TUESDAY 30 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 ‘WE NEED VIKSIT BHARAT AMBASSADORS TO COUNTER NAYSAYERS’ ISRAEL MUST DO MORE TO BOOST HUMANITARIAN AID TO GAZA P4 P9 SENSEX 74,671.28 NIFTY 22,643.40 WEATHER Mainly clear sky. Heat wave conditions very likely to prevail. Maximum and Minimum Temperature most likely be around 41°C and 29°C respectively. RAINFALL: 0.0 mm RELATIVE HUMIDITY RAJNATH FILES NOMINATION AFTER ROAD SHOW P10 ` vs $ 83.47 GOLD 74,520.00 Min. 24% Max: 41.7°C (+6) SUN RISES 05:10 hrs MOON RISES 23:14 hrs New Moon on 7 May THUMBNAILS STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE KOLKATA, 29 APRIL A view of India Gate during a hot summer afternoon, in New Delhi on Monday.  ANI Delhi Police summons Telangana CM: Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy was summoned by the special cell of Delhi Police to appear before it on 1 May in connection with the case of a doctored video on Union Home Minister Amit Shah over scrapping of SC, ST and OBC reservation. Reddy, who is also the PCC president, was away in Karnataka today campaigning for the third phase of elections with Congress president Kharge and Priyanka Gandhi. (P4) arendra Modi will have to explain why Rs 15 lakhs had not been deposited in the accounts of the people, two crore people did not get jobs, and the price of essential commodities and medicines is skyrocketing, Trinamul Congress chairperson Mamata Banerjee said this afternoon. She addressed two meetings at Bhagabangola and Khargram today. Coming down heavily on the N BJP Miss Banerjee said, “They are , spending crores of rupees to upload false information on social media. They have manipulated the agencies that are giving false figures regarding election results. They are dreaming of getting 400 seats; rest assured, they will not be able to cross 200 seats.” She said the BJP-led Centre does not have the guts to publish a white paper on the money they had given to the workers under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme. “They have not paid a Supreme Court halts probe against Bengal officers after 26,000 teachers lose jobs NEW DELHI, 29 APRIL The Calcutta High Court order directing the CBI to probe into the role of West Bengal government officials in an alleged teacher recruitment scam was stayed by the Supreme Court on Monday, in a huge relief to the Mamata Banerjee-led government. The top court was hearing a petition by the state government against a high court order invalidating the appointment of 25,753 teachers and nonteaching staff made by the School Service Commission (SSC) in state-run and stateaided schools. "We will stay the direction which says the CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) will undertake further investigation against officials in the state government," said a bench of Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice Manoj Misra. Challenging the order, the state government, in its appeal filed before the top court, said the high court cancelled the appointments "arbitrarily". "The high court failed to appreciate the ramification of cancelling the entire selection process, leading to straightaway termination of teaching andnon-teachingstafffromservice with immediate effect, without giving sufficient time to the petitioner state to deal with such an exigency, rendering the education system at a standstill,"readthepetitionbytheBengal government. The Calcutta High Court had said the CBI would undertake further investigations concerning the persons involved in the state government approving the creation of supernumerary posts to accommodate illegal appointments. The high court further added that, if needed, the CBI will undertake custodial interrogation of such persons involved. single penny after they lost the 2021 Assembly election to the job card holders. We have paid the dues to 59 lakh job card holders, and under the Karmashree scheme, the job card holders will get 50 days of work. We will clear money under the Awas Plus scheme. The first instalment will be released towards the end of this year.” The BJP is an expert at telling lies and making false promises. “The leaders come before the election and confuse people by telling lies. They are interested in dividing people. They let loose one reli- gion against the other, one community against the other. They divide people just to get a benefit out of it. To cast a vote in favour of the BJP is to invite the divisive force. It is the most autocratic, corrupt political party in the world,” she maintained, adding, “Before calling Trinamul Congress a party of thieves, Modi should see his face in a mirror.” Miss Banerjee said steps have been taken to improve the infrastructure in Murshidabad. Medical colleges have come up in the district. The farmers engaged in making Murshidabad silk have been looked after. The insurance for the bidi workers is being paid by the state government. “We have looked after all sections of people. We have spent Rs 250 crore to prevent erosion in Murshidabad, which is the Centre’s responsibility.” Coming down heavily on the CPIM, she said, “People have not forgotten the oppression and red terror that had been unleashed by the CPIM in Bengal. They have fielded Md. Selim in Murshidabad to cut votes and defeat the Trinamul Congress. Do not waste your vote and cast it in favour of the Trinamul Congress to defeat an autocratic, partisan political party at the Centre,” she pointed out. EC issues notification for sixth phase of Lok Sabha elections turnout was recorded in the first phase, while in the second phase, it was around 61 per cent. The results will be declared on 4th June. STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 29 APRIL The Election Commission on Monday issued the notification for the sixth phase of voting in the Lok Sabha polls, scheduled to be held on May 25. The filing of the nominations started with the issuing of the notification by the poll panel. In the sixth phase, the polling will be held in 57 parliamentary constituencies across seven states and Union territories-- Bihar, Haryana, Jharkhand, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Delhi. According to the notifi- cation issued by the ECI, of the 57 Lok Sabha seats include 14 from Uttar Pradesh, 10 from Haryana, eight each from Bihar and West Bengal, seven from Delhi, six from Odisha and four from Jharkhand. The last date of filing of nominations is 6th May and the scrutiny of nominations will take place on 7th May, as per the notification. The last date of withdrawal of