19072022-TTC-01.qxd 7/19/2022 12:27 AM 13 EMERGENCY IN SL AHEAD OF PREZ POLL WORLD /thetribunechd Page 1 CHANDIGARH | GURUGRAM | JALANDHAR | BATHINDA | VOL. 142 NO. 198 | 14 PAGES | ~5.00 | REGD. NO. CHD/0006/2021-2023 ESTABLISHED IN 1881 tuesday | 19 july 2022 /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com 99% voting in Prez poll, Murmu set for easy win Aditi Tandon Tribune News Service IN BRIEF Capt, Naib Subedar die as grenade goes off JAMMU: Captain Anand and Naib Subedar Bhagwan Singh died after a grenade went off accidentally in the Mendhar sector of Poonch district in Jammu. INSIDE Nupur moves SC again, seeks clubbing of FIRs NEW DELHI: The SC will on Tues- day hear fresh plea of BJP exspokesperson Nupur Sharma seeking revival of her petition for clubbing of FIRs lodged after her remarks on Prophet. TNS Centre forms panel to strengthen MSP system NEW DELHI: The Centre has set up a committee to look into farm issues, including making the MSP more effective and promoting crop diversification BACK PAGE NewDelhi, July18 The ruling NDA candidate, Droupadi Murmu, is all set for an easy win over Opposition nominee Yashwant Sinha in the 16th presidential election that concluded here today with 99.12 per cent overall turnout and 100 per cent voting in 11 states, including Himachal Pradesh. Out of the electoral college of 4,809 (776 MPs and 4,033 MLAs), 4,796 electors featured in the final voter list while 4,754 of them cast their vote. Two MLAs were declared ineligible to vote subsequent to a court judgment while five vacancies exist in the Rajya Sabha and six in state Assemblies, leaving 13 electors out. The Election Commission said of the 771 MPs and 4,025 MLAs (six vacancies and two disqualifications) eligible electors, 763 MPs and 3,991 MLAs cast their vote. Eight MPs didn’t turn up for voting, among them BJP’s Sunny Deol (Gurdaspur) and Union Minister Sanjay Dhotre and Congress’ Mohd Sadiq (Faridkot). continued on page 10 PM Narendra Modi casts his vote for the election of the President. PTI 4,754 3,991 763 of eligible 4,796 electors cast vote of eligible 4,025 MLAs turn up of eligible 771 MPs vote in Parl’s Room No. 63 EIGHT MPs SKIP VOTING 2 of BJP, 1 each of Sena, Cong, BSP, AIMIM, SP and DMK NIRMALA COMES IN PPE KIT Ministers Nirmala Sitharaman and RK Singh vote in PPE kits 100% VOTE IN 11 STATES HP Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, , Kerala, Karnataka, MP Manipur, , Mizoram, Sikkim & Tamil Nadu SAD MLA ABSTAINS In defiance of the SAD’s decision to vote for Murmu, MLA Manpreet Ayali abstained from voting and sought a change in the party leadership VOTE COUNTING ON JULY 21 15TH PREZ’S OATH ON JULY 25 Stormy start to session, Oppn rakes up price rise, Agnipath Tribune News Service New Delhi, July 18 The monsoon session of Parliament today began on a stormy note with Opposition parties, led by the Congress, creating a din and forcing adjournment of both Houses without transacting any substantial business over issues ranging from price rise, hike in the GST rates to the Agnipath scheme. The aggressive Opposition created a ruckus in both Houses, even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged MPs before the start of the parliamentary proceedings to make the session as productive as possible and called for debate, criticism and analysis for a positive contribution to poli- Maken moves HC over RS election Tribune News Service Chandigarh, July 18 Weeks after the Rajya Sabha poll, Congress general secretary Ajay Maken today moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court, challenging Independent candidate Kartikeya Sharma’s victory. Maken was polled 29 votes, against 29.6 by BJPJJP backed Sharma. Maken alleged a wrongly marked vote of an MLA — who was not from the Congress, but voted for the Independent continued on page 10 Both Houses