THURSDAY 06 JUNE, 2024 epaper.morningstandard.in facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard Kangana Ranaut, BJP SOUTH AFRICA Senior ANC leader and sports, arts and culture minister Zizi Kodwa faces charges of taking bribes of around $90,000, according to police A total of 797 women candidates had contested the Lok Sabha elections with the BJP fielding the maximum at 69 followed by the Congress at 41 A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS PAGE 9 NEW DELHI J8.00 Chandrababu Naidu HOPES TO STEER GOVT Seated next to Modi, Naidu sees himself in the No. 2 position in the NDA from where he could steer the wheel at the national level Nitish Kumar PUSH FOR PORTFOLIOS 1 Nitish is said to be keen on his party getting rural development, defence, railways and agri portfolios He wants the Speaker’s post for his party, a position held by TDP’s Balayogi during Vajpayee’s era. The post is crucial during instability 2 Both Nitish and Naidu are pushing for special category status for their respective states to get more funds He may insist on five portfolios — rural and urban development, shipping and ports, road transport and highways, Jal Shakti ministry 3 Nitish wants the post of vice-chairman of Rajya Sabha. JD(U)’s Harivansh Narayan Singh holds that post What BJP WON’T GIVE BJP unlikely to give away railways, home, finance, defence, law and IT to any ally as it has big-ticket plans for these ministries | P7 Prime Minister Narendra Modi with TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu, JD(U) head Nitish Kumar and Shiv Sena’s Eknath Shinde during the NDA meet in New Delhi on Wednesday FIRST UP, MODI ELECTED NDA LEADER ment is expected to be sworn in on June 8 or 9. No official date for the cerePUTTING all speculation to mony has been announced yet, rest, the ruling National Demo- apparently to evolve consensus cratic Alliance on Wednesday on allocating portfolios. But unanimously elected Narendra BJP sources said it would most Modi as its leader, formally probably be held on June 8 with paving the way for his third 20-25 ministers taking their term as prime minister. oaths of office. The NDA is likeTwenty-one leaders of the ly to stake its claim for governNDA, including TDP’s N Chan- ment formation on Friday . drababu Naidu, JD Since the TDP, JD 15-party (U)’s Nitish Kumar, (U), Shinde Sena and Shiv Sena’s Eknath Chirag’s LJP won 16, alliance Shinde, JD(S)’s H D 12, 7 and 5 seats, reThe NDA Kumaraswamy and spectively they expect , comprises the NCP’s Praful Patel, plum portfolios. Their met at the prime min- BJP, TDP, JD(U), wishlists are already Shinde Sena, ister’s residence and in circulation, with JD(S), Chirag’s submitted their letters the TDP angling for LJP, Manjhi’s of support. the Speaker’s post plus HAM, Pawan A resolution adopt5-6 ministries (see Kalyan’s JSP, ed at the meeting said, box). The JD(U) is lobNCP, Apna Dal “We are all proud that bying for rural develNDA fought the elec- (S), RLD, Promod opment, defence, railBoro’s United tions unitedly All of ... ways and agriculture People’s Party us unanimously elect in addition to the post Liberal, Asom Narendra Modi as our of vice-chairman of Gana Parishad, leader.” Modi later the Rajya Sabha. More posted on X, “Ours is Sikkim Krantikari clarity on the portfoliMorcha and All an alliance that will os is expected at the Jharkhand further national NDA parliamentary progress and fulfil re- Students Union party meet on June 7. gional aspirations. We Besides, there is a will serve the 140 crore people buzz that both the TDP and the of India and work towards JD(U) are pitching for special building a Viksit Bharat.” category status to their states, Sources said the focus of the a long standing demand. NDA meeting was to prioritise Earlier in the day, the last the stability and efficacy of the meeting of the outgoing minisnew government through col- try adopted a resolution advislective participation and per- ing the President to dissolve formance. The new govern- the 17th Lok Sabha. TDP seeks Speaker’s chair, 5 Cabinet berths RAJESH KUMAR THAKUR @ New Delhi INDIA to stay in Opposition The INDIA bloc leaders on Wednesday resolved to continue to fight against the BJP’s “fascist rule”. “Will take appropriate steps at the appropriate time to realise the people’s desire not to be ruled by the BJP,” said Cong chief Mallikarjun Kharge | P7 Thrissur loss serious: CM CM Pinarayi Vijayan claimed that the LDF was viewing the BJP victory in Thrissur “seriously” and said said it would take corrective measures to implement the government’s policies more effectively. The LDF won only 1 seat. S VISWANATH @ Vijayawada DISPELLING rumours that he was considering feelers from the INDI Alliance, Telugu Desam Party chief Chandrababu Naidu on Wednesday attended the NDA meeting in Delhi. Pictures of the meet showed the Andhra leader being seated right next to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The TDP is the second largest party