tuesdAY bombay hc raps Imran khan for taking part in anti-cec protest 03 november, 2026 epaper.morningstandard.in facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard OCTOBER 13 HIV vaccine FDA approves generic option IS WHEN BJP leader Kirit Somaiya FILED A COMPLAINT AGAINST KHAN HC seeks unconditional apology, actor tenders it The US regulator on Monday approved a low-cost version of an HIV prevention shot, bringing the breakthrough drug closer to market in low-income countries A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS Page 9 l New Delhi l J8.00 No more Char Dham copters this year S L A L ITHA @ New Delhi THE ongoing face-off between chartered flight operators in Uttarakhand and the aviation regulator over the co-pilot rule resulted in cancellation of all 40 Char Dham trips scheduled for Monday . With no breakthrough emerging in the talks between the Directorate General of Civil Aviation and the private operators on the new rule of two pilots per aircraft, the operators have decided to cancel chopper services for the rest of the season, ending on November 7. A reputed operator, speaking on behalf of the 13 operators who run these trips, told TMS: “The DGCA held a virtual meet with all of us on Monday. We reiterated what we had communicated to them earlier that it was not possible logistically or fi- nancially to operate every helicopter with two pilots. We said that operators should have been consulted before taking this decision.” He added that all operators were on the same page about suspending the trips. An average of 40 trips are operated per day with six passengers accommodated per aircraft. “We will cancel all trips and reimbursing the pas- sengers though we will incur losses,” the operator said. The aerial pilgrim trip begins at Sahastradhara helipad in Dehradun and covers Yamunotri, Gangotri, Kedarnath and Badrinath. It begins annually either by the last week of April or the first week of May and continues till June 25. After shutting down during the rainy season, it restarts by mid-September and continues till the first week of November. High court ‘Nobody will trust you’: SC rejects govt stays sacking plea against Vedanta arbitration awards of JNU prof S U C HIT R A K A LYA N M O HA N T Y @ New Delhi U D AYA N K I S H O R E @ New Delhi The Delhi High Court on Monday stayed an October 9 order issued by Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) terminating the services of Prof Angomcha Bimol Akoijam, who faces allegations of sexual harassment by female students. The Congress MP from the Inner Manipur Lok Sabha constituency h a s a l s o approached a Delhi trial court seeking anticipatory bail, apprehending arrest by the Delhi Police. His plea may come up for hearing on Tuesday . Justice Anup J Bhambhani issued notice to the university on Akoijam’s petition challenging his termination and listed the matter for hearing in January In his plea, Akoijam denied . all allegations and described the university’s action as a “witch hunt”. The termination order stated that JNU’s Internal Complaints Committee had conducted an inquiry and recommended disciplinary action based on its findings. Akoijam was a professor at the university’s School of Social Sciences. The Delhi Police registered an FIR against him on October 11 on a complaint filed by JNU’s chief security officer. At least 11 female students had submitted sexual harassment complaints against him in May . e x pr e s s r e a d 3 AAP legislators switch over to BJP Three Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLAs from Punjab joined the BJP in New Delhi on Monday. The move is being seen as a blow to CM Bhagwant Mann ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections. Harmeet Singh Pathanmajra, Chetan Singh Jouramajra and Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh joined the BJP a day after AAP declared the first group of candidates. P8 The court said an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card holder cannot criticise the government, as such persons are not on a par with Indian citizens THE Supreme Court on Monday dismissed the Centre’s appeal against the enforcement of two foreign arbitral awards in favour of mining major Vedanta and Ravva Oil (Singapore), questioning the government’s resistance and warning that prolonged litigation will undermine global trust in India’s arbitration framework. “Nobody will trust you,” a bench of justices J B Pardiwala and Manmohan said while rejecting the Centre’s appeal against the Delhi High Court’s July 1 order allowing the enforcement of the 2004 and 2016 Kuala Lumpur awards involving claims of $99 million. Criticising the Centre’s reluctance to accept the award, the bench asked: “What are these arguments? You are frustrating an arbitral award... at the stage of enforcement?” The bench said it found no error in the HC ruling, which had rejected the Centre’s objections to the awards. The dispute traces its origins to a 1994 production-sharing contract between the Union government and a consortium comprising ONGC, Videocon Petroleum, Ravva Oil and Cairn Energy, whose interest passed to Cairn India and then to Vedanta for the development