06102018-TTC-01.qxd 06-10-2018 01:38 Page 1 13 chandigarh | gurugram | jalandhar | bathinda | jammu | srinagar | vol.138 no.276 | 40 pages | ~5.00 | regd.no.chd/0006/2018-2020 established in 1881 | saturday, october 6,2018 MAYAWATI HASN’T RULED OUT PACT FOR 2019 LOK SABHA POLLS: RAHUL PAGE 7 INTERPOL CHIEF GOES ‘MISSING’ IN CHINA, FRANCE BEGINS INVESTIGATION PAGE 17 /thetribunechd ! late city JADEJA, KOHLI HIT CENTURY EACH, WINDIES GASP FOR BREATH PAGE 18 /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com India seals S-400 missile deal with Russia Babbars pose risk Delhi’s balancing act to keep ties with Moscow and Washington Ajay Banerjee Tribune News Service New Delhi, October 5 Ignoring threat of US sanctions, India on Friday went ahead with the deal to procure the S-400 “Triumf” airdefence missile system from Russia. The move comes a month after India and the US signed an agreement on exchange of military information — Communications, Compatibility and Security Agreement (COMCASA). An Indo-Russian joint statement after the Narendra Modi-Vladimir Putin meeting in New Delhi read: “Both sides welcomed the conclusion of the contract for the supply of the S-400 longrange surface-to-air missile system to India.” The move is a clear indication of the balance India has maintained between Russia and the US. The Tribune was the first to report in its September 7 edition that despite inking COMCASA, “India will run the course of its military relations with Russia”. India has a strategic partnership with the US but has made it clear to Washington that India-Russia military relations stand separate from India-US ties and that these are not inter-connected. continued on page 7 INSIDE RBI holds interest rates, warns of inflation upswing Mumbai: The RBI on Friday left key rates unchanged, though it warned that rising global oil prices and tightening financial markets threatened economic growth and could increase inflation. PAGE 16 SC says no to fresh probe into Kathua gangrape case New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday turned down petitions by some accused in the Kathua gangrape and murder case demanding a fresh probe by an independent agency such as the CBI. BACK PAGE IS ex-hostage, Congolese doctor win Nobel Peace Oslo: Congolese doctor Denis Mukwege and Yazidi campaigner Nadia Murad won the 2018 Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for their work in fighting sexual violence in conflicts around the world. BACK PAGE CAN’T PRE-JUDGE, SAYS US The intent of CAATSA is to impose costs on Russia and is not intended to impose damage to the military capabilities of our allies (India)... The waiver authority is not for a blanket waiver. Waivers are considered on transaction basis. We cannot pre-judge any decision on sanctions. Smita Sharma Tribune News Service S-400 AIR-DEFENCE SYSTEM PM Narendra Modi with Russian President Vladimir targets can km is the be tracked range over Putin at Hyderabad House in New Delhi. MUKESH AGGARWAL by the S-400 Triumf air- which its radar can DEAL SPECIFICS defence missile system track targets ■ India is buying five S-400 air-defence missile of them can missiles can be systems from Russia for around $5.4 bn — be shot down launched in one approx by it simultaneously go to achieve that end 300 36 400 72 ~40,000crore UMBRELLA COVERAGE ■ This is the biggest-ever contract between Russia and India and the largest in the history of Rosoboronexport, Russian statesurface-to-air missile defence system; China controlled intermediary for export of arms was the first nation to buy it in 2014 ■ Delivery is expected to begin within 24 months ■ It will provide India ‘umbrella coverage’ against of signing the contract air-borne threats, including nuclear missiles, stealth aircraft, jets, missiles, UAVs etc ■ S-400 is Russia’s most advanced long-range Stubble fires up, Haryana wary Deepender Deswal DISTRICTWISE Tribune News Service Hisar, October 5 Preparations by the Centre and the state government to curtail the practice of burning stubble notwithstanding, Haryana saw a steady increase in such incidents between September 25 and October 5, compared with the corresponding period last year. The Haryana State Remote Sensing Applications Centre (HARSAC) has identified 77 “active fire locations (AFL)” across the state. Their number stood at 46 till October 5, an increase of 31 fire sites. A thick layer of smog had engulfed the capital and its vicinity last year owing to the the burning of paddy stubble by farmers. The colossal threat to environment made the Centre sit up and it introduced a scheme — Promotion of Agricultural Mechanisation for IN SITU Management of Crop Residue — monitored by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). The government allocated Will tackle oil prices, to our interests: US Putin tells PM Modi New Delhi, October 5 Months after the informal summit at Sochi in May, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday concluded the 19th annual strategic dialogue in Delhi. The two leaders focused on the “unique” relationship, with PM Modi driving home the message that there is no drift in ties between Moscow and Delhi, even as India and US enhanced their strategic and defence cooperation. India and Russia inked eight