FP The publishers permit sharing of the e-paper's pdf on WhatsApp and other social media platforms Vol. 15 No. 36 | BHOPAL | SUNDAY | JULY 20, 2025 | Pages 20 ` 3 | Regd. No. Indore MP/ICD 216/2024-2026 | RNI No. mpeng/2010/35815 FREE www.freepressjournal.in Sports JHULAN’S WISH, LORD’S LEGACY P.14 ESTD-1983 iii QUALITY @ VALUE EDITIONS: BHOPAL WORLD Trump sues Murdoch, WSJ, seeks $10 billion for article UJJAIN PRESS PUNE INDORE NASHIK MUMBAI E-paper Readers’ Corner IN THE DIVINE PRESENCE P.6 Cinema Why was Priyanshu's film stopped? P.16 FRESH TRUMP CLAIM | US prez didn’t specify whether jets were downed by India or Pakistan Part of ceiling collapses during class 5 jets shot down in Indo-Pak clash: Don 2 students, one teacher injured PTI India, US teams conclude fifth round of talks on trade pact NEW YORK/WASHINGTON In a fresh claim, US President Donald Trump said "five jets were shot down" during the military conflict between India and Pakistan in May and repeated his assertion that the fighting ended following his intervention. In his remarks at a White House dinner on Friday, the US president, however, did not provide specific details such as whether the jets were downed by either of the two countries or if he was referring to combined losses by both sides. "You had India, Pakistan (military conflict) that was going (on). In fact, planes were being shot out of the air, five, four or five. But I think five jets were shot down actually, that was getting worse and worse, wasn't it?" "That was looking like it was going to go, these are two serious nuclear countries, and they were hitting each other," Trump said at the dinner he hosted for Republican senators. There was no immediate response from New Delhi on the US president's remarks. While India acknowledged losses of aircraft during the conflict, it refrained from providing the details. Pakistan, on the other hand, has been peddling a narrative without providing any evidence that it downed six Indian jets. The claim has been rejected by the Indian military. On May 31, Chief of Defence fp Briefs KOLKATA SIR in Bengal in August With the detailed preparations already completed, the work for the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the voters' list in West Bengal by the ECI is expected to start anytime from now, officials said on Saturday. JAIPUR Ajmer Dargah hearing on Aug 30 The hearing on the claim related to a Shiva temple within the Ajmer Dargah premises was postponed on Saturday. The civil court has now scheduled the next hearing for August 30. In anticipation of the proceedings, additional police force was deployed at the court premises alongside the Civil Lines Police Station. JAIPUR 6 killed in flooded Raj Heavy to incessant downpour, flood-like situations were reported from several parts of Rajasthan, claiming six lives in the state in the last 24 hours. Due to a depression over east Rajasthan, heavy rain was received in Ajmer, Pushkar, Bundi, Sawai Madhopur and Pali where rivers, drains, and dams have overflowed. See pg 8 shocking incident surfaced on Saturday, showing the teacher conducting the class and a chunk of plaster suddenly falling off from the ceiling directly onto the heads of two girls seated in front row. The classroom was filled with over 30 students and the footage captures the moment of panic as students and the teacher scrambled to evacuate the room. Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL A chunk of ceiling plaster fell off in government girls’ school classroom in the city, injuring two students and inflicting minor injuries to the class teacher. One of the students received four stitches on her head. The incident occurred on Friday at Government PM Shri Maharani Laxmibai Girls School, located in Barkheda, BHEL area. A video of the 4Continued on | P8 PTI 10% tariff threat to BRICS NEW DELHI Staff Gen Anil Chauhan said in Singapore that India suffered losses of aircraft in the conflict, but declined to specify the losses in terms of number of platforms. The top military officer said the Indian military struck deep inside Pakistani territory after rectifying tactics. Gen Chauhan had also rejected Pakistan's claim of downing six Indian jets as "absolutely incorrect." In his remarks at the reception, Trump also repeated his claim of ending the conflict. "India and Pakistan were going at it, and they were back and forth, and it was getting bigger and bigger. And we got it solved through trade," he said. India and the US teams have concluded the fifth round of talks for the proposed bilateral trade agreement (BTA) in Washington on July 17, an official said. The negotiations were held for four days (July 14-17) in Washington. "The Indian team is coming back," the official said. India's chief negotiator and special secretary in the Department of Commerce Rajesh Agrawal led the team for negotiations. These deliberations are important as both sides are looking at finalising an interim trade deal before August 1, which marks the end of the suspension period of Trump tariffs imposed on dozens of countries, including India (26 per cent). On April 2 this year, US President Donald Trump announced these high reciprocal tariffs. The implementation of high tariffs was immediately suspended for 90 days till July 9 and later until August 1, as America is negotiating trade deals with various countries. 