THURSDAY 17 JULY 2025 www.thestatesman.com X.com/thestatesmanltd. Fb/thestatesman1875 SINCE 1818 Pages 16 |` 5.00 | LC KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR ‘SCOPE FOR UDDHAV THACKERAY TO SIT ON TREASURY BENCHES’ GOYAL MEETS DEEP-TECH STARTUPS, HIGHLIGHTS PUSH FOR INNOVATION SHIFTING TRIANGLES P5 SENSEX 82,634.48 p63.57 P9 NIFTY 25,212.05 p16.25 ` vs $ 86.05 ROOT RECLAIMS NO.1 TEST BATTING SPOT P12 GOLD `1,00,460 P16 SILVER `1,14,000 RAINFALL: 00.0 mm ‘BJP has unleashed terror worse than Emergency’ RELATIVE HUMIDITY BRENT CRUDE (IN $) 68.02 CM Mamata Banerjee leads rally protesting harassment of Bengali-speaking people in BJP-ruled states WEATHER Generally Cloudy sky with one or two spells of light to moderate rain/ thundershower very likely to occur. Max. 98% Min. 93% STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE TEMPERATURE Max: 29.6˚C (-3.2) SUN RISES 05:01 hrs MOON RISES 22:15 hrs KOLKATA, 16 JULY Min: 25.0˚C (-1.9) T SUN SETS 18:24 hrs MOON SETS 09:59 hrs New Moon on 25 July THUMBNAILS A tiger cools off in the pond in its enclosure at Sarthana Nature Park, in Surat on Wednesday. nANI Teen dies after joyride mishap at Nicco Park: An 18-year-old youth died on Wednesday allegedly after a joyride reportedly collapsed at Nicco Park, in Kolkata. The deceased was on a ride when the structure malfunctioned, causing him to fall from a height along with a swing-like seat. He sustained severe head injuries and was rushed to a private hospital in Salt Lake, where doctors declared him dead on arrival. (Page 3) he BJP-led government at the Centre has unleashed a reign of terror which is worse than the Emergency, Trinamul Congress chairperson Mamata Banerjee said today. Protest rallies were held across the state between 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. during the day against the harassment of Bengali-speaking people in BJP-ruled states. “The Centre has issued a notification and secretly circulated it among BJP-ruled states, stating that anyone speaking in Bengali can be detained and imprisoned for a month,” Miss Banerjee alleged, adding, “We will challenge the notification in a court of law.” She participated in a march protesting attacks on and harassment of Bengali-speaking people in BJP-governed states. The rally commenced at College Square and concluded at Dorina Crossing, covering a distance of 2 km. Miss Banerjee, speaking at a public meeting after the conclusion of the rally, said that if such attacks continued, she would travel across the length and breadth of the country to protect the rights of Bengali speakers. “Why are you targeting migrant workers simply because they speak Bengali? They are skilled workers—some are gold artisans in Gujarat, others work as masons or plumbers across various states,” she said, adding, “Have we forgotten that Bengalis produced the highest number of freedom fighters? Both the National Anthem and the National Song were penned by Bengali poets. We have 1.5 crore people in Bengal who are not Bengali, yet we have never questioned their mother tongue.” She said it is unfortunate that the BJP is trying to interfere in the food habit or language of others. India working on the same lines as US-Indonesia trade deal: Trump AGENCIES NEW YORK, 16 JULY US President Donald Trump stated that India is working on a trade deal along the same lines as the one he announced with Indonesia, which will provide the USA with greater access to the Indian market. Under the deal with Jakarta, there will be a 19 per cent tariff on imports into the USA, but none on exports from the USA to Indonesia, he told reporters in Washington. “India basically is working along that same line,” he said. “We're going to have access into India.” Negotiators from India and the USA are working to reach a deal before the 1 August deadline Mr Trump has set for making deals or face arbitrary tariffs. While he has issued letters to several countries and the European Union threatening tariffs as high as 35 per cent if they don’t make a deal by that date, he has not sent a similar “It is my choice what I eat ~ vegetarian food or nonvegetarian food. I am branded as anti-national if I speak in Bengali or eat non-vegetarian food.” Taking on the BJP's alleged narrative linking Bengali migrants to illegal immigration, Miss Banerjee said: “I challenge you to prove that Bengalispeaking migrants are Tear gas fired, chaos in Bhubaneswar over student’s suicide BHUBANESWAR, 16 JULY warning to India. It is not clear if he meant an exact duplication of the Indonesia deal, which would be a tough sell for India, or other levels of tariffs and other concessions by India. If the bilateral trade agreement between the USA and India under negotiation mirrors the Indonesian one, it would mean a 19 per cent tariff on India’s exports and none on imports from the USA. Mr Trump also said that Russia’s President Vladimir Putin could agree to a peace deal with Ukraine before the 50-day deadline, which would spare India and others from buying Russian energy products from the 100 per cent punitive tariff he has threatened. Asked by a reporter about the 2 September 