21032023-TTC-01.qxd 3/21/2023 12:36 AM Page 1 13 CHANDIGARH | GURUGRAM | JALANDHAR | BATHINDA | VOL. 143 NO. 78 | 16 PAGES | ~5.00 | REGD. NO. CHD/0006/2021-2023 ESTABLISHED IN 1881 NEPAL PM PRACHANDA WINS TRUST VOTE AHEAD OF INDIA VISIT WORLD /thetribunechd LASHKAR OPERATIVES’ ASSETS ATTACHED IN BANDIPORA J&K HEAVY RAIN IN REGION, PARLIAMENT PARALYSED ANOTHER SPELL FROM AS BJP INSISTS ON RAHUL’S MARCH 23 NATION APOLOGY BACK PAGE tuesday | 21 march 2023 /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com Amritpal’s uncle arrested;NSA Xi meets Putin as China pushes for slappedon him,4accomplices Kyiv peace plan Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida at Buddha Jayanti Park in New Delhi on Monday. PTI India integral to free Indo-Pacific: Kishida Sandeep Dikshit Tribune News Service New Delhi, March 20 Visiting Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced over $75 billion worth of infrastructure and security assistance for IndoPacific countries, including India, even as PM Narendra Modi vowed to expand the India-Japan global strategic partnership. Kishida said India was integral to a free and open Indo-Pacific region. The two leaders also referred to a 5 trillion yen ($38.7 billion) Japanese investment target in India over a five-year period announced during the Japanese leader’s visit last year. “There has been good progress in this direction,” said PM Modi. The Japanese PM arrived here in the morning amid an Unveils $75 bn plan to counter China FOR STRONGER TIES We reviewed progress in bilateral ties, mainly in defence, digital technology, trade & investment and health. Narendra Modi, PM ❝ unprecedented global churn over the Ukraine conflict and China’s aggressive behaviour in the Indo-Pacific. He had two major engagements – a meeting with PM Modi and a speech at the Indian Council for World Affairs (ICWA) outlining Japan’s new action plan for the Indo-Pacific during which he announced the continued on page 10 Separatist still at large | 6 FIRs, 114 arrests so far | ISI role likely: IG Jupinderjit Singh Radicals storm Chandigarh, March 20 Indian mission Even as the hunt for proKhalistan activist Amritpal in San Francisco Singh entered the third day Tribune News Service on Monday, his uncle and driver were arrested from the Mehatpur area in Jalandhar. The Punjab Police said they had invoked the stringent National Security Act (NSA) against Amritpal’s five associates, including his uncle Harjit Singh, who along with his driver Harpreet Singh surrendered near Bullandpur gurdwara in Mehatpur. A white Mercedes car (HR-72E1818) was impounded and the police seized a licensed .32 bore pistol and Rs 1 lakh. The others booked under the NSA were the four detainees — Daljeet Singh Kalsi, Bhagwant Singh, Gurmeet Singh and Pradhanmantri Bajeke — who have been shifted to the Dibrugarh Central Jail in Assam. Inspector General of Police Sukhchain Singh Gill said Amritpal Singh was also likely to be booked under the NSA after his arrest. “The NSA detainees are not Amritpal Singh’s uncle Harjit Singh, who was arrested by the police along with driver Harpreet Singh from Mehatpur, Jalandhar. TRIBUNE PHOTO CENTRE MULLS BAN ON ‘WARIS PUNJAB DE’ ■ The Centre is considering declaring ‘Waris Punjab De’ a banned organisation under provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act ~60K/10 gm Gold at all-time high ■ Gold price rallied ~1,400 to touch an all-time high of ~60,100 per 10 grams ■ Ongoing banking crisis that shook global markets has put focus on yellow metal ■ Experts expect gold to gain further. It is likely to trade in range of ~61,000-~62,000 Tribune News Service Chandigarh, March 20 For the security breach of Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to Punjab in January 2022, the Punjab Government has initiated disciplinary proceedings for major penalty against then Director General of Police Sidharth Chattopadhyaya and two other IPS offi- IN BRIEF Meet demands or face stir: Farmers NEW DELHI: The Samyukta Kisan Morcha on Mon- day said it would be forced to launch another stir if the government did not fulfil its demands, including a law on MSP, debt waiver & pension. BACK PAGE Porn clip on screens at rly station, 2 FIRs lodged NEW DELHI: A porn clip playing on display screens of televisions at one of the platforms at the Patna station in Bihar on Sunday left railway officials red-faced. Two FIRs have been registered against the company, Dutta Studio, which is in charge of the display. TNS AI peeing case: Victim moves SC seeking SOPs NEW DELHI: A 72-year-old woman, at the centre of headlines after a co-passenger allegedly urinated on her on board a New York-Delhi Air India flight last November, has moved the SC seeking a direction to the DGCA to frame SOPs to deal with such incidents. BACK PAGE Hate crime: Sikh student assaulted in Canada TORONTO: In an apparent hate crime, a 21-year-old Sikh student was attacked in British Columbia province by unknown men, who ripped off his turban and dragged him, a media report stated. PTI IN THE DOCK ■ Sidharth Chattopadhyaya, then posted as DGP Punjab India. These include the accounts of Canadian leader Jagmeet Singh, poet Rupi Kaur and activist Gurdeep Singh Sahota MOBILE INTERNET SHUT TILL NOON TODAY required to be presented in a court of law for remand. The position of these detainees would be reassessed after three weeks,” the IGP said. The IG said six FIRs had so far been registered and 114 Tribune News Service Chandigarh, March 20 As many as 155 builders owe Rs 4,734.24 crore to the government as external development charges (EDC) and state infrastructure development charges (SIDC) in Gurugram