DAILY FROM: AHMEDABAD, CHANDIGARH, DELHI, JAIPUR, KOLKATA, LUCKNOW, MUMBAI, NAGPUR, PUNE, VADODARA JOURNALISM OF COURAGE MONDAY, APRIL 1, 2024, AHMEDABAD, LATE CITY, 18 PAGES EXPRESS NETWORK PRESIDENT MURMU CONFERS BHARAT RATNA ON BJP VETERAN L K ADVANI IN SIKAR, AMIT SHAH HOLDS ROADSHOW FOR SUMEDHANAND SARASWATI P 6 `5.00 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM SINCE 1932 RAMLILA RALLY, INDIA ASKS EC TO ENSURE LEVEL PLAYING FIELD Opposition rings alarm on free and fair elections, urges EC to step in and act Opp trying to save the corrupt, action no matter how big a person: PM Modi PM Narendra Modi with UP CM Adityanath, RLD chief Jayant Chaudhary and other NDA leaders in Meerut. Gajendra Yadav VIKAS PATHAK MEERUT, MARCH 31 Opposition INDIA bloc leaders during the ‘save democracy’ rally at Ramlila Maidan in New Delhi on Sunday. Abhinav Saha ‘We haven’t put Kejriwal in jail. The law is catching up with those who did wrongs’ PIYUSH GOYAL UNION MINISTER AND SENIOR BJP LEADER PAGE 14 EXPLAINED SCIENCE NUCLEAR ENERGY AS SOLUTION TO CLIMATE CHANGE AVIATION CRASHES,BLOWOUT, SHAKE-UPINTOP BRASS:BOEINGSAGA PAGE 10 If BJPwins‘match-fixing’electionandchangesConstitution, itwillsettheentirecountryonfire,saysRahulGandhi JATIN ANAND & MANOJ C G NEW DELHI, MARCH 31 WITH BARELY two-and-a-half weeks left before the first vote is cast in the 17th Lok Sabha elections, the Opposition INDIA bloc rally sent out a message Sunday thatissettohardenthefaultlines in the fractious campaign that liesahead:itraiseddoubtsabout the fairness of the election process itself. Virtually questioning the legitimacy of poll process, senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of “trying to do match fixing” — in other words, to rig the poll process in favour of the ruling BJP. And, in an ominousunderliningof thepoint,he warned of the consequences. BUSINESS AS USUAL BY UNNY “If the BJP wins this matchfixing election and changes the Constitution after that, it will set the country on fire… this country will not survive…This is not an ordinary election. This elec- tion is to save the country, protect our Constitution,” Rahul said. Indeed, this was the central issue in the “save-democracy” Opposition rally at the Ramlila ground.Convenedspecificallyto protest the arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on March 21, leader after leader alleged that democracy would be in peril and the Constitution in danger if the Modi government is voted back to power. In attendance was the top leadership of the Congress — party chief Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra — besides NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar, RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav and Shiv Sena (UBT)’s Uddhav Thackeray. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 2 chairs for their husbands, Sunita Kejriwal & Kalpana Soren take centre stage JATIN ANAND NEW DELHI, MARCH 31 WITH TWO empty chairs reserved for Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and former Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren — leaders of their parties, they are currently behind bars in cases registered by the Enforcement Directorate — wives Sunita Kejriwal and Kalpana Soren took centre stage in more ways than one at the INDIA bloc rally in Delhi Sunday. Seated in the middle of the dais at Ramlila Maidan, where they were joined by Congress leader Sonia Gandhi later, Kalpana said she was represent- Kalpana Soren, Sunita Kejriwal at the rally on Sunday. Abhinav Saha ing the voice of half of the country's female and nine per cent tribal populations. Sunita, in her first appearance on a public platform since CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 AS THE INDIA bloc leaders gathered at the Ramlila Maidan in Delhi Sunday, days after the arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal by the Enforcement Directorate in the excise policy case, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a no-holds-barred attackontheOpposition,sayingits leaders were trying to “save the corrupt” at a time when he was wagingawaragainstcorruption. Addressing a well-attended rally in Meerut, Modi said “actionwillbetaken,nomatterhow bigapersonthecorruptmaybe”. He said his fight against corruption had made the Opposition lose its senses. “Modi’s mantra is bhrastachar hatao (remove corruption); they (Opposition leaders) say bhrashtachari bachao (save the corrupt). On one side is the NDA and on the other a khema (camp) to save the corrupt. You have to decide. Should the corrupt be saved? Should corruptionberemovedornot?”hesaid. “When Modi is fighting corruption, they have made an INDI EXPRESS NETWORK MODI DEFENDS POLL BONDS, FLAGS BID TO DISRUPT ED WORK P 6 alliance. They think Modi will be afraid. But for me, Bharat is my family.” “The corrupt are behind bars today.Manyverycorruptpeople are having to appear in courts. Sometimesfrominsidebedsand walls and sometimes from insideawashingmachine,wadsof currency notes are being found. I am not just acting