wednesdAY Breakthrough elusive amid Heavy flow of water, silt into tunnel 26 Despite relentless efforts by Army, Navy, NDRF, and GSI, rescue workers could not reach those trapped inside the collapsed Srisailam tunnel february, 2025 epaper.morningstandard.in Of heavy debris, silt & water separate rescue workers and the trapped men facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard fresh search for Malaysia airlines flight A fresh search for MH370 has been launched more than a decade after the plane went missing in one of aviation’s greatest enduring mysteries. Page 9 ‘Tunnel collapsed due to tectonic shift’ A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS l New Delhi l J8.00 l Terming it one of the world’s most complex rescue operations, Telangana’s irrigation minister Uttam Kumar Reddy said on Tuesday that there is only one entry or exit to the Srisailam Left Bank Canal (SLBC) tunnel, which is now partially collapsed. He said the collapse might have taken place due to a slight tectonic shift and as some geological fault lines have given way | p5 PAGES 12 Sajjan awarded 2nd life term in ’84 anti-Sikh riots S h e k h a r S i n g h @ New Delhi a Delhi court on Tuesday sentenced former Congress leader Sajjan Kumar to life imprisonment for orchestrating the killings of a father-son duo during the 1984 anti-Sikh riots in the national capital. Special Judge Kaveri Baweja of Rouse Avenue Court, while delivering the verdict, underscored the brutality of the crime but stopped short of awarding the death penalty, cit- ing Kumar’s age and ill-health. Already serving a life sentence in another riot case, his conviction in the Saraswati Vihar killings of Jaswant Singh and Tarundeep Singh further cements his role in the violence that followed the assassination of former PM Indira Gandhi. The court noted that murder under Section 302 of IPC carries the maximum penalty of death and a minimum of life imprisonment. The prosecution sought the harshest punishment, argu- First life sentence came in December 2018 Sajjan Kumar’s first life sentence came in December 2018, when the Delhi High Court found him guilty of five murders in Raj Nagar, Palam Colony. He was held responsible for burning down a gurudwara. Two other riot cases against him are pending before the HC. ing that Kumar instigated a mob that looted, burned homes, and killed innocent Sikhs. However, the judge took into account his “satisfactory” jail conduct, severe health conditions, and psychiatric treatment at Safdarjung Hospital while ruling out capital punishment. On November 1, 1984, Kumar allegedly led a murderous mob that stormed into Saraswati Vihar in West Delhi, set houses ablaze, and lynched Jaswant Singh and his young son Tarundeep. The case against Kumar was revived decades later when the Ministry of Home Affairs appointed a SIT in 2015 to re-examine hundreds of riot cases. A key protected witness, who had remained silent for years out of fear, finally testified in 2016, providing crucial evidence that linked Kumar to the killings. This testimony led to fresh charges against him. P4 L2K cr loss AAP’s Kejriwal didn’t want you to know CAG report found hole in the exchequer due to excise policy revamp A n u p V e r m a @ New Delhi Cosmic energy Preparations in full swing ahead of the Maha Shivaratri at the Shivoham Shiva Temple on Old Airport Road in Bengaluru on Tuesday | Vinodkumar T Lalu, kin summoned in land-for-jobs case S h e k h a r S i n g h @ New Delhi A Delhi court on Tuesday issued summons to former Railways Minister Lalu Prasad, along with 77 others, in connection with the land-for-job case. The court also acknowledged all the three chargesheets, including the conclusive findings submitted by the CBI. Special CBI Judge Vishal Gogne of Rouse Avenue Court ordered all accused to appear before the court on March 11, confirming that a joint trial will be conducted for all charge sheets. Among those summoned are Lalu’s son Tej Pratap Yadav and daughter Hema Yadav. The court also directed that copies of the chargesheets be provided to the accused. The CBI registered the case on May 18, 2022, alleging that between 2004 and 2009, Lalu exploited his ministerial position to secure land transfers for his family in exchange for Group ‘D’ railway jobs. The agency claims that no advertisements or public notifications were issued for these appointments, yet candidates — primarily from Patna — were recruited and placed in railw ay z o n e s a c r o s s Mumbai, Jabalpur, Kolkata, Jaipur, and Hajipur. The investigation further revealed that several appointees or their family members either sold or “gifted” their land to Yadav’s family members or a private company linked to them. The CBI also conducted searches across multiple locations, including Delhi and Bihar, to gather evidence. ‘nohostages freed,talks’ israel says Hamas till Hamas said on Tuesday Israel’s delay in the release of 600 Palestinian prisoners is a “serious violation” of the ceasefire pact and talks are not possible until they are returned. | P9 A report of the national auditor the Kejriwal government failed to table in the Delhi assembly faulted it for a cumula, tive loss of `2,002.68 crore to the exchequer between November 2021 when the new excise policy was rolled out and September 2022, when it was scrapped. This newspaper was the first to report the Delhi excise