FP The publishers permit sharing of the e-paper's pdf on WhatsApp and other social media platforms FREE PRESS Vol. XLI No. 231 | INDORE | TUESDAY | JANUARY 28, 2025 | Pages 16 ` 3 | Regd. No. Indore MP/ICD 216/2024-2026 | RNI No. 38281/83 www.freepressjournal.in Sports TWO TITANS, ONE NATION P.16 fp Briefs DEHRADUN Uttarakhand implements UCC BJP-ruled Uttarakhand on Monday became the first state in independent India to implement the Uniform Civil Code, which promotes equal laws for every citizen across all religions and standardises personal laws on marriage, divorce and property. With the implementation of the UCC which applies to all people of Uttarakhand except those belonging to the Scheduled Tribe community, the BJP has fulfilled a major commitment made to people of the state ahead of the 2022 assembly polls which saw the party storming to power for a second consecutive term. ESTD-1983 iii QUALITY @ VALUE EDITIONS: INDORE UJJAIN MONEY PUNE BHOPAL NASHIK Cinema Celebs at Maha Kumbh P.14 CHINA COUNTER | The two leaders said they are committed to a mutually beneficial and trusted partnership Phir wahi dil laya hoon Mansarovar Yatra, direct air flights on FP News Service BEIJING FP News Service NEW DELHI Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a telephone conversation with US President Donald Trump on Monday and said the two countries are committed to a mutually beneficial and trusted partnership. Describing Donald Trump, who took oath as US President earlier this month, as "my dear friend", PM Modi said India and the United States will work together towards achieving global peace, prosperity, and security. The Prime Minister also congratulated Trump on his second term in office. This is the first conversation between the two leaders since the inauguration of the US President for a second term on January 20. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar represented PM Modi as his Special Envoy at the inaugural function. He also carried a letter from PM Modi for Trump. The United States is India's largest trading partner and two-way trade between the two countries surpassed $118 billion in 2023/24, with India posting a trade surplus of $32 billion. India, a strategic partner of the United States in its efforts to counter China, is keen to enhance trade relations with the U.S. and make it easier for its citizens to get skilled worker visas. E-paper Edit President’s fresh pitch for ONOE P.8 India to ditch privatisation plans, pour billions in PSUs India and China on Monday decided to resume the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra as the two sides agreed to take people-centric steps to "stabilise and rebuild" ties. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said this following Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri's talks with his Chinese counterpart Sun Weidong in Beijing. It said the two sides also agreed in principle to resume direct air services between the two countries. "As agreed between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping at their meeting in Kazan in October, the two sides reviewed the state of India-China bilateral relations comprehensively and agreed to take certain people-centric steps to stabilize and rebuild ties," the MEA said. The MEA said the two MUMBAI sides also agreed to hold an early meeting of the IndiaChina expert level mechanism to discuss resumption of provision of hydrological data and other cooperation pertaining to trans-border rivers; the two sides agreed to take appropriate measures to further promote and facilitate people-topeople exchanges, including media and think-tank interactions. Incidentally, 2025 marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between India and China. After 36 days in hiding, Sharma walks into court Our Staff Reporter Sharma had been absconding since December 19, when the Lokayukta conducted raids at two of his properties BHOPAL Elusive former transport department constable Saurabh Sharma made a surprise appearance in the special court of Lokayukta Bhopal on Monday, after 36 days of evading authorities following a raid on his premises. The court has instructed him to appear again on Tuesday, officials said. Sharma had been absconding since December 19, when the Lokayukta conducted raids at two of his properties in Bhopal. His sudden appearance in court took place in the forenoon before Special Judge RP Mishra, where Sharma’s lawyer, Rakesh Parashar, stated that his client had surrendered. Parashar told Free Pressthat Sharma was asked to appear before the court on Tuesday at 11 am. Special public prosecutor Vivek Singh Gaur said “Saurabh appeared into the Court along withhis advocate. As no case is pending in the court related to him, the court asked him to appear on Tuesday. It also asked Lokayukta to present the case diary”. The prosecutor said that Sharma is wanted by the court, with charges registered under non-bailable sections. Earlier, the court had cancelled his anticipatory bail, he said. SP Lokayukta DK Rathore said that Sharma is a prime suspect in a case related to disproportionate assets, which is being investigated by the agency. Authorities are keen to question him as part of the ongoing investigation. Wanted by three agencies Following a Lokayukta raid on December 19, Saurabh Sharma, a former transport department constable, has come under the radar of multiple investigative agencies, including the Lokayukta, Income Tax Department, and Enforcement Directorate (ED). During the raid, movable assets worth Rs 7.98 crore were discovered at locations linked to Sharma. 