against the corrupt; I am also returning money to the poor. We have attached properties and this has returned Rs 17 lakh crore looted from the poor. If I find records on whose money was looted, I will return it,” he said. “Listen, corrupt leaders: attack Modi as much as you like. Yeh Modi hai, jhukne wala nahin hai (This is Modi, he won’t bend),” he said. “Action will be taken, no matterhowbigapersonthecorrupt may be. Those who have looted the nation, unko lautana CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 After 3 trials, 2 death I-T, ED actions against Opp can disrupt sentences & 11 yrs in level playing field in polls: Former CECs What the poll jail, MP rape-murder panel can do convict acquitted Congress callously gave away Katchatheevu to Lanka: PM; Kharge cites Bangla pact under NDA ANAND MOHAN J CHENNAI, MARCH 31 DAMINI NATH NEW DELHI, MARCH 31 BHOPAL, MARCH 31 SENTENCED TO death twice within a decade, Anokhilal had spentnearlyathirdof hislifeunder the shadow of the gallows. In 2013, when he was 21, a special court in Madhya Pradesh’s Khandwa district found him guilty of raping and murdering a nine-year-old girl and decided to hand him the capital punishment — in a trial that lasted less than two weeks. In 2019, the Supreme Court struck down that ruling and ordered a retrial. In 2023, after the retrial, the Khandwa court again sentenced Anokhilal to death. This time, it was the Madhya Pradesh High Court that sent the case back to the special court. Following a third trial, the Khandwa court earlierthismonthacquittedhim in the case. On March 20, he was released after spending around 11 years in jail. Anokhilal was21when hewasfirst sentencedto deathin2013 “No matter how grave the crime is, the burden of proof to convict the accused always lies on the prosecution. The court mustalwaysremainvigilantand ensure that the court's findings are based on the evidence presented before the court and not influenced by emotions,” Judge PrachiPatel,thesamejudgewho convictedAnokhilalin2023,said in the acquittal order. It was the cross examination of the medical expert who had given an opinion on the DNA analysisinthecasethattiltedthe scales in favour of Anokhilal in his latest trial. Also, he was represented by a team of four lawyers—ShreyaRastogi,Sakshi Jain, Stuti Rai, and Saloni CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 WITH CONGRESS leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday accusing PrimeMinisterNarendraModiof “match-fixing” in the Lok Sabha pollsbyusingcentrallawenforcement agencies, at least three former Chief Election Commissioners (CECs) told The Indian Express that the recent actions of theIncomeTax(I-T)Department and Enforcement Directorate (ED) against opposition parties andtheirleadershavethepotential to disrupt the level playing field during elections. The Congress announced on Saturday that it had received fresh notices from the I-T Department for 2014-2015 and 2016-2017,withataxdemandof Rs 1,745 crore. This followed notices the party had already received for 1994-1995 and 20172018, bringing the total demand to Rs 3,567 crore. The I-T Departmenthasalsowithdrawn Rs 135 crore from the Congress's bankaccountsforpreviousdues. IN 2019, amidst allegations by opposition parties, the EC issued an advisory urging the central agencies to maintain impartiality. Consequently, if desired, the EC can convene meetings with officials from the agencies to inquire about the reason for their actions. Kshatriya protests against Rupala intensify after three detained for burning effigy GOPAL KATESHIYA RAJKOT, MARCH 31 PROTESTS AGAINST Union minister Parshottam Rupala, the BJP’sLokSabhacandidateforthe Rajkot seat in Gujarat, over his remarks on the Kshatriya community intensified on Sunday as protesters gathered at a police station in Rajkot after three men were booked for rioting and Parshottam Rupala damage to public property, among other sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), for burning an effigy of Rupala on Saturday. However, hours later, the police dropped the sections related to damage to public property from its FIR. Three men were detained on Saturday night at the Pradyuman Nagar police station in Rajkot after they were identified through videos posted on social media showing them burning the effigy near the Kshatriya Samaj Vadi in Railnagar area of the city. “Wehadincludedthesection CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 According to the former heads of the Election Commission (EC), two of whom spoke on condition of anonymity, such actions could be seen as interfering with free and fair elections and should prompt the poll watchdog to at least meet the agencies to ascertain why tax demands and I-T notices cannot wait until after the elections are over. “I personally feel the EC can certainly put it on hold because it is affecting the level playing CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 THE WORLD GAZA TRUCE TALKS RESUME AS ISRAEL STEPS UP STRIKES 2 KILLED AS RUSSIA STRIKES UKRAINE’S