THE FREE PRESS JOURNAL Vol. 67 No. 254 | Thursday, July 25, 2024 | 27 Pages | `5 & for Pune `6 only Leader in E-paper circulation l www.freepressjournal.in NATION Political turbulence in UP; BJP allies and ministers showing strong support for Dy CM Keshav Maurya fp Briefs Puja parents under cloud Even as IAS officer Puja Khedkar failed to return to the civil services academy in Mussoorie before the deadline set by the Centre, a fresh controversy has erupted over her alleged claim that her parents were separated and that she lived with her mother. This was allegedly to buttress her claim about belonging to the noncreamy OBC layer. Puja, during her mock interviews at various academies in Delhi, had claimed that her family income was zero as her parents were divorced, and she lived with her mother. As per rules, candidates whose parents' income is under Rs 8 lakh per annum fall in the category of OBC noncreamy layer. As against this, her father, a retired government officer, had pegged the worth of his assets in an election affidavit at Rs 40 crore. Seized of the matter, the central government has directed Pune police to investigate the marital status of Dilip and Manorma Khedkar, parents of the IAS probationer, reports India Today’s news portal. PIO lashes at ‘Khalistanis’ A prominent Canadian MP of Indian origin on Wednesday said the country was being "polluted" by Khalistani extremists who were "abusing" the freedoms guaranteed under the Charter of Rights, days after a Hindu temple was vandalised in Edmonton. Chandra Arya, a Member of Parliament from Nepean in the House of Commons, said in a post on his X account that separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun of Sikhs for Justice released a video demanding that Arya and his Hindu-Canadian friends go back to India after he (Arya) condemned the vandalism of the Hindu temple and other acts of hate and violence by Khalistan supporters in Canada. Nitish’s sexist barb in house Facing loud protests, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar lost his cool at the opposition in the Assembly on Wednesday, venting his anger at an RJD MLA and asking, "You are a woman, don't you know anything?" The remark elicited a strong response from senior RJD leader and former deputy chief minister Tejashwi Yadav, who accused Kumar of being a habitual offender when it came to comments against women. Mataji, Kharge? The Rajya Sabha witnessed some light moments amid a heated debate over the Union Budget as House Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar corrected Congress MP Mallikarjun Kharge for calling Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman 'mataji' (mother). "Not mataji, she's like a daughter to you," Dhankhar playfully retorted, evoking laughter from MPs on the treasury as well as opposition benches. EDITIONS: MUMBAI Reg.No MCS/048/2021-23; RNI No. 1541/1957 M.p.c.s office Mumbai. PIN 400001 INDORE PUNE BHOPAL NASHIK KONKAN GAMES Edit When bigotry corrupts policing Hang on commuters, relief is 5 years away Raina Assainar NAVI MUMBAI faced by people, particularly during monsoon, the minister said necessary efforts were being taken to reduce the disruptions. 4Contd on | nation 4Contd on | nation Bhalchandra Chorghade pansion of the Lokmanya Tilak Terminus that will reduce pressure on the existing ones and improve quality of service,” the minister said. Specifically asked about the disruption in services ENGINEER JUMPS OFF ATAL SETU A 38-year-old engineer, who had returned from Kuwait and was formerly employed with the Lodha Group, reportedly jumped off the Atal Setu on Wednesday afternoon. He has been identified as Karuturi Srinivas, a resident of Palava City in Dombivli, where he lived with his wife and a five-year-old daughter. On Wednesday, around 12.35pm, he is alleged to have reached the bridge in his car and then jumped off, after parking his car. The toll control room at the bridge alerted the Nhava Sheva police. “A rescue team from the MTHL and coastal security police is searching for the man. Financial crisis is suspected to be the reason for his taking the extreme step. MUMBAI problems while commuting,” Vaishnaw said, in a video conference with the media on Wednesday. “Four new terminuses at Panvel, Kalyan, Kurla and Parel have also been proposed besides further ex- Member: Audit Bureau of Circulation (Jan to Dec 2023) Cinema ‘My character is not purely based on Shah Rukh Khan’ India’s archers all geared up as they aim for Olympic glory in Paris POST-BUDGET | Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw promises 250 more suburban services Relief awaits the harried local train commuters of Mumbai, all in good time – five years, to be precise. Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has said that his ministry will be introducing an additional 250 suburban local trains for Mumbai in five years, to reduce pressure on the existing services. Similarly, 50 to 100 long-distance trains too will be introduced for commuters. “We are taking all-round efforts to make travel smooth for the people of the city. Necessary instructions have been given to both, the Central and Western Railways, for implementing corrective measures and ensure that people face minimum E-paper 18 die in Nepal air crash Aircraft veered off runway after take-off; pilot survives Shirish B Pradhan KATHMANDU A Nepalese private plane crashed and caught fire shortly after taking off from the Tribhuvan International Airport here on Wednesday, killing 18 people on board, including a child, and seriously injuring the pilot - the only survivor. The Bombardier CRJ-200 aircraft of Saurya Airlines, carrying 19 people, including two crew members and technical staff of the airline, was bound for Pokhara International Airport for regular maintenance service when the accident occurred. "Shortly after takeoff, the aircraft veered off to the right and crashed on the east side of the runway," said a statement issued by the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal. 4Contd on | nation Sabka Saath par sirf Andhra aur Bihar ka vikas? Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar NEW DELHI The Opposition parties on Wednesday held a protest demonstration on Parliament premises and also protested inside both Houses against the Union Budget presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday, saying it had discriminated against nonNDA ruled states. They also raised slogans inside both the houses on the issue and staged a walk-out on the issue. Before the start of the day’s proceedings, the INDIA bloc of Opposition parties had staged a demonstration on Parliament premises accusing the Centre of discriminating against Opposition ruled states in the Budget. Congress parliamentary party leader Sonia Gandhi and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi also participated in this protest. Samajwadi Party Jarange-Patil calls Farmer fault line is abuzz again off fast, wants to get into poll mode Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar NEW DELHI Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday afternoon met farmer leaders from six states on Parliament premises and assured them that the INDIA bloc of Opposition parties would “press the government” to provide a legal guarantee on the Kalpesh Mhamunkar MUMBAI Maratha activist Manoj Jarange-Patil called off his hunger strike on Wednesday, at his hometown, Antarwali Sarati in Jalna, citing his deteriorating health. He was offered juice by the Narayangad Mathadhipati and the women of his village. Having embarked on his stir five days ago, he declared he was withdrawing it on Wednesday morning. He told the media, “I am ready to continue with my hunger strike but the villagers and my followers are insisting I drink water and accept saline. I will not fake my fast. There is no point lying on the floor and being administered saline in a hunger strike. “Instead of lying on the floor here, I should prepare to contest assembly elections. The government has power and laws can be made after coming into power. We should prepare for campaigning, elections and tours. I must get ready to decide whom to support and whom to defeat in the minimum price support (MSP). Gandhi, who met 12 farmers from Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka, earlier created quite a stir when he claimed they were not being allowed entry into the Parliament premises. “We invited them, but they are not allowing them inside Parliament. They are farmers, maybe this is why...You will have to ask the Prime Minister the reason for this,” Gandhi said. However, he later met them in the company of other Congress MPs like KC Venugopal, Deepender Singh Hooda, Amarinder Singh Raja Warring and Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa. Following the interaction, Gandhi said in its manifesto for the Lok Sabha elections, “The Congress had promised a legal guarantee for the MSP. We did an assessment and it can be done.” He further stated that in the meeting with the farmer leaders, it was decided that the INDIA bloc parties would try and “press the government for its implementation”. Opposition protests discrimination against non-NDA ruled states in Budget, stages walk-out in both Houses; Sitharaman defends special packages leader Akhilesh Yadav and Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra were also seen. The protesting MPs held placards which read “Treat all states equally” and charged that “NDA betrays INDIA in Budget: Give us out fair share; strengthen the States”. When the Lok Sabha met for the day, the Opposition members again raised the issue of budgetary allocation. 4Contd on | nation Kamala marks fresh start for the US: Hillary 4Contd on | nation FPJ News Service NEW YORK election. I appeal to the Marathas that the BJP should not return to power. I will undergo treatment for two-three days and will start campaigning.” Further, Jarange-Patil alleged that Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had hatched a plot to get him killed in jail. In response, the BJP said that the quota activist “has lost his mental balance”. JarangePatil alleged that Fadnavis was behind the non-bailable warrant issued by a Pune court for him. “Fadnavis is the home minister. He gets the police to approach the court for getting such warrants. He has made the police register a fabricated FIR against me,” he added. 