Wednesday, May 28, 2025 | 30 Pages | `5 & for State (+4 pages) `6 Reg.No MCS/048/2021-23; RNI No. 1541/1957 M.p.c.s office Mumbai. PIN 400001 THE FREE PRESS JOURNAL Vol. 68 No. 201 | Leader in E-paper circulation l www.freepressjournal.in ● EDITIONS: ● MUMBAI ● INDORE ● PUNE ● BHOPAL ● NASHIK ● KONKAN ● E-paper ● Member: Audit Bureau of Circulation (July to December 2024) GAMES NATION Interacting in DU, Rahul alleges anti-quota tactics in education, leadership roles Above normal rainfall for Maharashtra, says IMD Devashri Bhujbal MUMBAI The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) on Tuesday released its Monsoon Outlook for June to September 2025 and has forecast 'Above Normal' for Maharashtra. The regions include: Konkan, which consists Mumbai and it's metropolitan regions, Madhya Maharashtra, Marathwada and Vidharbha. In its report, the IMD highlighted that 'Quantitatively, the southwest monsoon seasonal rainfall over the country as a whole is likely to be 106% of the Long Period Average (LPA) with a model error of ±4%, indicating that above normal rainfall is most likely over the country as a whole during the monsoon season (June to September), 2025.' Konkan region (Mumbai, Thane, Palghar, Raigad, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg) for which normal range of monsoon rainfall is 2871 mm, is expected to witness Above Normal with 107% of the LPA. Mumbai continues to be under Yellow Alert for rainfall and thunderstorms. 4Contd on | nation Briefs I-T returns date extended The Income Tax department has extended the due date for filing income tax returns for Assessment Year 2025–26 from July 31 to September 15. The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) said the move was necessitated by extensive changes introduced in the new ITR forms. MONEY US halts new student visas US President Donald Trump's administration has directed consulates worldwide to pause new student visa interviews, Politico reported, citing documents signed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio. The pause comes ahead of expanded social media vetting for all foreign students.“Effective immediately... consular sections should not add any additional student or exchange visitor (F, M, and J) visa appointment capacity,” the cable states.The move could disrupt student visa processing and financially impact US universities. Separately, the US Embassy in India warned that skipping classes or withdrawing from courses without notifying schools could result in visa cancellation. Cinema A case of dirty PR games? Vanga Vs Deepika Punjab Kings head coach Ricky Ponting feels the side has not achieved anything yet Edit Modi plays the Tharoor card to deepen Congress’s dilemma HISTORIC BLUNDER | PM Modi says if Sardar Patel’s advice had been followed, India would not be facing Pahalgam situation Agencies GANDHINAGAR Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared that India had decided to remove the thorn or terrorism that had become troublesome. He also said that had Sardar Patel's advice had been heeded way back in 1947, India would not be facing the kind of situation it did in Pahalgam. On the second day of his two-day trip to Gujarat, Prime Minister Modi said, "In 1947, Mother India was torn into pieces. Katni chahiye thi zanjeerein par kaat di gayi bhujayein (The chains should have been cut, but the arms were chopped off.) The country was INDUS WATERS, INDIA'S WATERS divided into three parts, and on the same night, the first terrorist attack took place on the soil of Kashmir," PM Modi said. The Prime Minister said that during Partition, Pakistan had captured a part of India using terrorists, whom he called Mu- jahideen. "If on that day, these Mujahideen had been eliminated and Sardar Patel's wish was that until we get PoK, our armed forces should not stop. But no one listened to him and we have been facing this (terrorism) for the last 75 years. Pa- The Prime Minister dwelt on the Indus Waters Treaty in his speech. He said, "I want to tell the new generation how our country was ruined. If you study the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, you'll be shocked. It was decided that the dams built on the rivers of Jammu and Kashmir would not be cleaned. Desilting would not be done. The bottom gates for clearing sediments were to remain shut. For 60 years, these POST ON OP SINDOOR PTI Urvi Mahajani MUMBAI The Bombay High Court on Tuesday issued a notice to the Election Commission of India on a petition seeking copies of videography and CCTV footage of the Nagpur South-west assembly seat from where Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis was elected. The Nagpur bench of the court also issued notices to the Maharashtra Chief Electoral office and the Nagpur district collector. The court was hearing a petition filed by Congress member Prafulla Vinodrao Gudadhe, who lost to Fadnavis in the constituency in November 2024, seeking copies of the footage. 