25042024-TTC-01.qxd 4/25/2024 12:43 AM Page 1 13 CHANDIGARH | GURUGRAM | JALANDHAR | BATHINDA | VOL. 144 NO. 114 | 14 PAGES | ~5.00 | REGD. NO. CHD/0006/2024-2026 ESTABLISHED IN 1881 67 DETAINED IN RAJOURI TERROR KILLING CASE J&K US CLEARS $95 BN PACKAGE FOR UKRAINE, ISRAEL & TAIWAN WORLD /thetribunechd IN RUSSIA, DOVAL PLEDGES REPORT ILLEGAL FOREX TRADING TO ED, COOPERATION TO COUNTER BANKS TOLD BUSINESS TERRORISM BACK PAGE thursday | 25 april 2024 /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com Phase-2 campaign ends, fate of Rahul, Shekhawat, HDK, Hema to be sealed 88 seats up for grabs across 13 states | Polling to conclude in Kerala, Rajasthan Can’t control poll, hacking of EVMs mere suspicion: SC in VVPAT case Animesh Singh Tribune News Service NewDelhi, April 24 As the campaigning for the second phase of the Lok Sabha elections ended on Wednesday, the stage is set for voting on April 26 on 88 seats across 13 states. The polling will culminate in all 20 constituencies of Kerala as well as the remaining segments of Rajasthan, Tripura and Manipur. The second phase will see the fates of some key bigwigs being sealed, the prominent being Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi (Wayanad), Shashi Tharoor (Thiruvananthapuram), Bhupesh Baghel (Rajnandgaon), Vaibhav Gehlot (Jalore) and DK Suresh (Bangalore Rural). Baghel is former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister, Vaibhav the son of former Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot and Suresh the brother of Karnataka Deputy CM DK Shivakumar. JD(S) leader and Karnataka ex-CM HD Kumaraswamy leader is fighting from Mandya, BJP MP and veteran actress Hema Malini from Mathura and TV actor Arun Govil, famous for his portrayal of Lord Ram in teleserial ‘Ramayana’, from Meerut. continued on page 9 Satya Prakash Tribune News Service BJP supporters beat drums at an election rally by Gujarat CM Bhupendra Patel in Lohardaga. ANI ALL SET FOR APRIL 26 1,428 CANDIDATES IN FRAY BIGGIES IN CONTEST State/UT Ph-2 seats Kerala 20 Karnataka 14 Rajasthan 13 Maharashtra 8 Uttar Pradesh 8 Madhya Pradesh 6* Assam 5 Bihar 5 Chhattisgarh 3 West Bengal 3 Manipur 1 Tripura 1 J&K 1 Of the 1,428 candidates in Phase-2, Kerala has the highest 500 for 20 seats, followed by 491 for 14 seats in Karnataka. NDA: Union ministers Rajeev Chandrasekhar (Thiruvananthapuram), Virendra Kumar (Tikamgarh), Shobha Karandlaje (Bangalore North) Cong: Shashi Tharoor (Thiruvananthapuram), Bhupesh Baghel (Rajnandgaon), Vaibhav Gehlot (Jalore) and DK Suresh (Bangalore Rural) Total 20 28 25 48 80 29 14 40 11 42 2 2 5 NDA WON 56 IN 2019 ■ BJP-led NDA won 56 of the 89 seats in 2019 while UPA got 24 ■ BJP won all Ph-2 seats in MP , Rajasthan; 12 in Karnataka 2-WAY FIGHT IN JAMMU ■ Jammu second seat in J&K to vote after Udhampur ■ Direct fight on cards between BJP MP Jugal Kishore Sharma and Cong’s Raman Bhalla (POLL IN BETUL DEFERRED TO MAY 7 DUE TO BSP NOMINEE'S DEATH) New Delhi, April 24 Maintaining that it can’t control elections, the Supreme Court on Wednesday wondered if it can issue an order on petitions seeking 100 per cent cross-verification of votes cast using EVMs with VVPAT merely on the basis of suspicion. “Can we issue a mandamus on the basis of suspicion? The report you are relying on says there is no incident of hacking yet. We are not the controlling authority of another constitutional authority (Election Commission). We can’t control the elections,” a Bench of Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Dipankar Dutta said. Six days after reserving verdict on petitions seeking 100 per cent cross-verification of votes cast using EVMs with VVPAT, the Bench today called a senior Election Commission continued on page 9 Poor security, RBI debars Kotak from openinga/csonline VijayC Roy Tribune News Service Chandigarh, April 24 After finding the private sector lender lacking in IT risk and information security governance for two consecutive years, the Reserve Bank of India has asked Kotak Mahindra Bank not to issue new credit cards and barred it from adding fresh customers through the online and mobile banking channels. The step is expected to impact the bank’s customer acquisition targets as most of the onboardings happen online and through mobile banking channels. This may, in turn, affect its growth in the short run. Also, it will impact the lender’s cobranded card deals. However, the RBI clarified that the bank can provide services, including related to credit cards, to existing customers. In a statement, the RBI said the action was necessary as the bank had failed to plug gaps in its information and technology (IT) set-up. There were frequent outages in the bank’s core banking system and online channels over the past two years, the recent one being on April 15, which hassled customers, the