19032024-TT-01.qxd 3/18/2024 11:12 PM Page 1 13 CHANDIGARH | GURUGRAM | JALANDHAR | BATHINDA | VOL. 144 NO. 78 | 12 PAGES | ~5.00 | REGD. NO. CHD/0006/2024-2026 ESTABLISHED IN 1881  HIMACHAL PRADESH FAMINE IMMINENT IN NORTHERN GAZA: UN REPORT WORLD /thetribunechd LS POLL: ADMN SETS UP CONTROL ROOMS, FORMS PANEL J&K TATA SONS TO ‘SELL’ 2.3 CR TCS SHARES IN BLOCK DEALS BUSINESS PAK LAUNCHES AIRSTRIKES IN AFGHANISTAN, 8 KILLED BACK PAGE tuesday | 19 march 2024 /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com EC orders removal of Bengal SC to SBI: Don’t be selective, reveal all details by March 21 DGP, home secys of 6 states Satya Prakash Tribune News Service TMC terms directive glaring example of BJP’s ‘control’ over EC INDIA VOTES VIVEK SAHAY REPLACES KUMAR AS BENGAL DGP 2024 Within hours of Rajeev Kumar’s removal as DGP, the ECI mandated the appointment of 1988-batch IPS officer Vivek Sahay as the new police chief of West Bengal Tribune News Service Tamilisai Soundararajan Telangana Guv quits, may fight LS poll from TN New Delhi, March 18 Tamilisai Soundararajan on Monday resigned as Telangana Governor and Puducherry Lieutenant Governor amid signals that the BJP may field her in the Lok Sabha poll from Tamil Nadu. “I have resigned of my own volition and will spell out future plans once my resignation is accepted. I wish to engage with public service intensely,” Soundararajan said after the Telangana Raj Bhavan announced her resignation. continued on page 8 New Delhi, March 18 In a major bureaucratic reshuffle ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Monday issued orders for immediate shifting of West Bengal’s Director General of Police (DGP) Rajeev Kumar to a non-election post and the removal of home secretaries of six states, including Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, UP Bihar, , Jharkhand and Uttarakhand. In a letter to West Bengal’s Chief Secretary, the ECI said the decision had been taken after reviewing the poll preparedness in the state. The ECI also issued orders for the removal of senior officials from the General Administration Department of Himachal Pradesh and Mizoram, and the Brihanmumbai Municipal Commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal. Sources pointed out that the IN BRIEF TN moves SC on Guv’s refusal to appoint minister NEW DELHI: The SC on Monday agreed to consider a plea of the Tamil Nadu Government against the refusal of Governor RN Ravi to appoint DMK leader K Ponmudi as a minister in the state Cabinet.. BACK PAGE AgustaWestland: SC junks middleman’s bail plea NEW DELHI: The SC on Monday refused to entertain a fresh bail plea of Christian Michel James, alleged middleman being probed by the CBI & the ED in the ~3,600-crore AgustaWestland chopper “scam” cases. PTI 3 more held in Gujarat varsity hostel attack case AHMEDABAD: The police on Monday arrested three more persons for the alleged attack on some foreign students on the Gujarat University hostel premises, taking the total number of arrests to five. PTI SCrefusestostay sixHP MLAs’ disqualification Satya Prakash Tribune News Service New Delhi, March 18 The Supreme Court on Monday refused to stay the disqualification of six Himachal Pradesh rebel Congress MLAs, who were disqualified by Assembly Speaker Kuldeep Singh Pathania on February 29 under the anti-defection law. A Bench led by Justice Sanjiv Khanna also refused to allow them to take part in the Assembly proceedings during the pendency of the matter before the top court. The Bench, which also included Justice Dipankar Datta, however, issued a notice to the office of the Assembly Speaker on their petition. “Issue a notice in the main writ petition as well as the stay application. Re-list in week commencing May 6,” the Bench said. The Bench asked the Himachal Pradesh Assembly Speaker to respond to the petition in four weeks and gave one week to the petitioners to file their rejoinder, if any. “We can issue a notice... But there will be no stay. Second, as far as a fresh election is concerned, we have to decide... But we’ll not allow you to vote and be a part of the Legislative Assembly. We won’t allow you to participate (in the proceed- PUTS SPEAKER’S OFFICE ON NOTICE ■ Bench refuses to allow them to take part in Assembly proceedings during pendency of matter ■ It, however, issued a notice to the office of the Assembly Speaker on their petition ings of the Assembly),” Justice Khanna told senior advocate Harish Salve, who represented the petitioners. The six rebel Congress MLAs — Sudhir Sharma, Ravi Thakur, Rajinder Rana, Inder Dutt Lakhanpal, Chaitanya Sharma and Devinder Kumar Bhutto — were disqualified for defying a Congress whip to be present in the House and vote in favour of the Himachal Pradesh Government during the cut motion and the Budget. They had cross-voted in the recent Rajya Sabha poll in Himachal Pradesh, resulting in the defeat of Congress candidate Abhishek Manu Singhvi. Following the disqualification of the rebel Congress MLAs, the effective strength of the House has been reduced from 68 to 62 and the ruling Congress now has 34 MLAs instead of 40. Senior advocate AM Singhvi submitted on behalf of the Speaker continued on page 8 HOME SECYS WERE HOLDING DUAL CHARGE ■ The home secretaries of Gujarat, UP Bihar, Jharkhand, Himachal , Pradesh and Uttarakhand were removed as they were found to be holding dual charge in the office of CM in their respective states ■ This could potentially compromise or be seen to be compromising the