SATURDAY 21 DECEMBER 2024 www.thestatesman.com X.com/thestatesmanltd. Fb/thestatesman1875 SINCE 1818 Pages 16 |` 5.00 | LC KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR ‘OPPN SHOULD RAISE ISSUES BY FOLLOWING RULES INSTEAD OF DISRUPTING PARL ’ KTR GETS RELIEF FROM HIGH COURT TILL 30 DECEMBER P6 SENSEX 78,041.59q1,176.45 WEATHER Partly cloudy. Showers likely in the afternoon. Maximum and minimum temperatures likely to be around 36 °C and 29 °C respectively. NIFTY P5 23,587.50q364.20 P9 ` vs $ 85.03 Both Houses of Parliament adjourned sine die amid escalating tensions STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE Max. 92% Min. 77% NEW DELHI, 20 DECEMBER Min: 29.3˚C SUN SETS 16:57 hrs MOON SETS 10:43 hrs T Speaker warns of action over protests on Parl premises TEMPERATURE New Moon on 31 December THUMBNAILS A crowd of devotees outside Ajmer Sharif Dargah in Ajmer on Friday. n ANI Ex-Haryana CM Chautala dies at 89: Om Prakash Chautala, a five-time Chief Minister and towering figure of Haryana, passed away at the age of 89. The son of former Deputy Prime Minister Devi Lal, he died after suffering a cardiac arrest at his residence in Gurugram. The Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, expressed his anguish at the death of the former Haryana CM. The state funeral of the former CM shall take place at Teja Khera Farm, Sirsa, at 3 pm on Saturday. he Winter Session of Parliament ended with the adjournment sine die of the two Houses on Friday without transacting any business amid escalating tensions between ruling NDA members and those on the Opposition benches over the Ambedkar issue. Before the two Houses were adjourned, the two important Bills relating to 'One Nation, One Election' were referred to a Joint Parliamentary Committee. Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s remarks on B R Ambedkar in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday have triggered a storm with Opposition Members demanding an apology from him or his dismissal, leading to frequent disruptions and frequent adjournment of the two Houses. This morning, the Lok Sabha was adjourned sine die shortly after it began the proceedings, a day after a massive scuffle in STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 20 DECEMBER the Parliament premises which resulted in injuries to two BJP MPs--Mukesh Rajput and Pratap Chandra Sarangi. Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal today moved a motion that the Bills to further amend the Constitution of India, the Government of Union Territories Act, 1963, the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi Act, 1991 and the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 be referred to a JPC. The motion was approved by the House amid din. The 27 Lok Sabha members on the JPC include P P Chaudhary, Dr C M Ramesh, Bansuri Swaraj, Anurag Singh Thakur, Bhartruhari Mahtab, Dr Sambit Patra, Anil Baluni, Dr Sanjay Jaiswal, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Manish Tewari, Sukhdeo Bhagat, Dharmendra Yadav, Chhotelal, Kalyan Banerjee, Anil Yeshwant Desai, Supriya Sule and Dr Shrikant Eknath Shinde. There are 12 members from the Rajya Sabha. In order to constitute a sitting of the Joint Committee, the quorum will be one-third of the total number of members of the JPC. The Committee will submit its report to the Lok Sabha by the first day of the last week of the next session. Lok Sabha Speaker PM Birla on Friday warned the members that there should not be any sort of protests at the 'dwars' of Parliament, and said that action will be taken in case this is violated. The House was adjourned sine die. The Speaker said that there should be no protest at any of the "dwars" of Parliament, adding that ''it is not appropriate''. He said Parliament will have to take appropriate action in case of violation. ''Maintaining the dignity of Parliament is collective responsibility,'' he pointed out. The Lok Sabha was adjourned sine die shortly after it began proceedings for the day, a day after massive Parliament scuffle. P16 SILVER 99,000 GOLD 77,820.00 Curtains come down on a stormy session RAINFALL: NIL RELATIVE HUMIDITY Max: 36.2˚C SUN RISES 06:12 hrs MOON RISES 22:38 hrs SAM KONSTAS JOINS OZ SQUAD FOR LAST 2 TESTS OF BGT SERIES ‘PEOPLE’S NEEDS DROVE ME’ BRENT CRUDE (IN $) 71.94q0.51 TMC to hold protest rallies on Monday against Shah’s Ambedkar remarks Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, in a statement, accused the BJP of systematically demolishing the countryÊs constitutional ethos and "tearing apart the democratic values and the principles that bind the Indians as a nation" AGENCIES KOLKATA, 20 DECEMBER West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday announced that her Trinamul Congress will organise blocklevel and ward-level protest rallies on 23 December condemning the recent remarks by the Union Home Minister Amit Shah about Dr B.R. Ambedkar. Noting that Ambedkar envisioned a nation built on values of justice, liberty, equality, and fraternity, where all classes, castes, creeds, and communities could live in harmony, Miss Banerjee, in a statement, said: “This is not just an insult to Babasaheb but an attack on the entire Drafting Committee of the Indian Constitution, an assault on the legacy of our freedom fighters, and a betrayal of our Dalit and Adivasi brethren.” “To condemn this, we will organise protest rallies across all blocks of Bengal and every ward of Kolkata on 23rd December, from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. I urge you to join us in this fight to defend Babasaheb's legacy and our Constitutional spirit. Let’s unite to hold the BJP accountable for their unforgivable actions." Miss Banerjee, who is also Trinamul Congress chairperson, further accused the BJP of systematically demolishing the country’s constitutional ethos and "tearing apart the democratic values and the principles that bind the Indians as a nation". According to her, the comments about Ambedkar are reflections of the BJP’s culture of hate and intolerance. The Union Home Minister was in West Bengal on Friday to address a programme at Siliguri in the Darjeeling district on the occasion of the 61st Raising Day of the Sashastra Seema Bal. The Chief Minister had been