FRIDAY U.K. UNIV TO OPEN FIRST FOREIGN CAMPUS IN INDIA UNDER NEP 2020 30 The University of Southampton was on Thursday granted approval by the University Grants Commission to set up a branch campus in India AUGUST, 2024 epaper.morningstandard.in facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard HONG KONG SCRIBES CONVICTED IN SEDITION CASE Stand News and its two former chief editors were found guilty of sedition on Thursday, the first conviction of its kind since the city came under Chinese rule. PAGE 9 CAMPUS EXPECTED TO COME UP IN GURUGRAM A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS  NEW DELHI  J8.00  External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Minister of Education Dharmendra Pradhan handed over the Letter of Intent to the UK university at an event in New Delhi. The new campus is likely to be located in Gurugram. It will offer a wide range of undergraduate and post-graduate degree courses starting in July 2025 PAGES 12 We are not interfering with the marriages solemnised by Islamic rituals under the Muslim Personnel Law at all. Our only condition is that Islam prohibited marriages will not be registered In the pre-Independence Act, There was scope of misuse by both authorised licensee as well as by citizens for underage/ minor marriages and forcefully arranged marriages without the consent of the parties Himanta Biswa Sarma, chief minister Jogen Mohan, revenue minister Registration of Muslim marriages mandatory New bill passed in Assam House to deter teenage pregnancy: CM P R A S A N TA M A Z U M D A R @ Guwahati CROC IN FLOOD-HIT VADODARA A huge crocodile was rescued from a residential locality after flood water recede in Vadodara on Thursday. “We’ve rescued 10 crocodiles in the last five days. Two have been released and eight are with us. We will release them,” an official said | PTI | P8 SC slams T’gana CM’s remarks on Kavitha bail Purported audio of RG Kar calls to family add to ire S U C H I T R A K A LYA N M O H A N T Y S U L A G N A S E N G U P TA @ Kolkata @ New Delhi THE Supreme Court on Thursday slammed Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy for his inappropriate comments over the granting of bail to BRS leader K Kavitha and AAP leader Manish Sisodia in cases linked to the Delhi excise policy scam. During a media interaction, Reddy had wondered how Kavitha got bail in just five months, when Delhi deputy CM Sisodia got it only after spending 15 months in jail, while Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal is yet to get relief. He hinted at a ‘deal’ between the BJP and BRS for securing bail for Kavitha. The statements did not go down well with the apex court, which expressed its strong disp l e a s u re. “ I s this a kind of statement which should be made by a CM? A constitutional functionary is speaking in this manner! Why should they drag the court in political rivalry? Do we pass orders after consulting political parties? We are not bothered by politicians or if anybody criticises our orders,” a three-judge bench headed by Justice B R Gavai said. The bench, also comprising Justices Prashant Kumar Mishra and K V Viswanathan, asked senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for Reddy, how can a constitutional functionary speak like this. It said it is the duty of political parties to show respect to institutions. RELIEF TO DKS IN DA CASE, HC JUNKS CBI PLEA In a major relief for Karnataka deputy CM D K Shivakumar, the Karnataka High Court on Thursday dismissed the pleas by CBI and BJP MLA Basanagouda R Patil Yatnal, questioning the Siddaramaiah government’s decision to withdraw the previous BJP regime’s consent to the agency to prosecute Shivakumar in a disproportionate assets case. The HC also dismissed the plea challenging the state govt’s order referring the `74.93 crore DA case to the Lokayukta for probe | P5 THREE purported audio recordings of phone calls allegedly made by RG Kar Medical College on August 9 to the parents of the rapemurder victim surfaced on Thursday indicating the in, stitution’s muddled approach and insensitivity while breaking the horrific news to the relatives. In the first call, the hospital authorities simply said their daughter was ‘a little ill’ and asked them to come immediately. Two minutes later, another call came saying she was very sick. In the third call, again after two minutes, the caller claimed their daughter had committed suicide. The victim’s family members said the hospital authorities deliberately mislead them, though they knew their daughter had been raped and murdered. The victim’s father said when they went into the hospital, they saw their daughter’s body wrapped in a green bedsheet. But media images later showed the body in a blue bedsheet. What prompted the hospital to change the bedsheet, he wondered. “There has been a deliberate attempt to suppress facts. We want the CBI to investigate why the Kolkata Police misled us.” he said and demanded a thorough investigation into the events leading to her murder. On August 10, authorities THE Assam assembly on Thursday passed