NEW DELHI 05 OCTOBER 2025 SUNDAY `12 PAGES 24  facebook/TheMorningStandard  X.com/TheMornStandard https://epaper.morningstandard.in PLUS: 12 PAGES OUT OF OFFICE MAGAZINE The Man Who Taught a Village to Draw The Warrior and the Saint Anand Neelakantan Shashi Tharoor Debashis Chatterjee Commodore G Prakash Ravi Shankar Geetha Ravichandran Utkarsh Amitabh Fishy Business and Family Feuds EXCLUSIVE VOICES Honey, I Shrunk the Netherlands Bandmate claims Zubeen was poisoned K A V I TA B A J E L I D AT T @ New Delhi P R A S A N TA M A Z U M D A R @ Guwahati LIQUOR SALES BOOST REVENUE BY 12% Delhi’s excise revenue has seen a sharp surge this yr, rising by over 12% in the first half of ’25–’26 | P3 The Collector’s Pour IN a bizarre courtroom drama, a 32-year-old repeat offender turned a virtual hearing into a spectacle—appearing halfdressed, puffing cigarettes, and downing alcohol on camera. Mohammad Imran, a history-sheeter with over 50 cases pending against him, claimed that he did it “out of curiosity”. He said that he turned to crime to fund his drug and alcohol addiction. He was released from jail in September 2021. A case was registered on September 22 at Cyber North police station on the complaint of Ahalmad of the court of An- Prime Minister Narendra Modi honouring a youth in New Delhi | PTI Modi assails ‘theft’ of Jan Nayak honour Karpoori Thakur lauded that way; Cong ‘bestows’ it on Rahul Bihar is one of the states with the highest proportion of youth... compared to the Oppn govt in the past, Bihar’s education budget has been increased manifold Narendra Modi R A J E S H K U M A R T H A K U R @ New Delhi LAUNCHING skilling projects for the youth worth `62,000 crore, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday lit into poll-bound Bihar’s Opposition Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), blaming it for ruining the state’s education and economy during its rule, alleging it opened the floodgates of mass migration out of the state. He also mocked Rahul Gandhi, whom the Congress has been trying to project as a ‘Jan Nayak’ (leader of the masses), accusing the party of ‘stealing’ the honorific associated with respected OBC leader and former Bihar chief minister Karpoori Thakur. It was the love and respect of the people that gave Thakur the moniker, he quipped, not social media. “The new generation might not know how the RJD rule had wreaked havoc in Bihar, as the state has since been brought back on the track of development,” Modi said. He complimented the Nitish Kumar government for a major turnaround in the state. Modi launched PM-SETU (Pradhan Mantri Skilling and Employability Transformation through Upgraded ITIs), a centrally sponsored scheme with an investment of `60,000 crore. India’s ITIs are not only an important centre for industrial education but also serve as workshops for ‘aatmanirbhar Bharat’, he said. The youth-centric projects, he emphasised, would play a vital role in development and empowerment. The PM commended Nitish for providing nearly 10 lakh permanent jobs to Bihar’s youth, saying the idea is to ensure youngsters of the state get employment in Bihar itself so as to stop migration. P8 HOURS after denying that controversial cough syrup Coldrif, which led to deaths of children in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan did not contain industrial chemical diethylene glycol (DEG), the Union Health Ministry on Saturday made a U-turn and confirmed its presence based on a report of Tamil Nadu’s Food and Drug Administration department. The Ministry’s earlier denial followed a clearance from the Madhya Pradesh Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA), which had then stated that no DEG was found in the syrup. After the confirmation on Saturday, Tamil Nadu was the An official inspects Coldrif syrup in Jabalpur on Saturday | PTI first to ban the syrup, followed by MP and Kerala. Coldrif cough syrup were being manufactured at Sresan Pharma’s Kanchipuram unit. The controversy snowballed after nine children died in MP’s Chindwara district, seven from the cough syrup, while two kids died in Rajasthan. The cough CAQM cracks whip on stubble burning EMPOWERS DCs IN CITY TO TAKE PENAL ACTION H A R P R E E T B A J W A @ Chandigarh `1K dole to Bihar grads One of the schemes launched was to give 5 lakh grads in Bihar a monthly allowance of `1,000 each for two years Plan to upgrade 1K ITIs IN an attempt to curb stubble burning ahead of the pollution season, the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) has empowered deputy commissioners across Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh to take penal action against government officials failing to