MONdAY Gaza summit: PM Modi gets invite, deputes MoS Prime Minister Narendra Modi got a lastminute invite for the Gaza peace summit to be held in Egypt's Sharm el-Sheikh on Monday 13 OCTOBER, 2025 epaper.morningstandard.in The Centre has deputed MoS for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh to attend The summit, hosted by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, will discuss ways to bring lasting peace to Gaza and the wider West Asia. It will be co-chaired by Trump US President Donald Trump and nearly 20 other world leaders, including UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Italian leader Giorgia Meloni and French President Emmanuel Macron, are expected to attend | P7 facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard Russia Ukraine’s power grid hit, US warned Russia attacked Ukraine’s power grid overnight on Sunday and expressed concern over the US potentially providing Tomahawk cruise missiles to Ukraine. A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS Page 9 l New Delhi l J8.00 l PAGES 12 From Delhi, Af minister issues stern warning to Pak Visiting minister Amir Khan Muttaqi says Kabul will pursue ‘other options’ if peace fails; strong message follows deadly border clash J AYA N T H J A C O B @ New Delhi TALIBAN-ruled Afghanistan’s acting foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi, who is on a sixday visit to India, on Sunday issued a stern warning to Pakistan from Indian soil that Kabul has “other options” if Islamabad refuses diplomacy. His strong remarks come amid deadly border clashes and growing hostility between Afghanistan and Pakistan. “The people of Pakistan, in the majority are peace loving… , We have no issues with civilians,” Muttaqi said at a New Delhi press conference, adding “certain sections” in Pakistan are creating trouble. “Afghanistan will safeguard its national interest,” he said, adding Kabul had already retaliated to border violations. “We achieved our military objectives last night,” he said, before claiming he had heeded calls from Saudi Arabia and Qatar to pause escalation. Muttaqi’s warning follows at- Afghanistan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi (left), addresses a press conference at the Afghan embassy in New Delhi, on Sunday | PTI tacks along the Durand Line. The Taliban claimed to have killed 58 Pak soldiers and seized 20 border posts in retaliatory strikes against alleged territorial and airspace violations. Islamabad disputed the claim, acknowledging 23 deaths and asserting it had “neutralised” 200 Taliban fighters in its counteroffensive. Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi termed Taliban’s actions as unprovoked violence against ci- bjp, jd(U) to contest 101 seats each The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) on Sunday finalized its seat-sharing agreement for the upcoming Bihar assembly election BJP and Janata Dal (United) will each contest 101 seats in the 243-member assembly, while Union Minister Chirag Paswan’s Lok Janshakti Party will contest on 29 seats Union Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi’s Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) and former Union Minister Upendra Kushwaha’s Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM) will contest six seats each This is the first time since 2005 that BJP and JD(U) will contest an equal number of seats The JD(U) is understood to have not insisted on a lion’s share this time in view of the party’s poor performance in 2020, when it won only 43 seats, far less than the BJP’s 74 | P8 Wintrack bribe row Two senior Customs officials shunted out S i d d harth P rabha k ar @ Chennai Ten days after private firm Wintrack levelled corruption allegations against Chennai Air Cargo Customs, the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) on Saturday transferred the agency’s commissioner and deputy commissioner. Principal Commissioner of Chennai Airpor t Customs MG Thamizh Valavan and deputy commissioner Harendra Singh Pal were transferred to the Director General of Taxpayer Service (DGTS) and the Directorate General of Performance Management (DGPM), respectively . CBIC sources said this was an administrative transfer to ensure a fair probe and did not indicate any wrongdoing. “The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs @cbic_in- dia has received the factual enquiry report from the Department of Revenue. Based on the prima facie findings, a thorough vigilance investigation is being initiated, which is proposed to be completed in 4-6 weeks,” CBIC wrote on X. The action came after Wintrack alleged corruption and harassment by Chennai Customs over clearing their cargo imported from China, which ignited an outpouring of anger. Celebrities like Mohandas Pai, the Chairman