Friday, June 20, 2025 | 29 Pages | `5 & for State (+4 pages) `6 Reg.No MCS/048/2021-23; RNI No. 1541/1957 M.p.c.s office Mumbai. PIN 400001 THE FREE PRESS JOURNAL Vol. 68 No. 221 | Leader in E-paper circulation l www.freepressjournal.in ● EDITIONS: ● MUMBAI ● INDORE ● PUNE ● BHOPAL ● NASHIK ● KONKAN ● E-paper ● Member: Audit Bureau of Circulation (July to December 2024) GAMES NATION First evacuation flight carrying 110 Indian students arrives in New Delhi Family controlled access to room with cash Cinema No shortcuts: Siddharth P. Malhotra’s journey to success Winning a Test series in SENA countries is bigger than IPL title: Gill ahead of England match The judge had no explanation for the money Edit Trump’s G7 snub and India’s strategic crossroads Trusted domestic staff got money removed No attempt made to report cash find SC PANEL SHOVE FOR JUSTICE VARMA EXIT Online Report NEW DELHI The three-judge panel that went into the cash find at the official residence of the Delhi High Court Judge Justice Yashwant Varma found with the evidence on record - direct and electronic - there is sufficient substance to call for initiation of proceedings for his removal. The Bar and Bench reported that the committee in its 64 page report where it examined 55 witnesses over ten days concludes “cash/money was found in the store room of 30 Tughlak Crescent, and that “access to the store room (where the cash was kept) has been found to be within the covert or active control of Justice Varma and his family members and that by way of strong inferential evidence, it is established that the burnt cash/money was got removed from the store room during the wee hours of 15.03.2025 from 30 Tughlak Crescent, New Delhi”. At least 10 witnesses examined by the panel acknowledged having seen burnt or half-burnt currency notes. The committee also examined the suspicious roles of Justice Varma’s private secretary Rajinder Singh Karki and his daughter, Diya Varma in the alleged destruction of evidence or cleaning of the spot of the fire. Karki, for example, allegedly instructed firemen dousing the fire not to mention the currency notes in their report and also the fact of getting the room cleaned the next day, both of which he refuted. However, statements of other witnesses as well as electronic evidence proved otherwise. The panel comprising Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court Sheel Nagu, Chief Justice of the Himachal Pradesh High Court GS Sandhawalia and Karnataka High Court judge Anu Sivaraman, set up by the then CJI Sanjiv Khanna on March 22 to look into the allegations, found that Justice Varma could not account for the money. “As such the objection of Justice Varma that he has been put to a disadvantage by having to disprove that the burnt currency notes were not found in the store room needs to be rejected at the very outset, ” the committee said. It found that the tacit and active control of the access to the store room was with Justice Varma and his family members and well monitored without any outsiders getting access to it without permission. The committee strongly inferred that “the most trusted personnel of domestic staff i.e. Rahil/Hanuman Parshad Sharma and Rajinder Singh Karki, Private Secretary to Justice Varma were instrumental in removing the burnt money/cash from the store room during the wee hours of 15.03.2025 sometime after the firemen/Delhi Police personnel had left the premises.” 4Contd on | nation The midnight call Silence on transfer Wiping out evidence? At 1:23 AM on March 15, a 230-second phone call was made from Justice Varma to his Private Secretary, Rajinder Singh Karki. The same PS remained at the house all night. Karki later claimed he only heard of burnt currency notes a week after the incident — despite video footage placing him at the store room door when police recorded the scene. The calls that really matter? Most of them happened on WhatsApp, encrypted and untraceable in official call logs. Despite claiming he was wronged, Justice Varma accepted his transfer order within hours of receiving it on March 20. The committee notes he didn’t seek clarification or protest, even though he had till 9:00 AM the next day. A man wrongfully accused doesn’t walk away quietly — unless he knows what’s coming. Multiple witnesses and firemen allege that currency notes were visible at the scene — even caught on video. Yet, no mention of this made it into the official fire reports. Karki denies ever instructing anyone to omit it, but the video footage tells a different story. Iran on menu @ Trump lunch with Gen Munir Agencies WASHINGTON/ISLAMABAD ‘Those who speak English will soon feel ashamed’ ANI NEW DELHI US President Donald Trump hosted Pakistan's army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir at the White House on Wednesday in an unprecedented meeting that risked worsening a disagreement with India over the president's claim that he stopped last month's conflict between the nucleararmed South Asian foes. The lunch meeting was the first time a U.S. president had hosted the head of Pakistan's army at the White House unaccompanied by senior Pakistani civilian officials. Trump said he was honoured to meet Munir and that they had discussed Iran, which he said Pakistan knew better than most. Trump told reporters he had thanked Munir for ending the war with India, for which he also praised Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who he spoke to on Tuesday night. "Two very smart people decided not to keep going with that war; that could have been a nuclear war," Trump told reporters. In the first formal reaction by the Pakistan government, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif on Thursday said the meeting between Army Chief Munir and President Trump helped to highlight the Pak-India conflict. 