The editorial Page: a new moment in which mass mobilisation meets an immovable state 8 SATURDAY, OCTOBER 10, 2026 JournaliSm of CouraGe AHMEDAbAD, lAtE CIty, 22 pAGES ₹6.00 l www.indianexpress.com DA I ly F r O M : A H M E DA b A D , C H A N D I GA r H , D E l H I , J A I p u r , KO l K AtA , l u C K N O w , M u M b A I , N AG p u r , pAt N A , p u N E , vA D O DA r A happening today lCJI Surya Kant will inaugurate a two-day national consultation to assess the implementation of the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015 and identify priorities for strengthening child protection and juvenile justice. Delhi locks down to block Deeply offensive, do not advance shared protests seeking CEC exit ambitions: India TruMP aDMN MOVeS aGaINST IT FIrMS lThe 16Th Hockey India Senior 245 trains to and from Delhi cancelled; 45 Metro stations shut Track These and more on www.indianexpress.com Pragynesh, Mahender Singh Manral, alok Singh, Sakshi Chand, Dheeraj Mishra & Devansh Mittal Men National Championship kicks off with 29 teams. JNusacksCong MP-Profafter probeintosexual harassment allegations angomcha bimol akoijam was a professor at the school of social sciences in Jnu Vikas Pathak & Gayathri Mani New Delhi, October 9 THE JAWAHARlAl Nehru University (JNU) Friday dismissed Professor Angomcha Bimol Akoijam of the School of SocialSciencesfollowinganinquiry by the university’s internal committee into allegations of sexual harassment. AkoijamisalsotheCongress lok Sabha MP from Inner Manipur.Officialssaidthataround 10-12 students from the Centre for Study of Social Systems had filed a sexual harassment complaint against him. AnorderbyViceChancellor Santishree D Pandit stated: “Whereas, an inquiry was conductedbytheInternalCommittee(IC)againstProf.Angomcha BimolAkoijamofCentreforthe StudyofSocialSystems,School of Social Sciences, pursuant to allegations of sexual harassment… and based on the findings, the Internal Committee (IC) recommended major punishment to Prof. Angomcha Bimol Akoijam, as per service rules… and by invoking Rule 11(ix) of Central Civil Services (Classification,ControlandAppeal) Rules.” She said that upon following the due process and considering all available facts and as per the report of the internal committee, “the punishment of dismissal from the services »CONTINueD ON PaGe 2 inside page 12 barricades on key roads, city entry points under watch FORTY FIVE stations on the Delhi Metro network were closed, at least 245 trains arriving at or leaving New Delhi and Hazrat Nizamuddin stations werecancelled,mobileInternet was shut down in a large part of Central Delhi, and layers of barricades were put up across the streets of the Capital and at its borders as the government movedtofortifythecityagainst the protest called on Saturday by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP)andtheAllIndiaStudents’ Association (AISA) to demand theresignationofChiefElection CommissionerGyaneshKumar. On Friday evening, at least 30,000 police and paramilitary forces had thrown an unprecedented multi-level security blanket over Delhi. Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan wrote to all states and UnionTerritoriestosaythatthe government had prohibited »CONTINueD ON PaGe 2 more reports, p7, 15 Business as usual By EP UNNY Shubhajit roy & Divya a New Delhi, October 9 Police place barricades at vijay chowk as part of security arrangements on friday, a day before protests at Jantar mantar. AbHINAv SAHA Trains ran on time even SC to Govt: Ensure Metro, during Emergency: CJP’s trains not halted fully, can’t Dipke slams clampdown express News Service use hammer to kill a fly ‘DON’T INCONVeNIeNCe CITIZeNS’ ananthakrishnan G New Delhi, October 9 ExPRESSING CONCERN over the closure of 57 Metro stations — later revised to 45 — in the Capital and cancellation of several Delhi-bound trains as part of security measures ahead of Saturday’s Cockroach Janta Party protest to press for the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh presidentacceptedoppstatementon‘vote chori’,toldustobringproof,saysrahul Kumar, the Supreme Court Friday reminded authorities about the “principle