quite vocal on Mr Shah’s recent comments about Ambedkar. On Thursday, on two separate occasions for the forthcoming Christmas festival, she said that she was really shocked over comments made about Ambedkar. Earlier on Wednesday, she had issued a statement where she claimed that as the Indian Parliament reflected on 75 years of the Constitution, the Union Home Minister chose to tarnish this occasion with derogatory remarks against Ambedkar and that “too in the temple of democracy”. ‘Intensify efforts against anti-India elements’ Delhi raises with Washington STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE SILIGURI, 20 DECEMBER Union Home Minister Amit Shah today urged the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) to intensify its efforts to identify and take action against anti-India elements operating along the Indo-Nepal and IndoBhutan borders. Addressing the SSB’s 61st Raising Day Anniversary at Ranidanga in Siliguri, Mr. Shah commended the force’s vigilance in guarding the unfenced 2,450-kilometrelong borders with the two neighbouring countries. “SSB has been diligently securing these borders, but it is crucial to monitor and curb anti-India activities along these regions. Identifying such elements and ensuring they are brought to justice is essential for national security,” Mr Shah said. He emphasised the strategic significance of the Siliguri Corridor, which connects the north-eastern states and lies between the Mahananda and Teesta rivers. “The Siliguri Corridor AP woman receives parcel with decomposed body STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE HYDERABAD, 20 DECEMBER A woman in Andhra Pradesh who was expecting a consignment containing electrical appliances for her home received a wooden crate containing a partially decomposed body and a threat letter demanding Rs 1.3 crore. The incident occurred last evening at Yendagandi village in West Godavari district at the under-construction house of Naga Tulasi. The woman who had been abandoned by her husband previously, was building her own home at a site allotted to her by the government. She had requested aid from the Kshatriya Seva Samithi which had earlier sent her tiles and other construction material. This time she was expecting a consignment of electrical goods. She had earlier received a WhatsApp message which said the goods would be delivered to her. The consignment was delivered in an autorickshaw. Upon opening the crate, she found a plastic-wrapped object which turned out to be the decomposed body of a man, approximately 45 years of age. Apart from Police at the scene. n AGENCIES the body, the crate also contained a letter demanding Rs 1.3 crore. It claimed that the missing husband of Tulasi had borrowed Rs 3 lakh, which with interest had compounded to Rs 1.3 crore. The family then called the police. The Superintendent of Police of West Godavari visited the site for investigations and the police removed the body to the Bhimavaram government hospital to conduct an autopsy. Initial investigations suggest the man has been dead for at least 3-4 days. Police are also investigating the philanthropic body to which Tulasi had reached out for help. (close to the Chicken Neck region) is extremely sensitive. SSB’s responsibilities here are heightened, and I am confident in their ability to safeguard the nation’s interests,” he added. Highlighting the SSB’s achievements, Mr Shah lauded its role in maintaining border security and fostering trust and friendship with local communities. During his speech, Mr Shah highlighted the SSB’s efforts in reclaiming significant tracts of government land that were allegedly encroached upon, doing so with zero tolerance and without any conflict, in line with the Indo-Nepal Friendship Treaty. India lodges protest with Dhaka over social Pannun's threat to Indian envoy media post of Bangladesh chief adviser's aide STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 20 DECEMBER India has raised with the United States the threat issued by Sikh separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun to Indian Ambassador to the USA, Vinay Mohan Kwatra and hoped Washington will take New Delhi's security concerns seriously. "We take the threats very seriously and we raise it with the US government. In this case, also, we have raised it with the US government and it is our expectation that the US government will take our security concerns seriously," Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said at a media briefing on Friday. In a recent video message, Mr Pannun accused Ambassador Kwatra of being the face of the "India-Russia terror nexus," claiming he is under surveillance by proKhalistan groups. Mr Pannun alleged that Mr Kwatra has been coordinating with Russian diplomats to counter Khalistani activism in North America. The US govt, taking such threats seriously, has reaffirmed its commitment to ensuring the safety of Indian diplomats and others serving in the country. STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, 20 DECEMBER India has registered a strong protest with Bangladesh over the recent comments made in a social media post by Mahfuz Alam, a close aide of Bangladesh Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus, in which he reportedly threatened to capture parts of India on 'Vijay Diwas', the day that marks India's victory over Bangladesh in the 1971 war. "We have registered our strong protest on this issue with the Bangladesh side. We understand that the post being referred to has report- edly been taken down. We would like to remind all concerned to be mindful of their public comments,” Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal (photo) said at a media briefing. He said that while India has repeatedly signalled interest in fostering cordial relations with the people and the interim government of Bangladesh, such comments underline the need for responsibility in public articulation. In his social media post that he subsequently withdrew following widespread backlash, Mr Alam highlighted cultural similarities between his country and parts of India, which he claimed, transcend religious differences. He also shared a map portraying the Indian states of West Bengal, Tripura, and Assam as territories of Bangladesh.