NEW DELHI 05 JANUARY 2025 SUNDAY `12 PAGES 24  facebook/TheMorningStandard  X.com/TheMornStandard https://epaper.morningstandard.in A Princely Palette in Pink City Making Her Blush Permanently PLUS: 12 PAGES MAGAZINE Sax and the City EXCLUSIVE VOICES Anand Neelakantan Ravi Shankar Devdutt Pattanaik Preeti Shenoy OWNING THE WEEKEND FOR 2ND STRAIGHT MORNING, DENSE FOG CAUSED VISIBILITY TO DROP TO ZERO 19 FLIGHTS OVER 80 diverted at IGIA early on Saturday, over 200 delayed 51 FLIGHTS REROUTED TRAINS DELAYED, WITH VARANASI VANDE BHARAT RUNNING 14 HOURS LATE HEAVY PRECIPITATION ON CARDS Temp at -8.5°C in Srinagar, lowest in 30 years Warning on surface, air transportation disruption Patch of very dense fog in IndoGangetic plain Multiple western disturbances to bring heavy snowfall, rain in Northwest India ZERO CPCB REPORTS AIR QUALITY WORSENED TO ‘VERY BAD’ CATEGORY | P3 IFRAH MUFTI & RAJESH KUMAR T H A K U R @ New Delhi A day after PM Narendra Modi virtually launched Delhi Dangal 2025, the BJP on Saturday released its first list of 29 candidates for the upcoming Assembly elections. Delhi is expected to go to polls in February . As reported by this newspaper on December 5, 2024, former BJP MP Parvesh Sahib Singh Verma has been nominated from New Delhi against former CM Arvind Kejriwal. Former CM Sheila Dikshit’s son will contest on Congress ticket from the same seat. The BJP candidate list includes Kailash Gahlot, former transport minister and a former close aide of Kejriwal, from the Bijwasan constituency Ramesh Bidhuri, who served . as the South Delhi BJP MP till 2024, will be contesting from Kalkaji against CM Atishi and Alka Lamba from Congress. Arvinder Singh Lovely, who was a minister in the Sheila Dikshit cabinet from 2003 to 2013, will be contesting from Gandhinagar. Rekha Gupta, president of Delhi University Students Union, will be contesting from Shalimar Bagh, while Raaj Kumar Anand, former education minister, will be in fray from Patel Nagar. BJP’s national general secretary Dushyant Kumar Gautam has been fielded from Karol Bagh (SC) seat, while Raj Kumar Chauhan will contest from Mangolpuri (SC). Manoj Shokeen has been nominated for the Mangolpuri-Jat seat and Kumari Seema will contest in Seemapuri (SC). The BJP has tried to ensure a caste balance in the selection of candidates. The party has fielded two women, including one from SC, and given tickets to individuals who recently joined from other parties. “Most of assembly seats are likely to witness a triangular contest, we have given tickets to OBCs, SCs, upper castes, and Jats,” a BJP leader said. A Story of Uneasy Love After Modi, Shah slams former CM on ‘sheeshmahal’ R A J E S H K U M A R T H A K U R @ New Delhi A day after PM Narendra Modi referred to the ruling AAP as ‘AAPda’, Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday launched a fresh attack on Arvind Kejriwal, accusing him of constructing a ‘sheeshmahal’. Shah said instead of Delhi’s development Kejriwal built a ‘sheeshmahal’ on 50,000 square yards of land worth `45 crore during his 10-year-long tenure as CM. Speaking at the inauguration of a working women’s hostel, ‘Sushma Bhawan’, Shah said, “He (Kejriwal) did a liquor scam, corruption in the name of mohalla clinics, a scam in the name of medicines, CCTV cameras, bus procurement. And the biggest scam was constructing his ‘sheeshmahal’. You (Kejriwal) will have to answer to the people of Delhi. When Kejriwal entered politics, he vowed not to take a government car or bungalow.” Shah accused the AAP government of failing to establish a proper water distribution system for the city’s residents. “However, he spent `14 crore on a water treatment plant for his family of four,” Shah said. IN an attempt to tamp down the agitation at Pithampur in Dhar district against the of Union Carbide’s toxic waste, the state government on Saturday sought to lob the ball back into the judicial domain, saying it will seek fresh court orders. The toxic waste was transported to Pithampur from Bhopal following a Madhya Pradesh High Court order last month to do so within four weeks. “Keeping in mind the people’s concerns, we’ve decided to not take the incineration forward. The government will apprise the court on the concerns of the locals and await their next order,” said Chief Minister Mohan Yadav. He had chairing an emergency meeting over the issue in Bhopal late on Friday night. The High Court is scheduled to hear on January 6, the 2004 petition on which it had ordered the state government on December 3 to shift the toxic waste out of Bhopal. A stray incident of stone pelting was reported on Saturday morning, outside the treatment-storage-disposal facility (TSDF) where the 358 metric tonnes toxic waste was ordered to be incinerated. “More than 100 locals pelted