22092023-TTC-01.qxd 9/22/2023 12:38 AM Page 1 13 CHANDIGARH | GURUGRAM | JALANDHAR | BATHINDA | VOL. 143 NO. 262 | 14 PAGES | ~5.00 | REGD. NO. CHD/0006/2021-2023 ESTABLISHED IN 1881 KARABAKH SEEKS SECURITY PROMISE FROM AZERBAIJAN WORLD /thetribunechd 12 OF 48 DRUGS MADE IN STATE FOUND SUBSTANDARD HP NO ECONOMIC DISTRESS PAK GENERAL ELECTION IN HOUSEHOLDS, SAYS IN LAST WEEK OF JAN CENTRE BUSINESS 2024: EC BACK PAGE friday | 22 september 2023 /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com India suspends visas for Canadians, asks Ottawa to cut mission staff as rift grows Parl passes women’s quota Bill, 215 RS members back it Trudeau rules out release of evidence after MEA says Canada hasn’t shared info on Nijjar killing Tribune News Service Sandeep Dikshit Tribune News Service New Delhi, September 21 The government on Thursday pressed ahead with more retaliatory measures against Ottawa, including suspension of visas from its missions in the country and asking the High Commission here to reduce its staff so as to be commensurate with the Indian staff strength in Canada. The decision on visa suspension will include Canadian applicants in third countries. India also said Canada has provided no specific information regarding Sikh terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar’s murder on June 18. “We are willing to look at any specific information that is provided to us, but so far we have received no specific information from Canada,” said Bagchi. In New York, however, Canadian PM Justin Trudeau called on Advisory: Don’t give radicals TV platform GRANTS FOR TRUDEAU FROM GURDWARAS: MP Cong MP Ravneet Singh Bitttu told the LS that Canadian PM Justin Trudeau was getting donations running into thousands of dollars from gurdwaras in Canada which were under the control of GS Pannun. SAFE HAVEN FOR ULTRAS ❝ If there is any nation that needs to look at reputational issues, it is Canada and its growing reputation as a safe haven for terrorists. The country needs to worry about its international reputation. CANADIAN-HINDUS ‘SOFT TARGETS’ — Arindam Bagchi, MEA SPOKESPERSON Canada High Commission at Shantipath, New Delhi. MUKESH AGGARWAL APPLICANTS IN THIRD COUNTRIES ALSO HIT Stating that Hindu-Canadians are ‘soft targets’, Indian-origin MP Chandra Arya on Thursday urged the community to stay calm, vigilant and report incidents of Hinduphobia MEA ADVISES STUDENTS TO STAY ALERT ■ Canada to ‘temporarily’ adjust staff presence as precautionary step In its advisory, the MEA has asked students going to Canada to “stay alert, be cautious and look around” when in the country. Advising extreme caution, students have been asked to avoid regions and potential venues that have seen anti-India incidents. India to cooperate with investigation into Nijjar’s killing and ruled out release provided by Delhi on the activities of Indian-origin terrorists, radicals and gang- ■ Visa suspension will include Canadian applicants in third countries ■ Canadians having valid visas for India or OCI cards free to travel of any evidence. Ottawa has not acted on any of the several dossiers sters who have found a safe continued on page 9 edit: India ups the ante NIAreleasespicsof10pro-Khalistanis Gangster-turned-terrorist behind attack on India’s US mission Duneke shot in Canada Ajay Banerjee Tribune news service New Delhi, September 21 The National Investigation Agency (NIA) today released pictures of 10 accused involved in attack on the Indian Consulate in San Francisco, US, in March and sought information about them from public. Issuing three separate “request for identification & information” notices against the accused, the agency has sought any information of importance that could lead to their arrest or apprehension. While two of the notices carry photographs of two Probe agency seeks info from public on suspects Jupinderjit Singh accused each, the third shows pictures of the other six accused allegedly involved in the attack. The agency has promised not to reveal the identity of Rupert Murdoch steps down as head of News Corp NEW YORK: Rupert Murdoch, 92-year-old media magnate whose creation of Fox News made him a force in US politics, is stepping down as leader of both Fox’s parent company and his News Corp media holdings. AP 14 Tanda medicos fined ~50K each for ragging DHARAMSALA: Fourteen medicos of Tanda college have been fined ~50,000 each for ragging in college hostel. They have been suspended from hostel for six months & from the college for three months. INSIDE Air passenger tries to open emergency exit, held AGARTALA: A passenger on an IndiGo flight was held on Thursday at Agartala airport for allegedly trying to open the emergency exit door of the aircraft midair and misbehaving with the crew. IANS