Tuesday, December 23, 2025 | Vol. 69 No. 67 | 29 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 National Farmers Day GAMES NATION Jitan Ram Manjhi demands RS seat for his party, threatens to quit NDA FPJ News Service Bangladesh India, NZ conclude FTA talks crisis deepens Agencies NEW DELHI The Supreme Court of India on Monday stayed the conviction of senior Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) (Ajit Pawar faction) leader Manikrao Kokate in a 1995 cheating case, to the limited extent that he will not face any resultant disqualification as a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA). A bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi passed the order while issuing notice on Kokate’s plea challenging a Bombay High Court order, which had suspended his sentence but refused to stay his conviction. While granting limited relief, the Supreme Court clarified that “that will not entitle the petitioner to hold an office of profit”, Live Law reports. India and New Zealand on Monday announced the conclusion of talks for a free trade agreement (FTA) that will provide duty-free access to a wide range of goods and include a foreign direct investment (FDI) commitment of USD 20 billion over 15 years. The agreement is expected to help double bilateral trade in goods and services to USD 5 billion in the next five years. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his New Zealand counterpart Christopher Luxon announced the firming up of the pact after holding a phone conversation. Under the agreement, India will get duty-free access for several domestic goods, particularly from labour-intensive sectors. New Zealand, on the other hand, will get duty-free access to products such as sheep meat, wool, coal and over 95 per cent of forestry and wood articles. Wellington will also get duty concessions on items including kiwi fruit, wine, some seafood, cherries, avocados, persimmons, bulk infant formula, Manuka honey and milk albumins. To protect the interests of domestic farmers and MSMEs, India will not give any duty Justice Joymalya Bagchi 4Contd on | nation Mahayuti’s BMC seat-sharing talks delicately poised Kalpesh Mhamunkar MUMBAI Seat-sharing negotiations between the Shiv Sena led by Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and the BJP for the upcoming Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections have reached a delicate stage, with sharp differences persisting over the number of seats to be allotted to the Shiv Sena. Sources said the BJP has proposed offering 65 seats to the Shinde-led Shiv Sena for the civic polls. However, Shinde is understood to be pressing for a minimum of 100 seats and is unlikely to accept what he considers an inadequate or “disrespectful” offer. Senior Shiv Sena leaders have indicated that the party is also preparing for the possibility of contesting the BMC elections independently if negotiations fail. A counter-proposal is expected to be placed before the BJP ahead of the weekend. Last week, senior leaders of both parties held a crucial meeting in Mumbai to iron out differences over seat-sharing. During the discussions, the Shinde-led Shiv Sena staked claim to the 84 seats won by the undivided Shiv BJP has proposed offering 65 seats to the Shinde-led Shiv Sena for the civic polls. However, Shinde is understood to be pressing for a minimum of 100 seats and is unlikely to accept what he considers an inadequate or ‘disrespectful’ offer. Sena in the 2017 BMC elections. The BJP, however, firmly rejected this demand, making it clear that it was not willing to concede all those seats to the Shinde faction. While initial talks revolved around offering 65 seats, Shiv Sena leaders say they are now negotiating ward by ward, underscoring the hardening positions on both sides. Although both parties claimed after the second round of talks that a broad understanding had been reached to jointly contest around 150 seats, Shiv Sena leaders insist that there is still no clarity on the specific wards they are seeking. 4Contd on | nation 4See also | mumbai Agencies ‘DEAL NEITHER FREE, NOR FAIR’ Vidhi Santosh Mehta MUMBAI India will not give any duty concessions in the politically sensitive dairy sector, including milk, yogurt and cheese concessions in the politically sensitive dairy sector, including milk, cream, whey, yoghurt and cheese. Other products not covered under the pact include vegetable products such as onions, chana, peas, corn and almonds, sugar, artificial honey, animal, vegetable or microbial fats and oils, arms and ammunition, gems and jewellery, copper and its products, and aluminium and articles. In the services sector, New Zealand will provide a temporary employment entry visa pathway for Indian professionals in skilled occupations, with a quota of 5,000 visas annually and a stay of up to three years. This pathway will cover Indian professions such as AYUSH practitioners, yoga instructors, Indian chefs and music teachers, along with high-demand sectors including IT, engineering, healthcare, education and construction. The agreement is likely to be signed and implemented in about seven to eight months. The pact is expected to help Indian exporters, who are facing the impact of 50 per cent tariffs imposed by the Trump administration on Indian goods, to diversify shipments in the Oceania region. India has already implemented a trade pact with Australia. 