FP FREE PRESS The publishers permit sharing of the e-paper's pdf on WhatsApp and other social media platforms VOL. XXXX NO. 302 | INDORE | MONDAY | APRIL 8, 2024 | PAGES 12 `3 - r Regd. No. Indore MP/ICD 216/2021-2023; EDITIONS: INDORE, BHOPAL, UJJAIN, MUMBAI, PUNE EDIT CONGRESS GENEROUS WITH PROMISES A LARGE number of people had lined up on either side of the route and were seen clicking photographs and shooting videos using mobile phones AGENCIES Jabalpur Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday kickstarted the BJP's Lok Sabha poll campaign in Madhya Pradesh with a roadshow in Jabalpur. He was accompanied by MP Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, state PWD minister Rakesh Singh and the party's Jabalpur Lok Sabha candidate Ashish Dubey. The roadshow started around 6:30pm from Shaheed Bhagat Singh crossing and culminated at Adi Shankaracharya crossing in Gorakhpur locality here at 7:15pm. PM Modi, who is on his first visit to the state after Lok Sabha polls were announced, Yadav and others held the BJP's poll symbol Prime Minister Narendra Modi with BJP candidate Ashish Dubey during a road show ahead of Lok Sabha elections, in Jabalpur, on Sunday. FOUR INJURED AFTER STAGE COLLAPSES DURING ROADSHOW JABALPUR : Around four people including one police personnel were injured after a stage collapsed during Prime Minister Modi's rally in Jabalpur area of Madhya Pradesh on Sunday. The injured were taken to the Victoria Hospital in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh. Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, PM Modi held a roadshow today in Jabalpur. MP minister Rakesh Singh visited the hospital and meet the injured people. "Today's roadshow was over-crowded and there were so many people on the stage that they fell down. PM told me to go immediately and everyone should be taken care of properly. I have met all the injured and their families. Everyone is healthy, some are injured who after proper treatment have been sent to their homes," he said. KANNUR: A Maoist, who was under treatment after allegedly getting injured in a suspected wild elephant attack while he and others were passing through a forest region of this north Kerala District, said on Sunday that he has surrendered to the police. Suresh, who hails from Karnataka, and was in the custody of Kerala police, met the media today and said he has wanted to surrender for a long time. Stolen SUV of Nadda's wife found VARANASI: A Fortuner belonging to BJP national president J. P Nadda's . wife, Mallika Nadda, which was reportedly stolen from a service centre in Delhi's Govindpuri area, has been recovered from Varanasi. The police have arrested two people in connection with the case. The Fortuner SUV was allegedly stolen on March 19 when it was taken to the service centre. Youth stabbed to death over matchbox NEW DELHI: A youth was stabbed to death by two juveniles over refusal to give a matchbox in north Delhi's Timarpur area, police said. The juveniles have been apprehended in this connection, the police said. Sharing the details, police said that on Saturday, information was received regarding a stabbing incident following which a police team rushed to the spot. The police team found that there was a pool of blood inside of an autorickshaw and its surroundings. "It came into notice that the injured was shifted to Hindu Rao Hospital. 36.60c. 23.00c Sunrise : 06.12 Sunset : 06.44 'lotus' as their saffron coloured vehicle moved during the well-attended roadshow. Several of them held 'Mera Ghar Modi Ka Ghar' and 'Mera Pariwar Modi Ka Pariwar' placards. The BJP had started a campaign to highlight that people of the country comprised Modi's family, the move coming after Rashtriya Janata Dal supremo Lalu Yadav had said the PM spoke about dynastic politics but had no family of his own. Tribals groups performed several dances enroute, including 'Badhai Nritya', a dance form of the state's Bundelkhand region that is on display to mark marriages, childbirth and other happy occasions. A BJP leader said special arrangements were in place to shower Modi with flowers when the roadshow passes through Gorakhpur market. Jabalpur and Chhindwara will go to polls in the first phase on April 19 along with Sidhi, Shahdol (ST), Mandla (ST) and Balaghat. CONTD. ON P7 QUALITY AT VALUE www.freepressjournal.in FOUNDER OF ABCOFFEE, ABHIJEET ANAND IS FULL OF BEANS BRAND SUTRA Rahul to take part Rash driving by Army in two public officer leaves seven meetings today OUR STAFF REPORTER city.bhopal@fpj.co.in Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will hold two public meeting in two Lok Sabha constituencies Mandla and Shahdol on Monday, said the party sources here on Sunday . On Sunday the Prime Minister hold a road show and a public meeting in Jabalpur and have triggered off the BJP election campaign in the state. The Congress leader to trigger off the party election campaign from Monday. State vice president Rajeev Singh said that Rahul to attend meeting in one of the village of Mandla Lok Sabha constituency . He will reach Jabalpur and after he will reach village Dhanora and will going to hold the meeting in favor of party candidate Omkar Singh Markam. After attending the meeting, he will reach Shahdol and will going to hold the public meeting in support of Congress candidate Pundelal Marco. The state president Jitu Patwari and