these imageries are from satellites all over the world. Has any image shown damage on the Indian side? We hit their 13 airbases, including the one in Bholari where they have their AGENCIES branded as Bangladeshi infiltrators and subsequently deported to Bangladesh. The advocate informed the court that those who have been deported to Bangladesh included an eight-year-old child, who was staying in Delhi with her parents. Recently, another case was filed at the Calcutta High Court accusing the Odisha government of unnecessarily detaining a group of migrant workers from West Bengal after branding them as illegal Bangladeshi infiltrators. However, the peti- AWACS control systems.” Mr Doval said, adding: “We have hit their 13 important airbases and (nothing) except that. It was precise and pointed.” Describing the execution of Operation Sindoor as short and swift, which he claimed as unprecedented in the last 40 years, the NSA explained: “The entire operation started at five minutes past one and was over at tioner for the Delhi-related case informed the Division Bench that in the case of the Odisha incident the detained migrant workers from West Bengal were not deported to Bangladesh, which happened in the Delhi case. The development at the Calcutta HC took place just a day after Bengal CM Banerjee highlighted the harassment of residents of Jai Hind camp in Delhi’s Vasant Kunj, most of them Bengalispeaking,bythelocalauthorities, including the disruption of power and water supply. 28 minutes past one - 23 minutes. We are capable of doing that.” “We identified nine terrorist targets across Pakistan, deep inside that country and not in the border areas. It was a criss-cross pattern but with surgical precision, we hit them without missing any one of them. We knew exactly where everyone was and no unintended site was attacked. It was a well-coor- Cong takes a dig at PM, RSS chief over birthday remarks STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 11 JULY Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh Chief Mohan Bhagwat’s remarks that one should step aside after attaining the age of 75 have prompted sharp comments from the Opposition on Friday, with Congress leader Jairam Ramesh taking a jibe at both PM Modi and Mr Bhagwat. “Poor award-winning Prime Minister! What a homecoming - reminded by the RSS chief upon return that he will turn 75 on September 17, 2025…But the Prime Minister could also tell the RSS chief that - he too will turn 75 on Sept 11, 2025! One arrow, two targets,” Mr Ramesh quipped. Speaking at a book launch event on Wednesday, Mr Bhagwat had said: “When you turn 75, it means you should stop now and make way for others.” One Nation, One Election Bill does not hamper basic structure of Constitution, need to address grey areas: Former CJIs tell parliamentary panel AGENCIES NEW DELHI, 11 JULY Former Chief Justices of India JS Khehar and DY Chandrachud gave their views before the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) of Parliament on One Nation, One Election on Friday and are learnt to have said the Bill to implement the proposal of simultaneous polls does not hamper the basic structure of the Constitution. They suggested revisiting some provisions of the legislation relating to the powers of the Election Commission (EC), according to sources. The JPC is examining the Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Ninth Amendment) Bill, 2024 and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024, which proposes simultaneous elections, aligning the election cycles of the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies. Sources said former CJI Justice JS Khehar mentioned in his presentation that the bill, in principle, does not violate the basic structure of the Constitution. However, there are concerns about some provisions of the bill SILVER `1,11,750 BRENT CRUDE (IN $) 69.67 Rahul slams BJP, calls caste census a weapon against corporate-backed exploitation BHUBANESWAR, 11 JULY Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday launched a scathing attack on the BJP and termed the caste census as a powerful weapon that would unmask the party’s alleged exploitation of the poor, Dalits, tribals, and OBCs for the benefit of a few billionaire friends of PM Modi. Addressing a ‘Save Constitution’ rally in Bhubaneswar, Mr Gandhi asserted that the Congress stands committed to protecting the rights of marginalised communities and ensuring their rights to land, forests, and water. He said that the caste census would lead to an equitable distribution of resources and a fair share in development, citing the example of Telangana where such a census has been conducted. Criticising the Modi-led model of development, Zmr Gandhi accused the Centre of looting public wealth and handing it over to a few corporates. He cited the PM Fasal Bima Yojana