the Assam Compulsory Registration of Muslim Marriages and Divorces Bill, 2024, which makes it mandatory to register marriages with the government. Since the legal age of marriage of 18 years for girls and 21 years for boys cannot be contravened, it will act as a strict deterrent against teenage pregnancy and improve overall growth of girls, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said. The bill replaces the Britishera law, The Assam Moslem Marriages and Divorces Registration Act, 1935. “Today is a historic day in our effort to fight the social evil of child marriage. The #AssamLegislativeAssembly has passed the Assam Compulsory Registration of Muslim Marriages and Divorces Bill, 2024,” Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma posted on X. “I thank all the legislators who pledged their support to this Bill and Govt’s vision of preventing child marriage. This Bill is above party politics and is a means to give our girls EXPRESS READ Constitutional expert AG Noorani dies at 93 Women participate in a rally in Kolkata on Thursday | PTI arrested Sanjy Roy, a civic volunteer frequently seen at RG Kar, whose presence was captured on CCTV near the seminar hall where the body was first seen. A Bluetooth device found at the scene further implicated Roy Ac. cording to CBI sources, Roy confessed to the crime during interrogation. Meanwhile, the Kolkata Police arrested a woman, Renuka Singh (38), whose alleged stoning left police sergeant Debasish Chakraborty badly injured in an eye during the Nabanna Abhiyan rally a couple of days ago. The city police are also looking for other miscreants who indulged in large-scale violence during the rally that day P8 . Well-known scholar, prolific writer, constitutional expert and legal luminary Abdul Ghafoor Majeed Noorani passed away at his Mumbai residence on Thursday. He was 93. His legal career was illustrious, with a practice that spanned the Supreme Court and the Bombay High Court. A champion of freedom of speech and civil liberties, Noorani had defended Sheikh Abdullah and also appeared in the Bombay HC for former TN CM Karunanidhi. P7 HC raps Brij Bhushan seeking to quash case The Delhi High Court on Thursday expressed reservations regarding the plea filed by BJP leader and former Wrestling Federation of India president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, who sought to quash the sexual harassment case against him. The case, filed by a group of women wrestlers, has already moved into the trial stage. Justice Neena Bansal Krishna said the plea appeared to be an indirect attempt to derail the ongoing trial. P4 KAZI CUT OUT NEW LAW TO HELP CHECK POLYGAMY, ENFORCE MAINTENANCE RIGHTS All earlier registrations of marriages conducted by Kazis will remain valid, said Himanta Biswa Sarma 1 Only new marriages will come under the purview of the legislation where registration has to be done with govt 2 a life of dignity Sarma said. ,” Earlier in the day he told the , Assembly that the government’s aim was not only to abolish child marriages but also to replace the Kazi (religious official) system. He said all marriages would be registered as per an order of the Supreme Court. It emerged during the discussions in the Assembly that Assam has 90 Kazis, most of them government teachers. On August 22, revenue and disaster management minister Jogen Mohan had stated in the statement of Object and Reasons that The Assam Moslem Marriages and Divorces Registration Act was adopted by the British India government for the then Province of Assam for The Kazi system for registering Muslim marriages will end. Assam has 90 Kazis, most of them govt teachers 3 Muslim religious and social arrangements. He said under it, the registration of marriages and divorces is not mandatory and the machinery of registration is informal. “There remains a scope of registering marriages of intended person below 21 years (in case of male) and 18 years (in case of female) and hardly any monitoring (is) made for (the) implementation of this Act throughout the state, which attracts and invites huge amount of litigation in the criminal/ civil court,” Mohan said. “There is a scope of misuse by both authorised licensee as well as by citizens for underage/minor marriages and forcefully arranged marriages without consent,” he stated. AMID growing chorus for the resignation of CPM MLA M Mukesh, Kerala police on Thursday booked the actorpolitician following the complaint of an actress from Kochi. However, Mukesh secured interim protection from arrest from a local court. Besides Mukesh, actor-producer Maniyanpilla Raju and actor Edavela Babu were charged with rape by the police in Kochi, while a case was filed against actor Jayasurya in Thiruvananthapuram for outraging the modesty of a woman. In all, the police filed six cases in Kochi and one in Thiruvananthapuram on the day based on the complaint of an actress who worked in Malayalam and Tamil films. The case against Mukesh was registered under IPC Sections 376 (rape), 354 (assault or criminal force to women with intent to outrage her