21082024-TTB-01.qxd 20-08-2024 23:47 Page 1 13 CHANDIGARH | GURUGRAM | JALANDHAR | BATHINDA | VOL. 144 NO. 231 | 14 PAGES | ~5.00 | REGD. NO. CHD/0006/2024-2026 ESTABLISHED IN 1881  HARYANA BIDEN PASSES TORCH TO HARRIS AFTER EMOTIONAL FAREWELL WORLD /thetribunechd TWO-DAY POLL TOUR OF KHARGE, RAHUL BEGINS TODAY J&K WATCHDOG: DISNEY, INDIA, MALAYSIA INK PACT RELIANCE MERGER TO ON JOBS & TRADE TO HURT RIVALS BUSINESS BOOST TIES BACK PAGE wednesday | 21 august 2024 /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com Nation cannot await rape or murder Centre’s U-turn on lateral entry, vows to revisit rules for real changes on ground, says SC Oppn, allies had flagged lack of quota in key posts KOLKATA HORROR Sets up task force to formulate protocol for safety of medics Aditi Tandon Satya Prakash New Delhi, August 20 The BJP-led NDA dispensation today rolled back its lateral entry plans for 45 top government posts amid pressure from the Opposition and allies LJP and JD(U). The parties had criticised the government for ignoring constitutionally mandated quotas in the process of hiring private experts. The UPSC cancelled its August 17 advertisement after the government asked for its withdrawal. The Centre further promised to review the rules that currently prevent applicability of SC, ST, OBC reservation to single-cadre posts. “It is important that the constitutional mandate towards social justice is upheld so that deserving candidates from marginal communities get their rightful representation in government services. Since these positions have been treated as specialised and designated as single-cadre posts, there has been no provision of reservation in these appointments. This aspect needs to be reviewed and Tribune News Service New Delhi, August 20 The Supreme Court on Tuesday slammed the West Bengal Government for a delay in lodging an FIR in the rape and murder case of a doctor at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, Kolkata, and attempts to pass off the horrific incident as a case of suicide. “It appears the crime was detected in the early hours… How did the principal try to pass this off as a suicide,” asked a Bench led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, which had on Sunday taken suo motu cognisance of the rape and murder of the doctor following a nationwide outrage and protests by doctors. The Bench, which also included Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice Manoj Misra, ordered the CBI to submit a status report by Thursday (August 22), the next date of hearing. It also asked the West Bengal Government to furnish a separate status report on the vandalism at the hospital in which peacefully protesting doctors were also targeted. Old Sangh hand Madhav is BJP’s J&K pointman New Delhi, August 20 In signals that it has begun placating the upset RSS, the BJP on Tuesday appointed old Sangh hand Ram Madhav as incharge for the Assembly elections in J&K. MOVE SIGNALS RULING PARTY HAS BEGUN PLACATING RSS The appointment comes ahead of a three-day coordination committee meeting of the RSS with all its 37 affiliates from August 31 to September 2 in Kerala’s Palakkad. Madhav, once a permanent fixture in PM Modi’s foreign entourages, was ousted as the BJP general secretary in September 2020. Before his ouster, Ram Madhav had been tasked by the BJP to stitch pacts in J&K. INSIDE Protesters stage a candlelight vigil in Patna demanding justice for the doctor who was allegedly raped and murdered at Kolkata’s RG Kar hospital. PTI “This is not just a matter of protecting doctors. Their safety and well-being as health providers is a matter of national interest…The nation cannot await a rape or murder for real changes on the ground,” said the Bench as it formed a national task force (NTF) to formulate a national protocol to ensure the safety of medical profes- Tribune News Service Chandigarh, August 20 In the land known for abundance of milk, 13.6 per cent samples of loose milk and 21.4 per cent samples of desi ghee collected by the Punjab Food and Drugs Administration did not conform to the food safety standards in 2023-24. Data available with The Tribune shows that while none of the samples of packed milk failed the quality test, 88 of the 646 samples of loose milk collected in 2023-24 did not conform to the food safety standards. In the case of khoya — used in sweets — 26 per cent of the samples collected failed the quality test. In the past three years — between 2021 and 2024 — of the 20,988 samples of milk collected from across Punjab, 3,712 failed to conform to the standards. “We carry out sampling of work as their strike affected health services across India. The Bench ordered the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) to provide security to continued on page 10 DEFEAT OF ARROGANCE Modi government’s letter on lateral entry shows only power of Constitution can defeat the arrogance of a dictatorial regime. ❝ Mallikarjun Kharge, CONGRESS CHIEF FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE We have decided to apply principle of reservation in lateral entry too. PM has always shown his commitment towards social justice. ❝ A Vaishnaw, I&B MINISTER reformed in context of PM Modi’s focus on ensuring social justice,” Minister of State for Personnel Jitendra Singh said in a letter to UPSC Chairman Preeti Sudan, while urging cancellation of the advertisement issued on August 17. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge credited Rahul Gandhi with the retraction, while NDA ally LJP’s Chirag Paswan said the PM “heeded to the concerns we flagged on behalf of the marginalised”. The government and the BJP meanwhile, attacked the , Congress for “hypocrisy”. “Did the Congress factor in quotas while inducting former PM Manmohan Singh, Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Vijay Kelkar as finance secretaries and Infosys cofounder Nandan Nilekani as UIDAI chief through lateral entry?” said Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw. The Centre’s retreat on the issue comes amid fears of another anti-quota offensive with Haryana, J&K, Jharkhand and Maharashtra elections round the corner. A similar offensive had cost the BJP dear in the recent Lok Sabha elections. That explained why MoS for Personnel Jitendra Singh recalled the history of lateral entry plan in his letter to the UPSC chief, saying the concept, as a principle, was endorsed by the second Administrative Reforms Commission constituted in 2005 and chaired by Congress continued on page 10 Court extends Kejri’s Kiran BJP’s Rajya Sabha choice custody till August 27 from Haryana, Bittu Rajasthan Tribune News Service Geetanjali Gayatri & Nitin Jain New Delhi, August 20 A Delhi court today extended Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s judicial custody till August 27 in a corruption case related to the alleged excise scam filed by the CBI. The extension was granted by Special Judge Kaveri Baweja after the Delhi CM appeared before the court via videoconference upon the expiration of his custody period. The court is expected to consider a supplementary chargesheet filed by the CBI against the Aam Aadmi Party leader on August 27. The development follows a recent Supreme Court notice issued to the CBI in response to Kejriwal’s bail plea and Tribune News Service Arvind Kejriwal, Delhi CM his challenge to the Delhi High Court’s decision to uphold his arrest. Kejriwal was initially arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on March 21 as part of a money laundering investigation linked to alleged irregularities in the now-scrapped Delhi excise policy for 2021-22. On June 26, the CBI arrested him while he was still in the custody of the ED. 13.6% samples of loose milk, 21.4% of ghee fail quality test in Punjab Ruchika M Khanna sionals. It asked the NTF to submit an interim report in three weeks and the final report in two months. The top court urged all protesting doctors to resume Tribune News Service PACKED MILK FOUND CONFORMING TO STANDARDS Food Samples Failing to Unsafe Poor Misbranding Expired taken comply quality Packed milk 8 0 — — — — Loose milk 646 88 1 87 0 0 Ghee 219 47 28 14 1 2 Khoya 164 43 7 34 2 0 Butter, paneer 1,918 465 77 373 5 7 Chandigarh/Ludhiana, Aug 20 It’s official! Union Minister of State Ravneet Singh Bittu will enter the Rajya Sabha from Rajasthan. The grandson of slain Punjab CM Beant Singh, Bittu had quit the Congress to join the BJP ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha poll. Similarly, former Congress leader Kiran Choudhry, who recently joined the BJP has , been named party nominee for the Haryana Rajya Sabha seat. She resigned as Tosham MLA on Tuesday. Talking to The Tribune over the phone from Delhi, Bittu said he had been asked by the party high command to reach Jaipur to file nomination papers on Wednesday. “I am deeply honoured and grateful to PM Modi and top party leadership... I will strive to uphold the values and principles of the Constitution and contribute to the country’s progress,” he said. Bittu, who will turn 49 on September 10, will be contesting the seat vacated by senior Congress leader KC Venugopal follow- Kiran Choudhry Ravneet S Bittu CAKEWALK FOR BOTH ■ With BJP having over two- thirds majority in Rajasthan, Bittu’s victory is certain ■ Likewise, the BJP has sufficient strength in Haryana ■ George Kurien, PM’s pointman in Wayanad during the recent landslides, is the BJP candidate from MP ■ BJD ex-leader Mamata Mohanta has been fielded from Odisha; Dhairyashil Patil from Maharashtra, Manan Mishra Bihar and Rajib Bhattacharjee Tripura ing his election to the Lok Sabha on June 4. With the saffron party having more than two-thirds majority in Rajasthan, Bittu’s entry to the Upper House is certain. Likewise, the BJP has sufficient strength in the Haryana Assembly to ensure Choudhry’s win. Moreover, with the Congress deciding against fielding any candidate