FRIDAY 30 MAY, 2025 epaper.morningstandard.in facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard HARVARD GRADUATION IN SHADOW OF THREAT US trade court strikes down reciprocal tariffs Harvard held annual graduation ceremony as a federal judge considers the legality of punitive measures taken against the university by Donald Trump. A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS PAGE 9  NEW DELHI   J8.00 In a big blow to US President Donald Trump, New York-based Court of International Trade blocked most of his tariffs after finding that he overstepped his authority to regulate imports under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. The White House disagreed with the ruling and filed an appeal | P9 PAGES 12 Tharoor calls his Air Chief’s plainspeak on delays critics ‘zealots’ in defence acquisition timelines EXPRESS READ MHA okays additional CAPF companies in J&K Criminal contempt on journalist Ajay Shukla The MHA on Thursday approved deployment of additional 425 companies of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) to bolster security during the period of Amarnath Yatra between July 3 and August 9 this year. The Supreme Court has on Thursday initiated a suo motu criminal contempt of court case against journalist Ajay Shukla for his alleged scandalous remarks against Justice Bela M Trivedi. The case is listed for hearing on Friday. 34-yr-old held on charges of espionage for Pak Delhi Police’s Special Cell on Thursday arrested a 34-year-old man on charges of espionage for Pakistan. The accused, identified as Qasim, had allegedly gone to Pakistan twice — first in August 2024 and the second time in March 2025 — and stayed there for about 90 days. Police said Qasim had also received training in Pakistan. P4 RCB IN FINAL RCB storm into final with 8-wicket win over Punjab Kings at IPL on Thursday | PTI | P11 Says at times deals are signed knowing full well that delivery schedule would not be met S U C H I T R A K A LYA N M O H A N T Y @ New Delhi M AYA N K S I N G H @ New Delhi AIR Chief Marshal A P Singh on Thursday did some plainspeak on the inordinate delays in defence acquisition, saying sometimes deals are signed knowing full well that the promised delivery timelines would not be met. “Why should we promise something which cannot be achieved?” he wondered while addressing the CII Annual Business Summit 2025. “While signing the contract itself sometimes we are sure that it is not going to come up, but we just sign the contract. Uske baad dekhenge kya karna hai (We will later see what is to be done). Obviously then the process gets vitiated.” He added that there was not a single OPENING AMCA FOR PVT SECTOR VERY BIG STEP Lauding the inclusion of private players in the development of Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) as a very big step, the Air Chief said, “I’m sure this will pave the way for bigger things in future.” Air Chief Marshal A P Singh | PRAVEEN NEGI Over the next 10 years, we will see more results from the domestic defence industry and DRDO. But what we need today is required today. Act quickly, maybe fast-track Make-in-India programmes project he could think of that had been completed on time. The IAF’s lethal firepower brought Pakistan to its knees in the recent four-day war as part of Operation Sindoor to avenge the Pahalgam terror attack. This was despite delays in new inductions, which are per- RBI ANNUAL REPORT Bank fraud cases down, but value up 3-fold in FY25 ennial in the IAF. Its combat strength is not just dwindling, many of its fighter aircraft are reaching obsolescence. While its sanctioned strength of combat squadrons is 42, the actual strength hovers around 30, with each of them having around 18 aircraft. For example, Hindustan Aeronautics had assured it would begin delivery of 24 Tejas MKIA jets in February 2024. However, not one of them has been delivered yet. “Deliveries of Tejas MK-IA are delayed. The prototype of Tejas MK-2 is yet to roll out. There is no prototype yet of the stealth Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) fighter,” Air Chief Singh said. He had in March flagged the issue of the “badly off ” numbers of fighter aircraft in the force. While it will take time to fill the existing gap, he said he would favour indigenous jets. “Even if a domestic system delivers 85% or 90% of the performance offered by international products, we will go with the homegrown option.” NEAR-DYSTOPIAN PART TWO taken place in recent years alone, during which previous A fresh war of words erupted Indian responses were both rebetween Congress MP Shashi strained and constrained by Tharoor and his party col- our responsible respect for the leagues on Thursday, under- LoC and the IB (international scoring the growing rift be- border).” tween them. After facing However, his clarification backlash for his remarks on the failed to broker peace. With a surgical strike by Indisection of party leaders an forces in 2016 by continuing their offenbreaching the Line of sive against Tharoor, Control (LoC), termed another party leader his censurers ‘zealots’. Randeep Surjewala