of proportionality” and said while they can take steps “it does not mean that you will use a hammer to kill a fly”. The bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V Mohana directed the governmenttoensurethatthereis“no CAllING THE cancellation of trains to Delhi a curb on citizen rights, Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke Friday said the situation was “worse than the Emergency” when “at least trains were running on time”. Speaking at loksamvad, an event organised in Mumbai by The Indian Express Group’s l securityblanketoncapital police from October 8-12. l LIquOr STOreS in Delhi shut Friday and Saturday. l hOTeLS, GueST hOuSeS aND OyO rOOMS in and around Central Delhi as well as in parts of South and North Delhi asked to shut or restrict fresh bookings. l 221 COMPaNIeS of CApF and including five all-women paramilitary companies, will assist Delhi l MObILe INTerNeT connectivity was shut down in a large part of Central Delhi. explained Widening of crackdown The latest US action is a clear broadening of crackdown on foreign workers that has become a central policy under Trump. Technology and IT services companies are facing greater scrutiny over their reliance on foreign workers. US authorities have stepped up probe into alleged misuse of H-1B and PERM programmes. gest IT outsourcing firms in the world from the Permanent labour Certification Programme. »CONTINueD ON PaGe 12 the world 2026 nobel Prize peace NaVaNeTheM ‘NaVI’ PILLay putin voWs closer ties With Why the jurist’s work matters for a world former soviet facing ‘existential neighBours page 19 challenges’ explained, p 16 BJP wins West Bengal bypolls: Record margin MP police remove protesters from in Nandigram, surprise trains to Delhi, detentions in Gujarat victory in Rejinagar »CONTINueD ON PaGe 2 »CONTINueD ON PaGe 2 Bhopal, Pune, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, October 9 india bloc leaders after their meeting with the President at rashtrapati bhavan, friday. AbHINAv SAHA rePorT, page 15 THE US decision to suspend eightITfirms,includingMicrosoft,TataConsultancyServices, Infosys and Wipro, from a programme to apply for green cards for foreign workers drew a sharp response from India Friday which said the steps announced “do not advance the shared ambitions” of both countries. On US Vice President J D Vance referring to foreign workers hired on H1-B visas as “foreign indentured servants”, the Ministry of External Affairs said “resorting to terminology that carries painful historical and colonial legacy connotations is deeply offensive”. Delhi’s response came hours after the US administrationsuspendedsomeofthelar- Mumbai, New Delhi, Oct 9 express News Service l 245 trains arriving at or leaving New Delhi and Hazrat Nizamuddin stations were cancelled, on Vance, US steps Do not view immigration, skilled talent mobility through same lens: Nasscom New Delhi, October 9 l 45 MeTrO stations shut from 9 pm Friday until further notice. noida airport to Be renamed after pm modi centre alerts all states, detention centres across Delhi AHEAD OF the Cockroach Janta Party’s Saturday protest intheCapital,policeinMadhya Pradesh intercepted and removed Delhi-bound protesters at Bhopal, Itarsi and Gwalior railway stations, with a senior Madhya Pradesh police officer a videograb of protesters being forced to alight a train at itarsi railway station cJP founder abhijeet dipke at loksamvad, an event in mumbai by loksatta. GANESH SHIrSEKAr saying at least 30 people had been detained and were counselled to return to their home states. “We have removed the protesters(fromthetrains),”theofficer said, adding that those intercepted included people travelling from Goa, Karnataka and Maharashtra. On Friday, the detention of »CONTINueD ON PaGe 2 Admitting ‘instances of bulk Form 7 filing for voter deletion’, EC sets limit express News Service New Delhi, October 9 NOTING THAT “instances” of filing of bulk Form 7s had led to “avoidable inconvenience” to voters, the Election Commission of India (ECI) Friday tightenedlimitsonthenumber of applications that can be sub- mittedbyindividuals.Form7is the statutory form to seek