MONDAY 03 JUNE 2024 www.thestatesman.com Pages 12 |` 5.00|LC INDIA’S NATIONAL NEWSPAPER SINCE 1818 Twitter.com/thestatesman Facebook.com/thestatesman KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR ‘10 YEARS OF BRS IS EQUAL TO 100 YEARS OF DESTRUCTION’ IRAN’S CHOICES P6 WEATHER BJP WILL MAKE A CLEAN SWEEP THIS LS POLLS, SAYS TRIVENDRA SINGH P4 P10 KOHLI RECEIVES ICC ODI PLAYER OF THE YEAR 2023 AWARD P12 BJP secures landslide victory in Arunachal,wins 46 of 60 seats Partly cloudy sky. Rain / thundershower likely to occur towards evening / night. Maximum and minimum temperatures likely to be around 35 °C and 28 °C respectively. Sikkim Krantikari Morcha dominates in Sikkim, winning 31 out of 32 seats RAINFALL: NIL RELATIVE HUMIDITY STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE ITANAGAR, 2 JUNE Max. 92 % Min. 75 % Max: 34.4°C (-1.4) SUN RISES 04:52 hrs MOON RISES 01:24 hrs Min: 28.2°C (+0.4) SUN SETS 18:18 hrs MOON SETS 14:6 hrs Thank you Arunachal Pradesh! The people of this wonderful state have given an unequivocal mandate to politics of development. My gratitude to them for reposing their faith in @BJP4Arunachal yet again. TEMPERATURE New Moon on 06 June THUMBNAILS Evening view of the Howrah Bridge on Sunday in KOlkata.  DEBROOP BANERJEE China's Chang'e-6 lunar probe lands on far 6 side of the Moon: China's Chang'e-6 lunar probe has achieved a historic feat by landing on the far side of the Moon and embarking on a groundbreaking mission to collect samples from this rarely explored terrain, Chinese State media reported on Sunday. The China National Space Administration (CNSA) announced this milestone, marking the first time in human history that samples will be gathered from this enigmatic region of the lunar surface. ECI writes to Jairam Ramesh after he accused Shah of calling up 150 DMs STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 2 JUNE A day after he charged that Union Home Minister Amit Shah had called up 150 District Magistrates ahead of counting of votes, the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Sunday asked senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh to share the information of his claims with it. In a post on X on Saturday, the Congress leader wrote: “The outgoing Home Minister has been calling up DMs/Collectors. So far he has spoken to 150 of them. This is blatant and brazen intimidation, showing how desperate the BJP is." “Let it be very clear: the will of the people shall prevail, and on June 4th, Mr Modi, Mr Shah, and the BJP will exit, and the INDIA Janbandhan will be victorious. Officers should not get under any pressure and must uphold the Constitution. They are under watch," he said. In a letter addressed to the Congress leader, the ECI while referring to his post on X, said it has come to its notice that he alleged that Home Minister had called and spoken to over 150 DMs/Collectors to intimidate the officers before scheduled counting of votes on 4 June. The poll panel noted that during the period of enforcement of Model Code of Conduct (MCC), all officers are under deemed deputation of the Commission and report directly to it for any directions. "However, no DM has reported any such undue influence as alleged by you. As you are aware, the process of counting of votes is a sacred duty cast upon every RO and such public statements by you tend to put an element of doubt and thus, deserves to be addressed in larger public interest," it said. n a decisive electoral outcome, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has emerged as the clear winner in the Arunachal Pradesh Assembly election, securing 46 out of 60 seats. Meanwhile, the Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM) has reclaimed power in Sikkim, winning 31 out of 32 seats in the state Assembly. The counting of votes for the 60-member assembly in Arunachal Pradesh commenced in the morning, with trends becoming clear by noon. The BJP comfortably crossed the majority mark, establishing itself as the single largest party in the frontier state. Notably, ten BJP candidates were elected unopposed, contributing to the party's strong performance. Voting for both the states was held on 19 April. The BJP's victory in Arunachal Pradesh marks its third consecutive term in power, a testament to its sustained popularity and governance. Results were declared for 50 of the 60 Assembly seats, with the ruling party I NARENDRA MODI PRIME MINISTER Arunachal Pradesh CM Pema Khandu In Sikkim, the Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM), led by Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang, secured a commanding victory, winning 31 out of 32 seats having already secured ten seats unopposed prior to election day. Among the unopposed winners were Chief Minister Pema Khandu from the Mukto Assembly seat and Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein from Chowkham. Other parties which saw limited success in Arunachal Pradesh includ- ed the National People's Party (NPP) which secured five seats. The People's Party of Arunachal won two, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) gained three seats, the Congress managed only one seat, and Independent candidates won in three constituencies. Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his gratitude to the people of Arunachal Pradesh on social media platform X, stating: “Thank you Arunachal Pradesh! The people of this wonderful state have given an unequivocal mandate to politics of development. My gratitude to them for reposing their faith in @BJP4Arunachal yet again. Our Party will keep working with even greater vigour for the state's growth." He also commended the efforts of BJP workers for their dedication during the election campaign. Chief Minister Pema Khandu hailed the BJP's triumph as a "historic day for Arunachal Pradesh," noting the party's increased seat count to 46 in 2024 from 41 in the 2019 elections. In Sikkim, the Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM), led by Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang, secured a commanding victory by winning 31 out of 32 seats. Mr Tamang's victory in both Rhenock and Soreng-Chakung constituencies underscored his strong leadership. The SKM's dominance was further highlighted by the defeat of five-time former CM and Sikkim Democratic Front leader Pawan Kumar Chamling in both the Poklok Kamrang and Namcheybung Assembly seats. Exit poll figures bogus, don’t get swayed: Didi to TMC workers STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE KOLKATA, 2 JUNE Trinamul Congress chairperson Mamata Banerjee said the exit poll predictions by different private television channels are bogus and false and urged her party workers not to get swayed by the fake figures and focus on the actual counting of votes. “I have seen the exit poll predictions in 2016, 2019 and 2021 and all of them had been far from reality. The exit polls have been manufactured by the BJP with hefty payments and the media are showing this. I have never seen such shameless media in my life,” she said. “I will not say how many seats we will get but it will be much more than what the exit polls have predicted. I am sure Akhilesh and Tejashwi will do well in Utter Pradesh and Bihar,” she maintained, referring to Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav. The Trinamul Congress in its X handle said: “As we witnessed in 2016, 2019 and 2021 exit poll predictions were completely wrong. Why? Because BJP pays hefty sums to the Godi media to create a wind and manipulate the final outcome. Smt @ MamataOfficial strongly condemned # ExitPolls, urging our party workers to stay strong and not to be swayed by these deceptive tactics.” In 2021 most exit polls for the Bengal Assembly elec- tions had got it completely wrong. ABP C-Voter had predicted 152-164 seats for Trinamul Congress with 109 to 121 seats for the BJP and 16 to 25 seats for the Left. Republic- CNX had predicted 128-138 seats for Trinamul Congress 138 to 148 seats to the BJP and 11-21 seats to the Left. Times Now C voter gave 158 seats to Trinamul Congress and 119 seats to the BJP while the Left were given 19 seats. Republic Jan Ki Bat had given 104-121 seats to Trinamul Congress and 162185 seats to the BJP while the Left had been given 3-9 seats. P- MARQ had predicted 152-172 seats for Trinamul Congress and 112-132 seats to the BJP while the Left were given 10-15 seats. ETG Research gave 164- 176 seats to Trinamul Congress and 105-115 seats to the BJP while the Left were given 10-15 seats. India Today-Axis My India gave 130-156 seats to Trinamul Congress, 134 to 160 seats to the BJP and 0-2 seats to the Left. India TV-PP gave 64-88 seats to Trinamul Congress and 173-192 seats to the BJP while the Left were given 7 12 seats. India News-JKB gave 104 -121 seats to Trinamul Congress and 162-185 seats to the BJP while the Left were given 3-9 seats. POLL START gave 142-152 seats to Trinamul Congress while the BJP were given 125-135 seats and the Left 16-26 seats. When the election results were out, Trinamul Congress got 213 seats and the BJP 77 seats while the Left had failed to open its account. A senior Trinamul Congress leader said the whole exercise of exit poll will add a new gush adrenaline to the BJP counting agents. He alleged that in constituencies where the BJP candidate faces defeat by a slim margin, the counting agents will put pressure on the district magistrate to do recounting and help the candidate of the saffron party to win the seat. The apprehension of the Trinamul leader is not without basis. Congress spokesperson jairam Ramesh alleged that in 150 counting centres the BJP might manipulate results and the district magistrates have already been instructed to order recounting where the BJP candidates have been defeated by a narrow margin. Back in Tihar, Arvind Kejriwal calls it a ‘sacrifice for country’ STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 2 JUNE Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal surrendered at the Tihar Prisons on Sunday as the interim bail granted to him by the Supreme Court expired. The apex court had granted the interim bail of 21 days to the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener in a money laundering case linked to the alleged Delhi excise policy scam. The case is being probed by the Directorate of Enforcement (ED). Before heading for the Tihar jail, the Delhi chief minister addressed fellow party leaders and members at the AAP office. He said he as a disciple of Shaheed Bhagat Singh, who embraced the gallows for the country’s independence, was going to jail to save the country. He said that the way Bhagat Singh sacrificed his life for the nation he is also ready to be hanged for the sake of the nation. He did not know when he would be released but what could be done with him while in prison, but come what may he won’t bow down. Mr Kejriwal claimed that he was going back to jail not because he was involved in corruption but for raising his voice against "dictatorship". Claiming that he was fighting against the alleged dictatorship, he said the country cannot tolerate authoritarianism. Mr Kejriwal dismissed the exit polls predicting a landslide victory of the ruling BJP in the Lok Sabha elections as ‘fake’. Picking holes in the outcome of the exit polls, he pointed out that one of them gave 33 seats to the BJP in Rajasthan whereas there are only 25 Lok Sabha Delhi CM and AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal with his family members after paying tribute to Mahatma Gandhi at Raj Ghat on Sunday.  