29072020-TTB-01.qxd 7/28/2020 11:45 PM Page 1 13 chandigarh | gurugram | jalandhar | bathinda | jammu | srinagar | vol.140 no.209 | 12 pages | ~4.50 | regd.no.chd/0006/2018-2020 established in 1881 MALAYSIAN EX-PM NAJIB GETS 12-YR JAIL FOR GRAFT WORLD /thetribunechd PUNJAB SECOND LARGEST TRACTOR EXPORTER AFTER M’RASHTRA BUSINESS INDIA TO PLAY GOLBAL ROLE IN SAVING TIGERS: MINISTER BACK PAGE /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com wednesday, july 29,2020 Gehlot adamant on July 31 session Deft manoeuvring at 30,000 ft R’sthan Cabinet sends third proposal to Governor, makes no mention of trust vote Tribune News Service & PTI New Delhi, July 28 The Rajasthan Government today wrote to Governor Kalraj Mishra for the third time, advising him to convene the Assembly session from July 31, as suggested by the Cabinet in its last note. The tug of war between the government and the Governor is likely to continue with sources saying even the latest Cabinet proposal does not make any mention of the floor test. On Monday, the Governor had returned the government note, asking it to specify if it wanted to take a floor test, because in that case the House could be called at a short notice. The Governor had said a 21day notice would be needed if it was to be a routine session without any floor test. He also asked the Cabinet to list Covid safety measures to be taken for holding the session. Rajasthan Chief Minister Actor Rhea booked for abetting suicide Patna: Actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s death case has taken a new turn with his father lodging an FIR against his rumoured actor girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty and six others, including her family members, for abetment to suicide, the police said. The late actor’s father, KK Singh, lodged an FIR on July 25, the police said. PTI DU prof arrested in Elgar Parishad case NewDelhi: The National Investigation Agency on Tuesday said it had arrested another accused Hany Babu Musaliyarveettil Tharayil, an associate professor with University of Delhi, in connection with Bhima Koregaon Elgar Parishad case. BACK PAGE CM Ashok Gehlot EPIC BATTLE IS ON, SAYS SURJEWALA AICC observer for Rajasthan Randeep Surjewala said an epic battle was on to determine who ‘wins between trust and fraud, people and traitors, and democracy and contractors of truth’. The Congress would fight this war in the interest of truth, Constitution and democracy, and emerge victorious, he said. Ashok Gehlot, however, reiterated the July 31 date for the commencement of the session after chairing a Cabinet meeting in Jaipur today. “We have the majority and will prove it, if we think it is necessary,” Rajasthan minister Harish Chowdhry said. Asked about the agenda of the proposed session, state Transport Minister Pratap Tribune News Service THE SCRAPPED 1981 WATER-SHARING PACT New Delhi, July 28 The Supreme Court today asked the Chief Ministers of Punjab and Haryana to attempt a negotiated settlement of the Sutlej-Yamuna link (SYL) canal issue that has defied any solution for decades despite several rounds of litigation. A Bench headed by Justice Arun Mishra said talks should be held between the two states at the highest political level. Stating that the Centre had been trying to facilitate talks between the two sides, Attorney General KK Venugopal requested the Aman Sood Patiala, July 28 After the Punjab Police, it’s the state Excise and Taxation Department that has refused to share with the Enforcement Directorate any details about the alleged multi-crore illicit liquor manufacturing scam that was busted recently. Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials are learnt to have written to the excise authorities on June 15, seeking details of all raids and arrests related to the scam over the past two years. An alleged political-excise nexus is said to be behind the unlawful practice that caused heavy losses to the exchequer. A Venu Prasad, Principal Secretary, Excise and Taxation, said he was yet to receive the ED letter and would check with the officials concerned in his department. “We will look into the matter and respond as per rules,” he said. Prior to this, the ED authorities had sent letters to the Patiala Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) on June 6 and again on June 12, to the Mohali SSP on June 17 and the Ludhiana (rural) police on June 18, said sources. The letters sought information on Singh Khachariyawas said it was for the business advisory committee of the Assembly to decide. On social distancing in the Vidhan Sabha in view of the Covid-19 pandemic, the minister said it was for the Speaker to make arrangements. The minister was also dismissive of the 21-day notice requirement. He said “10 BSP to move HC against Gehlot New Delhi, July 28 BSP supremo Mayawati today put Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot on notice, saying her party would move court against his “illegality” of breaking away her party's six MLAs and merging them with the Congress. Sources said the BSP would move the Jaipur High Court tomorrow over the legality of the merger of its MLAs with the Congress. BSP's contention is that MLAs can merge with another political outfit only with the consent of their party head as they had contested and won on its electoral symbol. Alternatively, before merging, they would have to float an outfit as merger relates to entities. “The BSP could have moved the court earlier too, but it waited for an