4Contd on | nation Stressing the importance of Indian languages as the soul of the nation's identity, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on Thursday that the time has come to reclaim India's linguistic heritage and lead the world with pride in native tongues. Speaking at the book launch of 'Main Boond Swayam, Khud Sagar Hoon', authored by Home Minister says “we will run our country with our own languages and lead the world too.” former civil servant, IAS Ashutosh Agnihotri, Shah said, "In this country, those who speak English will soon feel ashamed -- the creation of such a society is not far away. Only those who Trump to take call on Iran in 2 weeks Agencies WASHINGTON The White House on Thursday said US President Donald Trump will make a decision within the next two weeks on whether to launch a military strike against Iran. Earlier, Trump told senior aides he had approved attack plans for Iran but has withheld a final order to see if Tehran would abandon its nuclear program, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing three people familiar with the deliberations. Trump has approved plans to attack Iran, are determined can bring about change. I believe that the languages of our country are the jewels of our culture. Without our languages, we cease to be truly Indian." "To understand our country, our culture, our history, and our religion, no foreign language can suffice. The idea of a complete India cannot be imagined through half-baked foreign languages. 4Contd on | nation MVA leaders in border panel Ravikiran Deshmukh MUMBAI the BBC’s US partner CBS reports. The US president held off from strikes in case Iran agreed to abandon its nuclear programme, an intelligence source said. Trump is reportedly considering strikes on the underground uranium enrichment facility at Fordo. Trump said on Truth Social on Thursday the Wall Street Journal, which carried a similar report, had “no idea what my thoughts are concerning Iran”. He did not address if the plans had been approved. The BJP-led government on Thursday issued a Government Resolution (GR) revising a highpowered border committee headed by the Chief Minister. It is expected to take decisions on matters relating to a longstanding border dispute with neighbouring Karnataka. The 18-member committee, headed by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, has both the deputy chief ministers – Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar, along with nine members from the ruling side. 4Contd on | nation 4Contd on | nation offgrid Why babus need to fight false news FPJ News Service MUMBAI In its ongoing effort to combat non-factual and misleading news reports, the BJP-led Maharashtra government has further enhanced responsibilities of departmental secretaries. The government has decided that the handling of media clarifications will now be a key metric in evaluating the performance of secretaries, forming a part of their Key Result Areas (KRAs). Although a detailed circular outlining the process for issuing clarifications was released in March this year, there has been a noticeable lack of urgency in its implementation. To address this, a new circular issued by Chief Secretary Sujata Saunik — who is set to retire at the end of this month — emphasises stricter enforcement. According to the revised directive, the entire process of issuing clarifications, beginning with the drafting stage, will now be included in each secretary's annual performance appraisal. The aim is to ensure timely and effective responses to negative or inaccurate reporting related to the government in print, electronic, and social media. For print media reports, clarifications must be submitted to the Directorate General of Information and Public Relations (DGIPR) within 12 hours. For electronic media, the deadline is 2 hours. The circular stresses that departmental secretaries must personally oversee the drafting of these clarifications, ensuring accuracy and promptness. 4Contd on | nation Cash site cleaned, by whom? ustice Yashwant Varma claimed he never visited the store room after the fire. Yet, by the committee’s account, the site had already been “cleaned up” before his official return. The big question: Who ordered the clean-up if he wasn’t even there? His explanation — tea, concern for family, then off to the camp office — didn’t sit well. The report calls this conduct “unnatural,” “illogical,” and “difficult to reconcile.” J Verdict in language Throughout the report, the committee doesn’t hold back: ■ “Conduct... unnatural and defies logic.” ■ “Correct picture not projected.” ■ “Adverse inference has to be drawn.” HC sets rider for slum rehab on green areas Urvi Mahajani MUMBAI In a significant judgment balancing housing needs with environmental concerns, the Bombay High Court has upheld the legality of a State policy permitting slum rehabilitation projects on open spaces reserved for public amenities such as parks and playgrounds, provided that a minimum of 35% of such plots is preserved as continuous, publicly accessible green space. The court endorsement came as a bench of Justices Amit Borkar and Somasekhar Sundaresan decided on a public interest litigation filed by the NGO Alliance for Governance and Renewal (NAGAR). The petitioner had challenged a 1992 government notification and the more recent Regulation 17(3)(D)(2) of the Development Control and Promotion Regulations, 2034 (DCPR 2034). NAGAR’s counsel Shiraz Rustomjee argued that allowing construction on open areas reserved for recreational use violates the constitutional right to a healthy environment and undermines the public trust doctrine. 4Contd on | nation