The Editorial Page: For Putin, a political win; for India, a stable partner 8 SATURDAY, DECEMBER 6, 2025 JOURNALISM of COURAGE JAIPUR, LATE CITY, 18 PAGES ₹6.00 l www.indianexpress.com DA I LY F R O M : A H M E DA B A D , C H A N D I GA R H , D E L H I , J A I P U R , KO L K ATA , L U C K N O W , M U M B A I , N AG P U R , PAT N A , P U N E , VA D O DA R A POSTAL REGN. NO. JAIPUR CITY/001/2024-26 happening today 16 PACTS SIGNED DURING RUSSIAN PRESIDENT’S STATE VISIT lGERMAN CHANCELLOR Modi, Putin chart roadmap: Labour mobility, n-energy, trade & defence TRACK THIS AND MORE ON www.INDIANExPRESS.COM Our relationship has stood the test of time: PM; we work closely, says Putin NATION New Delhi, December 5 Friedrich Merz arrives in Israel, the first visit by a major EU head of government since the ICC issued an arrest warrant for PM Benjamin Netanyahu last year. pAGE 3 pOLICE SwING INTO ACTION AfTEr hC GETS bOMb ThrEAT ThE wOrlD pAGE 14 prOGrESS IN TALKS wITh U.S., wILL ENGAGE fUrThEr: rUSSIA As Tezpur varsity protest flares, its Finance Officer gets a new job in Sikkim University Shubhajit Roy DEEPENING THEIR ties as the worldwatchedIndiarolloutthe red carpet for visiting Russian PresidentVladimirPutin,Delhi and Moscow Friday signed a labour mobility pact, agreed on a programmefordevelopingstrategicareasofeconomiccooperation until 2030, announced a 30-day free tourist visa for Russian nationals and pledged to work towards early conclusion of a free trade agreement with the Eurasian Economic Union. These were the key outcomesofbilateraltalksbetween Putin and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the Capital and meetings of delegations of the twosides,wrappinguptheRussian President’s first visit to the country since the start of the Ukraine war in February 2022. World capitals tracked the statevisitamideffortsbytheUS to force an end to the Ukraine warafterpenalisingIndiaforits importofRussianoilwhichthe Trumpadministrationclaimed was funding Putin’s war machine. Incidentally, there was no mention of Ukraine in the joint statement issued in Delhi although both Modi and Putin spoke about it. Following the Modi-Putin business as Usual By EP UNNY talks, the two sides inked 16 pacts, ranging from health to maritimecooperation,fertiliser to customs, academic to media collaboration. Defence and nuclearenergycooperationdominated discussions. Praising Putin, Modi said, “Over the past two-and-a-halfdecades, he has continually nurtured this relationship with his leadership and vision. His leadership has elevated our mutual ties to new heights in every circumstance. I sincerely thank President Putin, my friend, for his deep friendship withIndia,andhisunwavering commitment.” »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Repo rate cut 25 bp to 5.25%; ‘rare Goldilocks period’: RBI Governor GDP growth forecast raised to 7.3% in FY26, inflation estimate trimmed to 2% Hitesh Vyas Mumbai, December 5 President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Russian President Vladimir Putin during a ceremonial reception at Rashtrapati Bhavan, Friday. RENUKA PURI RELATED REPORTS, PAGE 5 After ‘not the era of war’, PM’s line: India not neutral... on side of peace Shubhajit Roy Sukrita Baruah New Delhi, December 5 Guwahati, December 5 WHILE TEZPUR University has been in tumult with protests by staff and students againstitsVice-Chancellor,the institute’sFinanceOfficer,who has also been a subject of the protestors’ ire, took charge as Officer on Special Duty (OSD) to the Vice-Chancellor of another central institute, Sikkim University, this month. The official, Braja Bandhu Mishra, who had been holding the Finance Officer’s post through an extension after his superannuationinMay,hasdenied any wrongdoing on his end and said that he decided to asktoberelievedofhisposition inTezpurUniversitybecauseof the adversarial climate there, and had applied to positions in multipleuniversitiesafterserving his notice on October 30. TheongoingprotestsatTezpur University began in late September. On October 19, SikkimUniversityissuedanadvertisement for a one-year contractual position of OSD to the V-C, inviting applications from Level 14 retired officers from Central Autonomous Institutes.TheIndianExpresslearnt that nine applications were »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 President Putin at Rajghat on Friday. PRAVEEN KHANNA WITH THE war in Ukraine grindingon,amideffortsbythe US and its European allies to bring it to an end, and all eyes on his meetings with the visiting Russian President, Prime Minister Narendra Modi told Vladimir Putin Friday that “Indiaisnotneutral,Indiaison the side of peace” and “we support all efforts towards peace”. Putin, on his part, did not giveawaymuchabouttheirdiscussion on the war. He said he hadtheopportunitytospeakin “detail on the situation in Ukraine” and on the talks initiated by the US towards a “possible peaceful settlement of this crisis”. While discussing “key glo- bal and regional problems”, Putin said, “We confirmed the convergence of our positions. Both Russia and India conduct an independent and sovereign foreign policy” and promote a “just, democratic and multipolar world order.” What did not go unnoticed wasthatthetwoleadersdidnot mention the word “war” or »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 BUOYED BY stronger-than-expected economic momentum and a steady cooling in inflation, the Reserve Bank of India’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) on Friday unanimously cut the repo rate by 25 basis points (bps) to 5.25 per cent, a move that is likely to bring down lending and deposit rates across the banking system. The reduction — the first aftertwoconsecutivepauses— signals a calibrated shift towards supporting growth at a time when the rupee has depreciatedandbreachedthe90mark against the dollar. The central bank said the combination of robust GDP numbersandabenigninflation trajectory created the policy space to pivot toward accommodation. The growth engine RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra in Mumbai. SANKHADEEP BANERJEE E. ExPlAINED Sticking to mandate Inflation has been well below the lower tolerance band of 2 per cent. So