High Court quashes sanction to prosecute Ashok Chavan

© 2006-2017 Kasturi & Sons Ltd. -UPSC [email protected] -+91815015301

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An Indian police jeep couldreach anywhere, or so theaction movies from the ’80shad us believe. One suchvehicle has landed atop theOdisha Reserve Police Forcebuilding in Jagatsinghpur,thanks to the e�orts of thelocal police force.

After the advent ofswanky sports utilityvehicles, the typical Indiapolice jeeps, an adaptationof the Willys Jeeps used inWorld War II, have mostlybeen pulled out of service.But the service rendered bythis old workhorse fordecades has not been

forgotten by theJagatsinghpur district police,who have placed arefurbished police jeep onthe terrace of the RPFbuilding.

The vehicle has, notunexpectedly, become a topdraw for locals.

‘Mark of respect’“We have stopped usingtypical Indian police jeepssuited for rough roads andsteep inclines. SUVs havetaken their place. But wegrew up watching thisvehicle. We are perhaps thelast generation to have usedthe jeep. So we decided tokeep one old jeep as a mark of respect atop the building,” said Jai Narayan

Pankaj, Superintendent ofPolice, Jagatsinghpur.

About �30,000 was spentfrom the contingency fundto refurbish the vehicle andhaul it to the building roof,said an o�cer.

Newage SUVsAccording to the OdishaPolice Motor TransportDepartment, police vehiclesare now chosen on the basisof their fuel e�ciency andperformance in roughweather and di�cult terrain.Under these circumstances,the jeeps, which were onceubiquitous, are unlikely tobe brought back.

“It is a good gesture that

the Odisha police have notforgotten the role of thejeep. It’s a part of our historyand social life for its use onIndia’s rural and ruggedroads. Even in reel life,especially in old movies, theprotagonist used to enter thescene in a police jeep with aswagger, stick in hand. Andnobody can forget thehilarious scenes of jeepspacked with constablesarriving late to the crimespot in the plot climax,” saidJulious Singh, a jeep lover.

“The future generationshould also know about thesocial life that their oldergeneration grew up in,”added Mr. Singh.

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It’s a bird… it’s a plane… it’s a police jeep

Satyasundar Barik

BHUBANESWAR

In unique tribute to the old workhorse, Odisha policemen place the once-ubiquitous vehicle atop a building

A refurbished jeep atop the Jagatsinghpur reserve policeo�ce in Odisha. * SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

CMYK

A ND-NDE

saturday, december 23, 2017 Delhi

City Edition

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Pinarayi Vijayan’s

discharge will delay

Lavalin trial: CBI

page 8

Lalu Prasad hopes

for 2G-type verdict in

fodder scam case

page 8

Mahmud Abbas says he

will no longer accept

any U.S. peace plan

page 10

Rohit Sharma blazes away

to joint-fastest T20I century

as India beats Sri Lanka

page 13

DELHI METRO A 6 PAGES

Yuletide spirit: Children trail ‘Santa Claus’ on a bicycle in Ongole, Andhra Pradesh, on Friday. * KOMMURI SRINIVAS

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Bicycle chief

Gujjars in Rajasthan are unhappy over the Bharatiya Janata Party government’s latest decision to grant them1% reservation within the50% ceiling mandated bythe Supreme Court andhave reiterated their demand for subcategorisationof the Other Backward Classquota for extending the bene�t to them.

Five bene�ciariesThe State government decided on Thursday to give1% reservation to Gujjarsand four other nomadiccommunities, recognisingthem as a “most backward”category. Parliamentary Affairs Minister RajendraRathore said a noti�cationin this regard would be issued soon after getting theGovernor’s approval.

At present, the overall reservation in the State standsat 49%. Along with Gujjars,nomadic communities Banjara, GadiaLohar, Raika andGadariya have been included among the OBCs for quota in the government jobsand educationalinstitutions.

‘Not acceptable’Gujjar leader Kirori SinghBainsla, who has beenspearheading the quota agitation for several years, saidon Friday that the decision

was not acceptable to thecommunity.

“Even the Centre has initiated an exercise to examine subcategorisation ofOBC reservation. Whatstops the Rajasthan government from doing the same?”he asked.

Bill passedThe State Assembly had onOctober 26 passed a Billcreating the “most backward” category within theOBCs for Gujjars and fourother nomadic communities and given 5% reservation to them, while increasing the OBC quota from 21%to 26% and taking the overall quota in the State to 54%.

However, the RajasthanHigh Court restrained theState government from implementing the provisionsof the Bill on November 9.Later, the Supreme Courtrestrained the State government from taking any actionthat breaches the 50% reservation ceiling.

Special backward classThe Gujjar Aarakshan Sangharsh Samiti members, whohave been interacting with aCabinet subcommitteetasked with �nding a solution to the quota issue, havemaintained that making aprovision for subquotawithin the OBC quota is the“only solution” available inthe matter.

Storm brewing? Gujjarsunhappy with 1% quotaWant Rajasthan government to carveout subquota within OBC quota

SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

JAIPUR

With the Botanical GardenKalkaji Mandir section of theMagenta Line operationalfrom 5 p.m. on Monday,commuters will be able totravel from Noida to southDelhi in just 19odd minutes.The section, that will be inaugurated by the Prime Minister, features several attractions which are a �rst forthe Metro.

The trains, brought fromSouth Korea, are more spacious. Each coach can accommodate at least 30 to 40passengers more than the existing coaches.

Host of featuresPlatform screen doors havealso been �xed in each of thenine stations to ensure passenger safety. These doorswould be essential on thisline as driverless trains canrun on this stretch.

The travelling experienceis also set to be more comfortable with the bulges between individual seats being

smoothened out. Additionalhandrails have also been�xed on the sides of the entrances for passengers notseated.

The recent incident of atrial train rolling back andcrashing into the wall of theKalindi Kunj depot notwithstanding, the DMRC also assured that all trains are safeand additional care has beentaken to ensure passengersafety inside the trains andon the platforms. “Thesetrains can be driven withouta driver, but we never said

we are not going to have adriver in it. For at least two tothree years we will operatethem with drivers, till thepassengers have full faith inthe system,” the DMRC saidin a statement.

There are other innovations as well. For example,the ticket vending machineshave been a�xed to walls tosave space. The displayboards inside trains havebeen automated — they will�ash live scenes of the surroundings, CCTV footage,and name of the next station.

Innovations galore on section to be inaugurated on Monday

Soumya Pillai

NEW DELHI

Safety �rst: Platform screen doors for safety, a feature onlyon the Airport Metro Line, have also been �xed in each of thenine stations since the Magenta Line can run driverlesstrains. * R.V. MOORTHY

Many �rsts on the Magenta Line

In a huge relief to formerChief Minister of Maharashtra Ashok Chavan, the Bombay High Court quashed thesanction granted by the Governor to prosecute him inthe Adarsh housing societyscam.

A Division Bench of Justices Ranjit More and SadhanaJadhav was hearing a plea�led by Mr. Chavan in 2016challenging the February 4,2016, order passed by Ch. Vidyasagar Rao giving the nodto try him under Section 197(prosecution of Judges andpublic servants) of the Codeof Criminal Procedure(Cr.PC).

Mr. Chavan is charged under Section 120B (punish

ment of criminal conspiracy)and Section 420 (cheatingand dishonestly inducing delivery of property) of the Indian Penal Code.

He challenged the grant ofsanction mainly on theground that it is a review ofthe earlier order of the erst

while Governor K. Sankaranarayanan, on December 17,2013, refusing sanction afterconsidering the materialpresented by the Central Bureau of Investigation.

Senior counsel Amit Desaipointed out that there wasno scope to review the ear

lier order since the CBI hadproceeded to �le an application under Section 169 (release of accused when evidence is de�cient) of Cr.PC.

The court ruled that Mr.Rao’s order “cannot be sustained and is quashed andset aside.”

“It was permissible for theGovernor — the sanctioningauthority to review or reconsider the earlier decision ofthe erstwhile Governor notto grant sanction to prosecute Mr. Chavan — on freshmaterial which had surfacedafter the earlier sanction wasrefused.”

High Court quashes sanctionto prosecute Ashok ChavanFormer Maharashtra Chief Minister had challenged order in Adarsh scam case

Sonam Saigal

Mumbai

ACT OF POLITICAL VENDETTA:

CHAVAN; A TIGHT SLAP ON BJP,

SAYS OPPOSITION A PAGE 5

CONTINUED ON A PAGE 8

The BJP on Friday retainedVijay Rupani and Nitin Patelas Chief Minister and DeputyChief Minister of Gujarat,but it found the process offorming a government in Himachal Pradesh tricky afterrival groups staked claim.

The BJP legislature partyin Gujarat unanimouslyelected Mr. Rupani and Mr.Patel but the central observers to Himachal Pradesh —Union Ministers NirmalaSitharaman and NarendraTomar — had to face sloganeering from the supportersof the likely candidate forchief minister Jairam Thakurand the party’s now defeated chief ministerial facePrem Kumar Dhumal.

The election of Mr. Rupani and Mr. Patel in Gandhinagar was held in the presence of Union MinisterArun Jaitley, the party’s central observer. “A proposal toelect Vijay Rupani as leader

of the BJP legislature partyand Nitin Patel as deputyleader of the legislature party has been adopted,” Mr.Jaitley announced.

BJP retains Vijay Rupani,Nitin Patel in Gujarat But government formation in Himachal Pradesh turns tricky

Nistula Hebbar

Kanwar Yogendra

NEW DELHI/SHIMLA

Same team: Vijay Rupani, right, and Nitin Patel with ArunJaitley, left, in Gandhinagar on Friday. * VIJAY SONEJI


Commenting on the 2Gspectrum allocation caseverdict for the �rst time,Congress president RahulGandhi on Friday said “thetruth is out” and describedthe BJP as a party whose“architecture is based onlies.”

“Do I think 2G is a vindication? See the whole architecture of the BJP is aboutlies. The whole structure isabout lies. Everyone knowsabout 2G and the truth isout,” Mr. Gandhi told reporters after chairing a meeting of the Congress Working Committee (CWC), theparty’s highest decisionmaking body.

The Congress chief once

again attacked the Gujaratmodel of development andquestioned Prime MinisterNarendra Modi’s silence onthe Rafale deal and the business dealings of Jay Shah,BJP president Amit Shah’sson. But the CWC, presidedover by Mr. Gandhi for the�rst time, focussed its deliberations on the 2G verdict.

The truth is out on 2G,says Rahul GandhiThe architectureof BJP is based onlies: Cong. leader Sandeep Phukan

New Delhi

Rahul Gandhi at the CWCmeeting in New Delhi on Friday. * R.V. MOORTHY


China and India must “transcend the bilateral dimension” of their ties for stability in Asia and the world,said National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and China’sState Counsellor Yang Jiechiin their �rst boundary talkssince the Doklam stando�.

They discussed enhancing con�dencebuildingmeasures and an “early settlement” of the boundary issue, a statement by the Ministry of External A�airssaid.

The 20th round of theSpecial Representativetalks, which o�cials saidwere held in New Delhi onFriday under an extendedmandate that went beyondboundary issues, referredrepeatedly to the consensus

reached by Prime MinisterNarendra Modi and ChinesePresident Xi Jinping on thesubject of bettering bilateralrelations. “We know thatPresident Xi and (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi metthis year in Xiamen andreached an important consensus,” Chinese ForeignMinistry spokesperson said.

‘India, China must gobeyond bilateral ties’Scope of boundary talks extended

Suhasini Haidar

Atul aneja

New DELHI/BEIJING

Ajit Doval and Yang Jiechibefore their meeting in New Delhi on Friday. * AP


Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Fridaysacked State Agriculture Minister Damodar Rout in thewake of his controversial remark against the Brahmincommunity.

“I strongly disapprove ofanyone who makes derogatory remarks against any caste,creed or religion. I have dismissed Damodar Rout fromthe Council of Ministers. A

letter has been sent to theGovernor to accept this dismissal,” Mr. Patnaik told journalists at the StateSecretariat.

Attending a festival in Malkangiri on December 18, Mr.Rout had said that “tribal people never beg even in adverse situations, but Brahmins beg for alms if thesituation arises”.

The Minister’s commenthad drawn severe criticismfrom the Brahmin communi

ty and triggered protestsacross the State.

This is not for the �rst timethat Mr. Rout’s remarks created trouble for the ruling BijuJanata Dal and the State government. The veteran leader was under severe attackfollowing casteist remarksagainst a senior Dalit leaderof the BJD, while his comments on farmer suicidesand Anganwadi workers hadalso evoked strong protestfrom di�erent quarters.

Naveen sacks Minister for casteist remarksSpecial Correspondent

BHUBANESWAR

Statelevel shooter triesto kill mother, brotherNEW DELHI

A 47yearold Statelevel

shooter allegedly shot at her

mother and brother, while

inebriated, in south Delhi’s

Defence Colony on Friday.

The police have arrested the

accused and seized her

licensed pistol. Sangeeta

Singh, who is unmarried and

lives with her parents,

brother and his family in

Defence Colony’s CBlock,

allegedly shot at her mother

Geeta and brother Harsharan

(48) following an argument,

the police said.

DELHI METRO A PAGE 1

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NEARBY

UPCOC Bill falters inLegislative CouncilLUCKNOW

The State government’s

UPCOC Bill on Friday hit a

roadblock in the Uttar

Pradesh Legislative Council

where a determined

Opposition stalled its

passage. Following its

rejection, the Council

Chairman referred the Bill to

a House panel for scrutiny.

NORTH A PAGE 2

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NOIDA/DELHI THE HINDU

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 23, 20172EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

DELHI Timings

Saturday, December 23

RISE 07:11 SET 17:30

RISE 10:36 SET 21:57

Sunday, December 24

RISE 07:11 SET 17:31

RISE 11:13 SET 22:51

Monday, December 25

RISE 07:12 SET 17:31

RISE 11:50 SET 23:46

The State government’s UPCOC Bill on Friday hit a roadblock in the LegislativeCouncil where a determinedOpposition stalled its passage. Following its rejection,the Council Chairman referred the Bill to a House panel for scrutiny.

After a brief but animateddiscussion in the UpperHouse, the Uttar PradeshControl of Organised Crimes(UPCOC) Bill, 2017, draftedon the lines of the stringentMaharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA),was rejected by the Opposition. The ruling BJP is in minority in the Council, unlikein the State Assembly whereit enjoys a brute majority of325 (along with allies) in the403member House. In the100member Council, theBJP has just 13 memberswhile the Samajwadi Partyhas 61 members, the BSP

nine, the Congress two, theRLD one and 12 ‘others’.Two seats are vacant.

Opposition in commandRiding on its strength in theCouncil, the Oppositionmembers slammed the proposed legislation, which waspassed by voice vote in theAssembly on Friday, sayingits provisions were draconian and feared it could beused to settle political scoresby the party in power.

Participating in the debate, former chief ministerAkhilesh Yadav (an SP MLC)said, “This Bill is aimed atdeceiving the people of theState. If the intention of thegovernment is really noble,then it should strengthenDial 100 and 1090... Your government does not want toimprove law and order, itwants to ‘improve’ the political system.”

Earlier tabling the Bill,Deputy Chief Minister Dinesh Sharma, who is also theLeader of the House, hadsaid, “If the policy and intention (niti evam niyat) of theOpposition is anticriminal,then it is good. No party willwant crime in the State.”