in the NDA with 16 MPs. Top party sources said Naidu has taken a firm stand that he wants to play a key role in the Modi 3.0 government. He is also learnt to have given the BJP brass a list of demands. These include the Lok Sabha Speaker’s post and at least five portfolios for the regional party . The TDP is keen on the Speaker’s position because it comes with immense power and access, and the Chair will play a crucial role in case of a hung Parliament. Late GMC Balayogi from the party had served as Speaker in the A B Vajpayee government from 1998 to 2002. A TDP MP said the party wants rural development, housing and urban affairs, ports & shipping, road transport & highways, and Jal Shakti ministries. It is also keen to have a junior minister in the finance ministry as the state is in dire need of funds. As Naidu wants to resume development of Amaravati as Andhra capital, the urban affairs portfolio will come in handy Similarly, he needs the rural develop. ment ministry to fulfil his promise of developing rural infrastructure in the state. Three industrial corridors pass through the state; hence, the demand for road transport and highways ministry The state has four . ports under development, which can be completed fast with the help of the ports & shipping ministry Naidu . hopes to complete the Polavaram multi-purpose irrigation project with the help of the Jal Shakti ministry . However, he may not insist on this portfolio owing to conflict of interest: Andhra Pradesh has river water disputes with Telangana, Karnataka, and Odisha. Kejriwal bail plea dismissed SUCHITRA KALYAN MOHANTY QS World University Rankings is instituted by Quacquarelli Symonds, a higher education analytics firm IIT-Delhi ranks 150 among top universities this year, rising 47 points from last year Among Central varsities, University of Delhi ranks 328th worldwide, moving up by 79 points from 407 last year DU moves up to 7th top university this year. The university was ranked 9th last year DU ranked first in employment outcomes and sustainability, third in International Research Network, fifth in academic reputation and eighth in employer reputation Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University honoured with ‘Rising Star’ award for incredible improvement in a year | P4 @ New Delhi IN yet another setback to Arvind Kejriwal, a city court on Wednesday dismissed his application for interim bail on medical grounds in the money laundering case linked to the alleged excise policy scam. The court extended Kejriwal’s judicial custody till June 19 when he will be produced before a vacation judge. Special judge Kaveri Baweja at the Rouse Avenue court said: “I have issued certain directions for his diagnostic tests to be conducted.” The court, however, refused interim bail “at this stage.” Kejriwal’s lawyer Vivek Jain cited his client’s health concerns. The CM filed a plea for interim bail seeking seven days to undergo a series of tests owing to his ill health. He has also filed a plea for regular bail. On June 1, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta and Additional Solicitor General SV Raju raised many preliminary objections against his interim bail plea on the grounds of its maintainability and intention. Mehta said Kejriwal allegedly suppressed the fact that the apex court had refused to extend his interim bail beyond June 1 and his bail plea cannot be entertained solely on this basis. Raju said, “The (Supreme Court) order categorically says he will surrender by June 2. The SC order has not been modified. He is technically asking for extension of interim bail granted by the SC and that is not permissible.” Mehta said the CM did not provide any explanation as to why he did not go for a test. “Can the entire system be taken for a ride like this? This is being used for oblique reasons,” Mehta said. Kejriwal has filed two separate petitions before the trial court. The first plea has sought regular bail, while the second one seeks interim bail for seven days on medical/health grounds. His regular bail plea is scheduled for hearing on June 7. Mehta said that Kejriwal’s weight has remained constant. “He has, in fact, gained 1 kg,” Mehta said. The CM has attached two medical reports. “His weight today is 64 kg. When he was taken into custody, it was 69 kg,” his counsel N Hariharan said. 24 PAGES 12 WISHLIST OF SOME OF THE PROMINENT ALLIES RANKED TOP 150 AMONG GLOBAL UNIVERSITIES Mahua Moitra, TMC 73 WOMEN CANDIDATES ELECTED TO LOK SABHA, FIVE LESS THAN IN 2019 MINISTER HELD ON BRIBERY CHARGES IIT-DELHI Shambhavi, LJP(RV) THE NUMBER OF WOMEN LAWMAKERS IN THE FIRST LOK SABHA BJP’s Maha rout: Fadnavis offers to quit as deputy CM SUDHIR SURYAWANSHI @ Mumbai AFTER the BJP drubbing in Maharashtra in the Lok Sabha elections, party leader Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday offered to resign as the state’s deputy chief minister taking responsibility for the losses. T h e B J P ’s Lok Sabha tally came