Vol. 67 No. 33 | MONDAY | NOVEMBER 6, 2023 | 22 Pages | `5 & for Pune `6 only Quality at Value www.freepressjournal.in EDITIONS: MUMBAI*, Pune, Nashik, Konkan, Indore, Bhopal, E-paper RAJ KUNDRA ON WIFE SHILPA SHETTY THE FP BULLETIN KHADSE HAS HEART ATTACK S enior Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader and former Maharashtra minister Eknath Khadse suffered a heart attack in Maharashtra’s Jalgaon district on Sunday. The NCP leader was immediately shifted to Gajanan hospital in Jalgaon, where he is undergoing treatment. He will be brought to Mumbai in an air ambulance. Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has arranged the air ambulance for Khadse at the request of the NCP leader’s daughter, Rohini Khadse, according to reports. The former minister was not feeling well for the last two days, his daughter said. Khadse was a senior BJP leader who quit the party to join the NCP in 2020. He was elected to the state legislative council in 2022. QUOTA ACTIVIST HANGS HIMSELF A 22-year-old youth from Pune’s Alandi took his own life by hanging himself at his shop, citing the absence of reservation for the Maratha community as the reason for his extreme step. The youth, identified as Siddhesh Satyawan Berge, was a vocal advocate for the Maratha reservation and had actively participated in various protests and marches. “I am not taking my life due to any personal problem. I am doing this due to the government’s functioning. My wish is that the Maratha community should receive reservation and I am taking my life for this cause. I am not blaming anyone. I am taking this step for my Maratha brothers,” he said in the note discovered next to his body. NOTICE TO BCCI ON TICKET SALES K olkata Police has issued a notice to Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president Roger Binny seeking information on ticket sales for the event, a senior officer said. This comes against the backdrop of allegations of black marketing of tickets for Sunday's World Cup cricket match between India and South Africa at Eden Gardens. “A notice was sent to the BCCI president, asking him to provide relevant documents and information regarding the sale of tickets either personally or through any competent person of his organisation to the investigating officer of Maidan PS during working hours on Tuesday,” the officer said. Kolkata Police has so far arrested 19 people and seized 108 tickets from them, besides registering seven cases in connection with the black marketing of tickets. Bihar caste survey deliberately shows an inflated Muslim and Yadav population. Nitish Kumar should stop dreaming about becoming the PM; the INDIA alliance did not even make him its convener – AMIT SHAH  She was my biggest support system when I was inside the jail EDIT OVERALL ECONOMY DOING WELL ‘CONG MONEY SPINNER’ BLOCKED ON POLL EVE Axe on Mahadev App with Chhattisgarh footprint FPJ NEWS SERVICE / NEW DELHI The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has issued orders blocking 22 illegal betting apps & websites, the most prominent among them being Mahadev . The action follows ED investigation into illegal betting app syndicates, stemming from charges of money laundering, and subsequent raids on Mahadev App in Chhattisgarh. Mahadev was in the news when crores of rupees were intercepted and seized from a courier; he was allegedly ferrying the consignment on behalf of the app promoters for one Bhagel to fill his election coffers. That, in turn, had turned the media spotlight on Chief Minister Bhupesh Bhagel. Incidentally Chhattisgarh goes , to poll on Tuesday and is one of the states where the Congress fancies its chances. The collateral political damage of these allegations, swirling on poll eve, can be well imagined. Baghel steals Ram and cow the local BJP cadres to the point that a feeble defence has been put forward to negate the Ram Van Gaman Path. The defence is that the CM is claiming a fictional ÷Neelu Vyas route through Chhattisgarh. Going by the huge crowds n Chandkhuri, 30 kilome- at the Kaushalya temple at tres from the capital city Chandkhuri, it’s very clear of Raipur, stands the lone Baghel has succeeded in cultitemple to Kaushalya, mother vating a local narrative of Ram. This place is believed around Ram, which has to be her birthplace and, struck an emotional chord therefore, the ‘nanihal’ of with the people of ChattisLord Ram. It is on this ground garh. This clever Hindutva that the chief minister of strategy has made Baghel imChhattisgarh, Bhupesh mune to the far-reaching efBaghel, first staked his right fects of Ayodhya Ram temple. over Ram, not The BJP never only rebuilding thought of celethe Kaushalya brating Ram’s temple but also maternal home creating a web connect