district. Of them, nine developers owe 52 per cent of this amount. In response to a question by Independent MLA Rakesh Daultabad during the ongo- ■ Dismissal from service cers. The decision in this regard was taken by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann. Besides, an explanation AS PER THE ALL INDIA SERVICES (DISCIPLINE AND APPEAL) RULES, 1969 has been sought from seven more IPS officers. As per a communication sent by the continued on page 10 Clear OROP arrears by Feb next year: SC to govt Satya Prakash Tribune News Service New Delhi, March 20 As the government failed to pay One Rank, One Pension (OROP) arrears to retired armed forces personnel within the time limit fixed by it under a 2022 judgment, the Supreme Court on Monday set fresh deadlines for clearing the dues in a staggered manner after the Centre highlighted financial difficulties faced by it. A Bench led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud asked the Ministry of Defence (MoD) to pay the Rs 28,000 crore OROP arrears for 2019- 12 LICENCES OF DEFAULTERS CANCELLED ■ Just nine developers owe 52 per cent of the total ~4,734 crore ■ 12 licences of defaulting colonisers have been cancelled ■ All other builders have outstanding dues of less than ~100 cr each ing Budget Session of the Haryana Vidhan Sabha, the government, in its reply, said that while the outstanding EDC against the builders is Rs 4,496.96 crore, the SIDC amount due from the builders totals Rs 237.28 crore in Gurugram district as on the time scale of pay as DIG, Ferozepur Range 155 Gurugram realtors owe ~4.7K cr to govt Geetanjali Gayatri POSSIBLE ACTION ■ Reduction to a lower stage in ■ Compulsory retirement then SSP, Ferozepur February 28. Nine builders owe the government Rs 2,502.16 crore while all other builders have an outstanding amount of less than Rs 100 crore each. Of this, Rs 2,384.19 crore constitutes the outstanding EDC amount. In continued on page 10 Dhesi slammed by Congress’ Abhishek Manu Singhvi over his Tweet expressing concern over crackdown on Amritpal CONTROVERSIAL TWITTER ACCOUNTS BLOCKED ■ Inderbir Singh, then posted ■ Harmandeep Singh Hans, ■ British MP Tanmanjeet Singh ■ Several ‘pro-Khalistan’ Twitter accounts have been withheld in Then DGP, two other IPS officers face major penalty for PM’s security breach Vishav Bharti UK MP’s TWEET ON CRACKDOWN FLAYED PAYMENT DEADLINES April 30: Family pensioners/gallantry award winners June 30: Those above 70 yrs Aug 31, Nov 30 & Feb 28, 2024: Remaining to get 3 instalments WHY SEALED COVER? We need to put an end to this sealed cover practice in SC… There has to be transparency in court… DY Chandrachud, CJI ❝ 2022 to various categories of pensioners between April 30, continued on page 10 In three years, 74 drugs found substandard in HP Ambika Sharma Tribune News Service Solan, March 20 Barely 74 drug samples have been declared substandard or spurious in the state in the past three years (2020 to 2022). Legal action has been initiated in 17 of these cases while in others, administrative action was taken by drug officials. continued on page 10 persons arrested in the crackdown against elements of “Waris Punjab De”. He said the investigation so far pointed out the involvement continued on page 10 edit: crackdown, at last New Delhi, March 20 India called in the US Charge d’Affaires on Monday and conveyed its strong protest at the vandalisation of the property of the Consulate General of India, San Francisco, after a separatist mob caused disruption in its functioning. 1 HELD FOR PULLING DOWN TRICOLOUR IN LONDON The US State Department condemned the attack, saying it was committed to defending the safety and security of these facilities as well as diplomats posted there. Separately, India’s High Commissioner to Canada Sanjay Kumar Verma was forced to cancel his appearance at an event in Surrey, after 200 protesters, some wielding swords, gathered at the venue demanding Amritpal’s “release”. There was also a protest by pro-Khalistan supporters outside the Australian parliament in Canberra. continued on page 10 Beijing/Moscow, March 20 Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart and ally Vladimir Putin held crucial talks in Moscow on Monday amid concerted efforts by China to push for a peace deal to end the Ukraine war, weeks after Beijing successfully brokered a pact between Iran and Saudi Arabia to end their bitter rivalry. Xi and Putin, who met over 40 times in the last 10 years to forge close ties to oppose the US-dominated world order, held talks hours after the Chinese leader arrived in Moscow for a three-day state visit to a “grand welcome”, official media on both sides reported. In his arrival statement, Xi said, “Our two countries have consolidated and grown the bilateral relationship on the basis of no-alliance, no-confrontation and not targeting any third party, and set a fine example for developing a new model of major-country relations.” He said China would continue to work with Russia to safeguard the international system with the UN at its core, the international order and the basic norms of Xi Jinping with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. AP/PTI FOCUS ON CONCERNS OF ALL STAKEHOLDERS ■ After brokering Iran-Saudi pact, Xi now focuses on Ukraine to enhance China’s role in global diplomacy ■ Xi insists his plan takes into account legitimate concerns of all stakeholders ■ Putin said Moscow studied Beijing’s proposals and he would discuss these with Xi international relations based on the purposes and principles of the UN Charter. President Putin said Moscow had studied Beijing’s proposals for resolving continued on page 10