DAILY FROM: AHMEDABAD, CHANDIGARH, DELHI, JAIPUR, KOLKATA, LUCKNOW, MUMBAI, NAGPUR, PUNE, VADODARA JOURNALISM OF COURAGE FRIDAY, JUNE 21, 2024, LUCKNOW, LATE CITY, 20 PAGES `6.00 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM SINCE 1932 THREE MONTHS AFTER ARREST IN CASE LINKED TO DELHI EXCISE POLICY Delhi court grants Kejriwal bail, declines ED’s plea for 48-hr hold, agency to move HC today NIRBHAY THAKUR NEW DELHI, JUNE 20 THREEMONTHSafterhewasarrested by the Enforcement Directorate in a money laundering case related to the Delhi excise policy case being probed separatelybytheCBI,AAPleader and Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was granted bail Thursday by a Delhi court. While granting bail, Special Judge Niyay Bindu also declined ED’s plea to keep the bail order Kejriwal was arrested by the ED on March 21. in abeyance for 48 hours. The ED will be approaching the Delhi High Court Friday against the grant of bail. Kejriwal has been in custody in Tihar Jail. Arrested on March 21, he had stepped out last month on interim bail to campaign in the Lok Sabha elections. He surrendered on June 2. He had recently moved two bail pleas before the Rouse Avenue Court — for interim bail and regular bail. The interim bail plea was rejected on June 5. The eCourts data show that the grant of regular bail to Kejriwal is the eleventh granted CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Brings significant relief for CM given PMLA’s high Section-45 bar for bail DEEPTIMAN TIWARY NEW DELHI, JUNE 20 WHILE THE lower court’s reasons behind granting bail willonlybeknownwhen the order comes Friday, the fact that bail was granted to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal is of significant legal import because of the high bar set by the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) for bail. Section 45 (1) of the statute says that no accused shall be released on bail unless “the Court is satisfied that there are reasonablegroundsforbelievingthatheisnotguilty of suchoffenceandthathe ● is not likely to commit any offence while on bail”. In effect, the bail order potentially puts a question mark on the E EXPLAINED CM lawyer counters ED claim on phone chat with an accused REVIEW ON EXAM DAY MAY 5, NTA GIVEN ITS RESULTS JUNE 16 CCTVs missing, unguarded strong-rooms: Review of NEET 2024 found glaring gaps in exam centres 10%of 4,000centresreviewed;46%did nothavemandatory2CCTVcameras DEEKSHA TERI NEW DELHI, JUNE 20 A THIRD-PARTY review of the NEET undergraduate exam this yearfoundsomeworrying“noncompliances” at a number of exam centres on May 5. These included the absence of the mandated two working CCTVs inexamrooms;andexamplesof strong rooms, where questionpapers are stored at the exam centre, being left unguarded. Sources said the National Testing Agency (NTA) — which conducts NEET-UG and is under fire for alleged irregularities included allegations of paper leak — was officially informed of the third-party review findings on June 16, almost 12 days after the examination results were announced. For the review, the third party had visited 399 exam centres (of a total of approximately 4,000) that were mutually discussed and agreed upon by NTA and the reviewing party. The review exercise, carried out on the day of the exam, Students stage a protest over NEET-UG and UGC-NET issues in New Delhi, Thursday. Amit Mehra Aspirants memorised the answers night before test, accused tell Bihar Police SANTOSH SINGH PATNA, JUNE 20 THE MAIN accused arrested in connection with the alleged question paper leak in the National Eligibility-cumEntrance Test ( Undergraduate), conducted on May 5, has told Bihar Police that four aspirants had gathered at a location chosen by him a night before the examand“memorisedanswers” to questions from the paper. Oneofthefouraspirants,who allegedly solved and memorised the answers, also told police that he had gone to Patna from Kota after his relative — one of the UTTAR PRADESH ‘ILLEGAL’ HOUSE OF ATIQ BROTHER’S WIFE DEMOLISHED PAGE 3 mainaccused—assuredhimthat the question paper could be arranged for him before the test. Theparticularstudentscored185 out of 720, while the other three scored 300, 483 and 581. These statements were recordedonMay5,afterthetest, at Shastri Nagar police station in Patna,wherethecaseintothealleged leak was lodged. While an exam conducting agency, as a matter of principle, cancels an exam on finding evidence of a paper leak, the government’s actions in the past have not been uniform. In 2018, for instance, the government had cancelled and reconducted CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Pradhan takes ‘moral responsibility’ for NEET ‘errors’, sets up high-level panel UGC-NET paper leaked on dark net, CBI registers a case A RED initiative appears in today’s edition of The Indian Express. These pages are an initiative of the marketing solutions team of The Indian Express Group and contain content paid for by advertisers. These pages should be read as an advertisement THE PATNA High Court Thursday set aside Bihar government’s November 2023 decision to raise the reservation cap in state government jobs and admission to education institutions from 50% to 65%, citing principles of equality. The Nitish Kumar government had raised the quota cap on the basis of the Bihar Caste Survey report which showed that about 85% of the state populationbelongedtoOBC, EBC,SC and ST communities, with the EBC being the largest social population with 36.1%. The