24122024-TTB-01.qxd 12/24/2024 12:20 AM Page 1 13 CHANDIGARH | GURUGRAM | JALANDHAR | BATHINDA | VOL. 144 NO. 355 | 14 PAGES | ~5.00 | REGD. NO. CHD/0006/2024-2026 ESTABLISHED IN 1881  HARYANA PAK PLANS TO BUY 40 J-35 STEALTH JETS FROM CHINA: REPORT WORLD /thetribunechd NC LEADER, PDP UNITE IN PROTEST AGAINST QUOTA POLICY J&K $500 MN ADB LOAN TO ON NATIONAL FARMERS’ PUSH GREEN INFRA DAY, PM MODI HAILS PROJECTS BUSINESS ANNADATAS BACK PAGE tuesday | 24 december 2024 /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com Dhaka seeks extradition of Hasina, cites’13 treaty MEA says note received, refuses comment on issue ICING ON THE CAKE Ajay Banerjee Tribune News Service Visitors take a walk on the Ridge as Shimla received season’s second snowfall ahead of Christmas, on Monday. LALIT KUMAR INSIDE Three Khalistani ultras behind Gurdaspur attack gunned down in Pilibhit encounter Tribune News Service Chandigarh, December 23 The Punjab Police, in a joint operation with their Uttar Pradesh counterparts in Pilibhit, today gunned down three suspected terrorists of the Pakistan ISI-sponsored Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF), who had carried out the grenade attack at the Bakhshiwala police post in Kalanaur, Gurdaspur, on December 18. The Bakhshiwala attack was one of the eight blasts that have rocked Punjab since November 23. The police had earlier arrested six members of two modules of the Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) for their involvement in five of the eight blasts. Punjab DGP Gaurav Yadav said the encounter BRITISH ARMY MAN MAIN HANDLER: DGP ■ Punjab DGP Gaurav Yadav Cops with the body of one of the terrorists at a Pilibhit hospital. PTI took place in the jurisdiction of the Puranpur police station in Pilibhit, after the three module members opened fire on a joint team of the Pilibhit and the Punjab Police. He said the three terrorists, said British army man Jagjeet Singh, alias Fateh Singh Baagi, was handling the three ultras — Varinder Singh, alias Ravi, Gurwinder Singh & Jashanpreet Singh, alias Partap Singh, all hailing from Kalanaur, Gurdaspur ■ The encounter took place in UP’s Pilibhit after a joint team of the UP and Punjab police came under fire; two AK-47 rifles and two 9 mm Glock pistols were seized who succumbed to bullet injuries in a hospital, had been identified as Varinder Singh, alias Ravi, of Agwan in Kalanaur, Gurwinder Singh of Bhaini Bania Mohalla in Kalanaur and Jashanpreet 4 kids die as wall gives way in Hisar Hisar, December 23 Four children died when the wall of a brick kiln collapsed and fell on them while they were asleep at Budana village in the district on Sunday night. The deceased were identified as Nisha (3 months old), Nandini (5), Suraj (9) and Vivek (9). Three children were injured in the incident. Sources said many families of labourers are residing around the brick kiln. A few labourers were working at the site when the incident occurred. Their children were sleeping near the wall that had been erected near the chimney, the sources said. However, the wall suddenly collapsed and the debris fell on the children. The parents along with others present at the spot rushed the victims Singh, alias Partap Singh, of Shur Khurd, also in Kalanaur. The police recovered two AK-47 rifles and two 9 mm Glock pistols from their possession, he said. He said preliminary investigation revealed that the terror module was controlled by Pakistan-based Ranjeet Singh Nita, chief of the KZF , and operated by Greece-based Jaswinder Singh Mannu, alias Mannu Baagi, a native of Agwan village in Kalanaur. He said accused Varinder, alias Ravi, who was leading the module, also belonged to Agwan village. He was being further controlled and masterminded by UK-based Jagjeet Singh, reported to be working in the British army and using the assumed identity of Fateh Singh Baagi. continued on page 8 ‘No-detention policy’ scrapped for Classes 5, 8 Tribune News Service The collapsed brick kiln wall at Budana village in Hisar district. PTI WERE LIVING NEAR BRICK KILN ■ Many families of labourers are residing near a brick kiln ■ Children were asleep near the wall when the incident occurred ■ The police are yet to record statements of victims’ families to the Civil Hospital, Hisar. Families claimed three kids died on the spot while one succumbed to the injuries at the hospital. SHO Chander Bhan claimed the police rushed the victims to the hospital, adding action would be taken after recording the statement of the victims’ families. — TNS New Delhi, December 23 The Centre on Monday scrapped the ‘no-detention policy’ for students of Classes 5 and 8. Under the new rules, students who do not clear the annual exam will be given an opportunity to retake the test within two months and will be held back in the same class if they fail the retest. However, the Education Ministry said no child would be expelled from any school till the completion of elementary education. According