4Contd on | nation Tailpiece LS SPEAKER IS ALWAYS RIGHT T he discussion on Union Budget witnessed a sharp exchange between Speaker Om Birla and TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee, when the latter claimed that the House did not discuss the three farm laws that were later rolled back. However, the Chair insisted that it did. "Let's set the record straight, this House discussed the issue for five-and-a-half hours," the Speaker pointed out. 4Contd on | nation BMC monetary aid for disabled Rucha Kanolkar MUMBAI In a move aimed at improving the quality of life of persons with disabilities, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has launched the ‘Dharmaveer Anand Dighe Divyang Financial Assistance’ scheme. Under this initiative, a total of 60,000 disabled individuals residing in BMC limits will receive financial assistance of Rs 6,000 to Rs 18,000 every six months. The scheme is being implemented in collaboration with the Maharashtra Government and is expected to benefit approximately 40-80 per cent of IN NUTSHELL 40%-80% DISABILITY: Those eligible will receive `1,000 per month – `12,000 annually. MORE THAN 80% DISABILITY: Those eligible will receive `3,000 per month – `36,000 annually. the disabled population. Beneficiaries will receive a monthly allowance ranging from Rs 1,000 to Rs 3,000 for a period of five years, from 2024-’25 to 2028-’29. A provision of ₹111.83 crore has been made for this every year. To be eligible for the scheme, individuals with disabilities must possess a yellow or blue Universal Identity Card (UIAD CARD). The planning department of the BMC will be responsible for disbursing the funds under this scheme. The scheme aims to provide financial support to persons with disabilities, enabling them to live a normal life, receive proper medical care and nutrition. It seeks to mitigate the hardship brought on by loss of opportunities for earning and improve their overall quality of life. Hillary Clinton has urged Americans to rally around the presumptive Democratic candidate Kamala Harris, saying that the ‘time for hand wringing is over’’ and the challenge is to now mobilise around her unifying vision. ‘‘She represents a fresh start in American politics,’’ Clinton has written in the New York Times. Vice President Harris was leading over rival Donald Trump by a slender margin in a national presidential poll, one of the first conducted since US President Joe Biden ended his re-election campaign. In the previous week's poll, Harris and Trump were tied at 44 percent. 4Contd on | nation 4Contd on | nation offgrid Hidden in plain sight: 80% of Kanwar makers are Muslims Biswajeet Banerjee DEHRADUN: Amidst the ongoing debate over displaying the names of hawkers and eateries along the Kanwar route, it has emerged that over 80% of the people involved in the Kanwar making business are Muslims. Despite recent governmental orders and conditional stays imposed by the Supreme Court, these artisans remain unfazed, dedicating their efforts to the annual religious event. The Kanwar is a bamboo contraption with attachments to carry Ganga jal, elaborately decorated and priced according to the intricacy of the decoration. As the Kanwar fair sets up in Bat Island and Pantdeep Parking in Haridwar, thousands of people from Meerut, Saharanpur, Muzaffarnagar, Delhi, and other regions gather to partake in this business. Prices of these Kanwars range from Rs. 500 to Rs. 30,000. The Muslim artisans are not perturbed by the orders from the Uttarakhand and UP governments, nor by the con- Rehan Khan working with bamboo to make Kanwar ditional stay imposed by the Supreme Court. They assert that making and implementing the order is the government's responsibility, while they dedicate their three months to Bhole (Lord Shiva). For Rehan, a resident of Bijnore, making Kanwar is his family business. “My family has been in this business for the last 35 years. I am a Muslim, but Shiva devotees interact with me with great respect and buy bamboo and wood from us. We pay them the same respect. I am lucky that I am able to provide them (Hindus) some help so that they can perform their Puja,” he said. When asked about the recent government orders for nameplates in hotels and dhabas, Rehan said: “This is the government’s job. It does not matter to us. At the Kanwar fair, no one asks us which community we belong to. Even the administration provides us the space to set up temporary shops and nobody asks our caste, religion, or anything else.” The labouers hired by the contractors are Muslims too. Mehtab and Imtiaz Ahmed are from Meerut and have come to Haridwar to make Kanwar. Similarly, another worker, Shamsher, is from Bihar and arrives in Haridwar two to three months prior to Srawan to ensure the Kanwars are ready before the Yatra begins. Faizal, another key figure in the business, manages a shop at the fair and employs 10-15 workers, all Muslims. Despite his dedication over the past 5-6 years, Faizal expresses disappointment this year. 4Contd on | nation