2 deadline, he said: “I don't think 50 days is very long, and it could be sooner than that”. Mr Trump announced on Tuesday that he was taking strong action against Russia because it has so far refused to agree to a ceasefire in its war against Ukraine. A protest by the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) turned chaotic on Wednesday as police used water cannons and tear gas to disperse party workers attempting to break police barricades and march to the state secretariat here. The demonstration, held over the death of a 20-yearold student of Fakir Mohan Autonomous College in Balasore who set herself on fire after she allegedly faced mental and sexual harassment — saw injuries to several senior BJD leaders, including Rajya Sabha MP Sulata Deo. Ms Deo was reportedly struck on the chest during the chaos. She, along with former ministers Pranab Prakash Das and Pritiranjan Ghadei, both of whom are said to have sustained injuries on their legs, were rushed to hospital for treatment. SNS ‘You need a dictionary!’ Apex court pulls up SIT for misreading FB posts by Ashoka University professor PARMOD KUMAR NEW DELHI, 16 JULY The Supreme Court on Wednesday pulled up the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing Facebook posts by Ashoka University’s Assistant Professor Ali Khan Mahmudabad, hauling it up for “misdirecting itself” and expanding the scope of investigation beyond the two FIRs registered. A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi warned that the SIT must restrict its probe strictly to the content and language of the two Facebook posts made by Prof Mahmudabad concerning the Pahalgam terror attack and Operation Sindoor, and not conduct a “roving inquiry.” “Why is the SIT, on the face of it, misdirecting itself?” Justice Kant asked, adding: “They (SIT) can say it’s an opinion and no offence is made out. But why take two months for this?” Rejecting Additional Solicitor General SV Raju’s request for two more months to complete the investigation, the Court gave the SIT four weeks to wrap up the probe. Justice Kant remarked in a quip directed at the ASG: “You don’t need him (Mahmudabad)… you need a dictionary!” ASG Raju was appearinv for the Haryana government. The observation came in light of the SIT’s alleged misreading of Prof Mahmudabad's Facebook posts, which, according to the bench, needed a more nuanced linguistic interpretation, rather than police scrutiny. The Court clarified that Prof. Mahmudabad, who had already joined the probe and whose electronic devices had been examined, need not be summoned again. It also directed that interim protection from arrest would continue, while reaffirming that he remains free to publish social media posts and articles, except on sub judice matters. “It seems to us that it is not needed to summon the petitioner (Mahmudabad) again to join the investigation,” the Court said in its order. “The petitioner is free to write any online posts or articles except commenting on sub judice matter.” Two FIRs had been filed against Mahmudabad over his Facebook posts, one by Yogesh Jatheri citing charges under Sections 196, 197, 152, and 299 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, and the other by Haryana Women’s Commission Chairperson Renu Bhatia, invoking Sections 79, 152, and 353. Rohingya Muslims.” “I will speak in Bengali more and more. I dare you to send me to the detention camp,” she said. Miss Banerjee alleged that the BJP is planning to capture Bengal in 2026 by manipulating electoral rolls. “They won the Assembly elections in Maharashtra and Delhi through such manipulation, and now they’re attempting the same in Bihar, where elections are due in November,” she said. She urged people to take a day’s leave from work, if necessary, to ensure that their names are included in the voters’ list. She further claimed that the Election Commission of India is biased and filled with BJP supporters. “The Chief Election Commissioner was previously the Principal Secretary to Union Home Minister Amit Shah.” (See Page 3) Kharge, Rahul Gandhi urge PM Modi to grant statehood to J&K STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 16 JULY Mallikarjun Kharge, Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, and Rahul Gandhi, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, on Wednesday wrote a joint letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging him to bring in legislation in the upcoming Monsoon Session of Parliament to grant full statehood to Jammu and Kashmir. “For the past five years, the people of Jammu and Kashmir have consistently called for the restoration of full statehood. This demand is both legitimate and fully grounded in their constitutional and democratic right,” the leaders stated. They reminded PM Modi of his own commitments made on multiple occasions, including in an interview in Bhubaneswar on 19 May 2024. They also pointed out that the government had made similar assurances before the Supreme Court. The leaders also urged the government to introduce legislation placing Ladakh under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution.