FOLLOW US: @TheStatesmanLtd @thestatesmanltd thestatesman1875 www.thestatesman.com People’s Parliament, Always in Session India’s National Newspaper since 1818 | Pages 12 | ` 5.00 | KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | MUMBAI | BHUBANESWAR | LUCKNOW | SILIGURI Trump switched planes in Turkey using catering truck amid Iran threat A different Kashmir BRIEFLY CM Suvendu’s helicopter faces technical glitch: Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari’s helicopter faced two setbacks on Tuesday as a technical glitch delayed its departure from Kolkata and heavy rain later forced it to abandon its planned landing at Midnapore. The helicopter was scheduled to take off from Kolkata airport in the morning. However, a technical problem was detected shortly before departure. Technicians at the airport repaired the fault and helicopter took off for Midnapore at around 11.21 a.m. The journey was subsequently disrupted by adverse weather conditions in and around Midnapore. Heavy rainfall and poor visibility made it unsafe for the helicopter to land at its planned destination. The flight path was therefore changed, and the helicopter was diverted to Kolaghat. After landing at Kolaghat, Mr Adhikari continued his journey by road. Kolkata, 11 August A fresh investigation has been initiated into the circumstances surrounding the hasty cremation of the RG Kar rape-and-murder victim, following a directive by Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on the second death anniversary of the doctor-student. The victim’s father lodged a fresh written complaint with the Barrackpore Police Commissionerate on Monday, following which an FIR was regis- Protests allowed PM a vital political reset Parliament stalled amid Govt-Oppn showdown VIBHA SHARMA New Delhi, 11 August T he Parliament complex on Tuesday witnessed an unusual showdown as MPs of the ruling BJP-led NDA and the Opposition INDIA bloc came face-to-face at the main gate of Parliament, holding placards and raising slogans against each other, even as security personnel formed a cordon between the two groups. While NDA members raised the issue of alleged police action against job aspirants in Jharkhand, Opposition MPs protested against the police action during the 20 July student protest at Jantar Mantar in Delhi and raised the issue of alleged theft of donations at the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. NDA MPs also targeted Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, accusing him of “running tered at Khardah police station late at night. The new case includes allegations of criminal conspiracy and destruction of evidence, among other serious charges. The police will separately investigate the circumstances surrounding the cremation of the victim at Natagarh Kadamtala crematorium, within Ghola police station limits, on the day of the incident. The development follows a memorial meeting organised at Panihati’s Lok Sanskriti Bhavan on Sunday to mark the second death anniversary of the young doctor. It was at the meeting that the Chief Minister announced that a special investigation team, headed by the Barrackpore Police Commissioner, would conduct a fresh probe through a separate case. away” from a debate on student protests across the country. As they marched towards the Makar Dwar after attending their weekly Mangal Milan meeting, they raised slogans such as ‘Rahul Gandhi jawab do’ and ‘Rahul Gandhi bhago mat’ and also questioned Priyanka Gandhi over her silence on Jharkhand. The INDIA bloc MPs, meanwhile, continued to IPL cricketer Abishek Porel arrested on rape charges: Kolkata: Cricketer Abishek Porel, who plays for the Bengal cricket team and Delhi Capitals in the Indian Premier League (IPL), was arrested in connection with a criminal case registered on the complaint of a medical student alleging rape, criminal intimidation and other serious offences, the police said on Tuesday. The cricketer was arrested by the Hooghly district police from Emami City within Dum Dum police station limits, according to police. Earlier in June, the victim lodged a police complaint alleging that he engaged in a sexual relationship under the false promise of marriage and subjected her to assault and criminal intimidation. demand accountability from Union Home Minister Amit Shah over the alleged police excesses during the 20 July protests over examination paper leaks. The Lok Sabha passed the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, 2026 and the National Cooperative Development Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2026 amid the din before being adjourned for the day. With just two more days to go before the Monsoon Session ends on Thursday, sources say the government may be willing to hold discussion on the Ram Mandir donation theft provided the Opposition first allows a proper discussion on students’ agitation across the country in a proper format. “After the protests in Jharkhand, the government wants the discussion to cover similar issues in other parts of the country as well,” they say. Opposition parties, which have been cornering the BJP government in Parliament over paper leaks and police action against protesting students, are facing protests in states ruled by them. This has given an opportunity to the ruling BJP at the Centre to corner the Opposition, in particular target the Congress for its “silence” on other protests, and especially Jharkhand. New Delhi, 11 August The Tribunals Reforms Bill, 2026, passed by the Lok Sabha on