WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM Dear Dr Ambedkar... Letters to the chief architect of the Constitution — thanking him for changes he put into motion and apprising him of what remains unchanged KOLKATA, JANUARY 25, 2026 DOWN IN JUNGLELAND BY RANJIT LAL With bills like a pair of pincers, bee eaters can anticipate where an insect would be LATE CITY 12+4 PAGES ₹7.00 (₹12 IN NORTH EAST STATES, ₹20 IN ANDAMAN) D A I L Y F R O M : A H M E D A B A D , C H A N D I G A R H , D E L H I , Happening today lFINNISH PM Petteri Orpo will begin an official visit to China, during which he is set to meet Premier Li Qiang as well as President Xi Jinping. TRACK THESE AND MORE ON www.INDIANExPrEss.cOm CJI Surya Kant with Bombay HC Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar at the Fali Nariman Memorial Lecture in Mumbai, Saturday. AKASH PATIL CJI:HC primary sentinel, must be proactive, not wait for knock at door Omkar Gokhale Mumbai, January 24 ‘GOrkhAlAND StAtE, Or Ut, with fUll lEGiSlAtivE pOwErS’ pAGE 3 CALLING HIGH Courts the “primary sentinels”, Chief Justice of India Surya Kant on Saturday said their future depends on their ability to act as “proactive courts” and urged them to “not only wait for the knock at the door but also... remain alert to systemic failures in the rule of law”. The CJI also underlined the “power of interim relief”, and said that “justice delayed is not just justice denied, it is justice destroyed”. TheCJIwasspeakingonthe topic ‘The sentinel on qui vive: Article 226 as the guardian of access to justice’ at the Fali Nariman Memorial Lecture. Article 226 of the Constitution grants powers to the High Courts to issue directions, including writs, to any person, »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 No Census notification from TMC-led West Bengal govt so far, flags Centre Harikishan Sharma AMID THE ongoing tussle between the Centre and the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress government over a host of issues, West Bengal not having republished the Census 2027 notification in its official L U C K N O W , M U M B A I , N A G P U R , P A T N A , P U N E , EU leaders begin visit, PM flags trade & mobility pacts wEsT bENGAl New Delhi, January 24 K O L K A T A , EUROPEAN COMMISSION PRESIDENT URSULA VON DER LEYEN, JAISHANKAR MEET TODAY lPRESIDENT DROUPADI Murmu will address the nation on the eve of Republic Day. The address will be broadcast from 7 pm on Akashvani and telecast on all Doordarshan channels in Hindi, followed by the English version. J A I P U R , gazette issued in June last year is the latest sticking point between the two sides. ThiswasflaggedbytheCentral officials during the Conference of the Chief Secretaries, State Nodal Officers and Directors of Census Operations on Census 2027 held in New Delhi on Friday. Republication of the notification is a statutory requirement to notify the state’s intent to conduct the population countexercise,ofwhichthefirst phase—the Houselisting and HousingCensus—isscheduled to begin on April 1 this year. The notification was issued »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Modi: Pacts will bring new opportunities for India’s youth There’spath totakeoff25% Russianoil tariffs:Bessent Shubhajit Roy & Damini Nath New Delhi, January 24 Ravi Dutta Mishra New Delhi, January 24 AS INDIA and the European Union (EU) aim to conclude their trade negotiations during the visit of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council PresidentAntonioCosta,Prime MinisterNarendraModionSaturday underlined that trade andmobilityagreementsbeing signed with many countries would bring “new opportunities” for India’s youth. WhilevonderLeyenlanded in New Delhi on Saturday, Costa is expected on Sunday afternoon.Botharechiefguests for the Republic Day celebrations on Monday. Besides the focus on the India-EU Free Trade Agreement(FTA),theEU-IndiaSummit, hosted by Modi on January 27, is also expected to launch a new cooperation framework on mobility covering students, researchers, seasonal workers and highly skilledprofessionalstosupport Indian talent going to Europe. Von der Leyen, a former »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen with Union MoS Jitin Prasada after she arrived in New Delhi on Saturday. PTI US unveils new roadmap: Dialing down on China, homeland is priority Shubhajit Roy New Delhi, January 24 TAKINGAsofterviewonChina and not referring to its perennial flashpoint Taiwan, the National Defence Strategy (NDS), released by the Trump administrationFridayflagged,asakey priority, its dominance in the Western hemisphere. The NDS 2026, coming a month after the National SecurityStrategy,issharplydifferent from the NDS 2018 during »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 E. ExPlAINED Message on Quad NDS 2026 makes no mention of South Asia but on IndoPacific, it underlines that contribution from allies and partners will be vital to ‘deterring and balancing’ China. This implies US commitment to Quad, of which India is a member, could also be tested depending on how partners step up to the challenge. Partnering for an Aatmanirbhar Bharat We are proud to be a part of India’s thriving aerospace and defence industry. With sourcing over $1.25 billion annually, we’re fostering economic growth and advancing India’s vision for self-reliance. boeing.co.in Kolkata AS EUROPEAN Union leaders land in Delhi and India and the European Union look set to announce the conclusion of negotiations for a trade deal, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said there is a path to take offthe25percenttariffsthatthe USimposedonIndia’spurchase of Russian oil. In an interview to Politico, Bessent said, “We put 25 per cent tariffs on India for buying Russianoil,andtheIndian purchasesbytheirrefineriesofRussian oil have collapsed. So, that is a success... The 25 per cent Russian oil tariffs are still on. I would imagine that there is a path to take them off,” he said. Pointing to the Russia oil tariffs, the US Treasury Secretary said it’s a check and huge success, but took a dig at his European allies. “…our virtuesignalling European allies refused to do it because they wanted to sign this big trade deal with India,” Bessent said. »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 TRUMP THREATENS CANADA WITH 100% TARIFFS , PAGE 10 V A D O D A R A It’sofficial: Bangladesh outofT20WC, Scotlandin Govt to take call on Pak playing: PCB DevendraPandey Mumbai, January 24 THEINTERNATIONALCricket Council (ICC) has informed the BangladeshCricketBoard(BCB) that they will be replaced by Scotland for the coming T20 World Cup to be co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka. The ICC’s decision came after the Bangladesh government reiterated that its players would not play in India, and asked for their matches to be shifted to Sri Lanka. The world body has asked Scotland to preparetheirteamtoreplace Bangladeshinthetournament,which begins next month. BCBpresidentAminulIslam andthecountry’ssportsadvisor AsifNazrulhadrepeatedlycited "security concerns" as reasons for their demand -- a claim rejected by the ICC. A 24-hour ultimatum was given to the BCB andtheformaldecisionwasconveyedonFridayevening,stating Bangladesh'sexclusionfromthe tournament. The call was taken after a decision by the ICC Board, »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 POlITIcs pAGE 5 CONG, Sp lEft U.p. bACkwArD: ShAh tArGEtS CONG, Sp