WEDNESDAY 07 JANUARY, 2026 epaper.morningstandard.in facebook.com/TheMorningStandard VENDETTA BEHIND HADI’S MURDER IN B’DESH, REVEALS CHARGESHEET X.com/TheMornStandard Student leader Sharif Osman Hadi was killed due to ‘political vengeance’ at the behest of the Awami League, the police said on Tuesday COLOMBIA PREZ ‘DARES’ US, BACKED IN EUROPE In the wake of the dare, several European leaders pushed back on Tuesday, on US President Trump’s comments seeking an American takeover of Greenland PAGE 09 Formal charges pressed against 17 people Hadi was killed on the instructions of Md Taijul Islam Chowdhury Bappi, a former councillor, said Shafikul Islam, addl commissioner of Detective Branch of Dhaka Metropolitan Police, The Daily Star reported. The chargesheet mentions 17 people, including prime accused Faisal Karim Masud, a member of Bangladesh Chhatra League A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS  NEW DELHI 1 in 5 out of draft poll rolls in UP after first phase SIR 2.89 crore deletions; voter count down by 18.7% compared to 2025 M U K E S H R A N J A N @ New Delhi ABOUT one in five voters in Uttar Pradesh found their names deleted in the draft electoral rolls published on Tuesday as part of the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR). In all, names of 2.89 crore voters stood deleted from the list of 15.44 crore electors in the politically sensitive state as on October 27 last year. The draft list cut the voter count by as much as 18.7%. The deletions included around 46.23 lakh of the deceased (2.99%), shifted 2.17 crore (14.06%) and duplicate voters 25.46 lakh (1.65%). The final electoral list will be published on March 6. The Election Commission of India said genuine electors from can still be added back in the electoral roll during the claims and objection period (0601-2026 to 06-02-2026) by filling up Form 6 along with the declaration form and other relevant documents. The poll body recently concluded the first phase of SIR in Tamil Nadu and Gujarat, where the electoral roll deletions were 97 lakh and 74 lakh voters, respectively . While the first phase was originally scheduled to end on December 11, the state sought 15 days more after noticing that the names of a large number of voters, nearly 2.97 crore, were EXPRESS READ Tickets for ASI sites can be booked online too Tickets for 170 ASI monuments and museums can now be booked online through Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC)enabled applications, officials said. This makes access to some of the country’s most iconic heritage sites easier, they added. The integration has been enabled by NDML, which has onboarded ASI’s complete inventory of monuments onto the ONDC Network. 4 held with nearly 20 kg of heroin in Amritsar Punjab Police’s Anti-Narcotics Task Force on Tuesday apprehended four people, including a key operative and a minor, with nearly 20 kg of heroin in Amritsar, officials said. Punjab DGP Gaurav Yadav said that preliminary probe reveals that key operative is linked to Pak-based handlers and was coordinating the distribution of drug consignments across the region. FIGURE IT OUT Electors as on October 27, 2025 15.44 crore Deceased 46.23 lakh (2.99%) Shifted Electors in draft electoral rolls 2.17 crore (81.30%) (1.65%) (14.06%) Duplicate 12.55 crore 25.46 lakh TOTAL DELETIONS 2.89 CRORE (18.7%) getting excluded from the draft list. The poll body then extended the enumeration phase till December 26. The officials said, December 31 was initially fixed as the publication date of the draft roll, but parallel fieldwork and ECI instructions to rationalise polling stations led to a delay. “The Commission has capped voters per polling station at 1,200 instead of the earlier 1,500. To meet this requirement, around 15,030 new polling stations were created across the state,” a senior ECI official said, adding that it was approved on December 23. It then took about a week for the data to be migrated to online servers. Six more days were sought and the draft roll was published on January 6. ‘Art 324 grants ECI control over poll roll’ S U C H I T R A K A LYA N M O H A N T Y @ New Delhi THE Election Commission of India (ECI) has the power and competence to undertake Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls, the poll panel told the Supreme Court on Tuesday. Besides, it argued, there is a constitutional duty to