pacts in areas of railways, nuclear energy, fertilisers and cooperation in peaceful uses of outer space as well as India's manned space mission programme scheduled for 2022. “I am confident that President Putin’s commitment will give more energy to these relations. And our trust and friendship will be further strengthened and our special and privileged strategic partnership will scale new heights,” said PM Modi in his statement. “PM Modi spoke of rising oil prices and its impact on domestic economy. President Putin said that Russia would work with India to see stability in oil prices and try and enhance production of petroleum, if needed,” said a source privy to the discussions. Unlike the Rafale agreement, that was announced by the top leaders, the inking of the $5.4 billion S-400 agreement was not mentioned by either PM Modi or President Putin in their remarks to the media but included in a joint statement. Putin said, “Military-technical cooperation is not limited to Russian arms supplies. Our defence ministries and general staff maintain regular contact and work to enhance combat readiness of our armed forces.” Modi said India and Russia were “unanimous in strengthening multi-polarity continued on page 7 11 5 3 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Jalandhar, October 5 Niranjan Singh, Deputy Director, Enforcement Directorate, who investigated the Rs 6,000-crore drug racket in Punjab, has resigned. He was to retire in 2021. In his resignation letter to his superior Karnal Singh on Friday, he did not give any reasons for his decision. “I have resigned on personal grounds,” he told The Tribune. That all was not well within the ED was hinted by Punjab and Haryana High Court advocate and Niranjan Singh's counsel Anupam Gupta in March. He had said his client was under "pressure"’ ever since the name of a senior Punjab politician had surfaced in the drug haul case. The ED on January 16, 2015, had transferred Niranjan Singh from the Jalandhar Zonal Office to Kolkata. continued on page 7 25 6 21 4 2 8 1 1 1 2 3 2 2017 2018 Oct 2 Oct 3 Oct 4 Oct 5 egy said. Among others, the White House said the Nordic Resistance Movement is a prominent transnational, self-described nationalistsocialist organisation with anti-Western views that has conducted violent attacks against Muslims, left-wing groups, and others. The group has demonstrated against US Government actions it perceives are supportive of Israel and has the potential to extend its targeting to US interests, it said. “Similarly, the neo-Nazi National Action Group, a terrorist organisation that was banned by the UK in 2016 for its promotion of violence against politicians and minorities, operates mainly in the UK, but has engaged with like-minded groups in the US, Estonia, France, Germany, Latvia, and Poland,” the strategy said. — PTI 23 3 2 1 22 8 14 24 hardly any incident of stubble-burning in September. “But the sudden rise in such incidents in October is a worrying trend. Our mobile application has been tracking fire sites and alerting the authorities in the districts concerned, who then issue challans to the offenders,” he explained. continued on page 7 Inconsolable wife of victim Nazir Ahmad, who was shot by militants, in Srinagar on Friday. AMIN WAR 2 NC workers shot ahead of polls Majid Jahangir Tribune News Service Srinagar, October 5 Two days ahead of polls, militants sent a chilling message to the government on Friday by killing two National Conference workers and injured another in broad daylight in Srinagar. The attack took place in a congested locality of Karfari Mohalla in Srinagar’s old city when bike-borne militants opened fire at three persons around 11.15 am. 90% IN FAVOUR OF ELECTIONS: RAJNATH New Delhi: Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday claimed 90% of J&K people were keen on participating in the panchayat and urban local body polls scheduled this month. Singh said about 6,000 terror incidents had taken place in the state in 1995 and the count had come down to 360 in 2017. Darshani Deori to get new doorstoday HC acquits Ilyasi in Geneva, October 5 The UN voiced alarm on Friday over India’s deportation of seven Rohingya men to Myanmar despite warnings they could face persecution in a country where the military is accused of genocide against the Muslim minority. The UN refugee agency said it was “greatly concerned” for the safety and security of the men returned to Myanmar at a border crossing in Manipur. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said India had not responded to its request that they assess the men’s claims to international refugee protection in the country. — AFP GS Paul Huge task Replicas of original ones, seashells used for ivory effect Tribune News Service Baba Sukhwinder Singh Bhurewale inspecting the new Darshani Deori doors to be fitted at Golden Temple in Amritsar, on Friday. VISHAL KUMAR ivory attached with golden screws — were unhooked for repairs for the first time in 2010 after these were found to have decayed with time. believed to have raised with the Trump admn the issue of separatist Sikhs using the United States as a platform to gain global traction ■ Trump admn says such groups, with major economic, political and social targets, heighten risk to US personnel