27052026-TTC-01.qxd 27-05-2026 00:32 Page 1 c m y b 13 CHANDIGARH | GURUGRAM | JALANDHAR | BATHINDA | VOL. 146 NO. 145 | 12 PAGES | ~5.00 | REGD. NO. CHD/0006/2024-2026 ESTABLISHED IN 1881 MP RASHID GETS BAIL TO ATTEND FATHER’S RITUALS J&K /thetribunechd GUPTA APPOINTED CHIEF SECY DAYS BEFORE RETIREMENT HIMACHAL SABALENKA RACES INTO FRENCH OPEN 2ND ROUND SPORT INDIA, CANADA AIM TO EXPAND TRADE TO $50 BN BY 2030 BUSINESS wednesday | 27 may 2026 /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com Committed to free & open Indo-Pacific: Quad unveils energy security initiative Expresses concern over ‘dangerous, coercive actions’ in South China Sea; Beijing fumes Ujwal Jalali PM MODI TO VISIT OZ IN ‘NEAR FUTURE’ Tribune News Service New Delhi, May 26 The Quad on Tuesday issued a strong strategic message on Indo-Pacific security, maritime stability and economic resilience, as India, the US, Japan and Australia jointly opposed coercive actions in regional waters and unveiled a major new initiative on energy security amid growing concerns over tensions in West Asia and vulnerabilities in global supply chains. At the Quad Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in New Delhi, the four countries reaffirmed their commitment to a “free and open Indo-Pacific” anchored in international law, sovereignty and territorial integrity, while warning against attempts to alter the status quo by force or through coercion. The meeting concluded with the adoption of four key outcome documents — the Quad Foreign Ministers’ joint statement, a detailed factsheet on Quad initiatives, a separate Quad statement on Indo-Pacific energy security, and the Quad Critical continued on page 8 Copters battle fires atKasauliIAFstation SOLAN: The IAF has deployed helicopters to douse raging forest fires at the Air Force Station in Kasauli. A major blaze that erupted near Manaun village during the day spread swiftly towards the Air Force area by evening, prompting urgent firefighting efforts. Fires have been reported from Upper Mall and nearby forest ranges around the hill station. INSIDE HaryanaATSlikelyto beginopsfromJune1 CHANDIGARH: Haryana DGP Ajay Singhal on Tuesday said the state’s Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) might start functioning from June 1, with dedicated police stations in Panchkula and Gurugram. The decision was taken after the busting of a “white-collar terror module” linked to Al Falah University last year. INSIDE Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong on Tuesday announced that Prime Minister Narendra Modi would visit Australia in the “near future”, signalling continued momentum in the growing India-Australia strategic partnership. Speaking after the Quad Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, Wong said Australian PM Anthony Albanese had conveyed the announcement earlier in the day. << Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong, EAM S Jaishankar, Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi & US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in New Delhi on Tuesday. REUTERS India, US seal strategic critical minerals pact Tribune News Service New Delhi, May 26 India and the US on Tuesday signed a bilateral critical minerals framework on the sidelines of the Quad Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in New Delhi even as the Quad unveiled a broader initiative aimed at mobilising up to $20 billion in public and private investments to build secure and diversified critical mineral supply chains. The developments mark a significant step in the expanding strategic and technology partnership among India, the US, Japan and Australia amid intensifying global competition over minerals essential for semiconductors, electric vehicles, batteries, artificial intelligence, telecommunications and advanced defence manufacturing. Officials said the India-US agreement sought to strengthen cooperation in securing supply chains for strategic minerals and ensuring that critical technologies remained Amritsar, May 26 A young girl crushed to death after a scooter hit a pothole on a city road changed the life of Gulshan Bhatia forever. The tragedy, which took place around 11 years ago near Khalsa College in Amritsar, left such a deep impact on him that he decided to dedicate his life to making roads safer for others. Since then, Gulshan has quietly worked like a one-man army across Amritsar, filling potholes, repairing damaged stretches of roads and installing reflective tapes at accident-prone spots, often at his own expense. The accident occurred when a woman riding a scooter with her daughter lost balance after the vehicle struck a Tribune News Service New Delhi, May 26 Hours after the US struck Iranian naval facilities on land and at sea, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said a potential deal to end the conflict could “take a few days”. A series of attacks and counter-attacks threatened an already fragile ceasefire, in place since April 8, and raised fears of a fresh round of violence. On a visit to