4Contd on | nation New Zealand First leader and Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters on Monday said his party was “regrettably opposed” to the IndiaNew Zealand Free Trade Agreement announced earlier in the day, calling it a “bad deal” that gives too much away and fails to deliver enough in return for New Zealanders. In a detailed statement on X, Peters said, “We consider the India-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement to be neither free nor fair.” He added that the agreement was particularly harmful for New Zealand farmers and rural communities, while also making major concessions on immigration. “Regrettably, this is a bad deal for New Zealand. It gives too much away, especially on immigration, and does not get enough in return for New Zealanders, including on dairy,” he said. Peters said New Zealand First had repeatedly urged its co- My party would vote against the enabling legislation if and when it is introduced in Parliament. Winston Peters NZ Foreign Minister alition partner not to rush into concluding what it described as a low-quality agreement with India. According to him, the party had advised using the full three-year parliamentary term to negotiate a better deal and had also warned that signing such an agreement without certainty of a parliamentary majority would be unwise. 4Contd on | nation DHAKA & NEW DELHI Bangladesh plunged deeper into political and social turmoil on Monday after unidentified gunmen shot senior student and labour leader Motaleb Shikder in the head in Khulna, marking the second high-profile assassination attempt in less than ten days and intensifying fears of a widening spiral of violence ahead of the February elections. Shikder, 42, the Khulna divisional head of the National Citizen Party (NCP) and a central organiser of its workers’ front, Sramik Shakti, was attacked in public in the Sonadanga area of the southwestern city. He was rushed to Khulna Medical College Hospital in critical condition. The NCP said Shikder had been actively preparing for a divisional labour rally scheduled in the coming days. “He was shot a few minutes ago,” NCP joint principal coordinator Mahmuda Mitu said in a Facebook post, confirming the attack. The shooting came days after the killing of Sharif Osman Hadi, the 32-year-old spokesperson of Inqilab Man- `8-crore cyber fraud drives ex-IGP to suicide bid FPJ News Service CHANDIGARH After being allegedly duped of nearly Rs 8 crore by cyber fraudsters, former Punjab Inspector General of Police Amar Singh Chahal, in his mid-60s, shot himself at his residence in Patiala on Monday and is battling for life, triggering shockwaves across police and political circles in the state. Chahal, a retired IPS officer and one of the accused in the 2015 Faridkot firing cases, was rushed to a private hospital with a gunshot injury to the chest. Doctors treating him said his condition continues to remain critical. Investigators recovered a detailed suicide note from the scene, which sheds light on the reasons behind the drastic step. According to police sources, the note runs into several pages and points to severe financial distress allegedly caused by a sophisticated online investment fraud. The note claims that Chahal was duped of around Rs 8 crore by cyber fraudsters who posed as wealth management advisers offering high-return investment opportunities. Of this amount, Rs 1 crore was his own money, while the remaining Rs 7.10 crore was borrowed from friends and relatives. The alleged scam was carried out through WhatsApp and Telegram groups operating under the name “F-777 DBS Wealth Equity Research Group”. The fraudsters reportedly projected themselves as being linked to DBS Bank and its senior leadership, using the name and branding to gain credibility and lure potential investors. 4Contd on | nation NEW DELHI The Supreme Court on Monday strongly criticised the authorities of Uttarakhand for remaining “silent spectators” while large-scale grabbing of forest land by private entities took place, observing that thousands of acres of government forest land had been lost. A Bench comprising CJI Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi said it was “shocking” forest land was being “systematically grabbed in front of the eyes” of state authorities. The SC enlarged the scope of the matter and decided to pursue it as a suo motu case, Live Law reports. “The facts of this case prima SC takes suo motu notice, widens scope of proceedings. facie show as to how thousands of acres of forest land has been systematically grabbed by private individuals. What seems to be shocking to us is that the State of Uttarakhand and its authorities are sitting as silent spectators when the forest land is being systematically grabbed in front of their eyes. Consequently, we propose to enlarge the scope of these proceedings suo motu. Let notice be issued,” the SC observed. 4Contd on | nation Agencies New court documents released on Monday have revealed fresh details of the police case against the alleged perpetrators of the deadly Bondi shooting, including claims that improvised explosive devices, among them a “tennis ball bomb”, were used and that the attack was preceded by an “ISIS inspired” video manifesto. According to a police “fact sheet” released following an application by media organ- isations, investigators allege that three pipe bombs and a tennis ball bomb were thrown towards the crowd before the shooting began. While the devices did not detonate, police allege they were “viable improvised explosive devices”, The Guardian reports. Police document states that the father Sajid Akram and son Navid Akram “meticulously planned this terrorist attack for many months”. The planning included firearm training, the manufacture of explosives and the creation of an “ISIS Naved Akram inspired” video manifesto. The document