mondAY Chouhan to oversee key meeting to pick new Bihar chief minister 13 The BJP on Sunday appointed Union minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan as the central observer for the election of its legislative party leader in Bihar april, 2026 Process on to form new state government epaper.morningstandard.in facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard e s c a l a ti o n Russia, Ukraine trade blame The two countries accused each other of violating a Kremlindeclared Easter ceasefire on Sunday, as Orthodox Christians gathered to celebrate A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS Page 9 l New Delhi l J8.00 l PAGES 12 A statement from the BJP headquarters said the parliamentary board has appointed Chouhan as “central observer for electing the leader of Shivraj Singh Chouhan Nitish Kumar legislature party in Bihar”. The new CM will be elected by the NDA, Chouhan’s appointment upon the recommendation of BJP, sets in motion the process which has a big role to play of the formation of a new government in Bihar Vijay Kumar Chaudhary, Senior JD(U) leader after Chief Minister Nitish Kumar took oath when the cabinet meeting as a member of the begins on Tuesday | P8 Rajya Sabha on Friday 11 am Trump threatens to block Strait of Hormuz as US-Iran peace talks fail Says US Navy will ‘blockade any and all ships’ trying to enter or leave the shipping route a g e n c i e s @ Islamabad / Washington Asha Bhosle: September 8, 1933–April 12, 2026 Forever young, always distinct N A M R ATA J O S H I A ge is just a number” is an adage Asha Bhosle believed in and lived by Among the many facets of . her long, abundant, and well-spent inning—professional as well as personal—the most distinct was the versatile voice: hearty playful, coquettish, , saucy, sensuous, spiritual, soulful and energetic by turns and the one that stayed forever youthful and timeless, just like Asha ‘Tai’ herself. The fact that the sound of Asha remained robust was the reason why in her over eight-decade long career in a notori, ously ageist industry she didn’t just sing for multiple films , but became the voice of several generations of actresses— from Meena Kumari to Zeenat Aman to Rekha, from her contemporary Shakila in the sad version of Leke pehla pehla pyaar in CID (1956) to someone who could well be her daughter’s age, like Urmila Matondkar in Tanha tanha yahan pe jeena in Rangeela (1995). She worked with possibly every major music director down the years: O P Nayyar, Shankar Jaikishan, Jaidev, Madan Mohan, Khayyam, the Burmans, A R Rahman and Sandeep Chowta. She sang duets with male singers across all ages, from Her life was Kishore Kumar, Mohammad Rafi, and Ma- adventurous. hendra Kapoor to Sonu Nigam. Winner of At 16, she several awards, including two National eloped with Awards, Asha received the Dadasaheb Ganpatrao Phalke Award in 2000 and the Padma VibBhosle and hushan in 2008. However, these markers aside, Asha be- married him. came a legend of playback singing because Years later, of the extraordinary ability to imbibe the she married personality of the actor, get into the mood R D Burman. of the moment, respond to the space and She made her setting of the sequence and catch the emotive soul of a song with the amazing tex- acting debut ture and timbre of her voice. She could in 2013 at 79 become the innocent and impoverished street kids in Boot Polish (1954) in songs like Nanhe munne bachche teri mutthi mein kya hai, Thehar zara o janewale, Chali kaunse desh just as effortlessly as she’d be the sexy Helen in a cabaret club in Piya tu ab to aaja in Caravan (1971) or Yeh mera dil in Don (1978). Asha’s father, Pandit Deenanath Mangeshkar, was an eminent musician himself, and so were the siblings—Lata Mangeshkar, Meena Khadikar, Usha Mangeshkar, and Hridaynath Mangeshkar. There had been tales of sibling rivalry between her and the legendary elder sister, Lata Mangeshkar, but both eventually carved enviable and influential niches for themselves and ruled the male-dominated industry with confidence and conviction. The last of an entire generation of playback stalwarts of the Golden Era of Hindi film music, her clear vocalisation, perfect diction and right enunciation were enough for her to embrace a range of languages and dialects, both Indian and international. The range extended from classical, folk, bhajans to the Westernised cabarets and discos. P7 E x p r e ss r e a d Ministry flags access curb for Indian airlines in Dubai The Civil Aviation Ministry has, through the Consulate General in Dubai, approached authorities over the highly restricted access for Indian carriers at Dubai International Airport and Al Maktoum International Airport, a senior official said. While restrictions on all foreign flights have been in place since February 28 and extended periodically, the latest curbs from April 20 to May 