Deputy CM Keshav PrasadMaurya said, “We are goingto act against the corruptelements through this Bill,and not against any politicalleaders or workers. Wrongmessage is being sent to thepublic about this Bill.”

UPCOC Bill falters inLegislative CouncilOppn. stalls its passage, Bill sent to House panel for scrutiny

Press Trust of India

Lucknow

Akhilesh Yadav-led SP is inmajority in the Upper House

The National Green Tribunalon Thursday issued noticesto the Uttarakhand government and the Centre after apetitioner alleged that anunknown virus was adversely a�ecting wildlife in theHimalayas.

A Bench headed by NGTacting Chairperson U.D. Salvi, issued notices to the Stategovernment, Ministry of Environment Forest and Climate Change and the Ministry of Wildlife andEnvironment of Uttarakhand, over the allegations.

Petitioner Gaurav Bansalclaimed that the Himalayanblue sheep were a�ected bythe ‘unknown virus.’

“The biodiversity of theGangotri National Park in Uttarkashi is endangered because of an unknown virusor disease. Furthermore, itis also important to mentionthat the Himalayan bluesheep of the Gangotri National Park are getting blindbecause of the said virus ordisease” read the petition.

Eye infectionFurther, the petitioner alleged that the matter hadcome to light after a group ofBorder Security Force personnel, who were campingat the national park, cameacross several Himalayanblue sheep with eitherbleeding eyes or empty eyesockets.

NGT notice to Centre,Uttarakhand govt.‘Virus a�ecting wildlife in Himalayas’

Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI

A farmer was shot dead byunidenti�ed persons atShankarpur village in Bihar’s Samastipur districton Friday, police said.

Farmer shotdead in Bihar PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

Samastipur

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Friday laid thefoundation stone for the“world’s largest” ultra mega solar power plant atGurh tehsil in the district.

The green energy generated at this station will beprovided to Delhi MetroRail Corporation to run itstrains in the nationalcapital.

750 MW generationAccording to an o�cial, thesolar plant will generate750 MW electricity and isbeing established with atan investment of �4,500crore. It will spread in anarea of nearly 1,600hectares.

“The green energy to beproduced at this plant willbe supplied to Delhi Metrofor its operations. Rest of itwill be supplied to theState,” the o�cial added.

The cost of per unit ofpower will be less thanthree rupees.

Foundationlaid for megapower project

PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

REWA(M.P.)

Published by N. Ravi at Kasturi Buildings, 859 & 860, Anna Salai, Chennai-600002 and Printed by S. Ramanujam at HT Media Ltd. Plot No. 8, Udyog Vihar, Greater Noida Distt. Gautam Budh Nagar, U.P. 201306, on behalf of KASTURI & SONS LTD., Chennai-600002. Editor: Mukund Padmanabhan (Responsible for selection of news under the PRB Act).

Regd. DL(ND)-11/6110/2006-07-08 l RNI No. TNENG/2012/49940 l ISSN 0971 - 751X l Vol. 7 l No. 304


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THE HINDU NOIDA/DELHI

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2017 3EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

0DISCLAIMER: Readers are requested toverify and make appropriate enquiries tosatisfy themselves about the veracity ofan advertisement before responding toany published in this newspaper. Kasturi& Sons Limited, the Publisher & Owner ofthis newspaper, does not vouch for theauthenticity of any advertisement or ad-vertiser or for any of the advertiser’sproducts and/or services. In no event canthe Owner, Publisher, Printer, Editor, Dir-ector/s, Employees of this newspaper/company be held responsible/liable inany manner whatsoever for any claimsand/or damages for advertisements inthis newspaper.

Bengali �lm Rong BerongerKori has drawn the ire of aHindu out�t as two of itscharacters are named afterdeities Ram and Sita.

Director Ranjan Ghosh,however, has refused tomake any changes, callingthe protests an attempt tocurb his creative freedom.

The activists of the fringegroup, Hindu Jagran Manch,held demonstrations outside the local o�ce of theCentral Board of Film Certi�cation (CBFC) on Fridayand submitted a deputationseeking changes in thenames of the characters.

Writes to MinisterThe spokesperson for theWest Bengal unit of the Hindu Jagran Manch, Vivek

Singh, has also written a letter to the Union Information and Broadcasting Minister, Smriti Irani, statingthat naming the �lm’s characters after Ram and Sitawill hurt the sentiments ofHindus.

Mr. Singh had on Thursday said that he will not giveup the �ght and may evenexplore legal options if theCensor Board clears the �lmwithout considering thegroup’s demand.

RelationshipsMr. Ghosh said the �lm hasfour separate stories aboutrelationships and there isno mythological connection. In one of the four stories, two characters havebeen named Ram and Sita.

“Don’t we see peoplehaving names like Ram,

Lakshman, Sita, Kartik, Saraswati in our everyday life?Do they now want to changethose names as well!” hewondered.

Artistic freedom“It is a question of artisticfreedom, a director’s prerogative of creating a work ofart. We will protest and object to any bid to curb ourfreedom,” he asserted.

West Bengal BJP unit president Dilip Ghosh said thetrend of naming �lm characters after Hindu gods orrevered mythological characters might harm the sentiments of people of thecommunity.

The �lm has ChiranjitChakraborty, RituparnaSengupta, Ritwik Chakraborty and Arunima Ghoshin lead roles.

Hindu out�t protestsagainst Bengali �lm Two of the �lm’s characters are named after deities


Kolkata

Odisha Revenue and Disaster Management MinisterMaheswar Mohanty said onFriday that paddy crop inover 10,000 hectares of landhad been a�ected due to unseasonal rain in the secondweek of December.

Mr. Mohanty said the unseasonal rain hit �ve coastaldistricts. But three districts

Puri, Jajpur and Jagatsinghpur have reported crop lossof 33 % or above.

The Minister said compensation will be disbursedamong the a�ected farmerswithin a month.

Report submittedCollectors of �ve districtshad on Thursday submittedreports on crop damage dueto unseasonal rain. The col

during the third week of November had caused cropdamage to over 3.84 lakhhectares of paddy �eldspread over in 135 blocks in19 districts.

The Minister said thefarmers who su�ered croploss of 33 % or above are entitled to agricultural inputsubsidy as per the norms ofthe State Disaster ResponseFund (SDRF).

lectors of Cuttack and Kendrapara have reported thatthere was no crop damage intheir districts on account ofunseasonal rain. Accordingto o�cial sources, �ve districts of Cuttack, Kendrapara, Jajpur, Jagatsinghour andPuri had received heavyrainfall on December 9 and10 due to a depression overthe Bay of Bengal.

Earlier, unseasonal rain

Unseasonal rain hits paddy crop in Odisha10,000 hectares of land a�ected; compensation to be disbursed soon

Press Trust of india

Bhubaneswar

Former Leader of Opposition in Tripura and CongressMLA Ratan Lal Nath joinedthe BJP at a function here onFriday. Agartala MunicipalCorporation Councillor Himani Debbarma also joinedthe sa�ron party at thevenue.

The Congress has reacted

fast seeking disquali�cationof both leaders. Addressinga press conference, seniorparty leaders said that theywould write to the AssemblySpeaker and the Mayor ofMunicipal Corporation todemand theirdisquali�cation.

BJP national general secretary Ram Madhav, Assam

parties were joining the BJPwith sheer intention to endthe ‘misrule of the CPI(M) inTripura’.

Mr. Nath, who had votedfor BJP’s Presidential candidate Ram Kovind in July, became the seventh MLA tojoin the BJP which hasemerged as main oppositionparty in State.

Minister and Chairman ofNortheast Democratic Alliance (NEDA) Himanta Biswa Sarma, his ministerialcolleague Parimal Sukla Baidya and state BJP presidentBiplab Kumar Deb welcomed new entrants in theparty.

Mr Madhav said that ‘honest’ politicians from other

Another Congress MLA joins BJP in Tripura Agartala Councillor also joins the sa�ron party; Cong. seeks disquali�cation

Syed Sajjad Ali

Agartala

The Trinamool Congress(TMC) on Friday took out arally at Jadavpur here toprotest against the proposed Financial Resolutionand Deposit Insurance Bill.

People will lose their lifelong deposits if this Bill ispassed, Abhishek Banerjee, TMC MP and nephewof Chief Minister MamataBanerjee, said.

“We had opposed antipeople policies like demonetisation and GST. We willoppose FRDI too. There isno di�erence between BJPleaders and chit fund owner Sudipta Sen. He robbedpublic of their savingsthrough chit funds and theBJP leaders will loot thecommon people in name ofFRDI Bill,” he said. Termingthe BJP as the “BharatiyaJanjal (garbage) Party”, hesaid the TMC is not afraid ofvendetta politics pursuedby sa�ron party.

TMC takes outrally againstFRDI Bill


Kolkata


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CMYK

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NATION

Protest against Salman’smovie Tiger Zinda HaiJAIPUR

Members of the Valmiki

community in Rajasthan tore

and burnt posters of the

Salman Khan-starrer Tiger

Zinda Hai, protesting against

the alleged use of a

derogatory word by the actor

in a recent interview. More

than 30 members were put

under preventive arrest at

different locations, the police

said. PTI

IN BRIEF

U.P. Bill seeks death forhooch dealersLUCKNOW

The U.P. Assembly on Friday

passed a Bill to award death

penalty and life imprisonment

to those manufacturing and

dealing in spurious liquor. The

U.P. Excise (Amendment) Bill

2017, which was tabled in the

House on Thursday by

Parliamentary Affairs Minister

Suresh Khanna repealing the

ordinance brought by the

government in September ,

was passed by voice vote. PTI

Eight-year-old raped bysix neighbourhood boys PUNE

An eight-year-old girl was

allegedly raped by a 19-year-

old and five minors aged

about 10, living in her

neighbourhood, police

officials said here on Friday.

All six have been held

following a complaint from

the girl’s mother. She alleged

that the six, all living in her

neighbourhood in Kondhwa

area, sexually assaulted her

daughter, an official said. PTI

Former Maharashtra ChiefMinister Ashok Chavan described Friday’s High Courtorder in Adarsh case as onethat restored the credibilityand prestige of the Governor’s o�ce.

Mr. Chavan had challenged the decision of Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao to allow the Central Bureau OfInvestigation (CBI) to prosecute him in the Adarsh Housing scam. “The decision, taken by him as theconstitutional head of theState, was recommended bythe BJP Ministry and the CBI.I thank the judiciary and wehave full faith in our country’s judiciary,” Mr. Chavansaid.

‘Bid to malign Oppn.’The former Chief Minstersaid had the court ruledagainst him, it might have seta bad precedent. GovernorRao’s predecessor K. Sankaranarayanan had declined toallow the CBI to prosecutehim, which was seen by Opposition parties as a move toprotect Mr. Chavan.

“This was an act of political vendetta with the intention of maligning Oppositionparties,” Mr. Chavan said.The judgment would go along way in ensuring thatmala �de intentions by anypolitical party would be notbe accepted by the judiciary.

Mr. Chavan, who is thepresident of the MaharashtraPradesh Congress Committee (MPCC), was the ChiefMinister when the scambroke out and was forced toquit in 2010.

He said the court verdicthad come a day after the 2Gcase verdict that acquitted all18 charged in the case, including former Telecom Minister A Raja. “Both the caseswere hyped by the BJP during the 2014 general elections to gain political mileage,” he said.

However, the Adarsh casedid not have any impact onhis personal political fortunes. Under Mr. Chavan’sleadership, Congress sweptthe Nanded Waghala Municipal Corporation elections inOctober this year.

Mr. Chavan said the courtorder was a huge relief forhim. “It is something I wouldlike to put behind me.”

Act of political vendetta, says Chavan ‘Credibility ofGovernor’s o�cerestored by HC’

Ajeet Mahale

Mumbai

The Bombay High Court’s order extending relief to Congress leader and formerChief Minister Ashok Chavanin the Adarsh case is a tightslap on the Bharatiya JanataParty for its venomous politics, the Opposition Congressand the Nationalist CongressParty (NCP) have said.

The NCP, coming out insupport of the former ChiefMinister, said the ruling party’s attempt to defame theOpposition by levelling falsecharges of corruption hadfailed — �rst there was theverdict in the 2G case andnow the Adarsh case judgment. “This verdict is a pol-

khol of BJP’s false propaganda prior to the elections. TheAdarsh scam was used bythe BJP in the 2014 electionsagainst the Congress government. The court verdict denying permission to prosecute Mr. Chavan essentiallymeans that it is not requiredto probe him in the case,”NCP leader Jayant Patil said.

Leader of the Oppositionin the Assembly Radhakrishna VikhePatil said the BJPSena had been exposed.“Former Governor K Sankaranarayanan had taken stockof the available evidence before denying permission toprosecute Ashok Chavan.The present Governor wassubjected to political pres

sure by the ruling BJP on thepretext that the CBI hadgathered new evidence. Thelie has been exposed,” hesaid. Another NCP leader Jitendra Awhad wanted toknow whether the Governorwas taking orders from BJP.

The BJP, on the otherhand, chose to it play safe.Party spokesperson MadhavBhandari denied any political pressure. The Governor’sdecision was purely basedon argument of the investigating agency. “The Governor was told about the newevidence against him [AshokChavan] and the permissionwas granted. There was nopolitical pressure from theBJP,” Mr. Bhandari said.

Tight slap for BJP’s politics,say Opposition partiesAlok Deshpande

Nagpur

Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) on Friday received a request for proposal(RFP) for 15 limited serieslight combat helicoptersfrom the Air Force and theArmy.

The development comesdays after the Air Force issued the RFP to HAL for ma

nufacturing 83 Tejas LightCombat Aircraft (LCA) in theMk1A con�guration.

The light combat helicopter (LCH) is a 5.5 tonne classmultirole attack helicopterdeveloped by HAL, and is intended to play a major rolein providing close air support to ground forces. It isthe only attack helicopter inthe world which can operate

at heights of 12,000 feet. Atpresent, four technology demonstrators are under �ighttesting.

Five copters for ArmyThe limited series production is a precursor for full�edged serial production. Ofthe 15 helicopters, �ve willbe for the Army and 10 forthe Air Force.

On August 26, then Defence Minister Arun Jaitleyhad launched the production of LCH at Bengaluru,and the initial operationalcon�guration documents ofthe basic version were handed over to HAL.

The Air Force has forwarded to the government arequirement for 65 LCH andthe Army for 114.

Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI

HAL gets order for 15 attack helicopters

After Aligarh, the Hindu Jagran Manch in Agra has issued warnings to Christianschools against making Hindu students celebrate Christmas. The out�t said itplanned to oppose Christmas celebrations throughout the country.

The Agra unit chief of theHindu Jagran Manch, AmitChaudhary, told the mediaon Thursday that no Christian school should force Hindu students to celebrateChristmas.

“We want to warn allChristian schools in the city

that they should not eventhink of forcing a Christianfestival on a student who isHindu. If they do it and if weget any complaint, we willorganise protests againstthat school,” he said justdays before the celebrations.

Alien religion“It is simple logic. Christianschools survive due to Hinduchildren. It would be unfairon their part to culturallyconvert them to Christianityby making them celebrateChristmas, which is a festivalof a religion which is completely alien to Bharat,” hesaid.

