23082024-TTB-01.qxd 23-08-2024 00:36 Page 1 13 CHANDIGARH | GURUGRAM | JALANDHAR | BATHINDA | VOL. 144 NO. 233 | 16 PAGES | ~5.00 | REGD. NO. CHD/0006/2024-2026 ESTABLISHED IN 1881  DELHI STATEHOOD SHOULD’VE BEEN GIVEN BEFORE POLL, SAYS RAHUL J&K ZELENSKYY VISITS BORDER, SAYS MORE AREA CAPTURED WORLD /thetribunechd BANGLADESH FLOODS DUE 6.5-7% REAL GDP GROWTH PROJECTION TO RAINS, NOT OPENING APT: REPORT BUSINESS OF DAM: MEA BACK PAGE friday | 23 august 2024 /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com Vinesh: Security of wrestlers set to testify against WFI ex-chief withdrawn New Delhi, August 22 Top wrestler Vinesh Phogat on Thursday claimed that the Delhi Police had withdrawn security of women wrestlers who were going to testify in a court against former WFI president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. NOT TRUE, WANTED HARYANA COPS TO TAKE OVER: DELHI POLICE In a post on X, Vinesh said, “The Delhi Police have withdrawn the security of women wrestlers who are going to testify against Brij Bhushan.” Sakshi Malik also made a similar claim on X. Their posts came as a Delhi court on Thursday directed the police to reinstate the security of a woman wrestler who had accused Brij Bhushan of sexual harassment. Additional CJM Priyanka Rajpoot passed the interim order, noting that the wrestler had to testify before the court on Friday. The court was hearing pleas filed by an advocate for three wrestlers, claiming their security was withdrawn on Wednesday. In a post, the Delhi Police said the security had not been withdrawn, but the Haryana Police had been requested to take it over since protectees were residing in Haryana. — TNS & PTI SC: Don’t politicise Bengal rape-murder Hauls up Kolkata cops over lapses Satya Prakash Tribune News Service New Delhi, August 22 Asking political parties not to politicise the rape and murder of a doctor at Kolkata’ s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, the Supreme Court on Thursday asserted that law would take its own course. The court also put the Kolkata police in the dock over lapses in their probe, terming these “extremely disturbing”. “Do not politicise the situation. Across the political spectrum, parties have to realise that law will take its course. We are ensuring that law does take its course after a quick investigation,” a three-judge Bench headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud said. The remarks came after Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the CBI, and senior advocate Kapil Sibal, counsel for the West Bengal Government, indulged in a political blame game. It all started when Mehta alleged that a Bengal minister had made a statement that “if anybody talks anything against our leader (Mamata Banerjee), his fingers will be chopped off”. Sibal responded by alleging that “Leader of Opposition CRIME SPOT ALTERED IN COVER-UP BID: CBI ■ The CBI alleged there was an attempt to cover up the rape-murder case by the Kolkata police as the crime scene was altered by the time it took over the probe ■ In its status report filed in the Supreme Court, the CBI said victim’s parents were initially informed that it was a case of suicide. The probe agency also flagged the delay in filing the FIR INSIDE ON SC DIRECTIONS, DOCTORS CALL OFF 11-DAY STRIKE (in the West Bengal Assembly) Suvendu Adhikari has said bullets will be fired”. The Bench, which included Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice Manoj Misra, perused the status report filed by the CBI on the case and pointed out several lapses on the part of the Kolkata police. It also examined the post-mortem report of the victim. The court slammed the Kolkata police over unexplained delay in registering continued on page 8 As Modi arrivesinKyiv, says Ukraine, West Asia conflicts‘deeply worrisome’ India, Poland upgrade ties to ‘strategic partnership’, unveil 5-year ‘Action Plan’ Ajay Banerjee Tribune News Service New Delhi, August 22 Prime Minister Narendra Modi has termed the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and West Asia ‘deeply worrisome’ and said India wants peace and stability. This comes ahead of his train trip to Kyiv, first-ever by an Indian PM to Ukraine after it broke away from the USSR in 1992. India and Poland decided to upgrade their relations to the level of a ‘strategic partnership’ to focus on trade, investment and expanding defence ties. After the bilateral meeting with Polish counterpart Donald Tusk at Warsaw, the PM said: “We support dialogue and diplomacy. For this, India will join hands with friendly countries to provide all possible support.” The Kyiv visit is seen as an attempt to balance India’s ties with the US. New Delhi, so far, by being a partner in the IndoPacific, has managed to dodge US sanctions for buying Russian weapons and crude oil. continued on page 9 Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Polish counterpart Donald Tusk inspect a guard of honour at Warsaw, Poland, on Thursday. REUTERS WILL TAKE TRAIN RIDE TO UKRAINE CAPITAL FROM POLAND, TO STAY THERE FOR 6 HOURS ■ Modi will travel to Kyiv aboard ‘Rail Force One’; to catch it from