SATURDAY 27 APRIL 2024 www.thestatesman.com Pages 12 |` 5.00|LC Twitter.com/thestatesman Facebook.com/thestatesman INDIA’S NATIONAL NEWSPAPER SINCE 1818 KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR BRS WOOS MUSLIMS WITH KAVITHA CARD ‘FARMERS WANT A FAIR PRICE’ P7 SENSEX 73,730.16609.28 WEATHER PARTLY CLOUDY SKY. POSSIBILITY OF VERY LIGHT RAIN /THUNDERSHOWERS. STRONG SURFACE WINDS(SPEED 25-35 KMPH) DURING THE DAY. TOMORROW'S MAXIMUM AND MINIMUM TEMPERATURES WOULD BE AROUND 39 AND 24 DEGREES CELSIUS RESPECTIVELY. RAINFALL: Nil RELATIVE HUMIDITY Max. 66 % P4 NIFTY 22,419.95150.40 ` vs $ 83.335 PAISE GOLD 72,710440 Min: 21.6 °C (-2) SUN SETS 18:54 hrs MOON SETS 18:54 hrs Supreme Court finds no infirmity in the conduct of polling using EVMs SC ruling on EVMs ‘slap’ on Cong: PM THUMBNAILS Voters after casting their votes for the Lok Sabha polls, in north Bengal on Friday. SNS Two terrorists killed in Baramulla: Two terrorists were killed in an encounter in Jammu and Kashmir's Baramulla district, officials said on Friday. The encounter began on Thursday at Check Mohalla Nowpora in the Sopore area of North Kashmir in Baramulla District. "In the ensuing encounter, two terrorists have been neutralized. Identification and affiliation are being ascertained. Incriminating materials, arms and ammunition recovered," Kashmir Zone Police posted on X. Meanwhile, IGP of Kashmir VK Birdi said that the security forces got information on Thursday evening that there was a possibility of two terrorists' presence in Sopore. T he Supreme Court on Friday rejected the plea of the NGO, Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), and others seeking 100 per cent cross verification of EVM votes with VVPAT slips. Whilst finding no infirmity in the conduct of polling using the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs), a bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta, however, asked the Election Commission of India (ECI) to examine the suggestion for using counting machines for counting the VVPAT paper slips and whether along with the symbol there could be a bar code for each party. Holding that the possibility to “hack or tamper with the agnostic firmware in the burnt memory to tutor/favour results is unfounded” the court said that “the suspicion that the EVMs can be configured/manipulated for repeated or wrong recording of vote(s) to favour a particular candidate should be rejected”. NEW DELHI, 26 APRIL DIRECTIONS TO ELECTION COMMISSION  Symbol Loading Unit in EVMs must be sealed and stored for at least 45 days after declaration of results  Burnt memory in the microcontroller of EVMs to be checked by a team of engineers post-results declaration upon request by specific candidates. ADDITIONAL RECOMMENDATION The court suggested the Election Commission explore using a machine to count VVPAT slips, enhancing transparency in the electoral process. Rejecting the plea for return to the ballot paper voting system, Justice Khanna said: “We must reject as foible and unsound the submission to return to the ballot paper system. The weakness of the ballot paper system is well known and documented. In the Indian context, keeping in view the vast size of the Indian electorate of nearly 97 crore, the number of candidates who contest the elections, the number of polling booths where voting is held, and the problems faced with ballot papers, we would be undoing the electoral reforms by directing reintroduction of the ballot papers.” The court said, “EVMs offer significant advantages. They have effectively eliminated booth capturing by restricting the rate of vote casting to 4 votes per minute, thereby prolonging the time needed and thus check insertion of bogus votes. EVMs have eliminated invalid votes, PM blames TMC for nearly 26k people losing their jobs STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE SILIGURI, 26 APRIL PM Narendra Modi in a public meeting in Malda, Bengal.  ANI other sectors. TMC commits scams and people suffer for it,” Mr Modi said, adding that no work is done here without cut money and commission. “Earlier the Left and now TMC has tarnished the image of West Bengal that had led the country and sacrificed a lot during the freedom movement. TMC has prevented Central government’s developmental programmes from being implemented. TMC has shut the doors of development in Bengal,” Mr Modi said. Mr Modi had to stop his speech as the excited crowd shouted slogans welcoming him. The meeting venue at Nityananpur, located on the border between t wo LS con- stituencies in Malda district, was jampacked. A delighted Mr Modi said: “Either I was born in Bengal in my previous birth or I will be born here in my next birth.” “TMC leaders and extortionists have looted Central government's funds. The state government has been preventing the Central government’s welfare schemes from implemented directly among the beneficiaries. The Centre has disbursed funds meant for PM Krishak Samman Yojona of Rs 8,000 crore for 50 lakh farmers. The TMC government here would not implement Ayushman Bharat, a health scheme for elderly people. TMC has come to power showcasing Maa Maati Manush slogan but betrayed the people. Sandeshkhali is a burning example of it. The same incident took place in Malda but TMC was mum,” Mr Modi said. Mr Modi pointed out that PM Awas Yojona is implemented in the name of women as owners of the house. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said the Supreme Court’s rejection of petitions against the use of electronic voting machines (EVMs) in elections was a strong “slap” on parties like the Congress which for decades deprived the poor, Dalits and OBCs of their voting rights by “loot” of polling booths and ballot papers. SNS (Details on Page 5) which were a major issue with paper ballots and had often sparked disputes during the counting process. Furthermore, EVMs reduce paper usage and alleviate logistical challenges. Finally, they provide administrative convenience by expediting the counting process and minimising errors.” Meanwhile, the SC on Friday agreed to examine a plea seeking directions to the ECI to frame guidelines or rules if, in any election, all the contesting candidates individually do not surpass NOTA. Shah: We will implement UCC in entire country NEW DELHI, 26 APRIL Sparking a debate in India, Meta-owned popular messaging platform WhatsApp has said it will exit the domestic market if asked to break message encryption. The government had said earlier that if there is no way to find the originator of messages without breaking encryption, then the company should come up with some other mechanism. In 2019, the Centre asked the messaging platform to implement an identifier. It will allow the government and WhatsApp to pinpoint who sent which message, without having to read its contents. Now, during a hearing of WhatsApp and Meta's petition challenging a rule of Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 in the Delhi High Court, the company has threatened to quit the Indian market, if asked to do so. The bench will now hear the cases on 14 August. Rule 4(2) in IT Rules, 2021 states that social media companies engaged in providing messaging services should reveal who sent a message if there is an order to do so by a court or a competent authority. "A significant social media intermediary providing services primarily in the nature of messaging shall enable the identification of the first orig- inator of the information on its computer resource as may be required by a judicial order passed by a court of competent jurisdiction or an order passed under section 69 by the Competent Authority as per the Information Technology (Procedure and Safeguards for interception, monitoring and decryption of information) Rules, 2009," the rule states. The rule comes with a caveat that the information will only be sought for offences related to national security, public order, or those related to rape, sexually explicit material or child sexual abuse material, which provide for a minimum jail term of five years. It also stated that an order of this nature will not be passed if less intrusive means can identify the originator of the information. In its petition, WhatsApp has sought that the rule be declared "unconstitutional and that no criminal liability should accrue to it for noncompliance". The traceability requirement, the petition said, would force the company to break end-to-end encryption and violate the fundamental rights to privacy and free speech of the hundreds of millions of users who use WhatsApp's platform to communicate. Advocate Tejas Karia, appearing for WhatsApp, told Delhi High Court that people use the messaging platform because it guarantees privacy with its end-to-end encryp- P12 BRENT CRUDE (IN $) 89.580.57 60.96 pc turnout recorded in second phase of LS polls STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 26 APRIL A voter turnout of round 61 per cent was recorded on Friday in the second phase of voting in Lok Sabha elections in 88 constituencies spread across 13 States and Union Territories, including the remaining part of Outer Manipur seat. The voting was by and large peaceful. The voting, which began amidst tight security at 7 a.m. across 1.67 lakh polling stations, concluded at 6 p.m. Prominent BJP candidates whose fate was sealed in the EVMs today included Union minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar (Thiruvananthapuram), Hema Malini (Mathura) and Tejasvi Surya (Bengaluru South). Heavyweights from the Congress in the second phase included Rahul Gandhi (Wayanad), KC Venugopal (Alappuzha), Sashi Tharoor (Thiruvananthapuram) and Pradyut Bordoloi (Nagaon). “Polling in the second phase of General Elections 2024 which commenced at 7 a.m. today simultaneously across 88 parliamentary constituencies recorded an approximate voter turnout of 60.96 per cent ECI issues notification for 5th phase of LS polls:The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Friday issued the notification for the fifth phase of voting in the 18th Lok Sabha polls. The filing of nominations began following the notification issued by the poll panel. The polling will be held in 49 parliamentary constituencies spread across eight States and Union Territories SNS (UTs) in the fifth phase. as of 7 p.m,” the Election Commission of India (ECI) said. The poll panel said voters from across 