of Ravva oilfield in the Krishna-Godavari basin. Following disagreement between the government and the companies over the interpretation of the contract in determining how ONGC’s historic costs should be accounted for, the matter was referred to arbitration in Kuala Lumpur. The bench asked why the matter continued for so long when the first award was in 2004 and final award in 2016. Additional Solicitor General Vikramjit Banerjee appeared for the Centre while Mukul Rohatgi and Akhil Sibal represented Vedanta and others. Baazigar of Bollywood Mumbai’s Bandra-Worli sea link was illuminated on Sunday to mark Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan’s birthday | PTI l A division bench of Chief Justice Mahesh Chandra Tripathi and Justice Advait Sethna directed actor-director Imran Khan to furnish an unconditional apology for participating in protests demanding the resignation of CEC Gyanesh Kumar. Khan had approached the high court challenging a notice that directed him to leave India by October 28. He apologised later in the day | P8 PAGES 12 P e ri o d i c p o l l u t i o n SC warns police officials of NCR towns of contempt action if its orders are not fully complied with Green crackers allowed in NCR only on Nov 7, 8 S U C HIT R A K A LYA N M O HA N T Y @ New Delhi HOLDING that a complete ban on firecrackers is not only facilitating illegal sale but also preventing people from purchasing legitimate green crackers, the Supreme Court on Monday allowed bursting of green firecrackers in the NCR, including Delhi, from 6 am to 7 am and from 8 pm to 10 pm on November 7 and 8. Diwali falls on November 8 this year. A bench of justices M M Sundresh and Prasanna B Varale said the complete ban on firecrackers across Delhi-NCR will come back into force from November 9. “No firecrackers shall be burst within a 300-metre radius of hospitals, nursing homes, primary and district health centres, old-age homes and notified silence zones. These areas, along with educational institutions, will be declared No-Cracker Zones and appropriately marked and publicised,” the court said. The bench clarified that only green firecrackers certified by NEERI and PESO will be allowed in the NCR on the permitted days and time slots. Observing that bursting firecrackThis court is short ers would certainly cause pollution, the bench of adequate data to decide whether said the right of an individual to engage in a or not a complete particular practice, which may have a religious ban would be the colour, is only a qualified one and cannot go best solution to beyond the constitutional restrictions. solve the problem “Though imposition of a blanket ban seems of pollution caused to be the ideal solution, we are of the opinion by firecrackers that this court, at this point in time, is short of Supreme Court adequate data to decide whether or not a complete ban would be the best solution to solve the problem of environmental pollution, caused by bursting firecrackers,” the bench said in its October 29 order, which was published on Monday . On the safety aspect, the court said boxes containing green crackers must be completely sealed to ensure that they are not mixed with any unauthorised or conventional firecrackers, and that there shall be no manufacture or sale of firecrackers joined in series (“ladis”) and garlands. The court directed the Delhi Police, Uttar Pradesh Police, Haryana Police and district administrations in the NCR to ensure strict compliance with its order. It warned state officials of contempt action if its directions are not complied with completely . The court said that bursting causes severe distress to patients, elderly and students. It said violation will attract action under noise pollution rules and the Environment Protection Act. The bench also said that authorities must carry extensive public awareness drive about green crackers and silence zones. The apex court had earlier imposed a blanket ban on firecrackers in the NCR due to severe air pollution, but after representation from traders and the general public and considering availability of green firecrackers with 30 per cent less emission, it decided to permit limited bursting for two days. The bench passed these directions after hearing a batch of pleas seeking appropriate directions and orders against bursting of firecrackers, keeping in view the increasing level of pollution in the NCR towns. Delhi AQI ‘very poor’, GRAP II plan invoked I f r a h M u f t i @ New Delhi A day after winter pollutioncontrol measures came into force in the national capital, Delhi’s air quality deteriorated to the “very poor” category on Monday, prompting the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) to invoke Stage II of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) across Delhi and NCR towns with immediate effect. The CAQM cited a sharp deterioration in air quality, with Delhi’s Air Quality Index (AQI) rising from 117 on October 31 to 261 on November 1, before climbing further to 324 on Monday amid “unfavourable weath, er conditions”. In an order dated November 2, the CAQM directed all agencies concerned across the NCR to implement, monitor and review