DAILY FROM: AHMEDABAD, CHANDIGARH, DELHI, JAIPUR, KOLKATA, LUCKNOW, MUMBAI, NAGPUR, PATNA, PUNE, VADODARA BY UNNY ‘JANAKI v/s STATE OF KERALA’ CASE Protagonist named after Sita, questioned by man of another faith: Censor to HC SHAJU PHILIP THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, JULY 9 AMONG THE objections the Censor Board had to the Malayalam film Janaki v/s State of Kerala was that the protagonist Janaki, who was fighting for justice in a rape case, was crossexaminedincourtbyapersonof another faith, the Board’s affidavit filed in the court shows. The Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) had denied the film certification on the grounds that Janaki is also a name associated with Goddess Sita. This had prompted the producers of the Suresh Gopi-starrer to approach the High Court. The counter-affidavit, submitted by CBFC CEO (Mumbai) Rajendra Singh, states, “In the film, when the lead character, who is named after Goddess Sita/Janaki, is raped, she is aided by a man belonging to a particular religious community and is cross-examined and asked harrowing questions by a person belonging to another religious community. This religious dichotomy in the treatment of the character bearing Goddess Sita’s sacred name has the potential to CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 POSTAL REGN. NO. JAIPUR CITY/001/2024-26 JOURNALISM OF COURAGE THURSDAY, JULY 10, 2025, JAIPUR, LATE CITY, 16 PAGES BUSINESS AS USUAL ● `6.00 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM SINCE 1932 BIHAR REVISION OF ROLLS: HEARING IN SUPREME COURT TODAY EC doesn’t follow own practice, puts onus on voters, ignores existing rolls Records show in earlier revisions, EC put primacy on self-declaration; it was for ‘objector’ to prove non-citizenship SANTOSH SINGH RITIKA CHOPRA PATNA, JULY 9 NEW DELHI, JULY 9 THE ONGOING Special Intensive Revision(SIR)of electoral rollsin Bihar that comes up in the Supreme Court Thursday amid widespread apprehension across the state marks a sharp departure from previous such drives in two key aspects. One,forthefirsttime,theSIR, essentially a fresh preparation through door-to-door enumeration, places the burden of proof on already-enrolled voters (on the question of citizenship) at the draft roll stage. And, two, it disregards the “sanctity”of theexistingelectoral roll — something the Election Commission (EC) had consistently instructed its officers to uphold in all earlier revisions, an analysisof pastECrecordsbyThe Indian Express reveals. This despite a High Court or- EXPRESS NETWORK MODI, PRESIDENT NDAITWAH HOLD TALKS: NAMIBIA TO ROLL OUT UPI SC REJECTS PLEA TO STOP RELEASE OF ‘UDAIPUR FILES’ Bihar won’t allow Maharashtra model to work: Rahul leads EC drive protest WHAT WILL NOT COUNTINBIHAR AN EXPRESS SERIES PART 7 der — it was upheld by the Supreme Court — that underlinedtheimportanceof self-declaration and made it clear that the“questionof citizenship”didn’t arise during the preparation of the draft roll. The poll watchdog has undertaken “intensive revision” of the electoral roll for all or some CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 LEADER OF Opposition (LoP) in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday alleged that the MaharashtraAssemblyelections last year were “rigged” in the BJP’s favour and that the people of Bihar would not allow that to happen in the Assembly elections later in the year. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Rahul Gandhi and Tejashwi Yadav share the stage with other Opposition leaders at the protest in Patna. Rahul Sharma Long hours, slow Internet and few papers: BLOs scramble on ground SANTOSH SINGH PATNA, JULY 9 BIHAR’S 77,895 Booth Level Officers (BLOs) are the footsoldiers in the Election Commission’s unprecedented Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls that has set off widespread confusion and apprehensionacrossthestate.They have a deadline of July 25 to uploadvoterenumerationformsin theirrespectivejurisdictions.But tonight, like most nights, the in- ternet is in no hurry. Togetasense of the formidable challenge of the task and to see how hapless residents are at its receiving end, The Indian Express followed a BLO through his day — and long night. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 SECTION OF BRIDGE OVER MAHISAGAR RIVER GIVES WAY 12 killed as vehicles fall into river after bridge collapses in Gujarat JAY MAZOOMDAAR NEW DELHI, JULY 9 THE SHARES of Vedanta Ltd plunged by as much 8.7 per cent to Rs 421 intraday, and that of Hindustan Zinc by 5 per cent to Rs 415, after Viceroy Research, a short-sellerandUS-registeredfinancial research group, flagged the Vedanta Group for carrying “unsustainabledebt”. Theshares recoupednearlyhalf of thelosses by the time the market closed. The research group claimed thattheVedantaholdingcompanies — Vedanta Resources Limited (VRL) along with intermediate holding companies aboveVedantaLimited(VEDL)— 2 IAF pilots killed near Churu in Jaguar crash, third since March AMRITA NAYAK DUTTA & PARUL KULSHRESTHA NEW DELHI, JAIPUR, JULY 9 TWO INDIAN Air Force (IAF) pilots were killed when a Jaguar trainer aircraft crashed near Churu in Rajasthan on Wednesday -- the third Jaguar fighter jet crash since March this year. In a statement, the IAF said the aircraft was on a routine training mission when it met with the accident. “Both pilots sustained fatal injuries in the accident. No damage to any civil property has been reported,” it said in the statement posted on X, adding that a court of inquiry would ascertain the cause. The IAF did not release the names of the pilots. Churu Superintendent of Police Jai Yadav said the jet crashed at around 12.30 pm, near Bhavana Badavane village in the district. Local sources said the aircraft was flying at a low EXPLAINED E VICEROY RESEARCH’S report on the Vedanta Group comes two years after Hindenburg Research, also a US-based short seller, targeted the Adani Group, wiping out billions in market value from the Group’s stocks. Its report sparked a debate on corporate governance and regulatory oversight in India. In January this year, Hindenburg announced its disbandment. resemble “a financial zombie” with “approximately $4.9 billion CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 RUSSIA HITS UKRAINE WITH 700 DRONES PAK, TURKEY AGREE TO DEEPEN DEFENCE TIES P 12 PAGE 3, 7 2yrsafter ● Hindenburg level when it crashed. Defence officials said lowlevel sorties -- where an aircraft flies at a height of 150 metres from the ground or less -- are especially challenging, as the jets aremorepronetobirdhitsorunmarkedobstructionslikemobile towers or windmills. ThisisthethirdJaguarfighter jet crash since March. On March 7, a jet crashed near Panchkula, shortly after taking off from the Ambala air base in Haryana. The pilot managed to eject safely. On April 2, a pilot was killed and another sustained serious injuries when a jet crashed near Jamnagar in Gujarat. One of the oldest fighter jets in the IAF inventory, the AngloFrench origin aircraft is a twinengine, single-seater deep-penetration strike aircraft, with a maximumspeedof 1,350kmph. The first Jaguars were inducted on July 26, 1979 in the 14 Squadron, ‘The Fighting Bulls’, at THE WORLD Vedanta shares plunge after US short-seller Viceroy Research flags ‘unsustainable debt’ Vedanta:Selective misinformation, baselesscharges The spot where the IAF aircraft crashed during a routine training mission near Churu. ANI Canteen staff assaulted by Shinde Sena MLA, then licence suspended Rescuers search for survivors at the site of the bridge collapse in Vadodara. Bhupendra Rana Inquiry ordered by CM as rescue teams search river for survivors ADITI RAJA VADODARA, JULY 9 AT LEAST 12 people, including three of a family, were killed and nine injured after multiple vehicles fell into the Mahisagar River and a tanker hung precariously on the edge, when a 43-year-old bridgeinGujarat’sVadodaradistrict collapsed around 7.30 am Wednesday. Around 8 pm, Vadodara Superintendent of Police Rohan Anandputthedeathtollat11.An hour later, rescue teams recovered one more body —of one of the three feared drowned, officials said. The personnel of the National Disaster Response Force and State Disaster Response Force are scouting the river for survivors, officials added. Acaseof accidentaldeathhas been registered, and police will begin a probe after rescue operations are over. “We will also seek an inquiry report from the District Collector,” Anand said, addingthatthebodieshavebeen taken to Padra Referral Hospital for autopsy. Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel also directed an inquiry by the Roads and Buildings Department, while Prime Minister Narendra Modi called CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 ‘Vibrations, dangerous’: Alarm rang 3 years ago; 7th incident since 2021 ADITI RAJA & PARIMAL A DABHI VADODARA, AHMEDABAD, JULY 9 NEARLY THREE years ago, officials from the Vadodara division of Gujarat's Roads & Buildings (R&B) department were alerted in a letter about “unusual vibrations” being felt on the MujpurGambhira bridge and that it was in a “dangerous” condition. On Wednesday, the 43-year-old bridge collapsed, killing at least 12 people. “Despite our warnings, the R&B department did not act on the matter,” Harshadsinh Parmar, a Vadodara District panchayat member from Mujpur who had sent that letter to local officials on August 4, 2022, told The Indian Express. The paper trail, reviewed by The Indian Express, shows that the Additional Chitnis (Revenue Officer) to the District Collector directed Parmar's letter to the then Executive Engineer in the CONTINUED ON PAGE 3 VALLABH OZARKAR MUMBAI, JULY 9 EVENAS arulingShivSenaMLA, SanjayGaikwad,cameunderfire after a purported video clip of him assaulting an employee at the MLAs' Hostel canteen in Mumbai surfaced on social media, the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) suspended the canteen operator's licence on Wednesday. With the MLA alleging that he was served stale food, the State FDA collected samples from the canteen and sent them fortestingearlierintheday.