DAILY FROM: AHMEDABAD, CHANDIGARH, DELHI, JAIPUR, KOLKATA, LUCKNOW, MUMBAI, NAGPUR, PUNE, VADODARA JOURNALISM OF COURAGE Modi Sarkar ki Guarantee Hamara Sankalp Viksit Bharat BUSINESS AS USUAL BY UNNY Scan for more information ‘BRIBERY IS NOT PROTECTED BY PARLIAMENTARY PRIVILEGE’ NEW DELHI, MARCH 4 EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, MARCH 4 REBUKING TAMIL Nadu minister Udhayanidhi Stalin for his “eradicate Sanatan Dharma” remark, the Supreme Court on Monday said he had abused his right to free speech. The two-judge bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta was hearing Udhayanidhi’s plea to club the FIRs filed in different states over his remarks. “You abuse your Article 19(1)(a) right (freedom of speech and expression). You abuseyour Article 25 right (freedom of conscience, freedom to profess, practice and propagate religion). Now, you are exercising your Article 32 right (to file plea in the Supreme Court directly)? Do you not know the consequences of what you said?,” Justice Dutta said. “You are not a layman. You are a minister. You should know the consequences,” he said. Appearing for the DMK leader,senioradvocateAbhishek ManuSinghvisaidhewasnotarguingonthemeritsofthematter, but only seeking to club the FIRs filedinsixstates.“Iwillsuffermy CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 MEMBERS OF Parliament and state legislatures who take bribes to vote or speak in a certainmannerintheHousearenot immune from prosecution, the Supreme Court said in a landmark order on Monday, overruling its 1998 judgment (JMM bribery case) which granted immunity to such lawmakers. “Bribery is not protected by parliamentary privilege,” the seven-judge Constitution Bench headedbyChief Justiceof IndiaD Y Chandrachud said in a unanimous ruling. “The Constitution APURVA VISHWANATH NEW DELHI, MARCH 4 The seven-judge Constitution Bench headed by Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud pronounces the verdict, Monday. PTI envisions probity in public life,” it said. “We disagree with and overrule the judgment of the majority (in the JMM bribery case),” said the bench, which included Justices A S Bopanna, M M Sundresh, P S Narasimha, J B Pardiwala, Sanjay Kumar and CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Job hunt, YouTube channel: How Indian youths landed in Russia-Ukraine war MEA says working to bring men back; families say contact erratic, fear the worst SREENIVAS JANYALA & BASHAARAT MASOOD HYDERABAD, SRINAGAR, MARCH 4 FROM KASHMIR to Karnataka, Gujarat to Telangana, a thread connects the Indian youths trapped fighting Russia’s war withUkraine—desperationfora job, a YouTube channel that provided hope, and a lie that became clear only after landing in Moscow. The families of men The Indian Express spoke to detailed how they were tricked into believing they were applying for jobs as helpers in Russian governmentoffices,butwereforced to head to the frontlines, putting their life in danger. FromTelangana,Mohammed Afsan (30) of Hyderabad and Clockwise from above: Gurpreet Singh and others from India who were promised jobs as helpers in Russia government offices; Mohammed Samir Ahmed; Mohammed Sufiyan Mohammed Sufiyan (23) of Narayanpet district went to Moscow in November and December, respectively. “They were duped. The agent who recruited them said they would TRUMP WINS COLORADO BALLOT DISQUALIFICATION CASE AT TOP COURT SHEHBAZ TAKES OATH AS PAK PM FOR SECOND TIME PAGE 14 KOLKATA, MARCH 4 ROOM NUMBER 17 of the Calcutta High Court, which has been the centre stage for litigants, lawyers and media for the past two years, witnessed an emotional scene on Monday, a day after Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay announced his decision to resign. A large number of lawyers andcommonpeoplegatheredin the courtroom on Monday, meanttobethelastworkingday of Justice Gangopadhyay at the High Court. Justice Gangopadhyay, who said that he would join politics and could also contest the Lok Sabha elections, entered the CONTINUEDONPAGE2 legislature is not the sole judge of what privileges it enjoys and secondly, Parliament or legislature may only claim privileges which are essential and necessary for the functioningof theHouse,”the ruling stated. ● The ruling focuses only on the scope of immunity from prosecution when E IN HOLDING that Parliament is not the sole judge oftheprivilegesitenjoys,a seven-judge Constitution bench of the Supreme Court has extended the scope for judicial review of the House and the actions of its members. “In a consistent line of precedent this Court has held that – firstly, Parliament or the state KASHMIR, TELANGANA, GUJARAT, KARNATAKA: A COMMON THREAD SWEETY KUMARI PAGE 1 ANCHOR Apex court draws a red line, pushes the envelope on House privileges work in Moscow only; instead, they were given 15-day training and dropped in Ukraine, where they are being forced to stay alongside Russian troops fightingthewar,”saidAfsan’sbrother Mohammed Imran. Afsanwasworkingasasalesman at a clothes showroom when he chanced on the job opportunityinMoscow.