measures under GRAP Stages I and II in earnest to prevent further deterioration in air quality. The agencies have also been asked to maintain strict vigil and intensify pollution-control measures. The authority said it would continue to monitor the situation and review further action based on air quality forecasts issued by the India Meteorological Department and the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology . Under Stage II, authorities are required to intensify mechanised road sweeping and water sprinkling, particularly in pollution hotspots. The measures also include higher parking fees to discourage private vehicle use and efforts to strengthen public transport. RK Puram station reported an AQI of 370, while Chandni Chowk recorded 361, Siri Fort 354, Alipur 382 and North Campus 359. Other locations with “very poor” AQI included ITO and Akshardham. P3 After clash with lawyers, police protest at headquarters N i t i n R a w at @ New Delhi Around 500 Delhi Police personnel protested outside the headquar ters on Monday against the transfer of two officers after a clash with lawyers at Shahdara police station. DCP (New Delhi) Sachin Sharma spoke with protesters, including ACP Manasvi Vashistha, and urged them to move inside the police headquarters (PHQ). They refused. Vashistha was one of the officers transferred after the clash. Police Commissioner Anur- ag Kumar and senior officers later met the protesters, who remained dissatisfied and continued their demonstration outside Gate No. 1 of the PHQ. Vashistha told mediapersons he had not initiated the protest. “It was an organic call initiated by police personnel, and I am joining them in this demonstration. We have requested a platform to present our concerns and have submitted a formal application in this regard,” he said. Protesters raised slogans and carried placards. A Sampark Sabha was held Grievance redress plan Senior police officials met protesting police personnels. They directed district and unit heads to hold regular Sampark Sabhas with personnel under them to examine their grievances and offer time-bound solutions. at the PHQ. The commissioner, special commissioners and other senior officers heard personnel’s concerns. They raised issues concerning the force’s dignity, respect for the uniform and the need for a structured grievance mechanism. The commissioner appreciated the force’s professionalism, commitment and discipline, including its work on law and order and the successful conduct of the BRICS Summit. He assured personnel that thier concerns would be addressed promptly to strengthen their morale and uphold the uniform’s dignity . The police said a Joint Coordination Committee with representatives of the Bar Associations and the Bar Council of Delhi would be formed to address issues arising during police duties. Promotions, MACP , housing and service-related matters would also receive attention. Warships M D signs `54k cr o deal for 8 units The multi-role stealth warships, to be built in India, will be able to fight in the air, on the surface and under water, unlike the existing single-role corvettes | P7 I n d i a ’ s f ir s t f u l l s o l a r vi l l a g e 141 homes, 282 kW, zero rupees in electricity bill E J A Z K AI S E R @ Raipur FOR as long as anyone in Khaira can remember, the monthly power bill sat on the kitchen shelf next to rice, medicines and grocery, competing for the same few rupees. This year, that bill lost its place. The tiny village in Chhattisgarh’s Rajnandgaon district is now India’s first to cover every household with rooftop solar under the ‘PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana’, officials said. All 141 homes now carry a 2 kW solar rooftop system, adding up to nearly 282 kW of clean energy capacity for its 889 residents. The villagers paid nothing. Central and state subsidies met the base cost, and corporate social responsibility funds covered the rest, ensuring zero out-of-pocket expenditure for the residents. “Khaira’s families have tran- How Khaira flipped the electricity playbook Khaira’s solar leap was not won through top-down mandates, but community trust. The breakthrough was driven by local mobilisers — known as PM Surya Sakhis — including local champion Sangeeta Sahu, working in tandem with self-help groups sitioned from passive, grid-dependent consumers into selfreliant urjadatas (energ y producers) who feed their surplus power back into the utility grid. The shift represents not just lower utility metres, but an empowering psychological pivot where clean technology is no longer an urban luxury but an , integral part of everyday rural domestic life,” Rajnandgaon Collector Jitendra Yadav told this newspaper. Sarpanch Bhupendra Yadav said rooftop solar has mostly reached city dwellers who can handle paperwork. Khaira, he said, put the most vulnerable households first. Of 141 homes, 93 are PMAY-G houses that got solar from day one. For those on fixed incomes, the change is personal. “I live alone and depend on my pension. Now I don’t have to worry about electricity bill,” said Shohgil Gond, a widow. Chhattisgarh hamlet Khaira is India’s first 100% solar village | Express