SATURday 08 FEBRUARY, 2025 Sep 21 epaper.morningstandard.in When prime minister Modi last visited the u.s. facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard prime minister to visit france on Monday IMF plans “The fact that the Prime Minister has been invited to visit the US within barely three weeks of the new administration taking office shows the importance of the India-US partnership,” Misri said $333 mn bailout for sri Lanka soon The island nation’s fourth tranche of nearly $3 billion bailout facility by IMF will be materialised in the coming months, a top official said. A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS Page 9 CYBER SECURITY Figured out GROWTH RBI forecasts FY26 growth at 6.7% on better Rabi harvest, tax relief INFLATION Inflation rate pegged at 4.2% in FY26 CHEAPER LOANS Home, auto, small business loans to see a drop in interest rates Banks to have ‘bank.in’ and non-bank financial entities ‘fin.in’ domain names to check cyber security threats RBI tango with FM gives 1st rate relief in five yrs Interest rate cut by 25 bps; guv says RBI will support growth while keeping inflation down BENN K OCHUVEE D AN @ Mumbai SEEKING to build on the feelgood factor generated by the Budget, which announced significant tax cuts, the Reserve Bank of India on Friday cut interest rates by 25 basis points to 6.25%. This is the first repo rate cut in five years and, together with the income tax relief, could give a big boost to consumptiondriven growth. The immediate impact of the rate cut is that it will make home, auto, and small business loans cheaper; loans on floating interest rates will automatically come down by 25 bps. The latest cut brings curtains on the second longest high interest rate regime since the rate revision on October 22, 2008 ended a 5.1-year wait for the repo to fall from 8% after the global financial crisis that began in September 2007. Friday’s rate correction comes after five years, as the last cut was in May 2020 when RBI cut rates by an unconventional 50 bps to 4% during the peak of the pandemic. While industry as well as the markets were not im- pressed by the nominal 0.25% repo rate cut as they expected more, what is striking in the policy announcement this time is the tone of new governor Sanjay Malhotra’s statement; it says the monetary policy should be more accommodative to growth concerns than inflation. This signals a shift in approach by the central bank as taming inflation is the legal mandate of the monetary authority . RBI expects economic activity to improve with agricultural output remaining upbeat, while manufacturing is set to recover in the second half of 2025. Accordingly, Malhotra said the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is confident of the economy growing at 6.7% next fiscal compared to 6.4% in FY25. On inflation, the MPC sees prices moderating and finally aligning to the lower end of the target through the year. It sees inflation closing this fiscal at 4.8% and 4.2% in FY26. On the tax cuts in the Budget, Malhotra said household consumption would improve on the back of better employment P10 conditions.  l New Delhi J8.00 l PAGES 12 Prime Minister Narendra Modi will reach the US on February 12 for a two-day working visit, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Friday Trip comes as India faces don’s tariff threat Foreign secretary Vikram Misri said the visit will give further direction and momentum to the India-US relationship. “There is a clear convergence of interests between the two in several areas,” he said. It also comes as India faces Donald Trump’s tariff heat. The Republican has launched a global trade war by raising tariffs on goods from China, Canada and Mexic | P7 four-member Special Investigation Team formed in Punjab to probe the racket; Fir registered Cuffing avoidable, shared concerns with US: India J aya n t h J a c o b @ New Delhi Amid widespread outrage over mistreatment of 104 deportees from the US, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri on Friday said India has registered concerns with the US authorities, adding handcuffing was avoidable. “It is a valid issue to raise and we continue to emphasise to the US authorities that there should be no mistreatment. We will continue to take up any instances of mistreatment that come to our attention. Action needs to be taken across the system against the underlying ecosystem that thrives on promoting illegal immigration,” the foreign secretary said. Asked whether India, like Brazil and Colombia, had protested the use of handcuffs and chains on deportees, Misri said, “We have been in touch with the US and have regis- express read Hoax bomb threat at Stephen’s, 2 schools St Stephen’s College and two schools in Delhi-NCR — Ahlcon International and Shiv Nadar School in Noida — received bomb threats via email on Friday. Police teams, along with dog squads, conducted through searches at the premises and declared the threats as hoaxes. | P4 NTA says NEET-UG to be conducted on May 4 The medical entrance exam NEET-UG will be conducted on May 4, the NTA announced on Friday. The application process for the NEET-UG began on Friday and will conclude on March 7. It is the largest entrance exam in the country in terms of the number of candidates appearing for the test. HC junks plea for CBI probe in MUDA case Yat h i r a j u @ Bengaluru The Karnataka High Court on Friday dismissed a petition filed by Mysuru-based social activist Snehamayi Krishna seeking its direction for a CBI probe into the alleged irregularities in allotment of 14 compensatory MUDA sites to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s wife B M Parvathy . The material on record nowhere indicates that the probe conducted by the Lokayukta police is partisan, lopsided or shoddy for the case to be referred to CBI for further investigation or re-investigation, Justice M Nagaprasanna said while delivering the ve rd i c t d i s missing Krishna’s petition. Granting liberty to Lokayukta police to place its probe report before the special court to try criminal cases against sitting and former MPs/MLAs, which passed an order to register an FIR, the HC said it is for the petitioner to avail all such remedies under the law. The HC said the probe reports by the IG of Lokayukta and the ADGP should be placed before the special court. In the considered view, the case needs no re-investigation, further investigation by CBI, it added. l Prior to his US visit, Modi will be in France from February 10-12 to co-chair the AI Action Summit with President Emmanuel Macron Modi to meet Trump next week during two-day U.s. visit: MEA In a related development, the US has notified about 487 other individuals, believed to be Indian nationals, against whom removal orders have been issued. Of these, the nationality verification process is underway for 295. Identifying details have been supplied to India on 298 individuals, Misri said AAP hat-trick vs BJP capital comeback High drama as ACB notice to Kejriwal on ‘poaching’ claim I F RAH MU F TI @ New Delhi IN a few hours, the political future of 699 candidates, whose fates are sealed in the EVMs, will be determined as the Election Commission prepares to announce the most awaited results of Assembly elections. While the AAP is eyeing a third term, the BJP — riding on the recent poll victory in Haryana and Maharashtra — seeks to make a comeback after 27 years. The Congress hopes to break its streak of no wins. As h i s h S r i v a s ta v a & A n u p V e r m a @ New Delhi Key candidates Former Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal contested against BJP’s Parvesh Verma and Congress’s Sandeep Dikshit from the New Delhi seat. If Kejriwal loses, his dream to expand the party base will be shattered. AAP candidate and CM Atishi fought from Kalkaji against Congress leader Alka Lamba and BJP’s Ramesh Bidhuri. In Jangpura, AAP leader Manish Sisodia took on BJP’s Tarvinder Singh Marwah and Congress’s Farhad Suri. Senior AAP leader Satyendar Jain competed from Shakur Basti against BJP’s Karnail Singh. The capital witnessed a voter turnout of 60.54%, with 94.51 lakh people casting their votes, according to the Election Commission. Of these, 50.42 lakh were men, 44.08 lakh were women, and 403 were third-gender voters. Exit Poll predictions Indian Navy’s theatre-level operational exercise, Tropex 25, is underway in the Indian Ocean Region with a largescale deployment of warships, submarines and aircraft. The exercise involves participation by all operational Navy units, along with a substantial presence of the Army, Air Force and Coast Guard assets | Express ent. In the US system, it was described as a national security operation. We will consider any alternatives,” he said. A US military aircraft carrying 104 illegal immigrants landed in Amritsar on Wednesday, marking the first group of Indians deported under the Trump administration’s crackdown. Misri dismissed the US classification that India was uncooperative. “Every country seeks assurance that those being deported are its citizens, as there are legal and security considerations at play P8 .” Almost all of the 104 Indians deported by the US entered it in January via Mexico, and while most of them were helped by travel agents based in Dubai, some went through agents in Delhi and the UK. As per officials who questioned the deportees at the Amritsar airport, many of them got in touch with the agents in Dubai through their local partners in India. Most of them paid several lakhs of rupees to these agents and travelled for months through multiple countries before reaching the US. Mandeep Singh, 29, from Punjab contacted a Dubai-based agent who had earlier helped him reach Spain. After paying `1 crore, he landed in Dubai. From there, he travelled to Ar- Most of the exit polls have predicted a victory for the BJP. It will be a return for the BJP in the capital after 27 years, as per the exit polls. The incumbent AAP may have to sit in the opposition. A hattrick for AAP or a comeback for BJP? If the BJP emerges victorious, it will be a landmark moment, marking the party’ return to power in Delhi after a 27-year wait. For the AAP, it would mean a hattrick. To form the government, a party needs to win at least 36 seats. In case the BJP loses, AAP and its chief Kejriwal’s significance as a national leader will come back into spotlight, strengthening his position in the INDIA bloc. If it loses, it could have ripple effects beyond Delhi, impacting its performance in Punjab, Gujarat, and Goa. The Congress is hoping to get something better than zero seats this year. It ruled Delhi for 15 years in a row till 2013. The party failed to open its account in the previous two elections.  