down from 23 to 9 in the state. Fadnavis said he will request the party’s national leadership to accept his resignation. He said he wants to work at the organisational level to get the party ready to face the October Assembly elections in Maharashtra. Dissecting what went wrong for the BJP in the state, Fadnavis said it failed to counter the Opposition’s narrative of Samvidhan Bachav (Save the Constitution), which damaged its prospects in a big way . As per sources, Fadnavis decided to resign as Dy CM after the central leadership called him and expressed displeasure over the BJP’s poor performance. But, state BJP president Chandrashekar Bawankule said no one had asked Fadnavis to resign. “We are surprised by his decision. We want him to remain in the government,” he said. Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde said the BJP, Shiv Sena and the NCP contested together, so the three should collectively take responsibility for the losses. ODISHA Many names, but kaun banega mukhyamantri? BIJOY PRADHAN @ Bhubaneswar WITH the BJP all set to form its maiden full-majority government in Odisha, the focus has shifted to the chief minister’s chair. All eyes are on the BJP’s parliamentary board meeting to be chaired by PM Modi in a day or two. There are several names making the rounds. Among the frontrunners is Union minister in the outgoing Modi cabinet Dharmendra Pradhan even though he has been elected to the Lok Sabha from Sambalpur. Pradhan has virtually been the face of BJP in Odisha for the last 10 years and fits the bill. He has all the requisite qualifications to hold the office of CM. A key member of the Modi cabinet in the last 10 years, Pradhan has been assigned with key portfolios. He has efficiently managed portfolios like petroleum, steel, education and skill development and entrepreneurship. He earned the epithet “Ujjwala Man” for successfully delivering free cooking gas to women from below poverty line families in Modi 1.0. State BJP chief Manmohan Samal, too, is a potential contender for the top post. The other names doing the rounds are Sundargarh MP Jual Oram, Balasore MP Pratap Sarangi and Keonjhar MLA Mohan Majhi, BJP national V-P Baijayant Panda and Bhubaneswar MP Aparajita Sarangi. There is also speculation about an “outsider” being declared as the CM. The name of former CAG Girish Chandra Murmu is being taken in a big way . SAFFRON SURGE Newly elected BJP MPs — Bansuri Swaraj, Praveen Khandelwal, Yogender Chandoliya, Ramvir Singh Bidhuri, Manoj Tiwari, Kamaljeet Sehrawat & Harsh Malhotra — with state party chief Virendra Sachdeva | PARVEEN NEGI | P4 Parole for progeny: K’taka HC nod to plea of life convict’s 31-year-old wife Allowed to marry The HC had helped the 31-year-old woman from Kolar district by granting 15 days’ parole to her lover serving a life sentence for murder in Bengaluru Central Prison to marry her a year ago Report to cops once a week The HC noted the petitioner’s husband should mark his attendance at the jurisdictional police station once a week. It’ll be responsibility of the jurisdictional police to bring him back to jail if he doesn’t return. EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ Bengaluru THE Karnataka High Court, which helped a woman by granting 15 days’ parole to her lover serving a life sentence for murder in Bengaluru Central Prison to marry her a year ago, has now acceded to her request to grant parole to him to beget a child. Taking a compassionate view, the court granted 30 days’ parole to him, considering the request of his 31-year-old wife from Kolar that she is deprived of progeny and her mother-in-law wishes to spend time with grandchildren. The court, however, said the petitioner is at liberty to seek an extension of general parole from 30-90 days as sought by her, which should be considered looking at the conduct of the convict while he is out on parole. Justice SR Krishna Kumar passed the order while partly allowing the petition filed by the woman. Noting that parole will be effective from June 5, the court said the petitioner’s husband should mark his attendance at the jurisdictional police station once a week without fail. It will be the responsibility of the jurisdictional police to bring him back to jail if he doesn’t return. The petitioner’s husband was sentenced to life imprisonment for murder in 2016. After the verdict, he served five years and one month in jail. He was granted 15 days’ parole from April 5, 2023, to marry her. She sought parole again for her husband as he is a life convict and she lives with her mother-in-law. She is deprived of her right to progeny. Her mother-in-law suffers from various ailments and she wishes to spend time with her kids. Hence, she wants her husband to be with her, she stated in her petition. The court first granted him parole for 15 days acceding to the request of his mother and the woman, who was in love with him for nine years.
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