thursdAY Bombay HC grants bail to wilson, Dhawale in elgar parishad case 09 The Bombay High Court on Wednesday granted bail to Rona Wilson and Sudhir Dhawale arrested in the Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case january, 2025 epaper.morningstandard.in facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard US Thousands flee raging LA fire Rona Wilson Trial unlikely to conclude soon: High Court Massive wildfires tore across Los Angeles area with devastating force early on Wednesday as residents made a desperate escape from burning homes. A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS Page 9 l New Delhi l l J8.00 P r a s a n ta M a z u m d a r @ Guwahati New Revenue secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey was on Wednesday appointed new revenue secretary, replacing Arunish Chawla, who has been appointed as DIPAM secretary | P10 PAGES 12  The case pertains to provocative speeches delivered at 2017 Elgar Parishad conclave in Pune, triggering violence at Koregaon-Bhima 2018 when rona wilson and sudhir dhawale were arrested Oppn members say it’s an attack on basic structure of Constitution P r e e t h a N a i r @ New Delhi Mega roadshow Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and his deputy Pawan Kalyan participate in a roadshow in Vizag on Wednesday. This was Modi’s first visit to the state after he won the third consecutive mandate to lead the country | G SATYANARAYANA | P5 PT Usha at loggerheads with ministry on sports governance Exp r e s s N e w s S e r v i c e @ Chennai When Mansukh Mandaviya took office, he was one of the few sports ministers to visit the Indian Olympic Association Bhawan in Delhi last year. He met IOA president PT Usha and had the sports secretary and other officials along with him. Just about six months down the line, the IOA and ministry seemed to be at loggerheads. All this over the recognition of Indian Golf Union — both ministry and the IOA have recognised different IGUs. The controversial elections of the IGU that was held in December last year saw two different factions claiming to be legitimate. While IOA recognised Harish Kumar Shetty-led faction and the ministry backed Brijinder Singh, who was reelected as president. The ministry took exception and shot a letter questioning Prominent jeweller held over obscene remarks against Kerala actress Exp r e s s N e w s S e r v i c e @ Kochi The Kerala Police on Wednesday arrested businessman Boby Chemmanur for making obscene remarks against actress Honey Rose. Boby was taken into custody from his estate in Meppadi, Wayanad, and brought to Ernakulam. The Ernakulam Central Police in Kerala’s Ernakulam district had on Tuesday booked Boby under Section 75(1)(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for making sexually coloured remarks and Section 67 of the IT Act for publishing and transmitting obscene material in electronic form. The action followed a complaint lodged by Honey Rose against Boby on Monday accusing him of repeatedly making obscene remarks against her. In August, Boby had publicly made obscene remarks against Rose when she reached Alakode in Kannur district to inaugurate his jewellery shop. After registering the case, the police began tracking Boby’s location and learnt he was at his estate in Wayanad. The information was passed to the Wayanad police, which confirmed his whereabouts. The police said Boby moved to his estate anticipating a case would be registered against The Bombay HC noted the two had spent more than six years in jail as undertrial prisoners. “Even the charges in the case are yet to be framed,” a division bench of Justices A S Gadkari and Kamal Khata observed, adding the trial is unlikely to conclude in the near future. The HC clarified it was not dealing with the merits of the case at this stage | P8  The NIA said Wilson was an urban Naxal leader and Dhawale a member of the banned Communist Party of India (Maoist). The NIA didn’t seek a stay to the order. So far, 10 have gotten bail in the case JPC begins with robust exchange of ONOE views Race against time to save trapped miners The body of one of the nine miners trapped inside a flooded coal mine in Assam’s Dima Hasao was retrieved on Wednesday even as hopes of rescuing the others began fading. The deceased was identified as Ganga Bahadur Srestho from Nepal. The state government had on Tuesday stated that three bodies had been seen in the mine. Rescue efforts by a joint team comprising the Army, Navy and disaster response forces are on, but senior officials said that the murky and acidic water has made the task of rescuers Herculean. Special DGP Harmeet Singh said the Navy’s remote underwater vehicle has recceed the shaft but didn’t find anything. He said efforts were on to drain the mine. “It seems the well is connected below with some water source because of which even though we are pulling out water, its level is not receding,” he said. The BJP-ruled North Cachar Hills Autonomous Council, under which Dima Hasao district falls, and the state’s BJP government are facing the heat after Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the mine appeared to be illegal. Congress leader Gaurav Gogoi, while demanding an investigation, said, “It is shocking that rat-hole coal mining continued unabated in Assam despite a ban by the National Green Tribunal.” Sudhir Dhawale Bail granted so far to 10 of 16 arrested