while of tourist spots Baghel went one along the Ram step further and Van Gaman, the celebrated a Rapurported path mayan festival, taken by Ram keeping the foon his way from cus on Ayodhya to LanKaushalya, and ka. used this to inSimilarly , ternationalise there is another Baghel has taken Chhattisgarh. spot called ShivRam has always rinarayan on the political battle been a core electhe Ram circuit, over Ram right to tion issue for the where accorda the BJP’s doorstep BJP, andonesucing to folklore, cessful at Shabari gave that. But berries to Lord Ram after Baghel’s strategy is one that first having tasted them to the saffron party may find difcheck for sweetness. ficult to counter. The ChhatBaghel has taken the polit- tisgarh CM has categorically ical battle over Ram right to sealed his image as a Ram the BJP’s doorstep. He refers bhakt. He seems to be earning to Ram as ‘bhacha’ (meaning the Hindu trust. nephew in Chhattisgarhi), Not only Lord Ram, but and this relationship is piv- Baghel seems to have otal in the state. The con- snatched the cow from the struction of Ram Van BJP shed too. His governGaman was begun during ment’s policy of setting up the tenure of the former CM, cow shelters, or Raman Singh, but he failed ‘gothans,’  compulsorily in to execute the project and every village is quite popular. this is exactly what Baghel These cow shelters, built on capitalised on, neutralising government or forest land, the BJP’s claim over Lord are given a budget for proper Ram and garnering Hindu functioning. These ‘gothans’ votes. At least in his state, he have helped Baghel lure those succeeded in keeping Ram in Hindus who were not aligned his hands, irrespective of with the BJP thus creating a , what unfolded in the rest of new socio-political space. India. This issue has irked CONTD. ON NATION To The Point I The forensic analysis of the seized cash and the questioning of the accused had led to "startling disclosures" about other payments made in the past and a trail of Rs 508 crore, allegedly leading to the chief minister. CM Baghel, of course, has charged that the ED probe is a “political attempt to defame” the Congress government in the state. The ED has alleged that the app operated by franchising "panel/branches" to known associates on a 70-30 profit ratio, using the platform to enrol new users, create IDs, and launder money through a complex network of benami bank accounts. CONTD. ON NATION Q2 EARNINGS, GLOBAL TRENDS, FII ACTIVITY TO DRIVE MARKETS THIS WEEK Markets would also focus on Brent crude and the rupee-dollar trend King catches up with Master 101 121 10 83.47 MUMBAI JOINS DUBIOUS CLUB Tendulkar scored 49 tons in 452 innings Virat Kohli scored his 49 in 277 innings the fence. Kohli is the first Asian batter to reach the milestone and the third overall to enter the 500 runs club in the tournament. Prior to the match against South Africa, Kohli narrowly missed out on his 49th ODI century during India's match against Sri Lanka at the Wankhede Stadium. Playing in front of the Master Blaster, who was watching the game, Kohli was dismissed for 88. CONTD. ON NATION KOLKATA, MUMBAI AMONG 5 WORST-HIT CITIES AS NEW DELHI TOPS GLOBAL LIST The city stayed under a smog cover all day as pollution levels spiked and the AQI neared the 'very poor' category. PTI & FPJ NEWS SERVICE OTTAWA BJP LEADER EXPELLED FOR HIS REMARKS RAJESH MOUDGIL CHANDIGARH The BJP has expelled its Rajasthan unit leader over his controversial remarks about Sikh shrines, which have annoyed party leaders in neighbouring Punjab. Senior BJP leader and former Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, among others, had called for his expulsion. Speaking recently at an election rally in Alwar, Sandeep Dayma had reportedly said that mosques and gurdwaras CONTD. ON NATION – SALMAN ANSARI Where is the evidence? Where is the conclusion of the investigation? I would go a step further and say now the investigation has already been tainted – Sanjay Kumar Verma, Indian High Commissioner to Canada to blame India for the secessionist’s killing in June. He did not identify that “someone”, leaving it open to interpretation. “Where is the evidence? Where is the conclusion of the investigation? I would go a step further and say now the investigation has already been tainted,” Verma was quoted as saying by the newspaper. “ direction has come from A someone at a high level to say India or Indian agents are behind it," he said on Saturday , without naming anyone. US PLAN FOR ISRAEL Scope target, weigh bombs SHANKAR RAJ / WASHINGTON Worried over the indiscriminate use of heavy bombs – like the 2000-pound bomb that wiped out most of the Jabalia refugee camp in Gaza, killing thousands – the US has privately given a plan to