Bishnoi gang ‘providing funds’ to cow vigilantes Tribune News Service Gurugram, September 21 After losing ground in Haryana and Rajasthan, notorious gangster Lawrence Bishnoi was planning to stage a comeback through a network of cow vigilantes. An investigation of social media chats and a few recorded calls of arrested cow vigilante Monu Manesar has brought to the fore the fact that not only Manesar, but at least five other vigilantes, who are also accused in the Nasir-Junaid murder case, were in touch with Bishnoi. According to a senior investigator of the Rajasthan Police, it seemed many cow vigilantes, FROM PEON TO FUGITIVE Tribune News Service IN BRIEF Sumedha Sharma Bishnoi gang claims responsibility MANESAR LINK anyone sharing information about the accused. The attack on the Indian Consulate in San Francisco took place on the intervening continued on page 9 To curb hoarding, disclosure of sugarstocksmust Tribune News Service Chandigarh, September 21 In a case of inter-gang rivalry, one of the most wanted gangster-turned-Khalistani terrorists, Shardul Singh, alias Sukha Duneke, was shot dead by unidentified gunmen in Canada’s Winnipeg on Thursday. Duneke was on the National Investigation Agency (NIA) list of 43 most wanted persons who had been in hiding in foreign countries. The killing comes amidst ongoing tensions between ■ Sukha Duneke’s father, a driver, was shot by terrorists in 1990; he got peon’s job on compassionate grounds, became an addict, joined gangsters ■ Fled to Canada in 2017 on basis of ‘favourable’ verification report; faced 18 criminal cases in India Delhi and Ottawa over alleged “anti-India” activities by criminal and terror groups based continued on page 9 New Delhi, September 21 Parliament today passed the Constitution (128th) Amendment Bill, 2023, with the Rajya Sabha clearing it unanimously. Yesterday, the Lok Sabha had passed the Bill. The Bill provides for reservation of one-third of the seats in the Lok Sabha and state Assemblies for women. All 215 members present in the Rajya Sabha voted in favour of the Bill. Amendments to the Bill proposed by Congress, Left, RJD and SP members demanding introduction of OBC quota in the 33 per cent seats reserved for women were turned down by a voice vote. Shortly before the Bill was put to vote, Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in the Rajya Sabha and urged the members to pass it unanimously. Noting that all those members who had participated in the debate had already expressed their support for the Bill, Modi said he would like to compliment the members and would also like to express his gratitude to them. The PM said political empowerment of women would be a “guarantee for the bright future of the country”. Prime Minister Narendra Modi greets members after the passage of the women’s quota Bill in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday. PTI GUARANTEE FOR NATION’S BRIGHT FUTURE: PM Shortly before the Bill was put to vote, PM Modi urged the members to pass it unanimously. He said political empowerment of women would be a “guarantee for the bright future of the country”. BOTH HOUSES ADJOURNED SINE DIE Earlier, in his reply to the debate, Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal said 72 members took part in the debate on the Bill today. He thanked all those who participated in the debate. Responding to the Oppo- sition’s charge that the deadline for the implementation of the 33 per cent quota for women in the Lok Sabha, state Assembles and Delhi Assembly had been deliberately kept vague by continued on page 9 Aadhaar not must for electoral rolls:EC Tribune News Service New Delhi, September 21 Maintaining that Aadhaar number details are not mandatory for voter enrolment, the Election Commission has told the Supreme Court that it will make appropriate changes to clarify the position. “The submission of the Aadhaar number is not mandatory under Rule 26-B of the Registration of Electors Tells SC will make changes in forms to enrol new voters (Amendment) Rules, 2022, and hence the Election Commission is looking into issuing appropriate changes in the forms introduced for that purpose,” senior counsel Sukumar Pattjoshi told a Bench led by CJI DY Chandrachud on behalf of the poll panel. He, however, said nearly 66.23 crore Aadhaar numbers had already been uploaded in the process of finalising electoral rolls. The Election Commission’s submission came in response to a petition filed by G Niranjan who had raised certain issues with regard to Form 6 and Form 6Bof the ECI forms for registration in e-roll. Vikram lander, Pragyan rover set Solan police tell NHAI to to ‘wake up’ after 14-day slumber cleardebrisorfaceaction Ambika Sharma Ajay Banerjee New Delhi, September 21 The government on Thursday