WEDNESDAY 27 MAY, 2026 epaper.morningstandard.in facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard PRADHAN DISCUSSES CBSE PAYMENT GATEWAY OVERHAUL WITH PSU BANKS US STRIKES Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan held detailed discussions with senior officials of SBI, Bank of Baroda, Canara Bank and Indian Bank IRAN WARNS OF CONSEQUENCES Tehran on Tuesday denounced US strikes a day earlier as a sign of “bad faith and unreliability” as negotiations continue toward a possible deal to end the war. PAGE 9 GYMKHANA CLUB Will not take possession by June 5, Centre informs HC U D AYA N K I S H O R E @ New Delhi THE Delhi High Court on Tuesday noted the Centre’s submission that it would not dispossess the Gymkhana Club of its 27.3-acre premises by June 5. A bench of Justice Avneesh Jhingan was hearing petitions filed by members and employees of the club challenging the Centre’s notice directing the institution to vacate its premises by June 5 for defence and security-related purposes. During the hearing, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the court, “We will not take possession except in accordance with law... It cannot be on June 5 because notice will have to be issued,” Mehta said. When the judge asked whether the statement could be placed on record, Mehta replied that it would also be filed through an affidavit. “It’s not that police will rush in. It will have to be taken over in accordance with the law. June 5 has been given as an option to vacate voluntarily. The government can offer an alternative plot of land where they can shift,” he said. Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for one of the petitioners, said the club should be allowed to continue functioning until the matter is heard again in July. “A club running for 100 years can surely wait till July he said. ,” The court then directed Mehta to file a written reply within eight weeks. “In view of the statements made by the Solicitor General, no further interim directions are called for. The statement is to the effect that the eviction, if any will be car, ried out following prior notice,” the judge observed. The court also said apprehensions that the club’s governing body might hand over possession were “contrary to the stand taken by the club”. Singhvi argued that the petitioner feared the Gymkhana Club was being managed by a committee appointed by the Centre and that the governing body might act “in glove with the Union of India”. But Mehta told the court the governing body had already approached authorities against the impugned communication. Proceedings against Race Club P3 BANKS TOLD TO HELP SET UP ROBUST SYSTEM A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS  NEW DELHI  J8.00  The meeting was held in the backdrop of concerns over the recent payment and technical issues faced by students during the CBSE post-result and re-evaluation processes. During the interaction, Pradhan asked the banks to assist the CBSE to establish a robust, reliable and student-friendly digital payment ecosystem, particularly for post-examination services | P7 PAGES 12 Siddu agrees to quit Siddaramaiah seeks Governor’s appointment at 2 pm on Thursday, calls CLP meeting the following day; no clarity yet on successor though Deputy CM Shivakumar is the front-runner If not DKS: Who’s in race PREETHA NAIR, BALA CHAUHAN, N AUS H A D B I JA PU R & D EVA RA J B H I R E H A L L I @ New Delhi/Bengaluru KARNATAKA Chief Minister Siddaramaiah late on Tuesday night agreed to step down, confirmed sources privy to the marathon meetings held earlier in the day in New Delhi. Although Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar is the front-runner for the CM’s post, no decision has been taken on who would succeed him nor on when Siddaramaiah would tender his resignation as chief minister. But sources said Siddaramaiah has sought time to meet Governor Thawar Chand Gehlot at Lok Bhavan on May 28 at 2 pm, and called for the Congress Legislature Party the following day . AICC General Secretary K C Venugopal and AICC General Secretary in-charge of Karnataka, Randeep Singh Surjewala, are scheduled to arrive in Bengaluru on Wednesday . Sources informed this newspaper that senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi asked Siddaramaiah to step down to resolve the prolonged tussle between him and Shivakumar. They said the CM agreed after a late evening huddle with MLAs supporting him. Shivakumar had been insisting that the high command hand over the CM’s post to him, based “The Congress high command could go in for a complete makeover of the party in the state and appoint a young, dynamic leader with a clean image to lead the party in the 2028 assembly elections,” sources said Byre Gowda: Chart topper Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah (C) and Deputy CM D K Shivakumar (L) with AICC general secretary K C Venugopal after a meeting with the high command in Delhi | PARVEEN NEGI The name of Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda is on the top, besides Minister for Large & Medium Industries and Infrastructure Development MB Patil. Both have a clean image and are known for their good work on an agreement of sharing twoand-a-half years that he is said to have struck with Siddaramaiah after the party came to power in the 2023 Assembly polls. The half-way mark arrived in November last year, but Siddaramaiah refused to yield. Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar were summoned to Delhi on Monday where Rahul is said to , have told the CM that the party wanted the transition to take place smoothly. However, Siddaramaiah sought time to respond to the high command’s suggestion that he move to the Rajya Sabha to play a “larger role” at the national level, according to sources. After marathon meetings — from 11.35 am to 6 pm — a visibly Venugopal and Surjewala. Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar were consulted separately at the party headquarters. Following the discussions, Rahul and Venugopal are said to have briefed senior leader Sonia Gandhi on the meetings, before having a closed-door meeting with Siddaramaiah where he offered the latter a larger role at the national level, while asking him to step down as CM. For the record, Venugopal dismissed all talk on change in leadership as mere speculation. Asked if there was any discussion on leadership change, Siddaramaiah, too, said “No”. On a possible cabinet reshuffle, the CM said, “It did not come up for discussion.” upset Siddaramaiah huddled with his coterie of cabinet colleagues at Karnataka Energy Minister K J George’s New Delhi residence and conveyed the message of the high command to them. He agreed to step down after this meeting, sources said. No wonder, Shivakumar and his supporters looked upbeat. Siddaramaiah was carrying a letter of support by 100 party MLAs (Congress has 134 of 224 seats in the assembly) to convince the high command about his support. Sources said he will hold a meeting with all these MLAs at George’s Bengaluru residence on Wednesday . The day saw a series of meetings attended by Rahul, AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge, EXPRESS READ SC order on SIR constitutional validity today The Supreme Court is schduelded to pronounce its verdict on Wednesday on a batch of pleas challenging the constitutional validity of the Special Intensive Revision exercise carried out by the Election Commission. A three-judge bench, led by CJI Surya kant, and also comprising Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V M Pancholi, will pronounce the verdict on Wednesday. P7 CNG prices hiked again, this time by `2/kg Compressed natural gas (CNG) prices in the city and adjoining cities were raised by `2 per kg on Tuesday, marking the fourth increase in less than two weeks amid rising input costs. CNG now costs `83.09 per kg, up from `81.09, said Indraprastha Gas Ltd, the country’s largest gas company that sells CNG to automobiles and piped natural gas to households in Delhi. P3 Forest fire in Kasauli, Shimla; IAF roped in IAF has deployed its Mi-17 and Chinook helicopters to douse the forest fire near its station at Kasauli in Himachal Pradesh, amid surge in temperatures across the hill state. Another fire broke out in a forest area near Badagaon sewage treatment plant in Shimla. Teams from fire and forest departments rushed to the spot to douse the raging fire. Quad sharpens Indo-Pacific Wazirabad desilting project a non-starter focus, unveils new initiatives AMID WATER WOES J AYA N T H J A C O B @ New Delhi A N U P V E R M A @ New Delhi MORE than a year after it was announced, the desilting project at the Wazirabad barrage remains stalled as Delhi faces worsening summer water shortages. Sources said on Tuesday that raw water levels have dropped sharply and the crisis is expected to continue for the next few days. Last year, a tender for desilting work in the pondage area was floated, but was later cancelled. The pondage area stores raw water before it enters treatment plants, helping regulate flow, settle silt and maintain supply The Yamuna level is cur. rently around 669 feet, down from the normal 674 feet. Wazirabad barrage is Delhi’s first interception point on the river. “Wazirabad has an average capacity of producing 131 MGD, while Chandrawal produces 94 MGD. But a 30% capacity reduction in both has brought down the overall water production of DJB,” sources said. In April 2025, Water Minister Parvesh Sahib Singh announced plans to desilt the Wazirabad pond. DJB floated a `25-crore tender to remove 3.63 lakh cubic metres of silt, a move expected to raise storage capacity by around 100 MGD. He had said the work would be completed within two months. But a year later, the project has still not been awarded. Areas which may be affected include South Extension, Greater Kailash, Jahangirpuri, Moolchand, Majnu Ka Tila, Kashmere Gate ISBT, ITO, Defence Colony among others. , Secretary of State Marco Rubio with foreign minister S Jaishankar | AP Critical mineral pact India and the US signed a framework agreement on critical minerals and rare earths, to reduce dependence on China-dominated global supply chains. Separately, Quad partners India, US, Japan, and Australia announced plans to mobilise up to $20 bn to strengthen critical mineral supply chains THE Quad grouping sharpened its strategic focus on the IndoPacific on Tuesday as the foreign ministers of India, the US, Japan and Australia unveiled a set of initiatives aimed at strengthening regional energy resilience, maritime security, critical mineral supply chains and port infrastructure. The Quad Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, held amid rising geopolitical competition and growing concerns over economic and energy vulnerabilities, signalled a broader push to institutionalise cooperation in major sectors while ensuring the bloc doesn’t get the label of a security alliance. At the heart of the announcements was the launch of the Quad Initiative on Indo-Pacific Energy Security, a framework to deepen cooperation in ener- gy technology policy coordina, tion, and emergency response. A