4Continued on | P8 4Continued on | P8 US President Donald Trump has warned that countries aligning with the BRICS economic bloc will face additional 10 per cent tariffs on their goods, as he seeks to protect the dollar's global dominance 15-yr-old Odisha girl set on fire House functioning without Dy Speaker for 1st time for 5 yrs PTI The session is beginning on July 28, but there are no signs of election to this position BHUBANESWAR A 15-year-old girl was set on fire by unidentified persons in Odisha's Puri district on Saturday, officials said. The girl is undergoing treatment at AIIMS Bhubaneswar and she is in a critical condition, having suffered 70 per cent burn injuries, but she is able to speak, they said. Deputy Chief Minister Pravati Parida, who is in charge of the Women and Child Development Department, said the government will bear the expenses of the girl's treatment and that the police have been asked to arrest the culprits as soon as possible. The incident comes close on the heels of a 20-year-old college student of FM College in Balasore immolating herself over sexual harassment on July 12. She died on July 14. BJD supremo and Leader of the Opposition in the state assembly, Naveen Patnaik, expressed deep anguish over the Victim may be airlifted to Delhi Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Saturday said the state government is considering airlifting the 15-yearold girl - under treatment at AIIMS Bhubaneswar with 70 per cent burns to AIIMS Delhi for advanced medical care incident and said such cases point to a systemic failure of governance. The incident took place at Bayabar village in Balanga police station area around 9 am when the girl was returning from her friend's house. Preliminary investigation revealed that three unidentified motorcycle-borne youths intercepted her, forcibly took her to the banks of Bhargavi River, poured an inflammable substance on her, and set her on fire, a police officer said. 4Continued on | P8 IANS BEIJING/NEW DELHI China on Saturday officially began construction on a mega dam project in the lower reaches of the Yarlung Tsangpo - upper reaches of the Brahmaputra - River in Tibet, raising major concerns in the downstream countries, including India and Bangladesh. Chinese Premier Li Qiang, also a member of the Standing Agencies NEW DELHI vestigated and a murder case was registered and Karan's wife Sushmita and Karan's uncle's son, Rahul, were arrested." Karan's mother Neeru said that she had learnt of the alleged relationship between Sushmita and Rahul only after the cremation when Kunal, the younger brother of the deceased person, found WhatsApp chats on Rahul's phone. "Sushmita told Rahul that she had given Karan druglaced food, but he wasn't dying. She kept updating Rahul, and also mentioned electric shocks," Neeru added. She further said that Karan lived with his wife in a flat and around 9 am on Sunday, daughter-in-law Sushmita came and said Karan was electrocuted. The family then rushed to the flat and took him to the hospital, where doctors declared him dead. 4Continued on | P8 bends and diverting water through tunnels Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, attended the groundbreaking ceremony SC notifies 5-judge Bench to decide Presidential reference IANS NEW DELHI The Supreme Court has constituted a special 5-judge Bench to decide the reference made by the President under Article 143 of the Constitution in the aftermath of the apex court verdict in the Tamil Nadu Bills case. As per the cause list published on the website of the apex court, a Bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) BR Gavai, and of Justices Surya Kant, Vikram Nath, PS Narasimha and Atul S Chandurkar, will take up the reference titled “In Re: Assent, Withholding or Reservation of Bills by the Governor and the President of TN BILLS CASE India” for hearing on July 22.In May this year, President Droupadi Murmu, in her reference to the top court, had asked the Supreme Court to consider whether timelines can be imposed on Governors to act on Bills in the absence of a constitutionally-prescribed time limit. Further, the President had asked the apex court to report its opinion on constitutional options available to a Governor when a Bill is presented to him under Article 200 of the Constitution of India. 4Continued on | P8 offgrid India’s millet standard wins global praise IANS NEW DELHI India’s leadership in developing a group standard for whole millet grains was appreciated during the 88th Session of the Executive Committee of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CCEXEC88), held at the FAO Headquarters in Rome, Italy from July 14-18, it was announced on Saturday. The When approached, Bhopal Collector Kaushlendra Vikram Singh told Free Press, ‘I have taken cognizance of the incident. An investigation will be ordered and the DEO has been instructed to inspect all schools to prevent such accidents in the future.’ Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL It has happened for the first time there is not deputy speaker in the House for the past five years. In fact, the House does not have a Deputy Speaker for the first time after the formation of Madhya Pradesh in 1956. After the fall of the Congress government in 2020, when the BJP formed a government, the ruling party did not elect any Deputy Speaker. Afterwards, the 19-monthold Mohan Yadav government did not take any initiative to elect a Deputy Speaker. In the absence of the Speaker, the Deputy Speaker After fall of Cong govt in 2020, when BJP formed govt, the ruling party did not elect any Deputy Speaker runs the House, but neither the government nor the opposition seems to be serious about electing deputy speaker.  The monsoon session of the House is going to start on July 28. According to sources, there is no preparation for electing the deputy speaker. The post of Deputy Speaker is offered to the opposition, and former chief minister Sunderlal Patwa started this practice during his tenure.  Former chief ministers Digvijaya Singh, Uma Bharti, and Shivraj Singh Chouhan also continued this tradition. Former chief minister Kamal Nath, instead of giving the position of the Deputy Speaker to the opposition, made Hina Kaware of his own party the Deputy Speaker. When Chouhan became the chief minister again, he did not elect anyone as Deputy Speaker. The Congress demanded the post of Deputy Speaker, and some BJP leaders also tried for an election to the post, but neither the ruling party nor the opposition seriously mulled over the issue.  