adjourned; PM calls for debate SIMRANJIT SINGH MANN Secessionist Mann swears by Indian Constitution,vowsto uphold sovereignty Congress MPs in the Rajya Sabha before the adjournment. SANSAD TV/PTI Tribune News Service CAG: SPECTRUM LYING UNUSED WITH GOVT DEPTS New Delhi, July 18 Newly elected Sangrur MP and pro-Khalistan leader Simranjit Singh Mann on Monday appeared eschewing his separatist sentiments as he took oath in the name of God and swore by the Constitution. He vowed to uphold the integrity and sovereignty of the country. Mann (77) took oath in Punjabi in Speaker Om Birla’s chamber, something objected to by several Congress MPs from Punjab and a few from the BJP Three other newly . elected MPs — BJP’s Dinesh Lal Yadav ‘Nirahua’ and Ghanshyam Singh Lodhi and TMC’s Shatrughan Singh — were administered oath in the Lok Sabha chamber. Talking to reporters outside Parliament, Mann defended his recent remarks calling freedom fighter Bhagat Singh a “terrorist” and his demand for Khalistan. “There should be a separate country for the Sikhs. Khalistan will act as a buffer state between nuclear-powered continued on page 10 The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) on Monday pointed out how spectrum -- the band of radio waves -- used for mobile communication was lying unutilised with several government departments and asked the DoT to get it vacated. BACK PAGE cies and decisions. In a lighter vein, he said that in Delhi, the rains had begun, but there was no let-up in the heat outside and wondered whether the heat would come inside Parliament. Speaking continued on page 10 No headway, but India, China to stay in touch Ajay Banerjee Tribune News Service New Delhi, July 18 India and China have not been able to come up with a resolution to end the military standoff along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Eastern Ladakh. The 16th round of military talks lasted 12 hours and ended at 10 pm yesterday. The talks ended in a stalemate. Corps Commander-level officers of the two armies had met at the Chushul-Moldo border 16TH ROUND OF LAC TALKS ■ This was the 16th round of talks between India and China since June 2020 to end the LAC military build-up ■ Thousands of troops, guns and tanks are stationed on either side of the border meeting point at the LAC on the Indian side on Sunday. A joint statement issued by the continued on page 10 edit: india-china stalemate Bhupinder Singh no more... Dil dhoondta hai na beetai raina” and “Zindagi zindagi mere ghar aanaa”. Born in Amritsar, Singh got his initial music training from his father, Prof Natha Tribune News Service Chandigarh, July 18 “Dil dhoondta hai” singer Bhupinder Singh passed away in Mumbai on Monday. He was 82. Suffering from suspected colon cancer and various other ailments, he breathed his last at Criticare Hospital in Andheri, Mumbai. A ghazal singer, Singh had to his credit many a Bollywood hit, including “Do diwane shahar mein”, “Naam gum jayega”, “Kabhi kisi ko AMRITSAR-BORN GHAZAL LEGEND BEGAN CAREER WITH AIR BHUPINDER SINGH FEB 6, 1940—JULY 18, 2022 mukammal”, “Kisi nazar ko tera intezaar aaj bhi”, “Ek akela is shahar mein, “Beeti SCINDIA MEETS AIRLINES’ EXECUTIVES BACK PAGE Singh. He started his career with All India Radio, Delhi. He played guitar and violin. His innings in the Hindi film industry earned him many a hit. His heavy voice made him distinct in the industry. His wife Mitali Mukherjee is a singer too. Together they performed live and collaborated on ghazals. They released albums together as well, including “Aarzoo”, “Chandni Raat” and “Anand Lok Meh”. His demise spread a pall of gloom in the music fraternity. “What a wonderful artiste and a warm person! Extremely sad to hear of Bhupinder ji’s demise. My heartfelt condolences to his family, friends and fans. May he rest in peace continued on page 10