4Continued on | P6 JPC RIDES ROUGHSHOD OVER OPPN WAQF BOARD BILL FP News Service MUMBAI In a move that has sparked intense debate and political friction, the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on Monday cleared the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, approving 14 amendments proposed by the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) while rejecting all suggestions from the Opposition. The bill, which seeks to overhaul the management of Muslim charitable properties in India, has been met with fierce resistance from Opposition members, who have accused the government of undermining democratic processes and minority rights. The JPC, chaired by BJP MP Jagdambika Pal, held its final meeting on Monday after six months of deliberations. The committee discussed 44 amendments to the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, which was introduced in the Lok Sabha in August 2023. The bill aims to amend the Waqf Act of 1995, a law that governs the administration of waqf properties—assets donated by Muslims for religious, educational, or charitable purposes. Pal announced that 14 amendments had been accepted based on a majority vote. "We moved each and every amendment proposed by the Opposition, but there were 10 votes supporting theirs and 16 votes opposing it," he said. The NDA, with its 16 members in the 21-member committee, ensured that all its proposals were approved, while the Opposition's 44 amendments were rejected. Among the 14 approved amendments, three stand out for their potential to reshape the functioning of waqf boards: *Non-Muslim Members in Waqf Boards: The bill mandates that at least two nonMuslim members must be part of every waqf board, whether at the state or national level. This amendment has drawn criticism from Opposition members, who argue that it undermines the autonomy of Muslim institutions. The original draft allowed for ex-officio members who could be either Muslim or non-Muslim, but the new provision makes non-Muslim representation compulsory. 4Continued on | P6 BJP, RSS want to make Dalits, Adivasis slaves: Rahul in Mhow Our Staff Reporter MHOW Congress MP and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, on Monday, hit out at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its ideologue Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), accusing them of attempting to make Dalits and Adivasis "slaves". Addressing a 'Jai Bapu, Jai Bhim, Jai Samvidhan' rally in Cong leader Rahul Gandhi with BSP founder Kanshi Ram’s sister Swaran Kaur Bumrah, Mandhana honoured DUBAI: The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Monday announced the latest set of winners in the ongoing ICC Awards 2024, with the outstanding cricketers in Men’s Tests and Men’s and Women’s ODIs revealed on ICC channels. A double success for India sees Jasprit Bumrah crowned the ICC Men’s Test Cricketer of the Year, with compatriot Smriti Mandhana sealing her second ICC Women’s ODI Cricketer of the Year. (Detail on Sports Page) In what BJP described as an insult to Dr Ambedkar, Rahul Gandhi did not even get up from his chair to accept a memento of the Father of the Constitution. The Congress leader also returned a worker who came to present him a picture of Khatu Shayam. The BJP released two videos of the incident Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL The state government went for a major reshuffle and transferred 42 IAS officers on Monday evening. A major change has been done at the CM Secretariat. Bharat Yadav and Avinash Lavania have been transferred. Bharat Yadav, Secretary to CM, has been transferred as MD, Madhya Pradesh Road Development Corporation. Full Report on Pg5 Global markets were rattled on Monday as Chinese startup DeepSeek blindsided tech investors with a disruptive A.I. breakthrough. The tech stocks were spooked by jitters that advances in artificial intelligence by a Chinese upstart could threaten the hegemony of American technology giants. The Chinese company DeepSeek made waves by matching the capabilities of cutting-edge chatbots while using a fraction of the specialized computer chips that leading A.I. companies rely on. This seismic achievement cast doubt on Nvidia’s dominance, sending its shares tumbling 13% in early trading, erasing about $465 billion from the company’s market capitalization. 