candidature is 9th May. Lok Sabha elections are being held in seven phases. The first and the second phase of elections were held on 19th April and 26th April. More than 62 per cent voter ED has no material necessitating my arrest, Delhi CM Kejriwal tells apex court PARMOD KUMAR NEW DELHI, 29 APRIL Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday told the Supreme Court that his nonappearance before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in pursuance to the repeated summons and his alleged noncooperation cannot be a ground necessitating his arrest by the central agency on March 21, 2024, and the central agency has no material to take away his liberty. Appearing for the arrested Delhi Chief Minister Kejriwal, senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi told a bench of Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Dipankar Datta that “You (ED) have to demonstrate the necessity of arrest based on material available with the SILVER 84,000 BJP will not be able to cross 200 seats, says CM Min: 29.4°C (+3) SUN SETS 18:00 hrs MOON SETS 08:58 hrs AGENCIES P12 BRENT CRUDE (IN $) 89.83 Cong thinks it can fight BJP only by religion-based quota, says PM Modi Centre shies away from publishing MGNREGA fund disclosure, said CM Mamata Max. 81% TEMPERATURE VIRAT KOHLI HITS OUT AT CRITICS investigating agency.” Singhvi told the bench that from August 2022 till July 2023, in none of the material including the statements of the accused questioned by the ED and the charge-sheets including supplementary chargesheets, Kejriwal’s name figures. “Maximum you (ED) have Sarath Reddy statement...If I don't go for Section 50 statement, that does not give reason to believe that I am guilty,” Singhvi told the bench. Justice Khanna too said that this might not be in itself a ground to hold guilty. At the outset of the hearing Justice Khanna asked Singhvi, just for curiosity, why you did not apply for bail.You have challenged the arrest and the subsequent remand. The senior advocate said that we have challenged the legality of the arrest and that subsequent remand. As Justice Khanna asked that the ED had sent notices to Kejriwal to appear before it and he avoided it, Singhvi said: “I went when the CBI called. I replied to the ED notices in detail. I said I was not going to come. But today, you can't arrest by saying you didn't come; so we arrested you.” To a question by the bench whether Kejriwal has been named in the charge-sheet filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation, Singhvi said that in none of the three chargesheets and supplementary charge-sheets, the Chief Minister has been named as an accused. Singhvi said that Kejriwal is being sought to be nailed on the basis of the much later statements of the accused turned approvers - one of them joins the ruling party, ither’s father joins the ruling alliance and the third persons gave Rs 55 crore to the ruling party through electoral bonds. Since it remained inconclusive, Singhvi will continue his submissions tomorrow. Kejriwal has approached the top court challenging the Delhi High Court’s April 9, 2024, order rejecting his plea against his arrest by the ED and the subsequent remand. The top court had asked the Enforcement Directorate to respond to Kejriwal’s plea. Kejriwal in his plea against the High Court order has contended that his arrest after announcement of the General Elections is “motivated by extraneous considerations.” Describing his arrest as “motivated”, Kejriwal has contended that a sitting Chief Minister has been arrested in the middle of election cycle and especially after the announcement of the schedule of the 2024 Lok Sabha election. The petition by Kejriwal against the High Court order says that the statements and material relied upon by the ED against him was in its possession for the last niner months but why it acted when general elections were on. CMYK STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 29 APRIL Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said the Congress wants to give reservation on religion basis to Muslims because it knows the BJP already has the largest number of SC, ST and OBC MPs in Parliament, and can be challenged only with the support of its “vote bank” of Muslims. Addressing a BJP election meeting in Bagalkot, Karnataka, he said the Congress thinks it can strengthen its vote bank by transferring to it a share of the OBCs’ reservation benefit. “Will you accept this,” he said. The Prime Minister said “I want to assure my Dalit, Adivasi and OBC brothers, and I give guarantee that I will not allow any such plans of the Congress to succeed, and to protect your rights and reser- vation, Modi will go to any length.” He said the 2024 poll will decide the future of India. Mr Modi asked people that the Congress which has focused only on looting the country during its governments, “will you trust it taking care of such a large country. Can a party which has a history of looting the country, can it be trusted again,” he said. The party only deprived the poor and marginalized sections of basic amenities in its 60 years of rule. To continue its loot, the party is now treating Karnataka as its ATM, he said. In a short time of its government in the State, the party has emptied the treasury; legislators are not getting timely allocations from legislators’ development funds; and the Centre has information about the State government’s economic condition, the day is not far, when the Karnataka government will not be able to pay salaries to its employees, he said. There is hardly any welfare scheme which has not been targeted for corruption by the Congress, the Prime Minister said. That is why all people with experience say, the return of Congress can only mean disaster. India summons Canadian diplomat: India on Monday summoned the Canadian deputy high commissioner, lodging a strong protest over the raising of separatist slogans on 'Khalistan' at an event in Toronto which was being personally addressed by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. The Government of India’s deep concern and strong protest was conveyed at such disturbing actions being allowed to continue unchecked at the event, the MEA said in a statement. "This illustrates once again the political space that has been given in Canada to separatism, extremism and violence. Their continued expressions not only impact India-Canada relations but also encourage a climate of violence and criminality in Canada to the detriment of its own citizens," SNS the statement added.