an undisclosed place in Poland. Train is equipped with advanced security measures; used earlier by top leaders, including Biden ■ PM Modi is expected to reach Kyiv on Friday morning and hold talks with President Zelenskyy; he will return to Poland by the same train after a six-hour stay in the Ukraine capital What is Waqf property? Oppn-govt Former HC Registrar fireworks at first House panel meet sentenced to 5-yr jail Aditi Tandon/ Animesh Singh Tribune News Service Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi with National Conference leaders Farooq Abdullah and Omar Abdullah in Srinagar. ANI Cong, Abdullahs seal alliance for J&K poll Adil Akhzer Srinagar, August 22 The National Conference (NC) and the Congress on Thursday sealed an alliance for the three-phase Assembly poll in J&K, slated to begin next month. The parties have finalised their talks on all 90 seats in the UT. The announcement was made by NC president and former J&K Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah, shortly after Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi met him at his residence. Farooq said talks were held in a cordial atmosphere during which the alliance was finalised by the two parties. Kharge and Rahul had arrived in Srinagar on Wednesday to talk to party workers and also hold talks on forming an alliance. J&K Congress president Tariq Hameed Karra had stated that the NC had “approached the party’s central leadership for an alliance”. Addressing the media here, Farooq said they were hopeful that people would support the alliance. He said seatsharing would be announced in a phased manner, adding that restoration of statehood was important for J&K. Sources said in the proposed seat-sharing deal, the Congress had asked for more SEAT-SHARING MAY POSE CHALLENGE ■ Sources said in the proposed seat-sharing deal, the Congress had asked for more than 10 seats in Kashmir, which it was unlikely to get. ■ Asked about the possibility of the PDP joining the INDIA bloc, NC leader Farooq Abdullah said, “Let us first go through the poll, we will look into these things later.” ■ CPM leader Mohammed Yusuf Tarigami, who is also with the alliance, said he was trying to bring other like-minded parties on board than 10 seats in Kashmir, which it was unlikely to get. Meanwhile, Rahul, while addressing party workers in Srinagar this morning, said he and Kharge had told the J&K Congress president that the party would go in for an alliance, but at the same time ensure that “the Congress workers and leaders are given due respect”. Kharge said they would work on the advice of local party leaders. On the possibility of the PDP joining the bloc, Farooq said, “Let us first go through the poll, we will look into these things later.” “The doors are not closed for anybody,” he said, adding that CPM leader Mohd Yusuf Tarigami was also with the alliance. New Delhi, August 22 Heated exchanges marked the first meeting of the joint parliamentary committee (JPC) tasked with reviewing the controversial Waqf (Amendment) Bill-2024 that seeks to amend the 1995 law regulating Waqf properties in India. Waqf is defined as dedication of movable or immovable property for charitable, religious or pious purposes under Muslim law. The marathon meeting, which lasted nearly six hours, saw the Ministry of Minority Affairs, which is piloting the new Bill, make a presentation on each of the 44 proposed amendments and MPs seeking clarifications on each. Controversy over non-Muslims on boards MINISTRY MAKES PRESENTATION ■ The marathon meeting, that lasted nearly six hours, saw the Ministry of Minority Affairs, which is piloting the new Bill, make a presentation on each of the 44 proposed amendments. JPC’s opposition members said the ministry was “confused and ill-prepared for queries and its presentation was full of misinformation”. “All that the ministry mentioned was the existing provision and the proposed provision. They could not explain the rationale behind the amendments. Several clarifications were sought. The DEFINITION OF PRACTISING MUSLIM ■ “The Bill seeks to define Waqf as a donation by any person practising Islam for at least five years. How can anyone determine this duration and define a practising Muslim in this way.” — Oppn MPs ministry has been given 15 days to come back with answers,” said a JPC source. The next meeting of the panel, chaired by BJP’s Jagdambika Pal, will be held on August 30. The Tribune has learnt that there were major fireworks on the following issues — government’s take on the size of Waqf land in India and the need to regulate it, and four provisions of the amendment Bill, namely representation for two non-Muslims; representation for Shia, Bohra and Agakhanis on Waqf boards; definition of a practising Muslim for purposes of donations and inclusion of the Deputy Commissioner as the final arbiter on whether a land is Waqf or public. Right now the Waqf Tribunal is the arbiter. “The amendment Bill seeks to define Waqf as a donation by any person practising Islam for at least five years. How can anyone determine this duration and define a practising Muslim in this way,” some