Israel to reduce civilian casualties. Washington has told Israel that civilian casualties could be reduced significantly if they improved the targeting of Hamas leaders, gathered more intelligence on Hamas command and control networks before launching strikes, used smaller bombs to collapse the The plan is the clearest indication that the Israeli bombing of Gaza has been indiscriminate and wanton, with scant regard for collateral damage tunnel network and used ground forces to separate civilian population centers from where the militants are concentrated. The plan is the clearest indication that the Israeli bombing of Gaza has been indiscriminate and wanton, with scant regard for collateral damage. A major American suggestion is the recommendation to use smaller and highly targetoriented bombs against 86-year-old wants to give all her wealth to charity B ack in Mumbai from Australia to attend a niece’s wedding six years ago, Zarna Somaia had to be hospitalised after a seizure. When she returned home, she sat her family down and said she wanted all of her personal wealth to be donated to various charitable causes. “So all of mum’s wealth is being given to charity during her lifetime,” said Lina Ashar, Zarna’s daughter and founder of Kangaroo Kids and Dreamtime Learning. Zarna, now 86, is today a major donor to a range of initiatives — hospitals, social initiatives, educational initiatives, and more — through the Zarna & Anil Somaia Family Foundation. Her income from the family’s businesses are directly received by the foundation. Among those she has supported are a hospital run in the name of the Dalai Lama, various schools and a social enterprise named Angel Xpress, a set of mobile STEM laboratories in Dharavi, the Lion’s Club and more. She was never into jewellery or expensive purchases, and had always lived a modest lifestyle, said Ashar, adding that as children she and her siblings had learnt from their mother to enjoy minimalism and give back at least 10% of all their ENDORSER: BHARAT PATHAK, PRESIDENT OF LION’S CLUB SION ANGEL: ZARNA SOMAIA, FOUNDER OF THE ZARNA & ANIL SOMAIA FAMILY FOUNDATION earnings to charity “She . taught us that buying, hoarding, owning and receiving Mumbai’s air quality index stood at 145 on Sunday which is considered moderate. But in , areas like Chembur, Colaba and Bandra-Kurla Complex, it was as high as 302, 274 and 206 (‘poor’ category) respectively .  The maximum and minimum temperatures recorded on Sunday at Colaba were 34.02 °C and 26 °C respectively while at , Santacruz, these were 36.01 °C and 23.4 °C respectively According to IMD Mumbai, rainfall . occurred at isolated places over South Konkan and south-central Maharashtra and elsewhere over the region, the weather was dry . Overall, there was no large change in minimum temperatures. CONTD. ON NATION On the Canadian charge that there had been conversations between people close to the perpetrators and “Indian” authorities, intelligence provided by Five Eyes, mainly America, Verma pointed out that any conversations between diplomats are “protected” and cannot be used as evidence in court nor can they be released publicly . “You are talking about illegal wiretaps and talking about evidence. Conversations between two diplomats are secure, by all international laws,” he said. CONTD. ON NATION Hamas, senior US officials were quoted by the media. On the menu of suggestions is the use of 'tunnel buster' bombs. The US officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to the NYT because the meetings were private, said there had been a number of conversations in which they had advised their Israeli counterparts to take a more deliberate approach in their operations. CONTD. ON NATION SPOTLIGHT OUR CORRESPONDENT / MUMBAI Scan the QR code to read more about Angels of Mumbai bring short-term spikes of the happiness chemical, but the act of giving releases JERUSALEM An Israeli minister from the far-right Otzma Yehudit party on Sunday said that dropping an atomic bomb on the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip was "an option". In a radio interview, Jerusalem Affairs Minister Heritage and Amichai Eliyahu said that "there are no non-combatants in Gaza" and providing humanitarian aid to the Strip would constitute "a failure". As the remark fuelled a , controversy and with Israel coming under pressure to limit civilian casualties, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu quickly distanced Eliyahu by suspending him from Government meetings .” “indefinitely In effect, he continues to be a minister, prompting opposition figures to demand that he be sacked. CONTD. ON NATION BREATHES EASY BUT WHEEZES Indian taunt to Canada: Probe tainted Indian High Commissioner to Canada