for want of numbers and no other candidate in the fray, it is unlikely that polling will be held on September 3. In such a scenario, Choudhry will be declared winner on August 27, the last date for the withdrawal of nominations. Once elected, she will be a Rajya Sabha MP for Deepender Hooda’s “remaining term”. It will be less than two years and her term will end on April 9, 2026. At least 12 Rajya Sabha seats in nine states are going to the polls on September 3. Ten of these seats had fallen vacant as the sitting members, including Venugopal, Deepender Singh Hooda, Piyush Goyal, Sarbananda Sonowal and Jyotiraditya Scindia, were elected to the Lok Sabha. The BJP is likely to win seven of the 12 RS seats, which will take its strength in the House of Elders to 93. The BJP’s strength had dropped to 86 and that of the NDA to 101, below the majority mark of 113 in the 245-member Rajya Sabha, in July this year after the retirement of four nominated MPs. Trikha said. It is learnt that between 2021 and 2024, the state government has filed 3,200 civil and 300-odd criminal cases against those involved in adulteration. Daljit Singh Sadarpura, president of the Progressive Dairy Farmers Association, denies that commercial dairy farmers are indulging in such practices. “In fact, the 10,000odd commercial dairy farmers use the best technology for milk processing, without any human intervention. But continued on page 10 Thane erupts as two 4-yr-old girls molested Mumbai, August 20 Thousands of protesters on Tuesday blocked railway tracks at the Badlapur station in Thane and stormed a local school building after the alleged sexual assault of two four-year-old girls by the school sweeper in the washroom. The police cane-charged the protesters, who occupied the railway tracks, pelting stones at policemen. Hundreds of protesters, many of them angry parents, vandalised the school building to express their disgust over the sexual assault. Maharashtra Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis said he had ordered the formation of a spe- Abused by sweeper in school washroom cial investigation team (SIT) headed by senior IPS officer Arti Singh to probe the case. Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said action would be taken against the school, adding that the case would be fast-tracked and the guilty won’t be spared. At Badlapur station, incensed protesters were seen shouting “hai, hai” slogans against police officials and demanded death penalty for the sweeper allegedly involved the assault. continued on page 10 Chandigarh new hotspot as 10-kanal house listed at ~200 cr DushyantSingh Pundir milk and its products regularly. Frequent meetings are held with food business operators to get a feedback on the quality of milk and its products. At a recent meeting, these operators had said packed milk was of excellent quality. The main problem of adulteration and the product being substandard is in the case of desi ghee. Whenever we get any information of malpractices, we immediately conduct search and seizures,” Commissioner, Food and Drug Administration, Punjab, Abhinav People protest at Badlapur railway station in Thane on Tuesday. PTI Tribune News Service Chandigarh, August20 Close on the heels of a “mega Rs 100-crore realty deal” in the City Beautiful, the owner of a 10-kanal house has listed his property for a whopping Rs 200 crore. The most expensive residential property listing in the city has drawn the interest of realtors and prospective buyers and sellers. The house is located opposite Sukhna Lake in Sector 5. With limited availability of property in the city’s posh northern sectors, the prices A 6-kanal house in Chandigarh’s Sector 9 recently fetched ~98 crore. have gone through the roof, sources say, claiming a businessman recently purchased a 6-kanal house in Sector 9 c m y b for Rs 98 crore. A realtor said, “The owner of an old 8-kanal house in Sector 5 is demanding Rs 185 crore even as real estate experts have assessed its value at Rs 125 crore. The rising demand for high-end properties has sent the prices soaring to new highs.” Kamal Gupta, president, Property Consultants Association, Chandigarh, said, “The owners have been quoting unreasonable prices, but there are hardly any deals at such price.” Nevertheless, the sources say the Rs 200-crore price tag has become a hot topic of discussion among realtors, who believe given the rare availability of property, the owner has a fair chance to strike a good bargain. A real estate agent says 4-kanal houses in Sector 9 are carrying a price tag of nearly Rs 60 crore. “Similarly, 1-kanal houses in Sectors 8, 9 and 11 can be sold for Rs 15-16 crore, but there is hardly any availability,” he says. The scenario is no different for houses of smaller sizes, say 10 marla, which are sold for an average of Rs 7 crore. Property experts say a boom in prices is being noticed in neighbouring Panchkula as well, although rates are stable in Mohali.