Vol. 67 No. 152 | WEDNESDAY | MARCH 27, 2024 |26 Pages | `5 & for Pune `6 only Quality at Value www.freepressjournal.in MEMBER: AUDIT BUREAU OF CIRCULATION EDITIONS: MUMBAI*, Pune, Nashik, Konkan, Indore, Bhopal, E-paper ALL-INDIA CREW’S SOS SAVES LIVES Container ship crashes into Baltimore’s bridge, sending several vehicles and as many as 20 people plunging into the river below US WEIGHS IN, TOO, ‘AAP KI KHAATIR’ FPJ NEWS SERVICE / WASHINGTON Close on the heels of Germany declaring that it expects Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to get a fair trial, the United States has weighed in with a similar sentiment. On Monday a State Depart, ment spokesman remarked that the United States is closely following reports of the arrest and has pressed for a fair legal process in the matter, Reuters news agency reported, a clear manifestation of the interest the arrest has generated in western capitals. "We encourage a fair, transparent, and timely legal process for Chief Minister Kejriwal," the U.S. spokesperson said in response to an emailed query about the case, in which India summoned a German envoy on Saturday to protest against his government's remarks about the arrest. The phrase “timely legal “We encourage a fair, transparent, and timely legal process for CM Kejriwal,” the U.S. spokesperson said in response to an emailed query about the case, on which Germany took a similar line process” is an additional dimension that the US seems to have added to the advisory and this is bound to irk New Delhi. Asked about the arrest at a government press conference on Friday Sebastian Fischer, , spokesperson for Germany's foreign office said that like anyone else facing accusations, Kejriwal was entitled to a fair and impartial trial. "We assume and expect that the standards relating to independence of judiciary and ba- sic democratic principles will also be applied in this case," he had said. New Delhi summoned the German embassy's deputy chief of mission, Georg Enzweiler, "and conveyed India’s strong protest," at the remarks. "We see such remarks as interfering in our judicial process and undermining the independence of our judiciary the MEA said in a ," statement. CONTD. ON NATION Husband loses `1.5 cr in IPL BJP MP IN A SPOT betting, better half kills self ON MAMATA TAUNT ARITRA SINGHA / KOLKATA RAJASHEKARA S / BENGALURU FPJ NEWS SERVICE / BALTIMORE Twenty-two Indians, who were manning a container ship that ploughed into a Baltimore bridge, sending the colossal steel structure crashing into the river, are being hailed as heroes. It is understood that the crew’s May Day call enabled port workers to try and stop traffic moments before the Singapore container ship THE FP BULLETIN FIVE CHINESE KILLED IN PAK A t least five Chinese nationals were killed on Tuesday when an explosivepacked vehicle rammed into their bus in Pakistan’s troubled northwestern province of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, officials said. The Chinese nationals were working on the Dasu hydropower project. The engineers were travelling from a hydroelectric dam construction site towards the capital Islamabad when the bombing happened near Besham City. However, this is not the first time that Chinese nationals have become targets of militant attacks in Pakistan. NO BJP TRUCK WITH AKALIS E nding speculation about its former ally Shiromani Akali Dal’s return to the National Democratic Alliance, the BJP on Tuesday announced it would contest all the 13 Lok Sabha seats of Punjab, on its own. With this, the stage is set for a four-concerned fight as the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Congress are also contesting separately in Punjab, though they are constituents of the opposition Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) bloc. 3-TIME CONG MP JOINS BJP I n a major setback to the Congress, its sitting MP from Ludhiana, Ravneet Singh Bittu, on Tuesday joined the BJP just , a few weeks ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. Bittu, a 3-time MP happens to , be grandson of former Punjab chief minister Beant Singh. ploughed through the concrete structure. ‘‘These people are heroes. They saved lives last night," Maryland Governor Wes Moore was quoted as saying by news agency AFP . All crew members, including the two pilots, have been accounted for and there are no reports of any injuries. On impact, at least a dozen cars hit the 47 degree water in addition to 20 or so con- struction workers who were working on potholes on the bridge at the time. Officials were still searching for six of the construction workers in Patapsco River. Dali, the container ship, was sailing along the river when it struck the steel structure, crumpling almost the entire bridge into the water. The ship was leaving Baltimore en route to Colombo, Sri Lanka. CONTD. ON NATION A 24-year-old woman died by suicide in Chitradurga district after her husband allegedly lost Rs 1.5 crores in IPL betting between 2021 and 2023. In her suicide note on March 18, Ranjitha V , a home maker, has alleged that she had to take the extreme step following continuous threats from lenders to her family; they had lent money to her husband Darshan Balu, an assistant engineer with the Karnataka Minor Irrigation Department. Ranjitha was found hanging from a hook on the ceiling in her bedroom in her hometown Holakere in Chitradurga district, about 233 km from Bengaluru. Her father Venkatesh M who was at