stones outside the plant and also tried to spray chilly powder in the eyes of the on-duty police but they were dispersed,” a senior police officer told this newspaper. OUTGOING US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan will visit India on Monday for a final round of talks with his counterpart, Ajit K Doval, and other senior officials as the two countries look to burnish their ties that enjoy a groundswell of bipartisan support. The discussions will cover a wide range of bilateral, regional and global issues, along with finalising ongoing initiatives as the Joe Biden administration concludes its tenure. Congressman Michael Waltz will succeed Sullivan on January 20, when Donald Trump is inaugurated as the 47th President of the United States. “National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan will travel to New Delhi, India on January 5-6 for a capstone meeting with Indian National Security Advisor Ajit Doval that will span a range of issues across the breadth of the US-India partnership — from space, defense, and strategic technology cooperation to shared security priorities in the Indo-Pacific and beyond,” said a White House statement. Overall, the message we intend to leave is one of real gratitude for the friendship and partnership Biden and Modi enjoyed over the last four years Senior US administration official During his two-day visit, Sullivan will meet with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and is expected to call on Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Sullivan will also visit the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, where he will meet young Indian entrepreneurs and deliver a speech at the institute, highlighting the key steps taken to strengthen the US-India initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology (iCET), a highpoint of bilateral ties under the Biden administration. “This will be Sullivan’s final I F R A H M U F T I @ New Delhi THE much-awaited metro train RRTS, also called Namo Bharat, connecting Delhi to Meerut in Uttar Pradesh will be made operational on Sunday evening. Meerut is 73km away from Delhi. This will reduce travel time by one-third, enabling commuters to take the train from New Ashok Nagar to Meerut South in under 40 minutes. After the PM’s inauguration, the passenger operation will commence from 5pm on Sunday The trains will run at a fre. quency of 15 minutes. The fare from New Ashok Nagar, the first operational station from Delhi, to Meerut South will be `150 for standard coach and `225 for premium coach, according to an official statement on Saturday. The minimum fare in standard coach starts from `20 and goes up to `150 for a single trip, while in the premium coach, it ranges between `30 and `225. So far, the RRTS, which began in 2023, were available between Meerut and Ghaziabad. The 42km stretch of the corridor between Sahibabad and Meerut South has nine stations. FIFTEEN wickets fell. India took four-run lead. The pitch is still assisting seamers. The match is evenly poised, may be tilting towards India, but the day was dominated by two players, one on the field and the other off it. The Sydney crowd for the fifth and final Test couldn’t have expected such a gripping day And the third day . would be as thrilling with the match and series poised for photo finish. The focus on the second day was on two players — Rishabh Pant and Jasprit Bumrah. And EXPRESS READ ‘No permission’: Cops cancel CM’s function The Delhi Police on Saturday didn’t allow CM Atishi to hold an event in her constituency, Kalkaji, for allegedly not taking permission from them. AAP alleged that its workers had to leave the venue following the presence of heavy police force. The police, however, said the AAP didn’t take permission. P3 In Delhi, the services are planned till Sarai Kale Khan and the work is underway between the section beyond New Ashok Nagar. In Meerut, the tracks will go till Modipuram. Chief Minister Atishi, while speaking to the media on Saturday said that Delhi has contrib, uted `1,260 crore to this project. “These projects will not only reduce travel time but also accelerate regional economic growth,” she said. “The RRTS addresses the growing interdependence between Delhi and NCR towns such as Sonipat, Ballabhgarh, Noida, and Faridabad. Other proposals include Delhi-Alwar (cabinet approval granted) and Delhi-Panipat (cabinet approval granted),” she added. E J A Z K A I S E R @ Raipur FIRST DAY, FIRST SHOW Bull tamers in action at the first jallikattu event of the season at Thatchankurichi in Tamil Nadu’s Pudukkottai district on Saturday | M MUTHU KANNAN Japsrit Bumrah celebrates Marnus Labuschagne’s wicket against Australia | PTI seemed heartening is that India managed to edged out Australia without Bumrah — the highest wicket-taker of the series — af- trip to the Indo-Pacific region as National Security Advisor. “He’s very excited and looking forward to these conversations at this critical time,” US National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby said. “The two national security advisors will take stock of the progress that the two countries have made over the last four years,” a senior official said. They will also “continue to finalise some ongoing initiatives that were important priorities for us to wrap up to continue our technology cooperation through the end of the administration and to identify new opportunities that we hope with an upcoming team, will continue to take forward,” the official added. The US delegation will also have members from other government departments. “We will have the opportunity to meet with business leaders as well as young entrepreneurs in India, and emphasise how much the progress that we have made is not only due to the work done at a government to government level, but also at the people-topeople level,” the official said. Day after journalist’s death in C’garh, 3 held amid bulldozer justice Pant strikes, Bumrah injury scare as Test goes to the wire off the field on rested skipper Rohit Sharma. Pant had come for criticism after the ‘reckless’ shot that got him out in the second innings of Melbourne Test. In the first innings, he scored one of the slowest 40 of his Test career off 98 balls. On Saturday, Pant broke the shackles and did what he does best. A blistering 29-ball halfcentury ensued. This is the second fastest fifty by an Indian in Tests. At one ball short, the fastest one is against his name as well. His 61 helped India take a 145-run lead after the bowlers restricted the home team to just 181 in the first innings. What The Power to Rise Above Loss Delhi to Meerut in 40 mnts for `150 from today SYDNEY THRILLER G O M E S H S @ Chennai ‘GETTING TO DO SPY STUFF IS FUN’ To meet his counterpart Doval; address young bizmen at IIT, Delhi Toxic waste processing on hold as MP set to lob ball back into the judiciary A N U R A A G S I N G H @ Bhopal AMMA SPEAKS Jake Sullivan arriving for final round of talks today J AYA N T H J A C O B @ New Delhi VISIBILITY BJP list of 29 names out, Parvesh Varma to take on Kejriwal Dinesh Singh Prabhu Chawla Shankkar Aiyar Geetha Ravichandran More than Just History ter lunch. Bumrah was the second player who was in focus throughout the day. He walked off the field at about 1.20 pm. About 40 minutes later, he left the stadium for a scan and came back two-and-a-half hours later. Every move of Bumrah was followed. If he doesn’t take the field in the second innings it will give Aussies psychological edge. “The medical team is monitoring him,” Prasidh Krishna, who took three wickets, said. Off the field, Rohit Sharma made an appearance on the official broadcasters channel to clear his position in the team. He said he made way for Shubhman Gill because he was not doing well and that he has not retired. “I am not going anywhere,” P11 is how Rohit signed off. A day after the police found the body of journalist Mukesh Chandrakar in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur district, the authorities resorted to bulldozer justice banned by the Supreme Court a few weeks ago, as they demolished the “illegal” property owned by the accused. The police arrested three, including Ritesh Chandrakar and Dinesh Chandrakar — both A bulldozer razing the property of the cousins of Mukesh. The main accused | SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT road contractor, Suresh Chandrakar, is absconding. Ritesh tuted to probe the incident. Foland Dinesh are his siblings. lowing the CM’s directives, the M u k e s h h a d a l l e g e d l y administration demolished the exposed irregularities in his house of the accused using road construction. bulldozers. Mukesh, 33, was The murder led to a missing since January war of words between 1. He had reportedly the ruling BJP and the gone to attend a meetopposition Congress. ing with Suresh. Later State home minister his mobile phone went Vijay Shar ma said offline. Mukesh’s brothSuresh is a local Coner Yuktesh lodged a gress leader, adding all Mukesh missing person comhis bank accounts have Chandrakar plaint on January 2. been frozen. However, On Friday evening, Congress spokesperhis body was found in a septic son Sushil Anand Shukla tank on the premises owned by claimed that Suresh had joined Suresh. The incident led to the BJP last month. journalists staging a strong Condemning the murder, the protest demanding justice for Editor’s Guild said Mukesh the victim. was a freelance journalist who A 11-member special investi- highlighted illegalities in road gation team has been consti- construction.