ensure only Indian citizens are registered as voters. Appearing for the ECI, senior lawyer Rakesh Dwivedi told a bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi that Articles 324 and 327 of the Constitution separately give the Commission “control of the preparation of the electoral rolls”. “Citizenship is at the core of the electoral exercise. The EC has the power to check,” Dwivedi argued. The arguments were made during the hearing of a batch of pleas challenging ECI’s power to conduct SIR. The petitioners claimed only the Centre has the power to do the exercise. The arguments were inconclusive on Tuesday and would continue on Wednesday . CBI summons Vijay for questioning over Karur E X P R E SS N E WS S E R V I C E @ New Delhi THE CBI has summoned actor and Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) leader Vijay for questioning in the Karur stampede case at the agency’s head office in New Delhi on January 12. “We have questioned several TVK office-bearers in connection with the case,” said a senior CBI officer. The agency has questioned TVK state general secretary ‘Bussy’ N Anand, joint secretaries Nirmal Kumar and Aadhav Arjuna and Karur We s t d i s t r i c t s e c r e t a r y Mathiyazhagan. The stampede occurred on September 27, 2025 during a TVK political rally in Velusamypuram in Karur, when a mass ive c r ow d s u r g e turned deadly The in. cident claimed 41 lives as supporters gathered in large numbers to see Vijay . The CBI took over the case from the SIT after a Supreme Court order. Initially the Tamil , Nadu government, which had formed the SIT, opposed a CBI probe. The state argued before the court that an SIT was sufficient and better placed to probe the incident, citing law and order being a state subject. However, the Supreme Court transferred the probe to the CBI. The bench of justices J K Maheswari and N V Anjaria had set up a three-member supervisory committee headed by retired judge, Justice Ajay Rastogi, to monitor the probe. The bench said the issue “has a bearing on the fundamental rights of citizens and the incident has shaken national conscience”, adding that it “requires fair and impartial investigation”.  J8.00  PAGES 12 FIVE HINDUS KILLED IN BANGLADESH EVER SINCE THE MURDER OF HADI. THE LATEST HAPPENED ON MONDAY NIGHT WHEN A GROCER WAS ATTACKED | P7 & P9 ‘Identify reasons 1st, then solution’: SC raps CAQM S U C H I T R A K A LYA N M O H A N T Y @ New Delhi “HAVE you been able to identify the causes of pollution? During all these days, a lot of material is coming into the public domain, experts are writing articles, people are having opinions, they keep on sending to us on e-mail,” the Supreme Court told the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) on Tuesday . CJI Surya Kant, who led a two-judge bench with Justice Joymalya Bagchi, so observed while hearing a plea related to air pollution in Delhi-NCR. The court directed expert bodies to identify the main reasons and key contributors to the increase in pollution, place their findings in the public domain, and then explain how those reasons would be addressed. It also made it clear that it did not intend to step into the role of technical experts on the issue. Pointing out that most planning would require long-term measures, the SC said development activities could not be stopped altogether. “There was a dire need for housing, so construc- tion will go on. But if construction is causing a problem, what will be done,” the CJI asked, stressing again experts must clearly identify the reasons. The SC strongly criticised CAQM after it sought a twomonth adjournment on the toll plaza issue. Observing that traffic congestion and heavy vehicles play a major role in pollution, the bench said, “The problem is severe. Heavy vehicles are a sig- VEHICULAR POLLUTION A MAJOR CONCERN The top court said that unless the causes of pollution are clearly established, any remedial measures taken later would be ineffective in the fight against Delhi’s worsening air pollution. The CJI highlighted vehicular pollution as a major contributor. Deepam row: HC slams TN, upholds single judge’s order ‘DMK, INDIA bloc exposed as anti-Hindu’ RAJESH KUMAR THAKUR @ New Delhi Devotees at the Subramaniya Swamy temple atop the hill on Tuesday | K K SUNDAR summit, lower to the peak on which the dargah is located, is the ideal place to RUBBISHING the Tamil