FREE PRESS The publishers permit sharing of the e-paper's pdf on WhatsApp and other social media platforms VOL. XXXX NO. 307 | INDORE | SATURDAY | APRIL 13, 2024 | PAGES 16 `3 - r Regd. No. Indore MP/ICD 216/2021-2023; EDIT KOHLI ASKS CROWD TO CHEER NOT JEER FOR HARDIK SPORTS Sunrise : 06.11 Sunset : 06.45 NEWS BRIEF RGPV ex-VC sent to judicial remand BHOPAL: Professor Sunil Kumar, Ex-vice-chancellor of Rajiv Gandhi Proudhogiki Vishwavidyalaya (RGPV), Bhopal, has been sent to judicial remand on Friday. He was arrested from Raipur, Chhattisgarh in the financial irregularity case of Rs 19.48 crore. The other main accused including ex Registrar RS Rajput and former financial controller Rishikesh Verma are still absconding. Government Pleader (GP) PN Rajput informed Free Press, " RGVP ex-vice chancellor professor Sunil Kumar has been sent to judicial remand in the financial irregularity case of Rs 19.48 crore. He was produced in Bhopal district court today." Anticipatory bail of Rishikesh Verma has been rejected Elephant injured due to train hit PALAKKAD: Two days after a female elephant, suspected to have been hit by a train, was found injured in an area adjacent to the forest in Palakkad, Forest department officials on Friday registered a case against an unidentified loco pilot in connection with the incident. As the elephant is currently unable to stand due to suspected injuries to its hind legs, Forest officials sprang into action providing medical assistance and food. However, the officials said the prognosis was not good. Forest Veterinary Officer from Thrissur Division, David Abraham told media that the jumbo has been lying down since Thursday morning and all efforts to raise the elephant have failed. 5-yr-old boy falls in borewell in Rewa BHOPAL: A five year old boy fell in a borewell while playing with his friends in village Janeh of Rewa district, officials said on Friday. Police informed that NDRF team, local administration and police have launched rescue operation. MLA from Tyothar Siddharth Tiwari also reached the spot Police added that after the boy fell in the borewell his friends informed his family, who approached the police. SDOP Uddit Mishra told Free Press that the boy is stuck at around 40 feet inside the 60 feet borewell. Oxygen is being supplied and the rescuers are chatting with him. So far, the boy has been responding, but inclement weather is affecting the rescue operation. Retail inflation dips to 4.85% NEW DELHI: Retail inflation declined to a fivemonth low of 4.85 per cent in March mainly due to cooling food prices, inching towards the Reserve Bank's FOREX AT RECORD HIGH India's foreign exchange reserves hit a fresh record high of $648.56 bln as of Apr 5, rising for the seventh consecutive week, according to data released by the Reserve Bank of India today. target of 4 per cent, according to official data released on Friday . The Consumer Price Index (CPI) based retail inflation was 5.09 per cent in February and 5.66 per cent in March 2023. Previously, CPI-based inflation was the lowest at 4.87 per cent in October 2023. CONTD. ON P7 BJP supporters during a public meeting to be addressed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha election, in Udhampur, on Friday ‘CONSTITUTION LIKE BIBLE, RAMAYANA, QURAN FOR US’ ELECTIONS IN J&K SOON UDHAMPUR: Addressing a gathering, Modi said, "The time is not far when the Assembly polls will be held in Jammu and Kashmir, which will also get its statehood back. You will again raise your issues with your legislators and ministers." He said the development projects undertaken by the BJP-led Centre are just a "trailer", adding that he has to work for the creation of a fabulous picture of a new Jammu and Kashmir in the days to come. JAIPUR: Amid opposition charges that the BJP was out to destroy the Constitution, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said in Barmer, "The Constitution is Geeta, Ramayana, Mahabharata, Bible and Quran for the government. For us, the Constitution is everything.” Terming it a "gross violation" of the law, the CIC has also directed the EC to submit a written explanation NEW DELHI, The Central Information Commission (CIC) has expressed "severe displeasure" over the Election Commission (EC) not furnishing a reply to an RTI plea that had asked the poll panel about the action taken on a "representation" given to it by eminent citizens, raising questions on the credibility of EVMs and VVPAT machines during elections. Former Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer M G Devasahayam, who was one of the signatories to the representation on the credibility of electronic voting machines (EVMs), voter-verifiable paper audit trail (VVPAT) and the vote-counting process, had filed an application with the poll panel under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, seeking details of the action taken on it. The representation was sent to the EC on May 2, 2022. Through the RTI application filed on November 22, 2022, Devasahayam wanted to know about the persons and public authorities to whom the representation was forwarded, details of any meetings held on the issue and all relevant file notings. CONTD. ON P7 ‘She is kingpin, need to question her to establish money trail’ Bharat Rashtra Samithi leader K Kavitha - arrested in March in the alleged Delhi liquor policy scam has been sent to the custody of the Central Bureau of Investigation for three days, i.e., till April 15. She was previously in judicial custody - in Delhi's Tihar Jail - till April 23 in a related money laundering case. Kavitha, 46, was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate - as her brother and ex-Telangana minister KT Rama Rao argued with ED officials - from Hyderabad Swarn Rekha River case last month and sent to its custody . She was then arrested by the CBI - while in Tihar on judicial custody on Thursday evening. Last week CBI officials had questioned Kavitha while she was inside Tihar Jail. The CBI had sought custody of Kavitha for five days, arguing that witness statements, WhatsApp chats, and financial docu- ments implicated her as a "major conspirator" in a scheme to pay Rs 100 crore in bribes to Delhi's ruling Aam Aadmi Party for liquor licences under the now-scrapped policy . "Kavitha was required to be arrested... to conduct her custodial interrogation (by) confronting her with the evidence and witnesses, to unearth the larger conspiracy hatched by the accused/suspects regarding formulation and implementation of the excise policy," the central agency told the court. CONTD. ON P7 OUR STAFF REPORTER City.bhopal@fpj.co.in A double bench of the High Court, Gwalior on Friday warned Gwalior Municipal Corporation officials that they would hand over case to CBI if they do not come up with concrete answers regarding the Swarna Rekha River revival plan They were hearing a PIL filed by Vishwajit Rantandhiya. Justice Rohit Arya warned that corporation officials were testing his patience by their lackadaisical attitude. Advocate Avadesh Singh Tomar, who appeared on behalf of petitioner, said, "Justice Rohit Arya said that if the Corporation officials are lying in the High Court, he would send everyone to jail. The judge said that it appears that all the money has been wasted." The court asked the corporation officials to file a report on five points regarding the project and if they are not satisfied then the case would be handed over to the CBI. The hearing in the case has been going on continuously for the past six months. THE FIVE POINTS Q How much money has been spent in reviving the Swarna Rekha Rekha River? Q How much money has been spent to repair the sewage line? Q How much money is spent on the sewage plant? Q How much money has been received for garbage collection, how much has been spent? Q How much money has been spent on the river from 2004 to 2024? India among 12 nations responsible for 60% of world's plastic waste Still, India's mismanaged plastic waste will be less than one-fifth of China and one-third of the US NEW DELHI India is among the twelve countries responsible for 60 percent of the planet's mismanaged plastic waste though the fast-developing South Asian nation's per capita plastic waste production is among the lowest in the world, according to a new report. The Plastic Overshoot Day re- CINEMA Advisory against Iran, Israel visit NEW DELHI India on Friday asked its citizens not to travel to Iran and Israel amid increasing fears that Tehran may launch an attack on Israeli soil in retaliation to a strike on the Iranian consulate in Syria 11 days ago. People familiar with the latest developments said no more Indians will be allowed to go to Israel to work in the construction sector. The first batch of 64 Indian workers had left for Israel earlier this month and over 6,000 construction workers from India were to leave for Israel in April and May . There have been mounting tensions in West Asia following the attack on the Iranian consulate in Damascus. Iran blamed Israel