BSE, NSE TO LAUNCH SAME-DAY CASH SETTLEMENT FOR 25 STOCKS TODAY THURSDAY 28 The facility, T+0, will be introduced in a beta version and be available with a few brokers. The existing T+1 will continue for other scrips MARCH, 2024 epaper.morningstandard.in facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard HAMAS CONFLICT ISRAEL BOMBS GAZA AND RAFAH THE CHOSEN ONES FOR THE NEW FACILITY: The scrips included for same-day Israeli forces fought Hamas in several hospitals despite a UNSC demand for ceasefire A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS PAGE 11 NEW DELHI J8.00 KEJRIWAL GETS NO INTERIM COURT RELIEF Wife Sunita claims the CM would do a ‘big expose’ on the scam in a city court today E X P R E S S N E W S S E R V I C E @ New Delhi WHILE arrested Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal did not get immediate relief from the Delhi High Court on Wednesday his wife Sunita claimed he , would do a “big expose” on the alleged excise policy scam in court the next day . She was apparently referring to his production in a city court on the conclusion of his custodial remand with the Enforcement Directorate on Thursday Sunita made the statement after meet. ing her husband in jail. In the Delhi High Court, Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma refused to interfere with Kejriwal’s arrest and issued notice to the ED on his plea for interim relief of release. It asked the ED to file its reply before April 2. The hearing would begin on April 3. “Any order passed in the application for interim release of the petitioner, pending disposal of his main petition without calling for reply of ED at this stage would rather amount to deciding the main petition itself,” the judge said. In a related development, L-G V K Saxena said the Delhi government will not be run from jail, though AAP leaders claim Kejriwal will continue as chief minister even if he is under custody . Rebutting the L-G’s statement, AAP leader and Delhi minister Atishi wondered in an interview to PTI, “what is the constitutional provision he is drawing on? The law of the country is very clear. You have the GNCTD Act which is very clear that you cannot be the chief minister if you do not enjoy the majority of the House. These conditions do not apply So, under what conditions will . President’s Rule be imposed?” There was ample drama in the Delhi legislative assembly as the AAP MLAs stormed into the well , of the House raising slogans against the Centre and demanding Kejriwal’s release. The House was adjourned till April 1. P3 POSSIBLE SCENARIOS Kejriwal continues to be the CM and works from jail Kejriwal is chargesheeted in the excise policy case L-G recommends to the Centre that Delhi cannot be run as per the Constitutional provisions and seeks Central intervention under Article 356 President has to act as per the Constitution, may dismiss the govt and impose Central rule Kejriwal represents people’s mandate. Dismissing him will mean ignoring the people Govt will not run from jail: L-G L-G VK Saxena broke his silence over the arrest of CM Arvind Kejriwal, saying that the city government will not be run from jail. “I can assure the people of Delhi that the government will not be run from jail,” Saxena said during an event. His remark came in the backdrop of statements by AAP leaders that Kejriwal will continue as chief minister even if he is behind bars. In an apparent attack on the AAP dispensation, Saxena said, “In this city to get any work done feels like ‘lohe ke chane chabana (very difficult task).’ Whatever you try to do, some forces put their entire strength into stopping that work. And if you can successfully complete that work, then these forces try to take credit.” Kejriwal, who is also the AAP national convener, was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on March 21 in the Delhi excise policy-linked money laundering case and remanded in the agency’s custody till March 28 by a court. AAP leaders on several occasions have ruled out Kejriwal’s resignation, insisting that he will run his government from inside the jail. Kejriwal issued his second work order from the ED’s custody on Tuesday instructing Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj to ensure that medicines and tests are available to people at all government hospitals and mohalla clinics. On Sunday the CM in, structed