DAILY FROM: AHMEDABAD, CHANDIGARH, DELHI, JAIPUR, KOLKATA, LUCKNOW, MUMBAI, NAGPUR, PUNE, VADODARA JOURNALISM OF COURAGE WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2024, KOLKATA, LATE CITY, 16 PAGES SINCE 1932 `6.00 (`12 IN NORTH EAST STATES, `17 IN ANDAMAN) WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM CONGRESS GROPES FOR ANSWER AFTER DEFEAT IN HARYANA, OMAR SET TO BE J&K CM AT HEAD OF NC-CONG ALLIANCE BJP gets post-240 booster shot ■ JAMMU AND KASHMIR: In first Assembly election since the end of erstwhile ■ HARYANA: A record third consecutive term for the BJP govt, upsetting Cong state’s special status, NC-led coalition set to form govt; BJP emerges as main Opp expectations and calculations; Modi hails Haryana victory as Saini returns Leg-up for BJP ahead of Maharashtra and Jharkhand polls; task cut out for Congress MANOJ C G & LIZ MATHEW BUSINESS AS USUAL NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 8 IF A week is a long time in politics, even a day can shape perceptions — and larger political narratives. Tuesday was such a day for the BJP: four months afteritsufferedasetbackintheLok Sabha elections losing seats in several north Indian states, falling to 240 from 303, and prompting the Congress and the Opposition to celebrate, the ruling party created history in Haryana registering a resounding victory that would give it a third term in power there. It also improved its tally in Jammu and Kashmir and, more importantly, its government at the Centre claimed credit for ensuring that elections were held andthatanelectedUTAssembly was in place — its powers severely limited — for the first time since the state was split and its special status abrogated. The verdict holds multiple messages. The Congress hoped a victory in Haryana would have strengthened its narrative that the BJP was losing its grip. And that the Congress — as also the INDIA bloc — is reviving under Rahul Gandhi with his aggressive focus on caste mobilisation. A 240-rattled BJP, on the other hand, wanted a win to dispel the perception that June 4 had pushed it onto the backfoot. The BJP managed to dispel both, the Congress made noises like a sore loser. BY UNNY PM Narendra Modi and BJP chief J P Nadda at the party headquarters, Tuesday. Tashi Tobgyal Theprimarymessageofthese elections—thefirsttobeheldafter the Lok Sabha polls — is that the BJP machinery still retains its corevotesandtheCongresshasa long way to go before it can unseat the BJP in what has become its strongholds in the 2014-2023 period. In Haryana, a state the Congress was sure of winning — almost all ● exit polls predicted this — and cried foulafter its defeat,theBJPseemedsettowin 48 of the 90 seats, with the Congress at 37. Even in terms of vote share, the BJP, with 39.94% votes, was abovetheCongress’s39.09%.The Haryana victory of the BJP is also significant given the aggressive attack that the Congress and the opposition had been waging against it over caste. The BJP has managed to counter the perception that OBC EXPLAINED E CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 National Conference leader Omar Abdullah after winning from Budgam, Tuesday. AP PM: Slap to Cong plot to divide over caste, will echo elsewhere Back in J&K with hands tied, Omar says vote for statehood, development VIKAS PATHAK NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 8 HAILING HIS party’s victory in Haryana as the “people’s answer” to a Congress “conspiracy todividethecountryongrounds of caste” and “defame Indian democracy and its institutions”, Prime Minister Narendra Modi Tuesday also slammed the Congress for refusing to accept theHaryanapollresults,sayingit had questioned the neutrality of the Election Commission even during the Lok Sabha elections. AddressingBJPworkersatthe partyheadquartersinNewDelhi, Modi said, “The message is clear that this conspiracy to divide the nationwon’twork.Inrecentdays, there have been many conspiracies against India’s democracy, economy and social cohesion. HARYANA BJP 48 INLD Others INC 2 3 37 (40) (1) (8) (31) 2019 seats in parentheses VOTE SHARE IN % (2024) 39.94 39.09 20.97 There are global conspiracies against these. I say with responsibilitytodaythattheCongressis part of this game. Nationalist Haryana has given a resounding slaptotheconspirators.Wehave to resolve not to allow any such conspiracy to succeed.” “Congress wants a society where people hate their own heritage. It wants to project in a bad light all that people of the countryareproudof.Beitanyinstitution, the Congress wants to defame it. They and their Urban Naxal friends went to the judiciary to defame