had In response to the to step in to defuse the criticism, Tharoor took situation. He said that to social media to clarithe Kerala leader is part fy his comments. of the Congress family “For those zealots fulthough his remark was minating about my supincorrect. I was clearly posed ignorance of In- speaking about Tharoor is heading a dian valour across the multi-party delegation reprisals for terrorist LoC: in the past.. I was to five countries. While attacks and clearly and explicitly speaking in Panama, he about not speaking only about rereportedly said that Inprisals for terrorist at- previous wars dia breached the LoC tacks and not about prefor the first time in 2016. Shashi Tharoor vious wars;… But as Taking a swipe at this usual, critics and trolls are wel- statement, Congress spokescome to distort my views and person Udit Raj said Tharoor words as they see fit. I genuine- should be made a “super ly have better things to do,” he spokesperson of the BJP”. said. Meanwhile, many BJP leadSeeking to explain further, ers including Union minister Tharoor wrote: “My remarks Kiren Rijiju came in support of were preceded by a reference to Tharoor, questioning Conthe several attacks that have gress’ motives. PA R V E Z S U LTA N @ New Delhi Appointment of 3 new judges in SC notified, strength at 34 SITUATION IN BANGLADESH The Yunus govt has pushed people into agitation mode and the country into a near dystopian situation, reports senior journalist Monideepa Banerji | P7 D I PA K M O N D A L @ New Delhi DESPITE a decline in the number of reported bank frauds in 2024-25, the total value involved in these frauds almost trebled compared with the previous year, according to the Reserve Bank of India’s annual report. The increase is attributed to the reclassification and fresh reporting of earlier cases following a Supreme Court ruling on due process. A total of 23,953 frauds were reported during the year, down from 36,060 in 2023-24. However, the amount involved jumped sharply to `36,014 crore, up from `12,230 crore. This surge is primarily due to the reinstatement of 122 previously withdrawn cases amounting to `18,674 crore, after re-examination in line with the Supreme Court’s March 2023 judgment mandating adherence to the principles of natural justice before designating frauds. While private sector banks accounted for the highest number of frauds—14,233 cases—their share in the total amount was only 28%, RBI’s annual report showed. In contrast, public sector banks, with 6,935 cases of fraud, were responsible for 71% of the value involved, reflecting the larger size and complexity of their loan books. Foreign banks, small finance banks, and payment banks together made up less than 1% of the total fraud value. Loan-related frauds accounted for 92% of the value. Digital payment frauds (card/internet) comprised 56.5% of the total cases. For 2025-26, the RBI plans to roll out realtime digital dashboards to monitor frauds and digital service uptime, enhance cyber resilience in financial entities, and issue fresh guidelines on digital forensic readiness. ORANGE ALERT Commuters during the heavy dust storms and rain at ITO on Thursday evening | PARVEEN NEGI THE Centre on Thursday notified the elevation of three new judges to the Supreme Court following the President’s assent to the collegium’s recommendations. The three new judges are Karnataka High Court Chief Justice N V Anjaria, Gauhati High Court Chief Justice Vijay Bishnoi, and Bombay High Court judge Justice A S Chandurkar. The three judges are expected to be sworn in by CJI B R Gavai on Friday morning. With the elevation of the three new judges, the number of judges rises to 34 in the top court, which is also the sanctioned capacity of the SC. “In exercise of the powers conferred by the Constitution of India, the President, after consultation with Chief Justice of India, is pleased to appoint S/Shri Justices (i) N.V Anjaria, . Chief Justice, High Court of Karnataka, (ii) Vijay Bishnoi, Chief Justice, High Court of Gauhati and (iii) A S Chandurkar, Judge, High Court of Bombay as Judges of the Supreme Court of India,” Union MoS for Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal wrote on ‘X’ (formerly Twitter). On May 26, the Collegium had recommended the names for their elevation to the top court. This was the second recommendation made under the leadership of CJI Gavai, who took charge on May 14. The five-member Collegium, headed by CJI Gavai, had recommended the three names after the retirement of former CJI Sanjiv Khanna, Justices Bela M Trivedi and A S Oka. The Collegium on May 15 had recommended the appointment of Karnataka HC Justice Kempaiah Somashekar as Chief Justice of the Manipur HC. Flash flood alert in NE and South India J I T E N D R A C H O U B E Y @ New Delhi Dust storms, gusty winds THE India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued red in capital In Northwest India, the IMD predicted rainfall, along with dust storms, gusty winds and thunderstorms over Delhi-NCR, Punjab, Haryana, and Himachal Pradesh for the next 4-5 days due to a fresh spell of Western Disturbance. and