opposition party MPs are learnt to have asked at the meeting. Others, including Shiv Sena-UBT’s continued on page 8 Bhartesh Singh Thakur Tribune News Service Chandigarh, August 22 A Delhi court today sentenced the then Registrar (Recruitment) of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, Balwinder Kumar Sharma, and his associate, Sunita, to five-year rigorous imprisonment in the 2017 Haryana Civil Service (Judicial Branch) Preliminary Examination paper leak case. Sunita had topped the exam in the general category. The court imposed a fine of Rs 1.5 lakh on Balwinder while Sunita was fined Rs 60,000. Both have been taken into custody. Another candidate, Sushila, who topped the exam in the reserved category, was also held guilty of receiving the paper. She was sentenced to Nabha jailbreak mastermind extradited from Hong Kong Aman Sood 2016 INCIDENT Tribune News Service Patiala, August 22 The mastermind behind the 2016 Nabha jailbreak, Ramanjit Singh Romi, was extradited from Hong Kong to India on Thursday. He was being brought to Punjab, where he will be interrogated by various agencies for his alleged links with gangsters and terrorists. A six-member Punjab Police team brought Romi from Hong Kong to India. He is likely to be taken to Nabha for further questioning regarding his involvement in various cases in Punjab. Police officials said Romi, 34, was the key conspirator in the jailbreak in which six hardcore criminals, including two terrorists, managed to escape. “His questioning is vital to expose the terror-gangster module in the state,” said a ■ On November 27, 2016, a group of gang- sters in police uniforms approached the high-security Nabha jail in two vehicles ■ They told jail staff they had brought a convict and asked them to open the gate ■ When the gate was opened, they took sentries hostage and fired over 20 shots ■ They managed to free six prisoners, including KLF chief Harminder Singh. Later, the police claimed Romi was the mastermind behind the incident << Punjab cops with Ramanjit Romi (centre) at the Delhi international airport. top cop. Ever since Romi’s arrest in Hong Kong for his “role in a robbery” in 2018, the Centre and the Punjab Police were trying to get him extradited from there. The Centre had sent formal requests for his deportation through diplomatic channels and a court in Hong Kong handed over his custody to India after much delay. “Pursuant to Section 13(1) of the Fugitive Offenders Ordinance, I order that Ramanjit Singh, also known as Romi, be surrendered to the Republic of India,” read the order issued by John KC Lee, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Today’s issue is of 16 pages, including four-page Delhi Tribune. c m y b The extradition proceedings against Romi, a resident of Bangi Ruldu village of Bathinda, were initiated in 2018. “He had been residing at Kowloon, Hong Kong. We got his custody from the court today,” AIG Harvinder Virk told The Tribune. On Thursday afternoon, Punjab Director General of Police Gaurav Yadav announced that Romi had been extradited to India. “After tireless efforts by the Punjab Police, Romi is being brought back today to face justice. He was in touch with the ISI and escaped prisoners, including Harminder Singh Mintoo and Kashmir Singh Galwaddi of the Khalistan Liberation Force,” he posted on X. “We thank the Hong Kong authorities, the CBI, the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Ministry of External Affairs and all other central agencies as part of this international cooperation,” he added. The team, headed by AIG Virk, was assisted by AntiGangster Task Force (AGTF) DSP Bikramjit Singh Brar. The other team members were DSP Davinder Kumar, Inspectors Harry Boparai continued on page 8 HCS (Judicial) paper leak: 2 others guilty too imprisonment, which she had already undergone (nine months) during the trial, and fined Rs 10,000. The remaining six accused were acquitted. The preliminary exam for 109 posts of HCS (Judicial Branch) was held on July 16, 2017. In August 2017, a candidate, Suman, filed a petition before the high court alleging that the paper was leaked. She produced audio recordings with Sushila, a resident of Panchkula, and Sunita, a resident of Delhi, in which they offered to sell the paper for Rs 1.5 crore. After negotiations, the deal was settled for Rs 10 lakh. The meeting between continued on page 8 Punjab reserves 13 general category med seats for NRIs Faridkot, August 22 Much to the dismay of MBBS aspirants, the Punjab Government on Thursday converted 13 general category seats at Dr BR Ambedkar State Institute of Medical Sciences, Mohali, into NRI quota seats. The institute has 100 medical seats. Of 15 seats shifted to the NRI quota, 13 were taken from the general category and one each from border area and backward area categories. Sources said since the government charged NRI candidates about Rs 93 lakh as course fee against the regular fee of Rs 9.5 lakh, it opted to reserve 15 seats for them to generate at least Rs 12.5 crore higher revenue. The general category seats in the institute had now been reduced to 30, the source said. INSIDE