DAILY FROM: AHMEDABAD, CHANDIGARH, DELHI, JAIPUR, KOLKATA, LUCKNOW, MUMBAI, NAGPUR, PATNA, PUNE, VADODARA JOURNALISM OF COURAGE SATURDAY, AUGUST 9, 2025, AHMEDABAD, LATE CITY, 20 PAGES BUSINESS AS USUAL BY UNNY LOOK FORWARD TO HOSTING PUTIN LATER THIS YEAR: PM ModiandPutindiscussdeepeningties amidrowoverTrumptariffonRussiaoil HPCL: No directive on Russian oil, free to scout for options if not feasible Xi and Putin too hold talks, China welcomes Modi’s likely visit to SCO US-based law firm to represent summit in Tianjin 65 families who lost kin in Air India crash RITU SHARMA & LEENA MISRA AHMEDABAD, AUGUST 8 BEASLEY ALLEN, a prominent US-based law firm, will represent at least 65 families of the victims of the London Gatwickbound Air India 171 crash in Ahmedabad that killed 241 on board and 19 on the ground on June12,MikeAndrews,Principal Attorney from the firm, told The Indian Express. Andrews, who is already in GujaratandwasheadingtoSurat when The Indian Express spoke to him, said the preliminary report of the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) on the crash did not share the full cockpit voice recorder data, which “creates confusion and unfairly blames the pilots”. He saidsystemsin“suchautomated aircraft” are complex and “could be activated by computer commands”. Inthepast,Andrewshadrepresentedfamiliesof aviationdisaster victims, including victims CONTINUEDONPAGE2 `6.00 ● WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM SINCE 1932 SUKALP SHARMA DIVYA A & SHUBHAJIT ROY NEW DELHI, AUGUST 8 NEW DELHI, AUGUST 8 AMID THE tension in ties with the US after President Donald Trump doubled the tariff on Indiaoveritspurchaseof Russian oil, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Vladimir Putin held a phone conversation Friday during which they discussed“thelatestdevelopments on Ukraine” and “reaffirmed our commitment to further deepen the India-Russia Special and PrivilegedStrategicPartnership”. Modi said he looked forward Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting of the Security Council. The Kremlin indicated a likely meeting between Putin and US President Donald Trump next week. PTI to hosting Putin in India later this year. National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, who travelled to Moscow this week and met Putin, had also said that the President would be visiting India. The Kremlin, meanwhile, issued a statement indicating a likely meeting between Putin and Trump next week over the war in Ukraine. TheModi-Putinconversation CONTINUEDONPAGE2 PUBLIC SECTOR refiner Hindustan Petroleum Corporation has cut down on processing Russian oil as it has lost much of its price advantage over competing crude grades, and not because of geopolitical considerationsoranysignalfrom thegovernment,accordingtothe company’s chairman and managing director Vikas Kaushal. Inapost-earningsanalystcall, Kaushal said while HPCL has not received any directive so far from the government on import of Russian crude, the refiner is free to look at alternatives if it were to completely stop buying Russian crude in the future due to any sanctions-related reason. Russian crude’s share in crudeoilprocessedbyHPCLcontracted significantly to 13.2 per cent in the quarter ended June 30, primarily due to lower discounts hitting the competitivenessof Moscow’sbarrels,according to the HPCL chairman. Accordingtoarecentreportby brokerage firm Nomura, the implied discount on Russian crude oil for Indian refiners was estimatedtohavedeclinedtoaround $2.2 per barrel in 2024-25 from over $12 per barrel in 2022-23. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Vadodara bridge tragedy: Months after hand transplant, Muslim Family rues the loss of son teen ties rakhi to brother of Hindu donor whose body was never found KAMAL SAIYED SURAT, AUGUST 8 ADITI RAJA VADODARA, AUGUST 8 THE MORNING of July 9 was meant to be a routine day for the family of Rameshsinh Padhiyar, a resident of Narsingpura village in Padra taluka of Vadodara district. Both his sons -Bhupendrasinh and Vikramsinh -- were to leave for work in a Vikramsinh Padhiyar magnetic component manufacturing company on the LunaRanu road shortly, and minor morning hustle ensued in their CONTINUEDONPAGE2 DRESSED IN a pink salwar-suit set with lace detailing, 16-yearold Anamta Ahmed ties a rakhi around the wrist of Shivam Mistry. Her rakhi brother, Shivam, looks at her indulgently and the entire room breaks into applause. A few people have tears in their eyes. Someone plays the popular Raksha Anamta Ahmed with Shivam Mistry in Valsad, Friday. Bandhannumber“Behnanebhai ki kalaai pe pyaar baandha hai...” and everyone present begins humming along. This is not merely a story of communal harmony, though. Until last year, one of the hands that Anamta is using to tie the rakhi belonged to Shivam's sibling Riya. The nine-year-old died in September 2024. With the help of a Suratbased NGO – the Mistrys are based in Valsad – one of Riya's hands was transplanted CONTINUEDONPAGE2 Apex court deletes its remarks against Allahabad HC judge after CJI intervenes ANANTHAKRISHNAN G NEW DELHI, AUGUST 8 THE SUPREME Court Friday recalled parts of its August 4 order directing that a judge of the AllahabadHighCourtshouldnot beassignedanycriminalcasefor hearinguntilhisretirement,saying “our intention was not to causeembarrassmentorcastaspersions” on the judge. The August 4 order criticised the judge for permitting criminal prosecution in what the top court said was essentially a civil dispute. The bench of Justices J B PardiwalaandRMahadevansaid after the August 4 order, it had “received an undated letter from... the Chief Justice of India (B R Gavai) requesting us to reconsiderthedirectionsissuedby us in paras 25 and 26 respectively of our order” and in view of this, asked the Registry to renotify the primary matter to consider the request. Thebenchsaiditwasdeleting theparagraphsconcernedindeference to the request of the CJI. Recalling the paragraphs of its order, the bench said, “We would not even think of doing so. However, when matters cross a threshold and the dignity of the institution is imperilled, it becomes the constitutional responsibility of this court to intervene even when acting under its appellate jurisdiction under Article 136 of the Constitution.” CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Ahmedabad