31 may severely impact Indian airlines. US President Donald Trump on Sunday claimed the US Navy would immediately begin a “blockade” to stop ships from entering or leaving the Strait of Hormuz, after US-Iran peace talks in Pakistan ended with no agreement in sight. Iran has demanded the right to collect tolls from vessels traveling through the strait, but Trump said no one who pays Tehran will “have safe passage on the high seas.” He also threatened, yet again, to destroy Iranian energy infrastructure, telling Fox News: “I can take out Iran in one day .” Earlier in the day the US and , Iran ended 21 hours of face-toface talks in Islamabad in a stalemate, leaving the fate of the tenuous two-week ceasefire unclear. The war that has killed thousands of people and shaken global markets has entered its seventh week. The US delegation led by Vice President J D Vance and the US Vice President J D Vance talks to Pakistan’s Chief of Defence Forces Field Marshall Asim Munir before flying out of Islamabad on Sunday | AP day 44 Iranian delegation led by parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf had discussed how to advance a ceasefire already threatened by disagreements and Israel’s continued attacks on Lebanon. Vance, while leaving Pakistan after the talks, said the US had made its “final and best offer” for a deal, adding: “We’ll see if the Iranians accept it.” Ghalibaf said on X that Washington was “unable to gain the trust of the Iranian delegation in this round of negotiations”. Iranian and US media said the main sticking points in the talks were the J ayanth J a c ob @ New Delhi India on Sunday rejected China’s latest attempt to rename places in Arunachal Pradesh, urging Beijing to refrain from actions that “inject negativity into ties and undermine efforts to build better understanding.” “India categorically rejects any mischievous attempts by the Chinese side to assign fictitious names to places which form part of the territory of India,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said. He said such measures cannot change the ground reality “These areas, in. cluding Arunachal Pradesh, were, are, and will always remain an integral and inalienable part of India,” Jaiswal said. “Such attempts by China at introducing false claims and manufacturing baseless narratives cannot alter the undeniable reality that these places and territories, including Arunachal Pradesh, were, are, and will always remain an integral and inalienable part of India,” he said. The statement also warned that such steps run counter to ongoing efforts by both sides to stabilise bilateral relations. Modi to address women’s Govt plans double-decker flyover, meet ahead of Parl session new 19.2-km road along Yamuna Elevated mobility R A J E S H K U M A R T H A K U R @ New Delhi Ahead of an extended three-day special session of Parliament from April 16 to 18 to discuss amendments to Women’s Reservation Act 2023, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to address a first-of-its-kind ‘Nari Shakti Vandan Sammelan’ in Delhi on Monday . As per sources, the conference is aimed at generating widespread support for amendment to the Women’s Reservation Act 2023. It forms a part of the BJP’s broader electoral strategy, bringing together eminent personalities and accomplished women from diverse fields to deliberate on the necessity of reserving seats for women in legislative bodies. According to an official statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office, the conference is being organised “to reinforce the government’s commitment to increasing women’s participation in shaping India’s development trajectory”. “It will also highlight the increasing role of women in governance and leadership across all levels, from Panchayats to Parliament. The programme will underscore the importance of enhanced representation of women in decision-making processes,” the PMO said in the statement. In addition, the event will spotlight the role of women in India’s journey towards the vision of Viksit Bharat 2047. “It will reflect the Cong seeks all-party meet after elections Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has conveyed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi that the special session of Parliament being convened to discuss women’s quota in the middle of the elections is “a clear breach of the Model Code of Conduct”. He demanded that an all-party meeting be called on the matter after the current round of state polls are over on April 29 | P7 government’s continued commitment towards women-led development as a central pillar of the vision for Viksit Bharat 2047”, it said. In September 2023, Parliament passed the ‘Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam’, which provided for the reservation of one-third of seats for women in the Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies. The