RBI stuck to its core mandate and did not get distracted by any other temptations such as targeting the rupee, deposit rates, or economic growth. has been firing ahead of expectations, prompting the RBI to sharply lift its GDP projection forFY26by50bpsto7.3percent from 6.8 per cent earlier. At the same time, headline inflation hascontinuedtoease,allowing thecentralbanktotrimitsConsumerPriceIndex(CPI)forecast to 2 per cent from 2.6 per cent. »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Kerala local polls: Cong, CPM, BJP unite to take on corporate group’s party 1,000 flights cancelled, Govt rolls back rules for IndiGo Shaju Philip Sukalp Sharma Thiruvanananthapuram, December 5 POLITICS OFTEN makes for strange bedfellows. In Kerala, asgarmentmajorKitexGroup’s party Twenty20 seeks to expand its political footprint in next week’s local body elections,theCongress,theCPI(M), and the BJP have buried their differences to take on the corporate group’s outfit on its home turf. Kitex launched Twenty20 as a corporate social responsi- bility (CSR) initiative in 2013 to transformthevillageofKizhakkambalam, near Kochi, where it is located and employs thousandsinitsgarmentprocessing unit. It was formed following a longstanding battle with the Congress-ruled village panchayat that had refused the year before to renew the unit’s working licence, alleging it was contaminating water bodies with effluents from its dyeing andbleachingunits,thoughan expertcommitteeappointedby the High Court had found that »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 One-time exemption until February 10, no dilution in new norms, says Govt New Delhi, December 5 AMID MASSIVE disruptions being faced by IndiGo, with over 1,000 flight cancellations onFridayalone,theDirectorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) granted the airline a temporary one-time exemptionfromafewchangesrelated to night operations for pilots in thenewFlightDutyTimeLimitation (FDTL) norms — and other relaxations to augment its pilot strength. The temporary rollback, whichwillbeinplaceuntilFebruary 10, is for the carrier’s Airbus A320 fleet. Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu said the decision has been taken solely in the interest of passengers and, along with other measures, will help IndiGo’s schedule return to normalbySaturdaywithcomplete restoration of services within the next three days. TheDGCAhasalsoreleased 12FlightOperationsInspectors (FOIs) on deputation with it from IndiGo for flying duties »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Passengers wait at Jaipur International Airport on Friday. ROHIT JAIN PARAS l CONSTRUCTION COULD START AFTER MARCH NExT YEAR; SOME DONATIONS HAVE STARTED TRICkLING IN 6 years after Ayodhya verdict, new mosque still work in progress: Design is in Maulshree Seth paring to submit a structural map to the authorities. So the earliest any work, also dragged AS ANOTHER December 6 down due to lack of donations, comes around, 34 years after can begin is after March 2026. The Supreme Court which the Babri Masjid was demolished in Ayodhya and nearly awardedthedisputedAyodhya two years after a Ram Temple site to the Hindu side in 2019 was inaugurated on its spot, had ordered 5 acres of land at a construction is yet to start on “suitable, prominent place in the alternative ground given to Ayodhya” for the new mosque. The Uttar Pradesh the Muslim side to PAGE 1 government had build a mosque. then allotted land in TheIndo-Islamic Dhannipur to the Cultural Foundation, which has been given a 5- state’s Sunni Central Waqf acre plot in the middle of the Board in 2020, which formed fields in Dhannipur village in theIndoIslamicCulturalFounAyodhya, 25 km from the de- dation Trust for the purpose of molished Babri site, for con- the construction. The mosque that will come struction of the mosque, is preLucknow, December 5 anchor up is to be known as ‘Mohammad bin Abdullah Masjid’. Zufar Ahmad Faruqi, the chairmanofthefoundation,admits “there is nothing on the ground yet”. “Earlier, we changed one design submitted for the mosque following discussions, and based on the new one, a structural map is being prepared. We hope to submit it toAyodhyaDevelopmentAuthority by the end of this month.” Sources said that once the map is submitted, it will take at least three months for approval. Foundation members remain apprehensive about funds, though there has been some spurt since the new design was decided. “Funds are A 5-acre plot for the mosque in Dhannipur village in Ayodhya; (right) the final design of the mosque. VISHAL SRIVASTAV coming, but they are just trickling in,” Faruqi told TheIndian Express. The earlier design of the mosque, unveiled in 2021, was seen as too “modern” and “futuristic”, with a skylit glass dome.Sourcessaidthiswasnot received well by the community,andwasthereasonbehind the reluctance to donate. The new design is in a more traditionalstyle,withfiveminarsand traditional dome structures. Toattractabroadergroupof Jaipur donors, the mosque foundation is highlighting other initiatives which will be part of the structure, including a hospital, community kitchen, and an Indo-IslamicCulturalResearch Centre, with an archives and museum. The foundation’s website seeks donations saying: “Support the construction of the Muhammed Bin Abdullah Masjid through your generous donations.Thisprojectwillcreate a sacred space for worship, healthcare, learning, and cultural preservation, serving communitiesforgenerationsto come. Your contribution is not just towards building a masjid, buttowardscreatingacentreof compassion,unityandservice, that will benefit society today and in the future.” Ten days ago, the Ram Temple marked its completion with the hoisting of a religious flag by PM Narendra Modi. Nripendra Mishra, chairman of the construction committee of the Sri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust, told The IndianExpressthemaintemple has been finished, while the landscapingandconstructionof the boundary wall and auditorium will be completed by 2026. Mishra also said that Rs 3,000 crore was received in initial donations for the temple, andanestimatedRs1,800crore hadbeenspentonconstruction.