deletion of an elector or file objection to the inclusion of a name in the electoral roll. In instructions issued to Chief Electoral Officers of all states and Union Territories, the ECI has put a limit of 10 Form 7s per individual, in both online and offline mode, during the claims and objections period of the revision process, andfivepermonthduringcontinuous updation of electoral rolls in the normal course. While the ECI already caps the number of online Form 7s an individual can file to six at a »CONTINueD ON PaGe 2 bJP workers celebrate party’s win in nandigram bypoll, friday. ANI ravik bhattacharya Kolkata, October 9 THE BJP Friday retained Nandigram by a record margin and scored a surprise win in the minority-dominated Rejinagar, underlining its expanding political footprint in West Bengal as a fragmented Opposition struggled to challenge the rulingpartyinitsfirstelectoraltest inside page 13 BloW to aiudf chief, BJp Wins nagaon seat since it came to power five months ago. The BJP won the Nandigram Assembly bypoll by 1.22 lakh votes, consolidating its »CONTINueD ON PaGe 2 l The elecTion will see 130 candidaTes in The fray for 11 wards wiTh half of The 44 seaTs reserved for women; resulTs To be declared on ocTober 13 3-way contest or one-sided fight? Gandhinagar civic body to decide on Sunday Parimal a Dabhi BJP won by a majority. The Congress won the first election in 2011; in the second it was in a ON SUNDAY, Gujarat will wit- tie with the BJP and in 2021 the nesselectionstotheGandhina- BJP swept the polls – winning gar Municipal Cor41 of 44 seats but poration (GMC) — eventuallytwoofthe page 1 whichisthesmallest Congress corporinthestatewithonly ators defected, leav44 seats — but governs over a ing the lone Aam Aadmi Party capital city. (AAP) corporator Tushar PaSinceitsformation(asamu- rikh in the Opposition. nicipal corporation) in 2010, This time, exercising cauGandhinagarvotershaverarely tion, the Congress shifted all its voted one way and defections 44 candidates away to “undisdecided who rules till the pre- closed locations” outside Ganviouselectionin2021,whenthe dhinagar until the deadline for Ahmedabad, October 9 anchor withdrawing nominations. Gandhinagar city Congress presidentShaktikumarPatelalleged that all the candidates, their supporters and proposers were shifted to various locations since they were being “pressured to withdraw at the instance of local BJP leaders of their respective areas. They (BJP leaders) were doing this with an intention to win 3-4 wards uncontested.” Asked how the party would try to ensure that candidates don't defect after getting elected, Patel said, “We have bJP candidates and supporters as campaigning ended on friday; the bJP and congress are in a direct fight on 12 seats . ExprESS taken a Bharosa Patra (undertakingoftrust)fromeachofour 44 candidates in the form of an affidavit, stating that they will not defect to the BJP after the election. On the basis of that, I am confident that none of our members will switch sides to the BJP.” Meanwhile, one of the AAP candidates from Ward No. 7, RahulVaghela,hasdeclaredhis support to the BJP. AAP leaders, however, have alleged that he was threatened at the behest of the BJP, following which he has “withdrawn” Ahmedabad from the contest. When contacted by The Indian Express, Rahul Vaghela did not elaborateonthereasonsforhissupporting the BJP. TheBJPandCongressarein a direct fight on 12 seats where AAPhasnocandidatesafterthe State Election Commission rejected four nominations and five withdrew their nominations. The party has not fielded candidates in the remaining three seats. The Congress and BJP have candidates on all 44 seatswhileAAPhason32seats. AAP leaders have alleged that their candidates withdrew nominations “under pressure from the BJP.” The BJP has denied the allegations. Promises of 'Sports Capital, GenZ City' Releasing the BJP's manifesto on Thursday, Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghavi creditedtheBJPforturningthe city's identity from a “Sachivalay Shaher” (City of the Secretariat) to a “City of Conferences”, referring to the Mahatma Mandir Convention »CONTINueD ON PaGe 14