Mr. Chaudhary added thatthe HJM has chalked out aplan to monitor activities inall the schools in the city.

He also said the HJMwould hold protests acrossthe city opposing celebration of Christmas by the people. “Hindus celebratingChristmas is like being converted to Christanity. Wewill raise awareness amongHindus against celebrating afestival which belongs to analien culture,” he added.

The threat from the HJMunit in Agra comes days afterits Aligarh unit issued a similar warning to schools in Aligarh.

Don’t force Christmas festivitieson students, Agra schools told

Fringe Hindu out�t warns of largescale protests

Staff reporter

Meerut

The Supreme Court is standing �rm by its order directing the government and theauthorities to publish the�rst draft of National Register of Citizens (NRC) for Assam by December 31, 2017.

A Bench of Justices Ranjan Gogoi and Rohinton Nariman shot down fears expressed by the Centre that avolatile situation may arise ifthe draft NRC was publishedon or before December 31.The �rst draft is to be published after scrutinising theclaims of citizenship of 2.38crore persons in the northeastern State.

AttorneyGeneral K.K. Venugopal expressed reservations about publishing the

draft NRC when lakhs ofclaims for citizen registration were still under scrutiny. At a hearing on December 15, the top law o�cersaid there could be a law andorder situation in the State.

But the court dismissedthe apprehensions, sayingNRC was an ongoing processand the remaining claims, ifcleared, could be part of asecond NRC draft.

Under scrutinyThe Supreme Court is hearing a writ petition �led byAssam Public Works (APW)in July 2009 for identi�cation of Bangladeshi foreigners in the State and deletionof their names from the voters’ list.

The Registrar General of

Citizens Registration of Indiahad informed the SupremeCourt that 38 lakh peoplewere under scrutiny in theState after their documentsappeared doubtful. The parental linkage of another 47lakh people were in doubtafter the authoritiesmatched their family trees.Finally, the cases of 29 lakhmarried women who hadsubmitted certi�cates fromthe gram panchayat secretaries concerned were alsounder scrutiny.

The court then orderedauthorities to publish the�rst draft by December 31,after completing the scrutiny of the two crore claimsalong with that of 38 lakh people whose documents weresuspect.

Dismisses Centre’s fears that a volatile situation will arise

Krishnadas Rajagopal

NEW DELHI

Publish �rst NRC draft forAssam by December 31: SC

The Enforcement Directorate on Friday said it hadarrested two persons, onean associate of Mahesh Nagar, the then authorised representative of SkylightHospitality Private Ltd., inconnection with the Bikaner land scam case.

Skylight Hospitality, acompany allegedly linkedto Robert Vadra, bought69.55 hectares for �72 lakhin January 2010 and sold itto Allegeny Finlease Private Ltd. for �5.15 crore, theagency said.

Skylight bought the landthree years after the original allotment.

Two held in Bikanerland case

Special correspondent

NEW DELHI

Vijay Barhate, the allegedmastermind behind the IPLTalent Hunt racket bustedearlier this month, was present with businessmen Priyank Saxena and Sobers Joban when they were caughton camera o�ering to �xcricket matches in international cricket tournaments,sources con�rmed to TheHindu.

Barhate was arrested bythe Property Cell of theMumbai police CrimeBranch in December, alongwith two others for allegedly duping at least 11 buddingcricketers of �68.06 lakhearlier this year. Investigating o�cers subsequentlyuncovered information indicating that Barhate was intouch with Saxena, a Delhibased businessman and alleged bookie, and have beenprobing these links.

The Hindu is in possession of exclusive pictures inwhich Barhate is seen sittingnear Saxena in a �vestarhotel in Delhi, in the secondweek of November, whenThe Sun, a British tabloid,conducted a sting. TheSun’s reporters met Saxenaand Joban, �rst in Dubai andthen in Delhi, and secretly�lmed them o�ering to �xmatches in the AustralianTwenty20 competition.

Two sources independently con�rmed to The

Hindu that it is indeed Barhate who is seen with Saxena and Joban in Delhi. Othersources said the CrimeBranch had examined thelocation history of Barhate’sand Saxena’s phones, whichhad shown their location inDelhi, in the same �vestarhotel, in the second week ofNovember.

Spot�xing racket“Barhate’s phone recordsshow that he was also intouch with several other topbookies from Delhi and other parts of North India,” aCrime Branch o�cer said.“We suspect that he waspart of a larger racket involving betting and spot �xing.”

Another Crime Branch of�cer said, “Investigationshave pointed to the fact thata private company was registered in Pune earlier thisyear, with Barhate named asone of its directors. We areinvestigating whether Saxena or Joban had any links tothis company. Barhate hadearlier formed a club, theRN Sports Club, which was afront for his racket.”

RN Sports Club had, in2013, received the contractto be the o�cial sponsorsfor the Sunrisers Hyderabadteam for the 2013 IndianPremier League tournament. The contract was terminated in 2014 after Barhate failed to pay pendingdues.

Photos show Barhate with Saxena, JobanGautam S. Mengle

Mumbai

‘IPL talent hunt’:accused seen withalleged match �xers

Going great guns: Army men take part in the ‘Hamesha Vijayee’ exercise in the Thar desert in Rajasthan, close to the Pakistanborder. The exercise, aimed at streamlining operational procedures with the Air Force, concluded on Friday. * INDIAN ARMY

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CMYK

A ND-NDE

EDITORIAL

Chinmaya R. Gharekhan

What the world witnessed inthe past few days at the Unit

ed Nations, on a resolution demanding that the U.S. rescind itsrecognition of Jerusalem as thecapital of Israel, was an unprecedented display of the arrogance ofpower. Never before in the historyof the UN has a member statethreatened, so publicly and so inelegantly, fellow member stateswith dire consequences if they didnot fall in line with its position asthe U.S. did. It should not come asa surprise if in the coming weeksand months the U.S. loses an election to one of the UN organisations, just as Britain lost its bid to aseat on the International Court ofJustice, and for the same reason.The member states are not willingto put up any longer with the hubris of the Permanent Five.

A contentious issueThe Jerusalem issue is easily themost contentious one between the

the Palestinians and the Israelis.There are other issues such as borders, sharing of waters, refugees,security, and so on. None of themis amenable to easy answers, butthe Jerusalem problem is the mostsensitive. Any attempt to unilaterally change its status will kill thepeace process.

U.S. President Donald Trumphas obviously given priority tonourishing his core domestic constituency rather than worry aboutthe concerns of his close allies, allof whom voted against the U.S., except Canada — though it did notside with its powerful neighbourand simply abstained.

The immediate internationalreaction to Mr. Trump’s decisionon Jerusalem was rather muted.Instead of condemning it, mostvoiced concern at the negative impact it would have on the peaceprocess. Even several Arab countries were not very vocal in theircriticism. But soon, the Arab streetasserted itself and forced the governments to take a more robustposition. Egypt seems to haveplayed a lead role in this. It drafteda resolution which avoided mentioning the U.S. by name; thatwould have made it di�cult forBritain and others to support the

draft. After the veto in the SecurityCouncil, Egypt and Turkey lost notime in bringing the matter to anemergency session of the GeneralAssembly, where there is no veto.

In all, 172 member states casttheir votes. This means 21 countries did not vote at all. A few ofthem seem to have lost their rightto vote because of arrears in payment of their mandatory dues tothe organisation. The resolutionpassed with 128 votes in favour, acomfortable twothirds majority.Nine voted against, and 35 abstained. The U.S. threat mighthave worked both ways.

It would be interesting to watchhow the presidential threat worksout in practice in the case of Pakistan which voted against the U.S.Among India’s neighbours, Bhutan abstained. This might be explained either by its desire to de

monstrate its independence fromIndia or not to alienate the U.S., orperhaps a combination of the two.

Tilting the voteIndia’s vote in favour of the resolution was in line with its traditionalpolicy. In recent months, there hasbeen a noticeable change in theformulation of Indian statementson the Palestine problem, with thephrase ‘East Jerusalem’ being absent. This had given rise to a doubtabout India’s vote in the GeneralAssembly. It is probable that Indiawas in any case going to vote in favour of the Egyptian draft, givenits need not to antagonise the entire Muslim world. The Americanultimatums might just have tiltedthe balance. The government, nodoubt, analysed the costbene�tratio. India’s vote would have disappointed Israel and the U.S. It hasexcellent relations with Israel, asought to be. But an objective analysis suggests that it is Israel whichneeds India more than the otherway around. India buys at least athird of Israel’s defence production. India is also very importantto Israel for diplomatic and political reasons. Israeli Prime MinisterBenjamin Netanyahu will not cancel his forthcoming visit to India.

As for the U.S., the interest ismore mutual. We need Americansupport for a few things such asthe sale of their defence platformsand membership of the NuclearSuppliers Group. The U.S. has ahuge interest in India’s markets,especially given the latter’s insatiable desire to acquire, and almost limitless capacity to pay for, expensive military hardware. There isalso the China factor. But since Mr.Trump has very recently described India as a leading globalpower and expressed his readiness to support it in reaching thatstatus, India can perhaps relax. Itis fortunate since it is not dependent on American aid, which canbe cut o� or reduced at will.

Noteworthy has been the silence of the Muslim community inIndia, judging from the electronicand English language print media.Jerusalem has always been a ‘redline’ issue for them. The government would be justi�ed in drawingits own conclusions from the relative absence of a Muslim reactionto the U.S. move.

Chinmaya R. Gharekhan is a former

Permanent Representative and Under-

Secretary-General at the United Nations

A capital mistakeThe U.S.’s pressure tactics on the Jerusalem vote marked a new low at the United Nations

AF

P

more letters online:

www.hindu.com/opinion/letters/

corrections & clarifications:

>>The photograph that accompanied the report headlined“Prosecution lost interest midway” (Dec. 22, 2017) is not that of theadditional sessions judge, O.P. Saini, as mentioned in the caption.It was the photograph of the promoter of DB Realty, VinodGoenka.

It is the policy of The Hindu to correct signi�cant errors as soon as possible. Please specify

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visits. The Terms of Reference for the Readers’ Editor are on www.thehindu.com

Until a few months ago, a politician could speak of a‘Congressmukt Bharat’

and expect to be taken seriously. Itwas an eventuality that seemedboth possible and probable. A fewdays after the Gujarat election results, it would seem that thespectre of a ‘Congressmukt Bharat’ has been exorcised for thetime being.

Four factorsOne could discern four factors behind the upswing in the Congress’sfortunes in Gujarat, and these maywell constitute the core ingredients for a panIndia revival too.

The �rst is Rahul Gandhi’s comfort level in a leadership role. Never before has he looked as relaxedand con�dent as he did leadingfrom the front in Gujarat. For longhe has been mocked as a bumblingneophyte lacking the commitmentnecessary for the rigours of electoral politics. But as he travelledacross Gujarat, addressing nearly30 rallies, gone was the di�dentdilettante mouthing ghostwrittenspeeches. Instead, what the people saw was a politician who wasearnest, did not act like the entitled dynast he was said to be, andwas eager to listen.

The second is Mr. Gandhi’s capacity for selfe�acement, whichenabled him to bring togethercompeting political egos for a larger cause. Hardik Patel, Alpesh Thakor and Jignesh Mevani are massively popular, ambitious youthleaders representing di�erent constituencies and whose politicalagendas are often mutually contradictory. What united them under the auspices of the Congresswas their readiness to trust Mr.Gandhi. It is di�cult to think of

another Congress politician whocould have pulled o� this remarkable social coalition — remarkablebecause it was based not on a cynical caste calculus but on substantive issues such as employment,educational opportunities, unfairtaxation, land rights, and agrariandistress.

The third element, unlike theothers, is a work in progress: organisational presence on theground. The Congress mostlymanaged this by drawing on preexisting mobilisations such as thePatidar movement. But one instance where it came a cropperwas Surat. The textile city had become the epicentre of antiBharatiya Janata Party (BJP) anger in Gujarat. But the crowds that turned upfor Mr. Patel’s rallies in Surat didnot translate into votes. The Congress’s nearabsence at the groundlevel and the BJP’s superiority inbooth management and �nancial�repower made all the di�erenceas the latter swept the city, winning 15 of the 16 seats. The Suratphenomenon is bound to repeat itself unless Mr. Gandhi �xes the rotin the middle and lower rungs ofthe party and turns them into reliable cogs in the organisationalmachinery.

Last, and most critical to theCongress’s electoral prospects, isthe articulation of an alternativepolitics that is credible, imaginative, and connects with the masses. And it is here that Mr. Gandhihas surprised everyone.

His speech after taking over asCongress president o�ered theclearest glimpse to date into his vision of politics. Though not a full�edged narrative, the outline suggested by his pronouncements hasthe potential to serve as an alternative pole of mobilisation and a�ective investment.

Sets of binariesBy now, the contrast between Mr.Gandhi and Prime Minister Narendra Modi is apparent to all. Interms of stature, popularity, cha

risma, and accomplishments, theformer is a David up against Goliath. But David may have found away to make the contrast work inhis favour.

If Mr. Modi exudes power andauthority, Mr. Gandhi personi�esa lowkey civility. If one evokes admiration and awe, the other hasthe ability to inspire a�ection. Ifone is a great speaker, the otherpresents himself as a great listener.Interestingly enough, of late Mr.Gandhi has shown a penchant forexpanding these sets of binaries ina manner that further sharpensthe contrast between himself andMr. Modi.

The binaries invoked in his recent pronouncements include apolitics of love versus a politics ofanger; brotherhood versus hatred;truth versus falsehood; dialogueversus monologue; listening versus speechifying; arrogance versushumility; pluralism versus uniformity; diversity versus homogeneity; and above all, a politics of kindness versus a politics of fear.

His speeches in Gujarat wereri�s on these themes interspersedwith caustic commentary on theGujarat model, ‘Vikas’, the Rafaledeal, demonetisation, the goodsand services tax, and so on. However, he astonished everyone byinsisting that though the BJP wanted a ‘Congressmukt Bharat’, he

did not want a ‘BJPmukt Bharat’since the BJP was also an expression of the aspirations of the Indian people. Though he did notagree with their politics, his love,he said, extended to BJP supporters as well. These are shockinglyunusual sentiments in the dogeatdog world of Indian politics.

So much so that even the Nehruvian liberals are bamboozled.After all, what kind of a modernpolitician talks of love? Love? Whovotes for love and kindness in theage of gratuitous social mediacruelty? Has he gone crazy?

Less puzzling and more unsettling has been his infamous ‘temple run’ in Gujarat. Mr. Gandhistands accused of conceding political ground to the Hindu Right byhighlighting his Hindu identityduring the Gujarat campaign.Some have called it ‘soft Hindutva’, citing the strategic use of vermilion on his forehead and his silence on minority issues.

This is a misreading, not unexpected from a puritanical streak ofliberalism that is susceptible toconfusing form with substance.Mr. Gandhi’s temple run needs tobe understood in the context of anew political reality: India in 2017is far more communally polarisedthan it was in 2009, and Gujaratmore so than any other State, withreligious identity overriding all

else at the time of voting. The Congress has little chance of winningelections unless it reverses thismass ‘Hinduisation’ or neutralisesit at election time.