Atishi to solve water and sewer-related problems in the city . Govt takes strong objection, raps US envoy for CM comment Y E S H I S E L I @ New Delhi A day after a US spokesperson commented on the arrest of Arvind Kejriwal, saying they hoped his trial was fair, India objected to it and summoned their acting Deputy Chief of Mission Gloria Barbena. The meeting is said to have lasted for 40 minutes. “We take strong objection to the remarks of the spokesperson of the US State Department about certain legal proceedings in India,’’ said MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal. In diplomacy, states are expected to be respectful of the sovereignty and internal affairs of others. “This responsibility is even more so in the case of fellow democracies. It could otherwise end up setting unhealthy precedents,’’ said Jaiswal. India’s legal processes are based on an independent judiciary that is committed to objective and timely outcomes. Casting aspersions on that is unwarranted, Jaiswal added. The US is the second country after Germany that has com- mented on Kejriwal’s arrest. “The German deputy chief of mission in New Delhi was summoned and was conveyed India’s strong protest on their Foreign Office spokesperson’s comment on our internal affairs. We see such remarks as interfering in our judicial process,’’ MEA said, a few days back. EC sends notice to Supriya, Dilip M U K E S H R A N J A N @ New Delhi THE Election Commission on Wednesday sent show cause notices to Congress leader Supriya Shrinate and senior BJP leader Dilip Ghosh for their controversial comments on actor Kangana Ranaut and West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee. The EC in its notice said the remarks by Supriya and Dilip were found to be in violation of provisions of the Model Code of Conduct. It sought their responses by 5 pm on March 29. Supriya in her social media account had posted a picture of Kangana with the nasty caption asking what was the going rate at the mandi (market). It came after Kangana was named the BJP candidate for the Mandi Supriya Shrinate and Dilip Ghosh Lok Sabha seat. Following an uproar, Supriya deleted the post and said, “Many people have access to my Facebook and Instagram accounts. Someone from them made an extremely inappropriate post today ” . Dilip Ghosh on March 26 said, “When Didi goes to Goa, she calls herself the daughter of Goa. When she goes to Tripura, she says that she is the daughter of Tripura. She should first identify her own father.” PAGES 14 ED remand ends today, CBI may take CM into custody M U K E S H R A N J A N @ New Delhi The CM appoints any other person even as legal proceedings continue E X P R E S S N E W S S E R V I C E @ New Delhi settlement include Ambuja Cement, Ashok Leyland, Bajaj Auto, Bank of Baroda, BPCL, Birlasoft, Cipla, Coforge, Divi’s, Hindalco, Indian Hotels, JSW Steel, LIC Housing Finance, LTI Mindtree, MRF, Nestle, NMDC, ONGC, Petronet, Samvardhana Motherson, State Bank of India, Tata Communications, Trent, Union Bank of India and Vedanta P12 THE CBI is likely to seek the custody of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in connection with its probe into the excise policy case after his remand to the Enforcement Directorate ends on March 28, sources said. The CBI was the first central agency that had registered an FIR in the case and named 14 people, including former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia, as accused. Sisodia is now lodged in Tihar jail. Kejriwal, arrested by the ED under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in connection with its case linked to the now-scrapped excise policy on March 21, was remanded to the agency’s custody until March 28. The ED on Wednesday urged the Delhi High Court to grant it time to file a reply to a plea by Kejriwal challenging his arrest. SV Raju, additional solicitor general representing ED, reportedly requested for three weeks’ time to respond to the “bulky” petition served to them on Tuesday . On last Friday, Rouse Avenue court had remanded Kejriwal in the ED’s custody for his questioning. The CM was arrested hours after the HC refused to grant him protection from coercive action. The ED has alleged that Kejriwal was the “key conspirator and the kingpin” of the alleged Delhi excise policy scam, claiming that he was directly involved in formulating