policy scam. The report of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) that was finally tabled in the House on Tuesday, said the AAP government lost `1,890 crore because of its failure to re-tender surrendered licences. Losses under various other heads included revenue slip of `941.53 crore since retail shops were not opened in nonconforming wards; `144 crore hole due to fee waiver to zonal licensees citing Covid-19 despite the excise department’s advice to the contrary; and `27 crore loss due to the failure to collect proper security deposits from zonal licencees. The report established that the failure to enforce Rule 35 of the Delhi Excise Rules, 2010, resulted in the grant of licences to wholesalers having interests Enabling monopolies in the city AAP’s policy forced manufacturers to tie up with a few wholesalers, allowing them to dominate the supply chain. 3 wholesalers (Indospirit, Mahadev Liquors, Brindco) controlled over 71% of supply. So, prices could be artificially inflated Transparency missing in pricing The Excise Department allowed L1 licencees to set their own ex-distillery price for high-priced liquor, leading to price manipulation 192 brands Supplied by just three wholesalers. It gave them power to decide which brands to push The CAG report will be referred to the Public Accounts Committee of the House for further examination —Vijender Gupta, Assembly Speaker in manufacturing and wholesalers having relationships with retailers. It polluted the entire liquor supply chain with common beneficial ownership across licensees in manufacturing, wholesale and retail. The report pointed out that the wholesaler margin was hiked from 5% to 12%, claiming it was necessary to compensate them for setting up a quality checking system through government-approved labs at warehouses. However, no such labs were set up. Thus, the profit margin of wholesalers shot up, while revenue tanked. The AAP government awarded retail liquor licences without checks on solvency, financial statements, and criminal records. Running a liquor zone required an initial investment of over `100 crore, yet no qualifying financial criteria was set. As a result, licenses were given to financially weak entities, with multiple bidders reporting minimal to zero income in the last three years. They indicated proxy ownership, raising questions about political favouritism and backdoor deals, the CAG report said.  More reports on Pg 3 BJP takes ‘black deeds’ jibe at AAP, Atishi claims old policy to be blamed Ex p r ess n e ws s e rv i c e @ New Delhi Daggers drawn The ruling BJP and opposition AAP traded charges following the tabling of the CAG report on the liquor policy scam case in the Delhi Assembly The BJP . called the report AAP’s “list of black deeds”. The AAP countered the policy was proof that its government rightly replaced the old policy, claiming even the CAG report says a proper implementation of the new policy would have increased the revenue from `4,108 crore to `8,911 crore in just one year. Delhi BJP president Viren- While Virendra Sachdeva charged the previous govt with violating licence distribution rules, Atishi said the CAG had validated AAP’s claims of large-scale corruption under the old excise policy. dra Sachdeva stated that the report exposed the truth about the loot and corruption that Arvind Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia, and Atishi tried to cover up for the past decade. He charged the previous government with allegedly violating licence distribution rules and giving wholesale licences to those linked with retail and manufacturing companies, leading to a corrupt supply chain. Atishi, however, said that the CAG had validated the AAP’s claims of large-scale corruption under the old excise policy . The report highlights the manipulation of profits by underreporting 28% of liquor sales, while unchecked smuggling from Uttar Pradesh and Haryana drained Delhi’s revenue. She claimed that the AAP government had repeatedly exposed corruption and black marketing in the old excise policy . tharoor row Rahul summons Cong leaders from Kerala for talks PREETHA NAIR @ New Delhi AMID the row over Congress leader Shashi Tharoor’s opinion piece in this newspaper hailing the development initiatives of the CPM-led government in Kerala, the Congress’ central leadership summoned senior leaders from the state for consultation. According to sources, as many as 27 leaders—including Tharoor—have been called for the meeting, which will likely discuss ways to douse the infighting ahead of the crucial local body and assembly elections in the state. The meeting, scheduled to take place on Friday, will be chaired by party chief Mallikarjun Kharge and senior leader Rahul Gandhi at Indira Bhawan, the new headquarters of All India Congress Committee in New Delhi. Congress Working Committee members from the state Kodikunnil Suresh, Ramesh Chennithala, KPCC president K Sudhakaran, and Opposition leader V D Satheesan will attend the meeting. Senior leaders Mullappally Ramachandran, UDF convenor M M Hassan, and V M Sudheeran will also attend the meeting. It is not clear if Tharoor will attend the meeting. Sources said the confirmation of his attendance will be known only on Concerned with the excessive and problematic use of technology the Indian Council , of Medical Research (ICMR) has approved the