FOLLOW US: @TheStatesmanLtd @thestatesmanltd thestatesman1875 www.thestatesman.com People’s Parliament, Always in Session India’s National Newspaper since 1818 BRIEFLY Pakistan a ‘Frankenstein state’: India at UN New Delhi: Pakistan is a “Frankenstein state” that harboured and nurtured terrorism as a state policy and was now facing the consequences of its own actions, an Indian representative told an United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) session on Thursday. In a stinging response to Pakistan, India’s Anupama Singh questioned Islamabad's claims of being a victim of terrorism, stressing that it gets “shocked when its own monster bites back”. Ms Singh, who is the First Secretary at the Permanent Mission to the United Nations, described the situation as a paradox that “only Pakistan could sustain”. “This is the country where the sitting Defence Minister boasts of hosting, training and deploying terrorists as a state policy and yet Pakistan calls itself a victim of terrorism,” Ms Singh said. “It is a living example of a Frankenstein state which is shocked when its own monster bites back,” she added. | Pages 12 | ` 5.00 | KOLKATA | NEW DELHI Kolkata, 19 June The Supreme Court on Friday held that the right to walk on safe, demarcated footpaths is a fundamental right, and will take priority over the movement of vehicles. It also suggested the framing of appropriate legislation governing pedestrian rights. A Bench of Justice PS Narasimha and Justice AS Chandurkar noted this right flows from the freedoms guaranteed under Articles 19 (which includes freedom of movement) and 21 (right to personal rights and liberty) of the Constitution. Framing pedestrian access as a constitutional guarantee, the Court underscored that STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE New Delhi, 19 June P rime Minister Narendra Modi will embark on a two-day visit to Odisha and West Bengal on 20 and 21 June, during which he will inaugurate, dedicate and lay the foundation stones for a wide array of development projects, besides leading the national celebrations of the 12th International Day of Yoga in Kolkata. According to an official government release issued on Friday, in West Bengal, the Prime Minister will participate in Paschimbanga Divas celebrations, unveil major agricultural initiatives, release the latest instalment of the PMKisan scheme, commission three indigenously built naval vessels and lead Yoga Day observances. Mr Modi, who will be visiting Odisha before heading to Bengal, will participate in Paschimbanga Divas celebrations in Tarakeswar in Hooghly district. The event, themed “West Bengal: Heritage, Harmony and Development”, is being organised at a site associated with nationalist leader Syama Prasad Mookerjee. During the programme, PM Modi will launch and inaugurate projects related to railways, agriculture, rural development, fisheries and animal husbandry. A major announcement will be the release of the 23rd instalment of the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme. More than Rs 18,880 crore will be transferred directly to the bank accounts of over 9.44 crore farmers across the country. In West Bengal, more than 45 lakh beneficiaries will receive over Rs 900 crore. The visit will also witness the rollout of several flagship public authorities are under a binding obligation to provide and maintain footpaths. “If a road exists, there must then be a duty to ensure that a footpath is demarcated and maintained for the walkers. This is an enforceable duty. The fundamental right to walk on demarcated footpaths shall override the privilege of a motorised vehicle,” the court held. The court also observed that the duty to demarcate, construct, maintain and safeguard footpaths and other pedestrian infrastructure rests with urban development authorities, municipal corporations, municipalities and panchayats. It clarified that the freedom to walk is subject to reasonable restrictions, but said that it must be ensured that common spaces are not monopolised by vehicle drivers alone. The bench observed that Indian cities and towns have long been designed with a disproportionate focus on vehicles, leaving pedestrians vulnerable and marginalised. “The absence of safe and comfortable footpaths to walk on, and even when they exist, their subjugation to motor transport, has been a civilisational problem,” said the court. “We must affirm and secure to our citizens this fundamental right to walk on demarcated footpaths. Clear articulation and declaration of such a right is necessary to recognise the correlative duty to provision and maintain footpaths. The duty bearers are the Urban Development Authorities, Municipal Corporations, Municipalities, and even Panchayats,” the court held. Shiv Sena: 60 years, 5 splits, story of a party shaped by break ups & endurance VIBHA SHARMA New Delhi, 19 June Founded by Bal Thackeray on this day ~ 19 June ~ in 1966, the Shiv Sena emerged from growing concerns among Marathi-speaking people that they were losing out on jobs, economic opportunities and political influence in Mumbai to “outsiders” amid rapid migration and industrial growth. It initially focussed on protecting Marathi identity, language and culture, building support through grassroots activism and local campaigns. And over time, it expanded beyond regional issues, becoming a major political force in Maharashtra, collaborating with the BJP to become a party