Vol. 67 No. 159 | THURSDAY | APRIL 4, 2024 | 26 Pages | `5 & for Pune `6 only Quality at Value www.freepressjournal.in MEMBER: AUDIT BUREAU OF CIRCULATION JANUARY TO DECEMBER 2023 EDITIONS: MUMBAI*, Pune, Nashik, Konkan, Indore, Bhopal, E-paper TAAPSEE PANNU’S WEDDING Actress ties the knot with longtime BF Mathias Boe in hush-hush event EDIT GOLD JUMPS RS 830 TO REACH NEW PEAK OF RS 69,200/10 GM ECONOMY NOT AN ELECTION ISSUE THE FP AAP GETS ITS VOICE BACK BULLETIN PAWAR MOVES SC ON CLOCK SYMBOL V eteran Maharashtra politician Sharad Pawar has moved the Supreme Court alleging that the Ajit Pawar faction of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) has failed to comply with an earlier court order to publish disclaimers in advertisements and public notices that the clock symbol allocated to Ajit Pawar faction was still subject to judicial scrutiny. The matter was mentioned by Senior Advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi before a bench of Justices Surya Kant KV Viswanathan. and Singhvi expressed concern over the non-compliance and highlighted that instead of adhering to the court's order, Ajit Pawar's faction has filed an application seeking relaxation of the order. He said that the elections are fast approaching and "In the middle of the elections it cannot be changed like this," emphasized. he However, Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi, representing Ajit Pawar, argued that it would be incorrect to claim that the Supreme Court had decided the matter. He requested a modification to the last line of the previous court order. As per the last line of the previous court order, the declaration that the matter was sub judice was to be incorporated in every pamphlet, advertisement, audio, or video clips to be issued on behalf of the respondents. In response, the Supreme Court dismissed the request for modification and asserted that the order must remain in force until the conclusion of the polls. "No, this has to continue till polls conclude. Nobody can misconstrue our order," the court made it clear. The court sought details of ads issued so far, and said that it would later take a call on listing of Sharad Pawar's plea. SUICIDE ATTEMPT IN CJ’S COURT A man allegedly attempted to commit suicide inside the Karnataka High Court on Wednesday by slitting his throat with a knife in front of Chief Justice Nilay Vipinchandra Anjaria. According to the police, Srinivas, who is from Mysuru, handed over a file to the security staff at the entrance of the court, and before anyone could realise what was happening, he slit his throat in the presence of Chief Justice Anjaria. The security personnel responded immediately and rushed him to Bowring Hospital, where he is now being treated, a senior police officer said. RAJIV CONVICTS LEAVE FOR LANKA N early 33 years after former PM Rajiv Gandhi was assassination by a LTTE human bomb at an election rally in Sriperumbudur near Chennai, the three surviving Sri Lankan national convicts in the case, left India on Wednesday morning and reached Colombo. Murugan alias Sriharan, Robert Payas and Jayakumar, all life convicts in the case, were freed from prison in November 2022 on the directions of the Supreme Court and subsequently lodged at the Special Camp for foreigners in Tiruchi. Recently, the Home Ministry had cleared permission to send them back to Sri Lanka. CEO CASE: CHILD DIED OF SHOCK T he Goa Police have filed a chargesheet in a court in Panaji against Suchana Seth, the chief executive officer of an AI start-up who is accused of killing her four-year-old son at an apartment in the coastal state, a senior official said. The Calangute police earlier this week filed a 642-page chargesheet against Seth in the Goa Children’s Court. The chargesheet mentions that the child died as a result of shock and respiratory asphyxia caused by strangulation. The Goa Children's Court will hear the case on June 14, 2024, when charges would be framed against the accused, who is in judicial custody in the coastal state. This is the second time that gold prices have hit an all-time high this week 0 0 32 c. 27 c. Sunrise : 06:31 am Sunset : 06:53 pm Ye jail ke taale tootenge, hamare sare neta chootenge All of us are with Kejriwal Kejriwal will not resign, he will continue to work for Delhi’s 2 cr people There is widespread tyranny in the country Back in its den, the AAP ‘sher’ was roaring again: Mera bharosa hai ki jail ke taale tootenge. Time has come to give BJP a fitting reply ‘DEKHO, YE MERE BANDHE HAATH…’ ■ Shinde forced to drop sitting Hingoli, Yavatmal-Washim MPs after BJP opposition ■ Stalemate over Hatkanangale, Nashik, Thane, Kalyan, Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg & Palghar persists FPJ POLITICAL BUREAU / MUMBAI There was a major embarrassment for the Shiv Sena led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, as it had to cancel the nomination of sitting MP Hemant Patil in the Hingoli constituency and was forced to back off from renominating sitting MPs Bhavana Gawli in Yavatmal-Washim because of the BJP’s reservations about these candidates. Patil has been replaced by Baburao Kadam Kohalikar, the former Hingoli district chief of the Shiv Sena who had joined the Shinde faction after the split in the party in June 2022. The Shinde faction’s move to drop Hemant Patil came on the eve of the last date for the filing of nominations; polling is slated for April 26. a bid to pacify an agitated Hemant Patil In and