DAILY FROM: AHMEDABAD, CHANDIGARH, DELHI, JAIPUR, KOLKATA, LUCKNOW, MUMBAI, NAGPUR, PUNE, VADODARA BY UNNY SECTION 6A OF CITIZENSHIP ACT VALID: MAJORITY RULING 4-1, SC upholds citizenship provision for migrants to Assam from East Pak THE WORLD SC upholds Parliament primacy, flags fraternity as key factor too APURVA VISHWANATH NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 17 PAGE 12 EXPLAINED LAW 4 ISSUESINASSAM VERDICT PAGE 13 `6.00 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM SINCE 1932 Bench calls for strict implementation of laws against illegal migration The five-judge Constitution Bench headed by Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud ANANTHAKRISHNAN G NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 17 UPHOLDING THE Constitutional validity of Section 6A of the Citizenship Act, 1955, which essentially sets March 24, 1971 as the cut-off date for entry into Assamforgrantofcitizenship,the Supreme Court Thursday called for stricter implementation of laws against illegal immigration andjudicialmonitoringoftheimplementationofimmigrationand citizenship legislations. In a 4-1 ruling by a Constitution Bench, the majority verdict by Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud and Justices Surya Kant, M M Sundresh and Manoj Misra upheld the Constitutional validity of Section 6A and ruled that “immigrants who entered the State of Assam on or after 25.03.1971arenotentitledtothe protectionconferredvideSection 6Aandconsequently,theyaredeclared to be illegal immigrants”. In his dissenting opinion, Justice J B Pardiwala found “seriousproblems”inthe“mechanism by which the implementation of Section 6A is to take place” and held the provision “invalid with prospective effect”. That is to say, “ifsomeoneisapprehendedasan illegal immigrant after the pronouncement of this judgment, Section 6A of the Citizenship Act will have no application”. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 clusive view on who is a citizen. “Our reading of the Constitution and precedents is thatfraternityrequirespeopleof differentbackgroundsandsocial circumstances to ‘live and let live’,” stated the majority view by Justice Surya Kant. On Section 6A of the ● Citizenship Act, which introduced a cut-off date specifically under the Assam Accord, the Court, while E BYFRAMINGthefraughtcitizenship question in Constitutional definitions of fraternity and plurality and firmly establishing the cut-off date for citizenship of thoseinAssamasMarch 24, 1971, the Supreme Court’s rulingThursdaypushesforanin- EXPLAINED ONE DIRECTION’S LIAM PAYNE DIES AFTER ‘FALL’ FROM HOTEL BALCONY BANGLA TRIBUNAL ISSUES WARRANT AGAINST HASINA POSTAL REGN. NO. JAIPUR CITY/001/2024-26 JOURNALISM OF COURAGE FRIDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2024, JAIPUR, LATE CITY, 16 PAGES BUSINESS AS USUAL ● upholding it, said that citizenship cannot be interpreted in “a negativemannerthatselectively appliesittoaparticularsegment while labelling another faction as ‘illegal immigrants’.” In his opinion, concurring with the majority view, Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud said that while the Constitution recognises a “right to conserve culture,” the provision must be readinlightofthe“multi-cultural CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 The dissent: Passage of time made Section invalid, more prone to abuse ANANTHAKRISHNAN G Justice J B Pardiwala gave a dissenting opinion NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 17 DECLARING SECTION 6A of the Citizenship Act, 1955 invalid with prospective effect, Justice J B Pardiwala, in his dissenting judgement, said the provision is “manifestly arbitrary” and “in the absence of any temporal limit to its application, with the efflux of time is rather counterserving the object with which it was enacted.” He said the “open-ended na- ture of Section 6A has, with the passage of time, become more prone to abuse” and “promotes further immigration into Assam – immigrantscome hopingwith forged documents to set up the defence of belonging to pre1966 or the 1966-71 stream uponidentificationasaforeigner and reference to the tribunal”. DealingwithSection6A(3)of CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Shraddha Kapoor to unveil Screen; will be face of first digital cover Shraddha Kapoor CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 SHUBHAJIT ROY LAHORE, OCTOBER 17 UNDERLINING THAT India and Pakistan should “bury the past” and “think of the future”, former Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif Thursday said External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar’s visit to Islamabad for the SCO meetingwasa“goodbeginning” and a “good opening” and the twocountries“shouldmoveforward