NEW DELHI 03 AUGUST 2025 SUNDAY `12 PAGES 24  facebook/TheMorningStandard  X.com/TheMornStandard ALL QUIET ON THE NORTHERN FRONT https://epaper.morningstandard.in PLUS: 12 PAGES Right Product Wrong Place Lapses in Detail, but Still a Worthy Story MAGAZINE EXCLUSIVE VOICES A City of Stone and Solemnity Devdutt Pattanaik Dinesh Singh Ravi Shankar Preeti Shenoy Utkarsh Amitabh Prabhu Chawla Shankkar Aiyar Madhavan Narayanan Yacht the Talk in India Bengaluru Blues of a Retired Man AMMA SPEAKS ‘I don’t have a Female Fan Following’ Live for Others, Free Yourself How SIT’s forensic tools helped send Prajwal to jail for life Soon after the court sentence, in an exclusive interview with THE Special Investigation this paper, the SIT chief said Team (SIT) probing the rape evidence in the rape case rested case against former Janata Dal on the “victim’s statement, fo(S) MP Prajwal Revanna was rensic science and tools includable to establish ing DNA profiling his culpability and matching of PRESS from the leaked voice samples.” CLUSIVE The video had video of his sexual aggression Prajwal and the against his emvictim’s voice. ployee and her statement, said The former’s voice was forensiBK Singh, CID ADGP and the cally matched for identificaSIT chief. tion. The victim had already Prajwal was sentenced to life given her statement. Forensic imprisonment on Saturday . tools helped identify the perpeB A L A C H A U H A N @ Bengaluru trator from his body parts in the leaked video, said Singh. Narrating the trail of investigation, Singh said the video, with graphic details of the rape shot by Prajwal to blackmail and silence the victim, did not show his face. The SIT started looking for similar cases of sexual offences in which the face of the accused was not visible and what forensic tools were used to identify the perpetrator. “The team chanced upon two international case studies — ‘Forensic Science, Medicine & Pathology’ in Springer and Ban on intra-village love marriages over ‘disruption of social harmony’ H A R P R E E T B A J W A @ Chandigarh SEVERAL village panchayats in Punjab have passed resolutions prohibiting intra-village marriages and enforcing social boycott of such couples and their families, claiming that these wedlocks not only disrupt social harmony but also lead to disputes and family feuds. A case surfaced in Manakpur Sharief village in SBS Nagar district of Punjab near Chandigarh, where a six-member village panchayat banned youths who solemnise marriage after running away from the town. In another incident, the panchayat of Galwatti in Patiala is boycotting a couple, Taranjeet Singh and Dilpreet Kaur, as the couple eloped and married in 2016. They had left the village only to return six months later and live with the man’s father, Kulwinder Singh. On July 31, the village panchayat passed a resolution of the social boycott of the couple. Panchayat of Katorewala village in Muktsar district bans sale of tobacco No shopkeeper allowed to stock, sell tobacco product or its substitutes No energy drink, ban on sale of tobacco If caught consuming heroin in a public place, police will take strict action While violator would be fined `11K, informer to get `6K as reward The panchayats of Sirsari and Anokhpura villages in Faridkot district have jointly passed a similar resolution expressing concern over incidents involving married women eloping. The panchayats have demanded that the state government impose a ban on marriages between a man and a woman hailing from the same village. In another incident from Ghal Kalan village in Moga district, one Jasbir Kaur was allegedly assaulted and evicted from the village as her son Tarsem Singh married a girl from the same village on May 5. A Shopkeepers also warned against selling energy drinks Resolution passed on June 27, but came into effect from August 1 case was registered after the intervention of the Punjab Women Commission. Sociologist Rajesh Gill said that adults can enter into a wedlock with a person of their choice. “There have been instances in villages of Punjab and Haryana where boys and girls of the same village have eloped, leading to tension in the village and between the families,’’ she said. Punjab Women Commission Chairperson Raj Lali Gill said that such resolutions being passed are for the state government to handle. Land deal: Court issues notice to Vadra in ED money laundering case E X P R E SS N E WS S E R V I C E @ New Delhi A Delhi court on Saturday issued a notice to Robert Vadra, husband of Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, in connection with a money laundering case filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). Special Judge (PC Act) Sushant Changotra of the Rouse Avenue Court said he would first hear Vadra and the ten other proposed accused before deciding whether to