Ejecting communal toxins fromthe body politic is a longterm project, best pursued as a socialmovement or when the reins ofpower are at hand. With 2019 notfar away, the only viable politicaloption in the short term is neutralisation. Mr. Gandhi seems to haveunderstood this.

Smart secularismHis temple visits, from this perspective, are not ‘soft Hindutva’but ‘smart secularism’ — one thatacknowledges the religious identity of the majority without lapsinginto majoritarianism or compromising on the constitutional rightsof the minority. This is a trickytightrope walk, and it remains tobe seen how well he keeps his balance. While it is debatable howmany extra votes it garnered, oneindication of its e�cacy was thepanic it caused in the BJP ranks.

The Congress’s performance inGujarat has given Mr. Gandhi whathe has lacked so far: credibility asa helmsman, which is kind of hardto establish when you have inherited your position at the helm. Second, it has demonstrated that theCongress can take the BJP headonand win. This rise in the party’s‘winnability quotient’ would put iton a stronger footing when negotiating alliances. It would alsodraw back into its fold the minorities in other States who traditionally vote for the strongest secularparty.

All said and done, by forcefullypitching a politics of love in opposition to a politics of fear, Mr.Gandhi may have just hit upon thenucleus of an alternative narrativethat the Congress has been searching for. Their future of Indian democracy may well be decided by a�erce battle between fear andlove, fought in the hearts andminds of the Indian voter.

Reading Rahul Gandhi’s handBy pitching a politics of love in opposition to a politics of fear, he may have just hit upon a wining narrative

G. Sampath

PT

I

A good call India has taken a principledstand (“India votes for talkson Jerusalem,” December22). Coming as it does onthe heels of the U.S.’sacknowledgement thatIndia is a “leading globalpower”, this decisionrea�rms India’s timetestedindependent policy on theIsraelPalestine dispute.This calibrated action willhave a positive impact onthe stature of India as aglobal power. Even as itimproves its strategic andeconomic relations with theU.S., India should takecognisance of the U.S.’saggressive ‘America �rst’policy and try to improveits bilateral relations withall major powers, includingChina. Kosaraju Chandramouli,

Hyderabad

Disorder in the House There have been grievancesthat public personalitieswho become Rajya SabhaMPs have poor attendancein the House and rarelyspeak on issues (“Sachinout for duck in House”,December 22). But whenthey do speak, no onelistens. Sachin Tendulkar’smaiden speech should havebeen welcomed in theHouse. Disruptingproceedings in Parliamenthas become a regularfeature. When people areadvised to increase theirproductivity, shouldn’t thesame rule apply to ourparliamentarians? R. Krishnamachary,

Chennai

The disruption exposes thekind of respect that ourparliamentarians have for

sports and sportspersons.Partypersons candisapprove of thegovernment and its leadersand policies, but Tendulkarshould have been allowedto complete what he had tosay as he seldom attendsParliament and it is evenrarer for him to be giventime to make a speech.Adjournments are a drainon the national exchequer.It’s time to enact a law topenalise members fordisrupting proceedings. R. Prabhu Raj,

Bengaluru

Victories and failures This is not the �rst timethat the Central Bureau ofInvestigation (CBI) has beenat the receiving end of acourt’s ire for lack of properinvestigation and duepresentation of facts (“A.

Raja, Kanimozhi, all theother accused acquitted in2G case”, December 22). Itis high time a review isdone of the working ofIndia’s premierinvestigative agency. TheCBI should be made anautonomous body like theElection Commission. Thiswill ensure accountabilityand prevent all e�orts toin�uence it. V. Subramanian,

Chennai

A. Raja, Kanimozhi, and theCongress are jubilant, buttheir chestthumping maybe shortlived if highercourts take a di�erent view.They should wait for theultimate verdict.V.S. Ganeshan,

Bengaluru

Yet another highpro�le

the court to convict theaccused, so why the anger?The Dravida MunnetraKazhagam, on its part,claims that it has come outunscathed, but it is actuallythe failure of theprosecution to conduct thecase properly that won theparty the bene�t of doubt. T. Anand Raj,

Chennai

case and yet anotheracquittal, thanks to shoddyinvestigation by the CBI. Onthe day of the verdict, therewere many memes andcomments about thejudiciary. I wonder whythere is so much iredirected at the trial court. Atrial judge decides a casebased on the evidencepresented in court. In thiscase, O.P. Saini clearlystated that the CBI failed toproduce enough material to

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Letters emailed to [email protected] must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.

In what may be the Centre’s �rst strike in response to

the rural distress read into the Gujarat Assembly poll

outcomes, a 30% customs duty has been slapped on

the import of chana dal and masoor dal. The o�cial

reasoning is clear. Cheap imports could hit farm in

comes especially at a time when domestic production

of pulses is at a record high and a bumper rabi crop is

expected. With an adequate domestic stockpile of puls

es and with international prices remaining low for a

prolonged period, the Centre fears that traders may still

prefer to import some pulses rather than buy the fresh

crop from local farmers at higher prices. There has

been a signi�cant upsurge in imports, in the range of

30% to 46%, in four out of the �rst six months of this �

nancial year. Chana and masoor were the key contribu

tors for India’s pulses imports rising to over $1.6 billion

between April and September, compared to $1.2 billion

in the same period last year. The value of chana imports

in this period rose 373%, while masoor grew 204% year

on year. In September, masoor imports shrank 56% in

value terms while chana imports grew by a little over

200%. Disaggregated data for the last two months are

not available, but overall pulses imports have cooled o�

since September, with total pulses imports shrinking

nearly 30% in October and about 38% last month.

The recent trend of moderation in imports indicates

that the government may have moved too late to curb

them, but �awed market timing isn’t the real issue. Re

�exively raising or breaking such tari� walls, as the pro

duction cycle warrants, doesn’t add up to a serious

longterm policy, which should be aimed at boosting

farm incomes and ensuring food security. In the case of

a key protein source like pulses, import duties may be

counterproductive going forward. Just last year, while

prices were soaring in the Indian market, Prime Minis

ter Narendra Modi signed a pact to double pulses im

ports from Mozambique. A bumper crop or two will not

diminish the importance of such deals in harder times.

India has dal diplomacy interests with more than 40

other countries, for whom the latest move will be of

concern, especially since there is already 10% import

duty on toor dal and a hefty 50% duty was levied on yel

low peas in November. Farmers, like investors, need

predictability and coherence in government policies.

Just as a duty hike on electronic goods won’t directly

prop up local manufacturing or curb their consump

tion, hiking import duties on one dal or another won’t

make farmers bettero� — though traders who accumu

lated cheaper imports will bene�t. The government

must devise better means to shore up farm incomes

without stirring up in�ation or upsetting carefully cul

tivated food security partnerships around the world.

Missing the pulseFarmers, like investors, need predictability

and coherence in government policies

The UN General Assembly vote on a resolution call

ing for the �nal settlement of Jerusalem through

negotiations may have been pitched as a contest

between Israel and Palestine; however, it became a re

ferendum on U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision

to recognise the city as Israel’s capital. The �nal out

come should force the U.S. to rethink its move, with 128

of the UNGA’s 193 membercountries voting for the re

solution, and only nine against it. Among those voting

for the resolution that “deeply regretted” the U.S. deci

sion were its NATO allies, Germany, the U.K. and

France, its Asian allies Japan and South Korea; its clos

est neighbours Canada and Mexico chose merely to ab

stain. The overwhelming majority ignored Mr. Trump

and his UN Ambassador Nikki Haley’s threats that all

countries that de�ed America would be ‘named and

shamed’ and face cancellation of U.S. aid. The sugges

tion was that the U.S. would exact its revenge by refus

ing to support these countries when they next need it at

the UN. Israel showed deep derision for the world body,

which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu referred to

as a “house of lies”, while his UN envoy called the 128

countries “puppets forced to dance”. Such threats and

epithets mark new lows in international diplomacy, and

Israel and the U.S. come away looking like churlish bul

lies for issuing them. With all its weaknesses, the UN is a

global collective, and it is imperative to acknowledge its

mandate when such a large number of nations speak in

one voice. The U.S. only recently asserted its intention

to uphold the international rulesbased order in its Na

tional Security Strategy document. It cannot now just

walk away from both UN resolutions and its national

commitment to the IsraelPalestine peace process by

unilaterally changing its stand on the status of Jerusa

lem, without being accused of doublespeak.

By voting for the resolution, India has a�rmed its

traditional policy in favour of a negotiated settlement

for Jerusalem as part of a larger twostate solution for Is

rael and Palestine. Although Prime Minister Narendra

Modi avoided mentioning the contours of the settle

ment during his visit to Jerusalem in July this year, In

dia’s support to the creation of a Palestinian state ac

cording to UN Resolution 181 (1948) was heavily

underscored in his statement to the UN in November,

just days before Mr. Trump’s decision. There had been

some speculation that in the face of the U.S. threats over

the resolution, as well as Mr. Netanyahu’s impending vi

sit to India in January, India would dilute its support to

those principles in favour of close strategic ties with

both nations. In choosing to vote for the resolution at

the UNGA, India has shown a clarity of purpose that al

so aligns with the broad global consensus.

A�rmative voteThe U.S. must heed the UN resolution

and reconsider its Jerusalem move


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Who built the Indus Valley civilisation? There are few questions more fundamental to our

understanding of Indian history thanthis. On the answer to it hang many details of the country’s past: How did wecome to be as we are — culturally, ethnically and linguistically? And what explains the way we are spread out geographically in the subcontinent?

Although this question has alwaysbeen asked, the correct answer to it hasproved resistant to the wiles andcharms of historians, archaeologists,linguists and philologists for nearly acentury, ever since Harappa and Mohenjodaro were discovered in the1920s. The fault doesn’t lie with the remarkable men and women who builtwhat was easily the largest civilisation oftheir time. They had a script of theirown and they left behind enough oftheir writings on tablets, seals, tools,pottery, and ornaments. But we haven’tmanaged to decipher it yet. So we don’tknow who they were, where they camefrom, what language they spoke, whatkind of social organisation or rulersthey had, or even what their nameswere. Perhaps the only thing we knowabout their identity is that their tradingpartners in West Asia referred to theirland as “Meluhha.”

There has been no shortage of informed and uninformed guesses abouttheir identity, though. Some have argued that they were speakers of a protoDravidian language (the predecessor ofTamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam,and others). Some say that they werethe ancestors of today’s Munda tribals.And some believe that they were VedicAryans who spoke Sanskrit or protoSanskrit (a language that belongs to theIndoEuropean family which includesEnglish, Persian, German, Italian, andso on). But nobody has ever had enoughevidence to settle the issue one way orthe other, and so the debate has ragedon endlessly and often bitterly.

Meanwhile, our understanding of ourown history and heritage has remainedfragmentary and contradictory, with ashadow of doubt and resentment settling over the whole issue.

A project with a di�erence All this could now change thanks to thescience of genetics and four ancient skeletons excavated from a village calledRakhigarhi in Haryana. The four peopleto whom these bones once belonged — acouple, a boy and a man — lived roughly4,600 years ago when the Indus Valleycivilisation was in full bloom. Rakhigarhi is today a quiet little place amidst lushgreen �elds in Hissar district, about a sevenhour drive from New Delhi, butwhen those four people were alive, itwould have been counted as among thebiggest cities of the Indus Valleycivilisation.

The site was excavated and the skeletons recovered in the beginning of 2014by a team of archaeologists led by Professor Vasant Shinde, vice chancellor ofthe Deccan College, Pune. For 61yearold Shinde, this project is the culmination of a long and distinguished careerin archaeology that has seen him leadexcavations at important Harappan andother sites across the country. But Rak

higarhi is a project with a di�erence. Inthe threeandahalf years since its excavation, Shinde has brought togetherscientists from Indian and internationalinstitutions like the Centre for Cellularand Molecular Biology, Hyderabad(CCMB), Harvard Medical School, SeoulNational University, and the Universityof Cambridge to work on di�erent partsof the project, including extracting andanalysing DNA from these ancient people, reconstructing their faces, and studying the remains of their habitation tounderstand their daily habits and waysof life.

The DNA analysis will also help �gureout their height, body features, andeven the colour of their eyes. In otherwords, we will know, rather intimately,and with a fair degree of certainty, wholived in the Indus Valley city of Rakhigarhi. It is in that sense that the Rakhigarhi ancient DNA project is unlike anyother archaeological excavation thathas been done in India. As Shinde says:“We may have excavated a lot of burials,structures, pottery and seals. But whatis new in that?”

Geneticist Niraj Rai, earlier withCCMB and now with the Birbal Sahni Institute of Paleosciencies in Lucknow, isa lead member of the team analysingthe ancient DNA. “The biggest challenge was ensuring the integrity of theDNA in a tropical climate,” he says. Theturning point, according to him, camein 2015 when a new way of extractingDNA from the inner ear region of the petrous bone was discovered. This woulddeliver a hundred times more DNA thanbefore.

The research is expected to be published in a leading international journal in a month or so, and is awaited bythe scienti�c community around theworld with a kind of anticipation that is

rarely witnessed. We do not know whatit will say. But here’s a look at a few scenarios, some likely and some quite unlikely, and how di�erently each couldimpact our understanding of our history. The reality could be more complexthan each of the scenarios depictedhere, but they are a good starting point.

Scenario 1The Harappans as Vedic Aryans

In the ancient DNA from Rakhigarhi,scientists identify R1a, one of the hundreds of YDNA haplogroups (or male lineages that are passed on from fathersto sons). They also identify H2b — one ofthe hundreds of mtDNA haplogroups(or female lineages that are passed onfrom mothers to daughters) — that hasoften been found in proximity to R1a.

There is no reason whatsoever tothink that this would be the research�nding, but if it is, it would cause a global convulsion in the �elds of population genetics, history and linguistics. Itwould also cause great cheer among theadvocates of the theory that says that

the Indus Valley civilisation was VedicAryan.

The global churning would be causedby the fact that such a �nding would goagainst the current understanding ofthe spread of IndoEuropean languagesacross Eurasia and also against currentgenetic evidence. R1a is the haplogroupmost closely associated with IndoEuropean language speakers in a vast swatheof the Eurasian landmass, ranging fromIreland and the U.K. to Italy, France,Germany, Poland, Russia, Iran andnorthern India. In the majority of European countries, especially in centraland eastern Europe, R1a has a frequency of 4060%. In India, it has a frequency of about 17.5% — it is most commonamong north Indian Brahmins and leastcommon among the tribals and thenortheastern populations.

The best globally accepted theory ofIndoEuropean language spread is thatprotoIndoEuropean, or the ancientlanguage from which all other IndoEuropean languages arose, was spoken inor near the Pontic Steppes in CentralAsia by horse riding, chariotdrivingpastoralists who had also acquired mastery over bronze technology. With theadvantage that these new practices andtechnology conferred on them, they began spreading out to Europe around3,000 BC and to South Asia around2,000 BC, carrying their language andculture with them. Ancient DNA �ndings from Central Asia in recent timeshave given a signi�cant boost to this theory. For example, R1aZ93, a subhaplogroup of R1a that was found in ancientDNA from the Srubnya and Andronovocultures in Central Asia, matches exactly the R1aZ93 subhaplogroup that iscommonly found today in India.