Monday, 10 August 2026, marks an important moment in India’s long experiment with specialised adjudication. The Bill seeks to bring about greater efficiency, independence, transparency, and uniformity in the qualifications, appointment, terms and conditions of service of 16 major tribunals. These tribunals deal with crucial sectors of the economy and society ~ including the Central Administrative Tribunal, Income Tax Appellate Tribunal, Securities Appellate Tribunal, Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal, National Company Law Appellate Tribunal, National Green Tribunal, Debt Recovery Appellate Tribunal, etc. Page 12 We have come a long way from such tribunals being “alternative” adjudicatory mechanisms to being mainstays of dispute resolution and justice delivery. However, the importance of the work that these tribunals do is betrayed by the many institutional ills plaguing them, including vacancies, short-staffing, deficiencies in qualification, and alarming pendency of cases. As of March 2026, approximately 5.08 lakh cases were pending across 16 major tribunals in 2025. The Debt Recovery Tribunals had the highest pendency at 2.45 lakh cases, followed by the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal with 71,454 cases. It is estimated that clearing pending cases at existing disposal rates could take a decade. As noted by the Supreme Court in the case of L. Chandra Kumar in 1997, scrapping tribunals is not the answer. What is needed, is not an overhaul but urgent reform, which comes in the form of the 2026 Bill. The Bill does not alter the jurisdiction or powers of any of the tribunals that it deals with, or diminish their independence or integrity, and nor does it seek to overreach the powers of the courts. Instead, it strikes a fine balance between ideals of efficiency and independence, and streamlines the many concerns that have been JPSC-JSSC row: Students seek direct talks with J’khand CM STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE Ranchi, 11 August Students protesting alleged irregularities in JPSC and JSSC recruitment examinations sought direct talks with Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Tuesday, a day after police action during their proposed Assembly gherao, and said the agitation would continue. The protest at Jaipal Singh Munda Stadium was relatively subdued compared with Monday, with fewer students present. However, representatives of the JPSC-JSSC Reform Manch said the lower turnout did not mean the movement had weakened and that they would continue to press their demands peacefully. “We want to speak directly with the Chief Minister now,” Reform Manch representatives Ravindra and Piyush said, adding that several rounds of discussions had already been held with the governmentappointed committee. The students said Tuesday’s SC notice to Centre on plea to bring Netaji’s ashes home PARMOD KUMAR New Delhi, 11 August The Supreme Court on Tuesday issued notice to the Central government on a plea by Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose’s octogenarian daughter Anita Pfaff (photo) seeking repatriation of the ashes attributed to him and preserved at the Renkoji temple in Tokyo since 1945, so that he could be given a proper and dignified funeral and what she described as Netaji’s long “exile” could finally be brought to an end. A Bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V Mohana sought the Centre’s response on the petition filed by Pfaff, an Austrian-German economist and Netaji’s sole living direct lineal descendant. Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for Ms Pfaff, told the Bench that Netaji’s daughter had approached the Court seeking the return of his ashes to India. While seeking a direction to the Central government to repatriate the ashes, Ms Pfaff has alternatively prayed that the government be directed to “facilitate her to repatriate the ashes” from Japan. The petition has questioned what it describes as the prolonged failure of the Government of India to take a final, reasoned and time-bound decision on bringing back the Tribunals Reform Bill, 2026: A fine balance JAYANT MEHTA Dilip highlights slip positioning, Kohli’s fielding intensity ahead of Tests Page 7 Fresh FIR lodged over cremation of RG Kar doctor, lens on ‘evidence tampering’ STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE PERSPECTIVE Page 9 Page 6 Wednesday, 12 August 2026 SPORTS WORLD EDITORIAL | articulated about the operation of tribunals. What the Bill seeks to do One, in consonance with the Madras Bar Association judgments, the Bill establishes a National Tribunals Commission (NTC). The NTC will be staffed by a Chairperson, who will be a former judge of the Supreme Court or former Chief Justice of a High Court, in line with the legal requirement in the 1987 decision of Sampath Kumar, along with four other members ~ two judicial and technical members each. The NTC will be responsible for conducting the selection process for filling up vacancies in the various tribunals covered under the Bill, and also reviewing their performance and conducting inquiries into complaints received against any Tribunal members. Two, the selection will be carried out through search-cum-selection committees (SSCs) constituted by the NTC, comprising members and nominees of the NTC itself, along with relevant field experts and administrators. Three, the Bill fosters inter-branch consultation by requiring the Central government to consult with the Chief Justice of India before making