Monday, November 3, 2025 | Vol. 69 No. 24 | 28 Pages Reg.No MCS/048/2021-23; RNI No. 1541/1957 M.p.c.s office Mumbai. PIN 400001 THE FREE PRESS JOURNAL INDIA EDITION | www.freepressjournal.in ● Leader in E-paper circulation GAMES NATION Rahul alleges PM Modi is not only ‘scared’ of Trump but is also being ‘controlled’ by big business Washington, Arshdeep star in India's T20I series-levelling win against Australia Cinema Bollywood showers love on Shah Rukh Khan’s 60th birthday Edit The beginning of a geopolitical duel in the Asia-Pacific region ATTACK ON OPPN | In Bihar, Modi says RJD forced its INDIA bloc partner to declare Tejashwi as CM nominee ‘at gunpoint’ ‘Sindoor hit Pak, gave Cong sleepless nights’ Dheeraj Kumar PATNA D r Ismat Gabula is transforming public spaces into havens for readers. Turn to the Mumbai page to find out how. SEE MUMBAI JD(U) candidate Anant Singh arrested for Mokama murder Dheeraj Kumar PM Narendra Modi on Sunday asserted that RJD compelled Congress to declare its leader Tejashwi Yadav as chief ministerial face of the INDIA bloc at gunpoint and also claimed that "jungle raj people" were heading towards a record defeat in the Bihar election. Addressing an election meeting in Ara, the PM said that the country was proud after the success of Operation Sindoor, but the Congress and its ally RJD did not like it. "The explosions took place in Pakistan, but the Congress royal family spent sleepless nights. The naamdaars of Pakistan and Congress are yet to recover from the shock of Operation Sindoor," he remarked. “RJD's jungle raj is identified by katta (gun), kroorta (cruelty), katuta (bitterness), kusanskar (superstition), kusashan (misgovernance), and corruption. Nitish Kumar and the NDA government have brought Bihar out of that difficult era," he said. Modi said a scuffle is going on INDIA LIFT WOMEN’S ODI WORLD CUP TO CREATE HERSTORY Haridev Pushparaj between RJD and Congress. He said there was "goondagardi" (goondaism) in a “closed-door room” where RJD forced Congress to declare the chief ministerial face of the opposition alliance. The PM, however, did not take the name of Tejashwi while pointing out at CongressRJD 'rift' over CM face. “I am telling you an inside story. A game of goondagardi was played out in a closed- door room a day before the deadline for withdrawing nominations. Congress did not want to declare RJD leader CM face of the opposition alliance for Bihar polls but RJD forced it to do so at gunpoint,” he said. “Congress was not heard in the manifesto and campaign as hatred has increased so much between RJD and Congress that after the election, they would break each other's head. Remember, such people cannot work for Bihar's development," he added. Without naming Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, PM accused him of calling Chhath festival a drama, and asserted that people would not forgive him for insulting the festival. 4Contd on | Nation 4See also | Nation NAVI MUMBAI More than four decades since the Indian men won their first ODI World Cup in 1983, the women clinched their maiden World Cup crown beating South Africa by 52 runs in a pulsating final in front of a boisterous home crowd at the DY Patil Stadium on Sunday. Chasing a challenging 299, South Africa crumbled under the pressure against an Indian team determined more than ever to erase the pain and agony of the previous World Cup final defeats in 2017 and 2020. Laura Wolvaardt was the lone woman who stood up for South Africa with a brilliant hundred that went in vain eventually but India will applaud themselves for a terrific all-round perform- ance that saw them bowl out the Proteas for 246 in 45.3 overs. Bowlers led by Deepti Sharma (5/39), Shafali Verma (2/36) and Shree Charani (1/48) complemented the efforts of the batters. Shafali starred with the willow as well scoring a cracking 87, while Deepti’s 58 was the icing on the cake. 4See also | Games PATNA A Patna court on Sunday remanded JD(U) candidate from Mokama, Anant Singh, and his two associates to 14-day judicial custody in connection with the murder of gangster-turned-politician Dular Chand Yadav, who is supporting Jan Suraaj Party candidate, from the seat. Former MLA Singh and his two aides, Manikant Thakur and Ranjeet Ram, were arrested late on Saturday night in connection with the murder. The were produced before the court of the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) in Patna. "The court sent Singh and two others to judicial custody for two weeks," his lawyer Naveen Kumar told reporters. Later, they were taken to Patna's Beur Jail. Police are likely to take them on remand after the election process is over, sources added. Sharing a video of himself being escorted by the cops on Facebook, Singh wrote, “Satyamev Jayate! I have complete faith in the people of Mokama!! That's why now the people of Mokama will fight this election!” Patna SSP Kartikeya Sharma told the media that Singh was found to be the main accused in the murder case during the investigation, following which he was arrested from his residence. “On 30 October, there was a clash between two groups of competing candidates. Stones were pelted resulting in injuries. 4Contd on | Nation ISRO’s ‘Bahubali’ rocket puts heaviest sat in orbit 15 RETURNING FROM TEMPLE DEAD IN RAJ ROAD CRASH Mass stabbing on train in UK, no terror angle Agencies PTI The heaviest communication satellite to be launched from the Indian soil onboard a new generation, homegrown 'Bahubali' rocket was successfully placed into the intended orbit on Sunday, ISRO said. The communication satellite CMS-03, weighing 4,410 kg was flown on a LVM3-M5 rocket enabling the Indian space agency accomplish this rare feat. CMS-03 is a multiband communication satellite and would provide services over a wide oceanic region including the Indian landmass, according to ISRO. The satellite was placed in the desired Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO). It is also a replacement to the GSAT 7 series, launched in 2013. ISRO Chairman V Narayanan said the launch vehicle successfully injected the communication satellite in the required orbit. The "4410 kg satellite is precisely injected," he said. In his address from the Mission Control Center post launch, he described the LVM 3 satellite as 'Bahubali,' in an apparent reference to its heavylift capability. He recalled that the rocket's previous launch was the "most prestigious Chandrayaan 3 which brought pride to nation." I t achieved "yet another pride" on Sunday after succeeding with the "heavier satellite". All the eight LVM 3 launches, including its experimental mission, have been successful, logging a 100% success rate. The satellite was designed to provide communication services for at least 15 years and is "yet another shining example of Atmanirbhar Bharat" (self-reliant India)," Narayanan, also Secretary, Department of Space, added. 