ANI seats in the state.The chief minister said there are several theories on why such allegedly fake exit polls have been done before the counting. According to one of them, it is to boost the share market as a lot of money has been invested in it. When it opens tomorrow, they can manage the investments accordingly. Secondly, he said through the polls an atmosphere is being created to pressurise officials to do as they want as they were eventually coming to power once again. Calling the entire exercise a mind game played in the name of exit polls, he urged his supporters, party leaders, and workers not to fall prey to these machinations and asked the counting agents to be vigilant during the counting till the last vote is counted irrespective of their candidate winning or losing. He thanked the apex court for granting him the interim bail of 21 days to campaign for the elections and added that he did not waste even a minute of the said duration. Modi holds meetings to discuss cyclone relief, heat INDIA bloc urges ECI to issue clear wave, reviews agenda for new govt’s first 100 days guidelines for counting of votes STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 2 JUNE Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Sunday, held seven back-to-back meetings on a range of issues, including a session to review the agenda for the new government’s first 100 days, it is understood. According to sources, the prime minister also held a meeting to review the preparations to celebrate World Environment Day (5 June) on a large scale. The meetings took place at his residence two days before the results of the Lok Sabha elections are to be declared. Mr Modi held a prolonged brain-storming session on the agenda for the first 100 days of the new government in the wake of the exit polls that predicted a landslide victory for the BJP in the just-concluded Lok Sabha elections, the sources said. Earlier in the day, the prime minister chaired the first meeting to review the impact of cyclone “Remal”. After this, he chaired another meeting to review the situation arising from the ongoing heat wave in the country and the preparedness for the onset of monsoon. Assuring the states affected by Cyclone “Remal” of that the Centre would continue to extend full support to them, the prime minister issued instructions to the Ministry of Home Affairs to take stock of the situation and review the matter on a regular basis to extend necessary assistance in restoration efforts. At least 36 people were killed in heavy rains and landslides in four of the eight northeastern states after Remal hit the states bringing normal life to a grinding halt. While 27 people were killed in Mizoram, including 21 in a quarry collapse in the Aizawl district, four deaths were reported from Nagaland, three from Assam, and two from Meghalaya. "The PM said that the Government of India will continue to extend full support to the states affected by the cyclone. The PM also instructed the Ministry of Home Affairs to monitor the situation and review the matter regularly to extend necessary assistance for restoration," the PMO said in a statement. The principal secretary to the PM, Cabinet secretary, home secretary, secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences, DG NDRF, and member secretary, NDMA along with other senior officials from PMO and Ministries concerned were also present in the meeting. In another meeting, Mr Modi called for fire and electrical safety audits of hospitals and other public places must be undertaken regularly in the wake of several major fire incidents reported from various parts of the country during the past few weeks. On 25 May, seven children were killed in a massive fire at Delhi's Baby Care New Born Hospital. Another major fire tragedy in Rajkot's gaming zone resulted in 27 fatalities. The prime minister, while chairing the meeting to review the situation arising from the ongoing heat wave in the country and the preparedness for the onset of monsoon at his residence earlier in the day, said proper drills in the prevention and handling of the incidents of fire should be undertaken regularly. CMYK STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 2 JUNE A delegation of the INDIA bloc leaders met the Election Commission of India (ECI) here on Sunday urging it to issue clear and detailed guidelines for the counting of votes of the 18th Lok Sabha elections on 4th June, including that postal ballots be counted first before announcing the results of the EVMs. The multi-party delegation of the Opposition comprised senior Congress leaders Abhishek Manu Singhvi and Salman Khurshid, SP leader Ram Gopal Yadav, CPI (M) leader Sitaram Yechury, CPI leader D Raja and AAP leader Pankaj Gupta, among others. Talking to reporters outside the ECI office, Mr Singhvi said: “This is the third time that a multi-party delegation met the EC. We are very grateful that they gave us time at a very short notice on two to three major issues.” “The most important issue is the counting of postal bal- lots first. This is very clearly stated in the statutory rule, Rule 54A, which specifically says that you should take up and deal with the postal ballots first. This has been understood by the EC over the years and in particular, it elaborated this is 2019 that even if you start the EVM counting while the postal ballot counting is on, even then you shall stop the EVM counting if it has reached the end and first declare the postal ballot counting result," he said. Mr Singhvi claimed that this is reiterated in 2019 and other letters of EC which they apprised to the poll panel. "Our complaint is that the statutory rule of 2019 has been given goodbye. The EC has repealed the 2019 practice. The statutory rule must be followed.” “There is no problem in stopping the EVM counting even if it reached the penultimate round and first declare the postal ballot result and then go on to the EVM," he said. The senior Congress leader said the other demand was to direct the counting officials to follow the existing guidelines. “We are not asking for new guidelines, but unfortunately what is already stated in the guidelines is not being followed by the counting officers," Mr Singhvi said. Among others, he said they demanded to allow agents to record results before proceeding and strengthen transparency and faith in the electoral process. The INDIA bloc has exuded confidence of winning more than 295 seats in the general elections.