06092024-TTC-01.qxd 9/6/2024 12:40 AM Page 1 13 CHANDIGARH | GURUGRAM | JALANDHAR | BATHINDA | VOL. 8 NO. 247 | 22 PAGES | ~5.00 | REGD. NO. CHD/0006/2024-2026 ESTABLISHED IN 1881 IN TOUCH WITH INDIA, CHINA, BRAZIL OVER UKRAINE: PUTIN WORLD /thetribunechd BESIDES GANDERBAL, OMAR TO CONTEST FROM BUDGAM J&K NEED FOR REFORMS IN LAND, AGRI MARKETS: RBI GUV BUSINESS INDIA, SINGAPORE INK PACTS FOR TECH COOPERATION BACK PAGE friday | 6 september 2024 /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com Fund-starved Punjab scraps ~3/unit power subsidy, increases VAT on fuel Kejri says he is not a threat; SC reserves verdict on bail plea Fare of state-run buses hiked by 23 paise/km | 300 units of free electricity to stay New Delhi, September 5 Asserting that he was not a threat to society, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday urged the Supreme Court to grant him bail in a corruption case linked to the Delhi excise “scam”. The CBI, on the other hand, said the CM should not be given special treatment just because he was influential. Four prominent accused in the case — AAP leaders Sanjay Singh and Manish Sisodia, BRS leader K Kavitha and AAP’s former communication in-charge Vijay Nair — have already been granted bail by the Supreme Court. On July 12, the top court had granted interim bail to Kejriwal in the money laundering case, but he continued to be in jail following his June 26 arrest by the CBI in a corruption case. On behalf of Kejriwal, senior Ruchika M Khanna Tribune News Service Chandigarh, September 5 The cash-strapped Punjab Government today dealt a double blow to consumers by withdrawing the subsidy on power and increasing the value added tax (VAT) on fuel in a bid to ramp up its revenue receipts. In a separate decision, the government hiked the fare of state transport buses by 23 paise per km. This will generate an additional revenue of Rs 150 crore annually. The AAP Cabinet, at a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, decided to withdraw Rs 3 per unit subsidy — including surcharge and electricity duty — on power for domestic consumers having up to 7 kW of load. It further Satya Prakash Tribune News Service He has approached ❝Delhi High Court to raisenotthisfair argument ❝ It’s at a stage. You the directly without going to the sessions court… preliminary objection is he must first go to trial court. cannot consider sending (Kejriwal) back there… At this stage, there is huge delay involved. SV Raju, ADDITIONAL SOLICITOR GENERAL Abhishek Manu Singhvi, COUNSEL FOR KEJRIWAL The Bench expressed concern over the amount of time spent on hearing Kejriwal’s bail plea, wondering if such extensive hearings were afforded in routine bail cases. “Both sides we will hear… But we are wondering how long we should hear a bail plea. Do ordinary mortals get this much time?” the Bench asked as Singhvi went into details of the alleged illegality of Kejriwal’s arrest by the CBI. continued on page 7 BJP faces major rebellion in Haryana as minister, MLA, OBC Morcha chief resign Fall in line or will get you blocked, HC tells Wikipedia 11,00,000 FARMERS TO BE GIVEN AGRI POLICY DRAFT ELECTRICITY CONSUMERS HIT ~3 per unit power subsidy for domestic consumers having up to 7 kW of load withdrawn; 11L consumers stand to pay additional ~3,000 if they consume 1,000 units in billing cycle increased VAT on petrol and diesel, which would now cost Rs 0.61 and Rs 0.92 per litre more, respectively. TAX ON FUEL UP PETROL DIESEL This comes as the government cleared the salaries of its employees after a delay of four to five days this month ~0.61/LITRE ~0.92 /LITRE Punjab has agreed to send its 1,600-page Draft Agriculture Policy to the BKU (Ekta-Ugrahan) and Punjab Khet Mazdoor Union leaders by September 30. It will also bring in a onetime settlement policy for loans taken by farmers from Cooperative Bank. The offers were made by a delegation, led by CM Mann, to 10 union leaders at a meeting in Chandigarh. as it was forced to divert funds to service its debt. The withdrawal of power subsidy, announced by the previous Charanjit Singh Channi-led Congress government, would allow the state to save an continued on page 7 Pradeep Sharma Tribune News Service BJP president JP Nadda with senior leader LK Advani at the latter’s residence to hand over a copy of the renewal of his party membership in New Delhi on Thursday. PHOTO: BJP OFFICE Hasina must stay silent till we seek her extradition: Yunus Says both nations must work on strained ties NARRATIVE MUST CHANGE way is ❝ Thecomeforwardthefor India to out of narrative that the Bangladesh Nationalist Party is Islamist, and will turn this country into Afghanistan. Muhammad Yunus, BANGLADESH’S INTERIM GOVERNMENT HEAD narrative that portrays every other political party except Awami League as Islamist continued on page 7 4 Army men killed in Sikkim mishap Gangtok, September 5 Four Army personnel were killed in a road accident in Sikkim’s Pakyong district on Thursday, the police said. The vehicle, carrying Army’s EMC personnel stationed at Binnaguri, West Bengal, skidded off the road at Vertical Bhir along the Rhenock-Rongli highway and fell into a forest down below. All four occupants of the vehicle died on the spot. The deceased have been identified as Sepoy Pradip Patel from Madhya Pradesh, CFN W Peter, a resident of Imphal, Naik Gursev Singh, a resident of Haryana, and Subedar K Thangapandi, a resident of Tamil Nadu. The police said the cause of the accident was yet to be ascertained. — PTI Chandigarh, September 5 A day after the BJP released its first list of 67 candidates for the October 5 Haryana Assembly elections, the party today faced a statewide rebellion with several prominent leaders parting ways with the saffron unit. While Power and Jails Minister Ranjit Singh, Ratia MLA Laxman Napa and former minister Karan Dev Kamboj resigned from the BJP other , ticket aspirants held meetings with their supporters to A video grab shows CM Saini reaching out to BJP rebel KD Kamboj. chalk out their