home at the time heard a loud noise and 2nd Kejri missive from jail, BJP dubs it a ‘fake’ PIL questions AAP leader’s continuation in office despite arrest GAURAV VIVEK BHATNAGAR / NEW DELHI A PIL has been filed in Delhi High Court seeking to remove Arvind Kejriwal as the chief minister. The PIL filed by one Surjit Singh Yadav says that despite his arrest, Kejriwal has refused to resign as the chief minister and the High Court should intervene and ask under what authority he continues as one. The PIL has also relied on a statement made by Delhi Assembly speaker Ram Niwas Goyal, who has said that AAP MLAs had decided that Kejriwal would continue as the chief minister and the government would be run from jail. Apart from Kejriwal’s continuation in office, the other sticking point was him issuing orders from ED custody Delhi minister Saurabh . Bharadwaj claimed on Tuesday that Kejriwal has issued a second order taking note of the non-availability of hospitals and mohalla clinics in several areas and also acknowledging that several of these clinics were not able to provide free tests to the people. CONTD. ON NATION From Mandir to Mandi RAMACHANDRAN S “Kya bhaav chal raha hai mandi mein bataiyega,” (What is the rate at the marketplace) read a post by Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate on her Instagram handle. This was when Kangana Ranaut got her election ticket for the Himachal town of Mandi from the BJP for being a loyalist and painting the town saffron ever since she endorsed the making of the Ram Mandir. Shrinate’s nasty post seemed to draw its roots from a Shyam Benegal film called Mandi based out of a Hyderabad brothel, though mandi Hindi refers to a marin ketplace! It is a different issue that the Congress woman denied posting it and has blamed it on an unknown colleague. Round King Cong - 0, 1: Queen Godzilla -1 When the Queen actress reacted to Surpriya’s post and wanted women to be spoken about better, X-users and Congressis quickly dug out her old video calling fellow actress Urmila Matondkar a porn star and asking her if that was fair to women. While Kangana has only been donning saffron, Rangeeli Urmila Matondkar has often changed colours, CONTD. ON NATION METRO BRIEFS BODY FOUND: The body of a 30-year-old woman was found near Carter Road at around 8am on Tuesday. Identified as a housewife, she had arrived in Bandra (West) to visit her parents on Monday. According to sources, she jumped into the sea from the Khar side early in the morning. Her body was washed ashore, and local residents discovered it, subsequently notifying the police. Authorities stated that she was married and lived in Jogeshwari and had been suffering from depression. TEEN HANGS HERSELF: A 14-year-old girl allegedly hanged herself in Malvani on Tuesday. The reason behind the alleged suicide is not clear. Upon receiving the information, family members rushed her to Shatabdi Hospital, where doctors declared her dead. LAST WORD Mystery end to Sonam Wangchuk fast OUR BUREAU / NEW DELHI Climate change activist Sonam Wanghuck on Monday mysteriously without assigning any , reason, ended his fast after it entered the 21st day It is uncan. ny but this is the exact number , of days that Mahatma Gandhi fasted in February 1943. It was not immediately apparent why he ended the fast or on what assurances or who had given them, if any . Earlier in the day when , south Indian actor Prakash Raj visited him and expressed solidarity there was no clue that the fast was about to end. "It's my birthday today ... and I'm celebrating by showing solidarity with @Wangchuk66 and the people of Ladakh who are fighting for us …our country…our environment and our future. Let's stand by them," he wrote on X. Wanghuck’s demands, although he flagged many other concerns in the course of the fast, have been statehood for Ladakh and its inclusion in the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution, which talk about provisions akin to those in place to administer tribal areas in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and CONTD. ON NATION Mizoram. rushed into the room to see his daughter hanging. With the help of neighbours, he moved her to the nearby government hospital where the doctors declared her dead. Balu is said to have been addicted to IPL betting. Over a period of three years, he is said to have lost Rs 1.5 crore which he had borrowed as loan from at least 13 individuals. CONTD. ON NATION The Trinamool Congress on Tuesday complained to the EC against BJP’s sitting MP Dilip Ghosh’s ‘derogatory’ comment about Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. Ghosh has raised hackles with his tongue-in-cheek questioning of Mamata’s lineage. “She (Mamata Banerjee) claims that she is the daughter of Bengal; in Tripura she claims that she is the daughter of Tripura; and in Goa she claims she is the daughter of Goa. Decide who your father is. It is not good to be just any- body’s daughter,” Ghosh was heard saying. Talking to the media, TMC minister Chandrima Bhattacharya said that a 10-member delegation will petition EC on Wednesday in the matter. “Dilip Ghosh is suffering from depression since he has not got a ticket from his constituency When PM Modi . came to Bengal in 2021, he had teased the chief minister and tauntingly said, “Didi O Didi.” Everyone is aware how the people of Bengal gave a befitting reply to the taunt in the 2021 polls,” said Bhattacharya. CONTD. ON NATION