Nadu light the deepam.” government’s apprehensions The judges slammed the of possible disharmony due state government saying the to lighting of the Karthigai ‘mighty’ state’s fear that alDeepam on the ‘deepathoon’ lowing lighting of deepam on atop the Thiruparankundram the deepathoon will disturb hill as nothing but an public peace is ridic‘imaginary ghost’ TN to go for ulous and hard to becreated by it ‘to put lieve. “Of course, it SC appeal one community may happen only if Speaking to against another’, the such disturbance is Madurai bench of the reporters hours sponsored by the after the HC Madras High Court state itself. We pray verdict, Minister no state should stoop on Tuesday ordered for Natural the Thiruparankunt o t h a t l e ve l t o Resources S dram Subramaniya achieve their politiRegupathy Swamy temple devcal agenda,” the judgasthanam to light the announced the es said. Otherwise, it TN government is either an exposure lamp on the deepatwill challenge hoon during Karthiof their incapacity to the “legally gai Deepam festival. maintain law and orincorrect” Disposing of a der or their hesitance verdict before batch of appeals to bring har mony the SC. filed against Jusamong the communitice G R Swamities, the bench said. nathan’s order directing The Tamil Nadu Waqf the lighting of the lamp on Board’s “mischievous” subthe deepathoon, a division mission that the pillar bebench comprising justices longs to the dargah became G Jayachandran and K K yet another reason for the peRamakrishnan said, “Being titioners’ side to be skeptical at vantage point, the stone about the board’s offer for a pillar called ‘deepathoon’, court-monitored mediation, which is on a different rock the judges said. J E G A D E E S W A R I PA N D I A N @ Madurai UNION Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal on Tuesday welcomed the Madras High Court order on lighting of lamp on the ‘dee pathoon’ atop the Thiruparankundram hill in Madurai and mounted a sharp attack on the DMK and INDIA bloc, claiming they had been exposed as anti-Hindu. Addressing reporters at the BJP headquarters, Goyal termed the order a “slap on the face of the appeasement policy” of the INDIA bloc and a “victory of the Hindu religion”. Goyal, who is BJP’s election in-charge for the TN Assembly polls, said the court had recognised the ritual as an ancient practice and rejected the DMK-led state government’s argument that it posed law and order concerns. “There was no problem in the past in this religious tradition but the DMK wanted to stop this citing law and order issues just because of its appeasement politics solely aimed at appeasing one community he alleged. ,” “The two judges have given a conclusive direction that this is an age-old practice. This is a matter of the Hindu religion and sentiments of the local people. The practice has been going on for centuries,” he said. nificant contributor, so the first question is: how do we address that? By holding a meeting on January 2 and telling us that we’ll come after two months, that is not acceptable to us. The CAQM is failing in its duty .” The SC said that identifying the causes of Delhi’s worsening air pollution must precede discussions of solutions. It directed CAQM to call a meeting of experts within two weeks and submit a report on the causes of the deteriorating air quality . Emphasising the need to first understand the problem, the CJI said, “As an expert body (CAQM), have you been able to find the causes is the first question? Finding solutions would be a second stage.” P3 IRAN PROTESTS SPREAD, NET DEATH TOLL 35 Angry over Iran’s ailing economy, protests continued in Iran with net death toll reaching 35. Authorities have detained more than 1,200 others so far. | P9 PUSHBACK BY RIL Now, Don says Modi not that happy with him over US tariffs R A K E S H K U M A R @ New Delhi A day after US President Donald Trump threatened to raise tariffs if New Delhi continues to buy Russian oil, Reliance Industries on Tuesday vehemently denied a Bloomberg report that claimed that the Mukesh Ambani-led firm continues to import crude oil from Russia. Hours later, Trump said his tariff action on India seems to be working though it may have strained Washington’s relations with New Delhi. “He (Prime Minister Narendra Modi) is not that happy with me because they’re paying a lot of tariffs now because they’re not doing the oil