04012023-TTC-03.qxd 1/4/2023 12:36 AM Page 1 13 CHANDIGARH | GURUGRAM | JALANDHAR | BATHINDA | VOL. 7 NO. 4 | 18 PAGES | ~5.00 | REGD. NO. CHD/0006/2021-2023 ESTABLISHED IN 1881 TRAVEL CURBS ‘BIASED’, CHINA THREATENS COUNTER-STEPS WORLD /thetribunechd GOVT EXEMPTS PSUS CAN THWART ANY CHALLENGE FROM MINIMUM PUBLIC TO TERRITORY: RAJNATH IN FLOAT RULES BUSINESS ARUNACHAL BACK PAGE CHARGES DON’T MEAN ONE IS GUILTY: KHATTAR ON SANDEEP HARYANA wednesday | 4 january 2023 /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com Statement by minister cannot be attributed to govt, rules SC Car occupants knew Anjali was stuck in wheels, claims ‘friend’ Karam Prakash In 4:1 verdict, Bench says no addl speech curbs possible on MLAs, MPs Tribune News Service New Delhi, January 3 “My friend was screaming in pain after getting stuck in the wheels of a Baleno on New Year morning. The car occupants knew she was stuck, but they kept driving,” the friend of 20year-old Anjali who died after being dragged by the vehicle for 13 km around Sultanpuri revealed on Tuesday, hours before the victim was cremated. Sharing the horrific details of the accident, the girl, riding pillion with Anjali on the fateful day, said they escaped hitting a truck once but then collided with the car a few metres away. PLANNED MURDER? Autopsy rules out sexual assault, cites extreme injuries from vehicular dragging as the cause of death; doc says planned murder “The car occupants knew she was stuck, but they deliberately kept driving. They went ahead, then reversed and then sped away. She was screaming. I sustained minor injuries and fled out of fear,” said the victim’s friend, who recorded her statement with the Delhi Police today. The girl said they had fought over continued on page 10 edit: Sultanpuri horror Satya Prakash Tribune News Service TEARFUL ADIEU: Family members and villagers at the cremation of six terror victims in Rajouri on Tuesday. PTI NIA team visits Rajouri; ~10L reward for info on terrorists Arjun Sharma Jammu, January 3 A team of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) from its Jammu branch on Tuesday reached Upper Dhangri village in Rajouri that saw two terror strikes in as many days, resulting in six deaths. In another development, the J&K Police have announced Rs 10 lakh reward for information leading to the perpetrators, who are believed to be locals and suspected to be hiding in nearby forests. Sources said the police had detained one person for questioning. PAST KILLINGS IN JAMMU JUNE 19, 1998: 25 Hindus, part of a wedding party, killed by terrorists in Doda JAN 5, 1999: 16 Hindus gunned down in Barshalla, Doda AUG 3, 2001: 17 shot dead in Ladder near Kishtwar APRIL 30, 2006: 22 shot dead in Doda, 13 others at Basantgarh in Udhampur NIA officials visited the three houses where the terrorists had gunned down four civilians on Sunday. They also gathered samples from the site of an IED blast that occurred near one of the houses on Monday, killing two minor cousins. Sources said the samples would help the forces determine the nature of the explosive. The six terror victims, including a four-year-old boy, were cremated in the presence of Army, police and administration officials amid heart-wrenching scenes. The mourners took to sloganeering against the police and the district administration alleging the lives of the cousins could have been saved had the targeted houses been “sanitised properly” and the continued on page 10 Could’ve used harsher Armed Pak intruder shot words than ‘epicentre dead along Punjab border of terror’ for Pak: EAM New Delhi, January 3 External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has said he could have used “much harsher words than epicentre” for Pakistan for its role in promoting cross-border terrorism. The minister also denied that India was an ally of Russia. “We are an independent country. We do not define ourselves or perceive ourselves in alliance terms. That’s very much a western terminology. It’s not a term that we use,” the minister said in an interview with Austria’s national broadcaster ORF on if the word he had used wasn’t harsh. On Pakistan, he said, “I could use much harsher words than epicentre…this is a country which has attacked Parliament…the city of Mumbai, which went after hotels and foreign tourists, which every day sends terrorists across the border. If terrorist camps operate in broad daylight in cities, can you really Defends India’s move on Russian oil import ‘CHINA VIOLATED PACTS’ ■ China did not observe pacts with India on border issues & that was behind the“tense situation” between the two neighbours, Jaishankar said as he explained how Beijing tried to “unilaterally alter LAC” ■ He met the DG of International Atomic Energy Agency Rafael Mariano Grossi in Vienna & discussed several issues, including the Ukraine conflict tell me that the Pakistani state doesn’t know what’s going on, especially if they’re being trained in military-level continued on page 10 Amritsar/New Delhi, Jan 3 An armed Pakistani intruder was gunned down by Border Security Force (BSF) personnel near Channa border outpost in Gurdaspur sector under Ramdass police station area on Tuesday. An Italy-made pump gun was recovered from near the body. The BSF authorities have informed their Pakistani counterparts about the incident. A BSF official said traffickers IN BRIEF PM wishes King Charles III long, successful reign NEW DELHI: PM Narendra Modi spoke to King Charles III of the UK on the phone on Tuesday. As this was his first conversation with King Charles after he assumed office, Modi conveyed his wishes for a long reign. TNS At 83, Rupee again at all-time low against USD NEW DELHI: The rupee once again slumped to an all-time low of 83 against the US dollar. It had last