modesty), 452 (house trespass with the intent to hurt or assault someone), and 09 (insult the modesty of a woman by word, gestures or acts) . The complainant alleged Mukesh sexually harassed her at a villa at Maradu when she approached him for membership of Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (AMMA). Mukesh was an office bearer of AMMA then. The complaint against Edavela Babu says that he called the actress to his apartment twice in 2009 in connection with AMMA membership; in the first instance, he made sexual advances towards the actor and the second time, he raped her. The charges against Maniyanpilla Raju H A R P R E E T B A J W A @Chandigarh IN signs of growing complications in Sikh politics in Punjab, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) chief Sukhbir Singh Badal has appointed Balwinder Singh Bhunder as the party’s working president. The move comes a day ahead of the crucial meeting of five Sikh high priests who have to decide the further course of action against Sukhbir days after he submitted his explanation on “pardoning” Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh in a 2015 sacrilege case. The SAD is on the verge of a vertical split with rebel group leader Gurpartap Singh Wadala heading the dissident faction that was formed after a drubbing of the party in the parliamentary polls. Sukhbir’s move is seen as a preventive measure to ward off the split in case the Sikh priests make an adverse decision. Badal has not stepped down from his party post. “Sukhbir has already apologized to the Akal Takht (highest temporal seat of the Sikhs). The party chief ’s decision is emotional, as he feels that someone else should take over the reins of the party because in any case, Sukhbir will abide by the decision of the Takht,” said Dr Daljeet Singh Cheema, party spokesperson. Sukhbir had submitted his explanation on July 24, after the high priests asked him to appear before the Takht in person. Wolves on prowl! ‘Op Bhediya’ nets 4, 2 still out in UP villages N A M I TA B A J PA I @ Lucknow IN the sparsely populated Sisiya village of UP’s Bahraich district, death has lurked for at least 45 days: a pack of bhedia (wolves) on the prowl has killed at least nine villagers, mostly kids. Sugarcane fields are the ideal hideouts for the animals. On Thursday, teams of ‘Operation Bhediya’ fanned out in the fields and managed to trap the fourth killer wolf in the pack of at least six. The forest department has deployed 250 personnel, including 150 forest officials. Besides small arms, they are equipped with thermal drone cameras to track the remaining wolves. Sources said 200 Pradeshik Armed Constabulary (PAC) men have also been deployed. The village falls in the Hardi area of Mehsi tehsil, where residents of 25-30 villages are mortally scared of wolf attacks that have also left at least 50 One of the trapped wolves | ANI people injured. UP minister for forests with independent charge, Dr Arun Kumar Saxena, visited the villages on Wednesday to oversee the trapping measures. Despite the efforts, the villagers remain deeply anxious. The minister during his visit asked the villagers to stay indoors, especially in the evening. FIR against CPM MLA Mukesh in rape case E X P R E S S N E W S S E R V I C E @ Kochi Sukhbir gets acting party chief ahead of Takht meet include making sexual advances towards the actress while she was staying at a hotel in Kochi as part of a film shooting in 2009. Jayasurya allegedly sexually harassed the actress during a shooting in Thiruvananthapuram in 2008. Meanwhile, the CPM has decided to brazen it out by openly supporting Mukesh for now with senior party leaders E P Jayarajan, K K Shailaja, Veena George, and P K Sreemathi saying there is no need for him to quit until and unless the charges against him are proven. In a meeting with the minister on Wednesday, Bahraich DM Monica Rani said doors were installed in homes lacking them. Night patrolling has been intensified and people, especially women, were being made aware of the dangers. The attacks began on July 17 when a one-year-old child from Sikandar pur villa g e was killed by a wolf followed by multiple attacks by the animal on children. In each attack, the predator breached the confines of home and snatched its victim. Sometimes, it struck in the nearby fields, leaving behind half-eaten bodies. According to Ajeet Singh, the divisional forest officer overseeing ‘Operation Bhediya’, these animals became man-eaters after developing a taste for human flesh. While wolves typically avoid human contact, floods in the area may have driven them away in search of food. BANGLA FORMER SPEAKER, MINISTER HELD IN MURDER CASE CHAMP AT 101 Commander (retd) Vallabhajosyula Sriramulu, 101, wins gold at World Masters Athletics event | PTI Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury, who served as the first female speaker of the Bangladesh Jatiya Sangsad, and Tipu Munshi have been arrested for the killing of a goldsmith during the quota protests that led to the ouster of Sheikh Hasina, reports said on Thursday | P9