issued orders for mandatory disclosure of stock position of sugar by traders, wholesalers, retailers and processors of sugar on the portal (https://esugar.nic.in) of the Department of Food and Public Distribution on every Monday. This mandatory weekly stock disclosure for these entities is a proactive step in Government of India’s efforts to maintain a balanced and fair sugar market, an official statement said. continued on page 9 Shubhadeep Choudhury Tribune News Service New Delhi, September 21 Union minister Jitendra Singh today said the Vikram lander and the Pragyan rover are set to “wake up” after a 14-day “sleep”. “We hope that the communication circuit will be activated by the onboard batteries when these are fully charged,” said the minister, adding that the circuits on the lander and rover would work only if the temperature was higher than -10°. “If we can wake up the lander and the rover, it will be the first such event in the Circuits get activated only above -10° Vikram as seen by Pragyan. FILE world,” he said. Replying to a discussion on the Chandrayaan-3 mission in the Lok Sabha, he said: “During the past nine years, the government has not confined itself just to launching rockets. Space technology has now entered every Indian home...” The minister said in 2013, the budget for the Department of Space was Rs 5,168 crore, while for the current financial year, it was Rs 12,543 crore. Congress MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury suggested the government should hold a felicitation ceremony in Rashtrapati Bhavan for all ISRO scientists who were part of the mission. Earlier, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said the success was a result of the development of India’s social, cultural and scientific trend. Tribune News Service Solan, September 21 The Solan police today directed the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to remove debris from several points on the ParwanooSolan section of the National Highway-5 within three days failing which it would be booked for negligence. Though the work to clear the debris is underway by GR Infraprojects, the firm which had four-laned the highway, it has not been completed. Notably, large mounds of debris and boulders have accumulated after rains on the highway. SPOTS VULNERABLE TO ACCIDENTS ❝ Suchspotshavebecome vulnerable to mishaps and the NHAI will be held responsible if any accident occurs due to debris on the road. Bhisham Thakur, DSP, SOLAN Motorists have to negotiate several diversions while commuting from Solan to Parwanoo as two lanes are closed for traffic due to debris or repair work at many stretches. These have become accident-prone spots. There were continued on page 9 ■ Gangster’s donations to ‘gaushalas’ diverted to fund vigilante groups, say police ■ Bishnoi wanted to use vigilantes’ network for his work, the police suspect ■ Manesar was in touch with Bishnoi, but insisted it was regarding a cow shelter project including Manesar, wanted to join the Bishnoi gang. “Bishnoi once ruled the extortion business in the area, but a police crackdown wiped out his gang. Sharing a common interest of cow welfare, he was in touch with ‘gau rakshak’ groups. Vigilantes like continued on page 9 Moment of immense pride to be flagbearer: Harmanpreet Indervir Grewal Tribune News Service Chandigarh, September 21 Harmanpreet Singh is used to carrying the hopes of a nation on his shoulders. As the star drag-flicker of the team for the last five years, Harmanpreet has hogged the limelight whenever the Indian men’s hockey team takes the field. He has also grown accustomed to the pressure that comes with the spotlight. The weight of Harmanpreet Singh expectations has helped mould the 27-year-old into the leader he is today. As the captain of the Indian team, Harmanpreet has led the Indian team by example. Harmanpreet, who made his senior team debut in 2015, is not just a goal machine but also the best defender in the team. His calm, yet inspiring, presence on the field has helped the Indian team achieve uncharacteristic consistency in the last couple of years. As India starts its journey at the 19th edition of the Asian Games, Olympics medallist Harmanpreet will deservedly c m y b lead the 655-member contingent during the opening ceremony. Harmanpreet has been named as the country’s joint flagbearer alongside Olympics medallist boxer Lovlina Borgohain. “Being named as the joint flagbearer alongside Lovlina is a moment of immense pride for me,” Harmanpreet said. “It is an opportunity to represent my country on an even larger scale, and I am truly humbled by this honour,” he said. Tourists visit the West Lake near the mascots of the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, on Thursday. AP/PTI