an appointment to the post of Chairperson and Judicial Members of the Commission. Additionally, the tenure of the Chairperson of the Commission has also been increased to five years or till the age of seventy. Four, it sets up a National Tribunals Data Grid, which will serve as a digital repository of case information across tribunals, and a counterpart to the existing National Judicial Data Grid. mortal remains/ashes attributed to Netaji and preserved at the Renkoji temple. Ms Pfaff has sought their repatriation to enable her, as Netaji’s sole living direct lineal descendant, to perform his last rites with dignity and finality. She has repeatedly appealed to the Government of India to bring the ashes back from the Renkoji temple, where they have remained preserved since 1945, maintaining that Netaji deserves a proper and dignified funeral in India and that the time has come to end his long “exile”. On Netaji’s 129th birth anniversary in January 2026, Ms Pfaff renewed her appeal to the Indian government for the return of the ashes. She had also earlier written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking his intervention for their repatriation to India. protest was being conducted peacefully and silently following Monday’s police action. They maintained that the agitation would continue until their key demands were addressed. The health of several protesters remained a concern. Student leader Devendra Nath Mahato, who had been on hunger strike, was admitted to hospital after his condition deteriorated. At least four other protesters are also undergoing treatment, while several candidates injured during Monday’s police MEA: India examining Dhaka’s request for Sheikh Hasina’s extradition NIKHIL VYAS New Delhi, 11 August The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Tuesday said it was examining Dhaka’s request for the extradition of former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in accordance with established procedures. Addressing a media briefing, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the matter concerning Hasina’s extradition was being examined, while investigations into the case involving the suspects in the killing of Bangladeshi radical Islamist leader Sharif Osman Hadi were currently underway. “Our High Commissioner met with the Prime Minister of Bangladesh yesterday, and they discussed matters of mutual interest. On the other NASA invites ISRO to join ambitious Moon Base programme STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE Kolkata, 11 August The United States has invited the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to participate in NASA’s ambitious Moon Base programme, building on the partnership between the two countries under the Artemis Accords. The two countries also agreed to advance discussions on cooperation in open scientific data sharing under the Accords during the ninth meeting of the India-US Civil Space Joint Working Group (CSJWG), hosted by India on 5-6 August 2026, at the ISRO headquarters in Bengaluru, the US Embassy said on Tuesday. According to the Embassy, the two countries advanced discussions on civil and commercial space cooperation action are receiving treatment at Sadar Hospital, according to the organisers. Six protesters from the two student platforms at the stadium are currently on hunger strike, with their health being monitored, the organisers said. A candidate associated with the JPSC-JSSC Nyay Manch staged a symbolic protest by writing “Hum gunde nahi hain” on his body. The gesture aimed to assert that the protesters were job aspirants raising recruitment-related grievances, not troublemakers. and focused on pursuing future partnerships in space science and human spaceflight technologies. Dr V Narayanan, Chairman, ISRO, and Secretary, Department of Space, and Sergio Gor, US Ambassador to India, addressed the opening session and highlighted the significance of further strengthening bilateral cooperation in space. (Representational Image) two issues that you raised about the extradition of the former Prime Minister, as also the case of Hadi,” he said. “On Hadi, I told you that this is a legal matter in which investigations are ongoing presently. As far as the extradition matter is concerned, as I said before, our position has been very clear on this particular matter: that we are looking into the case as per established processes that we have on our side,” the MEA spokesperson stated. Bangladesh PM Tarique Rahman and Indian High Commissioner Dinesh Trivedi discussed several key issues, local media reported. “Bangladesh hopes that India will expedite the process of extraditing Sheikh Hasina,” a press release issued by the PM’s Press Wing in Dhaka stated. Govt approves polymer notes for field trials: New Delhi: The Centre has approved the Reserve Bank of India’s proposal to introduce polymer banknotes in the Rs 10 and Rs 20 denominations on a trial basis, Parliament was informed on Tuesday. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the RBI’s central board had recommended the introduction of one billion polymer notes each in the Rs 10 and Rs 20 denominations. The proposal was submitted to the government under Section 25 of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934. The polymer notes will initially be tested in the field. Subject to the outcome of the trials, the RBI plans to move towards their regular issuance in these denominations. The new polymer currency will be circulated alongside existing paperbased banknotes.