RBI said. “Over the past two years, Also asks bank to stop issuing new credit cards IN BRIEF Plea in SC for SIT probe into poll bonds case NEW DELHI: A plea has been filed in the SC seeking a courtmonitored probe by an SIT into alleged instances cases of “quid pro quo” involving political parties, firms and officials of probe agencies. BACK PAGE IED explosion damages bridge on NH in Manipur IMPHAL: A bridge on the Nation- EXISTING CUSTOMERS WON’T BE AFFECTED al Highway 2 in violence-hit Manipur’s Kangpokpi district was damaged in an IED blast on Wednesday, hitting traffic in the area, the police said. INSIDE ■ Bank found lacking in IT risk and info security for two years ■ There were frequent outages in Kotak’s core banking system ■ Bank’s existing customers won’t be hit, says the RBI the RBI engaged continuously with the bank on all these concerns, but the outcome was far from satisfactory. It was also found that, of late, there was rapid growth in the volume of the bank’s digital transactions, including pertaining to credit cards, which is building further load on its IT system,” the RBI said. Earlier, the RBI had barred HDFC Bank from launching new digital initiatives and issuing credit cards on December 2, 2020. The restrictions were lifted upon compliance with norms. Cops at blast site in Kangpokpi. ANI JEE-Main results out, 56 score perfect 100 NEW DELHI: Fifty-six candidates achieved the perfect 100 score in the engineering entrance exam JEE-Main, the National Testing Agency announced on Wednesday. INSIDE Cong suspends MLA for targeting ex-CM Channi JALANDHAR: The Congress sus- pended Phillaur MLA Vikramjit Chaudhary for making a slanderous attack against former CM and Jalandhar candidate Charanjit Channi. INSIDE Congress in dilemma Cong firefights Pitroda’s inheritance tax WB moves SC against overfieldingBJPrebels remarks as PM rakes up its ‘loot mantra’ HC order on job ‘scam’ in Himachal bypolls Aditi Tandon Tribune News Service Pratibha Chauhan Tribune News Service Shimla, April 24 Even as deliberations are on in the Congress for finalising the names of the candidates for two Lok Sabha constituencies and six seats for the Assembly bypoll, the party leadership remains divided on the issue of fielding BJP rebels who are keen to contest on Congress ticket. There is talk of former BJP minister Ram Lal Markanda, three-time former Gagret MLA Rakesh Kalia and BJP’s Sujanpur candidate in the 2022 HP elections Ranjit Rana being fielded by the Congress from the LahaulSpiti, Gagret (Una) and Sujanpur (Hamirpur) seats. Party sources said a section of the state leadership was opposed to fielding BJP rebels as it would demoralise the party cadre. Despite this, the possibility of Markanda and Kalia being nominated cannot be ruled Ram Lal Markanda Rakesh Kalia SUKHU IN DELHI TO MEET PARTY BRASS ■ Congress sources said a sec- tion of the HP leadership was opposed to fielding BJP rebels — Ram Lal Markanda, Rakesh Kalia and Ranjit Rana — as it would demoralise the party cadre ■ Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu left for Delhi on Wednesday to discuss ticket allocation with party brass out. Kalia and Ranjit Rana have already joined the Congress. Feedback from senior leaders and surveys have indicated that all these three leaders could win from the seats. Though Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu continued on page 9 New Delhi, April 24 The Congress spent Wednesday firefighting its overseas segment chief Sam Pitroda’s pro-inheritance tax remarks even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi seized the new stick to beat the opposition party with. Moments after Pitroda, speaking to agencies, advocated a debate in India on the UStype inheritance tax, the ruling BJP led by PM Modi whipped up a storm expanding its wealth redistribution charge narrative against the Congress to include Pitroda’s latest inheritance tax proposal. This, even as the Congress distanced itself from the technocrat’s suggestions and AICC general secretary Jairam Ramesh clarified that the articulation by Indian Overseas Congress chief was not a Congress policy or position. Pitroda himself retracted, saying he was only making a point in the US context and was expressing a personal opinion. Pitroda had cited Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra during a roadshow at Kamblakkad in Wayanad, Kerala. PTI EYEING ASSETS OF COMMON MAN ❝ ❝ HIS PERSONAL VIEWS People who treated their party as Pitroda expresses his opinions freely. personal property do not want Indians to This doesn’t mean his views reflect the pass on assets to their kin. — PM Modi position of the Congress. —Jairam Ramesh New Delhi, April 24 The West Bengal government has moved the Supreme Court against the Calcutta High Court order invalidating the appointment of 25,753 teachers and