future plan. Napa, who was seeking renomination from Ratia but NIA chargesheets Gaba for Indian mission attack in UK New Delhi, September 5 The NIA on Thursday chargesheeted a key accused in the 2023 violent attack at the Indian High Commission in London. The accused, Inderpal Singh Gaba, a UK national residing in Hounslow and originally hailing from New Delhi, has been chargesheeted as one of the agitators who had participated actively in an anti-India protest on March 22, 2023, in front of the Indian mission as part of the Khalistani secessionist agenda. The accused was arrested by the NIA on April 25 this year after exhaustive investigation that established his role in the secessionist activity. He was earlier detained in December 2023 by the immigration authorities at the Attari border on arrival from London via Pakistan, based on a lookout circular issued against him. Investigations were then initiated against Gaba and he was asked not to leave the country while the probe continued. During the monthslong investigation, the NIA seized his mobile phone and scrutinised the data, including several incriminating videos/photos of the incident, and eventually established his involvement in the case. The probe so far has revealed that the attacks in London were perpetrated in retaliation to the action taken by the Punjab Police against Amritpal Singh, chief of Waris Punjab De. — TNS Himachalbulldozes rules to widen wildlife sanctuary road Aksheev Thakur TAKE ERRING OFFICIALS TO TASK, SUKHU GOVT TOLD Tribune News Service New Delhi, September 5 The Himachal Government has invited the Centre’s wrath over widening a road inside Shikari Devi Wildlife Sanctuary near Karsog in Mandi district. It has been told to submit an actiontaken report on the matter. A final decision on the issue will be taken by the Ministry of Environment. An impact study on the matter is being conducted by the Wildlife Institute of India (WII). At a recent meeting of the standing committee of the National Board for Wildlife, the state Forest Department CAN’T BYPASS PROCESS MATTER ALREADY DELAYED counsel Abhishek Manu Singhvi told a Bench of Justice Surya Kant and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan that being a constitutional functionary, he was not a threat to society or a flight risk. Singhvi sought to highlight that Kejriwal was not named in the CBI FIR and he was not arrested for nearly two years in the case. It was an “insurance arrest” made on June 26 after he got bail in the “harsher” money laundering case, he added. Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann with a delegation of the BKU (Ekta-Ugrahan) and the Punjab Khet Mazdoor Union in Chandigarh. GRAND OLD MEMBER Dhaka, September 5 Muhammad Yunus, the head of Bangladesh’s interim government, has said former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina must not make political remarks from India to prevent discomfort to both countries until Dhaka requests her extradition. “If India wants to keep her until the time Bangladesh (government) wants her back, the condition would be that she has to keep quiet,” he said. In an interview with PTI at his official residence in Dhaka, Yunus, who was appointed the country’s Chief Adviser after Hasina’s ouster, stressed that while Bangladesh valued strong ties with India, New Delhi must move “beyond the CBI, CM COUNSEL SPAR IN COURT ■ In 2022, HP had sought Cen- A stretch of the Shikari Devi Wildlife Sanctuary in Mandi. informed that a chargesheet had been filed against four forest officials for failing to stop the violation despite being present at the site. “The names of PWD officials responsible for widening the road have been received. A case has been moved to the Secretary (Forests) for taking up the matter with the PWD to prosecute the erring officials,” the department said in its written response. tre’s nod to widen a road inside Shikari Devi Wildlife Sanctuary ■ But began work sans approval; Had sought to use 3.9 acres of forestland, covered 12.6 acres ■ The Centre has told the state to act against erring officials & file an action-taken report The state has already spent Rs 12.82 crore on the project. Under the Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam or the Forest Conservation (Amendment) Act 1980, it is mandatory for the state to seek clearance for taking up any project in forest areas. In 2022, when the state sent a proposal to the Centre, the Ministry of Environment recommended that the WII should conduct an impact study and suggest mitigation measures. “In its report submitted on May 22, 2023, the WII observed that barring blacktopping, the road project was already completed within the sanctuary area,” the minutes of the meeting said. Moreover, the state had sought permission to use 3.9 acres of the forestland for road widening, but the actual forest area diverted was 12.6 acres. Today’s issue is of 22 pages, including four-page Jalandhar Tribune. c m y b was replaced by former MP Sunita Duggal, joined the Congress in the evening. Ran- jit, son of former Deputy Prime Minister late Devi Lal, announced he would contest only from Rania, either as an Independent or from some other party. Having represented the seat as an Independent in 2019, he recently joined the BJP and unsuccessfully contested the Lok Sabha election from Hisar. “I was being given the Dabwali seat, which I declined,” he said. Kamboj, OBC Morcha chief who was eyeing the ticket from Indri or Radaur, alleged that the continued on page 7 NEW DELHI: Upset over its failure to disclose information about those who made edits on the entry page of news agency ANI, the Delhi High Court on Thursday warned Wikipedia that it can ask the government to block it. “If you don’t like India, please don’t work in India... we will ask the government to block your site,” an HC Bench told Wikipedia, directing it to reveal details of three accounts that made the edits. The edits described ANI as the “propaganda tool” of the BJP-led NDA government. BACK PAGE