Boby Chemmanur being brought to Ernakulam Central Police Station on Wednesday | T P Sooraj Rolling in Luxury Boby Chemmanur is a prominent Kerala businessman who is the director of Chemmanur International Jewellers. He also owns resorts in Kerala and Tamil Nadu. A huge fan of Diego Maradona, he brought the Argentine football legend to Kerala in 2012 to inaugurate one of his jewellery showrooms in Kannur. He grabbed attention in 2022 for his gold-coated Rolls Royce Phantom as a taxi him. By morning, the Kochi City police team reached the estate, took him into custody . “I didn’t do anything wrong,” Boby told reporters. The police said they detained him due to apprehension that he may abscond. He was to inaugurate a shop in Coimbatore on Wednesday and was nabbed just before starting his journey . P T Usha and Mansukh Mandaviya the action of the IOA. What seemed to have irked the IOA president was the tone and tenor of the letter and that it was sent by an under-secretary. The sports ministry had pulled up PT Usha and the IOA on January 2 for recognising Shetty faction. One must also take into consideration that Usha and the executive council members are caught in a bitter in-fighting and most of the decisions are being taken by Usha. In her strong worded reply Usha said, “The manner in , which this letter has been issued appears procedurally incorrect and reflects a lack of verification of the facts on record and a complete non application of mind by the Under Secretary. Sir, since I have assumed office in the lOA, it has become more and more apparent that the staff of the Ministry deliberately never appraises the true and correct facts to the Hon’ble Minister of Youth Affairs & Sports.” Copies of the letter have also been marked to the Inter national Olympic Committee and International Golf Federation. Usha also claimed that the ministry’s concerns that the IOA recognition of the IGU elections violates the National Sports Code ‘unfounded’. In fact, she gave examples of several NSFs which have failed to conduct elections even after completion of their terms. Usha also said selective application of norms undermines credibility of sports governance. More on P11  Women among 6 dead in Tirupati stampede E X P RESS N E W S SER V I C E @ Tirupati SIX devotees, including five women, died in a stampede during distribution of tokens for Vaikuntha Dwara darshan at Ramanaidu Municipal School in Bairagipatada area of Tirupati on Wednesday As many as 16 people were injured . and rushed to SVR Ruia Government General Hospital and Sri Venkateswara Institute of Medical Sciences (SVIMS). A large number of devotees had gathered at several token distribution centres, leading to a chaotic situation. The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) had set up nine centres with 94 counters for token distribution, scheduled to start at 5 am on Thursday But devotees began arriv. ing in huge numbers on Wednesday evening itself. Chaos prevailed at the Bairagipatteda centre when a staff member fell ill, prompting officials to open a separate space for his evacuation. Mistaking it as a queue for token distribution, devotees surged forward, leading to the stampede. Eyewitnesses said inadequate security measures led to the crush and deaths. The first meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on the ‘One Nation, One Election’ (ONOE) bills on Wednesday saw strong exchanges of opinion from both the opposition and ruling NDA’s members on simultaneous polls to the Lok Sabha and the state assemblies. According to sources, several opposition MPs, including Congress’ Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, DMK’s P Wilson and T M C ’s K a lya n B a n e r j e e, questioned the claim that simultaneous polls cut expenditure. The 39-member committee is headed by for mer Union minister and BJP leader P P Chaudhary . Priyanka asked if the Election Commission has any estimate on the cost of a general election after the 2004 Lok Sabha polls, when electronic voting machines (EVM) were used for the first time in all 543 parliamentary seats. She and DMK’s Wilson sought evidence to establish the claim that ONOE would cut cost. The op- YSR cong changes stance at meeting Vijayasai Reddy of the YSR Congress argued that ONOE will marginalise regional parties, dilute diversity of representation and focus on local issues. The YSRCP had earlier backed ‘one poll’ position said the bills are an ‘attack on the basic structure of Constitution as well as federalism’. Defending the bill, BJP MPs, including Anurag Thakur, argued that a continuous cycle of elections disrupts development and is a drain on the exchequer. NDA ally JD(U)’s Sanjay Jha recalled incidents of booth capturing in Bihar when ballot papers were in play, to pushback on demands to revert to that mode. However, Jha also expressed apprehensions, including whether a government elected for a short term would have the required governance All get patient hearing, says MP An opposition MP told this newspaper that adequate time was given to members to express their views irrespective of the political affiliation. “The chairman gave a patient hearing,” the member said focus that an incumbent with a five-year term has. Earlier, in a letter to the panel chairman, DMK’s Wilson shared a slew of suggestions and concerns regarding the need for a rigorous, transparent and inclusive approach in the deliberations