India, Rubio told reporters in Jaipur that there were “some talks going on in Qatar today, so we’ll see if we can make progress… it’ll take a few days”. “The President has expressed his desire to make it. He’s either going to make a good deal or no deal,” he said. Rubio told reporters that “the straits have to be open”. “They’re going to be open one way or the other, so they need to be open. What’s happening there is unlawful, it’s illegal, it’s unsustainable for the world, it’s unacceptable.” The Iranian Foreign Ministry said Iran would leave no act of aggression unanswered and would show not the slightest hesitation in defending its sovereignty and terri- Won’t go unanswered: Iran calls attack truce violation torial integrity. Iran condemned the attack, saying it constituted a clear violation of Article 2(4) of the Charter of the United Nations, as well as the ceasefire agreement dated April 8, 2026. Earlier, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said the US forces attacked missile sites in southern Iran and boats trying to lay mines on Monday. “The US forces conducted selfdefence strikes in southern Iran today to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces,” CENTCOM spokesman Tim Hawkins said without giving details of the attacks. He said the targets included missile launch sites and boats trying to “emplace mines”. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it shot down an MQ-9 Reaper drone after identifying “hostile aircraft” entering Iranian airspace. The IRGC forces “also fired upon an RQ-4 drone and an intruding F-35 jet”, an IRGC statement said, without specifying the time of the incidents. continued on page 8 Aksheev Thakur Tribune News Service New Delhi, May 26 Amid mounting complaints over glitches in the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) on-screen marking (OSM) portal, the board is facing fresh scrutiny after a 19-year-old cybersecurity researcher claimed to have uncovered “vulnerabilities” in the digital evaluation system. The CBSE, however, denied any breach, asserting that the evaluation platform remained secure. The controversy has also drawn the attention of the parliamentary panel on education, which has summoned officials from the Union Education Ministry and the CBSE for a June 2 meeting to review issues linked to the OSM system in Class XII board examinations and the 17,000 APPLICATIONS FROM REGION The CBSE regional office in Ludhiana has received over 17,000 re-evaluation applications, creating a massive backlog. Sources said re-evaluation process was moving at a slow pace due to the shortage of teachers. The delay has sparked widespread anxiety among students. INSIDE implementation of the threelanguage formula in Classes IX and X. Nisarga Adhikary, a 19-year-old cybersecurity researcher, alleged that flaws in the OSM portal could have enabled hackers to access examiner accounts, bypass authentication protocols and alter students’ marks. In a blog post, Adhikary claimed he was able to log into the system as an examiner with- out completing the OTP verification process and access the evaluation dashboard. “I opened the OSM portal and started examining the HTTP requests and backend structure. The login page appeared routine, asking for a user ID, school code and password followed by OTP verification. The vulnerabilities became evident only after analysing the code behind the portal,” he wrote. The concerns surfaced after CBSE declared Class XII results on May 13, with the pass rate dropping to 85.20 per cent from 88.39 per cent last year. Soon after, students applying for revaluation reported fluctuating fees, website crashes and alleged mixing of answer continued on page 8 edit: re-evaluation mess pothole in the middle of the road. Both fell onto the street. Moments later, a tractor-trolley coming from behind ran over the girl, killing her on the spot. The horrifying incident stayed with Gulshan. While many mourned the incident and moved on, Gulshan decided he could not remain a silent spectator. He picked up tools himself and began filling potholes wherever he could across the city. What started as a spontaneous act of grief slowly turned into a mission of public service. Today, residents in several parts of Amritsar know him as the man repairing dangerous stretches of roads without any official help. Apart from filling potholes, he also installs reflective tapes to warn commuters, especially continued on page 8 No locus standi: India as China, Pak rake up Kashmir Ujwal Jalali Tribune News Service New Delhi, May 26 India on Tuesday mounted a sharp diplomatic rebuttal to a joint statement issued by China and Pakistan, categorically rejecting references to Jammu and Kashmir and strongly opposing renewed Chinese backing for projects under the “so-called” China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) in Pakistan-occupied territories. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said the union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh “have been, are and will always remain integral and inalienable parts of India”, asserting that no other country had the “locus standi” to comment on the matter. The strong response came after Beijing and Islamabad, in a joint statement issued during Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s visit to China, reiterated support for deeper cooperation under CPEC and referred to the Kashmir issue while calling for enhanced “trans-boundary continued on page 9 Ram Rahim out on parole again, 16th time since 2017 Tribune News Service CLASS XII RESULTS No breach: Board | Parl panel summons officials Uses own funds to fill potholes, warns commuters at accident-prone spots Tribune News Service Ajay Banerjee CBSE faces scrutiny as teen flags ‘gaps’ in digital evaluation system Tragedy drives Amritsar man to fix unsafe roads Pawan K Jaiswar within “trusted networks”, insulated from geopolitical disruptions, coercive market practices and overdependence on concentrated sources. The pact builds upon groundwork laid earlier this year during high-level meetings in Washington, where US Secretary of State Marco continued on page 8 Deal to end war may take a few days: Rubio asUSstrikesIranagain Rohtak/Sirsa, May 26 Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, who is serving a 20-year jail sentence for raping two disciples, walked out of the district jail at Sunariya village in Rohtak on Tuesday after being granted a 30-day parole. Will stay at Sirsa dera during the 30-day period Women show their voter cards during the municipal council elections at Banga in Nawanshahr. SARABJIT SINGH Clashes mar Punjab civic polls, 14 injured; turnout dips to 64% Ruchika M Khanna Tribune News Service Chandigarh, May 26 The “mini elections” in Punjab, held across 103 urban local bodies on Tuesday, were marked by clashes at several places, with at least 14 persons, including a child, sustaining injuries in separate incidents. The polling percentage recorded in these elections was 63.94 per cent, significantly lower than the Oppn alleges booth capturing| EC rejects charge | Counting on May 29 73 per cent recorded during the last urban civic polls held in February 2021. The results will be declared on May 29. The lower turnout this time is likely to have been influenced by the intense heat through the day. Several incidents of voters fainting while standing in queues due to high temperatures were also reported. Notably, higher polling was recorded in nagar panchayats than in ubran local bodies. Sangat in Bathinda and Joga in Mansa bucked the trend with 88.44 per cent and 85.3 per cent polling, respectively. Clashes were reported at various places between workers of the Aam Aadmi Party, Congress, BJP and continued on page 8 He will stay at the dera headquarters in Sirsa during the period. This marks his 16th parole since his conviction in 2017. Gurmeet exited the jail premises at 6:35 am in an SUV amid tight security. He reached the dera headquarters around 8.30 am. He attended the routine satsang and interacted with followers for nearly an hour. Followers were seen celebrating his arrival despite the intense heat. A devotee, Balveer Singh, said a special “bhandara” would be organised at the dera on May 31. Dera spokesperson Jitender Khurana said the parole was granted under routine jail rules and not for any special reason. “Convicted prisoners are entitled to up to 70 days of continued on page 8 No forcible takeover of Panel to study ‘unnatural’ Gymkhana Club, HC told demographic changes Shekhar Singh Tribune News Service Gulshan Bhatia repairs a pothole in Amritsar. PHOTO: VISHAL KUMAR c m y b New Delhi, May 26 Members of the Delhi Gymkhana Club on Tuesday expressed relief after the Centre assured the Delhi High Court that no forcible possession of the club premises would be taken on June 5, easing fears among ex-servicemen and staff dependent on the 113-year-old institution. The assurance came after Solicitor General Tushar Animesh Singh Eviction proceedings, if any, only as per law: Centre Mehta told the court that any eviction proceedings against the club, located in Lutyens’ Delhi, would be carried out strictly in accordance with the law and only after due notice to the occupants. Following the submission, Justice Avneesh Jhingan said no interim order was required continued on page 9 Tribune News Service New Delhi, May 26 Amid growing concern over rising infiltration and “unnatural changes” in border areas, the Centre on Tuesday announced the setting up of a high-level committee on demographic changes, which will be led by Justice Prakash Prabhakar Navlekar (retd). The panel will submit its report within a year and, if necessary, the Ministry of Home Affairs may extend its tenure by up to six months. Home Minister Amit Shah announced the development in a post on X, elaborating that the Centre has taken the decision to form the panel after Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August 15 last year announced that such a committee would be formed. Apart from Justice Navlekar, the committee comprises Census Commissioner Mritunjay continued on page 8