So, if the geneticists do �nd R1aamong the ancient residents of Rakhigarhi (and also the mtDNA haplogroupH2b), it will deal a blow to the currentlyaccepted chronology of migrationsfrom the Steppes. It would mean thatR1acarrying IndoEuropean languagespeakers were already well present inIndia around 2,600 BC when the IndusValley civilisation was �ourishing. Forthe advocates of the Vedic AryansasHarappans theory, the �nding would bethe longawaited con�rmation of whatthey have always asserted withoutproof: The Indus Valley civilisation wasVedic, and the Aryans were those whobuilt it.

Their opponents could still arguethat the presence of R1a in Rakhigarhi

might only be representative of a small,early band of newly arrived Aryans whomay have merged with the local population and been buried in what must havebeen to them an alien civilisation. Nomatter how this debate proceeds, thereis no question that �nding R1a in theRakhigarhi samples would give a signi�cant boost to the theory that the IndusValley civilisation was Vedic Aryan.

Scenario 2The Harappans as West Asian migrantswho may have brought the Dravidian lan-guages to India

Scientists discover YDNA haplogroups J2 and L1a among the Rakhigarhiresidents, along with mtDNA haplogroups such as HV, K1 and T1. All thesehaplogroups are often associated withthe origins and spread of agricultureand urbanisation in the earliest cradleof human civilisation, the Fertile Crescent in West Asia. This is a crescentshaped region that would cover parts oftoday’s Iraq, Iran, Syria, Egypt, Turkeyand Israel, among others. A �ndingsuch as this would not cause any majorupset to any existing understanding ofAsian history, but it would disprove thetheory that the Indus civilisation wasbuilt by Vedic Aryans. This is becausethe nondiscovery of R1a and the discovery of haplogroups with West Asian af�nities would suggest that when the Indus Valley civilisation was thriving,IndoEuropean language speakers werenot present on location.

Who would be cheered to hear such aresult, though? That is hard to answer.One could say that the advocates of Dravidian language speakers would be, because there are grounds to think thatthe migrants from West Asia may havespoken a language or languages closelyrelated to today’s Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, and so on. But the di�culty is thatfor the Dravidian partisans to cheer thisresult, they would also have to acceptthe fact that they too were migrants toIndia, much like the Sanskrit or protoSanskritspeaking Aryans who arrivedmany millennia later.

What are the grounds for theorisingthat the West Asian migrants might havebrought Dravidian languages withthem? There are two. One, the presenceof the Dravidian language, Brahui, in Pakistan’s Balochistan region. This factleaves a tantalising possibility that therewas a time when a Dravidianrelatedlanguage was spoken widely in this region, before the Aryan migrationsforced a language shift. And two, linguistic research �ndings that show similarities between Dravidian languagesand Elamite, the extinct language ofElam, an ancient civilisation with itscapital at Susa, an area that would fall inthe southwest region of Iran today.These grounds are yet to be fully proved— there is, for instance, an argumentthat Brahui speakers are comparativelyrecent migrants from Central India toBaluchistan. But if we assume that thesegrounds are valid, the question that arises would be: Why did Dravidian languages survive and thrive in south India, while getting almost wiped out inthe north?

The argument could be that when theIndus Valley civilisation collapsed

around 2,000 BC (for various reasonsthat may include climate change), therewere largescale movements of population, some of which may have been tothe south where their language and culture took hold and �ourished, perhapsreplacing other languages that were being spoken there by the early descendants of the original Out of Africa (OOA)migrants who settled in India around60,000 BC.

On the other hand, the Dravidian languagespeaking Indus Valley peoplewho remained in the north were probably overwhelmed by the later migrations there of IndoEuropean languagespeakers, resulting in a language shifttowards the latter. The fact that one ofthe latest sites of Indus Valley civilisation to be discovered was in Maharashtra in a deserted village called Daimabad in Ahmednagar district providessome support to the theory of a migration of Indus Valley citizens southwardsafter the collapse of the civilisation inthe Indus Valley itself. The late Harappan culture at the Daimabad site is dated to 2,3001,800 BC.

But this, of course, is not the onlypossible explanation. It is conceivablethat the West Asians who migrated tothe Indus Valley spoke a language orlanguages closer to, say, Sumerian orAkkadian rather than protoDravidian,and that these languages went extinctpossibly under the impact of latermigrations.

Scenario 3The original settlers of India asHarappans

Scientists discover YDNA haplogroup H and mtDNA haplogroups M2and M36 in the Rakhigrahi ancient DNA.All these haplogroups are indisputablyautochthonous, or indigenous. In otherwords, they are descendant lineages ofthe original OOA migrants. These lineages are spread far and wide acrossIndia today, though they vary signi�cantly in their distribution. Female mtDNA haplogroups that are descendedfrom the OOA migrants dominate the Indian population with a frequency of 7080% today, while YDNA lineages of thesame descent are present at a far lowerpercentage, of around 1040%, depending on the population group. Thisasymmetry is not necessarily surprising— male lineages die out and get replacedat a faster rate than female lineages because of the malebiased nature of human con�icts and wars, at least fromthe Neolithic period onwards.

Considering the widespread presence of OOA lineages among the Indianpopulation even today, it would not besurprising if the scientists were to �nd Hand M lineages in ancient Rakhigarhi. Itwould suggest that agriculture and urban civilisation in the Indus Valley was,by and large, an indigenous development, not necessarily driven by largescale migrations from anywhere else.

Scenario 4The Mundas in the Indus Valley

Scientists discover YDNA haplogroup O2a and mtDNA haplogroupM4a in the Rakhigarhi ancient DNA.These haplogroups are associated withthe speakers of AustroAsiatic languages

such as Mundari, Santali and Khasi.These haplogroups and related languages are also present in Southeast Asia. InIndia, speakers of these languages arecurrently found mostly in Central andEast India. Even though a prominentphilologist of Harvard University, Michael Witzel, has argued the case for alanguage close to Munda (which he callsParaMunda) being one of the languagesof the erstwhile Indus Valley, a �ndingof this nature will come as a surprise tomost others. One inconsistency is thatthe agricultural backbone of the IndusValley civilisation was barley and wheat,while the AustroAsiatic language familyis spread across regions (such as Southeast Asia) where rice is the most important cultivar. In fact, one theory is thatrice cultivation was pioneered in Chinafrom where it spread to Southeast Asiaand was brought to India by the AustroAsiatic language speakers. So, if the geneticists do �nd haplogroups O andM4a in Rakhigarhi, some of our currentunderstanding of Indian history mayhave to be revised.

Whatever the scientists �nd, there isa possibility that the results would leadto much recrimination, as is alreadyhappening over interpretations of medieval Indian history. But to �ght overthe �ndings would be pointless. Everysingle Indian, like the vast majority ofthe human population, is a descendantof migrants and almost every Indiancarries multiple lineages. (The possibleexception to this are the Onge tribes inthe Andaman and Nicobar islands whoescaped the largescale genetic mixingthat occurred in India between 2,000BC and the early centuries of the Common Era, as suggested by recent geneticresearch). Some of our lineages comefrom the original OOA migrants, somefrom Neolithic migrations from WestAsia, some from Neolithic migrationsfrom East Asia, some from Bronze Agemigrations from the Steppes, and somefrom migrations that happened evenlater.

No matter what the geneticists comeup with, the fact will remain that thesources of our civilisation are multiple,not single. Diversity is built into the wayour population groups arrived, evolvedand mingled. Our cultural traditions,myths, beliefs, practices, languages,and physical attributes are all, at thesame time, both indigenously evolvedand adapted as well as acquired from elsewhere, much the same as it is for every other civilisation on earth. Our uniqueness lies in the way we have createda common fabric out of it all, over time.What the genetic �ndings should helpus do is understand the multiple sources of our civilisation, so that we cancherish our common heritage in a deeper, more meaningful manner.

Tony Joseph is a writer and former editor ofBusinessWorld. Twitter: @tjoseph0010

Who built the Indus Valley civilisation?Genetics is about to answer a question that has vexed historians for a century. Tony Joseph examines the range of possible answers and their implications

<> The DNA analysis of the four

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way our population groups

arrived, evolved and mingled.

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NEWS

FROM PAGE ONE

“The material which is required to be considered bythe sanctioning authority isnot limited/restricted to theevidence collected by the investigating agency duringthe course of investigationunder ChapterXII of theCode,” the court said. In the58page order, the Benchsaid, “However, such material must be admissible inevidence or capable of be

ing converted to evidencewhich can be substantiatedat the trial.”

“In the absence of freshmaterial, the Governor hasno jurisdiction to review theearlier.

“The petition challengingthe order by the Governorcan be entertained at pretrial stage since it waspassed without there beingfresh material,” it said.

HC quashes sanctionto try Ashok Chavan

The proposal was moved bysenior BJP MLA Bhupendrasinh Chudasama and supported by �ve other MLAsbefore being passed unanimously.

The party’s victory inGujarat, albeit with a muchreduced margin than lasttime had fuelled speculationthat there might be a changein Chief Minister for thisterm but what weighed inMr. Rupani’s favour, sourcessay, was the fact that he hadbeen given a short time ofaround a year and a half tobe at the helm of a�airs andat a time when the partywas facing a severe challenge from the Patidar agitation and a looming election.

Proximity to Shah “He also belongs to a numerically small community( Jain) which does not challenge equations,” said asource. Mr. Rupani’s prox

imity to party chief AmitShah also weighed heavilyin his favour.

As for Himachal Pradesh,Ms. Sitharaman and Mr. Tomar and State prabhariMangal Pandey returned toDelhi on Friday after takingthe feedback from the freshly elected MLAs and assessing the sentiment on theelection of the new Chief Minister.

A large number of supporters of Mr. Dhumal andMr. Thakur raised slogansbefore the central observersand tried to convince themon their claims.

The central observersheld discussions with seniorRSS leaders before they metthe MPs, the MLAs and theparty core group at the Stateguest house. The party parliamentary board would �nalise the name of the chiefministerial candidate, theysaid.

BJP retains Rupani,Nitin in Gujarat

The Congress accusedPrime Minister NarendraModi, Finance MinisterArun Jaitley and the BJP ofconspiring with the formerComptroller and AuditorGeneral Vinod Rai to “defame the country and Congressled UPA with lies andfalsehood.”

Quoting the 2G orderwhere the judge observedthat “everybody was goingby the public perceptioncreated by rumour, gossipand speculation,” the Congress said it was the BJP thatwas responsible for creatingthis perception.

The Congress alsoclaimed that BJP leaders likeSushma Swaraj and Mr. Jaitley as Opposition leaderswasted �750 crore of taxpayers’ money by disrupting 500 hours of Parliamentover a period of three yearsfor what it now calls “selfmanufactured” scam.

Discussing the issue ofPrime Minister Modi accusing his predecessor, Manmohan Singh, of conspiracy

at an election rally, the Congress said it displayed a“shoot and scoot” attitude.

“The Prime Ministergains in stature, not diminish if he apologises,” saidRandeep Surjewala, chiefspokesperson of the Congress while brie�ng the media on the main points of theCWC meet.

Appreciating Mr. Gandhi’s leadership in the Gujarat polls, party veteransasked him to e�ect energetic changes in the organisation and prepare a comprehensive strategy to take onthe BJP in the next round ofelections.

“We will be taking up thestruggles of the people bybeing among the people likewe did in the period between 1999 and 2004. Over adozen members spoke andthey were unanimous intheir views,” said Mr. Surjewala on the party’s plan toreconnect with the masses.

The CWC also adopted aresolution thanking SoniaGandhi for her crucial role.

The truth on 2G isout, says Rahul

“So the special representatives meeting [followed] theconsensus of the state leaders … so as to achieve winwin cooperation and mutual bene�ts,” Chinese Foreign Ministryspokesperson Hua Chunying said in Beijing in an interaction on Friday.

The consensus betweenthe two leaders at Xiamenand on the sidelines of theSCO conference in Astana inJune underscored the needto prevent di�erences frombecoming disputes, as wellas the need for China andIndia to maintain an islandof stability in an increasingly unpredictable globalscenario.

Separately, a carefullyworded MEA statement saidthat, “The [SRs] underlinedthe need for the two countries to build on their convergences, while seekingmutually acceptable resolutions of their di�erenceswith due respect for eachother’s sensitivities, con

cerns and aspirations,” referring indirectly to tensions over Chinese troops’transgressions in the Doklam area that led to a 70daystando�, China’s support toPakistan on designating JeMchief as a UN terrorist, aswell as the Belt and Road Initiative and China PakistanEconomic Corridor, whichIndia has opposed.

All issues were discussedby the two sides, o�cialssaid.

The meeting also comesafter a quadrilateral meeting of IndiaUSJapanAustralia, which China had expressed concerns about.

Mr. Yang’s visit acquiresadditional signi�cance ashis stature has risen in China’s o�cial hierarchy following the recent 19th PartyCongress. Unlike ForeignMinister Wang Yi, who continues his presence in theCentral Committee of theCPCMr. Yang has been elevated to the 25member Politburo.

‘India, China must lookbeyond bilateral ties’

Palestinians are proud of India and India’s support to thecause of peace in West Asia,the Ambassador of Palestinesaid, hours after India votedin favour of a negotiated solution to the issue of Jerusalem and against U.S. President Donald Trump’srecognition of the holy cityas the capital of Israel.

Ambassador Adnan AbuAlhaija’s comments cameeven as the government waspraised by the CommunistParty of India for votingagainst the U.S. recognitionof Jerusalem as the Israelicapital. “We are proud of India and India’s friendshipwith Palestine. By voting fora negotiated settlement ofthe issue of Jerusalem, Indiahas conveyed to the worldthat it stands for peace inWest Asia. We wish to thankthe Indian government, Indian people and their attitude at the UN which will ensure peace in our region andin the world,” he said.

However, Israeli Ambassador Daniel Carmon reiterat

ed his country’s claim to Jerusalem in the backdrop ofthe developments at the UNGeneral Assembly.

“Jerusalem always was thecapital of the Jewish people,is and will continue to be thecapital of modern Israel. Novote at the General Assemblycan change that,” he said.

O�cials said India’s reac

tion to Mr. Trump’s statement had indicated that India would vote for the UNresolution.

The Hindu had reportedthat the Arab countries hadalso reached out to India forits coveted vote. The resolution moved by the Arabcountries received 128 votesfor and nine against, with 35

countries abstaining. Apart from the diplomatic

dialogue, External A�airs Minister Sushma Swaraj discussed the vote at the Consultative Committee onExternal A�airs on Thursday.“Sushmaji said that India willvote for the resolution in favour of a negotiated settlement of the Jerusalem issue

when D. Raja of CPI raisedthe issue,” disclosed a sourcefamiliar with the meeting.

“The government has taken the right decision bysupporting the resolution atthe UN, which re�ects India’straditional policy on Palestine, as it is a highly sensitiveissue,” Mr. Raja said.

Internal criticism Signi�cantly, the government faced criticism fromwithin for the vote, with Rajya Sabha member SwapanDasgupta coming out againstthe UN resolution. “Indiashould either have abstainedor voted against the UN resolution condemning the shifting of US embassy to Jerusalem. We should stand byIsrael, a �rm friend,” he saidon Twitter.

The Palestinian Ambassador, however, said the resolution was a clear sign that Israel could not lay anyexclusive claim to Jerusalem.“There cannot be any stateof Palestine without East Jerusalem as its capital. Indiahas supported the twostatesolution traditionally..., ” hesaid.