as an example, alleging that while funds are collected from farmers and governments, insurance claims are denied during natural calamities. The money goes to a few corporate houses, he said. He claimed the BJD, and now the BJP-led state government, have perpetuated the same exploitative policies in Odisha. Mr Gandhi alleged that laws like the Forest Rights Act (FRA) and the Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act (PESA), meant to safeguard the rights of tribals and Scheduled Castes, remain unimplemented in Odisha. AJIT DOVAL „There are over 1.5 crore migrant workers in Bengal who are earning their livelihood with dignity. We cannot say the same for the BJP-ruled states, where Bengali-speaking people are being branded as infiltrators,‰ CM Banerjee said. KOLKATA, 11 JULY P12 STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE Would they carry the images of the 13 airbases of Pakistan before and after May 10, whether it was Sargoda, Rahim Yar Khan or Chaklala at Rawalpindi. These days these imageries are from satellites all over the world. Has any image shown damage on the Indian side? We hit their 13 airbases, including the one in Bholari where they have their AWACS control systems. Calcutta HC seeks report from Union Home Ministry on charges of migrant workers from West Bengal being deported to B’desh A Division Bench of the Calcutta High Court, on Friday, directed the Union Home Ministry to submit to the court a report on allegations that some migrant workers from West Bengal residing in New Delhi have been deported to Bangladesh. The Division Bench of Justice Tapabrata Chakraborty and Justice Reetobrata Kumar Mitra also directed the West Bengal Chief Secretary Manoj Pant to contact his counterpart in the Delhi government and get a report on the same matter from it, which will also have to be submitted to the court. The next hearing on the matter will be on 16 July. The Division Bench gave this direction on Friday acting on a petition by an advocate at the same court that some migrant workers from West Bengal who were in Delhi for their livelihood had recently been GOLD `1,00,415 Show me one photo of any damage in India, said NSA Ajit Doval CHENNAI, 11 JULY TEMPERATURE P7 Op Sindoor: NSA debunks claims in foreign media MC RAJAN Max. 95% Min. 68 % Max: 33.2°C (-2.3) SUN RISES 05:33 hrs MOON RISES 20:46 hrs P5 NIFTY 25,149.85 q205.40 IT’S NOT A HOLIDAY: GAMBHIR BACKS BCCI’S FAMILY RULE ‘SP’S PDA SLOGAN A FARCE’ relating to the powers of the Election Commission, and there is a need for a debate on the issue. Sources said former CJI Justice DY Chandrachud told the committee that simultaneous elections do not hamper the basic structure of the Constitution, but there are some grey areas in the Bill which need to be addressed by Parliament. He is learnt to have said that such decisions should not be left to the court, as there are certain political decisions. The sources stated that the former CJI said that any change in the tenure of the assembly to implement the provisions of the bill should be decided by Parliament, not by the ECI. What needs to be deferred can be done with the sanction of Parliament. He is also learnt to have said that there are excessive powers to the EC under some provisions of the bill, and these should be revisited, and there should be oversight by Parliament. He is learnt to have stated that parliamentary oversight is necessary. The agenda of the meeting of the panel, headed by BJP parliamentarian PP Chaudhary, was "interaction with legal experts" An Opposition MP later said that the two former CJIs conveyed that the bill may not be against the basic structure doctrine, but is unlikely to stand legal and constitutional scrutiny in its present form. dinated successful operation. And, satellite images tell the real story of what had happened,” he said, countering the scepticism in the international media about the efficacy of Operation Sindoor. According to him Operation Sindoor marked a milestone in the deployment of indigenously developed military hardware and weapons. Achieved 74.39 per cent enumeration form collection rate in Bihar, says EC STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 11 JULY The Election Commission of India has made significant progress in the Special Intensive Revision drive of electoral rolls, with over 74 per cent of the state's nearly 7.90 crore electors having submitted their Enumeration Forms, the poll panel said Friday,asserting that as of 11 July, a total of 5,87,49,463 forms have been collected. According to the ECI, the SIR process, which began on 24 June, has seen tireless efforts from 77,895 Booth Level Officers and 20,603 newly appointed BLOs, along with other election officials and over 4 lakh volunteers. The BLOs have been visiting households to assist electors and collect filled Enumeration Forms.