NEW MEASURES FOR CROWD CONTROL THURSDAY 30 In view of the stampede, the railways has decided to operate more trains as per the rising needs in Prayagraj. Also, a 24x7 war room has been set up in the Rail Bhawan to monitor passengers’ amenities and train operations. To manage crow pressure at the mela, the UP government has also set up ‘holding areas’ at border points. Devotees would be allowed to proceed to the mela area based on the prevailing situation there, officials said JANUARY, 2025 epaper.morningstandard.in facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard 1985 AIR INDIA BOMBER SUSPECT’S KILLER SENTENCED A Canadian court has sentenced a 24-year-old man to life after he pleaded guilty to the killing of a Sikh businessman, a suspect in the 1985 Air India bombing. A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS PAGE 9  NEW DELHI  J8.00 DISASTER STRIKES DURING RUSH FOR A DIP AT SANGAM’S NOSE, PROBE PANEL FORMED PILGRIMS’ CRUSH KILLS AT LEAST 30 IN MAHA KUMBH N A M I TA B A J PA I @ Lucknow No domicile quota for PG-NEET: SC S U C H I T R A K A LYA N M O H A N T Y @ New Delhi THE Supreme Court on Wednesday held that domicilebased reservations for post-graduate medical courses under state quotas are unconstitutional. “Reservation in higher levels on the basis of residence would be violative of Article 14 of the Constitution,” a three-judge bench of the court led by Justice Hrishikesh Roy, and comprising justices Sudhanshu Dhulia and SVN Bhatti, said. “If such a reservation is permitted then it would be an invasion of the fundamental rights of several students, who are being treated unequally simply for the reasons that they belong to a different state in the Union. This would be a violation of the equality clause in Article 14 of the Constitution and would amount to a denial of equality before the law,” the bench explained. “We are all domiciles in the territory of India. There is nothing like a provincial or state domicile. There is only one domicile,” it said, adding “it also gives us the right to seek admission in educational institutions across India”. The bench said state quota seats must be filled solely on the basis of merit in the NEET exam. It clarified the judgment will not affect the domicilebased reservations already granted. “Students who are undergoing PG courses and those who have already passed out from such residence category would not be affected by the verdict,” it said. It said such quotas can be given to a certain degree only in MBBS courses. The court was hearing Tanvi Behl vs Shrey Goel. AT least 30 people were killed and 60 others injured in a stampede at the Maha Kumbh Mela in the wee hours on Wednesday. The predawn tragedy took place at the nose of the Triveni Sangam—the confluence of the Ganga, Yamuna, and the mythical Saraswati rivers—when a large number of devotees started moving to take holy dip ahead of the brahm muhurt (early morning hours considered auspicious). According to Maha Kumbh Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Vaibhav Krishna, the tragic incident took place between 1 am and 2 am. The DIG said barricades were placed for lane management but they could not sustain the pressure of the crowd. “The crowds broke barricades and jumped to the other side, crushing those waiting there to take bath. Over 90 injured were rushed to the hospital, out of whom 30 died,” he said, adding that many devotees, including women and children, fell down. Of the 60 injured, 24 were discharged after treatment with 36 still recovering in the central hospital set up in the Mela area. The Uttar Pradesh government ordered a judicial inquiry into the incident. A three-member committee headed by Justice Harsh Kumar has been formed. The probe panel includes former DG V K Gupta and retired IAS officer B K Singh. It will look into the root cause of the incident, while the police will conduct its own parallel investigation, official sources said. After the stampede, Amrit snan, the traditional bathing ritual of akharas, was deferred but it resumed in the afternoon. The bathing for devotees continued at the Sangam as well as other ghats that were less crowded. The next Amrit snan is scheduled for Basant Panchami on February 3. According to officials, over seven crore devotees took a dip Wednesday which marks the occa, sion of Mauni Amavasya, one of the most auspicious days of the Maha Kumbh mela. DIG Krishna told media persons that there will be no VIP protocol at the mela, following strict orders from the state government. “We will not be entertaining VIP protocol for the coming snans,” he said, adding that there was no VIP protocol on Wednesday either. The clarification came after some opposition parties attributed the mishap to the ‘VIP culture’ being pursued by senior officials. UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath announced financial assistance of `25 lakh each to the