Proud of India, says Palestinian envoy ‘By voting for a negotiated settlement of the Jerusalem issue, India has conveyed that it stands for peace in West Asia’

Kallol Bhattacherjee

Suhasini Haidar

NEW DELHI

Won’t back down: Women hold placards during a protest in Chennai on Friday. * AFP

Jammu and Kashmir ChiefMinister Mehbooba Muftiand National Conferencepresident Farooq Abdullahon Friday hailed India’svote in the UN General Assembly against the U.S. decision to shift its embassyto Jerusalem.

“I am very proud to seethat India joined over 100countries at the UN to voteagainst the recognition ofJerusalem as the o�cialcapital of Israel. This votefurther rea�rms our support to Palestine,” Ms. Mufti said.

Dr. Abdullah said Indiahad consistently “considered East Jerusalem thecapital of Palestine.”

All Parties Hurriyat Conference chairman MirwaizUmar Farooq Mirwaiz alsoexpressed “satisfaction”with the resolution.

Mehbooba,Farooq hailIndia’s stand

Peerzada Ashiq

Srinagar

Even as the Rajya Sabha wasadjourned for the day soonafter it assembled on Fridayover Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s statement againstformer Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during the Gujarat campaign, the Lok Sabha had a discussion on theimpact of Cyclone Ockhi.

However, Congress members walked out of the debate alleging discriminationin providing Central assistance to the States hit by thecyclone, a charge the government rejected.

Home Minister RajnathSingh said the Navy, the AirForce and the Coast Guardwere continuing e�orts totrace missing �shermen andthe government was providing �nancial and other assistance to the a�ected States.

Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge sought to knowwhy only four teams of theNational Disaster ResponseForce (NDRF) were sent toKerala and three teams to Tamil Nadu, while seven teamswere deployed in Gujarat,where there was hardly anycyclone impact.

He said the Central assis

tance to Kerala and TamilNadu was inadequate.

“Seven teams of NDRFwere deployed in Gujaratwhen the impact of Ockhi inthe State was not that severe.There should not be any discrimination in assistance.There must be an inquiry into it,” Mr. Kharge said.

The Home Minister reject

ed the demand for an inquiry and the allegation of bias,asserting that the deployment of NDRF teams depended on requests made bythe State governments.

Not satis�ed with the response, the Congress staged awalkout from the House.

Parliamentary A�airs Minister Ananth Kumar accused the Congress of indulging in politics on aserious issue.

Mr. Singh said cycloneOckhi had caused largescaledevastation in Tamil Nadu,Kerala, Lakshadweep andMaharashtra but added thatthe government could notdeclare it as a national calamity due to the laiddownprotocol. He rejected criticism that the meteorologicaldepartment could not issuea warning on time.

(With PTI inputs)

Storm in LS over cyclone relief Rajya Sabha disrupted again over Narendra Modi’s remarks on Manmohan

Washed out: A view of the Rajya Sabha session on Friday. * PTI


NEW DELHI

West Bengal Chief MinisterMamata Banerjee on Fridaysaid the State government’stableau for the Republic Dayparade based on the themeof unity and harmony hadbeen rejected.

“Why was our tableaukept out. I am sorry to saythat rejecting the tableauamounts to insulting WestBengal,” she said.

No communicationMs. Banerjee, who was inaugurating Christmas celebrations at Allens Park inPark Street said the State government representatives

were called for a meeting onthis issue in September andOctober, but after that theyreceived no communication.

Rejected in 2015“I had sent Kanyashree (astableau theme) in 2015 butthey did not accept it. OurKanyashree did not get achance in the Republic Dayparade but it won United National Public Service award,”the Chief Minister said.

She also said the State Government tableaus onChhau Dance and Baul hadon two occasions received�rst prize at Republic Day.

Since every year the government has to come up

with a new theme, the onefor 2018 was unity and harmony, the Chief Ministersaid, adding that communalharmony is an integral partof Bengal’s culture.

Protesting against the proposed Financial Resolutionand Deposit Insurance(FRDI) Bill, the TrinamoolCongress took out a rallyduring the day.

Will not allow BillParty MP Abhishek Banerjeeled the rally and said the Trinamool Congress will underno circumstances allow it tobe passed.

“The Narendra Modi government is going to introduce a Bill through which itwould enable banks to grabthe common people’s deposits without their consent orapproval,” the Chief Ministeradded.

Bengal tableau rejected: Mamata Says it was ‘based on the theme of unity; rejecting it means insulting the State’


Kolkata

Mamata Banerjee

Batting for a �t India,cricketer and nominatedRajya Sabha member Sachin Tendulkar made public the speech that hecould not deliver in Parliament on Thursday becauseof pandemonium.

Mr. Tendulkar, who wasnominated to the UpperHouse in 2012, was slatedto make his maidenspeech. However, he couldnot speak, as the Congressmembers trooped into thewell protesting againstPrime Minister NarendraModi’s “conspiracy withPakistan” comments.

In the 15minute speech,Mr. Tendulkar asked thegovernment to extend Central government healthscheme bene�ts to nationallevel sportspersons.

He referred to India’s�rst Olympic swimmer lateShamsher Khan in hisspeech.

“The life of ShamsherKhan is another reminderof how we have failed ournational heroes ... Our national heroes should beable to live a respectablelife. Extending CGHS bene�ts to them is a step in thatdirection,” he said.

He also spoke at lengthon the �nancial insecuritythat every person planningto make a career out ofsports has to face.

He also emphasised onthe importance to havehealth insurance for thenational athletes.

Mr. Tendulkar talkedabout his vision of ahealthy and a �t India. Thecricket icon raised the issue of India being the diabetic capital of the worldwith over 75 million peoplea�ected by the disease.

Tendulkarmakes hisspeech public


New Delhi

Bill to replace order onmotor vehicles tax hikeNEW DELHI

The government on Friday

introduced a bill in the Lok

Sabha that would replace an

ordinance wherein tax rates

on various motor vehicles

were hiked to a maximum of

25% under the GST. Finance

Minister Arun Jaitley

introduced the GST

(Compensation to States)

Amendment Bill, 2017. The

ordinance to hike the cess on

a range of cars from midsize

to luxury ones was issued in

September. PTI

IN BRIEF

Banks lost �16,789 cr tofrauds: Finance Ministry NEW DELHI

Banks lost �16,789 crore on

account of frauds in the last

fiscal, the Finance Ministry

said in the Lok Sabha on

Friday. The RBI has informed

that as per the fraud

monitoring reports, “the

amount lost on account of

frauds during 201617 was

�16,789 crore”, said Minister

of State for Finance Shiv

Pratap Shukla, in a written

reply. PTI

There is ample material toprima facie show criminalconspiracy in the SNC Lavalin corruption case and thedischarge of Pinarayi Vijayan, Chief Minister of Kerala, will adversely impactand delay the trial, the Central Bureau of Investigationhas told the Supreme Court.

The CBI, which investigated the case, said the Kerala High Court accused theagency of adopting a “pickandchoose” policy in naming certain persons as accused. But in fact it was thecourt which employed apickandchoose policy bydischarging certain accusedpersons while leaving therest of the chargesheeted

persons to face trial.“All decisions [in the SNC

Lavalin deal] were takenwith the knowledge of allthe accused persons namedin the chargesheet... Discharge of the accused maylead to miscarriage of justiceand delay the trial,” the CBIpetition contended.

“It is a matter of fact thatthere was ample material toprima facie show conspiracy in the matter, which mayhave been appreciated atthe stage of trial only,” theCBI said.

The agency asked howthe High Court could holdthere was criminal conspiracy on the one hand, butthen go ahead and discharge certain accusedpersons.

Pinarayi Vijayan’s discharge

will delay Lavalin trial: CBI


NEW DELHI

Mehbooba’s brothernominated as MLC SRINAGAR

Jammu & Kashmir Governor

N.N. Vohra on Friday

nominated Tassaduq Mufti,

brother of Chief Minister

Mehbooba Mufti, for the

vacant MLC seat in the

Assembly, paving the way for

his induction into the Cabinet.

A Raj Bhavan spokesman said

that in exercise of powers

vested in the Governor under

subsection (6) of Section 50

of the Constitution of Jammu

and Kashmir, Mr. Vohra

nominated Mr. Mufti as a

member of the Council.

A special CBI court in Ranchiwill on Saturday pronouncethe judgment in a fodderscam case in which Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad is an accused.

Mr. Prasad and his partyare hoping for a verdict similar to the 2G case judgmentacquitting all the accused.Mr. Prasad, along with hisyounger son and Leader ofthe Opposition Tejashwi Yadav, reached Ranchi on Friday to a welcome by hundreds of party workers.

“I do hope that I will getjustice as in the 2G spectrumcase… I have full faith in thejudiciary but whatever verdict will come, I will abide by

it,” Mr. Prasad toldpresspersons.

“It is the BJP, the RSS andNitish Kumar who are behind all this … they want meto be sent to jail so that theywill have no political opponent, but they don’t know

that every worker of the RJDis a Lalu Yadav,” he said.

Treasury withdrawals The case pertains to the alleged fraudulent withdrawalof �84.5 lakh from the Deoghar district (now in Jharkhand) treasury between1994 and 1996 when Mr. Prasad was the Chief Minister.Of the six fodder scam casesregistered against Mr. Prasad, this will be the secondin which verdict is pronounced.

On September 30, 2013,he was held guilty in the�rst.

The �veyear prison sentence he got disquali�ed himfrom Parliament and he wasbanned from contesting

elections. However, the Supreme Court granted himbail in December that year.

Special judge ShivpalSingh will pronounce theverdict in the case in which11 of the 34 accused died during the trial.

Two accused had turnedapprovers and two pleadedguilty.

In 2014, the JharkhandHigh Court stayed trialagainst Mr. Prasad in fourpending fodder scam caseson the ground that a personconvicted in one case couldnot be tried in similar casesbased on same witnessesand evidence, but the Supreme Court quashed theHigh Court order in May thisyear.

Day of reckoning for Lalu todaySpecial court to pronounce judgment in second fodder scam case

Lalu Prasad


Patna


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NEWS

The Special CBI Court thatacquitted former Union Telecom Minister A. Raja hasruled that he was not responsible for either �xing a cuto� date for consideration ofapplications for Uni�ed Access Services licences or inaltering a press release in away that favoured two particular companies.

In his 1,552page judgment, Special Judge O.P. Saini has absolved Mr. Raja ofthe charge of conspiracy byrejecting the testimony of senior o�cers who sought toput the blame on him for introducing September 25,2007, as the cuto� date forapplications and for the deletion of a paragraph from therelease that appeared to indicate a change in the spectrum allocation policy.

Four senior o�cers deposed in “di�erent and contradictory” tone and also“contrary to the record”, thejudge said.

No material on record“There is no material on record in the testimony ofthese four witnesses that thedate of 25.09.2007 was arrived at by Sh. A. Raja aloneand that too as a result ofconspiracy with otheraccused.”

It was the prosecution’scase that this cuto� date wassuggested by Mr. Raja to accommodate the applicationsof Swan Telecom and Unitech for grant of UAS licenc

es and allocation of spectrum.

This date was actually theresult of an internal discussion in the department todispose of a limited numberof applications in the �rstphase, keeping the limitedavailability of spectrum inmind, the court held.

On the controversy thatMr. Raja deleted a paragraphin a press release that hadbeen cleared by the SolicitorGeneral, and this changeamounting to a shift in the

�rstcome, �rstserved policy from consideration on thebasis of date of application todate on which payment ofentry fee was made, thecourt backed the defencecompletely.

“I do not �nd any merit in

the submission of the prosecution that amendment inthe press release led to rede�ning the concept of �rstcome, �rst served on the basis of priority from submission of compliance to LOIs(Letters of Intent) against theestablished practice of priority from the date of receipt ofapplication. The procedurewas changed not by the pressrelease, but after discussionsin the department,” Mr. Sainisaid.

This was as suggested by

o�cers of the Department ofTelecommunications, andultimately conveyed to thePrime Minister on December26, 2007.

PM in the loop“It was rightly conveyed tothe Hon’ble Prime Ministerand the DoT that the policyhad the concurrence oflearned SG. Thus, placing ofthis letter on the record ofDoT was an o�cial act andnot conspiratorial one,” thejudge said.

The brain behind the deadline: ‘It was not Raja’‘The date was actually the result of an internal discussion in the department to dispose of a limited number of applications in the �rst phase’

K. Venkataramanan

Chennai

Raging protest: Congress workers hold a protest against the BJP on the 2G case in New Delhi on Friday. * SHIV KUMAR PUSHPAKAR

<> I do not �nd any

merit ... that

amendment in the

press release led to

rede�ning �rst

come, �rst served

A major allegation that former Telecom Minister A. Rajafaced was that he had misledthe Prime Minister by keeping him in the dark about atweak he had made in the telecom licensing policy thatshifted the basis from “dateof application” to “date ofpayment of fee”.

It was not Mr. Raja, but of�cials of the Prime Minister’sO�ce (PMO) who misrepresented the facts to the thenPrime Minister, ManmohanSingh, according to the special court’s �ndings in the 2Gcase.

Suppressed facts“It was not Sh. A. Raja, butSh. Pulok Chatterjee, in consultation with Sh. T.K.A.Nair, who had suppressedthe most relevant and controversial part of the letter ofSh. A. Raja from the thenHon’ble Prime Minister,”Special Judge O.P. Saini said.

Mr. Chatterjee was thenJoint Secretary in the PMO,while Mr. Nair was the Principal Secretary. He later tookover from Mr. Nair as Principal Secretary.

In the letter of December26, 2007, Mr. Raja hadsought to explain the threestage process, that is grant of

Letter of Intent, issue of licence, and issue of wirelesslicence. Dr. Singh had askedthat this be examined urgently.

After discussing the matter with Mr. Nair, Mr. Chatterjee recorded a long noteon January 6, 2008, runningto �ve pages.

The judge said the notedid not consider the issue ofnew licences being set to beissued as per changed criteria. Despite this issue beingmost controversial, it was ignored and only a “partialview” was presented to thePrime Minister.

“Moreover, the note suffered from the vice of excessive length and technical jargon,” he said.

While Mr. Raja had conveyed to the Prime Ministerwhat he intended to do withtelecom licences, only a par

tial view was presented toDr. Singh by PMO o�cials,and Mr. Raja could not befaulted for this.

“[The] Prime Minister is abusy executive. Where fromwould he �nd the time toread such length notes? ThePrime Minister is not expected to be immersed in �les. Itwas much easier and betterfor him to read and understand the letter of Sh. A. Rajarather than this note of Sh.Pulok Chatterjee.”

Wrapped in mysteryIt was not clear from the record, if this note was seen bythe Prime Minister. However, it was clear that somebody from the PMO had giventhe goahead to the DoT forissue of new licences, “andmost probably it was Sh. Pulok Chatterjee himself, as hisnote records that he hadspoken to Secretary (T),” thecourt said.

The DoT issued 120 newlicences on January 8, 2008,and the Prime Minister cameto know of it.

“Thereafter only, Sh. Pulok Chatterjee became wiserand recti�ed his mistake,and placed the correct factsbefore the then Hon’blePrime Minister, but by thattime, it was too late,” thejudge observed.