opportune time to teach the Congress a lesson,” Mayawati said. — TNS Negotiate political settlement of SYL dispute, SC tells Punjab, Haryana CMs EDillicit liquor probe hitsexcisedeptbump Tribune News Service Guv Kalraj Mishra days” had already passed since the government proposed a session and asked why the Governor hadn't given a date himself. “We want permission to call the Assembly session, which is our right. We don’t want any confrontation with the Governor and hope he will give his approval this time,” Khachariyawas told reporters after the Cabinet meeting. “He has no right to raise queries. Yet we are giving a reply,” the minister said. Former Union minister P Chidambaram claimed the Cabinet need not specify the floor test issue in its note to the Governor. All that it needed to advise the Governor was to call the session for which the latter was constitutionally bound, he said. CM Gehlot has repeatedly said in public that he would take a test of strength in the House in the wake of rebellion by 19 Congress MLAs, including sacked Deputy CM Sachin Pilot. After police, dept’s no to sharing case details BOOZE SCAM 12 FIRs UNDER LENS The ED is conducting a probe under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. It is looking into at least 12 FIRs registered at various police stations in Patiala, Mohali and Ludhiana. “FIRs, probe reports, property details of accused and interrogation reports of those arrested in related cases”. Nothing has been shared to date by the three police districts, said an ED official. Interestingly, ED Deputy Director Niranjan Singh himself met senior police officials to seek records pertaining to the seizure of illicit liquor and manufacturing units, but to no avail. “I have heard nothing from the two departments. We need requisite information to nail the culprits and probe the financial angle,” Niranjan Singh told The Tribune. 1981: Punjab, Haryana sign a water-sharing agreement 2016: SC declares law passed by Punjab House unconstitutional 2004: The Congress government in Punjab terminates agreement 2017: Punjab returns the SYL canal land to landowners NO SURPLUS WATER: JAKHAR | SHOW POLITICAL WILL: DHANKAR INSIDE third week of August. Punjab has been demanding a negotiated settlement between the two states with the help of the Centre, while Haryana maintains it can’t be made to wait indefinitely despite having a decree in its favour. The Union Jal Shakti Ministry has already convened several meetings — attended by chief secretaries of the two states — which remained inconclusive. The Supreme Court had earlier told the Centre, Punjab and Haryana to conclude their talks on the construction of SYL canal “as soon as it can be”. Else, it would proceed to decide the matter, it had said. On their way to India from France, five Rafale jets were refuelled mid-air from a French tanker at a height of 30,000 feet. The fleet will arrive at Ambala airbase on Wednesday where they will be inducted into the IAF. PTI Naval sky watch to monitor Chinese movement on LAC Ajay Banerjee Tribune News Service New Delhi, July 28 After the Chinese build-up along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Ladakh, the Navy’s fleet of sophisticated surveillance planes, the Boeing P8I, has been regularly flying from Rajali near Chennai to scan the Himalayas and across. The sky watch adds to the satellite and local UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) imagery. The sweep and reach of the P8I is wider than that of a UAV. Also, it can be flown on demand at any time of the day or night, unlike the Indian satellites that have a schedule to cover. Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL)-provided Data Link Communications allows the P8I to exchange tactical data live to ground stations, the South Block and the Navy data collation centre at Gurugram. The plane, designed for a maritime role, carries high-end electro-optical equipment that picks up minute details. SURVEILLANCE PLANE ■ The range of Boeing P8I is wider than that of a UAV ■ Boeing P8I are being regularly flown from Rajali near Chennai to scan the Himalayas ■ Designed for a maritime role, it carries high-end electrooptical equipment that picks up minute details It was also used during the Doklam standoff (JuneAugust 2017) with China. “The planes remain at their home base and have not been moved northwards,” a top functionary said. They have an extended range of flying some 3,500 km with additional fuel tanks, which means a plane or a pair of them can scan the Himalayas, land at any of the IAF bases in North India, refuel, and go back to Rajali. The Navy has been using the Boeing P8I planes since 2013 and now has a fleet of 12, six additional ones have been ordered. The US Navy, Australian Navy and several allies of the US use the same plane, modified from the Boeing’s commercial planes 737-800ERX. Separately, the Indian establishment is making a push to provide assistance to Island countries in the Indian Ocean where China is facing a negative opinion due to the Covid-19 pandemic. India has sent doctors, medicines, PPE kits and food provisions to these islands amid the crisis. “To keep the Indian Ocean Region countries as cohesive as possible is the target,” said a top functionary. The presence of China in the Indian Ocean cannot be the new normal and the space created for human assistance due to the outbreak has to be filled up. Indian naval ships in the past two months have delivered aid to