ENERGY SECTOR PAGE 15 ARUN JANARDHANAN The decades-old territorial and fishing rights dispute around Katchatheevu Island has been brought back into the limelight, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi targeting the Congress for ceding the island to Sri Lanka and the party hitting back, saying the PM was raking up the issue now with an eye on the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. ReactingtoaTimesofIndiareportontheissue,basedonareply toanRTIreportedlyfiledbyTamil NaduBJPpresidentKAnnamalai, Modi said in a social media post: “Eye opening and startling! New facts reveal how Congress callously gave away Katchatheevu. ThishasangeredeveryIndianand reaffirmedinpeople’sminds–we can’t ever trust Congress! WeakeningIndia’sunity,integrity and interests has been Congress’ way of working for 75 years and counting.” He also raised the matter later at his rally in Meerut, and linked the issue to the capture of Tamil Nadu fishermen and the seizure of their boats by the Sri Lankan forces. KatchatheevuIslandisa285acre territory within Sri Lanka's maritime boundary, located 33 km off the coast of Tamil Nadu. The report cited by the PM claimed that the documents Annamalai received through his RTI application revealed India’s fluctuating stance on the island’s sovereignty,ultimatelyleadingto itbeingcededtoSriLankain1974, when Indira Gandhi was PM. Responding to Modi’s statement, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said, “Under your (Modi’s) government, in a friendlygesture,111enclavesfrom India were transferred to Bangladesh, and 55 enclaves came to India. In 1974, a similar agreement,basedonfriendlygesture, was initiated with another country — Sri Lanka on Katchatheevu.” “On the eve of elections in CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 155.8 kmph: Delhi boy who grew up on Ambrose stories bursts into IPL scene PAGE 1 ANCHOR PRATYUSH RAJ NEW DELHI, MARCH 31 JONNY BAIRSTOW, who is used tofacingexpressbowling,wasin for a shock Saturday night when he shaped to pull a back-oflength delivery from debutant Mayank Yadav. The ball rushed on to the Englishman in a blur, resulting in a simple catch. This dismissal, and the subsequent wickets that the 21year-old claimed with bouncers in a sensational spell of 3/27, including a ball that clocked 155.8 kmph, against Punjab Kings warmed the heart of his father Prabhu Yadav. In all, nine of Mayank’s deliveries clocked over 150 kmph, withhisaveragespeedbeing148 kmph. The spell took Prabhu, a fan of West Indian pace legend Curtly Ambrose, back to a little big moment when Mayank was 14 and he planted a seed in his son. Prabhu was returning from workwhenhestoppedatSonnet Club at Delhi’s Venkateshwara College to watch Mayank bowl. On their way back home, the father dropped a nugget that would, years later, have repercussions in the IPL game at Lucknow’s Akana ground. “I shared with him a story about Ambrose. Tujhe pata hai usse log darte kyun they? Kyunki woh sar pe daalta tha. Tujhe daraana hai batsmen ko toh wahi karna hoga (You know why he was feared? Because he used to hit them on their heads. If you want to put that fear in their minds, you must do the same),” Prabhu told The Indian Express. During his teen years, Mayankbecamethemostfeared pacer in Delhi and was named Mayank Yadav of Lucknow Super Giants celebrates a wicket against Punjab Kings on Friday. Sportzpics/BCCI “sar pe maarne wala bowler (one who hits on the head)”. On Saturday, as he was harassing the batsmen, former Australia pacer Brett Lee tweeted: “India has found its fastest bowler. Raw pace. Very impressive.” The fierce bowling won the match for Lucknow Super Giants, with the tall, lanky bowlergrabbingthePlayerof the Match award on debut. “General life mey bhi mujhe speed pasand hai (I like speed in life as well). I love rockets, jets and superbikes. Speed gives me a thrill,” Mayank said after the game. The speedster, who had clocked 153 kmph in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, was on the selectors’ radar for the recent Test series against England had hissidestrainhealedbyJanuaryend. It didn’t. A disappointed Mayank had told The Indian Express then: “Main ek pair pe kheljataagarmain60percentbhi ready hota (I would have played on one leg had my body been even 60 per cent fit.” Mayank’s love for fast bowling grew more from his discussions with his father at their homeinWestDelhi’sMotinagar, a few kilometres from where Virat Kohli grew up. The discus- sions would revolve around two great fast bowlers: Ambrose and Dale Steyn. While Yadav Sr was a fan of the Antiguan, the son liked the South African stalwart. “I loved Ambrose and Walsh,” Prabhu said. “Ambrose morebecauseof hispaceandthe wayheusedtobouncebatsmen. I used to keep telling Mayank their stories.” The youngster was a big Steyn fan and while he hated watching cricket at home, he would relent only if the South African was playing. “'Was your Ambrose as good asSteyn?',heusedtoask,andwe CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Ahmedabad