KTR BOOKED OVER REMARKS AGAINST TELANGANA CM 31 MARCH 2024 www.thestatesman.com Twitter.com/TheStatesmanLtd Facebook.com/thestatesman RAJNATH TO HEAD BJP’S ELECTION MANIFESTO COMMITTEE PAGE 4 SUNRISERS START AS FAVOURITES AGAINST HOST GUJARAT TITANS PAGE 5 PAGE 12 India’s National Newspaper since 1818 PAGES 16 | `5.00 | LC KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR WEATHER Partly cloudy sky. RA/TS likely to occur in some areas towards evening/ night. Maximum and minimum temperatures likely to be around 35°C and 27°C respectively. RAINFALL: NIL RELATIVE HUMIDITY Max. 93% TEMPERATURE Max: 35.1°C (0) SUN RISES 05:31 hrs MOON RISES 22:25 hrs Min: 27.3°C (+3) SUN SETS 17:51 hrs MOON SETS 08:23 hrs New Moon on 08 April THUMBNAILS A farmer inspects his wheat crop, damaged due to strong winds and rain, at a village in Jalandhar on Saturday.  ANI hief minister and Trinamul Congress chairperson Mamata Banerjee will kick off her campaign for her party candidates contesting the Lok Sabha (LS) elections in the state from Sunday with a rally in Krishnanagar in Nadia district in support of party candidate Mahua Moitra. Miss Banerjee will then tour north Bengal for six days from 3 April where she will campaign for her party candidates contesting the LS polls in Cooch Behar, Jalpaiguri and Aliupurduar constituencies where the first phase of the sevenphase general elections will be held on 19 April. C According to Trinamul Congress sources, she will leave for north Bengal on 3 April and attend election rallies in different districts for five days from 4 April to 8 April. Political observers say that the LS polls in north Bengal districts are cru- cial for the Trinamul Congress in the state this time. In the last parliamentary polls in 2019, the TMC drew a blank in all eight constituencies in north Bengal. The BJP had won all the north Bengal seats except for Malda South, which went to Congress candidate Abu Hasem Khan Choudhury. This time, the Trinamul Congress leadership is determined to win several seats in north Bengal.With an eyes on this target, Miss Banerjee wants to intensify her campaigns and mass contacts by attending party rallies, processions and small meetings with local leadership during her fiveday-long trip to north Bengal. Darjeeling, Raiganj and Balurghat constituencies AGENCIES NEW DELHI, 30 MARCH the news portal took money to spread pro-China propaganda. During the hearing, Special Public Prosecutors Advocate Akhand Pratap Singh and Suraj Rathi requested the court for a later date on the issue of cognisance of the charge sheet. They stated that sanctions under Section 45 of UAPA and Section 196 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) were awaited, which would be filed in the form of a supplementary charge sheet very Indian Navy responds to piracy attack in Arabian Sea, rescues 23 Pakistanis soon. Along with Prabir Purkayastha, PPK Newsclick Studio Pvt Ltd (news portal) has also been made an accused. Additional Sessions Judge, Hardeep Kaur, of the Patiala House Court has fixed the matter for 16 April for arguments on whether to take cognisance of the charge sheet. The judicial custody of Prabir Purkayastha and Amit NEW DELHI, 30 MARCH STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE ITANAGAR, 30 MARCH The Indian Navy captured 9 armed pirates and rescued 23 Pakistani nationals from them during a 12-hour-long operation in the Arabian Sea, on Friday. ANI safety of maritime activities in the region, the Navy said. “After more than 12 hrs of intense coercive tactical measures as per the SOPs, the pirates on board the hijacked FV were forced to surrender. The crew, comprising 23 Pakistani nationals, have been safely rescued,” the Navy said in a statement. Following the successful apprehension of the pirates, Indian Naval specialist teams embarked on the FV Al-Kambar to undertake thorough sanitisation and seaworthiness checks. These meticulous examinations aim to ensure the vessel’s safety before escorting it to a secure area, enabling the resumption of normal fishing activities for its crew. Chakravarty, the HR head of NewsClick has also been extended. On 9 January, the court granted permission to Amit Chakravarty to become an approver in the case after he had filed an application seeking pardon. He claimed to possess material information, which he was willing to disclose to the Delhi Police. Arunachal Assembly polls: 10 BJP candidates win unopposed The BJP has fielded candidates for all 60 Assembly constituencies in the state. STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE The Indian Navy said that it rescued at least 23 Pakistani nationals from Somali pirates during a 12-hour-long operation in the Arabian Sea. The dramatic rescue unfolded in the early hours of 