from here”. Sharif, brother of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and chief of the PML(N) which leads the ruling coalition, told a group of visiting Indian journalists: “Baat jo hai aise hi badhti hai… baat khatam nahi honi chahiye… achcha hota agar Modi saab khud tashreef laate (This is how talks move forward, talks should not stop, it would have been better if Mr(Narendra)Modihadcome himself)” for the SCO meeting. Sharif met the journalists at Former Pak PM Nawaz Sharif theofficeof theChief Ministerof PakistanPunjabwhere Maryam Nawaz Sharif, his daughter and CM, was present. Statingthatthey“shouldpick up the threads where we left” — he was referring to his meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi who made a sudden visit to Pakistan in December 2015 — Sharif said, “We have lost 75 years, now (we) should think of the next 75 years.” “I tried to mend the relationship, but they were disrupted again and again,” he said – the disruptions were a reference to the Kargil war and the attacks in India by Pakistan-based terrorists following his meetings with CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Hamas leader Sinwar, architect of October 7 attack, killed in Gaza: Israeli forces confirm DEIR AL-BALAH (GAZA STRIP), OCTOBER 17 MUMBAI, OCTOBER 17 dustry closely over the decades, willnowbebackinanewavatar. Aftertheunveilingof thedigitalcover,theeventwillhosttwo panel discussions. 'Screen Live' will see Shraddha take centre stageasshediscussesherlife,career and stardom, especially afterthesuccessof Stree2,thehorror-comedythatmadehistoryat Wants Modi to visit Pak, says ‘let’s pick up the threads where we left’ ASSOCIATED PRESS EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE BOLLYWOOD ACTOR Shraddha Kapoor will unveil The Indian Express's iconic film magazine Screen on Friday. The unveiling of Screen, which returns to the group after 11 years, will kick off with its first-ever digital cover featuring the Stree 2 star. Theevent,whichwillbeheld at the Four Seasons Hotel in Worli,willalsofeaturecelebrated namesfromtheHindifilmindustry, including filmmaker Rajkumar Hirani, and actors VikrantMasseyandVijayVarma. Screen has been a leading voice in Indian entertainment since1949.Themagazine,which has covered the Indian film in- Nawaz: Jaishankar visit good opening, India & Pak need to move forward SAINI IS HARYANA CM AGAIN Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Haryana Governor Bandaru Dattatreya, Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini and others at the swearing-in ceremony of the new state government, in Panchkula on Thursday. Jasbir Malhi REPORT,PAGE5 FOILED PLOT TO KILL PANNUN Person listed in US indictment no longer with Govt: MEA, State Dept EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 17 IN THE first official confirmation, both India and the United States onThursdaysaidapersonidentified as “CC1” in the US Department of Justice (DOJ) indictment — linked to an alleged plot to kill US-based Khalistan separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun—was“nolongeranem- Gurpatwant Singh Pannun ployeeoftheIndiangovernment”. The Ministry of External Affairs' spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal also confirmed the visit of the high-level Indian enquiry committee -- established to review the evidence shared by the USgovernmentregardingthealleged involvement of Indian nationalNikhilGuptaandanIndian official in the Pannun plot. The visit was first announced by the US on Monday. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 RELATED REPORT PAGE 6 ISRAELI FORCES in Gaza killed Hamas’ top leader Yahya Sinwar, a chief architect of last year’s attack on Israel that sparked the war, the military said Thursday. Troops appeared to have run acrosshiminabattle,onlytodiscover afterwards that a body in the rubble was the man Israel has hunted for more than a year. Sinwar has topped Israel’s mostwantedlistsincethebeginningof theIsrael-Hamaswarjust over a year ago, and his killing strikes a powerful blow to the militantgroup.Therewasnoimmediate confirmation from Hamas of his death. The military confirmed Sinwar’s death after conducting DNA and other tests on a body thatitsaidwasamongthreemilitants killed Wednesday during Yahya Sinwar operations in Gaza. Foreign Minister Katz called Sinwar’s killing a “military and moral achievement for the Israeli army,” saying it would “create the possibility to immediately release the hostages.” AnIsraelisecurityofficialsaid it appeared that the man who turned out to be Sinwar was killedinabattle,notinaplanned CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 DETAILED REPORT PAGE 12 JNU plans Shivaji centre: Lessons from his era on Akhand Bharat