closed at the 83-mark on October 19. On Tuesday, it opened at 82.69 and closed at 83, down 22 paise. TNS #IndiaEnemyOfPeace handle created in Pakistan: Intel NEW DELHI: Forces inimical to India created #IndiaEnemyOfPeace in Pakistan in December and to trend the hashtag on social media, over 10K Twitter handles were created, an intelligence report said. BACK PAGE Capt Chouhan first woman officer to be deployed at Siachen Glacier New Delhi, January 3 Capt Shiva Chouhan has become the first woman officer of the Indian Army to get operationally deployed at Siachen Glacier, the world’s highest battlefield. Hailing from Rajasthan, Captain Chouhan is an Engineer Officer from the Bengal Sappers. She is posted at the “Kumar Post” at an altitude of 15,632 feet where night temperatures are close to -25°C. The Kumar Post on Siachen Glacier is named after Col Narendra (Bull) Kumar, the noted Army mountaineer who led the first expedition to Siachen before India launched Oper- TO LEAD SAPPERS TEAM ■ An Engineer Officer from Bengal Sappers, she is posted at “Kumar Post” at an altitude of 15,632 feet ■ The Sappers team led by her will be in charge of numerous combat engineering tasks << Capt Shiva Chouhan at Siachen Glacier on Tuesday. ANI ation Meghdoot in April 1984 to capture the glacier. Captain Chouhan was deployed yesterday to the Siachen Glacier, having reached there after an arduous climb. The Sappers team often tried to push contraband, arms and explosives through the border fence taking advantage of the dense fog that reduced visibility to almost zero. This time, an armed intruder tried to enter India by crossing the barbed fence on the International Border, the official said, adding that a search was on to ascertain whether there was an attempt to smuggle contraband or weapons. continued on page 10 led by her will be in charge of numerous combat engineering tasks. It will be deployed at the post for three months. Before the new posting, Captain Chouhan underwent a continued on page 10 Today’s issue is of 18 pages, including four-page Jalandhar Tribune. IPS officer dies of cardiac arrest at Himachal CM’s rally Dharamsala, January 3 Saju Ram Rana (58), an IPS officer, died of cardiac arrest during a rally of Himachal Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu here today. Rana fell unconscious and was taken by the police to the zonal hospital in Dharamsala, where he was declared brought dead. The CMO, Kangra, Dr GD Gupta, said as per a preliminary report, he suffered cardiac arrest. The exact cause of death would be ascertained after the post-mortem, he said. Rana was posted as Commandant, 4th IRB, Jangalberi, in Hamirpur district. He was here today for duty during the CM’s rally. — TNS New Delhi, January 3 A statement made by a minister couldn’t be attributed vicariously to the government by applying the principle of collective responsibility, the Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday. By a majority of 4:1, a fivejudge Constitution Bench led by Justice S Abdul Nazeer said no greater restrictions could be imposed on free speech of public functionaries as the grounds for restricting free speech mentioned in Article 19 (2) of the Constitution were exhaustive. Justice Nazeer is to retire on Wednesday. Justice BV Nagarathna, who delivered a dissenting verdict on demonetisation on Monday, differed again on several key issues with the majority view. “A statement made by a minister even if traceable to any affairs of the state or for protecting the government cannot be attributed vicariously to the government by invoking the principle of collective responsibility,” said the majority verdict by Justice Nazeer, Justice BR Gavai, Justice AS Bopanna and Justice V Ramasubra- NO COLLECTIVE RESPONSIBILITY: VERDICT taxed or penalised for holding ❝ No oneiscan bewhen the opinion gets translatedan opinion... It only into action and such action results in injury or harm or loss that an action in tort will lie. Justices S Abdul Nazeer, BR Gavai, AS Bopanna and V Ramasubramanian NEED FOR RESTRAINT: DISSENTING VIEW the foundational values ❝ Hate speech strikes atfunctionaries, including of the Constitution. Public celebrities, are duty-bound to be more responsible and restrained in their speech. Justice BV Nagarathna ABOUT THE CASE ■ Bench was deciding if greater curbs could be imposed on the right to free speech of persons holding high offices ■ Matter reached SC following a controversial statement made by manian. Writing the verdict for the majority, Justice Ramasubramanian said, “A mere statement made by a UP ex-minister Azam Khan in gang rape case in 2016 ■ A similar statement derogatory to women was allegedly made by a Kerala minister in 2016-17 that led to litigation minister, inconsistent with the rights of a citizen under Part-III of the Constitution, continued on page 10 Hate speech hurts, harmful for society: Dissenting judge New Delhi, January 3 Disagreeing with the majority verdict, Justice BV Nagarathna said a minister’s disparaging statement could be vicariously attributed to the government, if made in his official capacity. She said only if a stray remark made by the minister was not consistent with the stand of the government, it could be treated as his personal remark. She said it was for the party to control the speeches made by their ministers, which could be done by forming a code of conduct. Noting that the freedom of speech and expression was a necessary right for ensuring a healthy democracy, Justice Nagarathna also voiced concern over hate speech, saying “it struck at the foundational values of our Constitution”. “Hate speech strikes at the foundational values of the Constitution by marking society as unequal. It also violates the fraternity of citizens continued on page 10