Vol. 65 No. 324 | THURSDAY | MAY 19, 2022 | 17 Pages | BETWEEN THE LINES LIFE-TIME LOW FOR ` S&P CUTS FY23 INDIA GROWTH FORECAST TO 7.3% ON INFLATION, UKRAINE INVASION MVA WANTS WHAT MP IS GETTING SC ALLOWS OBC QUOTA IN MP POLL T he rupee on Wednesday declined by 16 paise to close at its fresh lifetime low of 77.60 against the US dollar amid unabated foreign fund outflows and a robust greenback in overseas markets. Crude oil prices also surged over 1 per cent, which weighed on the rupee. (Brent crude futures quoted at USD 113 per barrel.) The dollar rebounded in global markets following hawkish comments from US Federal Reserve chief Jerome Powell, who asserted that the central bank would increase interest rates as high as needed to contain a spike in inflation which threatens the foundation of the economy. D DELHI LG BAIJAL QUITS elhi Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal, a former IAS officer of 1969 cadre with a career spanning over 37 years, on Wednesday sent in his resignation to President Ram Nath Kovind, citing personal reasons. He had taken over as the 21st Lt Governor of Delhi on December 31, 2016, and completed his 5-year term in 2021, when the Modi government asked him to continue in the post for the second term. Baijal was the union home secretary under Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee. T FIR AGAINST DU PROF he Delhi Police has registered an FIR against an associate professor of Delhi University’s Hindu College for his objectionable social media post alluding to claims about the ‘Shivling’ found inside the Gyanvapi mosque complex, officials said on Wednesday. Lal said, “In India, if you speak about anything, someone or the other’s sentiment will be hurt. So, this is nothing new. I am a historian and have made several observations. As I wrote them down, I have used very guarded language in my post and still this. I will defend myself.” EDIT SHIVIR FALLOUT: HARDIK PATEL EJECTS TO SAFETY Indrani bail after 6.5 yrs URVI MAHAJANI MUMBAI Indrani Mukerjea, a former media executive accused of killing her daughter, was granted bail by the Supreme Court on Wednesday, with the top court observing that she had been in custody for 6.5 years, which was “too long a time”. A bench of Justices L Nageswara Rao, B R Gavai and A S Bopanna refrained from making any observations on the merits of the case but said that the trial was unlikely to end soon and the woman had been behind bars for sixand-a-half years. “Indrani Mukerjea has been in custody for 6.5 years. We are not making comments on the merits of the case. Even if 50 per cent witnesses are given up by the prosecution, the trial will not be over soon,” said the SC. Further, the apex court clarified: “She will be released on bail subject to the satisfaction of the trial court. The same conditions imposed on Peter Mukerjea will also be imposed on her.” CONTD. ON NATION PAGE Nearly 2,250 police personnel currently residing in BDD Chawls will have to shell out Rs 50 lakh each for new homes being developed by the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA), after being promised homes at ‘affordable prices’ by the state government. Anguished by the steep price tag, police personnel have declared that given their present financial circumstances, Rs 50 lakh is beyond their reach. The Police Parivar, a representative body for this workforce, has warned that if the state government will not provide affordable housing to the police, who are always on the road to protect Mumbaikars, they will hit the streets in protest. Will no longer head football federation; 3-member panel to administer the body till formal elections are held OUR BUREAU NEW DELHI The Supreme Court on Wednesday annexed the powers of All India Football Federation president Praful Patel, a former Union minister and senior NCP leader, and set up a 3-member committee of administrators, headed by former Supreme Court judge A R Dave, to manage the federation's affairs and conduct the long-pending elections. Last month, the Union Sports Ministry informed the Supreme Court They are furious over Housing Minister Jitendra Awhad’s announcement. Awhad said, “The construction cost of every house of BDD chawl is approximately Rs 1.05 crore to Rs 1.15 crore. But MHADA has decided to provide homes to 2,250 police personnel at a cost of Rs 50 lakh each. This decision will be mentioned in the contract, which