More reports on pg3 60.54% voter turnout Delhi witnessed a voter turnout of 60.54% in the elections held on Wednesday, with 94.51 lakh people exercising their francise, according to the Election Commission. Of these, 50.42 lakh were men, 44.08 lakh were women, and 403 were third-gender voters. delhi polls 2025 We have made robust security arrangements for the counting centres. Only authorised personnel will be allowed inside the counting centres, where the use of mobile phones will be strictly prohibited Devesh Chandra Srivastava, Special Commissioner of Police The national capital witnessed an intense political drama as the Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) team arrived at Arvind Kejriwal’s residence at 5, Ferozeshah Road, on Friday, a day after the AAP chief had alleged that the BJP attempted to poach his party leaders offering them money The ACB move . came after L-G VK Saxena sanctioned a probe into the AAP chief ’s allegations. In a notice, the ACB asked Kejriwal to join the investigation into the BJP’s alleged attempts to bribe 16 AAP candidates with `15 crore each to switch sides. However, tension erupted as AAP leaders refused to allow ACB officials to meet Kejriwal, accusing them of acting at the behest of the BJP. AAP’s legal cell chief Sanjeev Nasiar lashed out at the anti-graft body, stating, “They don’t have a warrant or any mandate for investigation. They are just sitting outside Kejriwal’s house, unclear about their purpose.” The ACB eventually handed over the notice to an aide of Kejriwal at 4.15 pm. The antigraft body also sought details of phone numbers used to make the alleged bribe offers and clarification on whether a tweet by Kejriwal accusing the BJP was posted by him. Kejriwal’s lawyer, Rishikesh Kumar, dismissed the notice, calling it “vague”. “We will file a reply to all their questions,” he stated. ACB officials also visited houses of AAP MP Sanjay Singh and MLA Mukesh Ahlawat to gather evidence. Singh personally appeared at the ACB office to record his statement. AAP leaders have alleged that the entire episode was nothing more than a political stunt. “They have tried to break our candidates. We’ve already released a phone number from which one of them got a call. The ACB should act, not create drama,” Singh said. The Delhi BJP dismissed the AAP allegations of poaching MLAs and offering money as “false and baseless” and wrote to the L-G seeking a probe into the accusations. neighbour’s envy Hairs of ‘stolen’ T’gana pet cat sent for forensic tests A S e s h a c h a r y u l u @ Nalgonda Acting on a complaint by one Pushpalatha, the Nalgonda Two Town police have sent the hair of a cat to the Forensic Sciences Laboratory for analysis to determine its owner. In her complaint, Pushpalatha said her neighbour stole her pet cat and dyed it to avoid detection. She said she had been raising the cat for the past three years, but it went missing last year. Earlier this week, Pushpalatha spotted her neighbour with a cat that looked just like her own, but with a different coat. An argument ensued, with both neighbours laying claim to the feline. With her neighbour unrelenting, Pushpalatha approached the Nalgonda Two menia, and then to Serbia. From there, he reached Tijuana in Mexico. He then walked for over 100 km through jungle, and finally entered the US, only to be detained by the border police. Robin Handa, 26, from Haryana paid an agent `43 lakh that his parents got by selling one acre of land. He started his journey on July 24 and, after travelling through multiple countries, reached the US on January 22. He was detained at the border and send to a camp. In Punjab, the police have begun a crackdown on “fake travel agents”. A four-member Special Investigation Team has been constituted to look into the issue. The police registered a case on Friday against a person on a complaint filed by one of the deportees, who alleged that he paid `60 lakh to migrate to the US through the legal route, but was cheated. result day Voter turnout maritime security H a r p r e e t B a j w a @ Chandigarh 487 more Indians face deportation tered our concern.” Responding to yet another question of whether there is any record of the government of the day (Congress-led UPA) protesting the use of restrains since 2012, the foreign secretary said there was none. Misri stressed that while the deportation process itself was not new, the latest one was “somewhat different” from previous repatriations, as it was classified by the US as a “national security operation”, while answering a question why a military aircraft was used. “This deportation is differ- Most deportees entered us in Jan via agents in Dubai Town police station. In her complaint, she stated that when she went to the house next door, the cat recognised her and came near her. She added that she had been lovingly raising the pet for the past three years as if it were her child. Dyed it to avoid detection, says complainant Pushpalatha alleged that her neighbour stole her pet cat and dyed it to avoid detection. In her police complaint, she claimed that she had been raising the animal for the past three years, but it went missing last year. The police confirmed that the cat hair had been sent to the forensic lab to determine the ownership. She told the police that her cat was white, while the one with her neighbour had brown streaks. However, the neighbour insisted that the animal belonged to him, adding that he has five other cats. The police confirmed that the cat hair had been sent to the forensic lab and that ownership would be determined after receiving the report. b’desh More houses of Hasina’s party workers attacked Protesters have torched houses of leaders of deposed PM Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League across the country, and murals of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman were demolished in nearly two dozen districts | p 7, 9