his supporters, the Shiv Sena had nomi- nated his wife in the Yavatmal-Washim constituency but this move has left Bhavana Gawli fuming. Gawali has represented the Yavatmal-Washim constituency since 2009. Shinde and senior party functionaries reportedly went into a huddle at Varsha before arriving at these decisions. Though bristling at the machinations of an overbearing BJP Shinde was left with no alter, native but to drop Hemant Patil, whose nomination was announced recently along with those of six others. The BJP had impressed upon Shinde that there were local factors posing a challenge to Hemant Patil’s re-election and pressed for a change of the nominee. Gawli’s In case, her renomination was rejected, as the BJP considered her poll prospects dim because of her arrogant behaviour towards elected representatives and builders. CONTD. ON NATION FPJ NEWS SERVICE / NEW DELHI Senior AAP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh walked out of Tihar jail on Wednesday to a hero’s welcome; he is the first AAP leader to be released in the liquor scam; his senior ministerial colleagues Arvind Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia and Satyender Jain are still cooling their heels in prison. Sanjay is a free bird again – strings attached -- a day after he was granted bail by the Supreme Court, which noted that there was "no trace" of the money allegedly received by him as bribes. Those who had expected him to mellow down after the VIJENDER’S RIGHT HOOK A SUCKER PUNCH FOR CONG BISWAJEET BANERJEE / LUCKNOW Olympic Bronze medal winning boxer Vijender Singh on Tuesday threw a sucker punch at the Congress and joined the Bharatiya Janata Party. Coming as it does after the Congress had leaked stories that the pugilist would enter the poll ring in Mathura against Hema Malini aka, Dream girl, his swift and unexpected switching to the BJP landed like a low blow below the belt. Singh, who signalled his presence loud and clear in the Congress by joining Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Yatra in Janurary last year providing many photo opportunities, had contested the 2019 Lok Sabha elections on a Congress ticket. CONTD. ON NATION jail sojourn were in for a surprise. Ushered out by cheerleaders in a white pyjamakurta and a Nehru jacket, he instantly took centre stage. Addressing the crowd from atop a vehicle, he pumped his fist in the air and thundered: "Mera bharosa hai ki jail ke taale tootenge." Implicit in this was the prophecy that the other AAP leaders would also be freed soon. But he also sounded a note of caution that it was not a time to celebrate but to prepare for a longdrawn struggle. A massive crowd had gathered outside Tihar Jail, where Singh was lodged since October last year; he was greeted with aplomb with slogans of "dekho dekho kaun aaya, sher aaya, sher aaya" renting the air. Delhi cabinet minister Saurabh Bharadwaj and AAP MLA Durgesh athak were also present outside the jail. A Delhi court has directed Singh not to tamper with evidence or influence witnesses. Special Judge Kaveri Baweja also directed Singh to submit his passport, inform the court about his itinerary before leaving NCR, and to always keep his phone location on. In what was instantly perceived as a political statement, Sanjay Singh – after the burst of bravado --- left for Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's residence to meet his wife Sunita. CONTD. ON NATION DEFAMATION NOTICE TO ATISHI The Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday charged that Delhi minister and Aam Aadmi Party leader Atishi had “lied” when she claimed that it had approached her through an “individual very close” to her to defect to the saffron party. The BJP has sent a defamation notice to her asking her to name the person who contacted her. Its Delhi unit has warned that “If she does not respond in 15 days, we will explore civil and criminal defamation cases in this matter.” HC RESERVES VERDICT ON KEJRIWAL PLEA Aam aadmi can be jailed, why not CM? ONLINE REPORT / NEW DELHI The Delhi High Court on Tuesday reserved its verdict on Arvind Kejriwal's petition challenging his arrest and subsequent remand to the ED in the case till March 28 after hearing both the sides. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) told the Court that Kejriwal cannot cite the upcoming Lok Sabha elections or his position as CM to claim any special exception in the money laundering case against him, reports the Bar and Bench. Additional Solicitor General (ASG) SV Raju, appearing for ED, said "Aam aadmi has to go behind bars if he has committed a crime but because you are a Chief Minister you can't be arrest- ed? You will loot the country but no one can touch you because the elections are coming?". In response to Kejriwal's argument that the arrest was politically motivated in view of the Lok Sabha elections, the ASG said, "Take a case of terrorist who is also a politician. He blows up army vehicle and says I want to contest elections so you can't touch me? What kind of argument is this," ASG asked. the He said that whether the statements made by witnesses against Kejriwal are true or not is a matter of trial. The ASG also said that a person responsible for the affairs of the party would be liable and his personal role might not be relevant. CONTD. ON NATION NO LOSS OF WEIGHT The Tihar Central Jail authorities on Wednesday clarified that Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal has not lost