MONDAY MONSOON ACTIVITY SUBDUED IN LARGE PARTS OF INDIA 13 Monsoon activity was subdued in large parts of India on Sunday, with rain confined to Uttarakhand, West Bengal, and Northeast JULY, 2026 The IMD forecast weak rainfall activity in northwest, west central and over south peninsular India in the next 6-7 days. For Uttarakhand, the IMD issued a red alert for heavy to very heavy rainfall. epaper.morningstandard.in facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard NINE DEAD On Sunday, heavy rainfall triggered landslides across Uttarakhand. Himachal continued to be under a wet spell as light to moderate rains lashed parts of the state. RUSSIA, UKRAINE EXCHANGE STRIKES Russia fired a wave missiles at Ukraine overnight, killing four people, while Ukrainian strikes on Russia and Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine killed five. A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS PAGE 9  NEW DELHI  J8.00 3°C PAGES 12  Iran shuts Strait of Hormuz again, US retaliates with more attacks England vs Norway There was controversy surrounding the England equaliser as well as the decision to chalk off a Norway goal. England manager Thomas Tuchel even admitted his team was lucky Fate of ceasefire deal hangs in balance as Iran & US trade barbs over control of waterway India deplores attack on ship, urges restraint A G E N C I E S @ Tehran / Dubai IRAN said the Strait of Hormuz was closed on Sunday while the United States insisted it remained open, after the confrontation over the vital waterway again sparked US and Iranian strikes. The strait, essential to global oil and gas supplies, has become a central point of contention between the two foes, repeatedly leading to exchanges of fire despite an agreement aimed at ending the Middle East war that was struck last month. The latest exchange on Sunday was prompted by another Iranian attack on a Cyprus-flagged container ship in the waterway whose crew was forced to abandon it after it went up in flames. Before the war began with surprise US-Israeli strikes against Iran on February 28, there was free passage through Hormuz, but Tehran now insists that it will control the strait, while Washington is adamant it cannot. “Following this incident... the Strait of Hormuz will be closed until further notice and until the end of American interventions in this region,” Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said Sunday . The US military’s Central Command countered on X that the strait was “open to all vessels seeking to lawfully transit the international waterway”. It said US forces were “positioned and prepared to ensure” freedom of navigation, adding: “Iran does not control the strait. Traffic is flowing.” Iran said it had targeted two ships in Hormuz, accusing them of ignoring instructions to use an approved transit corridor or “violating regulations”, IRNA said. The attacks prompted a barrage of US strikes across Iran in response, with the US J AYA N T H J A C O B @ New Delhi The Cyprus-flagged container ship that was hit by Iran and suffered “significant engineroom damage” according to the US | X Oman protests Iranian attack Oman on Sunday issued a formal protest to the Iranian ambassador following an attack on the country, state media reported, in a rare instance of it publicly accusing Tehran of targeting its territory United States is imposing a heavy cost by continuing to degrade Iran’s ability to attack civilian mariners and commercial ships freely transiting the Strait US CENTCOM military saying it had hit 140 targets this week. Iranian media reported explosions in Bandar Abbas, Sirik, Jask and on Qeshm Island, as well as in Khuzestan province, with one soldier reported killed in the southern city of Jask. US President Donald Trump told CNN that the Iranian attack had come despite the two sides being close to a deal on Saturday. “They were giving up everything, and then two hours after that they hit a ship with a drone,” he said. Iran’s response to the US strikes came quickly with sirens and explo, sions heard in Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, AFP journalists and local authorities reported. Qatar said three people were injured by Iranian attacks, while Jordan said three Iranian missiles fell inside the kingdom. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said they also hit Oman, which has rarely been targeted. They claimed to have destroyed “the logistical support centres for naval vessels and the refuelling facilities for US aircraft carriers at the port of Duqm”. P9 INDIA on Sunday strongly condemned the attack on the merchant vessel GFS Galaxy off the coast of Oman, calling for an immediate end to attacks on commercial shipping and urging de-escalation amid rising tensions in West Asia. The Ministry of External Affairs External Affairs (MEA) said 10 of 11 Indian nationals on board the Cyprus-flagged container were rescued; one Indian remains missing. “Our Embassy in Oman is closely monitoring the situation and proactively coordinating with Omani authorities in the ongoing search and rescue operation. We thank Omani authorities for their support,” MEA said in a statement. Describing the repeated attacks on commercial vessels in the region as “deeply worrisome”, India reiterated its call for restraint and a diplomatic resolution to the crisis. “We reiterate our call for immediate de-escalation of tensions, and the conclusion of ongoing negotiations for a diplomatic solution so that peace and stability can return,” the MEA said. The ministry also stressed the importance of safeguarding international shipping lanes. “The targeting of commercial shipping and civilian infrastructure in the region must end,” MEA said. SC to hear plea on spike in airfares today Argentina vs Switzerland Argentina, England entered the semis on Saturday. However, officials inside the (Video Assistant Referee) VAR booth played a decisive role in the on-field outcomes. A quick glance... Switzerland shot themselves in the foot when Breel Embolo, who had been booked in the first half, threw himself to the ground and was dismissed following a VAR check | P11 All-party meet on Jul 19; Opposition plans showdown P R E E T H A N A I R @ New Delhi THE government has called an all-party meeting on July 19, a day before the commencement of the Monsoon Session of Parliament. In the meet, the government is expected to outline its legislative agenda while the opposition parties are likely to spell out the issues they intend to raise during the session. The monsoon session is expected to be stormy as the government may take up crucial constitutional amendment bills, including the 130th Constitution Amendment Bill, which seeks to automatically remove the prime minister, ministers, or chief ministers on the 31st day of their detention if they don’t step down. The Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) examining the 130th Constitution Amendment Bill is expected to adopt its report on July 17 before submitting it to Parliament. Sources said the panel has recommended that the PM, Union ministers, and chief ministers be suspended rather than permanently removed from their posts if they are detained for 30 consecutive days on charges of serious offenses. The panel has also proposed an automatic reversal clause if such persons are acquitted or the prosecution does not proceed within a specified period. Most opposition parties had opted out of the joint committee, as they termed the Bill a tool to destabilise governments they run. In its report, the panel defines “serious criminal offenses”, saying the term should refer to offenses punishable with jail term of 5 years or more. To pass Constitutional amendment bills, the government needs the support of twothirds of members present and voting in both Houses. NDA will need 360 to get a two-thirds majority. While NDA has 293 members, its strength could rise to 319 if the 20 rebel TMC MPs and six rebel Shiv Sena (UBT) extend support. The southwest monsoon has remained below normal across UP so far, with the state recording 158.8 mm of cumulative rainfall between June 1 and July 12 against a normal of 190.9 mm. | P7 Centre okays `1.6K cr aid for city infra A N U P V E R M A @ New Delhi THE Centre has approved all 28 major projects proposed by the Delhi government, with an estimated cost of `1,647 crore, under the Special Assistance to States for Capital Investment (SASCI) scheme. Recognising the Delhi government’s efforts to enhance capital expenditure (CAPEX) through its own resources, the Centre has also approved an additional incentive of `756 crore. On Sunday, CM Rekha Gupta said that this decision will accelerate development works across the capital and enable citizens to benefit from improved public facilities. She said the projects approved under the SASCI scheme include Metro projects, the Barapullah elevated corridor, the Karawal Nagar flyover, EV charging stations at DTC depots, and several other key road infrastructure projects. The SASCI is an important scheme of the Centre under which states and Union Territories receive interest-free financial aid for infrastructure projects, the CM said, adding that it also encourages strategic reforms and increased capital investment by the states. Gupta said from the very beginning, her government has been urging the Centre to approve Delhi’s infrastructure projects under SASCI. EXPRESS READ Three publishers from Jammu, Noida nabbed J&K Police held three publishers on Sunday as a part of a major crackdown on the book circulation in government school libraries that allegedly glorify separatism. The accused have been identified as Inderpaul of Jammu’s Oberoi Book Service, Amardeep Singh and Girish Arora of Dominant Publishers in Noida. P8 When Manmohan Singh told former CEC Quraishi ‘I will commit suicide’ S U C H I T R A K A LYA N M O H A N T Y @ New Delhi THE Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on July 13 a PIL by social activist S Laxminarayanan