claims the pair conducted a “reconnaissance” visit to Bondi two days before the attack, including visiting the foot- Sajid Akram bridge from which they fired at people gathered at the Jewish festival. Investigators allege a video recorded in October was found on Naveed’s phone, Investigators say that three pipe bombs and a tennis ball bomb were thrown towards the crowd before the shooting began showing him and his father seated in front of an image of the IS flag. In the video, Naveed, allegedly appearing with four long-arm firearms, is said to recite a passage NATIONAL HERALD Delhi HC seeks Sonia response on ED petition PTI NEW DELHI 4Contd on | nation The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has ordered a highlevel probe into a serious technical incident involving a Mumbai-bound Air India flight that was forced to return and make an emergency technical failure in one Delhilanding at Delhi’s Inof the engines. Mumbai dira Gandhi InterFlight tracking flight AI-887 national Airport on data showed that turns back after the aircraft, regisMonday morning. trouble in one The flight, AI-887, tered as VT-ALS, had engine was operated using a been in the air for long-haul category about 45 minutes when Boeing 777-300ER and was the cockpit crew noticed a carrying around 335 passen- low engine oil pressure warngers and crew. It departed ing in engine number two, the from Delhi at 6:31 am for right-wing engine, during the Mumbai. However, less than flap retraction phase. an hour after take-off, the 4Contd on | nation flight crew detected a critical from the Qur’an in Arabic before he and his father make statements in English explaining why they planned the Bondi attack, including “condemning the acts of ‘Zionists’”. Another clip, also allegedly recorded in October, is said to show the pair training with firearms in a rural location believed to be in New South Wales. Police allege the footage shows them firing shotguns and “moving in a tactical manner”. According to police, Naveed and his father acted as part of a joint criminal enter- 4Contd on | nation 4Contd on | nation MUMBAI Bondi attack planned for months, video shows training SYDNEY cha and a prominent face of last year’s student-led uprising that led to the ouster of prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League government. Hadi was shot in the head by masked gunmen during an election campaign in Dhaka’s Bijoynagar area on December 12 and died in a Singapore hospital on December 18. Hadi’s death has triggered nationwide protests, arson, vandalism and attacks on media houses and cultural institutions, pushing the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus onto the defensive. Tens of thousands attended Hadi’s funeral in Dhaka on Saturday under heavy security, chanting anti-India slogans and demanding swift justice. prise aimed at “causing a person’s death and furthering an extremist political, religious and ideological cause, namely religiously motivated violent extremism aligned with Islamic State”. The fact sheet also outlines a detailed timeline leading up to the attack. Police allege CCTV footage shows the pair leaving an Airbnb in Campsie at 2.16am on 14 December carrying “long and bulky items” wrapped in blankets, which were loaded into a silver Hyundai. Dhairya Gajara FPJ News Service l Another student leader shot at. l Consular services and visa issuance at the Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi have been suspended. l Sheikh Hasina blames Dhaka. The Delhi High Court on Monday sought responses from Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and others on a plea filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) challenging a trial court order that had refused to take cognisance of the agency’s chargesheet in the National Herald case. Justice Ravinder Dudeja issued notice on the ED’s main petition as well as its application seeking a stay on the December 16 trial court order, which held that cognisance of the agency’s complaint was “impermissible in law” as it was not founded on a first information report (FIR). The high court listed the matter for further hearing on March 12, 2026. Besides the Gandhis, notices were issued to Suman Dubey, Sam Pitroda, Young Indian, Dotex Merchandise Pvt Ltd and Sunil Bhandari. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta appeared for the ED, while senior advocates Abhishek Singhvi and R S Cheema represented the Gandhis. The trial court, in its December 16 order, had held that an investigation and the consequent prosecution complaint relating to an offence of money laundering under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) was not maintainable in the absence of an FIR for the scheduled offence. It noted that the ED’s probe had stemmed from a private complaint and not an FIR. During Monday’s hearing, Mehta argued that the trial court had gone “horribly wrong” in its interpretation, and that the order would adversely affect several other cases. Largescale forest land grab: AI flight in emergency SC pulls up Uttarakhand govt landing, probe ordered Representational pic NEW DELHI False declaration does not make a document forgery… there is a fundamental error in the conviction Edit With High Command without command, who runs Cong? FIRMED UP | The agreement is expected to be signed and implemented in about 7 months. Will double bilateral trade in goods and services to $5 bn in 5 years Representational pic Kokate gets SC stay on conviction Cinema In conversation with the cast of Bhabhiji Ghar Par Hai 2.0 Arsenal striker Viktor Gyokeres is optimistic about EPL title chances this season