When the BJP leadership selected Mohan Yadav as chief minister, they chose Narendra Singh Tomar as Speaker of the House.  As the BJP’s central leadership has not taken any decision on the post of Deputy Speaker, the state government did not take any initiative on the issue. According to the former secretary of Vidhan Sabha, Bhagwandev Israni, the post of Deputy Speaker is a constitutional position. 4Continued on | P8 China’s mega dam project kicks off Premature, speculative: The project mainly US agency slams media adopts the development method of reports on AI-171 probe straightening the Delhi man killed by electrocution, wife, cousin held Delhi police arrested a woman and her cousin for their alleged involvement in the death of the husband of the woman, officials said on Saturday. The accused have been identified as Sushmita and her cousin Rahul. According to the police, the victim, Karan Dev, was allegedly killed after being given sleeping pills and electrocuted by his wife and her cousin. DCP Dwarka Ankit Singh Said "On 13th july information was received from a hospital in the Uttam Nagar area that a person named Karan has died an unnatural death. After this, the police team reaches the spot and the body is shifted to DDU hospital for a postmortem. Meanwhile, Karan's family refused to get the postmortem done but due to it being an unnatural death, the police got the body postmortem done. 2 days later, Karan's brother Kunal got some evidence in which a chat between Karan's wife Sushmita and Karan's cousin Rahul came out in which there was a discussion about giving sleeping pills and electric shock to Karan. After this, the police in- COLLECTORSPEAK Committee reviewed the progress of this work, which is being chaired by India with Mali, Nigeria, and Senegal as co-chairs, said Health Ministry in a statement. The terms of reference for the same were finalized at the 11th Session of the Codex Committee on Cereals, Pulses and Legumes (CCCPL11) held in April 2025. CCEXEC88 critically reviewed the works chaired by India on the new standards of fresh dates as recommended by the 23rd session of Codex Commit- tee on Fresh Fruits and Vegetables (CCFFV23) held in February this year. The Executive Committee appreciated the efforts of the CCFFV and India in finalizing these standards and endorsed them for further approval at the 48th session of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC48) scheduled for November 2025. 4Continued on | P8 and announced the official start of the Yarlung Zangbo River Lower Reaches Hydropower Project in the Tibet region. Responsible persons from relevant departments of the central and state organs, relevant central enterprises, members of the expert advisory committee for the construction of the lower reaches 4Continued on | P8 30 injured as vehicle drives into crowd in Los Angeles AP LOS ANGELES A vehicle rammed into a crowd of people waiting to enter a nightclub along a busy boulevard in Los Angeles early Saturday, injuring 30 people. Victims were transported to local hospitals and trauma centres, according to Capt Adam Van Gerpen, public information officer for the Los Angeles City Fire Department. At least three were in critical condition after being injured along Santa Monica Boulevard in East Hollywood, the Fire Department said in a statement. Van Gerpen said that a line of people - the majority female - were waiting to enter a nightclub when they were struck by a Nissan Versa that also hit a taco truck and valet stand. Paramedics discovered that one of the patients had a gunshot wound, Van Gerpen said. He told The Associated Press that the identity of that person was not yet known. "This is under police investigation," he said. "This will be a large investigation with the LAPD." People inside the club came out to help in the minutes before emergency crews arrived, he said, to help the victims. Agencies WASHINGTON DC The US federal agency, National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), responsible for the investigation of aviation accidents and significant transportation events in the country, on Friday (local time) issued a strong rebuke of recent media coverage made over the preliminary investigative report on the aftermath of the ill-fated Air India 171 crash that claimed 260 lives in Gujarat's Ahmedabad last month. Calling the media reports "premature and speculative", the NTSB Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy, in a statement, urged the public and media to await official findings by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB), which is leading the probe into the crash incident, before drawing a conclusion based on the preliminary investigative report. FIP slams Reuters, WSJ The Federation of Indian Pilots (FIP) President, Captain CS Randhawa on Saturday called out Wall Street Journal and Reuters, accusing them of not basing their reports on factual content while highlighting Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau's (AAIB) preliminary report on AI-171 plane crash "Recent media reports on the Air India 171 crash are premature and speculative. 4Continued on | P8 Terrorists kill two Indians, abduct one in south-west Niger PTI NIAMEY Two Indians were killed and one abducted following a terrorist attack in south-west Niger, said the Indian Embassy here. "In a heinous terror attack on 15 July in Niger's Dosso region, two Indian nationals tragically lost their lives and one was abducted," the Embassy posted on social media on Friday. Unidentified gunmen attacked an army unit guarding a construction site in Dosso, about 130 kilometres from the capital Niamey, local media re- The Indian mission said it is working with local authorities to repatriate the mortal remains of those killed ported. The Indian mission said it is working with local authorities to repatriate the mortal remains of those killed. The embassy is also working to "ensure safe release" of the Indian abducted. Indians in the West African nation are also advised by the mission to remain vigilant.