FRIDAY 04 APRIL, 2025 epaper.morningstandard.in facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard TREMOR-HIT MYANMAR QUAKE TOLL OVER 3K INDIA & THAILAND ELEVATE TIES TO A STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP The death toll from the massive earthquake rose to 3,085 on Thursday as search and rescue teams found more bodies, the military-led government said. A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS PAGE 9  NEW DELHI  J8.00  PM Narendra Modi met his Thai counterpart on Thursday where the two countries agreed to turrn their ties into a strategic partnership PAGES 12 ALL FOR DEVELOPMENT, NOT EXPANSIONISM Prime Minister Narendra Modi after meeting his former Thai counterpart Thaksin Shinawatra and Thailand PM Paetongtarn Shinawatra asserted that both countries support a free, open, inclusive, and rulesbased order in Indo-Pacific, and believe in a policy of development, not expansionism. Modi described the meeting as a ‘delight’ | P7 India brazens out Trump tariff SC upholds order MANIPULATION, FRAUD Sees opportunities amid challenges as US imposes 27% reciprocal tariff on Indian goods (Early trade figures BSE Sensex -0.42% for US markets) Hang Seng Index -1.52% Nikkei Index -2.77% MARKETS Dow Jones -3.35% S&P 500 -4.32% D I PA K M O N D A L @ New Delhi INDIA may have escaped with a milder ‘reciprocal’ tariff but the brute force of US President Donald Trump’s import levy could shake up the country’s economic prospects. Trump, in the wee hours on Thursday, announced reciprocal tariffs ranging from 10% to 49% on countries with which the US has trade deficit. He imposed a baseline tariff of 10% on all imports (effective April 5) and specific reciprocal tariffs on multiple countries (effective April 9). Some sectors, such as pharmaceuticals, semiconductors, copper, and energy products, will remain exempt from additional tariffs. India is estimated to have a trade surplus of $35 billion with the US and Indian goods BLEED will attract 27% additional tariff. While this is lower than 54% on China, 46% on Vietnam, 37% on Bangladesh, and 36% on Thailand, it is still higher than what was expected. “We had expected 10-15% additional tariff,” said Ajay Sahai, CEO, Federation of Indian Export Organisations. He said exports of seafood and carpets are among the most impacted. Trump had initially put the tariff for India at 26%, but the White House later clarified that this would be 27%. While in relative terms India has an edge over its Asian peers, the gains would be limited by recessionary trends triggered by the US move, say analysts. Higher tariffs are likely to be passed on to consumers, leading to an increase in prices and muted demand over the medium term, triggering a global slowdown. This will have a rub-off effect Stop felling of trees near UoH, SC tells T’gana govt OVERNIGHT STRIKES ON GAZA LEAVE 55 PALESTINIANS DEAD @ New Delhi PINARAYI DAUGHTER NAMED IN SFIO CHARGESHEET The Ministry of Corporate Affairs has reportedly granted permission for prosecution proceedings against Veena T, daughter of Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan, in Cochin Minerals & Rutile Ltd) payoff case. | P5 on the Indian economy as well, shaving off 50-100 basis points from the FY26 GDP growth estimates. Most analysts and agencies have predicted India to grow at 6.5% in FY26. Meanwhile, the Indian government on Thursday said it is carefully examining the implications of the reciprocal tariff. The commerce ministry said it is also looking at the opportunities that may arise due to the P7, 9 & 10 new development. ISRAELI S U C H I T R A K A LYA N M O H A N T Y THE Supreme Court on Thursday took suo motu cognisance of the Telangana government’s tree-felling drive in Kancha Gachibowli Forest, sought the state administration’s explanation on the “compelling urgency” for clearing a large tree cover on a land parcel next to University of Hyderabad (UoH) and stayed any future activity till further orders. “We direct that until further orders, no activities of any sorts, except the protection of the trees already existing, shall be undertaken by the state,” said a bench of Justices B R Gavai and Augustine George Masih. The SC said that “no activity of any sorts would take place till further hearing”, except for the protection of trees by the government in the land parcel next to the university Terming the tree. felling drive as “very serious”, the SC said that the interim report placed before it by the registrar of the Telangana High Court depicted an “alarming picture”. The SC warned the state chief secretary of strict action if there are any lapses. Nasdaq -5.54% Analysts flag global recession fears India’s FY26 GDP growth may slip 50-100 bps from expected levels Indian drug manufacturers relieved as pharma sector excluded from tariffs WHAT TO EXPECT Union health minister J P Nadda speaks in the Rajya Sabha on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025, on Thursday | PTI MARATHON WAQF DEBATE AGAIN, THIS TIME IN RS RAJESH KUMAR THAKUR NDA COMFORTABLE IN THE UPPER HOUSE THE Rajya Sabha witnessed heated debate on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2025, hours after Lok Sabha passed it 288232 in the wee hours of Thursday. The debate that continued way past midnight, saw very high participation. Introducing the bill, Union Minority Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju rejected the Opposition’s claims that the legislation would infringe upon Muslim rights. He asserted that the amendments make the law more inclusive, adding they aimed at improving the representation of women on the Waqf Board and protecting the rights of all Muslim sects. He said the objective of the bill was to bring in transparency, accountability, and efficiency in the management of waqf properties. However, the Opposition termed the bill unconstitutional and accused the government of aiming to deprive Muslims of their rights concerning Waqf properties. Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, in his pushback rejected the NDA’s claims about the bill’s benefits. “There is The ruling NDA is comfortably placed in the Upper House as it has 128 members as against the Opposition INDIA bloc’s 98. The Waqf (Amendment) Bill needs at least 118 votes to pass muster as there are nine vacancies in the 245-member House. @ New Delhi nothing new except the clauses that will destroy the people,” he said, dismissing it as having no real welfare provisions for Muslims. Members of the TMC, DMK, AAP, Shiv Sena (UBT), SP, RJD, and Left parties alleged that the bill was introduced with malafide intentions. Leader of the House J P Nadda said the bill was designed to assist the poor and protect the rights of Muslim women. He accused the Congress of relegating Muslim women to second-class status during its tenure in power. Countering Nadda, Congress member Syed Naseer Hussain alleged that the BJP was using the legislation to stoke communal tension in the country and polarise the society to strengthen its electoral base.| P8 Israel would seize large areas of Gaza and establish a new security corridor across the Palestinian territory and has vowed to escalate the nearly 18-month war with Hamas until the group returns dozens of remaining hostages, disarms and leaves the territory. | P9 Solar energy to save `15L THE iconic Old Secretariat building — which houses the Delhi Legislative Assembly — may soon become a heritage site. Unveiling a plan to convert the 115-year-old structure into a heritage site, Assembly Speaker Vijender Gupta on Thursday said that he would take it up with Union Minister of Culture Gajendra Singh Shekhawat. Once a symbol of imperialism, the Vidhan Sabha building In an attempt to conserve energy and save at least `15 lakh power bills per month, the Assembly has decided to set up solar panels within 100 days, according to Speaker Vijender Gupta. | P3 housed both the Central Legislative Council (Parliament) and a temporary Central Secretariat when the capital of British India was shifted from Kolkata (then Calcutta) to Delhi in De- cember 1911. After Independence, the building saw a lull in activity until Delhi was granted an Assembly in 1952. However, the Assembly was disbanded in 1956. The building S U C H I T R A K A LYA N M O H A N T Y @ New Delhi IN a major setback to the Mamta Banerjee govt, the Supreme Court on Thursday in its verdict upheld the Calcutta High Court’s decision to cancel 25,753 teachers appointments in West Bengal government schools, terming the entire selection process as “vitiated by manipulation and fraud”. A two-judge bench, led by CJI Sanjiv Khanna and Justice PV Sanjiv Kumar refused to interfere with the Calcutta HC’s decision of April last year. The court passed the ruling on Thursday on an appeal filed by the West Bengal government against the HC’s order invalidating and cancelling the appointment of 25,753 teachers made by the state’s SSC in staterun government schools. “We have gone through the facts. Regarding findings of this case, the entire selection process is vitiated by manipulation and fraud and credibility and legitimacy is denuded. No reason to interfere. Tainted candidates must be terminated and appointments were resultant of cheating and thus fraud,” the SC said in its judgment. In April 2024, the HC had cancelled the appointment of 25,753 employees (both teaching and non-teaching) to stateaided schools. “There is no clarity on which of the 23 lakh An employee of the Bengal government breaks down after the SC order | PTI answersheets were evaluated and therefore, ordered re-evaluation of all answersheets,” the HC had said. Challenging the verdict, the West Bengal government on April 24, 2024, moved SC by filing an appeal. The Bengal government, in its appeal, had said that the Calcutta HC cancelled the appointments “arbitrarily .” Earlier, in one of the hearings, the SC had termed the alleged recruitment scam in West Bengal as “systemic fraud”, and said that the authorities were duty-bound to maintain the digitised records pertaining to the appointment of 25 753 teachers and non-teaching staff. Soon after the verdict, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said that she disagreed with the verdict “on humanitarian grounds”. I F R A H M U F T I @ New Delhi DELHI University is planning to increase “nominal 5%-7%” fees charged from students in the academic year 2025-26, with Vice-Chancellor Professor Yogesh Singh saying the hike will be applicable for all courses. In an exclusive interview with this newspaper, Professor Singh says that the fee hike is not to strengthen the finances of the university, but to compensate for inflation. “We don’t want to hike the fees very heavily for the students. It will be a regular hike. Fees alone don’t run the varsity. We have adequate budget and support from the Central government,” he said. “Under the Higher Education Funding Agency, we’ve got `1,000 crore and `900 crore for the Institute of Eminence tag. We have recently purchased furniture worth `100 crore and spent over `100 crore on upgrading our library We are try. ing to work harder to spend the money for the future of our students,” he said. According to projections, the university expects to collect more