27052024-TTB-01.qxd 27-05-2024 00:04 Page 1 13 CHANDIGARH | GURUGRAM | JALANDHAR | BATHINDA | VOL. 144 NO. 146 | 14 PAGES | ~5.00 | REGD. NO. CHD/0006/2024-2026 ESTABLISHED IN 1881 HARYANA HAMAS FIRES BARRAGE OF ROCKETS INTO ISRAEL, 1ST STRIKE IN MONTHS WORLD /thetribunechd BIG TURNOUT REFLECTS GOVT’S SUCCESSFUL UT POLICY: SHAH J&K PRECISION FARMING EASY WIN FOR KOLKATA SOLUTION FOR RAISING KNIGHT RIDERS, LIFT 3RD FARM INCOME INFOCUS IPL TROPHY SPORT monday | 27 may 2024 /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com Not against Muslims, but Cong’s appeasement politics: PM Modi Says NDA set for historic victory, INDIA bloc to crumble after elections ❝ Aditi Tandon Tribune News Service New Delhi, May 26 Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said the ruling BJP-led NDA combine was headed for a historic win in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and the Opposition INDIA bloc would disintegrate after the polls. Urban Naxals ruling Punjab Punjab results will stun you. Do remember I told you this first… the decision to part with SAD was well-thoughtout. The ruling Punjab leadership mirrors the ideology of urban Naxals and people are worried they may take the state down the wrong path again. Narendra Modi, PM ON AAP-CONG PACT... ON ED, CBI RAIDS... Oppn has no agreement Yes, the corrupt are being on vision or leadership. In targeted. The country saw Delhi, they say hum saath heaps of cash recovered by saath hain; in Punjab, they the agencies, which shows say hum aapke hain kaun. the ED & CBI are on track. THE TRIBUNE INTERVIEW FULL COVERAGE INSIDE In an exclusive interview with The Tribune on the eve of the last and seventh phase of the 18th General Election on June 1, the Prime Minister talked about a range of issues, including his “ghuspethiye” (infiltrators) and “those with more children” remarks, saying these were never aimed at Muslims. “When I say illegal infiltrators or people with more children, why are you assuming that I was referring to Muslims? When I question the Congress’ divisive policies that aim to appease Muslims, I am speaking against the Congress, not against Mus- lims,” he said, emphasising that speaking against appeasement politics was the most pro-Muslim stance one could take because the biggest victims of vote bank politics were Muslims themselves and they too had steadily begun to “see through the Congress game”. The Prime Minister pledged the BJP’s commitment to bringing the Uniform Civil Code to its logical conclusion “in his third term” and singled the Con- gress out to say that the opposition party would “repeat its listless performance as in 2014 and 2019”. For the BJP PM Modi, run, ning for a record third term in office, predicted significant gains in the south even as he termed the opposition alliance as “opportunistic and one without any vision or mission”. “In Delhi, they say ‘hum saath saath hain’; in Punjab, they say ‘hum aapke hain kaun’,” said the Prime Min- ister, who listed lifting of 25 crore people out of poverty as the topmost national achievement in 10 years of NDA rule apart from the grant of basic amenities from toilets to gas connections to crores of deprived households. In other important remarks, the Prime Minister cited the May 24 Calcutta High Court order cancelling OBC certificates granted to 77 communities by West Bengal’s Trinamool Congress government since 2010 to reiterate his accusation that the “Congress-led INDIA bloc had a track record of diluting SC/ST/OBC quota and giving it to the Muslims”. The overwhelming majority of OBC certificates cancelled by the Calcutta HC were the ones awarded to Muslim communities, the Prime Minister pointed out, rejecting the Opposition’s charge that the BJP wanted 400-plus Lok Sabha seats to scrap constitutionally mandated quotas. continued on page 11 c m y b 7 newborns killed in Delhi hospital fire Didn’t have licence, qualified docs Anshita Mehra Tribune News Service New Delhi, May 26 Seven newborns, six 15 days old and one 25 days old, were killed in a massive fire that broke out at a private children’s hospital in east Delhi’s Vivek Vihar late Saturday night, officials said on Sunday. Twelve newborns were admitted to Baby Care Newborn Hospital and the five who survived have been admitted to another facility in the city. In shocking revelations, the Delhi Police said the hospital was operating despite the expiry of its licence on March 31 and it had no clearance from the fire department and also lacked qualified doctors. “Even the expired licence issued to the hospital allowed only five beds,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (Shahdara) Surendra Choudhary said. Delhi Fire Services officials said the blaze broke out around 11.30 pm and soon spread to two other adjacent buildings. Oxygen cylinders kept in the two-storey building exploded due to which the adjacent buildings were damaged, the officials said. According to eyewitnesses, locals and members of an Army Chief gets extension; to hit seniority line Ajay Banerjee Tribune News Service Firefighters attempt to douse the hospital blaze in New Delhi. ANI RAJKOT GAMING ZONE FIRE TOLL 35, 2 HELD The police have registered an FIR against six partners of a gaming zone in Gujarat's Rajkot city on charges of culpable homicide not amounting to murder and arrested two persons after a fire there killed 35 persons, officials said on Sunday. BACK PAGE NGO, Shaheed Sewa Dal, were the first to rush for help. Some residents are learnt to have climbed the building from the backside and rescued some of the infants. A continued on page 11 edit: rajkot tragedy New Delhi, May 26 In a surprise move, the government on Sunday announced a one-month extension in service for Army Chief Gen Manoj Pande, who was to superannuate on May 31. This is the first time that the tenure of an Army Chief has been extended since the Indira Gandhi-led government gave an extension to Gen SHFJ Manekshaw for his contribution during the 1971 India-Pakistan war. In a statement, the Ministry of Defence said, “The Appointments Committee of Cabinet, which met on May 26, approved the extension in service of Chief of the Army Staff General Manoj C Pande for a period of one month beyond his normal continued on page 11
The Tribune, now published from Chandigarh, started publication on February 2, 1881, in Lahore (now in Pakistan). It was started by Sardar Dyal Singh Majithia, a public-spirited philanthropist, and is run by a trust comprising four eminent persons as trustees.
The Tribune, the largest selling daily in North India, publishes news and views without any bias or prejudice of any kind. Restraint and moderation, rather than agitational language and partisanship, are the hallmarks of the paper. It is an independent newspaper in the real sense of the term.
The English edition apart, the 133-year-old Tribune has two sister publications, Punjabi Tribune (in Punjabi) and Dainik Tribune (in Hindi).