Sanjay Kumar Verma ratcheted up the stand-off with that country over allegations of an Indian hand in the death of Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar by terming the Canadian investigation as “tainted”. In an interview to the Globe and Mail newspaper, High Commissioner Verma did not mince  words when he declared that the entire matter was the direct result of a “direction from someone at a high level” Sunrise : 06:41 am Sunset : 06:03 pm FPJ NEWS SERVICE / MUMBAI FPJ NEWS SERVICE / MUMABI Mumbai has the dubious distinction of being clubbed with the world's most polluted cities, according to data by Swiss Group IQAir. In fact, Kolkata and Mumbai are among the 5 worst-hit cities with an AQI of 206 and 162, respectively (The AQI in Colaba was 234 – . poor – on Sunday) It was no consolation for Mumbai that New Delhi has again topped the real-time list with an AQI of 483, followed by Lahore at 371. In fact, the AQI hovered over 550 in some monitoring stations in the national capital region. There was no respite for the national capital with the air quality CONTD. ON NATION 0 ‘NUKE GAZA’ MINISTER IS SUSPENDED ROHAN SEN / MUMBAI It was surreal – the stuff of folklore. Virat Kohli, on his 35th birthday , chasing Sachin Tendulkar's world record of 49 ODI hundreds. Having missed out in Dharamsala and Mumbai, Kohli was determined to get the 'monkey off his back' in the 'City of Joy'. Thousands of smart phone torchlights were ready for VIRAT that moment, frozen KOHLI in time, when a tap Runs towards cover off Kagiso Rabada got him the milestone. Balls Kohli reached the mark in his 277th innings; Tendulkar scored his 49 in 452 Fours innings. In fact, he remained unbeaten on 101 and faced 121 SR balls in his knock that had 10 shots to 0 36 c. 27 c. serotonin in a way that brings sustainable, lasting joy she said. ,” Zarna is the first investor in Dreamtime Learning, an educational venture to give students relevant learning experiences, to discover their true passions and to love learning. All equity and profits from this initiative will go towards teaching children who cannot afford an education, specifically towards exposing them to foreign education. The Somaias’ textile business in Australia also started Simba Conscious, to acknowledge the textile industry’s history of poor labour and environmental practices, and through this initiative also decided to ed- ucate the children of workers in their Indian manufacturing units, with the objective of lifting the next generation out of hard labour. In Australia, Zarna took up Buddhism and one day decided to give up her home to the Buddhist community. She also donated to a fund for education and relief work set up by Nepalese social activist Ani Choying Drolma, also known as ‘the singing nun’. Despite her challenging growing-up years, Zarna was always helping people in need, Ashar remembered, whether it was friends or strangers. “Growing up, I watched her with a lot of awe.” CR to run 425 festival specials KAMAL MISHRA / MUMBAI With peak festive season on the horizon and home-forholiday trips on the cards, the Central Railway has taken steps to ensure a seamless travel experience for its passengers during the Diwali and Chhath festivals. CONTD. ON NATION FEST GETAWAY Nagpur & Amravati:  103 special train services  for travellers to and from Nagpur and Amravati. Nanded:  Nanded’s connectivity will be expanded with the introduction of 16 special train services. Kolhapur:  114 special services for Kolhapur residents and visitors. Thivim & Mangaluru:  40 special train services for the Thivim and Mangaluru areas. Central & eastern India:  central and The eastern regions of India, including Kanpur, Varanasi, and Gorakhpur, will get 38 special train services. Danapur:  special services 60 will be available for passengers in this region. Samastipur, Chhapra, Sivan & Hatia:  special train 36 services will be in operation. Indore:  There will be 18 special train services. TAILPIECE BIDEN TRAILING TRUMP P resident Biden is trailing Donald J. Trump in five of the six most important battleground states one year before the 2024 election, new polls by the New York Times reveal. The results show Biden losing to Trump, his likeliest Republican rival, by margins of three to 10 percentage points among registered voters in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada and Pennsylvania. Biden is ahead only in Wisconsin, by two percentage points, the poll found. Across the six battlegrounds — all of which Biden carried in 2020 — the president trails by an average of 48 to 44 percent. Biden’s popularity is fraying and suffering from enormous doubts about his age and deep dissatisfaction over his handling of the economy and a host of other issues.