4Contd on | nation The Bombay High Court on Tuesday granted bail to a 19year-old student from Pune who was arrested earlier this month over a social media post on Indo-Pak hostilities. The Court also sharply criticised the Maharashtra government for its “radical” and “unwarranted” response. A vacation bench of Justices Gauri Godse and Somasekhar Sundaresan ordered her immediate release from Yerwada Prison, stating it was “absolutely shocking” that a young student had been treated like a “hardcore criminal” despite showing remorse. “This is not a case where the girl has to remain in custody anymore,” the 4Contd on | nation gates were never opened. Reservoirs that were supposed to be filled to 100% capacity have now been reduced to only 2% or 3%...Right now, I haven't done anything have only kept the treaty in abeyance and people are sweating there (Pakistan). We have opened small gates for cleaning the dams, and there is already a flood there..." Indian people must receive their rightful access to water, he said. CM Fadnavis election: HC HC slams arrest of notice to ECI student, grants bail NAGPUR halgam was also an example of it. When we had wars with Pakistan, we defeated Pakistan thrice..." "...Shareer kitna hi swasth kyu naa ho lekin agar ek kaanta chubhta hai toh poora shareer pareshan rehta hai. Ab humne tay kar liya hai uss kaante ko nikaal ke rahenge...("No matter how strong or healthy the body is, even a single thorn can cause constant pain and we've decided that the thorn must be removed)" said Prime Minister Modi. PM Modi also pointed out Pakistan's inability to defeat India in direct war and its shift to proxy warfare. “This is not a case where the girl has to remain in custody anymore,” the court observed. “She should not have been arrested at all.” AQUA LINE MMRC denies leak in tunnels FPJ News Service court observed. “She should not have been arrested at all.” The student, a second-year Information Technology student at Sinhgad Academy of Engineering, had reposted content from an Instagram account named ‘Reformistan’ that criticised the Indian government’s actions in the ongoing Operation Sindoor. The city’s first intense monsoon spell brought with it a scare for Mumbai’s newly launched underground Metro Line 3 (Aqua Line), particularly at the Acharya Atre Chowk station in Worli. Where rainwater entered the station premises, raising concerns and triggering controversy over the project’s readiness to handle extreme weather. However, officials clarified that the water entered through surface routes and not directly into the tunnels — a situation that, if it had occurred, could have spelt serious trouble for the Metro infrastructure. 4Contd on | nation 4Contd on | nation A car ploughed into a crowd of Liverpool Football Club fans during a Premier League victory parade in the city centre on Monday evening, injuring 65 people, including four children. The incident occurred just after 6 p.m. local time, about a mile before the final stop of the club’s 10-mile trophy parade. Fans, draped in red Liverpool FC scarves and jerseys, had packed the streets to celebrate the club’s latest title win on what was also a public holiday. Merseyside Police quickly confirmed that the crash was not being treated as a terrorist act. A 53-year-old white British New Zealand’s Immigration Minister Erica Stanford has come under fire for controversial remarks made during a recent parliamentary session, where she described unsolicited immigration-related emails from Indian nationals as “almost akin to spam”. Stanford made the comments on May 6 while responding to a question about her use of a personal Gmail account for official correspondence. Defending her decision, she said she received “a lot of unsolicited emails like, for example, things from people in India asking for immigration advice, which I never respond to. I almost regard those as being akin to spam.” The remarks have drawn criticism from Indian-origin Labour MP Priyanca Radhakrishnan, who accused Stanford of singling out one ethnicity in a negative light. In a Facebook post, Radhakrishnan said, “If you’re from India, don’t bother emailing her because it’s automatically considered spam.” She called the minister’s words “careless at best and prejudiced at worst,” and warned that such comments reinforce negative ‘EMAILS FROM INDIANS AKIN TO SPAM’ Priyanca Radhakrishnan stereotypes about the Indian community. Radhakrishnan also questioned how the minister’s attitude aligns with the New Zealand government’s stated commitment to Erica Stanford strengthening bilateral relations with India and fostering people-to-people links. In response to the backlash, Stanford said her comments were misinterpreted. “I did not say that I consider SC asks petitioners to knock HC door Urvi Mahajani MUMBAI FPJ News Service MUMBAI The logo of Operation Sindoor stands as a haunting symbol of sacrifice, grief, and unwavering resolve. A booklet and visuals released by the Army of its command centre during the operation reveal that the design was conceived by Lieutenant Colonel Harsh Gupta and Havaldar Surinder Singh. At its heart lies the name ‘OPERATION SINDOOR’ in bold, unyielding block letters. But it's the transformation of one 'O' into a bowl of sindoor (vermillion) that delivers the emotional blow. In Indian tradition, sindoor signifies a married Hindu woman’s bond with her husband. 