The PMO and PulokcrossconnectionsSpecial Correspondent

Chennai

Pulok Chatterjee

The former CBI DirectorA.P. Singh, who supervisedthe 2G case investigation,said here on Friday that hedid not understand thejudgment.

He said the prosecutionwitnesses were completelydemolished, while whatever said by the defence witnesses were taken to betrue. “I don’t understandthe judgment, I am quiteconfused,” he said.

‘Simple case’“Our case against the thenTelecom Minister A. Raja isvery simple. The allegationis that he tweaked the system to give Swan and Unitech licences on priorityplus spectrum, which theywould not have got in thenormal course. It is allegedthat in doing this, Mr. Rajawas helped by his private secretary R.K. Chandolia,” hesaid. “Why was Mr. Raja be

ne�ting Swan and Unitech?We found that it was becausethe companies were dealingwith him when he was in theMinistry of Environment, asthey are in realestate business. What then they weredoing in telecom? They hadcome with Mr. Raja…,” Mr.Singh said.

However, former CBI Director Ranjit Sinha, underwhom the case was undertrial, alleged that he had detected glaring omissions andcommissions in the probe,which he wanted to reportto the Supreme Court. However, he alleged, the then

Special Public Prosecutorraised objection and his�ndings were not broughtbefore the court.

Status reportsMr. Sinha said: “I had to submit status reports on thetrial to the Supreme Court.During that process, I wentthrough the crime �le andfound that there were glaring omissions and commissions.” “I tried to incorporate these things in thestatus report to the SupremeCourt. But, the then SpecialPublic Prosecutor objectedand my �ndings were neverincorporated in the statusreport,” said Mr. Sinha.

He said some documentswere leaked by some o�cials.

“The issue was given sucha twist, projecting that I washelping the accused persons,” he said, adding thatafter a report by the thenSpecial Public Prosecutor hewas removed from the case.

Former CBI chiefs come

out against 2G verdictA.P. Singh says he doesn’t understand the judgment

A.P. Singh


New Delhi

The prosecution was unableto convince the special courthearing the 2G case thatformer Union Minister A. Raja overruled or ignored suggestions from the FinanceMinistry to revise the entryfee for new licensees or go infor auction of spectrum.

“It is clear that the Ministry of Finance was not veryenthusiastic about its objections regarding pricing of initial spectrum/revision of entry fee,” special judge O.P.Saini said in his verdict exonerating Mr. Raja and all others of any wrongdoing.

“Moreover, [the then] Finance Secretary admittedthat after receipt of reply ofDoT, they did not pursue

their objections seriously. Ifthe Finance Ministry hadbeen serious, and Sh. A. Rajawas not heeding its query for

revision of entry fee, thematter must have been reported to the Cabinet Secretariat or PMO,” the judgesaid.

TRAI stanceHe accepted the defencecontention that nowherehad the Telecom RegulatoryAuthority of India (TRAI) recommended revision or indexation of entry fee. Norhad it recommended auctionof spectrum.

The judge said no witnesshad deposed that TRAI hadrecommended revision ofentry fee for 2G spectrum,except Nripendra Misra, a

former Secretary, Telecom,and a former TRAI Chairman. “However, his view isnot supported by the contents of the Recommendations,” he said.

On the charge that Mr. Raja did not consider even thePM’s suggestion for auction,and that his reply to thePrime Minister “smacked ofa conspiratorial tone”, Mr.Saini said: “I �nd that thisreply regarding auction of2G spectrum is in line withTRAI Recommendations asinitial spectrum of 4.4+4.4MHz is bundled with UAS licence, and in a sense represents the price of spectrum.”

Raja did not ignore PM or FM, says courtNo evidence to suggest former Union Minister overruled suggestions on entry fee or auction

Big relief: Rajya Sabha member Kanimozhi arriving inParliament House on Friday. * V. SUDERSHAN


Chennai

The former Telecom Minister A. Raja said on Fridaythat the 2G case was a “conspiracy” hatched to topplethe UPA government, andexpressed anguish that eventhe government of the timecould not sense it. In a letterto DMK president M. Karunanidhi, he raised appre

hensions about the possiblerole of “hegemonic forces”that could not tolerate theregional party’s national political clout at that time.

The DMK was a key partner in the UPAI governmentfrom 2004 to 2009, whenMr. Raja held the Telecomportfolio.

“It was regrettable thatthe government [at the

Centre] itself was unable to�gure out that the spectrumissue got caught in a conspiracy to defeat the UPA government,” he said, withoutnaming who was behind it.The spectrum “assault” was“initiated by individuals”and carried forward by institutions, including the CBI,something new to both Indian and world history.


Chennai

It was a conspiracy, says Raja

Special judge O.P. Saini acquitted the accused in the2G spectrum cases after aSupreme Courtmonitoredinvestigation ordered in the“larger public interest”onthe basis of a request madeby the then UPAgovernment.

The court, on at leastthree occasions in its orderdated September 3, 2013, recorded that it undertook tokeep an eagle eye on the CBIprobe. K.K. Venugopal, whorepresented the CBI in theSupreme Court and is thepresent AttorneyGeneral ofIndia, had argued in thecourt that the Centre had“virtually invited” the Supreme Court to intervene inthe investigation.

Cause of justiceThe court had also agreedthat the allegations againstthe accused prima faciewarranted its interventionto do justice. It had held thatArticle 21 of the Constitutiondemanded a “thorough” in

vestigation and speedy trial. “We are, prima facie, sa

tis�ed that the allegationscontained in the writ petition and the a�davits �ledbefore this Court, which aresupported not only by thedocuments produced bythem, but also the report ofthe Central Vigilance Commission, which was forwarded to the Director, CBI,on October 12, 2009 and the�ndings recorded by theCAG in the Performance Audit Report, need a thoroughand impartial investigation,”the Supreme Court had recorded in its order.

The Supreme Courtappointed Special Public Prosecutor for 2G cases, senioradvocate Anand Grover, onThursday, agreed the Supreme Court had passed orders on the prima facie veracity of the allegationsagainst the accused.

The apex court hadbacked the Comptroller andAuditor General Vinod Rai’swork as the “most important o�cer under the Constitution of India.”

Acquittal comes afterSCmonitored probe Court intervened on Centre’s request


NEW DELHI


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Putin slams ‘aggressive’new U.S. defence strategyMOSCOW

Russian President Vladimir

Putin on Friday described the

new defence strategy

unveiled by U.S. counterpart

Donald Trump as

“aggressive,” saying Moscow

would take that into account

in its own actions. But he said

that although Russia must

strive to develop a new and

modern army, it would not be

drawn into a arms race. AFP

ELSEWHERE

Major power brokers todiscuss Syria peace planASTANA

Major power brokers agreed

on Friday to hold a peace

congress for Syria in Russia’s

Black Sea resort of Sochi in

late January in a bid to speed

up a political settlement for

the war-torn country. The

‘congress of national dialogue

on Syria’ will see “the

participation of all segments

of Syrian society,” said a joint

statement released after two

days of talks spearheaded by

Russia and Iran. AFP

Pak. absolves 5 bloggersof blasphemy chargesISLAMABAD

Five Pakistani activists who

went missing earlier this year

were cleared of blasphemy

charges on Friday, a lawyer

said. The men, who used

social media to stand against

religious intolerance and at

times criticised the powerful

military, vanished in January,

sparking fears of a state

crackdown. Four of them have

since been released. No group

claimed responsibility for

their abduction.

Trump signs sweepingoverhaul of U.S. tax codeWASHINGTON

U.S. President Donald Trump

on Friday signed into law a

sweeping overhaul of the U.S.

tax code, two days after the

Republican plan was adopted

by Congress in a major

political victory.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Fridaythat he would “no longer accept” any peace plan proposed by the U.S., dealing apreemptive blow to a freshinitiative expected by Washington next year.

The comments in Pariscame hours after 128 members of the UN voted to condemn U.S. President DonaldTrump’s decision on December 6 to unilaterally recognise Jerusalem as the capitalof Israel.

That move continues toreverberate in West Asia andEuropean diplomats are pessimistic about the Trump administration’s peace plan,which is being prepared behind closed doors and willbe presented to both sides in2018.

U.S. VicePresident MikePence postponed a trip hewas due to make to the re

gion this week, after Palestinian and Arab Christian leaders expressed reluctance tomeet him.

“The U.S. has proven to bea dishonest mediator in thepeace process and we will no

longer accept any plan fromit,” Mr. Abbas told a jointpress conference withFrench President EmmanuelMacron.

President Abbas hit out ate�orts by the U.S. to intimi

date countries ahead of theUN vote. “I hope that the others will learn the lesson andunderstand that you cannotimpose solutions by usingmoney and trying to buy o�countries.”

Abbas rules out U.S. peace plan Washington has proven to be a dishonest mediator in the peace process, says Palestine President

Agence France-Presse

Paris

Extending support: French President Emmanuel Macron, right, with Palestinian PresidentMahmoud Abbas at the end of a joint press conference in Paris on Friday. * AFP

Separatists looked set onFriday to regain power inCatalonia after voters rejected Spanish Prime MinisterMariano Rajoy’s attempt todefuse the independencemovement.

With the count fromThursday’s Catalan Parliament election almost complete, separatist parties won70 of the 135 seats, compared with 72 last time, withthe fugitive leader CarlesPuigdemont’s Junts Per Catalunya (Together for Catalonia) retaining its positionas the largest separatistforce.

Ciudadanos (Citizens)won the most votes, but other unionist forces — Rajoy'sPeople's Party and the Socialist Party — performeddismally.

Mr. Rajoy, who called the

election after sacking theprevious, secessionist government, had hoped tomobilise hitherto quiescentsupporters of union withSpain and deal separatism adecisive blow.

Instead, his own partyperformed miserably, andthe result raises the question of a return to power forMr. Puigdemont, the Catalan President he haddeposed.

Catalan separatistswin legislative vote

Puigdemont’s party gets most seats

Reuters

BARCELONA/MADRID

Carles Puigdemont at apress conference in Brusselson Friday. * AFP

U.S. President DonaldTrump has put Pakistan onnotice for providing safe haven to the Taliban and othermilitant groups, VicePresident Mike Pence has said,warning that the country hasmuch to lose if it does notstop harbouring terroristson its soil.

Mr. Pence’s remarks cameduring an unannounced tripto Afghanistan to assessground realities in the wartorn country. During his visiton Thursday, Mr. Pence heldmeetings with top Afghanleaders to hear from themthe progress on the implementation of Mr. Trump’s

new South Asia policy. Mr.Trump, while announcinghis strategy in August, hadpromised more troops to Afghanistan and criticised Pakistan for not doing enoughto combat terrorism.

“For too long, Pakistanhas provided safe haven tothe Taliban and many terrorist organisations, but thosedays are over. PresidentTrump has put Pakistan onnotice,” Mr. Pence told

American troops at the Bagram airbase in Afghanistan.

“As the President said, so Isay now: Pakistan has muchto gain from partnering withthe U.S., and Pakistan hasmuch to lose by continuingto harbour criminals and terrorists.”

Pakistan reactsPakistan on Friday reactedsharply to Mr. Pence’s remarks. A Foreign Ministryspokesperson said Mr. Pence’s statement was at “variance” with the “extensiveconversations” Pakistan hadwith the U.S.

“Allies do not put eachother on notice ,” the spokesperson said.

‘Trump has put Pak. on notice’ Islamabad has much to lose if it continues to harbour terrorists, says Mike Pence

Another warning: U.S. Vice-President Mike Pence, right, atthe Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan on Thursday. * AP


Washington/Islamabad

Russian Foreign MinisterSergei Lavrov and British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson clashed on Friday overRussia’s alleged interferencein the Brexit vote on the �rsto�cial visit by a Foreign Minister from London in �veyears.

The outspoken Mr. Johnson arrived in Moscow to tryto open lines of communication after years of antagonism, and the two diplomatsmade attempts to show theirtwo countries were willingto consider rapprochement

and overcome years of di�erences. But the two also appeared to clash over allegations that Russia had soughtto in�uence the Brexit votelast year.

Mr. Lavrov told reportersthat Mr. Johnson had toldhim that Russia did not interfere in the Brexit vote. “Notsuccessfully,” Mr. Johnsonshot back.

At the same time the Russian diplomat praised histalks with Mr. Johnson, saying he felt no “hostility,” andadded that Moscow was ready for dialogue with Londonon equal terms. “We are ready to develop dialogue on avery wide range of issues onthe basis of principles ofequality [and] taking into account and respecting eachother’s interests,” he said.

Boris Johnson spars withRussian counterpartU.K. raises Moscow’s alleged interference in the Brexit vote


Moscow

Boris Johnson

The Trump administration is considering a plan to separate parents from their children when families are caught entering thecountry illegally, according to of�cials who have been briefed onthe plans. The forceful move ismeant to discourage bordercrossings, but immigrant groupshave denounced it as draconianand inhumane.

Under current policy, familiesare kept intact while awaiting adecision on whether they will bedeported; they are either held inspecial family detention centresor released with a court date.

The policy under discussionwould send parents to adult detention facilities, while their children would be placed in sheltersdesigned for juveniles or with a

“sponsor,” who could be a relative in the U.S., though the administration may also tighten ruleson sponsors.

The policy is favored by theWhite House, and has been approved by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Homeland Se

curity secretary Kirstjen Nielsen,who has �nal approval power, hasyet to sign o� on the proposal.

Trump e�ect The debate comes as the administration faces an in�ux of peoplecrossing the southern U.S. borderillegally.

As soon as President DonaldTrump took o�ce, the number ofpeople caught crossing the border dropped sharply, a sign thatfar fewer people were even trying. Only 11,677 apprehensionswere recorded in April, the lowest in at least 17 years.

Administration o�cials heralded the drop as a “Trump e�ect,”with his tough talk on illegal immigration and a surge in arrestsdiscouraging Mexicans and Central Americans from making thejourney. NY TIMES

U.S. considers separatingfamilies to �ght immigrationMay send parents to detention centres & children to juvenile shelters

CAITLIN DICKERSON

RON NIXON

The move by the Trumpadministration is aimed at curbingborder crossings. * BLOOMBERG

Prime Minister TheresaMay on Friday hailed thereturn of Britain’s classicblue passport as a bene�tof leaving the EU, pleasingBrexit campaigners forwhom it is a symbol of national sovereignty but attracting derision from many remainers.

The government said aversion of the old passport,issued to Britons from 1920to 1988, when it was replaced by the burgundyjacket of the European Union, will be reintroducedafter the country leaves thebloc in March 2019.

“The U.K. passport is anexpression of our independence and sovereignty —symbolising our citizenship of a proud, great nation,” Ms. May said onTwitter.

Classic bluepassport toreturn in U.K.

Reuters

London

Russian hackers pursued journalists with the same gusto as whenthey went after U.S. politicians andintelligence �gures, an AssociatedPress investigation has found.

The espionage group known asFancy Bear tried to break intoGmail inboxes of at least 200 reporters, publishers, and bloggers asearly as mid2014 and as recently asa few months ago, according to ananalysis of data supplied by the cybersecurity �rm, Secureworks, andinterviews with more than 40 journalists.

“These are journalists that bother them,” said Natalia Gevorkyan, aRussian columnist who reviewedthe data. Ms. Gevorkyan, the authorof a book on Russian intelligence,said the hacking campaign appeared geared to collecting privateemails, “which they can use as leverage for later.”

