WEDNESDAY 24 DECEMBER, 2025 epaper.morningstandard.in facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard EPSTEIN FILES LID OFF TRUMP’S PVT JET TRAVEL A new batch of Jeffrey Epstein files released Tuesday has references to US President Trump, including documents on flights he took on Epstein’s jet PAGE 9 CHINNASWAMY STADIUM FAILS TO GET APPROVAL TO HOST MATCHES A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS  NEW DELHI Court rejects UP govt plea to nix charges in Akhlaq case  J8.00  The Vijay Hazare Trophy matches, supposed to be held at M Chinnaswamy in Bengaluru, moved elsewhere after government denies permission PAGES 12 Committee to submit report to govt Following the stampede during RCB’s IPL celebrations on June 4, the stadium has not hosted any games. The Karnataka State Association sought permission to host without any crowd. The state home minister had constituted a committee that visited the venue to review on Monday | P11 Jaishankar announces aid, builds on First Responder role, commitment to reconstruction $450 mn relief package for cyclone-hit Sri Lanka N A M I TA B A J PA I @ Lucknow J AYA N T H J A C O B @ New Delhi A fast-track court in Surajpur on Tuesday rejected the Uttar Pradesh government’s application to withdraw charges in the 2015 Mohammad Akhlaq lynching case, while directing that the trial be fast-tracked with daily hearings. Additional District Judge Saurabh Dwivedi ruled that the case be categorised as “most important” and directed police authorities, including the Gautam Buddha Nagar Police Commissioner, to ensure protection of crucial evidence. The court scheduled the next hearing for January 6. Akhlaq, 50, was lynched by a mob in Dadri’s Bisada village on September 28, 2015, following rumours of cow slaughter. Mohammad Akhlaq He died from injuries sustained in the attack, while his son Danish, who tried to intervene, narrowly survived. The state government had moved the court to withdraw charges on October 15, citing inconsistent witness statements, absence of recovered weapons, and lack of prior enmity between the accused and the victim. Noida Police had registered an FIR at Jarcha police station under IPC sections 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder),148 (rioting with deadly weapon), 149 (unlawful assembly), 323 (assault), 504 (intent to disturb peace) on the basis of a complaint by Akhlaq’s wife. INDIA on Tuesday pledged a $450 million reconstruction and recovery package to Sri Lanka following the devastation caused by Cyclone Ditwah, Exter nal Affairs Minister S Jaishankar announced during his visit to Colombo as a special envoy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Speaking after talks with Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath, Jaishankar said he carried a personal message from Prime Minister Modi to President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, whom he met earlier in the day. “The letter from Prime Minister Modi builds on our First Responder role and commits a reconstruction package of USD 450 million.” Jaishankar said the package would comprise $350 million in concessional lines of credit and $100 million in grants. The assistance will focus on rebuilding roads, railways and bridges; housing; health and education facilities; agriculture; and strengthening disaster preparedness. “We are conscious that work towards mitigating the impact BLUEBIRD MISSION COUNTDOWN BEGINS, TESTS ON ISRO will launch Bluebird Block-2 spacecraft on board launch vehicle LVM3-M6 at 8.54 am on Wednesday from Sriharikota centre, after multiple delays | P5 ASSAM’S KARBI ANGLONG ON FIRE Flames billow from an area after an arson attack following demands for eviction of encroachers in Karbi Anglong district on Tuesday; and security personnel try to control the situation | ANI | P8 India, Bangladesh summon envoys amid protests J AYA N T H J A C O B @ New Delhi INDIA and Bangladesh summoned each other’s envoys on Tuesday to lodge formal protests over developments straining bilateral ties, as widespread demonstrations erupted across India following the lynching of a Hindu man in Bangladesh. Dhaka summoned Indian High Commissioner Pranay Verma on Tuesday morning, expressing concern over an “unsatisfactory security situation” at Bangladesh’s missions in India. Foreign Secretary Asad Alam Siam raised issues related to protests outside diplomatic premises in New Delhi, Kolkata and Agartala. “The foreign secretary conveyed Bangladesh’s serious concern and emphasised the host country’s responsibility under the Vienna Convention to ensure full protection of diplomatic premises,” a source said. Hours later, India summoned Bangladesh High Commissioner Riaz Hamidullah for the second time in a week over security concerns for Indian missions in Bangladesh. India urged a thorough probe into student leader Hadi’s death rather than blaming India, noting that unverified claims sparked anti-India protests, including an attempt to storm the Indian Assistant High Commission in Chittagong. The exchanges followed protests by Hindu rightwing groups across New Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai and J a m m u , a m o n g m a n y, against the December 18 lynching of Dipu Chandra Das, 25, in Mymensingh, allegedly over blasphemy charges. In New Delhi, VHP and Bajrang Dal cadres broke barricades and attempted to march towards the Bangladesh High Commission. GANG SELLING EXPIRED IMPORTED FOOD WITH FAKE LABELS BUSTED E X P R E SS N E WS S E R V I C E @ New Delhi DELHI Police has cracked a sprawling racket dealing in the illegal import and sale of expired international branded food products. The operation, which involved manipulating manufacturing and expiry dates, printing fake barcodes, and repackaging expired items as fresh, is worth `4.3 crore. “These expired food products were being sold through major retail chains, shopping malls, and e-commerce platfor ms across India, posing a grave threat to public health,” a senior officer said. Notably several , Retail chains, malls The tampered products were supplied in bulk to major retail chains, prominent malls, and various e-commerce platforms across India, generating huge illegal profits while endangering public health, the police said. seized items included baby food and other consumables. Seven people, including alleged mastermind Atal Jaiswal, have been arrested, and huge quantities of expired products were recovered from shops and godowns across the city . Investigation revealed that Jaiswal imported near-expiry food products at extremely low prices through Mumbai-based wholesale agents sourcing consignments from the UK, US, Dubai, and other countries. “By the time these consignments reached India, most of the products had already expired or become unfit for human consumption,” the officer said. Instead of destroying the items legally, the accused “remanufactured” them—changing manufacturing and expiry dates, altering labels and product information, affixing fake barcodes, batch numbers, and MRPs, and repackaging items in fresh-looking wrappers. of Cyclone Ditwah must be done in the quickest time possible,” he said and added that India and Sri Lanka were finalising coordination mechanisms for rapid delivery . Jaishankar also pointed to longer-term support, including boosting Indian tourism and foreign direct investment. “India stands firmly with Sri Lanka more than ever before,” he said, expressing confidence in the island nation’s resilience as it recovers from the disaster. Detailing India’s emergency response, Jaishankar said relief operations under Operation Sagar Bandhu began on the day Cyclone Ditwah made landfall. “Our Aircraft Carrier INS Vikrant and INS Udayagiri were present at Colombo and delivered relief material, after which helicopters were de- Mob in Kerala shatters C’garh migrant’s dream of roof over head G O P I K A VA R R I E R @ Thrissur LALITHA sat on the verandah in the Welfare Party’s office in Thrissur, frozen, her eyes blank, staring at the distance. A numbness enveloped the 35-year-old since Sunday night, when she saw the lifeless body of Ramnarayan Baghel, a Chhattisgarh resident who was lynched by a mob in Palakkad on December 17 over suspicions of theft and being a ‘Bangladeshi’. It had refused to let go of her when this newspaper spoke to her on Monday night. Nearby, her kids, aged 10 and 9, watch videos on the mobile, blissfully unaware of the tragedy that has struck the family . Lalitha was at her home in Karhi in Chhattisgarh when she received the devastating news. “It was our dream to construct our own house. Brick to brick, we built it. However, we needed more money to concrete the roof and complete the construction,” Lalitha told this newspaper. On December 13, Ramnarayan, a mason who earned `250 back home, left for Kerala. That was the last she saw or spoke to him. “He took the train dreaming about a job that paid better so that our house could be built swiftly,” she said. Upon arriving at Kerala, Ramnarayan called his brother— Lalitha doesn’t have a phone—saying he had reached. “I didn’t even get a chance to talk to him,” said Lalitha. The next call was from the police telling the family about what happened. The family—Lalitha, children and her mother—left for Kerala and reached Sunday evening. Sasikanth, Ramnarayan’s cousin, said, On the morning of December 17, he went out to have food while we went to work. I was later informed by police about the incident.” Assessees sore over taxman’s ‘nudge’ to rectify ITR D I PA K M O N D A L @ New Delhi HOLIDAY mood dampened for lakhs of taxpayers ahead of the Christmas and New Year with the tax department seeking clarification on the discrepancies in their returns for assessment year 2025-26. Sources said the income tax department’s automated risk management framework flagged a high volume of cases where refund claims are substantially high and do not align with official data. Such refunds have been put on hold pending verification. Tax professionals noted a surge in alerts targeting taxpayers who may be misreporting information. Key triggers for these investigations include Form 16 mismatches, suspicious deductions, and non-disclosures of assets. According to the income tax department, ‘identified’ taxpayers are being contacted through SMS and email under the Non-intrusive Usage of Data to Guide and Enable (NUDGE) campaign to correct errors. The due date for filing revised ITRs is December 31. Sources said 5-10 lakh taxpayers have been contacted under NUDGE campaign so far. Certain taxpayers have claimed ineligible refunds — Tax dept ployed,” he said. Indian Air Force Mi-17 helicopters operated in Sri Lanka for more than two weeks, while an 80-member National Disaster Response Force team carried out rescue and relief work. The Indian Army also set up a field hospital near Kandy with 85 medical personnel, providing emergency care to over 8,000 people. Besides, army engineers erected a Bailey bridge at Kilinochchi using equipment transported by C-17 aircraft, while another bridge at Chilaw is currently under construction. According to a World Bank Group Global Rapid Post-Disaster Damage Estimation (GRADE) report, the cyclone caused an estimated $4.1 billion in damage, which is around 4 percent of Sri Lanka’s GDP . A Bailey Bridge built by the Indian Army in Lanka’s Kilinochchi; and (inset) S Jaishankar hands over Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s letter to President Anura Kumara Dissanayake | PTI Stalin urges Jaishankar to protect TN fishers CM MK Stalin on Tuesday urged External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to intervene to secure the early release of TN fishermen and their boats detained by Sri Lankan Navy, and to work towards a permanent solution to the issue. Highlighting the gravity of the issue, Stalin said 248 TN boats and 62 fishers are in Lankan custody now EXPRESS READ 13 get life term in Bengal lynching case Show-cause notice to Delhi thermal plants Drug consignment seized in Punjab A fast-track court in West Bengal’s Murshidabad district on Tuesday sentenced 13 people to life imprisonment for the lynching of a man and his son during the protests over the Waqf (Amendment) Act. The court asked the state to give `15 L compensation to the victims’ family. The Commission for Air Quality Management in the NCR and adjoining areas has issued show-cause notices to six coal-based thermal power plants located within 300 km radius of Delhi. These notices were issued due to non-compliance with environment laws. P3 Over 12 kg of heroin, dropped by a drone from Pakistan, was recovered near Daleke village in Amritsar. The AntiNarcotics Task Force (ANTF) of the Punjab Police, in coordination with the BSF, recovered around 12.050 kg of heroin from agricultural fields in the area. INFRASTRUCTURE MAKEOVER South Delhi all set for flood fix and signal-free flyovers GRAPHIC 1 THE PROJECT INCLUDES New two-way Modi Mill Flyover at Outer Ring Road–Captain Gaur Marg intersection Doubling of Savitri Cinema Flyover at Savitri Cinema intersection Capacity augmentation along Outer Ring Road corridor FINANCIALS `371.75 cr Total cost Modi Savitri Mill Cinema Flyover: Flyover: `312.94 cr `58.81 cr PROJECT COMPLETION PERIOD: 30 MONTHS SPECIFICATIONS Kalkaji Mandir — Modi Mill: 3-lane, 1,140 m Modi Mill — Kalkaji Mandir: 3-lane, 870 m Savitri Cinema Half Flyover: 3-lane, 435 m A N U P V E R M A @ New Delhi SOUTH Delhi is ready for a major infrastructure makeover. The Delhi government’s Expenditure Finance Committee (EFC) has given the nod for three long-pending projects: the Modi Mill Flyover, Savitri Cinema Flyover, and the MB Road Storm Water Drain. The PWD will execute them. The combined investment exceeds `759 crore. PWD Minister Parvesh Sahib Singh says, “They will ensure signal-free traffic movement, enhanced road capacity, benefiting thousands of daily commuters.” The Modi Mill Flyover corridor, stretching to the IIT Gate intersection, will feature three lanes in both directions. The idea is to allow smoother, uninterrupted traffic flow (See Graphic 1). Once operational, the flyovers may eliminate congestion at Captain Gaur Marg– Outer Ring Road and Outer Ring Road–GK-II Road, improving traffic speeds and ensuring signal-free movement. GRAPHIC 2 KEY FEATURES Lado Sarai T-Point to Pul Prahladpur Pre-cast RCC box drain, project cost `387.84 cr Road length: Implementation 11.38 km period: 2.5 years Drain length: (including preconstruction) 22.76 km Complementing the flyovers is the MB Road Storm Water Drain project, targetting long-standing waterlogging caused by damaged and inadequate drains ( S e e Graphic 2). The drain will fix missing stretches, damage from metro construction, and insufficient capacity aligned with the Del, hi Drainage Master Plan. The minister points out, “Flyovers alone cannot solve urban problems. That is why traffic decongestion and storm water drainage are being planned together, so that citizens receive lasting relief, not temporary fixes. The PWD will ensure strict quality control and adherence to timelines. These projects will be closely monitored and completed within the framework.” The outcome? Smoother traffic, flood-free roads during monsoon, better pedestrian infrastructure, and long-term maintenance savings—a decisive step toward a more resilient and commuter-friendly South Delhi.