provision to provide 33% reservation to women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies was brought by amending the Constitution in 2023. However, the women’s quota would have come into effect only after the completion of the delimitation exercise on the basis of the 2027 Census. This meant the reservation would not have become enforceable before 2034. To implement it from the 2029 Lok Sabha elections onwards, changes are needed in the Act. IPL controversy Mobile phone in RR dugout: ACSU investigation on g om e sh s & f iro z mir z a @ Chennai A day after Rajasthan Royals team manager Romi Bhinder was seen using a mobile phone while sitting in the dugout — which could be in violation of Players and Match Officials Area protocol — during an Indian Premier League match, BCCI has said that its Anti Corruption and Security Unit (ACSU) will investigate the matter and submit a report. The incident occurred during the 11th over of the IPL tie between Royals and Royal Challengers Bengaluru on Friday night at the ACA Barsapara Stadium in Strait of Hormuz and Tehran’s insistence on a right to enrich uranium for civilian use. Later, in a Fox News interview, Trump threatened to impose a 50% tariff on Chinese imports if Beijing tries to help the Iranian military. Trump did not name the other countries he expects to join the US Navy cordon and, before his post, many international capitals had called for the temporary truce in the Gulf to be preserved. “We’re not going to let Iran make money on selling oil to people that they like... It’s going to be all or none,” he said. The failure of the talks will raise concerns that a return to fighting could drive world energy prices higher and further damage shipping and oil and gas facilities in the Gulf. An EU spokesman said diplomacy would be “essential” to securing peace and hailed Pakistan’s mediation efforts, while the UK and Oman agreed it “was vital there was a continuation of the ceasefire.” P9 India rejects Chinese names for Arunachal Screengrab of Rajasthan Royals team manager Romi Bhinder using a phone in the dugout next to Vaibhav Sooryavanshi Guwahati. Bhinder was using his phone in the dugout while teen sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi was seen taking a look at the screen during the broadcast. In the aftermath, the ACSU have already begun their investigation on the matter. “We have asked the ACSU to investigate and file a report on the incident,” IPL Governing Council Chair Arun Dhumal told this daily . As per the IPL document titled ‘PMOA PROTOCOL – 2026’, team managers may use a phone in the dressing room, but not in the dugout, which is near the boundary ropes. “Mobile Phones and other electronic communications equipment are not allowed to be used in the PMOA other than for a few members of the team. The Team Manager may use a phone in the Dressing Room area but NOT in the Dugout. The Analyst may use his computer at the analyst table. Player and support staff items i.e. phones, smart watches or any other communication devices should be turned off and given to the team SLO (Security Liason Officer) for storage on arrival at the stadium,” the document reads. Are there any exceptions to the rule? Why was Bhinder using the phone? These are some of the questions the franchise will have to answer in the next couple of days. P11 A N U P V E R M A @ New Delhi Expansion in the offing Officials said that in addition to the flyovers, work has also begun on the remaining three Phase IV metro corridors—Lajpat Nagar to Saket G Block (8.38 km), Inderlok to Indraprastha (12.37 km) and Rithala to Kundli (26.46 km) The Delhi government has planned the construction of a 19.2-km elevated road along the Yamuna connecting Wazirabad to DND, Surghat to ISBT, ISBT to Sarai Kale Khan, and Sarai Kale Khan to DND as part of its vision for the year 2026. In addition to this, a proposal for a 2.62-km flyover from Tripolia Gate to Barfkhana has also been readied. In this regard, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Sunday carried out a detailed review of Delhi Metro and associated road and flyover projects, reiterating that building a modern and efficient public transport system remains a top priority for the government. Chairing the meeting, she said a 2.16 km double-decker flyover from Azadpur to Tripolia Chowk, designed to accommodate both metro and road traffic, is about 73% complete, with a project cost of `264.27 crore. Another 1.40-km flyover from Yamuna Vihar to Bhajanpura, costing 291.17 crore, has reached around 85% completion, a statement read. In South Delhi, major works are in progress along MB Road, including a 2.48-km six-lane flyover from Saket G Block to Sangam Vihar, along with underpasses at Saket G Block and Ambedkar Nagar. The project, estimated at `694.98 crore, has already achieved around 40% progress so far, it said.