FP The publishers permit sharing of the e-paper's pdf on WhatsApp and other social media platforms Vol. 14 No. 234 | BHOPAL | THURSDAY | FEBRUARY 6, 2025 | Pages 14 ` 3 | Regd. No. Indore MP/ICD 216/2024-2026 | RNI No. mpeng/2010/35815 FREE www.freepressjournal.in ESTD-1983 iii QUALITY @ VALUE EDITIONS: Sports UJJAIN WORLD Halep hangs up her racquet P.14 BHOPAL PRESS PUNE INDORE Spectre of Nakba looms large NASHIK MUMBAI E-paper Edit Panama caught amid the giants P.6 Cinema Kangana’s Manali cafe P.12 104 Indians deported from US land in Amritsar PTI AMRITSAR A US military aircraft carrying 104 illegal immigrants from various states landed here on Wednesday, the first such batch of Indians deported by the Trump government as part of a crackdown it resolved to carry out when it was sworn in last month. Of the deportees, 33 each are from Haryana and Gujarat, 30 from Punjab, three each from Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, and two fp from Chandigarh, sources said. The deportees included 19 women and 13 minors, they said. These were the first such batch of Indians deported by the US government. The US action comes just days before Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Washington to hold wideranging talks with President Donald Trump. The C-17 Globemaster aircraft of the US Air Force landed at the Amritsar airport at 1:55 pm. There was A US military aircraft carrying Indian immigrants at Shri Guru Ramdas Ji International Airport, in Amritsar. PTI heavy barricading outside the airport and police personnel were deployed in large numbers. All the deportees were being questioned inside the airport terminal building by different government agencies, including the Punjab Police, and various state and central intelligence agencies to check if they have any criminal record. The deportees are expected to be allowed to go to their homes following verification and background checks even though there has been no official word about it yet. Earlier, media reports claimed that the US military plane was carrying 205 illegal immigrants. Among the illegal immi- DELHI ASSEMBLY ELECTIONS | Vote counting on February 8 Briefs NEW DELHI RBI likely to cut repo rate The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), in all likelihood, is set to cut the repo rate by 25 basis points for the first time in almost five years, aligning with the Budget's objectives of stimulating economic activity while managing a prudent fiscal position, which provides comfort on currency and inflation fronts, industry experts said on Wednesday. The central bank last reduced the repo rate by 40 basis points to 4 per cent in May 2020, to help the economy tide over the crisis following the Covid19 pandemic. VIRUDHUNAGAR Cracker unit blast kills one An explosion occurred at a firecracker manufacturing factory near Sivakasi in Virudhunagar district on Wednesday, claiming the life of one person, according to officials. Seven individuals were also been injured in the blast, as per the Fire and Rescue Department officials. Officials further stated that there have been no casualties. Rescue operations are currently underway. BJP edge over AAP in Delhi exit polls PTI 57.70% voter turnout NEW DELHI Several exit polls on Wednesday predicted a victory for the BJP over the ruling AAP in the Delhi assembly polls, while the Congress was projected to make no significant gains from last elections. Two exit polls, however, predicted a victory for the Aam Admi Party (AAP), and as many showed a close contest between them, with an edge for the BJP. The Election Commission will announce the official results after the counting of on February 8. Exit polls are projections made by election survey agencies based on interviews of voters as they come out after casting their votes. These may vary widely from the actual results. In the 2020 Delhi polls, most exit polls got their predictions wrong. Among the exit polls that predicted a BJP victory, the People's Pulse showed the NDA was likely to get 51 to 60 seats, while the AAP may get 10-19 seats. The Congress, it claimed, will not be able to open its account. According to People's Insight exit poll, the NDA is PTI NEW DELHI Source AAP Chankya Strategies DV Research JVC Matrize BJP+ Cong 25-28 26-34 22-31 32-37 39-44 36-44 39-45 35-40 2-3 0 0-2 0-1 Total seats: 70 | Target: 36 likely to get 40 to 44 seats, the AAP 25 to 29 seats, and the Congress 0-1 seat. The P-Marq exit poll predicted 39-49 seats for the BJP and its allies, 21-31 seats for AAP and 0-1 for the Congress. The JVC exit poll said the BJP and allies would get 3945, the AAP 22-31 seats and the Congress 0-2. Similarly, the Poll Diary predicted 42-50 seats of the BJP and allies, while giving the AAP 18-25 seats, 0-2 for the Congress and 0-1 for others. Chankya Strategies exit poll said the BJP and allies are likely to get 39-44 seats, the AAP is likely to get 25-28, while Congress may get 2-3. Two surveys predicted AAP's victory - Wee Preside, which gave 46-52 sets for AAP, 18-23 for BJP and 0-1 for Congress, and Mind Brink Media predicted 44-49 seats for AAP, 21-25 for BJP and 0-1 for the Congress. 