take cognisance of the ED’s prosecution complaint. The matter is scheduled for the next hearing on August 28. The case revolves around a land deal in Gurugram, Haryana, involving a 3.5acre plot purchased by Vadra’s company Skylight Hospitality , , from Onkareshwar Properties for Rs 7.5 crore in February 2008. The ED alleges that the transaction was based on false documents and irregularities in the land mutation process. Reportedly the property was , transferred in Skylight’s name and subsequently to Vadra within 24 hours. The ED further claims the then Congress-led Haryana g o ve r n m e n t , u n d e r C M Bhupinder Singh Hooda, quickly granted a commercial licence to Skylight Hospitality, significantly increasing the land’s market value. In 2012, the company sold the plot to real estate giant DLF for Rs 58 crore — a transaction the agency alleges led to windfall gains for Vadra and his firms. According to the ED, the profits earned from this sequence of deals amount to proceeds of crime and were allegedly used by Vadra and his associated entities to acquire additional assets. Ap p e a r i n g fo r t h e E D were Special Counsel Zoheb Hossain and Special Public Prosecutor NK Matta. The court’s notice marks a crucial step in the ongoing investigation that has drawn political attention due to Vadra’s high-profile connections. NIMISHA PRIYA NO MEA NOD TO YEMEN VISIT MEA has denied permission to ‘Save Nimisha Priya International Action Council’ to send a team to Yemen to negotiate the release of the Indian nurse, citing security concerns. | P7 BAIL GRANTED TO TWO NUNS FROM KERALA They had been arrested in Chhattisgarh on charges of human trafficking and religious conversion | P4 Prajwal Revanna being taken to a hospital in Bengaluru | PTI Turkiye Journal of Forensic Medicine & Forensic Sciences on forensic image comparison of penis in the identification of the sexual offender,” said ADGP Singh. The investigation hit the first roadblock when doctors at the government hospital refused to take photographs of Prajwal’s penis, citing violation of medical ethics. “Doctors medically examine a suspect or crime accused brought by the police.They are not authorised to take their photographs. The SIT sought court permission citing strong reasons for their request. With the court’s permission the photographs were taken and forensically examined to verify whether the male organ in the rape video was that of Prajwal,” he said. The morphological features of the accused and the one found in the video were compared to match his identity . “The photographs obtained from the video identified the perpetrator with the help of a dermatologist and urologist,” CONTINUED ON P4 said Singh. PM says India on track to become the third-largest economy Modi gives it Don claim on back to Trump Russian crude on economy rubbished N A M I TA B A J PA I @ Lucknow R A K E S H K U M A R @ New Delhi IN his first public response to US president Donald Trump’s recent barb that the Indian economy was dead, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday asserted that the country was on its way to become the third-largest economy amid global instability . “There is an atmosphere of instability across the globe. Every country is focused on its individual interests. India is set to become the third biggest economy in the world, and that is why India will have to stay alert as far as its economic interests are concerned,” Modi said. The PM’s statement without naming Trump came at a public rally at Banauli village in Sevapuri area of Varanasi, his parliamentary constituency. Modi advocated economic self-reliance, urging the people to take the pledge towards adopting swadeshi (made in India) as Those who want much as they could so as to India to become support nation’s farmers, the 3rd-largest economy in the small industries and youth. world should Modi added that the citiawaken the zens and the business comspirit of munity could support indigswadeshi among the enous production through a masses renewed commitment to the ‘vocal for local’ movement. “We will buy only those things that are made by Indians. We need to become vocal for local,” he urged the crowd. “Those who want the best for the country and want to see India as the third biggest economy in the world, be it any political party, should leave their differences aside and resolve to awaken the swadeshi spirit among the masses,” he added. Modi also appealed to the business community to prioritise the sale of domestic products in the wake of global disruptions. US President Donald Trump on Saturday said he had heard about India stopping purchasing Russian crude, adding it would be a good step, a claim the government denied. Trump made the remark after announcing 25% reciprocal tariff on Indian imports, along with additional penalties linked to