enforce the ban. The Commission’s orders were shared on October 1 by Dr Virinder Shar ma, Member (Technical) of CAQM, as the paddy stubble burning peaks in October and November. The directions stated, “To fully stop paddy stubble burning, authorities must be em- The Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) has empowered deputy commissioners across Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, and UP to take penal action against officials failing to enforce ban on stubble burning. “To fully stop paddy stubble burning, authorities must be empowered to take action against officials who fail to enforce or monitor control measures,” the commission stated. powered to take action against officials who fail to enforce or monitor control measures.” As per the data from the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), Punjab has recorded 95 incidents so far this harvest season compared with 179 during the same period last year, the lowest in six years. The Punjab government has cracked a whip on the farmers for indulging in crop-residue burning. The Punjab Pollution Control Board has imposed compensation worth `2.45 lakh in 95 cases and recovered `1.90 lakh. Also 53 FIRs have been registered, including 23 in Amritsar, under Section 223 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for disobedience of lawful orders. The revenue department has marked 35 ‘red entries’ in land PM-SETU to upgrade 1,000 govt ITIs in a hub-andspoke model comprising 200 hub ITIs and 800 spoke ITIs ‘Out of curiosity’ During a virtual court hearing, a 32-year-old offender appeared in undergarments, puffing cigarettes, and downing alcohol, leaving police stunned. The man claimed that he did it “out of curiosity”. shul Singhal of Tis Hazari. It was alleged that on September 16 and 17, an unknown person joined the video conferencing of the court proceedings using the name Akib Akhlak. During the proceedings, he appeared in his undergarments and was seen smoking and drinking. Despite repeated directions to leave, he continued to remain in the proceedings, DCP (North) Raja Banthia said. The devices used in the offence have been recovered, Banthia added. During investigation, it was found that the accused had been using fake email IDs, frequently changing addresses. Through local intelligence, it came to notice that the accused was residing at Gokulpuri. Imran said that he regularly attended his court trials. One day someone outside the court , showed him a video conferencing app and shared a court meeting ID, he claimed. “Out of curiosity”, he began joining the court proceedings. HC dismisses mosque panel plea against bulldozer move N A M I TA B A J PA I @ Lucknow BULLDOZER JUSTICE BACK A banquet hall owned by one of those arrested in connection with the recent clashes linked to the ‘I love Muhammad’ poster campaign, being demolished by the Bareilly Development Authority, Uttar Pradesh, on Saturday | PTI | P8 EXPRESS READ No FASTag, be ready to pay double toll in cash NDA, Oppn demand 2-phase Bihar polls Bizman may be AAP RS candidate from Punjab From November 15, vehicles without a valid FASTag will have top pay 1.25 times the regular toll fee if they use UPI mode. Else, they’ll be charged double user charges | P7 Both the ruling NDA and Opposition parties in Bihar on Saturday demanded from the EC to hold elections in a maximum of two phases and soon after the Chhath | P8 Industrialist Rajinder Gupta is likely to be the AAP candidate for the lone vacant Rajya Sabha seat from Punjab in the bypoll of the Upper House of Parliament scheduled for October 24 | P3 T I M E S Gill new ODI captain; Rohit, Virat in but no long-term guarantees @ Ahmedabad SHUBMAN Gill was named as the men’s ODI captain of the national team, a post previously held by Rohit Sharma. Sharma, whose last act as ODI skipper saw him leading the side to Champions Trophy glory in February-March, was also named in the side scheduled to tour Australia for a threematch 50-over series later this month. Virat Kohli, whose last India tie was that Champions Trophy final against New Zealand, has been included too. However, Ajit Agarkar, the chairperson of the men’s selection committee panel, was noncommittal when asked about Sharma and Kohli’s long-term futures in the format. “As far as the 2027 World Cup is concerned, I don’t think we need to talk about it today,” he said in reference to their futures. But Shubman Gill & Rohit Sharma (R) Gill’s elevation to the top in the 50-over game is a direct consequence of the upcoming tournament in South Africa. Agar- records. A ‘red entry’ bars farmers from availing loans, mortgaging or selling land, and obtaining gun