29 March when the Indian Navy warship INS Sumedha intercepted the hijacked vessel, FV Al-Kambar, as it was being held captive by pirates. INS Sumedhawas soon joined by the guided missile frigate INS Trishul to bolster the operation. Utilising their tactical expertise and strategic coordination, Indian naval forces initiated negotiations with the pirates, compelling them to surrender without bloodshed. The surrender marked a decisive victory for the Indian Navy in combating piracy and ensuring the In a notable development in the Arunachal Pradesh Assembly elections, as many as 10 BJP candidates, including the current Chief Minister Pema Khandu and Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein, secured victory uncontested in the 60-seat House. The other successful nominees included Ratu Techi from Sagalee, Jikke Tako from Tali, Nyato Dukam from Taliha, Mutchu Mithi from Roing, Hage Appa from Ziro Hapoli, Techi Kaso from Itanagar, Dongru Siongju from Bomdila, and Dasanglu Pul from Hayuliang. While no rival candidate came forward in the first in several of the cases, in others, the opposing candidates withdrew their candidature today, the last day for withdrawal. In the case of Techi Kaso in Itanagar, the nomination papers of a rival candidate were rejected. The BJP has fielded candidates for all 60 Assembly constituencies. The process of filing nominations concluded on Wednesday, and the last date for withdrawal was 30 March, marking the final procedural milestone. Simultaneous Assembly and Lok Sabha polls are being held in Arunachal Pradesh, scheduled for 19 April. The electorate will cast their votes for the 60-member Assembly ~ for 50 seats now ~ and the two Lok Sabha constituencies of Arunachal West and Arunachal East. President confers Bharat Ratna on Narasimha Rao, Charan Singh, MS Swaminathan, Karpoori Thakur STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 30 MARCH President Droupadi Murmu on Saturday presented four Bharat Ratna awards posthumously, including for former Prime Ministers Chaudhary Charan Singh and P V Narasimha Rao, at a solemn ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan. The President also gave away the posthumous Bharat Ratna awards for agriculture scientist Dr M S Swaminathan and former Bihar Chief Minister and backward classes leader Karpoori Thakur. Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP president J P Nadda and Congress president and Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge were present. On behalf of late former Prime Minister P V Narasimha NEW DELHI, 30 MARCH will go to the polls in the second phase on 26 April. The third phase is scheduled on 7 May and includes the two seats of Malda North and Malda South in north Bengal. According to the South Dinajpur district Trinamul Congress leadership, the party is seeking to win Balurghat seat this time, ousting the outgoing BJP MP Sukanta Majumder. Trinamul Congress has fielded Biplab Mitra against Mr Majumder, the Bengal BJP president, who had defeated TMC candidate Arpita Ghosh in 2019. Miss Banerjee may also attend an election rally in Balurghat in support of her party candidate Mr Mitra during her tour next week. NewsClick row: Delhi Police file 9,000-plus page charge sheet The Special Cell of Delhi Police on Saturday filed its first charge sheet running into over 9,000 pages against NewsClick Founder and Editor-in-Chief Prabir Purkayastha (photo) under the provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) over allegations that SANTU DAS Mamata Banerjee will tour north Bengal for four days from Wednesday STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE KOLKATA, 30 MARCH Min. 49% Mega rally by INDIA bloc against Modi govt today at Ramlila Maidan CM to kick off LS polls campaign in Nadia dist Rao, the Bharat Ratna was received by his son Mr PV Prabhakar Rao. On behalf of late former Prime Minister Chaudhary Charan Singh, the Bharat Ratna was received by his grandson, Rajya Sabha member Jayant Chaudhary. Dr Nitya Rao. daughter of agriculture scientist late M S Swaminathan received the Bharat Ratna on his behalf. On behalf of Karpoori Thakur, the award was received by his son, Rajya Sabha member Ramnath Thakur. The government had announced five names for the Bharat Ratna awards this year, which included BJP leader L K Advani. Sources said that President Murmu will visit the senior BJP leader's residence and hand over the award. This was decided in view of the poor health of the veteran BJP leader. Born on 28 June 1921, in Karimnagar, Telangana, P V Dr. Nitya Rao, daughter of agronomist M.S. Swaminathan, receives the Bharat Ratna posthumously conferred on her father from President Droupadi Murmu during the Investiture Ceremony, at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi on Saturday.  