4Continued on | P6 BHOPAL Our Staff Reporter INDORE The unidentified man, who was found dead with a severe head injury on the road a few days ago in Khajrana area, has been identified as a police inspector. The killer or killers had murdered the inspector with a stone after hitting him on the back of the head, resulting in the fatal deep injury. Sources claimed that the victim has been identified as Prabhat Narayan Chaturvedi, an inspector at Police Radio Training School. However, the police officials have yet not disclosed the victim’s identity. On the morning of January 24, passersby informed police 4 killed over old enmity in Jabalpur dist Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL Major rejig: 42 IAS officers transferred Reshuffle of SAS officers Bhopal: The state government transferred a dozen officers of the State Administrative Service (SAS) on Monday. Nanda Bhalave has been transferred as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of District Panchayat, Agar Malwa, Rakesh Kusre as the Deputy Secretary of Technical Education, Ila Tiwari as the CEO of District Panchayat On January 24, passersby informed police that a body was lying on the service road near Labhganga Garden that a body was lying in a pool of blood on the service road near Labhganga Garden. The police reached the spot and found his body with a deep injury on the back of his head. Preliminary investigation revealed that he might have been killed by someone with a heavy object. The police were analysing CCTV footage to identify accused. Further investigation into the matter was underway. 4Continued on | P6 4Continued on | P6 Miscreants assault flight Lt after spar over wrong entry Our Staff Reporter Four men were killed and another person was injured after a group of people attacked them with sharpedged weapons in Jabalpur district on Monday, police said. Victim’s family members blocked road demanding immediate action against the accused. Jabalpur ASP Surkant Sharma told media that the incident took place at around 11 am in Timari village, located 25 km from the district headquarters. The incident was the result of an old enmity between the two groups, the official said. To attract investment, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav left on Japan tour on Monday evening. He boarded the Japanbound plane from Delhi. This is his second foreign tour after becoming the CM. Before this, he had gone to United Kingdom and Germany. As far as his Japan tour is concerned, the CM is accompanied by Additional Chief Secretary Rajesh Rajora, Commissioner, Public Relations Sudam Khade and Principal Secretary, Industries Raghvendra Singh. Before leaving on his Japan voyage, the CM said that Japan is keen to work INDORE Four miscreants assaulted an IAF flight lieutenant here, following an argument over driving a vehicle on the wrong side, an official said on Monday. The incident occurred on Jail Road at 3 pm on Sunday when the victim was going with his cousin to get a smart watch repaired. SI Vishal Parihar of MG Road police station said Vishwa Chauhan, a resident of Sudama Nagar, who is a flight lieutenant in the Indian Air Force, lodged a complaint saying that he was going on his two- wheeler when one Manoj Audhichya coming from the wrong side stopped his vehicle in front of his (Chauhan’s) scooter. He objected to the vehicle on the wrong side and an argument broke out, following which Manoj abused him and called three of his accomplices. Later, all four of them assaulted him, causing injuries. The police have registered a case against the accused under sections 115(2) (voluntarily causing hurt to another person), 296(Whoever, to the annoyance of others), 351(1) (Criminal intimidation) and 3(5) of the BNS and further investigation is underway. colombia buckles Trump shows how tariff threats will work IANS NEW YORK MUMBAI 4Continued on | P6 Insult to Ambedkar: BJP Low-cost Chinese A.I. choice jolts Silicon Valley FP News Service Madhya Pradesh's Mhow, the Congress leader said that Dalits and Adivasis had no rights until the Constitution was made after the country became free from British rule. "The Constitution made by Ambedkar gives right to Dalits and Adivasis along with others, but the BJP and RSS are conspiring to snatch their rights and make them slaves," Rahul Gandhi said. CM leaves for Japan to attract investment Our Staff Reporter 4Continued on | P6 Murder victim a police inspector? As the US has intensified its campaign of rounding up illegal migrants and deporting them on military planes, it overcame opposition from Colombia with threats of tariffs in a preview of how President Donald Trump will enforce his campaign promise. After Colombia refused to let two aircraft carrying its nationals apprehended in the US as illegal migrants land, Trump announced on Truth Social on Sunday afternoon a 25 per cent tariff on imports from that country, which, he threatened, would double in a week. However, by Sunday night, Colombia's resistance crumbled, and the White House said it had agreed to "unrestricted acceptance of all illegal aliens from Colombia" including those coming on military planes. In a show of force on Sunday, federal agents fanned out across the US rounding up criminal illegal migrants. Trump had promised mass deporations in his Day 1 agenda, but the logistical impossibility of rounding up millions of people has made his administration moderate it by prioritising those who had committed crimes, reinvigorating enforcement of laws that were followed tepidly. Brazil, meanwhile, protested the handcuffing of deportees who arrived there on US planes calling it "degrading treatment". Mexico temporarily refused to let US military planes carrying deportees land last week, but quickly rescinded the orders and let them back in. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said, "It is the responsibility of each nation to take back their citizens who are illegally present in the United States in a serious and expeditious manner". 4Continued on | P6