orange alerts for extremely heavy rainfall and the potential for flash floods in Northeast and South India. Besides, Northwest India, including Delhi, is expected to experience widespread rainfall accompanied by thunderstorms and gusty winds over the next fourfive days due to the influence of Western Disturbances. A red alert has been issued for Northeastern states, West Bengal, and Sikkim, as a deep depression is expected to make landfall between West Bengal and Bangladesh coasts, specifically between Sagar Island and Khepupara (Bangladesh) by May 29. The region is predicted to receive extremely heavy rainfall, exceeding 300 mm, which increases the risk of flash floods in Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, Tripura, and Assam over the next two days. Experts warn that the exceptional rainfall may lead to increased surface runoff, soil saturation, and flooding in low-lying areas. This could lead to landslides. The IMD has issued a red alert for the Konkan region, which includes Goa, Karnataka, and Kerala, as extremely heavy rainfall is predicted, raising the risk of flash floods in the coming days. Flash flood risk is likely over a few watersheds and neighbourhoods in coastal Kar nataka, South interior Karnataka, Kerala, Mahe, and Goa. Given the deep depression and the prediction of heavy rain in southern India, the IMD has advised fisherfolk not to venture into the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal and suspend fishing operations until June 1. SC notice to DoE on petition against fee hike in private schools on govt land His prose was militant, held no brief for elites TITAN OF AFRICAN LITERATURE 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 Thursday issued a notice to the Directorate of Education (DoE) of the Delhi government and the Action Committee of Unaided Recognised Private Schools on a petition filed by a parents’ association challenging the Delhi High Court’s orders allowing fee hikes in private schools located on government land. A two-judge vacation bench of CJI BR Gavai and Justice Augustine George Masih asked the DoE and the Action Com- mittee to file their replies to the petition filed by the Naya Samaj Parents Association. The plea has questioned two Delhi HC orders passed in April 2024, which allowed private schools on government land to increase tuition fees without getting prior approval from the DoE. The parents said that several private unaided schools in Delhi have since raised their tuition fees by up to 100%. They also claimed that some schools have taken action against students when the increased fees were not paid, creating confusion and distress among families. The parents’ association argued that the HC’s orders contradict earlier rulings by a division bench of the same court and the top court, which required private schools on gover nment land to seek permission from the DoE before raising fees. The parents’ group also urged the SC to stay the HC orders until the matter is fully reviewed. The petition sought a direction from the SC to set aside the paragraph of a HC order in which it said private school situated on the government land are not bound to take prior permission from DoE before hiking tuition fee. PA R A M I TA G H O S H @ New Delhi IN literature, life, and language Kenyan le gend Ngugi wa Thiong’o was always off centre, pursuing directions away from canonisation. He died this Wednesday in the US at the age of 87, but his works will ensure he lives forever. Ngugi’s prose was militant. He thought the writer’s job was to be in the ‘Opposition’. He held no brief for elites, which emerged in his country Kenya, , after independence, because they were no less oppressive and exclusionary than the British masters they had replaced. He emerged as a bitter critic of NGUGI WA THIONG’O 5 January 1938 — 28 May 2025 the governments that came in the wake of Kenya’s independence in the early ’70s. He was perennially a Nobel Literature hopeful, but did not expect it. Though with Chinua Achebe and Wole Soyinka, he was one of big boys of post-independence African literature, his position against the structures of the world that was White had always been too forthright; his steady stream of novels, plays and essays on questions of land, labour and language, showed he would not ‘drop it’. His fiction is peopled with characters like Matigari, a man who will eschew words and take up arms to ‘renew’ the freedom struggle, and Njoroge, a boy-scholar who starts out believing in progress by education but whose hopes are dashed in the background of tensions between Kenya’s White settlers and the militants of the Mau Mau revolt. It was the summer of 2018, and Ngugi wa Thiong’o had been in exile from Kenya for over 30 years. He was in Delhi for a talk on translation which I was covering. His first greeting was a hug. In his Hawaiian shirt, he gamely posed for photographs and then settled down for a long interview at the time that tested his publisher Naveen Kishore’s patience; Kishore had been waiting to whisk him away for a dinner at historian Romila Thapar’s home. CONTINUED ON PAGE 5