setting up a Centre for Advanced Research on Addictive Behaviours (CARAB). The first of its kind centre in the country has been mandated to develop evidence-based intervention targeted at excessive and problematic use of technology, especially among The centre will also be tasked to develop resources for education and health sector workers to strengthen their capacity on prevention and management of these problems. The interventions shall also help reduce the stress, depression, anxiety, addiction associated with use of the internet and technology . “Also, the centre aims to develop AI-based predictive models to detect vulnerability to excessive and problematic use of technolog y among the youth,” Prof Balhara said. “Excessive and problematic use of technology has been rec- A senior Congress leader said the Friday meeting will focus on the party’s preparations for the local body elections. Another leader said the leadership may also discuss the factionional feud Thursday If he attends, it will . be Tharoor’s second meeting with the central leadership after his TNIE column sparked a controversy Last week, Rahul . Gandhi had called for a one-onone meeting with the Thiruvananthapuram MP, though Tharoor did not divulge what transpired in the meeting. Tharoor’s close associates said he had conveyed his unhappiness over being sidelined in the party at the national level and the state level. Early this week, Tharoor further ruffled Kerala leaders’ feathers by saying there is a leadership vacuum in the state and his projection as the Congress’ face ahead of the 2026 Assembly polls. AAP chief eying Punjab route to Upper House? H a r p r e e t b a j w a @ Chandigarh AAP chief weighing options After AAP’s defeat in Delhi polls, Kejriwal has been left with two options: taking over as Punjab’s CM or securing an RS seat to maintain his national relevance. While replacing Mann might lead to accusations of prioritising his ambitions over the party’s stability, getting an RS seat would enable him to maintain his national presence. IS former chief minister Arvind Kejriwal eyeing a Rajya Sabha seat from Punjab? Speculation is rife that Rajya Sabha MP Sanjeev Arora may be the party’s candidate for the upcoming bypoll in the Ludhiana (West) Assembly seat. If Arora contests and wins the by-election, he will have to vacate his RS seat. Insiders say that he could be inducted into the Bhagwant Mann cabinet as a minister. This potential vacancy in the Upper House has fueled rumours about Kejriwal possibly replacing him. However, a final decision is likely be made only after Arora’s election as an MLA. As per sources, other Upper House MPs from Punjab have also offered to step down to accommodate Kejriwal. Following AAP’s defeat in the Delhi elections — where Kejriwal lost his New Delhi seat, and the party was reduced to 22 seats in the 70-member House — he has been exploring two options: Taking over as Punjab’s CM or securing an RS seat to maintain his national relevance. Replacing Mann might lead to accusations that he prioritises his ambitions over the party’s stability However, an RS seat would enable . him to maintain a strong national presence. AAP currently holds 10 RS seats — three from Delhi and seven from Punjab. While the Delhi seats are secure until 2030, Punjab’s RS seats are valid until 2028, making it the most viable route to the Upper House. express read Coming up, first of its kind research centre on addictive behaviours the children and the youth. “The centre shall address various addictive behaviours in a comprehensive manner. The interventions shall be aimed at prevention, screening, early detection and intervention for internet and technology related addictions among children and youth,” according to Prof Yatan Pal Singh Balhara, faculty in-charge of the Behavioral Addictions Clinic (BAC) at AIIMS, New Delhi, who is the lead on this project. Upcoming polls, infighting on agenda replace mann or I CMR g r e e n l i g h t K a v i ta B a j e l i - D at t @ New Delhi 40 metres ognised as a major public health problem. The Economic Survey of India (2024-25) has linked increase in mental health issues in children and adolescents to overuse of the internet and highlighted the urgent need for school and family-level interventions to keep children and adolescents away from the internet to improve their mental well-being,” he added. The centre will partner with school and college students, parents, teachers, faculty from Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), and other medical colleges to create a national network targeted at addressing the internet and technology related addictions. The Economic Survey had said that “Social media, screen time, sedentary habits, and unhealthy food are a lethal mix that can undermine public health and productivity.” It raised concerns about the impact of social media on the mental health of the youth. ‘Digital arrest’: Odisha varsity V-C loses `14 L Using the ‘digital arrest’ trick, cyber criminals posed as ED officers and duped Berhampur university vice-chancellor Geetanjali Dash to the tune of `14 lakh, police said. P5 CBSE norms for Class X board exams twice a yr From 2026, class 10 students will be able to take CBSE board exams twice in an academic session or choose between the two editions — one in February and another in May, officials said on Tuesday. P7