ruling JD(U) said it was examiningtheordertodecideits next move. The party said it will take measures to restore the 65% quota and will push for its inclusionintheNinthSchedulesothat it cannot be challenged again. Initsverdict,adivisionbench of Chief JusticeKVinodChandran CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 RITIKA CHOPRA & ABHINAYA HARIGOVIND Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the ‘Empowering Youth, Transforming J&K’ event in Srinagar on Thursday. ANI In Srinagar, PM: Statehood for J&K soon, preparations for state polls on Praises high turnout in LS polls, flags off 84 projects worth Rs 1,500 crore BASHAARAT MASOOD SRINGAR, JUNE 20 PRIME MINISTER Narendra Modi said in Srinagar on Thursday that preparations for Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir have begun, and thatstatehoodwouldsoonbereturned to the Union Territory. Addressing an event at the Sher-i-Kashmir International ConferenceCentre(SKICC)onthe first day of his two-day visit to Srinagar,thePMalsomentioned therecentmilitantattacksinJ&K and said no stone would be left unturnedto“teachalessontothe enemies of peace”. “Preparations for Assembly elections have begun. The day is notfarwhenthepeopleofJammu and Kashmir will vote to elect their government,” Modi said, adding, “The day will also come soon when Jammu and Kashmir, in the form of a state, will make a better future for itself.” ThePMarrivedinSrinagaron Thursday evening, and went to the SKICC, where he inspected exhibition stalls set up by various start-ups. He then inaugurated and laid the foundation stones for 84 projects worth Rs 1,500 crore in the infrastructure, educationandhealthsectors.He also issued appointment letters to2,000peoplewhohadgotemployment in various government departments. The PM said he was in Kashmir to “personally thank the people” for raising the flag of democracy high in the recently held parliamentary elections. “This morning, when I was preparing for my Srinagar visit, I was excited. When I thought about why I was so excited, two reasonscametomymind—there is a third reason as well, which is CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 GOVT & POLITICS BJP’S BHARTRUHARI MAHTAB APPOINTED PRO TEM SPEAKER PAGE 10 NEW DELHI, JUNE 20 IN A FIRST admission of irregularity in the conduct of the NEET undergraduate exam this year, EducationMinisterDharmendra Pradhan Thursday acknowledgedtherehavebeen“someerrors limited to specific regions”, referring to Bihar’s investigation into allegations of paper leak, and announced the setting up of a high-level committee to fix CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan arrives for the press conference in New Delhi on Thursday. Anil Sharma When people ask questions, Govt must answer, says ABVP amid Sangh unease DEEPTIMAN TIWARY, VIKAS PATHAK & LALMANI VERMA NEW DELHI, JUNE 20 THE CANCELLATION of the UGCNET examination and police probes in Bihar and Gujarat into the alleged leak of the NEET-UG questionpaperhaveledtounease intheBJPandRSSaffiliatesinclud- EXPRESS NETWORK PM SILENT, HAS ‘PSYCHOLOGICALLY COLLAPSED’: RAHUL THEY ARE PLAYING WITH LIVES: NET CANDIDATES PAGE 14 ingthestudentwingABVPwhich said Thursday that “jab praja ke tarafsesawaalhai,tosarkarketaraf sejawabhonachahiye(whenpeopleaskquestions,thegovernment must answer).” Stating there was a “question mark” on the “credibility” of the National Testing Agency which conducts these examinations, ABVP national general secretary CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 In 2036 Olympics bid, India to pitch for inclusion of yoga, kabaddi and kho kho PAGE 1 ANCHOR ENGINEERING EDUCATION High Court strikes down Bihar’s 65% quota move PATNA, JUNE 20 BY UNNY CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 SANTOSH SINGH BUSINESS AS USUAL found that of the 399 exam centres visited on the day of the exam, 186, or 46%, did not have two working CCTV cameras, as mandated, installed in each exam room. The live feed of these cameras is transmitted to the Central Control Room at the NTA headquarters in New Delhi which is meant to be monitored by a team of experts. Further, at 68 (or 16%) of the 399 sample of exam centres, the strongroomwasnot“securedby Enforcement Directorate’s case against Kejriwal. Thisisonekeyreasonwhysecuring bail under the PMLA is very difficult and most accused endupspendingseveralmonths, if not years, behind bars before the courts grant them bail. Kejriwal’s deputies, former Delhi HealthMinister Satyender Jain and former Deputy CM Manish Sisodia, have both spent MIHIR VASAVDA MUMBAI, JUNE 20 FOR SOME, yoga at the Olympic Gamesmightbeastretch.Butnot to India’s sports administrators. As it doubles down onefforts to bring the 2036 Olympics home, India is likely to push for the inclusion of yoga, which has been the country’s soft-power tool, in the sports programme. A yoga session during the 22nd annual ‘Solstice in Times Square’ in New York City on Thursday. Reuters Yoga is among the six sports that the Mission Olympics Cell — under the Sports Ministry — feels can be recommended for inclusionintheOlympics.Theotherfive are: Twenty20 cricket, kabaddi, chess,squashandkhokho. The idea was first discussed last year in December — two months after Prime Minister Narendra Modi officially declared India’s interest in hosting the 2036 Olympics during a meeting of the Sports Authority of India’s Mission Olympic Cell (MOC). The MOC includes some CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Lucknow