FP The publishers permit sharing of the e-paper's pdf on WhatsApp and other social media platforms Vol. 14 No. 242 | BHOPAL | FRIDAY | FEBRUARY 14, 2025 | Pages 14 ` 3 | Regd. No. Indore MP/ICD 216/2024-2026 | RNI No. mpeng/2010/35815 FREE www.freepressjournal.in iii QUALITY @ VALUE EDITIONS: Sports BHOPAL 6-yr-old kidnapped from Gwalior, found in Morena Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL Our Sports Reporter BHOPAL Athletes from Madhya Pradesh brought home five gold, six silver, and one bronze medals on the concluding day of the 38th National Games held in Uttarakhand. The state’s stellar performances in MP canoeing team malkhamb, modern pentathlon, canoeing, wrestling, and hockey helped them retain their position at 4th place in the overall medal tally. Details on Sports Page then informed the police, who rushed to the spot and took Shivay in their custody. After being recovered, Shivay talked with his parents on a video call and appeared safe and unharmed. His family members have left for Banshipura village to pick up the child. Shivay's father Rahul Gupta said he had talked to his son and he appeared fine. He thanked the police for their speedy action. Chief Minister Mohan Yadav praised Gwalior police and said that soon after the kidnapping the police had launched a vigorous search operation and it was due to police action that the child was recovered. He has directed the police to take strict action against the miscreants who orchestrated the kidnapping. Earlier, in the morning, two men on a motorcycle had kidnapped Shivay while he was walking to his school bus stop. The incident occurred in the CP Colony area under the Morar police station. According to SP Dhramveer Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar NEW DELHI Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday introduced in the Lok Sabha the new Income Tax Bill 2025 which seeks to simplify the language and structure of the Income-tax Act, 1961. Introducing the Bill amid protests from some Opposition MPs, Sitharaman said it has brought about “substantial changes” to the 84-year-old law. 4Continued on | P8 Singh, the boy and his mother were on their way to the bus stop at around 8 am when a man approached them from behind, threw chilli powder into the mother's eyes, and snatched the child. The kidnapper then ran to a waiting motorcycle, where another person was already seated, and they sped off. The entire incident was captured on CCTV footage, which was handed over to the police for further investigation. Police had immediately registered a case and launched a manhunt to catch the kidnappers. Authorities had also announced a reward of Rs 30,000 for any information leading to the arrest of suspects. NASHIK MUMBAI E-paper Edit The Kerala horror story P.10 Nation Nitish to be NDA face again... President's Rule in Manipur PTI IMPHAL P.9 Unloading of UCC waste begins at Ramky plant FP News Service PITHAMPUR (MHOW) President's Rule was imposed in Manipur late on Thursday under Article 356 of the Constitution five days after the state Chief Minister N Biren Singh resigned from the post following the directions from the central BJP leaders. A notification issued from the Ministry of Home Affairs said on Thursday that President Droupadi Murmu has received a report from the Governor of Manipur and after considering the report and other information received by the President, she was satisfied that a situation has arisen in which the government of that state cannot be carried on in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution. Continued on | P8 Sharma, accomplices remain tight-lipped Our Staff Reporter BHOPAL The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has failed to unravel the mystery behind 52kg gold and Rs 11 crore found in an abandoned car at Mendori in Bhopal. It happened after the efforts of Special Establishment Police (SPE) of Lokayukta to find the culprits associated with the gold and cash came to naught. Former constable of the Transport Department Saurabh Sharma and his cohorts, Chetan and Sharad, remained tight-lipped about it. According to sources, when the ED sleuths quizzed the Their silence over the issue has created a problem for the probe agencies. According to sources, the agencies are trying to find their mobile phone locations on the day when raids were conducted on Sharma’s residential premises. trio, they said they had nothing to do with the gold and cash. Sharma said because he had been out of Bhopal, he had barely any idea about the place from where the gold and cash were smuggled into the city. Sharma, however, said the car belonged to Chetan, but he knew nothing about the gold and cash found in it. Trade, tariffs on agenda as Modi meets Don today Similarly, both Chetan and Sharad denied having any idea about the gold and cash. The probe agencies remained unsuccessful in detecting the person who had parked the car on a vacant plot of land at Mendori. The car loaded with gold and cash was found on the night of December 19. Two months have passed since the incident took place, but the agencies have yet to lay their hands on facts. Although CCTV footage of the car going towards Mendori has come to light, the mystery behind the gold and cash remains unsolved. According to sources, after the end of ED remand, the I-T sleuths, too, may quiz Sharma and his accomplices about it. JPC report on Waqf Bill tabled FP News Service NEW DELHI WASHINGTON Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to hold bilateral meetings with US President Donald Trump and other prominent American personalities during his two-day visit to the United States. Trade and tariffs are likely to be on main agenda. After a bilateral meeting with President Trump at the White House , both leaders will deliver a joint press statement followed by a dinner hosted by the US leader tonight. The Prime Minister's sched- ule includes meetings with the US National Security Advisor Michael Waltz, Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Indian origin entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy. Earlier this January, Waltz, who has served as the Republican chair of the USIndia caucus, highlighted India's significance in the US's strategic interests. 