FP The publishers permit sharing of the e-paper's pdf on WhatsApp and other social media platforms Vol. XLII No. 257 | INDORE | MONDAY | FEBRUARY 23, 2026 | Pages 12 ` 3 | Regd. No. Indore MP/ICD 216/2024-2026 | RNI No. 38281/83 FREE www.freepressjournal.in ESTD-1983 iii QUALITY @ VALUE EDITIONS: INDORE UJJAIN PRESS PUNE BHOPAL NASHIK MUMBAI E-paper FP MINI MARATHON 2026| Breaking away from their usual Sunday routines, NEARLY 3,000 people from diverse backgrounds took part in the Free Press Save Water Mini Marathon 2026. The run, centred on the theme ‘Save Water’, witnessed enthusiastic participation, with Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Rakesh Singhai and Atal Bihari Institute of Good Governance and Policy Analysis Vice Chairman Rajiv Dixit , flagging off the marathon and urging citizens to adopt responsible water conservation practices Pic Anand Shivre See pages 2&12 PAN-INDIA MODULE BUSTED | Group was being handled from B’desh by Shabir Ahmad Lone, a trained LeT terrorist from J&K 8 LeT operatives with Bangladesh links held PTI NEW DELHI In a major counter-terror operation spanning three states, the Delhi Police has dismantled a Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) module comprising eight operatives, including seven Bangladeshi nationals who had illegally entered India and procured forged identity documents, an official said on Sunday. The arrests followed coordinated raids in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu, after investigators traced the group's involvement in putting up pro-Pakistan and pro-terror posters, showcasing terrorist Burhan Wani, at multiple lo- JeM commander among 3 killed Three members of the Pakistanbased Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) terror outfit were killed in an encounter with security forces in Jammu and Kashmir's Kishtwar district on Sunday, officials said. The bodies of all the slain terrorists were charred beyond recognition as the mud house they were hiding in caught fire during the gunfight, they said, adding that preliminary assessments by security agencies suggest that one of the deceased is Saifullah, a notorious JeM commander. 4Continued on | P8 lice (Special Cell) Pramod Singh Kushwah said. He said Lone, who hails from Kangan in Srinagar, had fled to Bangladesh after his release from Tihar Jail in 2018 and was working to revive the LeT's terror network in India by activating sleeper cells of Bangladeshi operatives residing illegally in the country. "The investigation began on February 8, after a Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) shift in-charge submitted a written complaint at the Supreme Court Metro police station regarding pro-Pakistan and pro-terror posters pasted at the Janpath metro station. cations in Delhi. According to police, the module was being handled from Bangladesh by Shabir Ahmad Lone alias Raja alias Kashmiri, a trained LeT terrorist from Jammu and Kash- mir who was previously arrested by the Delhi Police's Special Cell in 2007 in a case involving the recovery of arms and ammunition, including an AK-47 rifle and grenades, Additional Commissioner of Po- Armed man trying to enter Trump home killed MP varsities to offer temple mgmt courses Agencies WASHINGTON PTI INDORE D r Suresh Patidar, Head of the School of Commerce at DAVV, is recognised not only as a teacher but as a leader who brings people together during crises. Turn to Indore page to find out how. SEE P3 Bhojshala case hearing at Indore Bench today Our Staff Reporter The US Secret Service announced on Sunday that an armed man was shot and killed after entering the secure perimeter of Mar-a-Lago, President Donald Trump's resort in Palm Beach, Florida. Although Trump often spends weekends at his resort, he was at the White House during this incident. First lady Melania Trump was also with the president. The name of the person who was shot has not been released. 4Continued on | P8 Temple management will be offered as a subject in Madhya Pradesh's universities to boost religious tourism and bolster the economy, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav announced on Sunday. Speaking to reporters here, Yadav said universities will offer courses that cover religious tourism as well as financial and administrative management of temples, including security. "Temples have always been centres of faith, devotion and 4Continued on | P8 belief for us. We are trying to understand how proper temple management can help energise the economy," he said. The chief minister said Samrat Vikramaditya University in Ujjain has taken the lead by offering diploma and postgraduate courses on the subject, under which students will receive theoretical and practical training from scholars. Religious corridors are being developed at 13 pilgrimage sites in the state along the lines of Ujjain's Shri Mahakal Lok, he said. 4Continued on | P8 INDORE The batch of petitions related to the disputed Bhojshala case will be taken up for hearing by Indore Bench of Madhya Pradesh High Court on Monday. A Division Bench comprising Justice Vijay Kumar Shukla and Justice Alok Awasthi will take up the petitions for hearing. This follows apex court’s order dated January 22, 2026, passed on a special leave petition in the matter of Maulana Kamaluddin Welfare Society, Dhar vs Hindu Front for Justice & Others. In that order, the apex court had directed that the pending writ petitions be taken up by a Division Bench of the MP HC within 4Continued on | P8 Portion of 4-lane rly overbridge collapses Rajagopalachari’s statue to replace Lutyens’s at Rashtrapati Bhavan PTI NEW DELHI FP News Service JABALPUR A portion of a four-lane railway overbridge collapsed on Sunday in Shahpura—around 30 kilometres away from Jabalpur—disrupting traffic movement along National Highway-45 for hours.  The overbridge was maintained by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI). As per officials, no one was injured and no casualties were reported.  The railway overbridge, constructed around four to five years ago, had started  shown signs of trouble since last year. A portion of the bridge had been damaged in December last year and was shut down for repairs.  However, the administration had allowed traffic movement on the other side of the bridge. On Sunday, the operational portion of the bridge also collapsed. Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on Sunday that a statue of British architect Edwin Lutyens, which has stood in Rashtrapati Bhavan, will be replaced by a statue of C Rajagopalachari, the first Indian governor-general of independent India. During his monthly radio address, 'Mann Ki Baat', Modi noted that, unfortunately, even after independence, statues of British administrators remained in the Rashtrapati Bhavan, while those of India's great leaders were not honoured with a place there. However, the country is moving away from symbols of colonial rule and is beginning to embrace symbols of Indian culture, the prime minister stated. 4Continued on | P8 4Continued on | P8 India, US push back deal talks Agencies NEW DELHI A day before a three-day meeting between India and the US was set to begin in Washington on Monday, the two countries decided to reschedule talks between their chief negotiators aimed at finalising the text of an interim trade pact, sources said on Sunday. The move follows a US Supreme Court ruling against sweeping import tariffs imposed by the Trump administration on trade partners. 4Continued on | P8 ‘GANDI AUR NANGI’: PM SHREDS CONG Slams ‘shirtless protest’ at AI summit Biswajeet Banerjee MEERUT PM Narendra Modi on Sunday launched a sharp attack on Congress over its "shirtless" protest at the recent global AI summit in Delhi, accusing the party of turning an international event into a platform for "gandi aur nangi" (dirty and naked) politics. Addressing a public meeting in Meerut, he said India had hosted the world's largest AI conference, which filled the country with pride, but the Congress leaders resorted to stripping in front of foreign guests, bringing disrepute to the country. “I want to ask the Congress leaders, the country already knows you are exposed. Then why was there a need to remove clothes,” Modi said. He claimed the incident showed how ideologically bankrupt and impoverished the country's oldest party had become. Earlier in the day, the PM flagged off the Meerut Metro and the Namo Bharat rapid rail service and travelled with schoolchildren and doctors, interacting with passengers. He also inaugurated development projects worth Rs 12,930 crore. Namo Bharat is India's first Regional Rapid Transit System with a design speed of 180 kmph, while the Meerut Metro is the fatest local metro at 120 kmph. 4Continued on | P8