families of the deceased. He also urged people not to fall for rumours. A visibly emotional Yogi said: “The incident is heart-wrenching. We express our deepest condolences to all those families who lost their loved ones. We have been  PAGES 12 Ganga River PRAYAGRAJ Yamuna River STAMPEDE LOCATION: Sangam nose where Ganga, Yamuna and Saraswati meet TRAGEDY EXTREMELY SADDENING, SAYS MODI Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered his condolences to those who lost their family members in the tragedy describing it as extremely saddening HIGH ALERT Varanasi and Ayodhya are on high alert as authorities have stepped up security measures. The two holy cities have been witnessing heavy rush in constant touch with the administration since last night.” Later in the day, the CM issued a slew of orders on crowd management, traffic flow, prevention of build-up of devotees and coordination among departments. He also deputed Ashish Goyal, who served as Divisional Commissioner of Prayagraj during Kumbh 2019, and Bhanu Goswami, a former vice chairman of Agra Development Authority, to strengthen the arrangements. A stranded devotee after a stampede at the Sangam during the ongoing Maha Kumbh Mela, in Prayagraj on Wednesday | PTI 60 24 25 INJURED IN THE STAMPEDE “WE trust in Modi’s guarantee, none else, not even the BJP leadership’s,” school teacher Meenakshi asserted as she joined women in droves to hear PM Narendra Modi, who launched his Delhi poll campaign on Wednesday . The presence of so many women highlighted the PM’s rally in the Ghonda constituency in northeast Delhi. They came from all walks of life, literate or otherwise, young and old, rich and poor. They brought along friends and relatives, eager to hear Modi. Clad in vibrant attire and many wearing Modi face masks, they filled the venue hours ahead. Were they happy about the BJP’s pledge of direct financial assistance of `2,500 a month? It’s more than monetary, Ritu Gaur told this newspaper. The worker in a private company in Shahdara explained: “However, it is more than just a monetary pledge — it is a reflection of Modi’s guarantees that seem to have struck a deep chord with them.” Meenakshi was passionate: “We trust in Modi’s guarantee, none else, not even in the BJP leadership’s.” Her confident prediction: “Delhi ab AAP ki nahi, Delhi ab hum sabki hogi (Delhi will no longer belong to AAP; it will be ours).” A short distance from the main rally venue, Sharmista Ghosh, in her fifties, and her husband, Dinesh Das, a clerk in a Delhi government school, stood near a massive cutout of Modi. Das did not see any irony in working for the Delhi government backing Modi. He ‘CAN HARYANA GOVT SUPPLY POISON FOR PM?’ PM Modi at a rally at Kartar Nagar in North East Delhi on Wednesday | PARVEEN NEGI had but one reason: “I trust only in Modi’s leadership. Why? Because he has vision, a mission, and ambition — all combined to make Bharat a developed nation. Visit my native state, Odisha, and you will see the transformation he is bringing there.” Among the groups of women making their way to the venue was one of the students. Neelam, Rubina, Madhuri and Sakshi. They study at Delhi University They wanted to wit. ness the rally and hear Modi rather than depend on TV . CONTINUED ON PAGE 3 PM Modi took a dig at AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal for claiming that Haryana “poisoned” Yamuna to disrupt Delhi’s water supply. The PM said, “A former CM has made malicious allegations against the people of Haryana... Is Haryana different from Delhi? Don’t they have children and relatives in Delhi? Can anyone think that to poison Modi, the Haryana BJP has mixed poison in water?” The PM said those who built ‘sheesh mahal’ are spreading lies. “You may have heard of Charles Sobhraj, a thug. He was such an expert at duping people with innocence that every time, people would get duped by him. That is why one has to remain cautious of such people,” he said. P3 Cash, AAP pamphlets found in Punjab ‘sarkar’ car S H E K H A R S I N G H @ New Delhi ISRO HITS TON IN STYLE WITH SAT MISSION The space organisation on Wednesday celebrated its 100th mission with the textbook launch of a navigation satellite that would aid in terrestrial, aerial and maritime navigation. | P5 THE Delhi Police has intercepted a Punjab government-labeled vehicle carrying `10 lakh in cash, liquor bottles, and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) pamphlets. The vehicle, bearing a Punjab re gistration number, was stopped by a Flying Squad Team (FST) on Wednesday . DCP (New Delhi) Devesh Kumar Mahla said that the police team on Wednesday found a vehicle with Punjab number plate and “Punjab sarkar” written on it. “Upon searching, the team found few lakhs of cash, liquor bottles and AAP pamphlet in it. A case has been registered at Tilak Marg police sta- CASE LODGED IN TILAK MARG POLICE STATION MANN GOVT SAYS NOT OWNED OR HIRED CAR Police found a vehicle with Punjab number plate and “Punjab sarkar” written on it, found cash, liquor bottles and AAP pamphlet, DCP (New Delhi) Devesh Kumar Mahla said, adding a case was lodged at the Tilak Marg police station. The Punjab govt said the vehicle, registered in the name of Major Anubhav Shivpuri, who was posted in Army Dental College three years back, wasn’t owned or hired by it. “The vehicle does not belong to Govt of Punjab,” it said. tion,” said the DCP . The seizure has sparked a political storm, with the opposition BJP questioning the integrity of AAP’s poll campaign. Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva called it an alarming example of corruption. “We always knew that Arvind Kejriw- al institutionalised corruption in the Delhi government. He has polluted the Yamuna, choked air, and now is corrupting the political system,” he said. The Punjab government said that it has come to the knowledge of the Department of Transport that a vehicle carry- ing registration number “PB 35 AE 1342” has been apprehended in Delhi carrying illegal liquor and some unaccounted cash. “It has been alleged that the vehicle has a sticker of Punjab Govt on it,” it said. The Punjab gover nment claimed that the vehicle is registered in the name of Major Anubhav Shivpuri, who was posted in Army Dental College, Pathankot, three years back and is a permanent resident of Khadki, Maharashtra. It further said no such vehicle is owned or hired by the Punjab government. “The apprehended vehicle does not belong to Govt of Punjab,” a Punjab government statement added. DECEASED IDENTIFIED It is important to get to the bottom of the whole episode on how such a tragedy occurred — Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath The Sangam nose is where saints from various akhadas perform ritual baths. Though limited in terms of space, it is the most-preferred location of the Triveni Sangam. One reason for the tragedy, according to eyewitnesses, was the surge of pilgrims to take the holy dip at 3 am, the start of the auspicious hour. “It was a frenzy to reach Sangam nose. Also, the rumour that Naga sadhus had started for the holy dip made the devo- ‘Delhi ab AAP ki nahi, Delhi ab hum sabki hogi’ CONG R A J E S H K U M A R T H A K U R @ New Delhi GET FIRST AID, DISCHARGED PROMISES JOBS, CASTE SURVEY, WOMEN QUOTA tees rush; they jumped over each other breaking the barricade. This led to the stampede and several women got trampled by the crowd proceeding towards the Sangam,” Rakesh Sahu of Rae Bareli told this newspaper. Nalin Kumar of Patna said he had come for the holy dip with eight family members, of whom two are still missing. “The crowd was unmanageable despite all the arrangements by P8 the authorities,” he said. Congress on Wednesday released its manifesto and vowed to fill vacant posts, abolish contractual hiring, conduct caste survey, and introduce 33% reservation for women | P4 ‘Yamuna poison remark made in public interest’: Kejriwal’s reply to EC A N U P V E R M A @ New Delhi FORMER CM Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday sought to substantiate his claims about the contamination of the Yamuna by citing DJB CEO’s letter indicating that the river contains 7 ppm of ammonia, which is 700% above the permissible limit, and poses a severe public health risk. He was responding to the Election Commission’s notice issued over his “poison in water” statement. “Yamuna poison remark was made in public interest,” he said and identified Haryana’s “indiscriminate discharge” of industrial waste as the root cause for the contamination. Emphasising that access to clean water is a basic human right, Kejriwal said raising the issue cannot be considered an offence. He pointed out that due to the extreme toxicity of raw water from Haryana, Delhi’s water treatment plants are operating below capacity leading , to a shortage of treated water. The statement attributed to him was made in the context of an urgent and alarming public health crisis concerning the deteriorating quality of drinking water in Delhi, necessitating immediate governmental inter- TIT-FOR-TAT: SAINI SIPS WATER FROM YAMUNA Haryana CM Nayab Singh Saini on Wednesday took a couple of sips of water from the Yamuna and said there is no poison in water flowing from his state to Delhi. The AAP had accused the ruling BJP in Haryana of draining industrial waste into the Yamuna river, with Kejriwal alleging that it is trying to kill people by “mixing poison” in the river. P4 vention, he said. “As a lower riparian state, the capital depends on raw water supplies from Haryana, an upper riparian state, for potable water. The alleged statements were made in furtherance of an imperative public duty to highlight the severe toxicity and contamination of raw water received from Haryana, which presents an imminent and direct threat to public health,” his response read.