to senior officials, the notification would be applicable to over 3,000 schools, including continued on page 8 Benegal, doyen of parallel cinema, dies at 90 Nonika Singh P SHYAM BENEGAL DEC 14,1934- DEC 23, 2024 IONEER of parallel cinema, gateway to Indian cinema, “chalta phirta” encyclopaedia, egalitarian who espoused the cause of justice, women and the underprivileged… renowned filmmaker Shyam Benegal will be remembered in many ways. But frankly there is no one word, epithet in which one can sum up the legendary Benegal, who was a Dadasaheb Phalke and Padma Bhushan awardee, besides being the winner of 18 National Awards. No less than an institution, he gave Indian cinema a unique identity, sprouted new seeds of cinematic vision. Ironically, at 90, he passes in the year in which first his path-breaking film “Ankur” completes 50 years. Since 1974 when he created seminal “Ankur” exposing the caste system based on his own short story, he went on to create innumerable gems. “Nishant”, “Mandi”, “Bhumika”, “Manthan”, “Zubeidaa”, “Junoon”, “Kalyug”… hard to continued on page 8 New Delhi, December 23 The interim government of Bangladesh has sought the extradition of deposed PM Sheikh Hasina from India, a move that will require New Delhi to walk a diplomatic tightrope between safeguarding an old friend who has sought refuge and wanting to normalise ties with its eastern neighbour. Dhaka has made a formal request to New Delhi citing the 2013 extradition treaty between the two countries to seek custody of Hasina, who is accused of multiple crimes in her country. An MEA spokesperson said, “We received a note verbale from the Bangladesh high commission today in connection with an extradition request.” “At this time, we have no comment to offer on the matter,” the spokesperson said. A note verbale is a formal diplomatic communication between two countries. It is less formal than a letter. In Dhaka, foreign adviser in the interim government Touhid Hossain said Bangladesh had sought Hasina’s extradition citing a treaty of December 2013. “We Sheikh Hasina OPEN LETTER BY RETD JUDGES, BUREAUCRATS A group of 685 retired judges, bureaucrats, Army officials and civil society members, in an open letter to the people of Bangladesh, have expressed deep concern over the deteriorating situation in the country. It called for an immediate end to the attacks on minorities, and said the situation was unacceptable to the people of India. ANI sent a note verbale to the Indian Government saying that Bangladesh wants her (Hasina) back for the judicial process,” Hossain said. Bangladesh home affairs adviser Lt Gen Jahangir Alam Chowdhury (retd) said at a press conference in Dhaka, “We have a prisoner exchange agreement with India. The extradition will be carried out under that agreement.” India could use multiple sections in the extradition treaty to turn down the request from its neighbour. Section 6 of the treaty says “extradition may be refused if the offence for which it is requested is of a political character”. It excludes charges of murder, terror-related crime and kidnapping. Another basis for the refusal could be Article 8 of the treaty, which includes situations in which the accusation is not made in good faith or if the offence involves the military and is not recognised under general criminal law. Sources said India could potentially refuse extradition on the basis that the charges against Hasina were not made in good faith. The extradition treaty between India and Bangladesh, initially signed in 2013 and amended in 2016, was aimed at addressing the issue of insurgency and terrorism along the shared borders of the two nations. The interim government in Bangladesh has said it plans to investigate Hasina in connection with allegations that she ordered killings and enforced disappearances of dissidents during the public uprising continued on page 8 Jaishankar on 6-day US visit from today NEW DELHI: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will pay a six-day visit to the US beginning Tuesday. It will be the first high-level visit from India to the US after Donald Trump won the presidential election. “He will be meeting counterparts to discuss key bilateral, regional and global issues,” the MEA said in a brief statement. — TNS NolapseduringMPs’ scuffle in Parl: CISF NEW DELHI: The CISF on Mon- day said there was “no lapse” on its part when asked about the scuffle that took place among MPs in Parliament complex recently and added it would choose to “keep quiet” when allegations were levelled by lawmakers. No inquiry was being conducted into the incident, it said. INSIDE JusticeSandhawalia new HP Chief Justice NEW DELHI: The Centre on Monday notified the appointment of Justice GS Sandhawalia — the senior-most puisne judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court — as the next Chief Justice of the Himachal Pradesh HC. The notification comes three months after the SC collegium recommended his appointment. INSIDE