The Editorial Page: A lesson from Beed in raising farmers’ incomes 10 MONDAY, JANUARY 5, 2026 Journalism of Courage PUNE, LATE CITY, 18 PAgES ₹7.00 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 CHINA, RUSSIA, BRAZIL CONDEmN 127 155 193 88 Statement urges ‘all concerned’ to ensure peace and stability in region business as Usual New Delhi, January 4 lTHE SUpREmE COURT will pronounce its verdict on the bail pleas of activists Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam and others accused in the 2020 Delhi riots conspiracy case. TRACK THESE AND MORE ON www.INDIANExPrEss.cOm POlITIcs PAGE 7 PmONSOmNATH SWAbHImANPARv: 1,000YEARSOf UNbROKENfAITH Bangladesh to ICC: Won’t play our T20 WC games in India Delhi tightrope walk on Caracas: ‘Deep concern,’ need for dialogue Shubhajit Roy Happening today ICC DRAWING Up NEW SCHEDULE IN A carefully calibrated statement, the day after the US attacked Venezuela and captured its President Nicolas Maduro, India Sunday expressed “deep concern” at the developments and called upon “all concerned to address issues peacefully through dialogue, ensuring peaceandstabilityoftheregion”. Neither did it condemn the US action, nor did it invoke the respect for international law or the UN charter. Without mentioning the US action in Venezuela, it described it as “recent developments in Venezuela:” a more neutral framing of the military intervention by the US. Broadly, there were four »CONTINUED ON pAGE 2 By EP UNNY Counter move after BCCI nudges KKR to oust Bangladesh seamer from IPL Venkata Krishna B Chennai, January 4 EDITOrIAl PAGE TRUmP’S LAWLESS GRAb OPENS RISKY NEW cHAPTER P 10 Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro in custody at the US Drug Enforcement Administration office in New York after he was captured by US special forces and flown out of his country. REUTERS PAGES 12, 14 Survived Pune attack, Arunachal ‘Spiderman’ wants justice for Anjel Chandan Haygunde Pune, January 4 HE IS a popular parkour artist who has “done some movie stunts”, too. He is also the “SpidermanofArunachalPradesh” with one of his YouTube videos posted in 2019, showing him jumping, swinging, climbing andrunningoverwalls,terraces and streets, drawing over 25 Takam Todo was 17 when he was attacked while studying in Pune million views. And yet, that’s not what 26year-old Takam Todo wants to talk about — it’s the death of Tripura student Anjel Chakma in Dehradun days ago following a scuffle with six youths who allegedly also abused him using racial slurs. For Todo, the incident revivedmemoriesofthatnightof August 14, 2016, at the govern- ment polytechnic college in Pune, where he was studying. “I was attacked... maybe because of my looks and because the assailants considered me an outsider with no local support.Eventhepoliceinitiallyignored me... Having gone through that, I demand justice forAnjelChakmaandIsupport the ongoing protests against hatecrimesanddiscrimination Imagine surgery so precise, it feels like a leap into the future. against Northeast Indians,” says Todo. “It is unfortunate that people of the Northeast continue to face discrimination in other parts of the country because they look different. We areIndians,notChineseoroutsiders,” he says. Todorecallsthatitwasabout 9 pm when he — then a »CONTINUED ON pAGE 2 IN THE latest cricketing flashpoint between India and Bangladeshamidtensebilateralties, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) officially requested the International Cricket Council (ICC) to shift its T20 World Cup matches next month from India to co-host Sri Lanka, citing “growing concerns regarding the safety and security” of its contingent. Following the request, The Indian Express has learnt that the ICC, led by chairman Jay Shah, has initiated the process of drawing up a fresh schedule. According to the original schedule, Bangladesh was slated to play three matches of Group C in Kolkata, including the opening game against West Indies(February7),andagainst Italy (February 9) and England (February 14). Its last group match was to be held on Febru- The Bangladesh men’s team last played in India in Oct 2024. AP FILE E. ExPrEss interview ExPlAINED The Pak way Bangladesh’s move makes its cricket team the second after Pakistan to refuse to play in India — a spillover of fraught bilateral ties along India’s western and eastern borders. This also raises the prospect of the two sides meeting India henceforth only at neutral venues in global events. ‘bangladesh is not Pak... it doesn’t send terrorists’ SHASHI THAROOR CONgRESS MP PAGE 5 ary17againstNepalinMumbai. The BCB’s move comes a day after the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) asked Kolkata Knight Riders to eject Bangladesh seamer Mustafizur Rahman from its squad for the next IPL — the board cited “recent developments”, which is believed to be a reference to the domestic turmoil across the border. Bangladeshislearnttohave escalated the issue after its »CONTINUED ON pAGE 2 INDIA'S LARGEST ROBOTIC SURGERY PROGRAM Joint-Perfect Intelligence For precision knee and hip replacements. That future is now at Apollo Hospitals, Pune. Where a millimeter can change everything, our surgeons are guided by something extraordinary. The Da Vinci Xi and Mako robotic systems elevate their skill for one clear purpose: to make surgery safer, gentler, and easier to recover from. From urology and oncology to bariatric, breast and gynecological procedures, Pune now has access to a standard of care that redefines what surgery can be. Multi-Specialty Precision From oncology and urology to bariatric, breast and gynecological procedures. Minimal scarring | Reduced pain | Shorter hospital stay For consultation 020-69-071000 For emergency 1066 Pune