than `246 crore in revenue from tuition fees in the financial year 2025-26. The V-C talked about revamping the student election process in the university “It is . time for the university to rethink the election system. We are yet to decide if direct or indirect elections will be held to appoint DUSU members,” he said. INTERVIEW ON P3 Assets of all SC judges to be published online EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ New Delhi IN a big push towards transparency and propriety all Supreme , Court judges have unanimously agreed to declare their assets to the Chief Justice of India. The declaration of the assets will be uploaded on the Supreme Court’s website as soon as possible. The decision was taken by Supreme Court judges in a full court meeting on April 1. The move follows the discovery of a huge amount of unaccounted cash from the official residence of Justice Yashwant Varma in New Delhi on March 14. In the wake of that controversy, the Supreme Court repatriated Justice Varma to the EXPRESS READ 300 seized cars gutted in fire at police yard More than 300 vehicles seized by the Delhi Traffic Police were gutted in a fire in Nehru Place on Thursday, an official said. An FIR has been registered and the police are probing if there was any foul play involved, he said. | P3 Heritage tag for Old Secretariat likely soon A N U P V E R M A @ New Delhi invalidating 26K WB teacher jobs 5%-7% fee hike in new DU academic session likely assumed fresh significance in 1966 as a Metropolitan Council was established in Delhi. The building has been the seat of the Delhi legislature since 1993. The Old Secretariat was designed by E Montague Thomas in 1912 and was completed in eight months. The Assembly had plans in 2022 to renovate the execution house — a tworoom suite outside the Assembly chamber that can be accessed via a staircase — and throw it open to the public. Earlier attempts at making asset details public were in vain CJI Sanjiv Khanna New Delhi: A 1997 resolution required all Supreme Court judges to declare their assets to the CJI. In a 2009 resolution, the SC agreed to disclose judges’ assets on the court’s website, but only on a voluntary basis. Since 2018, declaration of assets to the CJI has not been made public Allahabad High Court, his parent cadre. Legal experts said although the decision to declare assets by SC judges was not new, at this critical juncture, the unanimous decision to declare judges’ assets is a good step to restore public faith in the judiciary, keeping in view the increasing concern over transparency and accountability in the judiciary . Retired Justice S R Singh of Allahabad HC said, “It was not compulsory till now. But what is the problem in declaring one’s (judge’s) assets? At this time, if the Supreme Court judges do so, then it will defi- nitely give a boost to restore public faith to a great extent,” he told this newspaper. Noted criminal lawyer Geeta Luthra said, “If Supreme Court judges declare their assets in public, it is a good thing.” Many current SC judges must have declared their assets much before, she said. Senior lawyer and former Additional Solicitor General K C Kaushik said the judges took this step to bring more transparency and accountability in the judicial work vis-avis faith of the general public in the judiciary “The SC judges . collectively decided to make their asset disclosures public to ensure faith, belief, confidence and reinforcing their commitment to the judiciary .” HC says high speed alone doesn’t prove rash or negligent driving SHEKHAR SINGH @ NEW DELHI Discharges accused THE Delhi High Court has ruled that driving at a high speed cannot automatically be deemed as rash and negligent behavior and stressed that speed alone is insufficient to establish culpability unless supported by concrete evidence of reckless conduct. Justice Saurabh Banerjee made the observation while discharging a man accused of driving at high speed and fatally hitting two pedestrians. The accused had been convicted by a trial court under Sections 279 (rash driving) and 304A (causing death by negligence) of the IPC, 1860, and sentenced to two years of rigorous imprisonment. Reversing the conviction, the The HC has stressed that speed alone is insufficient to establish culpability unless supported by concrete evidence of reckless conduct and discharged a man accused of driving at high speed & fatally hitting two pedestrians. court noted a significant lack of evidence to demonstrate that the accused was driving in a reckless or negligent manner. “Even assuming that the petitioner was driving at a ‘high speed’, the same is not sufficient to conclude that he was, in fact, driving the car in a ‘rash and negligent’ manner,” Justice Banerjee said. The court pointed out that neither the witnesses nor the prosecution had defined what constituted “high speed” in the case or provided any specific details about the speed at which the vehicle was being driven. The HC observed that merely because the car, allegedly being driven at a ‘high speed’, hit two pedestrians, leading to their death, it is not adequate for a court of law to hold that the petitioner was being ‘rash and negligent’. It further criticised the prosecution’s case for its overall inconsistencies and lack of conclusive proof. “Succinctly put, there being an overall infirmity and unfilled lacunae in the case set up by the prosecution, it was not able to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the petitioner was indeed driving the car in a ‘rash and negligent’ manner, which resulted in the demise of the two pedestrians,” the court observed.