and interests overseas Tribune News Service UN alarmed at India deporting seven Rohingya Amritsar, October 5 The Darshani Deori, the archway leading to the Golden Temple sanctum sanctorum, will get new doors, a replica of the ones installed by Sikh ruler Maharaja Ranjit Singh about 200 years ago. The doors — 118 inches in height, 110 inches wide and with a thickness of 4 inches — will be installed at a ceremony on Saturday that will be attended by SGPC president Gobind Singh Longowal and his colleagues. The original doors — a sandalwood base with a silver sheet studded with carved ■ In recent months, India is Varinder Singh AFL Rs 137 crore for the scheme aimed at improving air quality in the National Capital Region (NCR). Haryana, with paddy cultivation on about 13 lakh hectares of land, received Rs 137 crore. Dr RS Hooda, chief scientist, HARSAC, pointed out that rains had delayed harvesting. Hence, there was India and Russia inked eight pacts in areas of railways, nuclear energy, fertilisers and cooperation in peaceful uses of outer space as well as India’s manned space mission programme scheduled for 2022. INDIA FLAGGED ISSUE ED Dy Director Niranjan quits OCT 5 ’17 OCT 5 ’18 Kurukshetra Kaithal Karnal Panipat Sonepat Ambala Faridabad Jhajjar Panchkula Palwal Sirsa Y’nagar EIGHT PACTS INKED Washington, October 5 The US has named Sikh militant group Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) among the separatist movements that pose a risk to American interests overseas by conducting assassinations and bombings against major economic, political and social targets. The BKI seeks, through violent means, to establish its own independent state in India and is responsible for significant terrorist attacks in India and elsewhere that have claimed the lives of innocent civilians, according to the Trump administration’s new National Strategy for Counterterrorism unveiled by the White House yesterday. In its strategy paper, the White House said there was a broad range of revolutionary, nationalist, and separatist movements overseas whose use of violence and intent to destabilise societies often put American lives at risk. “Such groups may avoid or deprioritise targeting US interests for now to avoid detracting from their core goals, but frequently conduct assassinations and bombings against major economic, political, and social targets, heightening the risk to United States personnel and interests overseas,” the strat- On July 4, 2010, the mammoth task of restoring their glory was allotted to Kar Sewa Baba Kashmir Singh Bhurewale. Meanwhile, tem- porary doors were installed as a stop-gap arrangement. The restoration work was to be completed within a year but was delayed owing to several hiccups, SGPC chief secretary Dr Roop Singh told The Tribune. For one, the wooden base was found to be beyond repair. Another hindrance was non-availability of ivory that was to be engraved on the doors' borders. As the sale of ivory is banned, the SGPC decided to leave the original doors ‘untouched' and create replicas with the help of seashells to create the desired effect. On February 15, 2018, it again continued on page 7 “All three persons were shifted to hospital where two of them succumbed to their injuries. We suspect two militants were involved in the attack,” Deputy Inspector General of Police Vidhi Kumar Birdhi told The Tribune. The deceased, Nazir Ahmad of Choto Bazar and Mushtaq Ahmad of Sonarkul Nawab Bazar, were in their early 40s and were former militants. Nazir was the constituency continued on page 7 wife’s murder case SC dismisses petition for full Delhistatehood New Delhi, October 5 court’s order. Ilyasi’s daughThe Delhi High Court on Fri- ter Aaliya, who was present at day acquitted former TV seri- the time of pronouncement of al producer Suhaib Ilyasi, the verdict, expressed happiwho was sentenced to life ness and said she always had imprisonment by a trust in her father. “I trial court for murderam happy. I am not ing his wife in 2000. able to express myself A Bench of Justices much right now. For S Muralidhar and Vinall this while, we were od Goel set aside the silent about it because trial court order of the judgment was yet December 2017, Suhaib Ilyasi to come. We have sufwherein Ilyasi was fered a lot, but I trust convicted and sentenced to my father and I had always life for stabbing his wife Anju trusted him,” she said. The to death. It held that the pros- trial court had on December ecution had failed to prove his 20, 2017, sentenced Ilyasi, guilt, while allowing the TV who had shot into limelight continued on page 7 anchor’s challenge to the trial New Delhi, October 5 The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed a plea seeking full statehood for Delhi saying it has become “infructuous” in view of the Constitution Bench verdict which had held that Delhi cannot be accorded the status of a state. The matter came up for hearing before a Bench comprising Justices Madan B Lokur, S Abdul Nazeer and Deepak Gupta and the advocate appearing for the petitioner referred to the judgment delivered by a five-judge Constitution Bench on July 4. — PTI Today’s issue consists of 40 pages, including four-page The Tribune Trends, 10-page Chandigarh Tribune and six-page Life+Style.