DAILY FROM: AHMEDABAD, CHANDIGARH, DELHI, JAIPUR, KOLKATA, LUCKNOW, MUMBAI, NAGPUR, PUNE, VADODARA JOURNALISM OF COURAGE FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2024, KOLKATA, LATE CITY, 18 PAGES SINCE 1932 `6.00 (`12 IN NORTH EAST STATES & `17 IN ANDAMAN) WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM PROTEST OVER RG KAR RAPE-MURDER BUSINESS AS USUAL Bengal junior doctors to resume essential services, end sit-in BY UNNY Say partial lifting of cease-work, fight for justice to go on THE WORLD SWEETY KUMARI KOLKATA, SEPTEMBER 19 HEZBOLLAH VOWS REVENGE AS ISRAEL, LEBANON LAUNCH FRESH ATTACKS TRUMP, ALLIES SUE OVER ‘NON-CITIZEN VOTERS’ CLAIM PAGE 14 Bombay HC tells CBFC to take call on Emergency by September 25 OMKAR GOKHALE MUMBAI, SEPTEMBER 19 THE BOMBAY High Court Thursday directed the revising committee of the Central Board ofFilmCertification(CBFC)totake adecisionbySeptember25onreleasingtheKanganaRanaut-starrerEmergency,sayingthedelayin certification is a curb on the freedom of expression. The Division Bench of Justices B P Colabawalla and Firdosh P Pooniwalla also pulled up the CBFC for not taking this decision by September 18 — the previous deadline set by the court in a September 5 ruling. The High Court was hearing a plea by Zee Entertainment EnterprisesLtdwhichallegedthat the CBFC was “illegally” and “arbitrarily”withholdingcertification for Emergency, directed and coproduced by BJP MP Ranaut who alsoplaystheroleofformerprime minister Indira Gandhi. The court said the delay in releasingthecertificationhastostop asthisiscurtailingthefreedomof CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 PM Modi during a roadshow in Reasi on Thursday. J&K’s remaining two poll phases are on September 25 and October 1. PTI Cong-NC in line with Video captures J&K Pak agenda: PM on job distress, parties Article 370 in J&K shower promises Jammu on Thursday. Hours earlier, while addressing his first election rally in the Kashmir JAMMU, SRINAGAR, Valley, Modi targeted the PDP, SEPTEMBER 19 too, along with the other two parties, saying “three families” DAYS TO go for the sechave “ruined” J&K. He also ond phase of voting in underlined the developJammu & Kashmir, mentprojectsundertaken Prime Minister by the Centre-appointed Narendra Modi sought administration—fromedto link the demand by DECISION ucation to infrastructure. 2024 Congress and National At both rallies, Modi J&K Conference to repeal reiterated the BJP’s comArticle 370 with reported com- mitment to statehood for J&K ments by the Pakistani defence and said his party’s priority is minister on the issue and said “development and progress”. the alliance wants “to impleIn Katra town, located at the ment Pakistan’s agenda here”. foothillsof theMataVaishnodevi Modi made these comments shrine, the Prime Minister during a poll rally at Katra in CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 ARUN SHARMA & BASHAARAT MASOOD MANOJ C G JAMMU, SRINAGAR, SEPTEMBER 19 TRAVEL ACROSS Srinagar, talk to students or young job seekers, ask about their aspirations, and every second person recounts the same story to underline the situation. The story of a young PhD scholar selling dry fruits by the roadside. Most of them have seen the video on WhatsApp or on social media platforms. Then, the conversation invariably leads to reservation — including in Jammu, which on most matters differs from its counterpart. From Jammu University to DECISION 2024 IN OLD HOME BASE, HARYANA CM IS IN FOR A FIGHT BJP TO NC TO PDP, FORMER MILITANTS ACROSS J&K PARTY RANKS PAGE 9 colleges and coaching institutes inSrinagar,thereispalpableangst overthelackofjobopportunities. InSrinagar,thisislinedwithrage over the Article 370 abrogation. In Jammu, few mourn the CONTINUED ON PAGE 6 Storm in Andhra over Tirupati laddoos: TDP’s Lokesh says ghee contained fish oil, beef tallow SREENIVAS JANYALA HYDERABAD, SEPTEMBER 19 AS THE controversy over the ingredients in Tirupati laddoos — a sacred sweet offered at the Sri Venkateswara temple — snowballs, Andhra Pradesh minister and Telugu Desam Party’s (TDP) National General Secretary Nara Lokesh Naiduhastold The Indian Express that a laboratory test of Andhra Pradesh minister Nara Lokesh thegheeusedtopreparetheladdoos confirmed the presence of fish oil and beef tallow. On Wednesday, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu had alleged that the previous Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy government had used animal fat instead of ghee to prepare the “laddoo prasadam” at Tirumala. The YSRCP has rubbished Naidu’s allegations,callingthem“malicious”. “Thetenderforprocuringthe ghee was awarded by the previous government, not the KMF (Karnataka Milk Federation). After complaints, it was tested and action was initiated,” Lokesh, the CM’s son, said. He said that the ghee samples were sent to NDDB CALF (Centre for Analysis and Learning in