licences. The Central Pollution Control Board has deployed a flying squad of 22 scientists in Punjab to monitor and curb farm fires. The move comes against the backdrop of the Supreme Court recently urging a tough stance on the practice. SAMBHAL C H A N G I N G S W A R O O P S W A M I N AT H A N Service Over Success syrup stocks were distributed to Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. In a statement, the Union Health Ministry said, “On the request of the MP Govt, Tamil Nadu FDA had taken samples of Coldrif Cough Syrup from the manufacturing premises of M/s Sresan Pharma in Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu. The results of testing these samples were shared with us late on October 3. They contained DEG beyond the permissible limit.” The Tamil Nadu Drugs Control Department on Friday issued an immediate stop-production order to the manufacturer of Coldrif after the samples were found to be “adulterated with DEG.” 32-yr-old held for attending hearing in undergarments, smoking and drinking N I T I N R A W AT @ New Delhi SWAMI SUKHABODHANANDA SPEAKS Centre makes U-turn on cough syrup; MP, Rajasthan, TN ban it PLOT THICKENS IN a startling claim, late singer Zubeen Garg’s bandmate Shekhar Jyoti Goswami has alleged that the singer was poisoned by his manager Siddharth Sharma and the organiser of the 4th edition of the North East India Festival Shyamkanu Mahanta. Garg died under mysterious circumstances in Singapore on September 19 while swimming in the sea. According to the ‘Detailed Grounds of Arrest’ or remand note for the singer’s manager, Goswami stated that during the critical moment when Garg was gasping for air and nearly drowning, Sharma was heard Zubeen Garg shouting, “jabo de, jabo de” (let him go, let him go). When Garg began frothing at the mouth and nose, Sharma reportedly dismissed it as “acid reflux” and assured others there was no cause for concern. Rather than seeking urgent medical assistance, Sharma allegedly facilitated Garg’s death, Goswami claimed. In another development, Garg’s wife Garima on Saturday returned the post-mortem report of her husband to the police, saying that it is not her “personal document”. On Goswami’s startling revelations, Garima said, “If Shekhar had known it, why did he hide it for so long?” ‘I have a Moral Code for Playing Villains’ kar conceded that removing Sharma was tough. “You have got to sometimes look at what’s coming ahead, where you stand as a team and eventually look at what’s in the best interest of the team, whether now or six months later. Like I said, it’s tough with one-day cricket at this point. Because if you are going to make that call, you want to try and make it reasonably early and give the other guy enough chances.” When asked what the selectors are looking for from Sharma and Kohli from a long-term perspective, Agarkar said: “What they have been doing for years... runs. They are still leaders. But BIG MEET INDIA-PAK AGA IN, THIS TIME AT WOMEN’S WC eventually it’s the runs (...) You , don’t have to think too far. At this point, the team is picked for Australia. We need them to score runs like they have been through their career.” Amidst the off-field tension & drama, two nations face each other in Colombo today. However, there is a high chance of rain | P11 THE Allahabad High Court on Saturday refused to stay the bulldozer action on a mosque, a marriage hall, and hospital allegedly built on government land in Sambhal dismissing the petition filed by the Muslim party. The single-judge Bench of Justice Dinesh Pathak heard the plea moved by Masjid Sharif Gausul Wara Rawa Buzurg and its Mutawalli Minjar. According to sources, the mosque was built in Rayan Buzurg village of Asmoli area on a pond land, 30 km from Sambhal district headquarters. After hearing arguments from both sides, the court disposed of the plea and directed the mosque committee to approach the competent lower court with a stay application. On October 2, the team of district administration officials, led by DM-SP, arrived with a bulldozer to demolish the mosque. The administration had demolished the marriage hall next to the mosque on Thursday When the bulldozer . was heading towards the mosque for demolition, locals requested the DM for four-day time. The DM agreed. On the same day, that is Thursday, locals started breaking the outer wall of the mosque. On Friday also, after prayers, some people had voluntarily demolished the boundary wall of the mosque. On Friday, the mosque’s Mutawalli Minjar Hussain had filed a petition in the urgent bench of the HC seeking a stay on the bulldozer action. The special bench of Justice Dinesh Pathak heard the matter on Friday .