4Contd on | Nation HUNTINGDON At least 15 people died and two others were injured when a tempo traveller carrying devotees rammed into a stationary trailer truck in Rajasthan's Phalodi on Sunday, police said. The incident occurred near Matoda village on the Bharat Mala Highway, they said. "Fifteen passengers died, while two others sustained serious injuries. The injured were first taken to a hospital in Osian for primary treatment and later referred to Jodhpur," Jodhpur Police Commissioner Om Prakash said. SRIHARIKOTA (AP) Agencies JAIPUR British police said on Sunday that a knife attack on a train which put 11 people in hospital was not a terrorist incident, adding that two men, both British nationals, had been arrested. Counterterrorism police had helped with the initial investigation after the mass stabbing of passengers on a train in eastern England on Saturday. "At this stage, there is nothing to suggest that this is a terrorist incident," Superintendent John Loveless from British Transport Police told media on Sunday. The two men arrested on suspicion of attempted murder were a 32-year-old male, a Black British national, and a 35- 4Contd on | Nation year-old British national of Caribbean descent, Loveless said. Both were born in the UK, he added. The arrests were made by armed police after the train made an emergency stop at Huntingdon around 130 km north of London. Of the 11 people hospitalised, four have since been discharged and two patients remain in a life-threatening condition, police said. 4Contd on | Nation TN PARTIES SEAL SIR FIGHT IN SC N Chithra CHENNAI A multi-party convention chaired by DMK president and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin, which met in Chennai on Sunday, resolved to approach the Supreme Court challenging the Election Commission’s decision to roll out the second phase of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of elec- As TVK skipped the meet, its chief Vijay said DMK was using the SIR issue to divert people's attention from graft charges toral rolls in the state. The meeting was attended by the representatives of the ruling DMK, its allies including the Congress and Communists, and a host of other political parties. The principal opposition party AIADMK, its ally BJP, actor Vijay’s TVK and a few others chose to boycott the meeting. While AIADMK and BJP support the SIR, Vijay’s party is opposed to it but did not want to be on the DMK bandwagon. As the Election Commission has not accepted the request to schedule the SIR of electoral rolls in Tamil Nadu till the 2026 Assembly election was over, it has been decided to approach the apex court, Stalin said. Assembly election, as per schedule, is due in the state by April 2026. 4Contd on | Nation offgrid Trump’s ballroom & media conundrum Iran prez vows to rebuild AP WASHINGTON President Donald Trump’s razing of the White House’s East Wing to build a ballroom has put some news organizations following the story in an awkward position, with corporate owners among the contributors to the project — and their reporters covering it vigorously. Comcast, which owns NBC News and MSNBC, has faced on-air criticism from some of the liberal cable channel’s personalities for its donation. Amazon, whose founder Jeff Bezos owns The Washington Post, is another donor. The newspaper editorialized in favor of Trump’s project, pointing out the Bezos connection a day later after critics noted its omission. It’s not the first time since Trump regained the presidency that interests of journalists at outlets that are a small part of a corporate titan’s portfolio have clashed with owners. Both the Walt Disney Co and Paramount The refurbished Lincoln bathroom have settled lawsuits with Trump rather than defend ABC News and CBS News in court. “This is Trump’s Washington,” said Chuck Todd, former NBC “Meet the Press” host. “None of this helps the reputations of the news organizations that these companies own, be- cause it compromises everybody.” None of the individuals and corporations identified by the White House as donors has publicly said how much was given, although a $22 million Google donation was revealed in a court filing. MSNBC’s Stephanie Ruhle said the donations should be a concern to Americans, “because there ain’t no company out there writing a check just for good will.” 4Contd on | Nation N-sites with more ‘vigour’ Agencies TEHRAN Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian announced on Sunday that his country will rebuild its nuclear facilities “with greater vigour”, as he reiterated Iran's unwillingness to build a nuclear weapon. "Destroying buildings and factories will not create a problem for us, we will rebuild and with greater strength," the Ira- nian president told state media. In June, the US launched strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities that Washington says were part of a program geared towards developing nuclear weapons. Tehran maintains that its nuclear programme is for purely civilian purposes. "It's all intended for solving the problems of the people, for disease, for the health of the people," Pezeshkian said in reference to nuclear activities. His announcement comes in an apparent challenge to US President Trump, who has threatened to bomb again if Iran attempted to restart its setback programme. The US alleged Iran’s deliberate programme to acquire nuclear warheads and attacked the nuclear facilities in June during the 12-day war with Israel. 4Contd on | Nation