any weight since his incarceration. A statement from the jail authorities said his weight is constant at 65 kg since arrival in jail. Home-cooked food is being provided as per court order and his vital statistics are normal. The jail authorities were compelled to issue the statement as Delhi minister Atishi had on April 2 alleged that Kejriwal had lost 4.5 kg since his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate on March 21 and accused the BJP of putting him at risk. J Tense Rahul inks Wayanad nomination NIRUPAM EXPELLED T UST A DAY BEFORE JOINING THE BJP, VIJENDER SINGH HAD RE-POSTED A TWEET OF CONGRESS LEADER RAHUL GANDHI HAVING A JAB AT PM MODI. HOWEVER, THE BOXER DELETED HIS RECENT POSTS AFTER JUMPING THE SHIP. SHANKAR RAJ / WAYANAD (KERALA) Congress leader Rahul Gandhi Wednesday filed his nomination papers from the Wayanad Lok Sabha seat after a massive road show with his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. Dressed casually in white T-shirt and black pants, Rahul looked tense before filing his papers even as Priyanka did all the coordination and paper gathering. When district collector Dr Renu Raj asked him to sign the documents, Rahul looked around for a pen and finally managed to get one. Earlier, Rahul and Priyanka arrived in a helicopter and headed a long road show. Unlike last time, there were no flags. When he had come to file papers in the last election in 2019, Muslim League workers held green flags, prompting Union Home Minister Amit Shah to comment that Wayanad looked like a mini Pakistan. The CPM made fun of Rahul and the Congress. Party general secretary MV Govindan said the Congress is in such LAST WORD TAILPIECE NSE bell marks listing of culture NGO FPJ NEWS SERVICE / MUMBAI The iconic bell at the National Stock Exchange (NSE) rang on Wednesday to mark the listing of a Delhi-based nongovernment organisation (NGO) on the social stock exchange. The NGO, Routes 2 Roots, which is dedicated to disseminating culture, art and heritage to the common people and children throughout the world, is the first art and culture NGO and the sixth non-profit organisation to be listed on NSE’s social stock exchange. It is also the first organisation to be oversubscribed at the exchange — being oversubscribed by around 130 per cent against its target of collecting Rs1 crore. he Congress has expelled Sanjay Nirupam, a senior leader from Maharashtra, for six years for his "antiparty statements". Earlier on Wednesday, the party had removed him from the list of star campaigners and sources had said that a proposal to expel him was being prepared by the state unit to be sent to the central leadership. The proposal was drafted after Nirupam made a string of remarks against Congress' INDIA ally, Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) and its leader Uddhav Thackeray after it announced some candidates for the Lok Sabha constituencies in Maharashtra, including the North West Mumbai seat, which was being eyed by the Congress leader. a plight that the party cannot raise its own flag. In the road show, Rahul was accompanied by Congress party general secretary and party candidate from Alappuzha K C Venugopal, Opposition leader in the Kerala Assembly VD Satheesan, IUML leader , VK Kunjalikutty and others. Though he had not visited Wayanad as the sitting MP often, Rahul told supporters that “Wayanad is my home, and the people of Wayanad are my family .” CONTD. ON NATION The founders, advisors and executive members of the organisation were present at the NSE office in Mumbai’s Bandra Kurla Complex to mark the listing on Wednesday, along with actor Juhi Chawla, who is an executive member of the organisation, and music composer Ehsan Noorani, an advisor to the organisation. The organisation will, with the initial funds, launch a free teaching programme and music training in 100 schools of Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, which suffered from floods in 2023. “As there is no framework to utilise oversubscription for an NPO, we had to ask our donors to stop funding after we were oversubscribed by 130 per cent. We will start the installation of smart classes in schools this month and will also provide musical instruments as well as training to teachers in four schools in each of the 25 districts of these states,” said Routes 2 Roots founder Rakesh CONTD. ON NATION Gupta. MUKESH IN $100 BN CLUB OUR BUREAU / NEW DELHI Mukesh Ambani, the chairman of Reliance Industries, is the richest Indian with a wealth of $116 billion, according to the latest ‘Forbes World’s Billionaires List 2024’. Ambani is also the 9th richest person in the world, the report said, adding that the billionaire’s wealth had surged 39.76 percent and he is the first Indian to be part of the exclusive $100 bn club. In the second spot came Gautam Adani, the chairman of Adani Group, with a net worth of $84 bn. Savitri Jindal continues to be India’s richest woman and she further cemented her position as the 4th richest person of the country with assets of $33.5 bn. Overall, the list featured 200 individuals from the country , up from 169 in the previous year, taking it to the third spot in the number of billionaires CONTD. ON NATION globally . RICHIE RICH Mukesh Ambani Gautam Adani $116 bn $84 bn Shiv Nadar $36.9 bn Savitri Jindal and Family $33.5 bn Dilip Shanghvi $26.7 bn Cyrus Poonawalla $21.3 bn Kushal Pal Singh $20.9 bn Kumar Birla $19.7 bn Radhakishan Damani $17.6 bn Lakshmi Mittal $16.4 bn