4Continued on | P8 A voter turnout of 57.70 per cent was recorded till 5 pm in the Delhi assembly polls, according to officials figures. The polling in all the 70 constituencies began at 7 am and will continue till 6 pm. According to Election Commission (EC) data, 57.70 per cent of the electorate exercised their franchise till 5 pm. There are around 1.56 crore eligible voters in Delhi. The highest turnout was recorded in the Northeast district at 63.83 per cent, while the New Delhi district recorded the lowest at 54.37 per cent. Among other constituencies, Mustafabad had the highest turnout at 66.68 per cent while Karol Bagh recorded the lowest at 47.40 per cent. NEW DELHI Kharge loses cool at BJP MP Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge lost his cool during a speech in Rajya Sabha when Neeraj Shekhar, BJP MP and former Prime Minister Chandra Shekhar's son, interrupted him. Kharge reminded Shekhar that he was a contemporary of his father and had seen him as a child. US will take over Gaza Strip: Don after meeting Netanyahu 11 killed in Sweden mass shooting PTI OREBRO (SWEDEN) AP NEW YORK/WASHINGTON In a surprising announcement, President Donald Trump said the US "will take over" the war-ravaged Gaza Strip, "own it" and undertake economic development there that will create "unlimited numbers of jobs and housing". Trump made these remarks on Tuesday during a joint press conference in the White House with visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu standing beside him. Trump also suggested that the US develop the land but gave no details on who would be allowed to live there. He also said that all Palestinians currently living in Gaza - around 2 million people should leave and be placed in other countries in the Middle East. "The US will take over the Gaza Strip, and we will do a job with it too. We'll own it and be responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site, level the site, and get rid of the destroyed buildings," Trump said. Sweden's worst mass shooting left at least 11 people dead, including the gunman, and at least five seriously wounded at an adult education center west of Stockholm. The gunman's motive hadn't been determined by early Wednesday as the Scandinavian nation - where gun violence at schools is very rare reeled from an attack. Officials said on Wednesday that three women and two men, all with gunshot wounds, underwent surgery at Orebro University Hospital. 4Continued on | P8 4Continued on | P8 ucc PTI Only one live-in relationship has been registered in Uttarakhand's Uniform Civil Code (UCC) portal in the first 10 days of its implementation. Officials claimed that five applications have been received from live-in couples for the mandatory registration. One has been granted registration while four others are being verified, they said. On January 27, the BJPruled Uttarakhand became the first state in Independent India to implement the Uniform Civil Code, which promotes equal laws for every citizen across all religions and standardises personal laws on marriage, divorce and property. On the occasion, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami launched a portal designed for the mandatory online registration of marriages, divorce and live-in relationships. He was the Uttarakhand's Uniform Civil Code (UCC) provisions for mandatory registration of livein relationships first to register his marriage on the UCC portal. The UCC's provision for mandatory registration of live-in relationships has been much criticised for its potential to infringe upon people's right to privacy. 4Continued on | P8 ED grills transport scam accused Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL ED officials on Wednesday questioned Sharad Jaiswal for over six hours at Bhopal Central Jail in connection with the ongoing corruption probe into the transport department scam. Jaiswal, arrested by Lokayukta police on January 28, was sent to judicial remand until February 17 after a week in police custody. According to Jail Superintendent Rakesh Kumar, a team of five ED officials arrived at the jail around 12:30 pm and began their questioning of Jaiswal. The session concluded around 6:30 pm, with officials presenting numerous documents and asking detailed questions. Officials said that ED may continue questioning Jaiswal on Thursday and plans to interrogate the remaining two accused, Chetan Singh Gaur and Saurabh Sharma, in the coming days. 4Continued on | P8 namami gange... PM Narendra Modi offers prayers after taking a holy dip at Sangam, the confluence of Ganges, Yamuna and mythical Saraswati rivers during Maha Kumbh Mela festival, in Prayagraj on Wednesday. AFP Before attending GIS, Modi may visit Bageshwar Dham PM will lay foundation of cancer hospital; preparations underway Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL Prime Minister Narendra Modi may visit Bageshwar Dham in Chhatarpur district before attending the Global Investors’ Summit (GIS) on February 24. He may arrive at Bageshwar Dham at noon on February 23 and lay the foundation of a cancer hospital there. Pandit Dhirendra Shashtri of Bageshwar Dham is building a cancer hospital. He was trying to get the foundation stone of the hospital laid by Modi. According to sources, the Prime Minister has agreed to lay the foundation of the proposed hospital. Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL Chief Minister Mohan Yadav marked a significant milestone in wildlife conservation by releasing five cheetahs, including female cheetahs Dheera and Asha and her three male cubs, into the wild at Kuno National Park in Sheopur on Wednesday. This brings the total number of cheetahs in Kuno to seven, following the release of Agni and Vayu in December. The release was dramatic: as CM Yadav opened the cage, one cheetah sprinted into the wilderness at lightning speed, leaving the crowd in awe. During his visit, CM Yadav lauded the efforts of forest officials, veterinary staff, and ground crew in the success of the Cheetah project, assuring them of enhanced support and resources. He also highlighted the importance of ecotourism as a tool for both conservation and local employment generation. Fiery 14 In 2022,20 cheetahs were translocated to Kuno National Park from Namibia and South Africa. Of them, eight have Mallya: Debt recovered multiple times over "The initial not-so-enthusiastic response from people to the UCC shows that they are not quite eager for it. Otherwise, at least those who favoured its introduction during consultations with the drafting committee as claimed by the government-appointed panel would have come forward to apply for registration," another high court lawyer Dushyant Mainali told PTI. 4Continued on | P8 died, reducing the count of adult cheetahs to 12. Meanwhile, two cubs were born to female Cheetah Veera on Tuesday. Earlier 12 cubs were born to other female cheetahs. With this, the total number of cheetah cubs in Kuno now stands at 14. Cheetahs became extinct in India in 1952. Philanthropist Aga Khan dies AP PARIS K’taka HC issues notice to banks PTI However, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami had justified it by saying mandatory registration of live-in couples would help prevent brutal incidents like the murder of Shraddha Walkar by her live-in partner Aftab. Senior lawyer of Uttarakhand High Court Kartikeya Hari Gupta went so far as to term it as a move to "peep into bedrooms", generally seen in police states which was not envisioned by the country's constitution makers. Modi is coming to Bhopal to take part in the GIS. Before taking part in the event, he will lay the foundation of the hospital. Wedding of 251 girls will be celebrated at Bageshwar Dham from February 22 to 26. Out of 251, 108 girls belong to tribal community, and Dhirendra Shashtri is participating in the event. Together with Modi, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav may join the programme. After attending the programme in Chhatarpur, Modi will reach Bhopal late in the evening. Before participating in the GIS, he will go to Raj Bhawan where he will join a dinner. After taking oath as Prime Minister, Modi will do night halt in Bhopal for first time on February 23. Arrangements are made for his stay in Raj Bhawan. After inaugurating the GIS on February 24, he will leave for Delhi. CM YADAV RELEASES FIVE CHEETAHS INTO KUNO WILD BENGALURU First live-in couple registers in U’khand DEHRADUN grants hailing from Punjab, six are from Kapurthala, five from Amritsar, four each from Patiala and Jalandhar, two each from Hoshiarpur, Ludhiana, SBS Nagar and one each from Gurdaspur, Tarn Taran, Sangrur, SAS Nagar and Fatehgarh Sahib, sources said. According to them, arrangements have been made by the state governments concerned to take the deportees to their hometowns. Fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya on Wednesday claimed before the Karnataka High Court that the Rs 6,200 crore debt he owes to banks has been recovered "multiple times over," and sought a statement, detailing the amounts recovered from him, United Breweries Holdings Limited (UBHL, now in liquidation), and other certificate debtors. The High Court issued a notice to banks in response to the petition filed by Mallya on February 3. Justice R Devdas directed the banks to respond by February 13. As an interim relief, the petition also sought a stay on any further asset sales by banks under the amended recovery certificate until clarity is provided on the full settlement of the debt. Senior advocate Sajan Poovayya, representing Mallya, argued that the winding-up order against Kingfisher Airlines and its holding company, UBHL, had been upheld at all judicial levels, including the Supreme Court. Poovayya contended that the debts had already been recovered, yet additional recovery proceedings continued against Mallya. 4Continued on | P8 Aga Khan, who became the spiritual leader of the world's millions of Ismaili Muslims at age 20 as a Harvard undergraduate and poured a material empire built on billions of dollars in tithes into building homes, hospitals and schools in developing countries, died Tuesday. He was 88. His Aga Khan Development Network and the Ismaili religious community announced that His Highness Prince Karim Al-Hussaini, the Aga Khan IV and 49th hereditary imam of the Shia Ismaili Muslims, died in Portugal surrounded by his family. 4Continued on | P8