seeking directions to the Centre and DGCA to frame guidelines to check “unpredictable fluctuations” in domestic airfares and bring more transparency to airline pricing. A bench headed by the CJI, Surya Kant, is likely to take up the plea highlighting sharp surges in ticket prices during peak travel periods at short notice. In his plea, Laxminarayanan said that there should be fare caps, prescribed minimum and maximum limits for each sector, to prevent arbitrary increases. It also stressed compelling airlines to explain to passengers at booking the factors and algorithm behind fare changes. “Create a forum for passengers to challenge exorbitant fares,” the PIL read. The petition also further submitted that wild swings in fares infringe the right to travel and disproportionately burden ordinary citizens, particularly during medical emergencies and festive seasons when rates often rise three to four times. Earlier, the Civil Aviation Ministry had told Parliament that airfares are deregulated under the Aircraft Rules, 1937, and are driven by market forces. The DGCA’s role, it said, is limited to monitoring tariffs to ensure they are not “unreasonable”. Last week, the matter was mentioned for urgent listing in view of bookings for the upcoming festival season. MORE THAN THE AVERAGE TEMPERATURE IN DELHI: IMD EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ New Delhi NATURE’S WRATH A house damaged after a cloudburst triggered flash floods in the Nalla Awoora area of Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir | PTI FORMER prime minister Manmohan Singh was deeply upset by the face-off between some of his ministers and the then chief election commissioner S Y Quraishi during the 2012 Uttar Pradesh elections. Divulging the details in his forthcoming book India and I: A Hundred Memories, Not a Memoir, Quraishi recalls that during a poll rally in January 2012, then Union minister Salman Khurshid said the Congress would raise the job quota for Muslims from 4.5% to 9%. at an event, he conveyed his The BJP approached the EC, concerns. The next day he got a , flagging violation of poll code. call from Singh, asking: ‘Qurai“We censured Khurshid, the shi ji, can I see you urgently?’ strongest action availWhen they met at able under the Code,” PM’s residence, Singh Quraishi recalls. said: ‘Harish told me The decision drew what you said. If that sharp criticism from is what you think, I some Congress leadwill commit suicide.’ ers, who said the EC Quraishi writes that had become ‘arrogant’. he was speechless. “My “Criticism never both- Manmohan Singh remark was about ers me; innuendo does. some ministers’ conThis loose talk was not accept- duct, not about him.” Singh able,” he writes in the book. then told him he was unaware When Quraishi met PM’s of the ministers’ comments press secretary Harish Khare and expressed deep regret. HOLLYWOOD IN BOLLYWOOD Corporate knights rise for Nolan’s Odyssey to Mumbai AV I N AS H RA M AC H A N D RA N @ Mumbai INDIA have seen actors turn into stars, stars turn into demigods, and demi-gods turn into heads of state. But despite a fancy theatre in Mumbai briefly housing a beloved Superhero and a hard-boiled spy, there were scores of people standing in wait for one man. Who’d have thought that before I could absorb the momentous occasion of being one of the select few who watched Christopher Nolan’s The Odys- sey much before the rest of the world did, I would be bombarded with a geographical question. A young fan stopped me in my tracks on the Red Carpet and asked, “Will Nolan be coming out of this gate?” It was an almost 30-meter carpet, and I was stopped 8-10 times and asked variations of the same question. They didn’t want to know whether I saw the film, how good Matt Damon and Tom Holland were, or whether the film stayed true to the Greek epic. They wanted confirmation that I had crossed paths with Nolan, as though that fleeting proximity carried cinematic prestige. They wanted to know if Nolan was as charismatic as they had envisioned. This wasn’t a group of people who were waiting to dance a signature step , or utter a famous punch dialogue , or play dress-up for their social media Christopher Nolan with actors Tom Holland and Matt Damon in Mumbai | PTI accounts. It was a crowd that was filled with students still in their uniforms. It was a gathering of salaried employees who still had their company ID cards dangling around their necks. It wasn’t a group that wanted to take a selfie for posterity but rather to narrate the , story of how they braved the odds to get a glimpse of the man whose films had hit their collective imagination. In a city that has seen big stars shine, Nolan’s presence in Mumbai became a pilgrimage for those who believed in him. DELHI 6 CAUGHT BETWEEN LEGACY AND POLICY As the government pushes a new vision through renaming and redevelopment of Shahjahanabad, stakeholders argue that its future lies not in reinventing its past but in preserving its heritage | P4