for the strike and there have been media reports from Tel Aviv that the Israeli forces are preparing for any eventualities. In an advisory the , Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) also urged the Indians residing in Iran and Israel to exercise utmost precautions about their safety and restrict their movements to minimum. "In view of the prevailing situation in the region, all Indians are advised not to travel to Iran or Israel till further notice," it said. "All those who are currently residing in Iran or Israel are requested to get in touch with Indian Embassies there and register themselves," the MEA said. CONTD. ON P7 ‘Nath, son with dynasty, want to protect corrupt’ BJP is not against caste census, he says OUR STAFF REPORTER BHOPAL National president of the BJP JP Nadda has said 'INDI Alliance' is a combination of political outfits belonging to different families. Kamal Nath and his son are associated with a dynasty, so they should be made to sit at home after the Lok Sabha election, Nadda said at a public meeting in Chhindwara on Friday . 'INDI Alliance' counts only on two things - save the family-based parties and the corrupt, he said. As time has changed, Chhindwara should also change, he said, adding that the atmosphere in this constituency indicates that the voters have decided to alter the political landscape of this place. Nadda said during the rule of the previous governments when there were incidents of firing in Poonch, there were discussions in Nagrota for action against terrorists. Then the discussions were held at Chandi temple and permission was sought from Delhi about whether the security forces should retaliate Shah road show on April 16 Union Home Minister Amit Shah will organise a road show in Chhindwara Lok Sabha constituency, which has become a prestige issue for the BJP, on April 16. It will be a two-kmlong road show. Preparation on for April 14 Modi show Prime Minister Narendra Modi is going to address a public rally in Pipariya on April 14. People are being brought from Chhindwara to attend Modi's rally, so that it may have an impact on the voters of Chhindwara. Nevertheless, there is no programme for Modi's road show in Chhindwara. CIC pulls up EC for HC warns GMC: not replying to RTI Will hand over query on EVMs case to CBI 2 arrested for Bengaluru 3-DAY CBI CUSTODY FOR KAVITHA NEW DELHI of the country They enjoy . playing with the sentiments of the people. A person who has been sentenced by the court and who is on bail, they visit the house of such a criminal and enjoys cooking mutton in the month of Sawan and they make a video of it to tease the people of the country." The Prime Minister further said that it is the right of an individual to eat vegetarian or non-vegetarian, however, the intentions of the opposition leaders are questionable. "The law does not stop anyone from eating anything, and Modi will also not stop anyone but the intentions of these people are something else. When the Mughals attacked here, they were not satisfied until they demolished the temples. So just like the Mughals, they want to tease the people of the country by showing the video in the month of Sawan," he said. CONTD. ON P7 QUALITY AT VALUE www.freepressjournal.in HUNGER FOR THE BEST 37.10c. 23.70c OPPN LOVES TO TEASE PEOPLE LIKE MUGHALS THE POLL ISSUES THAT SHOULD MATTER ON RAHUL-LALU MUTTON & TEJASHWI FISH VIDEOS, PM MODI SAYS... UDHAMPUR: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday attacked the 'Mughal' mindset of INDIA bloc leaders Rahul Gandhi and Lalu Yadav and his son, Tejashwi Yadav for hurting the religious sentiments of Hindus and teasing them by cooking mutton during Sawan and eating fish during Navratri. PM Modi said that these leaders are inspired by a 'Mughal' mindset and they enjoy hurting the sentiments of the people. Prime Minister's remarks were about Rahul Gandhi's visit to RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, where he cooked mutton at the latter's residence on September 2, 2023. The Wayanad MP had also shared a video in this regard on his YouTube channel. Addressing an election rally in Udhampur, Prime Minister Modi said, "The people of Congress and INDI alliance do not care about the sentiments of the majority of the people r RNI No. 38281/83 EDITIONS: INDORE, BHOPAL, UJJAIN, MUMBAI, PUNE WEATHER FP port by Swiss nonprofit EA Earth Action also said global plastic waste generation has risen by 7.11 per cent since 2021. The world is estimated to have generated 220 