VIDHEESHA KUNTAMALLA NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 17 THE JAWAHARLAL Nehru University (JNU) is planning to start a 'Centre of Excellence' named after Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj,whichwilldrawlessons from his era to understand the “concept of Akhand Bharat” and his“struggleforHindaviSwaraj”, The Indian Express has learnt. The Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Centre for Security & Strategic Studies in the School of InternationalStudies,whichwill besupportedbytheMaharashtra government,willfocusonteaching Indian strategic thought, Marathamilitaryhistory,Shivaji’s naval strategy and guerilla warfare among other subjects, accordingtotheproposalreviewed by The Indian Express. The centre is expected to offer diploma, undergraduate and postgraduate courses starting July 2025. When contacted, Professor Amitabh Mattoo, Dean of School of International Studies at JNU, told The Indian Express: “The idea tostartthecentreoriginatedfrom theVice-Chancellorandsomefacultymembers…TheMaharashtra government too wanted to commemorate the thinking of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and hismaritimestrategieswhichare internationally recognised.” Asked why Shivaji was chosen, Mattoo said: “The mandate of the school is to teach security CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 10 yrs ago, how Delhi HC helped a boy with rare disease live, dream PAGE 1 ANCHOR SOHINI GHOSH NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 17 SITTING ON the ground floor of his house in Ranhola, Delhi's dust bowl where industrial chimneys paint the skies sooty black, MohammadAhmed, 17, is studying before dinner. A decade ago, then sevenyear-old Ahmed, who suffers from Gaucher’s disease (GD), was pleading before the Delhi High Court that he wanted to be “alive” to live his dream — to serve in the Army. The teenager, who has been receiving free enzyme replacement therapy for his rare disease since a 2014 verdict, tells The IndianExpress,“IrealisedthatjoiningtheArmywasimpracticalbecause I probably would not pass the physical test. The next best thing, I thought, was to become a doctor because doctors are the reason why I am alive today.” Just like it had in Ahmed’s case a decade ago, on October 4 this year, the court came to the rescue of over 100 persons suffering from rare diseases across the country. Issuing a slew of di- rections,startingwithaskingthe Centre to set up a corpus of Rs 974 crore to be utilised for the treatment and other needs of those suffering from rare diseases, the court relied on Ahmed’s 2014 case, Mohd Ahmed(Minor)v.Unionof India, to establish that the “right to health is part of right to life”. Back at their two-storey house, Ahmed’s parents praised the recent court directive as “good”. Recalling his own struggle, Ahmed’s father Sirajuddin says, “The 2014 verdict and our advocate Ashok Aggarwal came as divine intervention for my wife and me because they al- Mohammad Ahmed with his father Sirajuddin and his mother Anwari Begum at their Delhi house. Amit Mehra lowed our son to live. We had lost five children before Ahmed got the help he needed.” Gaucher’s Disease (GD) is a rare genetic disorder caused by thedeficiency of anenzymethat helps break down fats in cells. The disease affects vital organs anditssymptomsincludedevelopmental delays, seizures, dementia,blindness,enlargedliver and spleen, pulmonary and cardiac problems, and abnormal bone growth. While there is no cure for GD, treatments like enzymereplacementtherapy,substrate reduction therapy, bone marrowtransplant,etc.,helppatients manage its symptoms. Jaipur Ahmed’s mother Anwari Begumsayshewasfouryearsold whenhewasdiagnosedwithGD at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Delhi. The diagnosis, she says, saw her husband,whodroveanautorickshawthen,runfrompillartopost — including making representations, doing rounds of hospitals and seeking recommendations from elected representatives — to get help for their son’s treatment. In 2012, the Delhi government finally gave Rs 4.80 lakh as a“one-timerelief”,enablingthen five-year-old Ahmed to receive his first dose of therapy. The amountcoveredonlyonemonth of therapy, whereas Ahmed requires it all his life. HissisterAarzuTamanna,21, says her father, now an Urdu tutor, approached the Delhi High Court in 2013. “I remember he was worried for months about how he would pay for Ahmed’s therapy. I recall seeing him exhausted and in tears, almost giving up... Ahmed used to be very sick and would go to school just once a week then. The school wouldkeepwonderingabouthis absence. There was very little awarenessaboutGDthen.When everything failed, my father moved the Delhi High Court,” CONTINUED ON PAGE 2