will be issued immediately All work has started. So now, . police are requested to vacate their houses as soon as possible.” CONTD. ON NATION PAGE RK MISRA AHMEDABAD Doubts, if any, stood dispelled, given the tone and tenor of a privileged communication put on social media. Hardik, who had often equated Home Minister Amit Shah with General Dyer and blamed him for the death of that Patel's tenure was in violation of the Sports Code. He allegedly ruled the national sports body with an iron hand, often muzzling dissent. Patel's third term in office was to end in December 2020 but he clung to a Supreme Court case, which remained pending since 2017, to extend his executive committee's term, while refusing to hold elections till the issue of a new constitution was settled by the top court. The court has now directed the committee of CONTD. ON NATION PAGE Homes for 2,250 police staff in redeveloped BDD Chawls @Rs 50 lakh; agitated personnel threaten to hit streets Hardik Patel quits Congress to be on the ‘winning side’ Gujarat Congress working president Hardik Patel, who brought down a Patidarheaded BJP government through an agitation that sought reservation for the community, on Wednesday, quit the Congress. The resignation came amid speculation that he was vending his way towards the BJP. His resignation, announced on twitter, with the letter addressed to party president Sonia Gandhi attached along with, came as no surprise to political observers in Gujarat, for it was known that he had been running with the hares and hunting with the hounds. Patidar youth during the 2015-2016 agitation, now sees virtue in what has been the leitmotif of the Narendra Modi-led BJP dispensation. ‘‘The Congress party has been the obstacle delaying CONTD. ON NATION PAGE 300 wet lease buses off road SHASHANK RAO MUMBAI For the second consecutive day the staff belonging to , BEST wet lease operators went on a flash strike. In fact, the fallout was all the more severe on Wednesday as , over 300 buses were off-road. According to BEST officials, on Wednesday the bus depots , of Vikhroli, Kurla and Bandra were hit; it is from these depots that the wet lease operator runs the air conditioned buses. Sources said that the staff, especially drivers of a particular wet least operator, are facing a problem. "On Wednesday a total 308 , buses operated on wet lease were off road and couldn't complete their scheduled trips due to the strike," said Manoj Varade, spokesperson, BEST Undertaking. CONTD. ON NATION PAGE New rail terminus at Jogeshwari TO BE BUILT AT A COST OF RS 69 CRORE BY 2025 SHASHANK RAO MUMBAI The western suburb of Jogeshwari is all set to get a spanking new railway terminus by 2025, to be built at a cost of Rs 69 crore, with the permissions for the project having been received from the Railways ministry on May 12. It will accommodate 24-car trains with island or double-discharge platforms, where trains will terminate. This new terminus will be in addition to the already existing terminuses at Bandra, Dadar, Mumbai Central, Kurla and CSMT. A letter sent to Western Railway on May THE CASE As per the prosecution’s case, Indrani Mukerjea allegedly conspired with her then husband, Peter Mukerjea, and ex-husband Sanjeev Khanna, to murder her daughter Sheena with the help of her former driver, Shyamvar Rai. Sheena was allegedly drugged and strangled in a car by Indrani and Khanna and her body disposed of in a suitcase in the Pen area of Raigad district in 2012. Indrani was arrested in 2015 and charge-sheeted as accused for offences punishable under Sections 120B (criminal conspiracy), 364 (kidnapping), 302 (murder) and 201 (destruction of evidence) of the Indian Penal Code. 320c. 280c. Sunrise: 06:03 am Sunset : 07:07 pm Rajiv case convict is free after 3 decades OUR BUREAU NEW DELHI/CHENNAI The Supreme Court on Wednesday ordered the release of A G Perarivalan, a life convict in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case. The court had questioned the excessive delay in the Governor’s decision on his pardon plea. He has been behind bars for the last 31 years. Nineteen at the time of the assassination, Perarivalan was accused of buying two 9volt batteries for Sivarasan, the LTTE masterminded of the killing. The batteries were used in the bomb; however, Perarivalan had denied he was aware of the use to which the battery was being put. A Bench of Justices L