the policy, demanding kickbacks, and handling the proceeds of crime. Kejriwal and the ruling AAP in Delhi denied the charges, saying that there was no evidence linking him to the alleged scam. ‘Dy commander’ among 6 Maoists killed in C’garh day late night following a tipoff about the presence of MaoSECURITY forces on Wednes- ists in the region. The gunfight day gunned down six Maoists, occurred between the forces including two women, in a and the Platoon No. 10 of the fierce exchange of fire at PLGA near the Talperu river,” Chipurbhatti area of Chhattis- a police of ficer told this garh’s Bijapur district. newspaper. The slain Naxalites The forces recovered were identified as memsix bodies and efforts bers of the People’s Libare on to trace and caperation Guerrilla Army ture the injured Mao(PLGA), the ar med ists. Police sources said wing of the outlawed several Maoists susCommunist Party of Intained injuries in the dia (Maoist). PLGA’s exchange of gunfire ‘deputy commander’ of and fled the scene. The `14 LAKH Punem Nagesh was forces also recovered a BOUNTY among those killed. His huge cache of arms and The six slain wife Vetti Soni, who ammunition and items Naxalites was an active member for daily use from near collectively of the militia, and anthe encounter site. carried a “A carbine gun, factoother female cadre were bounty of `14 ry-made 9 mm pistol, also killed. Sources said Nagesh lakh on them. country-made 9 mm ‘Deputy was instrumental in pistol, 12 bore gun, commander’ carrying out several muzzle-loading gun, 10 deadly attacks on secu- Punem Nagesh live cartridges of SLR, and his wife rity forces in the past. two tiffin bombs, gelaAccording to police, carried rewards tin sticks, safety fuses, the encounter hap- of `5 lakh and Maoist bags, medicines p e n e d d u r i n g t h e `2 lakh on their and other items of daiheads, search operation of a ly use were also seized respectively joint team of the Disfrom the spot,” news trict Reserve Guard agency Press Trust of and the elite CoBRA unit of the India quoted Inspector General CRPF. The team reached the of Police (Bastar Range) Sunarea after the Maoists killed darraj P as saying. three villagers on Monday, acSo far this year, 32 Maoists cusing them of being police have been killed by security informers. forces in encounters while 167 “The security forces moved rebels have been arrested in out on the operation on Tues- the Bastar zone. E J A Z K A I S E R @ Raipur HOPE FADES AS SEARCH CONTINUES FOR BALTIMORE VICTIMS In what was a batting paradise, Sunrisers Hyderabad posted the highest IPL total ever (277/3) against Mumbai Indians on Wednesday. A look RECORD RUNS The EC said it has found the comments “offensive, insulting and prima facie violative” of the provisions of the Moel Code of Conduct and its advisory . “As per clause (2) of Part I ‘General Conduct’ of the Model Code of Conduct for the guidance of political parties and candidates, criticism of other political parties, when made, shall be confined to their policies and programmes, records and work. Parties and candidates shall refrain from criticism of all aspects of private life not connected with the public activities of the leaders. Criticism of other parties or their workers based on unverified allegations or distortions shall be avoided,” the EC said. MORE REPORTS ON PAGE 6, 7, 10 TRAVIS TURNS HEADS Playing in his first match for SRH, Travis Head did not disappoint as he went on a carnage, smashing a 17-ball fifty. His onslaught in the powerplay set the tone as the Australian hit 62 off just 24 balls ABHISHEK, KLAASEN JOIN PARTY Once Head got out, Abhishek Sharma (63 off 23) and Heinrich Klaasen (80 n.o off 34 balls) kept the momentum going as debutant Kwena Maphaka was taken for cleaners. Barring Jasprit Bumrah (0/36), no one was spared as SRH posted the highest total in the history of the league 263/5 The previous record was held by Royal Challengers Bengaluru who posted 263/5 against Pune Warriors in 2013 P13 Emergency services combed the cold waters of Baltimore harbour on Wednesday in search of the bodies of six Latin American workers, who were presumed killed when the bridge collapsed | P11 EXPRESS READ BJP ally disowns man lying with currency notes BJP ally UPPL in Assam on Wednesday said that Benjamin Basumatary, the man seen in a viral photograph lying on a bed of currencies, is