other leaders will also going to participate in the meeting. injured near Mhow HITS THREE motorcycles and a pedestrian FP NEWS SERVICE Mhow The early morning peace was shattered on Sunday when an army officer, allegedly driving under the influence of alchohol, struck multiple vehicles and pedestrians with his recklessly driven fourwheeler, near Mhow. According to information, Capt Nityam of 4 Jat regiment perusing the Young Officers course at Infantry School was returning from Ahilya Gate around 8:30 am when his Hyundai Verna plowed into six people on motorbikes and one woman pedestrian on the MhowMandleshwar road between Tincha and Badgonda villages. Subsequently, the officer's vehicle collided with a mini-truck, rendering his car immobile. Instead of owing up to his act, Capt Nityam tried to flee from the spot, but was prevented by locals who surrounded him. The police were called and they took him into custody . "He tried to flee but he couldn't as his car was badly damaged," said Lokendra Singh Hirore, Badgonda police station officer, adding, "A large number of villagers had gathered and surrounded the car, preventing him from escaping." The officer was released on bail after furnishing a personal bond and receiving a legal notice. However, his vehicle has been seized and investigations are on. Police said that at least two of the victims, a middle-aged biker and a woman, who was going to a temple, were seriously injured and are undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Mhow. CONTD. ON P7 Modi, Mamata face off over NIA attack `4 cr seizure leaves ARITRA SINGHA / KOLKATA NEWS BRIEF Injured Maoist surrenders WEATHER Modi launches BJP’s MP campaign with mega roadshow in Jabalpur RCB WILL HAVE TO CONSIDER WILL JACKS: MOODY SPORTS r RNI No. 38281/83 Prime Minister Narendra Modi and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had a sharp exchange on Sunday with the former accusing the TMC of trying to shield corrupt leaders by allowing others to attack the Central agencies and impeding them in their investigative work. The allegation came against the backdrop of the NIA team coming under a violent attack from an unruly mob during a midnight swoop in Naruabila village in Bhupatinagar in East Midnapore. The central agency was probing a 2022 blast case that had claimed three MAMATA TRIED to put the Centre on the defensive by suggesting that communal passions could flare up during Ram Navami, which falls on April 17, and lead to violence. Then, in remarks dripping with sarcasm, she remarked that the National Investigation Agency (NIA) would be sent to probe the issue! MOLESTATION RAP AFTER NIGHT RAID KOLKATA: Arrested Trinamool Congress (TMC) booth-level leader Manotosh Jana s wife has lodged an FIR against NIA and claimed that the central agency sleuths had allegedly molested her. A case has also been registered at Bhupatinagar Police Station under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including 325, 34, 354, 354(b), 427, 448, and 509. It’s Mehbooba vs Azad in Anantnag SRINAGAR Peoples Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti will contest the Lok Sabha polls from the AnantnagRajouri seat against DPAP president Ghulam Nabi Azad, making the newly carved out constituency the most high-profile contest in Jammu and Kashmir in these elections. The National Conference has fielded influential Gujjar leader Mian Altaf Ahmad from the seat and the Apni Party has named Zaf- far Iqbal Manhas. The BJP has not announced its candidate so far. PDP Parliamentary Board Chief Sartaj Madni on Sunday announced the party candidates for the three seats of Kashmir. The party's youth wing president Waheed Parra will contest the polls from Srinagar and former Rajya Sabha member Mir Fayaz from Baramulla. The candidates were announced by the party at a press conference addressed by Mufti and Madni. CONTD. ON P7 CONTD. ON P7 Collective fast by AAP leaders at Jantar Mantar AGENCIES New Delhi Top AAP leaders held a daylong fast at Jantar Mantar here on Sunday to protest against Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's arrest by the ED and asserted that people will give a fitting reply to the BJP in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls for sending him to jail. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders also dared the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the Centre to impose president's rule in Delhi, claiming that the saffron party will be erased from the national capital in that case. CONTD. ON P7 lives. It was almost a replay of a similar incident when Enforcement Directorate officials were attacked at Sandeshkhali in North 24 Parganas on January 5, when they went to raid suspended TMC leader Shahjahan Sheikh s house in connection with a multi-crore ration distribution scam. “TMC wants its corrupt leaders to have the latitude to persist with their wanton ways. That’s why when central agencies come to West Bengal, the TMC attacks them. It wants to destroy our legal system and the Constitution,” the Prime Minister charged at an election rally in Jalpaiguri in West Bengal on Sunday . CONTD. ON P7 TN BJP red in face N CHITHRA / CHENNAI The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has landed in a soup with Rs3.98 crore of unaccounted for cash being seized in Chennai from men close to Nainar Nagenthran, its candidate for the Tirunelveli