“He,likethe other youths, was promised a salaryof Rs45,000permonthfor the initial three months, which wouldgraduallyincreasetoRs1.5 lakh. After working for a year, he could apply for Russian passport andcitizenship.Itwasalucrative offer and unfortunately they fell for it. Afsan left for Moscow on November 9,” Imran said. Afsan’s last video call from the Russia-Ukraine border was on December 31. “After that, CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Set to resign today, HC judge says ‘work done’ as courtroom witnesses emotional outbursts THE WORLD ‘ANONYMITY MAKES TASK TOUGH’ SC: No immunity for MPs & MLAs who take bribe for vote, speech in House ANANTHAKRISHNAN G DMK leader made the remarks in September 2023 of elimination of Terrorism Modern weapons and powerful infrastructure provided for the Services 7-Judge Constitution Bench overrules 5-Judge Bench's majority verdict in JMM bribery case; PM hails order ‘Abuse of rights’: SC pulls up Udhayanidhi on his Sanatan Dharma remark Means Guarantee EXPLAINED Government of india `6.00 (`12 IN NORTH EAST STATES & ANDAMAN) WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM SINCE 1932 cbc 22201/13/0328/2324 TUESDAY, MARCH 5, 2024, KOLKATA, LATE CITY, 16 PAGES Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay at the Calcutta High Court on Monday, a day after he said he will resign from his post. PTI CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 WHEN LAWMAKERS TAKE BRIBES PAGE 12 Blow to Cong in Gujarat, its ex-state chief quits, cites ‘insult to Ram’ Poll bond details: Will comply, SBI tells SC, but need time until June 30 Says can’t meet March 6 deadline due to challenge of matching donation to donor ANANTHAKRISHNAN G NEW DELHI, MARCH 4 CALLING IT a “time consuming exercise”, the State Bank of India (SBI) on Monday asked the Supreme Court to extend the deadline for submitting details on purchase of electoral bonds to the Election Commission of India (ECI) to June 30. The Lok Sabhaelectionprocesswouldbe over by then. Last month, a five-judge Constitution Bench had struck down the electoral bonds scheme and directed the SBI, the authorised financial institution under the scheme, to submit by March 6 the details of electoral bonds purchased since April 12, 2019 to the ECI, which would publishtheinformationonitsofficial website by March 13. In its application to the SC on Monday, the SBI said it “intends to comply in full, with the directions issued” by the court. “However,therearecertainpractical difficulties with the decoding exercise and the timeline fixed for it... due to the stringent measures undertaken to ensure that the identity of the donors was kept anonymous,” it said, adding that “matching of the donor to the donations made would be a complex process”. Thebanksaidthat“asperthe gazettenotification”of January2, 2018, “whereby the central government framed the Electoral Bond Scheme 2018, it was categorically provided under Clause 7 (4)” that “the information furnished by the buyer shall be treatedasconfidentialbytheauthorised bank and shall not be disclosedtoanyauthorityforany purpose,exceptwhendemanded CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Arjun Modhwadia has not announced his next move yet ADITI RAJA VADODARA, MARCH 4 ARJUN MODHWADIA was conspicuous by his absence at the media interaction of the Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC) on Monday, which shared the itinerary of Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra which enters the state on March 7. Although the Porbandar MLA was already on his way to hand over his resignation to the Speaker, Congress leaders remained in denial when asked about the rumours that Modhwadia had quit. Within a couple of hours, Modhwadia, 67, confirmed he felt “suffocated” and that ending his 40-year association with the Congress was a “relief”. “If there is any leader who has travelled most extensively for the Congress or held events for the party,itisme.If Ihavehadtoquit the party, it is for the Congress to introspectwhyIwasforcedtodo so,” he said. In his resignation letter to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Modhwadia said, “Since my dissent, I have met scores of people who were offended by CONTINUED ON PAGE 9 Tapas Roy leaves Assembly after submitting his resignation letter to the Speaker, in Kolkata on Monday. Express MLA Tapas Roy quits TMC: ‘Was insulted... Party didn’t stand by me during ED raids’ EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE EXITSBEFOREPOLLS STATING THAT he felt “insulted and hurt” by the party leadership for “deserting” him during trying circumstances, five-time Trinamool Congress (TMC) MLA Tapas Roy on Monday resigned from the party just weeks ahead of the Lok Sabha elections amid speculations of his switching over to the BJP. The Baranagar MLA, who is the deputy chief whip of the ruling TMC in the Assembly and presidentoftheparty’sDumdumBarrackporedistrictunit,alsosubmitted his resignation from the WestBengalAssemblytoSpeaker Biman Bandopadhyay. ■ Soumen Roy, MLA from Kaliganj, returned to BJP KOLKATA, MARCH 3 CONTINUED ON PAGE 9 2024 LS Polls 2019 LS Polls ■ Sovon Chatterjee, former Mayor and cabinet minister. ■ Saumitra Khan, former MP ■ Suvendu Adhikari, former MP ■ Rajib Banerjee, former minister RELATED REPORT PAGE 3 In new school report card, role of parents, classmates, self-evaluation R RADHIKA NEW DELHI, MARCH 4 MOVING AWAY from traditional evaluation methods that rely on marks and grades awarded by school teachers, the National Council for Educational and Research Training (NCERT) has introduced a new “holistic” report card thatincorporatesfeedback from parents, classmates, and even self-evaluation by students to track their overall progress regularly. PARAKH, a standard-setting body under the NCERT, has devised the Holistic Progress Card (HPC) for foundational stage (Classes 1 and 2), preparatory stage (Classes 3 to 5) and middle stage (Classes 6 to 8) and is currently working on developing one for the secondary stage. The NCERT has asked all states to either adopt the HPC or adapt it according to their requirements. Traditionally, assessment in schools has been primarily focusedonyear-endexaminations, with the responsibility solely placed on teachers. The HPC, aligned with the recommendations of the National Curriculum FrameworkforSchoolEducation (NCFSE) to make evaluation more “learner-centric”, marks a departurefromthisapproachby considering various aspects of learning, including diverse skills and competencies, rather than solelyrelyingonmarksobtained inperiodictests.Itsaimistotrack notonlystudents'academicperformancebutalsotheircognitive, socio-emotional abilities, and creativity during class activities. To achieve this, the HPC emphasises on a descriptive form of evaluation where students are active participants. Each child will be able to evaluate not only their own performance but also of their classmates. According to the NEP 2020, the HPC is a WHAT IS HOLISTIC PROGRESS CARD ■ New form of student evaluation based on recommendations of NEP 2020 ■ Doesn’t depend on marks or grades to evaluate a student’s academic performance ■ Instead, it gives greater role to parents in tracking a student’s achievements in class ■ Students’ own perception of their performance and what they wish to achieve in school included for the first time means to build on self-awarenessandself-esteemof students bycommunicatingthestrengths and areas of improvement. At all stages, going beyond academic learning, students are assessed on self-awareness, interpersonal relationships, problem-solving,emotionalquotient and creative skills. Each student has to reflect on their own progress at the end of an activity by circling statements such as — “I was able to learn something new” or “I was able to express my creativity” or “I was able to help others in some way”. For example, at the end of an activity, a student of Class 1 will circle what they were able to do andnotdo.Achildcanself-evaluate her performance through descriptive remarks such as “I liked doing this work”, “I could ask my friends for help”, “I followed my teacher’sinstructions”bycolouring smileys that say ‘yes’, ‘no’ or ‘not sure’. This “student’s self-reflection” is part of the HPC for all students from Class 1 to Class 8. At middle stage (Class 6 to Class 8), students are encouraged to set their own academic andpersonalgoalsandadefinite timeline by which they wish to achieve these goals at the beginningof theyear.Studentsarealso required to fill in their expecta- tionsfromateacherwithrespect to areas where they need help. TheHPCformiddlestagealso includes an “ambition card” whereastudentcanfillinherambitions for the year and mention areas where she must improve, skillsandhabitsshemustdevelop to achieve her ambitions. The HPC will also link home and school by making parents an integral part of a child’s learning process. It will include inputs of parents like ability to do homework, following lessons in the classroomandevenstudent’sabilitytobalancescreentimewithextra-curricular activities at home. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Kolkata