4Contd on | nation The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to entertain a petition challenging the controversial Colaba jetty project, observing that the objections amounted to a “Not In My Backyard” (NIMBY) stance. When the petitioner tried to make an emotional appeal, calling it a case of “amchi Mumbai vs tyanchi Mumbai” (Our Mumbai vs Their Mumbai), the CJI countered, “Amchi Mumbai doesn’t live in Colaba. It lives in Girgaon, Malad, Thane. Only Tyanchi Mumbai lives in Colaba.” A bench of Chief Justice of India BR Gavai and Justice Augustine George Masih remarked that modern infrastructure projects often face opposition despite their broader public utility. The SC was hearing a special leave petition filed by three residents of Colaba and Cuffe Parade, representing over 150 individuals and businesses, seeking a stay on the ongoing piling work. They contended that once the piling begins, it will be nearly impossible to remove it, resulting in significant damage to the environment and the heritage precinct. Appearing for the petitioners, senior advocate Sanjay Hegde said, “The Minister himself told Free Press Journal that the project is for VIPs and cricketers. There are traffic restraints, and it’s coming up without a public hearing, only benefiting a section of society.” 4Contd on | nation When the petitioner called it a case of “amchi Mumbai vs tyanchi Mumbai” (Our Mumbai vs Their Mumbai), the CJI countered, “Amchi Mumbai doesn’t live in Colaba. It lives in Girgaon, Malad, Thane. Only Tyanchi Mumbai lives in Colaba.” 6 of family die inside car: apparent suicide GREEN LIGHT FOR 5TH GEN FIGHTER PLANE PTI NEW DELHI MUMBAI Car ploughs into parade in Liverpool, 65 hurt MUMBAI COLABA JETTY Sweety Bhagwat man from Liverpool has been arrested on suspicion of causing grievous bodily harm and remains in custody. Authorities believe he acted alone. Prime Minister Keir Starmer described the scene as one of “utter horror and devastation,” adding that “the whole country stands with Liverpool.” 4Contd on | nation Kiwi Minister’s Indian spam faux pas FPJ News Service Op Sindoor logo? Have decided to remove thorn of terrorism: PM offgrid MUMBAI Who designed them as spam,” she clarified. “I only said that I consider them almost akin to spam.” She explained that the reference was to the high volume of unsolicited emails she receives, not to any specific community. Stanford has served as New Zealand’s Minister of Immigration since November 27, 2023, under Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s National-led coalition government. The controversy has sparked widespread criticism on social media and raised concerns over racial sensitivity in government communication. pm with a towel hanging out from one of its doors. Rana said he found the car unlocked and opened one of the doors. A man inside told him that he could not get a hotel room while returning from a Bageshwar Dham event in Panchkula and therefore he and his family were sleeping in the car. Rana said through the door he could count saw six people lying motionless on each other with vomit on them. The seventh person, the man he was speaking to, was breathing with difficulty, he added. Rana and his companion helped the man out, gave him water and asked him if he had killed the other occupants of the car. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has approved the "execution model" to implement a mega project to indigenously develop a fifth generation deep penetration advanced medium combat aircraft for the Indian Air force India has been working on the ambitious AMCA project to develop the medium weight deep penetration fighter jet with advanced stealth features to bolster its air power capability. The defence ministry said on Tuesday that Singh has approved the "Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) Programme Execution Model." "In a significant push towards enhancing India's indigenous defence capabilities and fostering a robust domestic aerospace industrial ecosystem, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has approved the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) Programme Execution Model," it said. 4Contd on | nation 4Contd on | nation Seventh dies on way to hospital. Debt the possible trigger. FPJ News Service CHANDIGARH Six members of a family, including three children, were found dead inside a car in Haryana's Panchkula, while another died on his way to a hospital, police said on Tuesday. They suspect the deaths were the result of a suicide pact. The car was spotted late on Monday evening by a passerby who had a brief exchange with the person who died last.The car with a Dehradun registration number was found parked on the roadside in a residential area in Panchkula's Sector 27. Puneet Rana was out on a walk with another person and they spotted the car around 10