on the bill. “Extensive hearings should be conducted across all states and Union Territories, and the committee must prepared and share a detailed schedule outlining a systematic and inclusive consultation process,” he said. Chaudhary earlier said, “We will make an effort to listen to all stakeholders.” delhi dangal DBT at play? 3.4L women AAP, BJP spar among 5.1L applied for new over tour of ‘sheesh mahal’ voter cards in just 20 days An u p V e r m a @ New Delhi A s h i s h S r i v a s ta v a @ New Delhi Between December 16, 2024, and January 6, 2025, the Chief Electoral Office (CEO), Delhi, received an “unprecedented” 5.1 lakh applications for new voter registration, of which nearly two-thirds or 3.4 lakh were filed by women, poll officials told this newspaper. It perhaps indicates a direct correlation between the sudden surge in new voter registration and the eagerness of women to enjoy the populist cash schemes promised by the political parties. A senior official confirmed that female applicants in certain constituencies accounted for over 70%. “In West Delhi, we observed women comprising more than 70% of the applicants in several constituencies,” the official stated. This newspaper on January 7 reported that this surge has been attributed to political parties’ announcement of direct cash benefit schemes ahead of the assembly polls. This volume, typically seen over a year, has been logged in just three weeks, and the timing coincided with the announcement of DBT schemes. Offi- surge in the middle of dbt schemes Female applicants in certain constituencies in West Delhi accounted for over 70% Many applications have been rejected if applicants are registered voters elsewhere This newspaper on Jan 7 reported that ‘unprecedented’ surge has been attributed to announcement of direct cash benefits cials suspected the use of forged documents to secure the cash benefits and emphasised the need for 100% field verification to identify eligible applicants. The surge follows the announcement of the AAP’s Mukhya Mantri Mahila Samman Yojna, which promises women `2,100 monthly assistance. The Congress quickly followed suit with its Pyari Didi Yojana, offering them `2,500 a month if the party won. The BJP may also unveil a similar DBT schemes soon. Officials said that scrutiny of the applications has begun, and many forms are being rejected where the poll body found duplication. “Currently, we are rejecting applications if we find that applicants are registered LOK SABHA ELECTION voters elsewhere,” the 2019 senior poll official said.  ore reports on page 4 M A high-voltage drama unfolded outside the 6, Flag Staff Marg bungalow, the controversial residence once occupied by former CM Arvind Kejriwal, on Wednesday as senior AAP leaders tried to enter the premises but were stopped by police personnel deployed outside. AAP leaders Sanjay Singh a n d S a u r ab h B h a r a dw a j also sought to stage a protest near the PM’s residence but were stopped by the police en route. The BJP has been launching scathing at t a ck s against the AAP chief, accusing him of converting his residence into “sheesh mahal” while in office. In response, AAP countered by saying that PM Narendra Modi lived in a “raj mahal” and challenged the BJP to open it up for a media tour. The AAP leaders claimed that the move had unmasked the campaign to tarnish Kejriwal’s reputation. They said the BJP has been making baseless allegations about luxuries in the CM’s bungalow while concealing the opulence of the PM’s residence. a t a l e o f pe r s i s t ence Tiny TN village celebrates meteoric rise of son to ISRO top job M A b d u l R a b i @ Kanniyakumari As the small Mela Kattuvilai village of around 100 families near Nagercoil in Kanniyakumari district celebrates its moment in history as its illustrious son V Narayanan took over as the new chairman of ISRO, his family members reminisced his perseverance, faith in education and personal sacrifices. Narayanan was born in 1964 as the elder son of C Vanniya Perumal and S Thangammal. Hailing from a poor family, he studied in Tamil medium up to Class 5 at the government primary school at Keezha Kattuvilai (1969-1974) and then from Class 6 to 10 at LMS higher secondary school at Zionpuram (1974-1979), located three km from his village. He later completed DME (diploma in mechanical engineering) at Konam government polytechnic in Nagercoil. In 1989, he completed M Tech in Cryogenic Engineering from IIT-Kharagpur, and PhD in V Narayanan, ISRO’s new chairman, with his family | Express Aerospace Engineering in 2001. Speaking to TNIE, V Gopalakrishnan, Narayanan’s brother who works as an executive engineer in TWAD board in Nagercoil, said his elder brother who secured a BE seat after completing his DME sacrificed the seat for him. “After completing his diploma, my brother got a job through campus placement. In 1982, we both secured BE admission. My brother got into Anna University, Guindy. But since my father could not financially support both our education, my brother sacrificed his engineering dream and asked me to join BE. He took the job in TI Cycles, and supported me to pursue BE,” Gopalakrishnan said. He always stood first in studies right from his school days, the other brother V Krishna Mani who is working with Joy University recalled. “Sadly our , , parents did not live long enough to see their son reach towering P5 heights,” he lamented.