Russian crude imports. “I understand that India is no longer going to be buying oil from Russia. That’s what I heard, I don’t know if that’s right or not. That is a good step. We will see what happens,” Trump said. The petroleum ministry, however, clarified that India has not stopped importing Russian crude. A ministry official said Indian oil marketing companies (OMCs) continue to buy Russian oil, with supply decisions based on factors such as price, crude I understand grade, inventories, logistics, and other economic consid- that India is no erations. “These are long- longer going to buy oil from term oil contracts. It is not so Russia. That’s simple to just stop buying what I heard, I overnight,” the official said. don’t know if The official also emphathat’s right or not. That is a sised that Indian OMCs do good step not import crude from Iran or Venezuela — both sanctioned by the US. Russian oil, however, is not sanctioned by the US or the EU. Instead, it is subject to the G7-EU price-cap mechanism, which aims to restrict Russia’s revenue while ensuring global oil supplies continue. India has consistently complied with the US-recommended price cap of $60 per barrel on Russian oil. Recently, the EU proposed a lower price cap of $47.6 per barrel, to be enforced from September. The official said India’s purchases remain legitimate and fully within international frameworks. INSIDE BLOW TO GEMS, JEWELLERY, HANDICRAFTS IN RAJ I P8 RUSSIAN OIL: THE CRUDE FACTS AND FIGURES I P10 Puri minor girl who was set afire dies at AIIMS-Delhi A S I S H M E H TA @ Bhubaneswar THE 15-year-old Puri girl who was allegedly set afire last month died at All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, on Saturday Minutes after the mi. nor’s death, Odisha Police issued a statement claiming that its investigation found role of no other person’s involvement in the incident. Initially, the incident was being probe as an attack by a group of unidentified youths. The girl’s mother, too, had lodged a police complaint. Even as the incident kept the political pot boiling, police said, “According to the investigation conducted so far, it is clear that no other person is involved. Therefore, we request everyone not to make any sensitive comments regarding this matter during this tragic moment.” The girl had sustained 75% burns and was admitted to AIIMS-Bhubaneswar on July 19 after allegedly being set on fire. She was airlifted to AIIMS-Delhi a day later. She underwent a surgery for deep burns on July 23. She was kept on oxygen support as her condition was critical. Puri police had recorded the girl’s statement at AIIMSBhubaneswar on July 19. She claimed that she was on her way to give books to her friend when three bike-borne youths abducted her and used a chloroform-like substance to render her unconscious and then set her on fire. DOMINANT DAY Sun shines for India as Jaiswal-Akash deep cut for England FIROZ MIRZA @LONDON M AKE hay when sun shines. India literally lived those words in both letter and spirit, with a little help from England fielders. The gloom that shrouded Indian dressing room after the first session on Friday gave way to optimism and hope at the draw of stumps. Saturday only got better. First Yashasvi Jaiswal and Akash Deep stitching a century stand. The wicket was still playing truant at times and with more than 300 runs to chase in the fourth innings, it will never be easy for the home team. India have shown the poise to comeback whenever they were down throughout the series. In fact, it’s a miracle that they are still down 1-2 even after dominating most of the sessions in all the last four Test matches. The Oval on Saturday was draped in all its weekend finery – crowd and weather — after two days of cloud cover. Batting seemed a trifle easier as the ball went soft and the England bowlers, one short after Chris Woakes hurt his shoulder, looked tired and listless at times. Buoyed by the last Test result, where they snatched an improbable draw, India batters India’s Yashasvi Jaiswal celebrates his century while Akash Deep bats on after his maiden Test fifty on the third day of the fifth Test match against England | PTI/AFP too looked more positive in the second innings. Yashasvi Jaiswal, who had a modest last two Tests, made the most of three lives to race to his hundred and in the company of nightwatchman Akash Deep added 107 runs for the third wicket. He went on to score his fourth century against England while Akash Deep hit his maiden fifty and Test high score. By the time they both fell, India were already in a commanding position. Even this Test has seen a fare bit of dropped catches. What haunted India in the second Test which they eventually could turn out to be home team’s bane. If butter finger had a new definition it would P11 be written in English.