million tons of plastic waste this year, 70 million tons of which will end up polluting the environment. The report comes ahead of the fourth meeting of the United Nations' Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) in Ot- tawa, Canada, as the world leaders attempt to develop a legally binding instrument to end plastic pollution. "Twelve countries are responsible for 60 per cent of the world's mismanaged plastic waste: China, India, Russia, Brazil, Mexico, Vietnam, Iran, Indonesia, Egypt, Pakistan, the United States and Turkey," it said. CONTD. ON P7 against the terrorists or not, he said. CONTD. ON P7 cafe blast from Bengal AGENCIES New Delhi/Kolkata The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Friday arrested two key accused, including the mastermind, in Bengaluru's Rameshwaram Cafe blast case from West Bengal, a development that triggered a war of words between the BJP and the state's ruling TMC. While the BJP alleged that the TMC has turned West Bengal into a "safe haven for terrorists", Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said the accused were arrested due to the state police's prompt action. The accused, Adbul Matheen Ahmed Taahaa and Mussavir Hussain Shazib, were traced to their hideout near Kolkata. They were hiding under false identities, the officials said. Taahaa was the mastermind behind the planning and execution of the blast and Shazib placed the Improvised Explosive Device (IED) at the cafe, they said. They said that "this pursuit was supported by coordinated action and cooperation among the NIA, central intelligence agencies and the state police agencies of West Bengal, Telan- TO SAVE KERALITE FROM SAUDI GALLOWS gana, Karnataka and Kerala". An IED explosion rocked the Rameshwaram cafe located on ITPL Road, Brookefield, Bengaluru, on March 1. Several customers and hotel staff members were injured, some of them grievously, in the blast that caused extensive damage to the property . The NIA took over the probe on March 3 and had announced a reward of Rs 10 lakh for information leading to the arrest of each of the two accused. Following the arrests, BJP co-incharge of West Bengal Amit Malviya hit out at the TMC, saying the party has turned West Bengal into a "safe haven for terrorists". CONTD. ON P7 `30cr blood money raised by crowd funding, `4cr left Positive progress on resolving border row with India: China Fatima, mother of Abdul Rahim, who is on death row in Saudi Arabia, cannot hide her happiness as a staggering Rs 30 crore, of blood money to save him from execution, has been raised through crowdfunding. Abdul Rahim requires another Rs 4 crore as a court in Saudi Arabia ruled in October last year that if he pays Rs 34 crore as blood money to the family of the victim, then he will be free. The last date for the payment of the blood money is April 18. His house here is buzzing with activity after Fatima last month issued a passionate plea seeking help from all to save her son. First, the local mosques came to her support and soon when the media took it up, an action committee to save the life of Abdul Rahim was formed and an China and India have made "positive progress" to resolve the border standoff, with both sides maintaining close communication through diplomatic and military channels, a senior foreign ministry official said here on Friday . Foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning's remarks were further elaboration on China's reaction to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent statement in which he said that for New Delhi, ties with Beijing are important and the "prolonged situation" at the borders should be addressed urgently . In an interview with Newsweek magazine, Prime Minister Modi expressed hope that through positive and constructive bilateral engagement at the diplomatic and military levels, the two countries will be able to restore and sustain peace and tranquillity at their borders. KOZHIKODE (KERALA) app seeking contributions from all kind-hearted souls from across the globe was created. "On March 19, we were able to raise only Rs 1 crore and on Friday, we touched Rs 30.11 crore. At the moment, we have decided to stop as it was decided to do an audit. We will resume it again later in the day and given the fantastic response that we saw, we are confident we will be able to achieve the target and Abdul Rahim and his mother will be able to meet soon," a representative of the group behind this crowdfunding venture said. CONTD. ON P7 AGENCIES Beijing