13 States and UTs participated enthusiastically to cast their vote at their polling stations, braving the hot weather conditions. From newlyweds to senior citizens, PwDs, women and youngsters, all were seen in queues waiting to cast their vote, it said. PEOPLE’S POWER BHOPAL, 26 APRIL Declaring that that it is a 'Modi ki Guarantee' (PM Modi's guarantee), Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on Friday that the government led by the BJP will implement the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) across the country. Addressing an election rally in Madhya Pradesh's Guna, Mr Shah accused the Congress of playing appeasement politics by encouraging the reform of personal laws. "Rahul Baba, do whatever you want for appeasement. As long as the BJP is there, we will not allow personal law to be brought in. This country will run on a Uniform Civil Code. This is the soul of our Constitution, we have just brought UCC in Uttarakhand.” “This is Modi ji's guarantee, we will implement UCC across the country," Mr AGENCIES Shah said. Why WhatsApp has threatened to exit India AGENCIES RESURGENT DC LOOK TO TAME STRUGGLING MI SILVER 84,5002000 SC rejects EVM-VVPAT cross verification NEW DELHI, 26 APRIL Min. 16 % Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday blamed the Trinamul Congress for cancellation of the appointment of nearly 26,000 teachers and non-teaching staff in state schools by a Calcutta High Court judgment. Addressing a public meeting in Malda today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said: “TMC has spoiled the future of youths in West Bengal because of the massive recruitment scam in the education department. Recently 26,000 families have lost their livelihood. They are now in trouble since they gave money to TMC leaders for jobs after taking loans.” “Scams have become the culture in Bengal during the tenure of the Trinamul Congress. The TMC is involved in massive scams running into thousands of crores of rupees including the Sarada and Rose Valley scams, scams involving cattle smuggling, coal, PDS, civic bodies and P11 PARMOD KUMAR TEMPERATURE Max: 40.5 °C+1) SUN RISES 5:43 hrs MOON RISES 22:23 hrs DO AUR DO PYAAR IS AS MONOTONOUS AS THE MARRIAGE IT TALKS ABOUT tion. "As a platform, we are saying, if we are told to break encryption, then WhatsApp goes," he told the bench of Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora. "We will have to keep a complete chain and we don't know which messages will be asked to be decrypted. It means millions and millions of messages will have to be stored for a number of years," he was quoted as saying in the report. The bench then asked if the rule was in place anywhere else in the world. "No, not even in Brazil," the advocate replied. The bench then responded that privacy rights are not absolute and "somewhere balance has to be done" after the Central government counsel said the rule was needed to trace the originator of messages on such platforms in cases like those related to communal violence. People show their ID cards as they arrive to cast their votes for the second phase of Lok Sabha (REPORT ON PAGE 2) elections, in Ghaziabad on Friday. SUBRATA DUTTA Buddha is considered Lord Vishnu’s avatar, Buddhism established here but you do not believe in it: Kharge stirs fresh row AGENCIES NEW DELHI , 26 APRIL Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge launched a fresh attack against Prime Minister Narendra Modi questioning his stance on Buddhism during an interview with News 24 on Friday. In the interview, Kharge, who is a follower of Buddhism, delved into the inauguration ceremony of Buddha Vihar in Karnataka's Gulbarga in 2009, which was established by the Siddharth Vihar Trust of which he is the founder-chairman. He said that the inauguration was attended by then President Prathiba Patil while drawing parallels with the inauguration of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya on January 22 this year which drew criticism for allegedly not inviting President Droupadi Murmu. "What did you do, whom did you invite for the Pran Pratishtha? Did you give invitations to the leaders of every opposition party? You are doing everything as per your wish, and yet that temple is not even one-third complete. Now there has been some improvement as far as the construction is concerned. Who should have inaugurated it? As per the Hindu customs, who should have carried out the Pran Pratishtha?" Kharge questioned PM Modi for doing Pran Prathistha of Ram Temple."For example, I established Buddha Vihar in Gulbarga, then who was called for it? Buddha is considered the 9th incarnation of Lord Vishnu but they (BJP) don't come near Buddha. You know in Uttarakhand it has been imposed that if someone wants to adopt Buddhism they should approach the District Magistrate. That is a religion of this country, that was established in this country, which has been accepted all over the world, but you (PM Modi) do not believe in it. Now they are attacking us. But what did I do at that time, I witnessed it from a distance while the 'pratishtha' was done by Dalai Lama and then president of India Prathibha Patil was also present there," he added.