joint statement said the initiative would seek to “recognize and leverage the unique resources and capabilities of each country’s energy sector”. External Affairs Minister, S Jaishankar described the discussions as “substantive and productive,” stressing the strategic importance of maritime collaboration among the four democracies. “Because we are four maritime democracies located at different ends of the Indo-Pacific, the exchange of perspectives was an exercise of considerable value,” Jaishankar said after the meeting. The broad package of initiatives reflects the Quad’s evolving role into a platform for strategic economic coordination, resilience-building and infrastructure development across the Indo-Pacific. P7 ‘Jana Nayagan’ in capital Unnatural demographic change under the lens to meet Modi, FM today HIGH-LEVEL PANEL M U K E S H R A N J A N @ New Delhi THE government on Tuesday constituted a high-level committee to study how illegal infiltration and other factors lead to unnatural demographic changes across the country . Chaired by Justice (Retd) Prakash Prabhakar Nawlekar, the panel’s members include Census Commissioner Mritunjay Kumar Narayan, former IAS officer Durga Shankar Mishra, retired IPS officer Balaji Shrivastava and educationist Shamika Ravi. Union home minister Amit Shah said, illegal infiltration and other reasons leading to unnatural demographic change is a very big challenge. The new panel is in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s an- nouncement on August 15, 2025 to constitute a high-powered demography mission, he said. Describing the issue as one that goes beyond population data, Shah said demographic change has direct implications for sovereignty, law and order, social structure and the preservation of tribal communities. He said the initiative reflects a proactive effort to protect the country’s integrity and social fabric through “well-informed and decisive action”. The committee has been tasked with submitting its report within a year. It will consult all stakeholders and propose comprehensive policy measures to address emerging concerns. Terms of reference Comprehensively deliberate upon the challenges arising from demographic changes, including illegal immigration Study possible causes, such as cross-border activities, economic opportunities, and other socioenvironmental factors Identify underlying factors like illegal immigration, abnormal settlement patterns and orchestrated migration Analyse structural population changes at the level of religious or social communities, particularly where they deviate from broader trends Recommend a streamlined and permanent operational mechanism for the legal, fair, and time-bound identification, detention, and deportation of illegal immigrants residing in the country Recommend appropriate institutional mechanism to strengthen border management, population stabilisation, and identification systems for the continuous monitoring of such trends E X P R E SS N E WS S E R V I C E @ New Delhi TAMIL Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay will come to New Delhi on Wednesday in his first trip to the national capital since assuming office earlier this month. Vijay is scheduled to meet PM Narendra Modi at 4.30 pm to discuss a range of issues concerning the state. During the meeting, Vijay is likely to submit a memorandum outlining the state’s demands, including allocation of funds for welfare and infrastructure projects, clearances for developmental initiatives, the Mekedatu issue and implementation of PM Shri scheme. He is also likely to meet Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and seek financial sup- port for ongoing projects and key inter-state issues affecting the state. Vijay is also expected to meet Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi. According to the tentative schedule, the CM will return to Chennai on May 28. Vijay, founder of the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), took oath as CM on May 10 after leading his party to victory in the TN polls held on April 23. Satheesan meets Modi in Delhi, seeks package P5 DRDO scientist’s house in secured complex burgled, no arrest so far N I T I N R A W AT @ New Delhi A scientist’s house in north Delhi’s Timarpur DRDO complex was robbed of jewellery, cash and other valuable items worth around `50 lakh after burglars broke open the gate and entered the premises while the occupant was away . According to the police, the incident took place on May 23 in the high-security area housing senior DRDO officials. The thieves forced open the door when the complainant was away in Chandigarh and broke into an iron almirah, from which they stole the valuables. That evening, the neighbours noticed a door open and informed the complainant, who then rushed home around 11 pm along with her husband. Crime and forensic teams have inspected the premises. The list of stolen items was recorded in the online FIR. A total of `15,000, foreign currency in the form of 20 pounds and 50 dirhams, a gold necklace set with earrings, eight bangles, seven chains, five rings, four sets of earrings, a nose pin, two sets of silver anklets, 20-gram silver coins, and three watches were stolen. A police officer said that a case had been registered and an investigation initiated. Police are checking CCTV footage from the residential complex and surrounding areas to ascertain the sequence of events and identify the culprits. No arrest has been made so far in the case. Police suspect the accused may have conducted a recce before robbing the house.