Nageswara Rao and Bhushan R Gavai gave the judgment, invoking powers under Article THEN NOW 142 of the Constitution under which the court may pass a decree or orders necessary for doing complete justice in any matter pending before it. On March 9, the top court had granted bail to Perarivalan while taking note of his long incarceration and no history of complaints when out on parole. Moments after being set free, Perarivalan, Arivu to his family and friends, said he would chart his future course after getting breathing space. “I have just come out. CONTD. ON NATION PAGE Praful Patel’s luck runs out After heatwave, red-hot warning Rs 50L – new ‘affordable’? SANJAY JOG MUMBAI I HAVE ALWAYS SUPPORTED WOMEN-CENTRIC FILMS: ARJUN RAMPAL SHEENA BORA MURDER CASE SANJAY JOG MUMBAI The Supreme Court on Wednesday cleared the Other Backward Classes (OBC) quota in Madhya Pradesh local body elections, which had been refused earlier. It also gave a two-week deadline for the declaration of the election schedule. The decision on Wednesday came after the Madhya Pradesh government revised an earlier report which had been objected to by the court. The decision has sent the hopes of the ruling MVA government soaring. Hours after Madhya Pradesh got the court’s nod, the MVA functionaries expressed hope that the ensuing civic and local body elections in Maharashtra, too, would be held with political reservations for the OBC. NCP Minister and Samata Parishad founder Chhagan Bhujbal said a dedicated commission for the OBCs would soon submit the crucial empirical data of OBCs to the state government, which would be submitted to the apex court and this would pave the way for the holding of elections with OBC quota. ‘‘The SC ruling applies to the entire country That means it will apply to Maharashtra, .  too.  Every step taken by the Maharashtra government so far has been in the right direction. Civic and local body elections will be held in Maharashtra with OBC reservation,” he noted. Bhujbal said that the state government had received the  report on empirical data for the OBCs prepared by the commission appointed by the Madhya Pradesh government. Housing Minister Jitendra Awhad said, “The  Supreme Court has approved OBC reservation in Madhya Pradesh. Then why does this not apply to Maharashtra? Apply today’s decision to the whole country .’’ CONTD. ON NATION PAGE EDITIONS: MUMBAI*, Pune, Indore, Bhopal, Konkan, E-paper 12, a copy of which is with the FPJ, states that “sanction is hereby communicated to work of ‘New Coaching Terminal at Jogeshwari’”. According to railway sources, the proposed new terminus will help passengers travelling to west and north India. Central Railway terminuses cater to trains for south, central and south-west India, while the Mumbai Central and Bandra terminuses cater to north and western India, among others. The Jogeshwari Terminus will certainly make it an easier commute for residents of western suburbs from Andheri to Virar. As per plans, a 600m-long and 12m-wide island platform will be created, with tracks on either side. An island platform allows passengers to alight and board trains on both sides. The platform can accommodate 24-car trains. CONTD. ON NATION PAGE SANJAY JOG MUMBAI The power ministry which is , struggling to bridge the gap between the surge in demand and the gap in supply warned , on Wednesday that it would cut domestic coal supply to staterun generation companies (gencos) that did not import coal for blending by June 15. “If blending with domestic coal is not started by June 15, 2022, then the domestic allocation of the concerned defaulter thermal power plants will be further reduced by 5%,” the power ministry said in its directive to the state-run gencos. Accordingly the revised allo, cation of domestic coal from July 2022 onwards will be conveyed. All gencos have been advised to ensure their power plants are adequately stocked for smooth operation until October this year,” said the ministry “Keeping in view the . likely less materialization of Power ministry ultimatum to states: Will cut domestic coal supply to state-run gencos that delay imports coal supply from domestic sources as compared with the requirement to meet power demand, domestic coal will be allocated proportionately to all gencos based on likely availability from June 1, 2022, and the balance requirement will need to be met from imported CONTD. ON NATION PAGE