Livestock and Food), which confirmed the presence of animal fat. Sourcessaidthegheeusedto prepare the laddoos and other “prasadams”wasprocuredfrom multiple agencies and vendors CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 DAYS AFTER Chief Minister MamataBanerjeegaveintotheir demand to shunt out senior police and health officials, protesting junior doctors on Thursday announcing a “partial” lifting of their “cease-work”, saying they would resume essential and emergency services in hospitals from Saturday, but would not work in the Out Patient Department (OPD). They said they would also end their sit-in protest outside Swasthya Bhawan, the state health department headquarters,aftermarchingtotheCBIoffice on Friday. The protesters, however, added that their “fight for justice” would continue. The doctors have been protesting since August 9, following the rape-and-murder of Junior doctors announce the decision on Thursday. Express a junior doctor at R G Kar Medical College and Hospital. Saying that while they had achieved“initialvictory”as“majority” of their demands had beenmet,thejuniordoctors,ina statement, said their “demand for justice” had “not been fully met” yet, and their movement CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 ‘PLOT’ TO KILL PRO-KHALISTAN SEPARATIST Pannun case: US court summons Govt, NSA; India says unwarranted SHUBHAJIT ROY NEW DELHI, SEPTEMBER 19 AUNITEDStatesdistrictcourthas issued summons to the Indian Government, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and R&AW chiefSamantGoel,amongothers, on a civil lawsuit filed by proKhalistan separatist figure Gurpatwant Singh Pannun seekingdamagesforanallegedplotto assassinatehimintheUSlastyear. India has reacted sharply to the charges, with Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri describing them Thursday as “completelyunwarrantedandunsubstantiated imputations”. The summons from the court Gurpatwant Singh Pannun of the southern district of New York is dated September 18, and seeks a response within 21 days. ItalsonamesVikramYadav,aseniorR&AWofficer;Indiannational NikhilGuptawhoisinaNewYork jailonchargesof allegedconspiracy and murder for hire; and, other“possibledefendantswhose identity is currently unknown”. Pannun, a US-Canadian dual citizen of Indian origin, filed the CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 FULL COVERAGE SINGED, TMC LOOKS TO TURN A CORNER; BJP, CPM PLAY THE WAITING GAME PAGE 3 Modi, Biden to hold bilateral on sidelines of Quad meet tomorrow SHUBHAJIT ROY NEW DELHI, SEPTEMBER 19 PRIME MINISTER Narendra ModiandUSPresidentJoeBiden will hold a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the Quad leaders’ summit in Wilmington, Delaware, on Saturday. Briefing the media Thursday, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said the two sides will sign at least two agreements following thetalks.Onepactwillberelated to the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) and the other Memorandumof Understanding (MoU) will be on the India-US drug framework, he said. Modi is also expected to apprise Biden of his recent talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow and with Ukrainian President Volodymyr CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Karnataka HC judge Multi-party consultations, political FATF on India: Effective anti-money refers to locality in consensus: N K Singh on road ahead laundering system, low prosecution Bengaluru as ‘Pakistan’ RITIKA CHOPRA NEW DELHI, SEPTEMBER 19 A DAY after the Union Cabinet accepted the recommendations of a high-level committee led by former President Ram Nath Kovind on One Nation, One Election, N K Singh, a member of thecommittee,saidbuildingpolitical consensus should not be a major issue since the Union governmentwillneedtointroducea Bill to hold simultaneous elections, and all such draft laws are ‘REGULAR FOLLOW-UP’ CATEGORY N K Singh, member of committee on joint elections put through a rigorous process of multi-party consultations. In an exclusive interview with The Indian Express, Singh, whowaschairpersonof the15th Finance Commission, said that if needed,Parliamentcanreferthe draft Bill on simultaneous elec- tionstoastandingorselectcommittee for further scrutiny and consensus building. TheBillthatSinghreferredto are the Constitutional amendments that the government would have to carry out in order to implement One Nation, One Election. Askedabouttheconcernsexpressed by the Opposition and calls for more consultations on the proposal, Singh said: “This is for the government to consider. Andpresumably,thegovernment CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 AANCHAL MAGAZINE NEW DELHI, SEPTEMBER 19 THE FINANCIAL Action Task Force (FATF) on Thursday placed India in the “regular follow-up” category for its compliance with anti-money laundering and counter-terror financing recommendations, saying it has an “effective” system, but added that “major improvements” are needed to strengthen prosecution in these cases. Initsmutualevaluationreport, E GLOBAL WATCHDOG’S RED FLAGS ‘MOST SIGNIFICANT’ terror threat ● from Islamic State/al-Qaeda-linked groups active in and around Jammu & Kashmir EXPLAINED ‘ONE NATION, ONE ELECTION’ the global watchdog listed some areasforimprovement,including the limited number of prosecutions and convictions, risk-profil- MAINSOURCEof money launderingfromillegal activitieswithinthecountry CONDUCT OUTREACH towards non-profit organisations ‘at risk of terror financing abuse’ ingofcustomersoffinancialinstitutions, monitoring of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE BENGALURU, SEPTEMBER 19 A JUDGE of the Karnataka High Court, Justice V Srishananda, referred to a Muslim-majority area of Bengaluru as “Pakistan” during a hearing in a landlordtenant case. Towards the end of the day’s proceedings during the hearing onAugust28,thejudgesaid,“Go towards the Mysore Road Flyover, every autorickshaw has got10people...TheMysoreRoad Flyover from the market to Goripalya is in Pakistan, not in India. This is the reality... However strict an officer you send, he will be beaten. This is not on any channel.” A purported video clip of the judgemakingtheseremarkshas been widely shared on social media. The judge’s remarks began with a discussion on the intricacies of certain provisions of the Rent Control Act, and then CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Keeping Kajju alive: Shimla zoo faces tough call on snow leopard with cancer PAGE 1 ANCHOR SAURABH PARASHAR SHIMLA, SEPTEMBER 19 AT THE Himalayan Nature Park in Himachal Pradesh’s Kufri hill station, wildlife officials and veterinariansare working overtime to keep Kajju alive. The only snow leopard in captivityinthestate,Kajjugotits name from the remote village of Kaza in Lahaul & Spiti, from where it was rescued in November 2023. But osteosar- coma, a malignant form of bone cancer,hasmeanttheanimalhas spent the majority of its time at theNatureParkundertreatment. According to officials, the animal is currently quarantined in the isolation ward of the veterinary hospital at the nature park, informally called Shimla’s Kufri Zoo.Thebigcatisreceivingpalliativecareaftercancerwasdetected in its front left leg, which was wounded when it was rescued. BesidestheKufriZoo,theonly otherplacewheresnowleopards, whichareaSchedule-1protected species, are kept is the Padmaja NaiduHimalayanZoologicalPark (PNHZP) in Darjeeling. Visitorshadthrongedthezoo whenwordspreadthatarescued snow leopard was its newest occupant,hopingtocatchaglimpse of the animal, dubbed the ghost of the mountains. “Kufri Zoo was known for havingsnowleopardsuntil2014. Sibling snow leopards, Subhash andSapna,werebroughttoKufri fromDarjeelingunderananimal exchange programme in 2004. Sapnadiedin2007,andSubhash was sent back to PNHZP in Darjeeling in 2014. In 2019, a proposal was made to bring a pair of snow leopards from Darjeeling, but it never materialised. When Kajju was brought Kajju, the only snow leopard in captivity in Himachal, has bone cancer in one of its forelegs. Saurabh Parashar here, hope had emerged that it might stay for a long time and could be put on display after completing formalities. But this discovery has dashed all hopes,” a zookeeper said. DeputyConservatorof Forest Wildlife, Shahnawaz Ahmed Bhat, said: “Indeed, we recommended the amputation of the affectedlimbafortnightago,but there are many complications. The foremost is Kajju’s age. The snow leopard has already attained the average age of 15 years, making it vulnerable to anaesthesia. We recommended itstreatmentatPalampurCollege of Veterinary and Animal Science, where gas anaesthesia facilities are available. Another complication is the malignant nature of the cancer. There are also chances that if the amputation is performed, the animal, due to its old age, will be vulnerable to infection. A committee chaired by the Chief Wildlife Wardenwilldecidewhetheramputationshouldbeperformedor if the animal should continue to be on medication. The animal is inpalliativecare,receivingmedicines to reduce the pain.” “In Shimla, we can only administer anesthesia through injection, but an animal like Kajju would not be able to recover. At Palampur institute, there is an inhaled anesthesia facility, whichallowsveterinarianstoremovethemaskwhenitisnotrequired,” explained an IFS officer. A veterinary officer treating the animal told The Indian Express: “The snow leopard was in conflict when it was rescued from a village situated at high altitude in Kaza. It had been stealing mountain goats from the villagers’ sheds, creating panic. At thetimeof rescue,itwasinjured, with a deep wound on its left foreleg. We brought it here hopingtoreleaseitbackintothewild after treatment. But the wound CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Kolkata