Vol. 67 No. 230 | THURSDAY | JUNE 27, 2024 | 26 Pages | `5 & for Pune `6 only Reg.No MCS/048/2021-23; RNI No. 1541/1957 M.p.c.s office Mumbai. PIN 400001 THE FREE PRESS JOURNAL www.freepressjournal.in NATION NIA announces `10 lakh reward on info for arrest of Goldy Brar and his associate fp EDITIONS: MUMBAI INDORE PUNE BHOPAL NASHIK KONKAN E-paper WORLD Cinema Kamal Haasan launches the trailer of Indian 2 WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange returns to his homeland Edit Not good signs of an orderly Parliament GEARING UP | Last sitting before state assembly poll Briefs Three killed in J&K gunfight Three terrorists were killed after a fierce gunfight between terrorists and security forces in the Gandoh area of Doda district in Jammu and Kashmir. The terrorists were believed to be involved in recent attacks on the army and police in the Valley. A huge cache of arms and ammunition, including USmade M4 carbine, have been recovered from the encounter site. Operations to flush out terrorists have intensified in Doda, Rajouri and Poonch regions following a series of terrorist attacks. Bihar school’s head detained The CBI on Wednesday detained National Testing Agency city coordinator and principal of Hazaribagh-based Oasis School Ehsan Ul Haq for questioning in connection with the NEET-UG paper leak. Haq was detained after several hours of questioning. The Bihar police Economic Offences Unit had found on May 5 (the day of the examination) a burnt question paper and recovered a booklet no 636488 from a locality in the state capital. Later, investigators traced the booklet number to the Oasis School examination centre. Freak sleeper berth mishap In a freak mishap, a 62year-old man from Kerala died after the middle sleeper berth in the train he was travelling in came off the latches and crashed on him. According to reports reaching here, the accident took place on Friday inside the Millennium Superfast Express (Ernakulam - H.Nizamuddin) and the deceased was identified as Ali Khan from Ponnani in Malappuram district. Khan was travelling to Delhi and the train was near Warangal in Telangana when the tragedy occurred. He was rushed to a hospital in Warangal and later shifted to the KIMS Multi-speciality Hospital in Hyderabad, where he underwent three major surgeries. However, he succumbed to his injuries. Rain or not, expect thunder in session Rohit Chandavarkar & Kalpesh Mhamunkar MUMBAI Unlike the rains which have so far been errant, the last monsoon session of the Maharashtra assembly before the upcoming state polls, beginning in Mumbai on Thursday, holds out the promise of thunder and lightning. The opposition parties – the Congress, Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena and Sharad Pawar’s NCP – are planning to corner the Eknath Shinde government over various issues such as the law-and-order situation, students’ predicament, Maratha reservation, farmer suicides, onion farmers’ agitation, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, languishing in Tihar Jail following his arrest by the ED in connection with the money laundering aspect of the Delhi liquor policy case, was on Wednesday also arrested by the CBI. the Porsche crash case in Pune, corruption, unemployment, investment and other subjects. The Ghatkopar billboard collapse incident, the droughtlike situation in many parts of Maharashtra and falling rates of cotton and soybean will also be raised, to corner the government. The long-lasting agitation of onion producers, farmer sui- Birla re-elected Speaker Emergency overhang on LS election FPJ News Service NEW DELHI nations had been filed by both Birla and Suresh for the post. He put the resolution for appointment of Birla to a voice vote. The Opposition did not press for a division. Thereafter Mahtab announced the election of Birla as the new Speaker. As soon as the announcement was made Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who was appointed the Leader of Opposition at a meeting of the floor leaders of the Congress and its INDIA bloc allies on Tuesday, Newly elected Speaker Om Birla talked of harmony as he assumed the Chair but caused a commotion by mentioning the "dark days of Emergency" and calling for a 2-minute silence to condemn it, igniting protests and adjournment of the House. “This House strongly condemns the decision to impose Emergency in 1975,’’ Birla said amid vociferous protests by the Opposition parties. Appealing to the members to ensure decorum, he said they must draw a line between protest in the ‘sansad’ (House) and protest on ‘sadak’ (street). Thereafter, he asked the members to rise and observe two minutes' silence to mark the 50th anniversary of the "dark days of Emergency". This triggered further uproar on the Opposition benches with members springing to 4Contd on | Nation 4Contd on | Nation Wins via voice vote Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar NEW DELHI Three-term MP from Kota in Rajasthan and Speaker during the previous Lok Sabha, Om Birla, was on Tuesday reelected as Speaker of the 18th Lok Sabha by a voice vote. The Congress-led INDIA bloc had fielded the most senior MP, Kodikunnil Suresh, for the post after the BJP-led NDA alliance refused to assure that the Deputy Speaker’s post would go to an Opposition leader. On Wednesday morning Pro Tem Speaker Bhartruhari Mahtab announced that nomi- cides in the state and the ban on onion exports have become a burning political issue in the state. The recent Pune Porsche crash case, in which some allegations were levelled against an MLA of the NCP – for his alleged role in trying to intervene on behalf of the accused – is also expected to be raked up, apart from the issues faced by students and agitating workers in various parts of the state. In a symbolic act of protest, the opposition parties boycotted the customary tea party organised by the CM on the eve of the session at Vidhan Bhavan in Mumbai. 