Maldives, Mauritius, Seychelles, Madagascar and Comoros. top court to give more time for the purpose. The Bench — which wanted the two states to clearly tell it if they could solve it through negotiations or not — indicated the matter would be taken up in the Poll panel objects to Murmu remark on J&K elections Forces no longer need NOC At 700, Mumbai logs for land acquisition in J&K lowestspikein3mths New Delhi, July 28 Taking objection to the suggestions made by Jammu & Kashmir Lieutenant Governor (L-G) GC Murmu indicating that the Assembly poll could be held after the delimitation exercise was over, the Election Commission of India (ECI) today said such statements “virtually tantamount to interfering” with its “constitutional mandate”. An EC spokesperson said, “It would be proper for the authorities other than the Election Commission to refrain from making such statements... (deciding on) the timing etc. of poll is the sole remit of the EC.”— TNS Jammu, July 28 The UT Revenue Department has withdrawn its 1971 circular that required a no objection certificate (NOC) from the J&K Home Department for acquisition or requisition of land in favour of the Army, Border Security Force, Central Reserve Police Force and other similar organisations. The decision comes close on the heels of the Administrative Council, headed by Lieutenant Governor Girish Chandra Murmu, giving its nod to the proposal for amending the Control of Building Operations Act, 1988, and the J&K Development Act, 1970, to 1971 order mandating nod withdrawn PAK HOUSE FOR TOP HONOUR TO GEELANI Islamabad: Pakistan Senate has passed a resolution lauding Kashmiri separatist leader Syed Ali Geelani and calling on the government to confer country’s highest civil award ‘Nishan-e-Pakistan’ on him. This comes ahead of the first anniversary of revocation of special status to J&K by the Indian Government. PTI provide for a special dispensation for carrying out construc- tion activities by the armed forces on July 17. All such acquisitions would now be covered under the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013. The Revenue Department, in its July 24 order, said: “In view of the extension of the Right to Fair Compensation Act, 2013, to the UT, the circular that prescribed obtaining of an NOC from the Home Department for acquisition/ requisition of land in favour of the Army, BSF CRPF and , similar organisations is hereby withdrawn.” — TNS Bid to smuggle Covid drugs to Iraq, 3 held Sumedha Sharma Tribune News Service Gurugram, July 28 The Gurugram drug control department has busted a drugsmuggling cartel that not just hoarded Covid treatment medicines, but was to smuggle these to Iraq in an upcoming Vande Bharat flight. Three foreigners, including two Iraqi men and an Uzbek woman, all working as translators, were nabbed from Sector REMDESIVIR SELLS FOR ~1L ■ Two Iraqi men & an Uzbek woman tried to cash in on Covid drug crisis in Iraq ■ Remdesivir costs ~5,400 per vial in India, while it sells for around ~1 lakh in Iraq ■ Similarly, Fabiflu strip and Lopikast vial cost ~2,500 and ~3,990 here and fetch ~ 8,000 and ~15,000 in Iraq DRUGS SEIZED FROM ACCUSED. 47 along with Remdesivir (48 vials), Fabiflu (55 strips) and Lopikast (18 packs) drugs. Remdesivir costs Rs 5,400 per vial here and is reportedly sold for around Rs 1 lakh in Iraq. Similarly, Fabiflu strip is priced Rs 2,500 in India and sells for Rs 8,000 in Iraq. Lopikast vial costs Rs 3,990 here and goes for around Rs 15,000 in Iraq. The seizure has also brought the continued on back page Tribune News Service New Delhi, July 28 Mumbai, the top Covid hotspot, today recorded the lowest single-day rise in new cases in three months. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation reported 700 cases in the city in the past 24 hours, the sharpest daily decline seen so far. Mumbai is the second Covid red zone after Delhi to show a decline in daily new cases. Member, Health, NITI Aayog, VK Paul said if the decline sustained over some days, one could conclude that Mumbai disease graph was peaking. Delhi started showing a similar decline in daily new cases about a fortnight ago, with AIIMS chief Randeep Guleria declaring about 10 days ago that the peak seemed to have arrived. Paul said the peak would come earlier in highly burdened states and later in other states where infections were surging now. Thanks to the drop in cases in Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Delhi, the national Covid surge in 24 hours remained less than 50,000, although the daily new cases nationally were COVID-19CASES INDIA COUNT RECOVERED 9,52,743 FRESH FATALITIES 654 TOTAL DEATHS 33,425 14,83,156 WORLD 1,67,27,725 RECOVERED 1,02,94,851 DEATHS 6,58,870 1ST MOTHER-CHILD VERTICAL TRANSMISSION CASE IN PUNE TOTAL The country’s first documented case of vertical transmission of Covid from mother to child, leading to severe disease in the infant, has been reported by Pune’s BJ Medical College (BJMC) and Sassoon General Hospital. According to BJMC researchers, this is the first proven case of trans-placental transmission. higher than 45,000 for the sixth day today. The single-day rise in cases in the country was 47,703, taking the total load to 14,83,156 with the fatality rate falling further to 2.25 per cent from yesterday’s 2.28 per cent. With 9,52,743 recoveries, the cure rate rose to 64.24 per cent. Toll from the disease now is 33,425 with 654 deaths in 24 hours. As many as 35,176 patients were discharged. edit: Prioritise treatment