the Election Commission. They have done the same thing today. It wants to defame our institutions. The Congress shamelessly commits such deeds,” he said. AccusingtheCongressof tryingtodividethecountryoncaste lines,hesaid,“Tocometopower, it can divide the country. Today the country is seeing how the Congress wants to divide the poor on grounds of caste. People with silver and golden spoons want to make people fight over CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 NAVEED IQBAL SRINAGAR, OCTOBER 8 ONE OF THE most evocative images in the Assembly elections is thatof formerJ&KChief Minister Omar Abdullah holding out his signaturesoznicapinhishandat a campaign event in Ganderbal. Speaking in Kashmiri, Omar, humbledbytheLokSabhadefeat in the Baramulla seat, urged voters for “a chance to serve them”. On Tuesday, Omar secured decisivevictoriesinboththecentral Kashmir constituencies — Budgam and Ganderbal — from where he contested. Thanking the voters after the results, he said,“After2018,ademocraticset upwilltakechargeinJ&K.TheBJP tookaimatpoliticalpartiesfrom THE EDITORIAL PAGE TWO DECISIVE WINS, ONE SORE LOSER PAGE 10 JAMMU & KASHMIR NC INC BJP PDP Others 42 6 29 3 10 (15) (12) (25) (28) (7) 2014 seats in parentheses VOTE SHARE IN % (2024) 23.4 12 25.6 39 Kashmir, especially the National Conference, and tried to weaken us and attempted to create parties against us; these have been VERDICT 2024 FULL COVERAGE BIGWINFORNC, SHRUNKEN CONGRIDESON PDP ROUT IN VALLEY, DOWN TO 3 SEATS DYNASTS SCORE FOR BJP IN HARYANA PAGES 5, 7, 14 CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Its stalwarts admit defeat, Meet Chautala family’s winning duo: Anti-Jat consolidation to tickets: Behind BJP’s Haryana victory map Cong faults EVMs, does Arjun & Aditya, the new INLD faces not accept Haryana result LIZ MATHEW & MANRAJ GREWAL SHARMA EVM battery charge absurd: EC sources NEW DELHI, CHANDIGARH, OCTOBER 8 WITH A historic third win in Haryana, the BJP has got just the boost it needed after finishing short of a majority in the Lok Sabha polls — and ahead of the coming Assembly elections. Facing huge anti-incumbency in Haryana, farmer and wrestler anger over long-lasting protests and discontent over the Agniveerscheme,theBJPspread out its bets in the state. While Prime Minister Narendra Modi pitchedinwithbigrallies,though headdressedjustfouragainst10 in2019,therewasequalemphasis on local leaders and the consolidation of anti-Jat votes. The Congress’s overarching emphasis on Jat vote appears to haveralliedtheothercommuni- THE WORLD ASAD REHMAN & DAMINI NATH NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 8 Haryana CM Nayab Singh Saini after his victory from Ladwa Assembly constituency, on Tuesday. PTI ties against the party. Even the Dalit vote, which the Congress hadbeenbankingonafteritssuccess in wooing them in the Lok Sabha polls, appears to have re- turned to some extent to the BJP. In its campaign narrative too, the BJP scored by putting Chief MinisterNayabSinghSainiatthe CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 ITS ELECTORAL expectations gone wrong in Haryana, the Congress Tuesday took the unprecedented step of declaring thatitwillnotaccepttheverdict, allegingtherewasa“conspiracy” hatchedthrough“manipulation” of Electronic Voting Machines. TheCongressallegation–itis the first time that a mainstream partyhassaiditwon’tacceptthe mandate alleging manipulation of EVMs — came even as its stalwarts in Haryana, Kumari Selja and Bhupinder Singh Hooda, conceded defeat with Selja targeting the Hooda camp for the loss. Hooda, on his part said, he would accept the results “under protest” although he was “surprised” by the outcome. Addressingapressconference at the AICC headquarters, Congress communication head JairamRameshsaid,“Iwouldlike to reiterate that the results in Haryanaareunexpected,surprisingandthatwedon’tacceptthem becausethisisadefeatofdemocracy and a win of the device.” He said the party has received “very serious complaints on the process of counting, the functioning of EVMs in at least three districts. There are more that are coming in.” “It (the verdict) goes against ground reality. It goes against what people in Haryana had made up their mind for…Under CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 SUKHBIR SIWACH CHANDIGARH, OCTOBER 8 EIGHT MEMBERS from former DeputyPrimeMinisterDeviLal’s clancontestedfromvariousconstituencies in the Haryana Assemblyelections,butonlytwo of them emerged as winners — Arjun Chautala and Aditya Devi Lal of the INLD. Arjun Chautala, 32, the younger son of the INLD’s senior leader Abhay Singh