but they are... they’ve now reduced it very substantially as you know, from , Russia,” Trump said while speaking at the House GOP Member Retreat on Tuesday . RIL issued a statement: “A report in Bloomberg claiming ‘three vessels laden with Russian oil are heading for Reliance Industries’ Jamnagar refinery’ is blatantly untrue.” JNU seeks FIR against students for ISL dribbles past ‘paywall’ to set Feb 14 date raising anti-govt slogans on campus MINISTRY KICK-OFF I N D R A N E E L D A S @ Chennai FINALLY, after months of uncertainty, the Indian Super League is back on track and this time it seems to be with purpose. This was possible after a meeting between sports ministry the All India Football , Federation (AIFF) and representatives of clubs on Tuesday . Though there were opposition from some clubs, it is learnt that the ministry told them that the league has to run and needed the confirmation from the clubs before making the announcement. Sports minister Mansukh Mandaviya was quite clear during the meeting that the league has to take place and the clubs have to cooperate. He also said that because of Supreme Court intervention, there were impediments but AIFF has found a way to resolve the crisis. After the meeting, Mandaviya announced the dates for the delayed ISL. It will begin on February 14 and will run until June 15. There will be a total of 91 matches and they will be played on home and away basis. The ISL that was supposed to begin in October was delayed after FSDL, the commercial arm of the AIFF that runs the league did not want to continue with the contract in its existing form especially paying an annual fee of `50 crore to AIFF. Mandaviya during the meeting with the 14 clubs and AIFF said that they may not have a commercial partner but they should not worry about media rights either. He told the clubs that he would request Doordarshan to air matches We have been able to speak to all stakeholders and the issue has been resolved, ISL will be held this year. The country does well in the sports sector only when our athletes get a chance to play regularly Mansukh Mandaviya, sports minister live. He also told the clubs that if they begin the league now, with or without commercial partner, they would get a oneyear window to find a commercial partner. The AIFF chief, too, assured the clubs that their commercial interests would be looked after. As for the revenue share, the AIFF would foot 40 per cent of the `25 crore central pool, which comes to around `10 crore, while each of the 15 clubs will share the remaining amount. The I-League division 1 and 2 will be merged and a total of 40 teams across five zones will compete. The Indian Women’s League (IWL) will also take place. The AIFF will contribute P11 `3.2 crore for I-League. A D I T I R AY C H O W D H U R Y @ New Delhi JAWAHARLAL Nehru University (JNU) has asked the Delhi Police to register an FIR after some students allegedly raised “provocative” slogans against PM Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah on the campus on Monday night. In a letter to the SHO of Vasant Kunj (North), the JNU administration said that certain students raised “highly objectionable, provocative and inflammatory” slogans that were in direct contempt of the Supreme Court and violated the JNU Code of Conduct. The letter, seen by this newspaper, said that the programme, ‘A Night of Resistance with Guerrilla Dhaba’, was held at around 10 pm by students linked to the JNUSU. According to the university’s security department, the gathering initially appeared to be a commemoration of the January 5, 2020, campus violence. However, the administration alleged that the nature of the event changed after a court verdict on the bail pleas of Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam. A purported video of the incident has also surfaced online. In its letter, the university named several students, including JNUSU president Aditi Mishra. It said the slogans were “deliberate, repeated” and had the “potential to seriously disrupt public order, campus harmony and security”. Students said the event was part of an annual protest held to condemn the violence of January 5, 2020, when a mob entered the campus and attacked students in three hostels. JNU later posted on X, saying, “The JNU administration has vowed the strictest action against students found raising objectionable slogans...”