neutrality required during the electoral process, especially in matters relating to law and order, sources pointed out KUMAR WAS TAKEN OFF POLL DUTY IN 2019 TOO Considered close to the TMC, Kumar was removed too as the Commissioner of Kolkata Police and ADG of West Bengal CID by the ECI during the 2016 Assembly elections and 2019 the Lok Sabha poll, respectively HIMACHAL HOME SECY RELIEVED OF CHARGE ■ Himachal Pradesh Home and Vigilance Secretary Abhishek Jain was on Monday relieved of his charge with immediate effect after the ECI orders decision was taken to ensure a level playing field for all political parties during the forthcoming Lok Sabha poll and Assembly elections in four states, namely Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh, as well as byelections for 26 seats in 13 states. The poll panel usually takes such action when an ■ Jain, however, will continue to function as the secre- tary of the information technology, finance, planning and economics & statistics departments of HP issue of conflict of interest comes up. Ahead of elections, the EC directs states to transfer officers connected with election-related work who have completed three years or are in their home districts. If such officers are not transferred by the states, the EC orders their removal. Meanwhile, following the instruction of the ECI, the WB Government on Monday appointed Vivek Sahay as the new DGP of the state. Sahay, a 1988-batch IPS officer, was serving as the Director General and Commandant General (Home Guards). Criticising the removal of Kumar, the ruling Trinamool Congress continued on page 8 New Delhi, March 18 The Supreme Court on Monday ordered the State Bank of India (SBI) to stop being “selective” and disclose all “conceivable” details available with it regarding electoral bonds, including the alphanumeric number corresponding to each bond, by March 21. The unique bond numbers would reveal the link between the buyers and the recipient political parties. “The SBI is required to make a complete disclosure of all details in its possession. This will also comprehend the alphanumeric number and serial number of the electoral bonds which were purchased and redeemed,” a five-judge Constitution Bench led by CJI DY Chandrachud said. “To fully effectuate the judgment and to obviate any controversy in the future, we direct that the chairman and managing director of the SBI shall file an affidavit on or before 5 pm on March 21, indicating that the bank has disclosed all details of electoral bonds in its possession and that no details have been withheld in terms of the directions given vide judgment dated February 15,” it Tells EC to upload info on receipt from bank COMPLETE BOND DISCLOSURE ❝ There is no manner of doubt that the SBI is required to make complete disclosure of all details, including bond numbers, which are in its possession. Let the SBI not be selective in disclosure. Constitution Bench ordered. The Bench directed the Election Commission to upload the details forthwith on receipt of the communication from the SBI. On behalf of the SBI, senior counsel Harish Salve said there was no reservation on part of the bank in disclosing all details in its possession. The Bench, however, refused to direct the disclosure of bond details from the first date of their issuance, i.e. March 1, 2018 to April 11, 2019 as demanded by a citizens’ group. Not ordering disclosure of details prior to April 12, 2019 was a “conscious choice”, the SC said as it refused to entertain the contentions of ASSOCHAM and other industrial chambers against the disclosure of bond details on the ground of their plea not being listed. The CJI said, “With effect from April 12, 2019, we had directed the collection of details. Everyone was put to notice at that time. This is why we did not ask for disclosure of bonds sold prior to the interim order. This was a conscious choice by the Constitution Bench.” The Bench, which also included Justices Sanjiv Khanna, BR Gavai, JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, had on February 15 directed the SBI to furnish by March 6 details of electoral bonds sold so far to the Election Commission which shall make it public by March 13. On Monday, the top court refused to take note of SCBA president continued on page 9 MANAS RANJAN BHUI Putin re-elected, Modi extends wishes Says looking forward to stronger ties as Russian Prez wins 5th term New Delhi, March 18 President Vladimir Putin secured an unprecedented fifth term, as Russian election commission on Monday announced the results of a vote in which he faced no serious challenges. Putin claimed his overwhelming margin was proof of Russians’ “trust” and “hopes” in him. The results came after Putin unleashed the country’s harshest crackdown on the opposition since Soviet times. Only three token candidates — and no one who opposes his war in Ukraine — were allowed to run against Putin as he sought Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Monday. AP/PTI another six years in power. With this win, Putin, who has been in power since 2000, will be President till 2030. Results showed that Putin received 87.8 per cent of the vote for his fifth term. He was Prime Minister between 2008 and 2012, when Dmitry Medvedev stood in as President. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has congratulated him on his re-election. Man who killed Punjab cop shot Sanjiv Bakshi Hoshiarpur, March 18 The criminal who allegedly killed a Punjab Police constable during a raid at his house in Mansoorpur village of Mukerian in Hoshiarpur was today gunned down in an encounter with the police on the Jalandhar-Pathankot road near here, officials said. Constable Amritpal Singh had died of a bullet wound to the chest on Sunday when Sukhwinder Singh, alias Rana Mansoorpuria, opened A CCTV grab of Sukhwinder riding a bike before the encounter. fire at a police team that was out to arrest him after suspecting his involvement in a criminal case. Rana was con- victed in an NDPS case and was facing trial in several criminal cases. The encounter took place near Purana Bhangala village, about 20 km from Mansoorpur. The area had been cordoned off since Sunday afternoon and when the police moved closer to Rana, an exchange of fire took place around 6.20 pm and he was fatally shot, the officials said. An extensive search operation was launched in Mansoorpur and its surrounding continued on page 8 “Look forward to working together to further strengthen the time-tested special and privileged strategic partnership between India and Russia in the years to come,” said the PM in a post on X. The Chinese Foreign Office said Xi and Putin “will continue to maintain close exchanges, lead the two countries to continue to uphold longstanding good neighbourly friendship and deepen comprehensive strategic coordination”. Leaders of other allies of Russia such as Iran and Venezuela also congratulated Putin. — TNS edit: putin’s re-election Haryana Cabinet expansion today Geetanjali Gayatri Tribune News Service Chandigarh, March 18 Two days after the announcement of the Lok Sabha election schedule, Haryana CM Nayab Singh Saini is all set to expand his Cabinet on Tuesday. Sources said the expansion would take place after the conclusion of BJP chief JP Nadda’s Karnal visit. The Haryana Raj Bhawan had been intimated “to be prepared”, they said. continued on page 9 (From left) Bihar BJP chief Samrat Chaudhary, BJP national general secretary Vinod Tawde and JD(U) leader Sanjay Kumar in New Delhi. BJP one up over JD(U) in Bihar seat deal; keeps 17, leaves 16 for Nitish Aditi Tandon Tribune News Service New Delhi, March 18 The BJP’s political dominance in Bihar was evident on Monday as it sealed the preLok Sabha election pact with its National Democratic Alliance partners, bagging more seats than former senior partner JD(U) for the first time. The BJP will contest 17 of the state’s 40 LS segments, JD(U) 16, Chirag Paswan-led Lok Janshakti Party faction 5; former Bihar CM Jitam Ram Manjhi-led HAM and Upendra Kushwaha-led Rashtriya Lok Manch one each. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP and JD(U) had contested 17 seats each and the undivided LJP headed , by late Ram Vilas Paswan, 6. A FIRST FOR SAFFRON PARTY ■ A first for BJP as it gets more seats than NDA ally JD(U) ■ Partners mostly retain what they won in 2019 polls ■ BJP takes Nawada from quo- ta of Chirag Paswan-led LJP ■ JD(U) gets BJP’s Sheohar, sacrifices 2 for HAM, RLM ■ Nitish Kumar in Delhi, to meet BJP top brass today NDA SEAT PACT BJP JD(U) LJP 17 16 5 HAM 1 RLM 1 TOTAL 40 The NDA had then won 39 of the 40 seats in Bihar after the BJP and LJP swept their seats, while the JD (U) bagged 16 of continued on page 8 SAD calls core committee meet amid game of nerves with BJP on pact Jupinderjit Singh Tribune News Service Chandigarh, March 18 The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) will hold a crucial meeting of its core committee on March 22 to discuss strategy for the Lok Sabha elections even as the party and its former ally BJP have been playing a waiting game on the possibility of a tie-up. Insiders say both parties are expecting the other to blink first to extract maximum gains from the likely alliance. Sources in the SAD and the BJP say the tie-up flip-flop last month had led to a game of nerves, and that the party that blinks first may lose the upper hand. The pact hinges on a number of factors, the most important being that both parties want to showcase a “communal brotherhood” through the coming together of Hindu-dominated BJP CRUCIAL BRAINSTORMING ON MARCH 22 ■ SAD will hold core committee meeting on March 22 to discuss Lok Sabha poll strategy ■ Cong top guns who joined BJP and Sikh-dominated SAD. The alliance supporters in both parties argue that they should come together to defeat their common foe AAP having 92 MLAs in the , 117-member Assembly. c m y b want a tie-up; traditional leaders have reservations ■ The farmer agitation, too, has hampered the alliance talks Sources say though the RSS is “strongly opposed” to the tie-up, the parties would have come together much earlier had the Congress and AAP stitched an alliance. Leaders privy to the talks say the BJP wants a bigger share of seats this time — six out of 13, leaving Akalis with six as the ticket for Sangrur has been “committed” to Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa’s family. Dhindsa, who enjoys good rapport with top BJP leaders too, had merged his SAD (Sanyukt) with the Akali Dal. Top Congress leaders who switched to the BJP including , Capt Amarinder Singh, Preneet Kaur and Sunil Jakhar, are learnt to be in favour of the alliance with the SAD even as traditional BJP leaders have their reservations. In the background of the alliance talks, the SAD meeting holds significance, say sources. It is also important as Akali Dal spokesperson Daljeet Cheema announced it on social media today, four days in advance, against the usual practice of announcing it only a day earlier.