of Manipal Global Education Services, and Member of Parliament Shashi Tharoor had joined the debate supporting the cause of Wintrack. Chennai Customs had then posted a clarification denying allegations of bribery and said Wintrack’s consignment had been misdeclared, and it submitted wrong documentation, and false exemption. vilians, vowing retaliation “with a stone for every brick.” Border crossings have been shut. Closure of the Torkham and Chaman points has stranded trade caravans on both sides and deepened the humanitarian stress in Afghanistan. Muttaqi’s Delhi visit is being closely watched as a signal in the regional chess game. Without explicitly recognising the Taliban regime, India has upgraded its technical mission in Kabul to a full embassy—a bold step that underscores New Delhi’s willingness to engage directly with Kabul’s new rulers. Against that backdrop, Muttaqi’s pointed remarks from a high profile Indian stage carry diplomatic weight. His comments also diverge from earlier Taliban postures that avoided public flares against Pakistan. Now, Kabul is explicitly calling out cross border aggression: “Don’t provoke Afghanistan too much — if you do, ask the British, the Americans … playing such games” with Afghanistan, he had warned on Friday during a press conference in Delhi. Unsurprisingly, Islamabad did not receive the remarks quietly Pakistan’s Foreign Of. fice countered that Kabul’s deflections on cross border terrorism would not absolve it of regional obligations, and joined issue with a reference in the India Afghanistan joint statement to Jammu & Kashmir as part of India. Women journalists pose questions to the Afghanistan foreign minister on Sunday ‘Women journos excluded due to technical issue’ E x pre ss N ews Ser v i c e @ New Delhi AMID criticism over the exclusion of female journalists from his first press conference in India, Afghanistan’s acting foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi on Sunday said it was a “technical issue” and not a deliberate act of exclusion. “It was due to the short notice. The participation list was prepared with specific journal- ists. It was more of a technical issue and not intentional,” he said during a second press briefing in Delhi, which included female journalists. Muttaqi’s first press interaction on October 10, which excluded women reporters, had sharp backlash from media circles and civil society with crit, ics calling it reflective of the Taliban’s regressive stance on women’s rights. Heat mounts on Haryana to remove DGP H A R P R E E T B A J W A @ Chandigarh The Haryana government has been given a 48-hour ultimatum to remove Shatrujeet Kapur from his position as the state DGP This demand comes . from a Mahapanchayat organised by a 31-member committee, which was formed to advocate for the demands of the family of the late Haryana IPS officer Y Puran Kumar. Kapur figures among police officers against whom Kumar’s wife, senior IAS officer Amneet P Kumar, has sought action for allegedly abetting his suicide. A decision in this regard was taken by the committee at a mahapanchayat held at Guru Ravidas Bhavan in Sector 20 here on Sunday “The Haryana . DGP and the former Rohtak SP should be arrested. The Haryana government should remove the DGP from his post. We have given 48 hours after which we will decide the next course of action,” a spokesperson for the committee said. Gurmail Singh—a member of the committee—said the demand for a judicial inquiry was also raised during the mahapanchayat. Karamvir, another member, said, “We want to know what the SIT, which has been constituted by Chandigarh police, has so far done in this case,” he said. He added that an association of Safai Karamcharis in Chandigarh has extended support to the family . Despite six days having passed since Kumar committed suicide, his post-mortem Mahapanchayat serves 48-hour deadline A 31-member committee, which was formed to advocate for the demands of the family of the late Haryana IPS officer Y Puran Kumar, held a Mahapanchayat on Sunday. It gave an ultimatum of 48 hours to the Saini government to remove Shatrujeet Kapur from his position as the state DGP. examination has not been conducted as the family has refused consent until their demands are met. The Chandigarh Police has invoked Section 3(2)(v) of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act in the case. The move followed a complaint by the deceased’s wife to the SSP on Friday morning, demanding the inclusion of stringent provisions of the SC/ST Act to the case. Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge has written to Kumar’s wife, extending support in her fight for justice. He said the Haryana officer ended his life “battling social prejudices and disparities.” e x pr e s s r e a d Three in police custody over Durgapur gangrape A subdivisional court on Sunday remanded the three men arrested for gangrape of a student of a private medical college in West Bengal’s Durgapur, to 10-day police custody. She was allegedly raped outside the campus. Charges pressed include gangrape and criminal conspiracy. | P8 OBC youth forced to wash Brahmins’ feet An OBC youth was allegedly forced by Brahmin men to wash their feet and drink that water, as a punishment for posting an AI image of the concerned upper caste man in Madhya Pradesh’s Damoh district. Police have registered an FIR under BNS Sections 296, 196(1)(b) and 3(5). festive glow People shop for lanterns in Nagpur on Sunday as the countdown for the Diwali festival begins | PTI devi awards Honouring the unstoppable spirit of women E x pre s s N ew s Ser v i c e @ Hyderabad Top - Left to Right: Mrunalini Rao (designer), Rekha Lahori (CEO Kalakriti), Rashna Bhandari (scientist), Anjani Reddy (painter), Justice V Ramasubramanian (Chief Guest), Prabhu Chawla(Editorial Director, TNIE), Dr P Lakshmi (Surgeon), T Kalyan Chakravarthy (Resident Editor, TNIE, Telangana); Bottom line: Representative for Anu Acharya (Entrepreneur), Lakshmi Menon (CEO, TNIE), Elahe Hiptoola (filmmaker), Saraswathi M (entrepreneur), T Pallavi (innovator), Shreya Paropkari (Advocate), during the 3rd edition of Devi Awards at ITC Kakatiya in Hyderabad on Sunday| LOGANATHAN VELMURUGAN THE ballroom at ITC Kakatiya glowed with purpose as The New Indian Express brought the Devi Awards back to the city after nine years — celebrating women who embody resilience, leadership, and grace. Instituted in 2014 by TNIE Group, the awards honour women who have broken barriers and redefined success across diverse fields. Since their inception in New Delhi, 33 editions have been for mers to entrepreheld across the country, neurs, technology innoPresents recognising around 405 vators to artists. The exceptional women. women of Telangana Welcoming the gathercan run enterprises, ing, Lakshmi Menon, lead the nation toward CEO of TNIE, said the change, ne gotiate awards celebrated womcomprehensive soluen “who shatter glass tions, and still ensure ceilings, rewrite codes, DEVI that their families are and lead with courage AWARDS cared for.” and conviction”. She The awards were preadded, “As we stand in sented by Justice V Rathe proud heart of Telangana, masubramanian, chairperson we salute women who have of the National Human Rights been pioneers — from social re- Commission and former judge WOMEN’S AWARDS FOR DYNAMISM & INNOVATION of the Supreme Court, in the presence of Prabhu Chawla, editorial director of TNIE Group. This year’s awardees reflected a broad range of achievement: filmmaker Elahe Hiptoola, advocate Shreya Paropkari, scientist Dr Rashna Bhandari, entrepreneurs Saraswathi Malluvalasa and Anu Acharya, painter Anjani Reddy surgeon , Dr Palukuri Lakshmi, designer Mrunalini Rao, Kalakriti India CEO Rekha Lahoti, and innovator Talluri Pallavi. delhi’s baansera park gets a facelift Baansera Park transforms a formerly polluted stretch of the Yamuna floodplain into a sprawling 402-acre lush green eco park which stands as a model of urban sustainability, a complete reclamation in 18 months. | P4 High drama at K’taka DCM Shivakumar’s outreach prog E x pre s s N ew s Ser v i c e @Bengaluru A high-voltage political drama, heated arguments, commotion and sit-in protest marked Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar’s public outreach programme—‘Bengaluru N a d i g e ’ ( Wa l k Wi t h Bengaluru)—at JP Park in Mathikere on Sunday . After his morning walk, Shivakumar sat on the dais at a park to address the audience’s grievances along with officials from the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA). Shivakumar, who saw Rajarajeshwari Nagar MLA Munirathna seated among the public, addressed him saying, “Aey Kari Topi Baa’ (Hey Black Cap Come)”, asking the latter to join him on the dais. Munirathna, who was in the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) uniform with a black cap, white shirt and brown pants, went on the stage, took the mic from the anchor and complained to GBA Chief Commissioner that as the MLA, he was not invited to the programme. Even as Shivakumar told Munirathna to sit and discuss other things later, the MLA alleged it was a ‘Congress event’ for the party’s propaganda. His mic was turned off, leading to commotion between workers of both parties and the police quickly took Munirathna off the stage. The DyCM then slammed the MLA, saying it is his nature to obstruct others’ programmes. At this, Munirathna staged a sit-in demonstration at the park and complained that his privileges as the area MLA were violated. The MLA said he will complain to Speaker UT Khader about it.