4Continued on | P8 The Opposition MPs staged walkouts from both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha on Thursday to protest against the tabling of the report of the Joint Parliamentary Committee on the Waqf Amendment Bill as they alleged that it had not incorporated the dissent recorded by them during its preparation. It was BJP MP from Maharashtra, Medha Vishram Kulkarni, who first tabled the report in the Rajya Sabha soon after it assembled for the day. Details on | P-Nation ADANI BACKS OUT OF LANKA PROJECT ANI NEW DELHI Adani Green Energy announced on Thursday that it is withdrawing from the renewable energy (RE) wind power project and two transmission projects in Sri Lanka. The company conveyed its Board's decision to step back from further engagement in these projects but reiterated its commitment to Sri Lanka. Adani Green stated that it remains open to future collaboration if the Sri Lankan government desires. In an official statement, the Adani Group said "Adani Green Energy has conveyed its Board's decision to respect- fully withdraw from further engagement in the RE wind energy project and two transmission projects in Sri Lanka. However, we remain committed to Sri Lanka and are open to future collaboration if the Government of Sri Lanka so desires". 4Continued on | P8 offgrid Leopard gate crashes wedding Biswajeet Banrejee LUCKNOW A wedding celebration in Uttar Pradesh’s capital took a terrifying turn when a leopard strayed into the venue late Wednesday night, sending guests fleeing in panic. The incident occurred at MM Lawn in Lucknow during the wedding of Akshay Srivastava and Jyoti Kumari. The festivities, filled with INDORE The process of unloading 337 tonnes of hazardous waste, transported from Bhopal-based defunct Union Carbide factory in 12 container trucks, began at an incineration unit in Pithampur on Thursday, in the presence of senior officials including the collector and SP. The waste had been brought from Bhopal on night of January 1. Collector Priyank Mishra said that the government and administration are working with full transparency and locals have been taken into confidence. However, members of Pithampur Bachao Samiti, Pithampur Raksha Manch, Labour Organization, and Rural Social and Human Rights Council of the area continued to protest against the waste. They expressed their opposition and did not participate in unloading the containers from the trolleys. The unloading began at around 3 pm at Ramky plant. Only the containers packed with chemical waste are being unloaded, and no burning process is being carried out as of now, the official maintained, the collector added. Pithampur SDM Pramod Singh Gujar said, "We have brought local representatives to the Ramky plant, where containers are parked. The waste is being unloaded from the trucks following all safety regulations." "The claims about the start of burning process are incorrect. No misinformation or false rumours should be spread. The waste is being unloaded from the trucks in the presence of all representatives, and no further activity is taking place at the unit," Gujar said. On Wednesday, a group of people performed 'shavasana' (corpse pose) to protest against the disposal of waste in Dhar district. members will be right behind you." Patidar's recent domestic form has been impressive. He was the second-highest runscorer in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, with 428 runs in nine innings at an average of 61.14 and a strike rate of 186.08. In the Vijay Hazare Trophy, he scored 226 runs at an average of 56.50 and a strike rate of 107.10. one of three players retained by RCB, alongside Virat Kohli and Yash Dayal. This marks Patidar's first IPL captaincy, though he has led his state team, Madhya Pradesh, in domestic competitions. Patidar, who joined RCB in 2021, has become a key player, scoring 799 runs in 28 IPL matches at a strike rate of 158.85. Kohli expressed his support, saying, "Rajat, you have really made a place in the hearts of all the RCB fans…This is very well deserved…I and the other team After Lokayukta SPE, ED fails 4 to unveil mystery behind gold Indore lad Patidar to captain RCB ANI I-T Bill presented in LS, sent to JPC PUNE ‘Budget’s goal is to boost pvt investments, propel growth’ RECOVERED IN 16 HOURS: Boy was found near a brick kiln National Games: MP athletes bag top 4 spot UJJAIN MONEY REBUILDING FOR FUTURE P.13 In a dramatic turn of events, 6year-old Shivay, who was kidnapped while going to school in Gwalior on Thursday morning, was recovered by police from Mata Basaiya area of Morena on Thursday night. The bike-riding miscreants had left Shivay near a brick kiln in Banshipura village and fled. An e-rickshaw driver who was passing by spotted Shivay who was crying. When the driver looked at him closely, he recognised him as the child who had been kidnapped from Gwalior. He immediately handed over Shivay to the sarpanch of Kajibasai village who PRESS ESTD-1983 music and joy, turned into chaos around 11 PM when the wild animal suddenly appeared. Eyewitnesses de- scribed a scene of utter panic as guests screamed and ran for their lives. One guest, in a desperate bid to escape, leaped from the first floor and suffered injuries. “The moment we saw the leopard, there was complete mayhem. Everyone was running, and some even fell trying to escape,” said Ramesh Tiwari, a guest at the wedding. What followed was pure chaos. Guests abandoned their plates and fled in all di- rections. Some made a beeline for the gate, while one particularly panicked guest decided that jumping off the first floor was a better idea— unfortunately, he ended up with injuries. “I could not believe my eyes. One moment we were enjoying the wedding, and the next, we were running for our lives," said Rajesh Verma, a family friend of the groom.˘ 4Continued on | P8 IANS BENGALURU The Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) have announced Rajat Patidar as their captain for the IPL 2025 season, which begins on March 21. The announcement was made at a Bengaluru event attended by Patidar, Director of Cricket Mo Bobat, and Head Coach Andy Flower. Patidar succeeds Faf du Plessis, who led the team from 2022-2024. Patidar was 4Continued on | P8