parliamentary constituency . This has come even as BJP national president JP Nadda launched a broadside on Sunday against the INDIA bloc and one of its constituents, the DMK, accusing the parties of corruption. An election squad, acting on a specific tip-off, boarded an air-conditioned compartment of the Chennai Egmore to Tirunelveli Nel- lai Express train and checked the baggage of three men including Satish, who worked in a hotel belonging to Nagenthran in Chennai. The team found wads of Rs500 currency notes totalling Rs3.98 crore, the largest single seizure in this election season in Tamil Nadu. The accused, who gave details of how the cash was delivered to them, said they were taking it to Tirunelveli allegedly for use in the election by the BJP candidate, according to the police. The money was seized and the three were let out on bail. The Income Tax Department has been informed about the seizure. 7 foreign students asked to vacate hostel after namaz row AHMEDABAD Six students from Afghanistan and one from East Africa have been asked to vacate the Gujarat University's hostel rooms for overstaying, an official said on Sunday, in a move coming weeks after some foreign students were attacked for offering namaz on the premises. Talking to PTI, the university's vice-chancellor Neerja Gupta said, "Six students from Afghanistan and one from East Africa were asked to vacate their hostel rooms after they were found overstaying." These persons had com- An Afghan and a Gambian delegation had visited the university days after March 16 attack and held a meeting with vice-chancellor over safety measures pleted their studies and were staying in the hostel as ex-students due to some pending administrative work, she said. The university has ensured that they are no longer required to stay in the hostel and arranged for them to return to their respective countries, Gupta said. "We have completed the required paperwork and they can now safely return to their native countries. We don't want to keep any former students in our hostel. CONTD. ON P7 500-grave Kutch necropolis leads to 5,700-year-old Harappan settlement ONLINE REPORT Ahmedabad A necropolis with over 500 graves in Gujarat's Kutch, first unearthed in 2018, has led a team of archaeologists to a fascinating discovery - a Harappan-era settlement going back more than 5,000 years ago. Dr Subhash Bhandari, head of archaeology department at Krantiguru Shyamji Krishna Verma Kachchh University, said that the 2018 excavation of the necropolis near Juna Khatiya village had thrown up some key questions. "It was necessary to find out where these people stayed. This was a major question and we were looking for the answer," he said. This search took the team of archaeologists to Padta Bet - about 1.5 km from the burial site. "We have found a settlement on The institutions involved in the project include several universities from the country and institutes in Spain and the US a hillock about 200 m x 200 m in size. A river flowed behind the hillock once. During our excavation at the site, we found round as well as rectangular structures where people stayed. We have also found pots, big and small, and dishes," he said. Dr Bhandari said the team also found semi-precious stones such as carnelian and agate, shell fragments and hammer stones at the site. "We can say that this settlement site is around 5,700 years old," he said, adding that the settlement appears to have been populated from the early Harappan to the late Harappan era. The team, he said, has also found remains of cows and goats. "We can say that the settlers here were involved in animal husbandry," he said, adding that they have also found remains of a human skeleton. CONTD. ON P7 Nagenthran, the BJP floor leader in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, is one of the few heavyweights fielded by the party for the parliamentary elections and the battle for the Tirunelveli seat, where he takes on Robert Bruce of the Congress, is being intensely followed in the state. The BJP leader acknowledged that he knew the three men but denied having anything to do with the cash, which he said could have been carried by them for their business. I am being targetted by the DMK as my victory here is assured, Nagenthran alleged. CONTD. ON P7 Car crashes into running train, driver killed OUR STAFF REPORTER city.bhopal@fpj.co.in A car driver was killed and another occupant severely injured when the vehicle rammed into a running train after breaking the barrier of a closed railway crossing in Anuppur district, police said on Sunday . The accident took place around Saturday midnight in Jaithari area, they said. The car hit Hirakud Express, Bilaspur-based South East Central Railways public relations officer Ambikesh Sahu said. The car driver Narendra Verma died on the spot and another vehicle occupant received injuries, Jaithari police station inspector PC Kol said. Police removed the damaged car from the tracks No one on board the train was injured, Sahu said. Hirakud Express resumed its onward journey from Anuppur station after replacement of its three coaches affected in the incident, the official said. The injured car occupant, Parmeshwar Sahu, a resident of Chhindwara district, was rushed to a local hospital from where he was shifted to Bilaspur in neighbouring Chhattisgarh for advance health care following doctor's advice, Kol said.