not associated with the party. The photograph had triggered a storm. UPPL said Basumatary was suspended from the party on January 10. Lemon used for puja sold for `2.3L in Tamil Nadu In a ritual followed in Ottanandhal village of Tamil Nadu’s Villupuram district, lemons used during prayers at a temple were auctioned for `2.3 lakh. “This tradition is being followed for more than 50 years. People believe the lemons have power to ward off evil,” said Manickam, a villager. P5 Male students in mohiniyattam soon ED summons TMC’s Mahua, ED case to probe fund flow of Hiranandani in FEMA case Pinarayi daughter’s company as Kalamandalam goes gender neutral MONEY TRAIL U J W A L J A L A L I @ New Delhi THE Enforcement Directorate (ED) has issued a third summons to Trinamool Congress leader and former Lok Sabha MP Mahua Moitra and businessman Darshan Hiranandani for questioning in an alleged Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) violation case. According to officials, Moitra has been asked to depose before the ED’s office in New Delhi along with Hiranandani on March 28. Moitra failed to comply with two earlier ED summons — on March 11 and February 19. Sources said that Moitra has been asked to furnish certain documents pertinent to foreign investments linked to the ongoing investigation. Sources said that her statement will be recorded. Moitra is also being probed by the CBI on the direction of the Lokpal in conection with the cash-for-query scam. BJP MP Nishikant Dubey had accused Moitra of asking questions in the Lok Sabha at the behest of Hiranandani in exchange for gifts. Moitra was expelled from the Lok Sabha over the issue. E X P R E S S N E W S S E R V I C E @ Kochi THE Enforcement Directorate has lodged a case to probe alleged dubious transactions between Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan’s daughter T Veena’s firm Exalogic Solutions and Kochi-based Cochin Minerals & Rutile Ltd (CMRL). The ED’s enforcement case information report (ECIR) is similar to an FIR filed in criminal cases. ED’s investigation is based on an income tax department report that said CMRL paid `1.72 crore to Exalogic under the guise of providing software services. The Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) is also looking into the `95 crore CMRL reportedly paid various persons and entities, including political leaders and trade unions. This had emerged during a 2019 I-T probe into CMRL. ED officials said they have carried out a preliminary probe, but refused to divulge information about the ECIR, which also covers PMLA cases that the agency has based on a predicate case probed by other agencies. No criminal case has been registered though. M A N O J V I S W A N AT H A N @ Kochi A meeting of Kerala Kalamandalam’s administrative board on Wednesday decided to make all its courses on performing arts gender-neutral, a move that will now make male students eligible for admission to courses hitherto reserved exclusively for girls, including mohiniyattam and nangiarkoothu. The decision was taken amid the controversy created by dancer Kalamandalam Satyabhama, who had made racist remarks against dancer R L V Ramakrishnan, brother of late actor Kalabhavan Mani, and criticised the practice of men Postgraduation Till now, Kerala Kalamandalam was admitting only girl students in mohiniyattam & nangiarkoothu courses. From the next academic year, it will be admitting boys to these courses. They can pursue the courses from Class VIII to postgraduation. performing mohiniyattam. “The administrative board decided to make all courses at Kalamandalam gender neutral from the next academic year. Till now, we were admitting only girl students in mohiniyattam and nangiarkoothu courses. From the next academic year, we will be admitting boys to these courses. They can pursue the courses from Class VIII to postgraduation,” Kalamandalam Vice-Chancellor B Ananthakrishnan said. In March last year, Kalamandalam Chancellor Mallika Sarabhai had said she will look into allegations of gender discrimination at the institution and ensure all students get admission to every course. The administrative board also decided to start PG courses in mohiniyattam and kuchipudi from the next academic year. Kalamandalam will also start a new course in theatre and performance making.
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