ANI Narasimha Rao, was the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh during 1971-73 and later rose to national prominence, handling Home, Defence and Foreign Affairs in the cabinets of both Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi. Prime Minister from 1991 to 1996, he is credited as the true architect of India’s eco- nomic reforms. Plant geneticist M S Swaminathan's significant contributions to India's agricultural sector earned him a reputation as the leader of India's green revolution movement. His work was instrumental in the agricultural renaissance in India. Born in 1924 in one of the most backward sections of society, Karpoori Thakur was a remarkable leader whose political journey was marked by his unwavering commitment to the marginalised sections of society. He served as the Chief Minister of Bihar and was a key figure in the struggle against social discrimination and inequality. Chaudhary Charan Singh was born in 1902 in Meerut district of Uttar Pradesh, in a middle class peasant family. He shifted to Meerut in 1929 and later joined the Congress. Charan Singh was sworn in as Prime Minister on 28 July 1979, with outside support from Indira Gandhi's Congress (I). He advised the President to dissolve the Lok Sabha after withdrawal of support by the Congress (I) and then continued as caretaker Prime Minister until January 1980. Ahead of the forthcoming Lok Sabha polls, senior leaders of political parties from the INDIA bloc will gather at the Ramlila Maidan in the capital on Sunday to corner the BJP-led Centre over various issues including “misuse” of Central probe agencies. Notably, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Congress announced the rally at Ramlila Maidan in the wake of the arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Kejriwal by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in the Delhi liquor policy case last week. Addressing a Press conference at the party headquarters, Congress general secretary in-charge of Communications Jairam Ramesh informed that leaders from around 28 political parties will attend the A glimpse of the preparations ahead of the INDIA bloc's 'Maha Rally'.  ANI rally. He said that Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and party leader Rahul Gandhi will participate in the rally. “The rally of 31st March is to save democracy and the Constitution. Therefore the name is ‘save democracy rally’. This rally is not of any one party, it includes the entire INDIA bloc,” Mr Ramesh said. Asserting that there are several issues over which the rally is being organised, he said: “We want to show solidarity on most important issues including price rise , unemployment and economic inequality.” Highlighting other issues which would be raised during the rally, he said: “The issue of electoral bonds. The biggest scam in post independent India, the electoral bond scam, which had been declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. Misuse of investigative agencies to arrest democratically elected Chief Ministers and other political leaders including ministers in different states and assault on the Constitution.’’ Attacking the BJP Delhi , Congress president Arvinder Singh Lovely, who was also present, said” “Democracy is under attack. Many tactics are being used to suppress opposition parties. The BJP government is working to break the Opposition parties by using probe agencies.” We have rescued 250 Indians forced into cyber slavery in Cambodia: MEA STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 30 MARCH Reacting to reports that over 5,000 Indians are trapped in Cambodia where they are allegedly being held against their will and forced to carry out cyber frauds on people back home, the government on Saturday said it has rescued and repatriated about 250 Indians from the South-east Asian nation. “We have seen media reports on Indian nationals stuck in Cambodia. Our Embassy in Cambodia has been promptly responding to complaints from Indian nationals who were lured with employment opportunities to that country but were forced to undertake illegal cyber work. Collaborating closely with Cambodian authorities, it has rescued and repatriated about 250 Indians, of which 75 (were rescued) in just the last three months,” Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhi Jaiswal said. (Photo) He said the MEA and the Embassy of India in Cambodia have also issued several advisories to Indian nationals about such scams. “We remain committed to helping all those Indian nationals in Cambodia who seek our support.” “We are also working with Cambodian authorities and with agencies in India to crack down on those responsible for these fraudulent schemes,” the spokesperson added.