“The team collected samples of food likepaneer,saucesanddal.These willbesenttothelaboratory;the reports are expected in 14 days,” an FDA official said. By evening, the FDA issued suspension notice to Ajanta Video grab of MLA Gaikwad punching the canteen staffer Caterer, the canteen operator. “....thelicencegrantedtoyourestablishment from date 26-062024tolegalvaliditydate27-092027 is being suspended with immediateeffect.Youarefurther informedthatduringthelicence suspensionperiodmentionedin the attached order, you or anyone on your behalf should not buy,sellordistributefooditems; if found doing so, you should CONTINUED ON PAGE 3 Why yatris are hurrying: ‘Weather unpredictable, Shivling melting faster’ EXPRESSAT AMARNATHYATRA ANAND MOHAN J AMARNATH TEMPLE (PAHALGAM), JULY 9 SANKET YADAV from Jaipur and his group of 12 make their way to the inner sanctum, towards the rapidly shrinking ice stalagmite shielded by a silver trident and encircled by steel railings. After their brief “darshan”, they exitquickly,retrievetheirmobile phonesandbags,andpreparefor the descent. Speaking to his relatives on the phone, Yadav warns that the ice inside is melting fast. “Aap dekh lijiye aana hai toh (Please see if you want to come),” he said. At the Amarnath Yatra this year, the ice Shivling at the pinnacle of the pilgrim's journey — formed naturally by dripping water freezing in layers — has been receding amid a blistering heatwavescorchingtheKashmir Valley. And, it is this shifting climate that has stunned pilgrims, localworkersandevenseasoned security personnel in a season markedbytheloomingmemory of the Pahalgam terror attack. OfficialsattheShriAmarnath Shrine Board say they no longer attempt to predict how long the Shivlingwilllast.“Everyyear,the Shivling melts faster,” a senior board member said. “Years ago, it would remain till August. The climateisunpredictable—heavy rain, sudden spikes in temperature. We can’t forecast what will happen. This will impact the Yatra in the future. We can only improvefacilities,notchangethe weather,” the member said. The Shivling usually begins formingduringtheHindumonth of Shravan (July-August). But in recent years, its disappearance has become a barometer of the Pilgrims trek to the Amarnath shrine in Anantnag district of Jammu and Kashmir. Anand Mohan J region’sclimatedistress.In2018, it melted by July 27, just 29 days after forming. In 2019, the yatra was canceled due to terror threats. In 2020, it formed by mid-Juneandhadmelted80per cent by July 23, lasting 38 days. The pandemic forced another cancellation in 2021. In 2022, it lasted only till July 18 — 28 days. In2023,itendured47days,melting by August 17. But in 2024, it vanishedinjustaweek,byJuly6. In2022,formerBSFInspector General (Kashmir) Raja Babu Singh oversaw security on both the Pahalgam and Baltal routes.“During my stint, I saw that snowfall had gone down in Jaipur that region. The yatra route used to be a virgin land. Now there is heavy footfall of the armed forces,movementof helicopters, and footfall of lakhs of pilgrims. This has had an impact on the surrounding environment, coupled with the impact of global warming,” he said. One of the highest points on the route, Mahagunas Top (14,000 feet), lies beyond Sheshnag.Accordingtopilgrims, this is where Lord Shiva left his sonGaneshabeforeascendingto the cave. Now, it looks nothing like the myths. Asha Singh and her husband Anil scan the bare mountains with quiet grief. “Inner,fullsleeveclothes,thermal jacket,boots,capandgloves.This whole landscape used to be covered in snow,” Asha said, recalling her gear a decade ago. “Now I am doing this trek in a saree.” ThedescentfromMahagunas Top to Panchtarni was once a vistaof shimmeringsnowpeaks. Nowitisatrailofbarrenmounds. “Our mountains are now naked, there is no snow. It hasn't rained here in two months, we have only dust,” said Riyaz, astride a tall black horse named Sultan. Prof Irfan Rashid of Kashmir University’sDepartmentof Geoinformatics has been studying CONTINUED ON PAGE 2