non-teaching staff made by the state’s School Service Commission (SSC) in staterun and state-aided schools. Challenging the high court order, the state government, in its appeal filed before the top court, said the HC cancelled the appointments “arbitrarily”. “The high court failed to appreciate the ramification of cancelling the entire selection process leading to straightaway termination of teaching and non-teaching staff from service with immediate effect, without giving Says sacking of teachers brought education system to a standstill sufficient time to the petitioner state to deal with such an exigency, rendering the education system at a standstill,” the plea said. The Calcutta High Court had on Monday declared the selection process as “null and void” and directed the CBI to probe the matter. It had also asked the agency to submit a report within three months. The HC said those appointed outside the officially available 24,640 posts and those who submitted blank OMR sheets must return all remunerations and benefits received by them. — PTI WHAT SAM PITRODA SAID ABOUT ‘INTERESTING’ US LAW In the ❝ 55% isUS if one has $100 million and he dies, he can transfer only 45% to his kids and taken by government... This is interersting law… sounds fair. —Sam Pitroda as “interesting” the US inheritance tax whereby part of the property left behind by a deceased person is taxed to the state while the rest goes to his descendants. The PM seized Pitroda’s comments to launch a blister- ing attack on the Congress just as the campaign for Phase-II of the Lok Sabha elections on continued on page 9 PUNJAB ADGP TAKES VRS, MAY JOIN POLITICS Chandigarh: Senior IPS officer Gurinder Singh Dhillon on Wednesday said he had opted for voluntary retirement after putting 34 years in service. Speculations are rife that Dhillon, posted as the ADGP (law and order) in the Punjab Police, may join politics. He hails from Mulianwal village in Gurdaspur and is presently settled in Patiala. Earlier, IG Kunwar Vijay Pratap had quit the police service and won as AAP MLA from Amritsar. TNS ‘Threat to wildlife’: SC stays building of New training modules for soldiers focus on technology 4 dams in Haryana’s Kalesar sanctuary AIM TO EMPOWER TROOPS Tribune News Service Satya Prakash Tribune News Service New Delhi, April 24 The Supreme Court on Wednesday stayed the construction of four proposed dams inside Kalesar Wildlife Sanctuary in Yamunanagar district of Haryana. Acting on a petition filed by advocate Gaurav Bansal, the Bench also issued notices to the Centre, Haryana Government and others, asking them to respond to the petition. Bansal has challenged the NATIONAL BOARD HAD CLEARED PROJECT ■ Situated in Shivalik foothills, Kalesar Wildlife Sanctuary spread over 13,209 acres ■ Plea filed in SC after National Board for Wildlife gave nod to build four dams in sanctuary ■ Move detrimental not only to wildlife, but also to ecosystem: SC in stay order construction of four dams — Chikan, Kansli, Khillanwala and Ambawali — within Kalesar Wildlife Sanctuary, saying it would have a negative impact on the flora and fauna in the area. “Issue notice. We continued on page 9 New Delhi, April 24 The Army is now training its soldiers to make technologydriven decisions. For this, necessary changes are being made to training modules by incorporating technologies to be used in future. Army Chief General Manoj Pande today said, “In order to enhance the technical threshold of soldiers and to align with technological requirements, training establishments have modified syllabi.” He was speaking at a day- ❝ Empowering the soldier remains at the core of all pursuits of technology infusion. — General Manoj Pande, ARMY CHIEF 2 SOLDIERS INJURED IN BANDIPORA GUNFIGHT Army Chief General Manoj Pande at an exhibition on advanced technology for armed forces in New Delhi on Wednesday. ANI long seminar organised by the Army and the Armyfunded think-tank — the c m y b Srinagar: Two soldiers were injured in an encounter with militants in Bandipora on Wednesday. Helicopters had been pressed into service to aid security operations in the area, said officials. Centre for Land Warfare Studies — to study the needs of the soldiers. The theme of the seminar is ‘The Year of Technology Absorption — Empowering the Soldier’. The Army Chief said simulation and virtual reality training modules had been already incorporated into the force. Equipment manufacturers for the niche technology now have to comply with a clause to train the soldiers. In order to bring in domain-specific competencies, cyber specialists and linguists were being commissioned in the Territorial Army, he said. “Empowering the soldier remains at the core of all pursuits of technology infusion. Apart from training, continued on page 9
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