Chautala, won from the Rania seat, defeating the Congress’s Sarv Mitter, the BJP’s Shishpal Kamboj and the sitting MLA and BJP rebel Ranjit Chautala. Former power minister Ranjit Chautala, 79, is the younger brother of Arjun’s grandfather Om Prakash Chautala, who is the son of late Devi Lal. Ranjit contested as an Independent after being denied Arjun Chautala and (right) Aditya Devi Lal ticket by the BJP. In the 2019 Assembly polls, three members of the Chautala family — Dushyant Chautala of theJannayakJantaParty(JJP),his mother Naina Chautala and Ranjit — had proved successful. Arjun, who studied from Shimla’s Bishop Cotton School, hadcontestedthe2019LokSabha polls from Kurukshetra seat but endedupatfifthplace.Thistime, the INLD fielded him from Rania in Sirsa district, the traditional stronghold of the Chautalas. Arjun’s great grandfather Devi Lal, who started his politics from Sirsa, had ascended to the Deputy PM’s post while his son Om Prakash Chautala, the INLD chief,hasbeentheHaryanaChief Minister five times. Arjun’sfatherAbhay,61,isOm Prakash’s younger son. Abhay contestedfromEllenabadofSirsa district, but lost the election. Other Chautalas also tasted defeat. JJP leader and former Deputy CM Dushyant, 36, again contested from Uchana Kalan, but could not retain his seat. SunainaChautala,thedaughter-in-lawof DeviLal’seldestson PartapSinghChautala,contested unsuccessfully from Fatehabad as an INLD candidate. Arjun’s elder brother Karan Chautala is the chairperson of the Sirsa Zila Parishad. Both brothers had become active after the INLD faced a split in 2018, CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 RG KAR RAPE-MURDER: CHARGESHEET NAMES SANJAY ROY AS SOLE ACCUSED CBI lists 11 evidence: Roy’s DNA samples to victim’s blood on his clothes ATRI MITRA KOLKATA, OCTOBER 8 ISRAEL HAS KILLED HEZBOLLAH LEADER, HIS POTENTIAL REPLACEMENTS: NETANYAHU TRUMP SECRETLY STAYED IN TOUCH WITH PUTIN: BOOK PAGE 12 THE CENTRAL Bureau of Investigation, probing the rape and murder of a junior doctor at Kolkata’sRGKarMedicalCollege &Hospital,haslisted11piecesof evidence in its chargesheet to holdSanjayRoy,acivicvolunteer with Kolkata Police, as the sole accused in the case, it is learnt. In the 45-page chargesheet submitted to the Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate's court in Sealdah on Monday, the CBI is learnt to have said that the vic- tim’s blood was found on Roy’s jeans and shoes. Also, his hair and a Bluetooth earpiece that synced with his cellphone were foundfromthecrimescene–the seminar hall at RG Kar hospital – from where the woman’s body was found on the morning of August 9, it states. The report of a swab taken from the area around the crime scene showed the presence of Roy’s saliva as confirmed by the DNA report, it states, as per sources. The CBI has attached the forensic report and Roy's DNA report with the chargesheet. Doctors take part in a rally in support of junior medics’ protest in Kolkata, Tuesday. Partha Paul RELATEDREPORTS, P3 Sources in the CBI said they collected evidence from CCTV footage as well as the location of Roy’s phone through CDR (cell detail records) to show that he was present at RG Kar hospital andonthethirdflooroftheemergency building, the crime scene, during the night of August 8-9. According to sources, the chargesheet states that Roy’s bodyhadfivebluntforceinjuries that were consistent with marks of resistance or struggle by the victim. “The age of these injuries couldbebetween 24to36hours priortothemedicoexamination that were conducted following his arrest on August 10, a day after the rape and murder incident,” said a CBI officer. “The detection of his DNA fromthebodyofthevictim…The presence of blood stains of the victimonhisjeansandfootwear. A piece of short hair found from the scene of crime that matched with Roy… The pairing of one Bluetooth earphone found from the crime scene with the seized mobile phone of Roy. All these prove he committed the crime,” a CBI officer said. CBIsourcessaidRoyhasbeen charged under BNS sections 64 (rape), 66 (causing death or re- sulting in persistent vegetative state) and 103(1) (murder). The case has triggered widespread outrage and led to a prolonged strike by doctors across WestBengal.Roywasarrestedby KolkataPoliceadayaftertheincident.Theprobewassubsequently handed over to the CBI by the Calcutta High Court. On September 14, the CBI arrested Sandip Ghosh, the former principalofRGKarMedicalCollege,and Abhijit Mondol, the then officer in-chargeofTalalpolicestation,in connectionwithallegedtamperingofevidenceinthecaseandtrying to “hush up” the incident. Kolkata