with a Hindu nationalist agenda. The history of the Shiv Sena, which marks 60 years today, is not only a story of political battles but also of multiple internal revolts that MUMBAI | BHUBANESWAR PM Modi to roll out mega projects in Bengal, Odisha SC recognises fundamental right to walk safely on footpaths STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE | reshaped its identity and Maharashtra politics. When officially announced, the six rebel MPs leaving Shiv Sena (UBT) to join the Eknath Shinde-led group will make this the fifth such episode. On Thursday, six of the nine Shiv Sena (UBT) Lok Sabha MPs skipped a meeting of the parliamentary party, deepening the crisis in the Uddhav Thackeray camp. The rebel MPs, who have already submitted signed letters to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, will merge with the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, which is part of the ruling NDA. The first major rupture happened in the early 1990s when senior leader Chhagan Bhujbal broke away after differences with the party leadership. More turbulence followed in 2005 when Narayan Rane, one of Shiv Sena's most prominent leaders, exited after a bitter fallout over leadership and succession issues. An emotionally significant split came in 2006 when Raj Thackeray, nephew of Bal Thackeray and once viewed by many supporters as a natural political heir, left the organisation and launched the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS). The split also highlighted the rise of Uddhav Thackeray as the party’s central decision-maker. But the most politically consequential split happened in 2022, when current Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde led a rebellion, to go with the BJP, with which Uddhav had broken the alliance in 2019. Uddhav ended the Shiv Sena’s nearly three-decade alliance with the BJP after disagreements over power-sharing following the Maharashtra Assembly election. He subsequently formed the Maha Vikas Aghadi government with Congress and the NCP, becoming Chief Minister ~ a decision that ultimately reshaped Maharashtra politics and also the fortunes of his party. Unlike earlier departures led by individual leaders, the Shinde revolt directly challenged both the party's leadership and its political direction. agricultural initiatives in Bengal, including the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY), Agri Stack under the Digital Agriculture Mission, the National Mission on Natural Farming and the Pradhan Mantri Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana. On 21 June, Mr Modi will lead the national observance of the 12th International Day of Yoga from Kolkata’s Red Road, where thousands are expected to participate in the Common Yoga Protocol session. This year’s theme, “Yoga for Healthy Ageing”, emphasises yoga’s contribution to physical fitness, mental well-being, emotional resilience and active ageing. Since the United Nations adopted India’s proposal to observe 21 June as the International Day of Yoga in 2014, the annual event has grown into a global movement. This year’s celebrations are being organised at nearly 2,500 locations worldwide. | LUCKNOW | SILIGURI | Saturday, 20 June 2026 Trinamul moves Speaker against rebel MPs, files 20 disqualification petitions SHAHID K ABBAS New Delhi, 19 June Trinamul Congress National General Secretary, Abhishek Banerjee, accompanied by senior leaders, met Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Friday and formally opposed the recognition of a rebel faction of party MPs that claimed a merger with the Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI) pledging support to the NDA. The TMC delegation, which included Kalyan Banerjee, Mahua Moitra and Saugata Roy, submitted 20 disqualification petitions against the dissident lawmakers and urged the Speaker not to recognise them as TMC members in Parliament. Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Abhishek Banerjee said the party had presented its constitutional objections to the split and the merger claim made by the rebel MPs. “We submitted 20 disqualification petitions with the Speaker today,” Mr Banerjee said, adding that the party had also written to the Speaker urging that the rebel lawmakers who joined the NCPI should not be recognised as TMC MPs. Describing the merger move as an “unconstitutional” attempt to divide the party, Mr Banerjee maintained that the Trinamul Congress remained a single and indivisible political organisation. “The Trinamul Congress is one. If you go by the Constitution or the judgments of the Supreme Court, it clearly goes against them. Either the Constitution is wrong, or they are wrong. One of the two has to be wrong,” he told reporters. According to Mr Banerjee, the TMC delegation argued that the breakaway group's claim of a valid merger with the NCPI was untenable under the anti-defection provisions of the Constitution. The party contended that under the Tenth Schedule, a merger requires the support of at least two-thirds of the parent political party and cannot be effected merely by a section of its parliamentary wing acting independently. The ruling faction further argued that the Constitution does not permit the creation of splinter groups within an existing political party and that legislators cannot separate themselves from the parent organisation solely through signatures or resolutions adopted within the legislature party.