www.indianeXPress.coM The Chutney Chronicles How a little chutney on the plate holds stories of region, season, thrift and memory KolKaTa, SePTeMBer 20, 2026 bOOkS With The Actor,, journalist and The Indian Express columnist Tavleen Singh turns to fiction to chart the journey of a nation late city 12+4 Pages ₹7.00 (₹12 in northeast states, ₹20 in andaMan) d a i l y f r o M : Happening today lAAP will lAuncha door-todoor campaign in Punjab to highlight the work of the Mann government ahead of 2027 polls. congnandigram candidatesent to14-dayjudicial custody;‘won’t backoff’:Party Atri Mitra Kolkata, September 19 The Congress’ nandigram bypoll candidate Milan Pradhan was sent to 14-day judicial custody till october 3 by a local court on saturday, a day after his arrest on multiple charges, including murder, that date back to 2007, the year when nandigram was rocked by an agitation over land acquisition. In a statement, the Purba Medinipur district police said Pradhan was arrested within the Chandipur police station limits on the basis of four pending non-bailable warrants in connection with cases — involving charges that include murder, attempt to murder, abduction with intent to murder, causing disappearance of evidence, house trespass, rioting with arms and deadly weapons — registered at nandigram and Khejuri police stations. “The arrested person had been absconding and evading »cOnTinuED On PAGE 2 a h M e d a b a d , c h a n d i g a r h , d e l h i , j a i P u r , k o l k a t a , l u c k n o w , M u M b a i , n a g P u r , P a t n a , P u n e , v a d o d a r a linDSEY O GRAhAM SAncTiOninG RuSSiA AnD iRAn AcT 2026 Trump signs Russia sanction bill giving him power to levy 100% tariffs on India Not feasible to replace Russian oil given West Asia chokehold due to Iran war, India expected to push for waivers, say experts Pratyush Deep, Ravi Dutta Mishra & Sukalp Sharma New Delhi, September 19 UsPresIDenTDonaldTrump FridaysignedintolawtheLindsey o. graham sanctioning russiaandIranActof2026,giving himself the authority to impose tariffs of up to 100% on countries, including India and China, that continue buying russian oil and gas. The law “authorizes and expands statutory sanctions, tariffs, and prohibitions on russia and extends existing sanctions lindia’soilimportsfromRussiathisyear Month january february March april May june july august Oil imports from Total oil imports Share of Russia (Mn bPD) (Mn bPD) Russian oil (%) 1.21 5.19 23.3 1.08 5.25 20.6 2.08 4.44 46.8 1.72 4.56 37.7 2.08 4.92 42.3 2.71 5.06 53.6 2.82 5.04 56 2.08 4.62 45 source: kPler on Iran,” the White house said in a statement. The Act is named to honour a veteran re- publican senator and a russia hawk who died in July. »cOnTinuED On PAGE 2 View in Delhi: Another tool of leverage, double standards on uranium Pratyush Deep & Ravi Dutta Mishra New Delhi, September 19 The neW Us law that empowers President Donald Trump to impose tariffs of up to 100% on buyers of russian oil and gas is being seen in new Delhi asanotherinstrumentof leverage in Washington's arsenal even as the two countriesnegotiateatradedeal. The Lindsey o. graham sanctioning russia and Iran Act of 2026 puts major buyers of russian crude, including India and China, at risk. The timing is delicate. India-Us bilateral trade agreement talks are in their final leg, the ongoing war has severely disrupted energy markets, and Chinese President Xi Jinping’sfirstWhitehousevisit E. »cOnTinuED On PAGE 2 eXPRess investigation Part II Of 27 lakh deleted in Bengal what Bjp and Congress ignored in SIR adjudication, 22 lakh have filed appeals: EC to SC karnataka: ‘Bribes, withholding marks, Damini nath New Delhi, September 19 ForThefirsttime,theelection Commission (eC) has informed the supreme Court that of the over38lakhappealsfiledagainst inclusions and exclusions from the West Bengal electoral rolls duringtheadjudicationprocess ofthespecialIntensiverevision (sIr), over 22 lakh appeals were »cOnTinuED On PAGE 2 inside paGe 3 leaking papers’ for government jobs Jay Mazoomdaar Bengaluru, September 19 Delhi SiR: Cm Rekha Gupta, kejRiwal in ‘DiSCRepanCieS’ liSt MArKs WIThheLD and top scorers targeted for bribes; interview panels manipulated; tabulation records altered; answer sheets tampered with; and question papers leaked to select candidates. These were some of the al- The Express report dated Sept 19 on irregularities in KPSC under Shivashankarappa Sahukar leged irregularities flagged by job aspirants and, most significantly, officials within the KarnatakaPublicserviceCommission (KPsC) in internal notes and complaints alleging serious manipulation in the recruitment process going back at least five years. These warnings were buried, first under a »cOnTinuED On PAGE 2 Kolkata After troubled build-up, Japan welcomes Asia with tradition and tech eXPRess AT AsiAn GAmes Mihir Vasavda Nagoya, September 19 The nAgoyA Castle began to float. slowly at first, the goldenroofed castle emerged above the stage, suspended in midair. Then nakamura Kankuro, a Japanese actor, appeared alongside it, before the music exploded and he launched into renjishi, the traditional Manu Bhaker, Pawan Sehrawat lead the India contingent in Nagoya, Saturday. Pti Kabuki dance. For a city that has spent »cOnTinuED On PAGE 2