4Contd on | Nation Congress reinstates Pitroda The Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly on Wednesday unanimously adopted a resolution moved by Chief Minister M K Stalin calling upon the Government of India to conduct castebased census along with the general decadal Census. “This House considers that a caste-based population census is essential to formulate policies in order to ensure equal rights and equal opportunities in education, economy and employment to every citizen of India. This House, therefore, unanimously urges the Union government to commence the [decadal] census work immediately, which has been due from 2021 4Contd on | Nation Agencies NEW DELHI Half the adults in India do not engage in sufficient physical activity, according to a study published in The Lancet Global Health journal. If the trend continues, it is projected that in 2030, 60 per cent of the adults could be insufficiently engaging in physical activity. The World Health Organisa- Rashid, redress and rain – these are the three variables that India face when they confront England in their T20 World Cup semifinal match at the petite Guyana National Stadium on Thursday. Memories of their last encounter in Adelaide will loom large, when England's remarkable opening partnership between Jos Buttler and Alex Hales saw them cruise to victory, forcing India to rethink their T20 strategy. This time, India is better prepared, bolstered by skipper Rohit Sharma's explosive form and a potent spin attack perfectly suited for the Guyana track. Skipper Rohit Sharma's recent performance against Australia, where he hammered 92 off just 41 balls, has set the stage for another razzmatazz display. His form adds significant firepower to India's batting line-up, making them a formidable opponent. His ability to dismantle any bowling attack with tidal boundaries and sixes has been a game-changer, and Indian fans will be hoping for another ‘hit’ job from their skipper. Petitioners cite Free Press Journal report to highlight 2,590 commuters lost their lives on suburban trains in 2023 – which is seven people every day. As against this, 1,400 persons lost their lives in active duty in the Army Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday reappointed Sam Pitroda as chairman of the Indian Overseas Congress, days after he had resigned from the post following some controversial remarks in the middle of Lok Sabha elections, which the BJP had termed as "racist". Pitroda, who is considered a close aide of Rahul Gandhi, had resigned from the post on May 8. He had stoked a major controversy with his remarks during a podcast where he cited ethnic and racial identities like Chinese, Africans, Arabs and Whites and likened these to the physical appearance of Indians in different parts of the country. Later, towards the end of April, when the first phase of the elections was over and the Congress was fending off the charge that its manifesto Observing that there had been no violation of the fundamental right of students, the Bombay High Court on Wednesday refused to interfere with the decision of a city college that had imposed a ban on the wearing of hijab, burqa and naqab on its premises. The court noted that the college had a fundamental right to administer the educational institution and that the dress code was applicable to all students, irrespective of their religion or caste. A bench of Justices A S tion recommends performing at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity per week or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity physical activity per week. Physical inactivity heightens risk of developing non-communicable diseases, including diabetes and heart disease, some strains of cancers and dementia. 4Contd on | Nation India's spinners, led by Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav, will be crucial on the turn-friendly Guyana pitch as they are well-equipped to exploit these conditions. The possible inclusion of YuzvendraChahal will give an added precision and Kuldeep’s variety could pose significant challenges for the English batsmen, who have shown vulnerabilities against quality spin, 4Contd on | Nation The Bombay High Court on Monday criticised the Railways over the “very very serious” issue of fatalities caused by people falling from trains, saying that this has to be addressed. “You carry people like cattle,” the High Court said, adding that it will make the highest level officers accountable as the “situation in Mumbai is pathetic”. “A very, very serious issue has been raised in the PIL and therefore you have to address it. You can’t say, we can’t do this or can’t do that due to the large number of people (in the city). You carry people like cattle… We feel ashamed at the manner in which commuters are made to commute. It should be a well considered reply,” said a bench of Chief Justice DK Upadhyaya and Justice Amit Borkar. The court was hearing a PIL by one Yatin Jadhav which has voiced concern about the fatalities among commuters using the Mumbai suburban railway, which is the second busiest globally after Tokyo. The advocates for the petitioners, Rohan Shah and 4Contd on | Nation Hijab ban in city college is no violation of rights: HC Urvi Mahajani India itching to settle scores with England Meenakshi Rao We feel ashamed at the manner in which commuters are made to commute MUMBAI special dispatch – offgrid PROVIDENCE Urvi Mahajani MUMBAI FPJ News Service Stalin seeks national 50% Indians turning caste-based census into couch potatoes CHENNAI Rlys ferrying people like cattle, says HC NEW DELHI 4Cond on | Nation N Chithra Kejriwal in CBI remand CM Eknath Shinde and Dy CM Ajit Pawar share a light moment at a customary tea party ahead of the session Member: Audit Bureau of Circulation (Jan to Dec 2023) ‘As per the dress code stipulated by the college, students are expected to wear something formal and decent, which will not reveal their religion’ Chandurkar and Rajesh Patil dismissed the petition saying it was not inclined to interfere with the decision of the college. The HC was hearing a petition by nine students pursuing their science degree challeng- ing a directive issued by the Chembur Trombay Education Society’s N G Acharya and D K Marathe College, imposing a ban on hijab, naqab, burqa, stoles, caps and badges in the classroom, terming it as “arbitrary, unreasonable, bad in law and perverse”. They claimed that such a directive was against their fundamental rights to practise their religion, privacy and choice. The judges said, in their view, “the dress code as prescribed cannot be held to violate the petitioners’ rights claimed under Article 19(1) (a) 4Continued on | P19