The list provides new evidencefor the U.S. intelligence community’s conclusion that Fancy Bear,which Secureworks calls Iron Twilight, acted on behalf of the Russiangovernment when it intervened inthe U.S. presidential election, acharge the Kremlin denies.

The hackers pursued more journalists than any other group of targets identi�ed by the AP, except fordiplomatic personnel and U.S. Democrats.

The list includes roughly 50 foreign correspondents based in Moscow or Russian reporters rangingfrom bloggers in provincial cities tohighpro�le Moscow television starslike Ksenia Sobchak.

Fancy Bear target Ekaterina Vinokurova said she now routinelydeleted her own emails.

“I understand that my accountsmay be hacked at any time,” shesaid in a telephone interview. “I’mready for them.”

Russian hackers targetedmore than 200 journalists

Fancy Bear tried to break into private emails

Associated Press

Paris

French President Emmanuel Macron said on Fridaythat the United States had“marginalised itself” in theIsraeliPalestinian con�ictby unilaterally recognisingJerusalem as the capital ofIsrael.

“The Americans havemarginalised themselvesand I am trying to not dothe same thing,” Mr. Macron told a joint press conference with PalestinianPresident Mahmoud Abbas. The French Presidentalso ruled out recognisinga Palestinian state in theshort term. He had earlierdismissed any fresh Frenchpeace initiative.

U.S. hasmarginaliseditself: Macron


Paris


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ICICI Bank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 316.60. . . . . . . . . 1.15

IndusInd Bank . . . . . . . .. . . . 1651.85. . . . . . . . -4.35

Bharti Infratel . . . . . . . .. . . . . . 363.95. . . . . . . . . 2.35

Infosys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1039.35. . . . . . . 17.30

Indian OilCorp . . . . . . . .. . . . . . 410.25. . . . . . . . -0.70

ITC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263.10. . . . . . . . . 0.05

Kotak Bank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1010.05. . . . . . . . -0.50

L&T . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1266.15. . . . . . . . . 7.35

Lupin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 871.65. . . . . . . . -7.20

M&M . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 746.20. . . . . . . . . 4.00

Maurti Suzuki . . . . . . . . .. . . . 9700.00. . . . . . . 68.95

NTPC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179.75. . . . . . . . -0.35

ONGC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193.40. . . . . . . . . 5.40

PowerGrid Corp . . . . .. . . . . . 203.05. . . . . . . . -0.05

Reliance Ind . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 920.40. . . . . . . . . 7.45

State Bank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 319.85. . . . . . . . . 3.10

Sun Pharma . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 530.95. . . . . . . . . 2.75

Tata Motors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 422.00. . . . . . . . . 1.20

Tata Steel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 711.20. . . . . . . . -3.40

TCS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2646.75. . . . . . . 51.05

Tech Mahindra . . . . . . .. . . . . . 493.45. . . . . . . . . 2.80

UltraTech Cement. .. . . . 4288.90. . . . . . -43.85

UPL. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 731.60. . . . . . . . . 0.65

Vedanta . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 316.55. . . . . . . . -0.60

Wipro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301.60. . . . . . . . . 3.85

YES Bank. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 310.15. . . . . . . . -0.30

Zee Entertainment . . . . . . 574.55. . . . . . . . . 0.20

EXCHANGE RATES

Indicative direct rates in rupees a unitexcept yen at 4 p.m. on December 22

CURRENCY TT BUY TT SELL

US Dollar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . 63.85. . . . . . . 64.17

Euro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . 75.68. . . . . . . 76.06

British Pound. . . . . . . . . . . . .. . 85.37. . . . . . . 85.80

Japanese Yen (100) . .. . 56.31. . . . . . . 56.59

Chinese Yuan . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . 9.71. . . . . . . . . 9.76

Swiss Franc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . 64.55. . . . . . . 64.88

Singapore Dollar . . . . . . .. . 47.49. . . . . . . 47.73

Canadian Dollar. . . . . . . . .. . 50.22. . . . . . . 50.47

Malaysian Ringitt . . . . . .. . 15.64. . . . . . . 15.73

Source:Indian Bank

BULLION RATES CHENNAI

December 22 rates in rupees with pre-vious rates in parentheses

Retail Silver (1g) . . . . . . . . . . . 40.20. . . . . (40.20)

22 ct gold (1 g) . .. . . . . . . . . . . 2,744. . . . . (2,742)

market watch

22-12-2017 % CHANGE

Sensex dddddddddddddddddddddd 33,940 ddddddddddddddd0.55

US Dollardddddddddddddddddddd 64.05 ddddddddddddddd0.00

Gold ddddddddddddddddddddddddddd 29,685 ddddddddddddd-0.05

Brent oil ddddddddddddddddddddd 64.74 ddddddddddddddd0.17

The Securities and ExchangeBoard of India (SEBI) raided34 locations on Friday,aimed at members of a particular WhatsApp group, aspart of a probe into allegedleak of sensitive �nancial information by analysts andcompany o�cials over socialmedia.

Documents seizedAccording to a person familiar with the development,almost 100 o�cers from theinvestigation, surveillanceand enforcement divisions ofSEBI along with the local police conducted search andseizure operations at the of�ces of brokers and investment advisers, primarily inMumbai and Delhi, seizingdocuments, computers andeven mobile phones asevidence.

“Two days back, SEBI hadgot search warrants issued

against 34 entities who werepart of a WhatsApp group onwhich price sensitive information was alleged to havebeen shared,” said the person on the condition ofanonymity.

“Some of the admins ofthe WhatApp group alsocame forward and sharedthe chat records with SEBIthat led to today’s action.The group also comprisedsome o�cials of a private

sector bank and a private insurance entity,” he added.

It is believed that the raidswere against members of agroup known as ‘MarketChatters Group,’ however itcould not be independentlycon�rmed. An email queryto SEBI remained unanswered till the time of goingto press.

Such select sharing of information by companies oreven analysts is barred un

der the current regulatorynorms and SEBI can issueshowcause notices to companies and even analysts alleged to be involved in suchactivities.

While it is widely knownthat restricted groups onWhatsApp and Facebook areused to discuss price sensitive information, SEBI’s actions will send strong signalsthat sharing of such information would attract the ire ofthe regulator, said SumitAgrawal, partner, Suvan LawAdvisors and a former SEBIlaw o�cer.

“The �rstofthis kind stepby SEBI will make the regulator realise the kind of conversations that are takingplace in the industry as theU.S. SEC also recently did,”he said.

“SEBI, however, alsoneeds to tread carefully asbeing a member of a groupwithout any trade or furthertipping someone may not be

chargeable for insider trading. A quick conclusion ofthe investigation and clearing the names will avoidtroubles of such innocuousmembers, else these unusualsensational raids will become one more �le in the SEBI o�ce,” said Mr. Agrawal.

At a recent capital marketseminar, SEBI ChairmanAjay Tyagi had said that theregulator had received complaints about instances whensuch information was allegedly shared between individuals in a select group beforethe same was disclosed tothe stock exchanges and thatit was “seriously” examiningthe matter.

“We are taking that (WhatsApp leaks) very seriously.How come such messagesabout reputed listed companies are leaked quite close tothe �nancial results is something we are not going tosit quietly on,” Mr. Tyagi hadsaid.

SEBI raids brokers in data leak probeRegulator examining exchange of pricesensitive company information on WhatsApp group

SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

MUMBAI

What’s up: Select sharing of information by companies or even analysts is barred under regulatory norms. * REUTERS Thyssenkrupp could halve

its stake in a planned European steel joint venture withTata Steel if the owners decide to list it on the stockmarket within the �rst sixyears, a board member ofthe German company said.

Equal JVInitially, Thyssenkrupp andTata Steel will each own50% of the venture and havecommitted to hold equalshares in the entity for the�rst six years, Thyssenk

rupp personnel chief OliverBurkhard told journalists onFriday. In case of a listing,Thyssenkrupp and TataSteel’s joint ownership inthe venture must not fall below 50.1%, he said, addingthat Thyssenkrupp couldtheoretically reduce its ownstake to, but not below,25.05%.

Mr. Burkhard made thecomments after the company reached a deal with steelworkers to secure jobs andplants, a key condition forthe joint venture to goahead next year.

IPO: Thyssenkrupp’sTata JV stake may fall Reuters

FRANKFURT

* AP

West Bengal Finance MinisterAmit Mitra has said with thehurried introduction of GSTwithout putting proper infrastructure in place, the systemhad become more “primitive”than the VAT regime with “manual” processing of refundapplications.

‘Interface lacking’Due to lack of interface inplace between the Goods andServices Tax (GST) networkwith the customs electronic data interchange (EDI) and theDirectorate General of ForeignTrade (DGFT), the Centre is using ledger for manual recordsfor refunds, Dr. Mitra said.

Pointing out that that this

was one reason why he hadasked the Centre to push backthe date of introduction of thenew tax regime, he hoped thatthe problem was temporary.

Even in the State VAT sys

tem, there was no manual intervention in the entire process of �ling of returns, Dr.Mitra said while addressing theFederation of Indian ExportOrganisation (FIEO)organisedaward ceremony here lastevening.

‘Working capital locked’The Minister said owing to thenew system, exporters wereunable to get their refunds andat least 1015% of their workingcapital was remaining locked.

According to the report titled ‘Impact of GST on Exports’by the Parliamentary Committee headed by Naresh Gujral,the refund of Integrated Goodsand Services Tax (IGST) paidon export goods and refund ofInput Tax Credit (ITC) on

goods exported under Letterof Undertaking (LUT)/ Bond inJuly, August, and September,2017 was still pending, the Minister said.

The Committee notes that asharp liquidity crunch hadgripped the majority of exporters due to the blocking offunds, Dr. Mitra said.

“The delay in disbursing refund means your capital isblocked.

“The Committee’s reportsaid the (quantum of) blockedcapital (stuck up with the government for refunds) couldbe between 1520% of theworking capital. Decliningworking capital would lead tolosing of jobs by the workers,”Dr. Mitra pointed out.

“There are job losses due to

lower business in gems and jewellery sector, I am also deeplyconcerned for the SME (smalland medium enterprises) andthe unorganised sectors whichis cashbased,” Dr. Mitra said.

Export growthDespite GSTrelated hurdles,Dr. Mitra was optimistic aboutthe overall growth of exportsfrom West Bengal.

In 201617, exports from theState were worth �53,649 croreand it was expected to touch�75,00080,000 crore in 201920, Dr. Mitra said.

Some 10 items account foralmost twothirds of the totalexports with jewellery, �sheries and leather �guring amongthe major items of export fromthe State of West Bengal.

‘Manual refund processing makes GST primitive’ Even in state VAT, there was no manual intervention in the entire process of �ling of returns: Dr. Mitra

Amit Mitra


Kolkata

The Reserve Bank of India(RBI) has once again clari�ed that prompt correctionaction (PCA) is imposed toencourage banks to improvetheir �nancial health.

The reiteration comes inthe wake of rumours on social media that some of thebanks that are under PCAcould be closed down.

“The PCA framework isintended to encouragebanks to eschew certain riskier activities and focus onconserving capital so thattheir balance sheets can become stronger,” RBI said.Rajiv Kumar, Secretary, Fi

nancial Services, also tweeted that there was no question of closing down anypublic sector bank and added that the governmentwas strengthening banks byrecapitalising them.

PCA only to improvebanks’ health, says RBICentre rules out closure of any PSB


Mumbai

In a sign that India’s FreeTrade Agreement (FTA) negotiations could slow further, the Ministry of ExternalA�airs (MEA) has taken astrong stand that the country should restrain itselffrom concluding any suchpact from which it would notgain in the medium term.

This was evident in Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar’s comments before theDepartment Related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Commerce in June.The panel’s report on ‘tradewith Association of SouthEast Asian Nations (ASEAN)’showed that Mr. Jaishankarhad “called for observanceof due restraint and not conclude trade arrangementswhich are not to our medium term advantage.” According to the panel’s report, the senior o�cial“submitted that a lot of our[India’s free trade] agreements have not served aswell as they could have.”

The report, released onDecember 18, is signi�cantcoming ahead of the ASEANIndia commemorative summit to be held on January 25,where the issue of the longdelayed Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) will likely takecentre stage.

Joint chief guestsIn a �rst, all 10 heads ofASEAN states led by thegrouping’s current chairperson, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, will attend the ASEANIndiasummit and be the jointchief guests at the RepublicDay Parade on January 26.

In an interview during avisit in 2016, Mr. Lee hadurged India to take a more“liberal approach” on freeing up trade and promotingregional integration.

Referring to the RCEP be

fore the standing committee, Mr. Jaishankar had saidthat “though larger FTAs areimportant for getting preferential access to the markets, it is important to becautious about the mannerin which such arrangementswork out in respect of ourimports as well as on our efforts to increase the share ofmanufacturing sector in oureconomy.”

The RCEP is a proposedmegaregional FTA involvingthe 10 member countries ofASEAN and its six FTA partners including India, China,Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand.

Access for services Mr. Jaishankar stressed thatIndia’s external trade arrangements must be supportiveof the Make in India initiative. As per the committee’sreport, he pointed out that“emphasis in these trade arrangements is mostly ontrade in goods and the sameenthusiasm is not shared fortrade in services. The reluctance in giving market access for trade in services is abig challenge.”

When contacted, a seniorMEA o�cial said, “the thinking is now we do deals only ifour interests are taken intoaccount.” The o�cial addedthat such a strong standwould also be adopted inother negotiations includingthose on the proposed IndiaEuropean Union Broad

Based Trade and InvestmentAgreement.

Commerce ministrysources said while there isimmense pressure on Indiain the RCEP negotiations tocommit to opening up (90%)of its traded goods, what istroubling the government isthe fact that other RCEPcountries have so far beenlukewarm to India’s demands for greater market access in services, particularlyon easing norms on themovement of professionalsand skilled workers acrossborders for shortterm work.India, which is defensive regarding opening up its goodssector, is currently virtuallyisolated in the RCEP talks,the sources said. The nextround of talks is in Februaryin Indonesia. So far, 20rounds of negotiations havebeen held, in addition to �veministerial meetings, threeintersessional ministerialsand one summit level talksbetween heads of state.

Signi�cantly, while the IndiaASEAN Trade in GoodsAgreement was inked andenforced from January 1,2010, India’s goods tradede�cit with ASEAN widenedfrom $4.98 billion in 201011to $14.75 billion in 201516,and then narrowed to $9.56billion in 201617.

The huge goods trade deficit has led to questions onwhether the pact is onlyhelping ASEAN nations andnot bene�ting India.

RCEP: India hardens standahead of ASEAN summitMEA wary of FTAs; cites policy goal to boost manufacturingArun S

Suhasini Haidar

New Delhi

Even-handed pacts: MEA’s thinking is that India must do dealsonly if its interests are taken into account. * PTI

‘Auto Expo – The MotorShow 2018’, the next edition of the biennial industry meet, will focus on theentire mobility ecosystem,a move away from just being a forum showcasingmotor vehicles.

Six special zones dedicated to automotive innovations, o�ering a virtualexperience of driving connected and autonomouselectric vehicles, displaying heritage and supercars, turning the spotlighton application vehicles,and highlighting initiativesto curb counterfeiting,would form part of theshow, trade o�cials said.Kia Motors and India Kawasaki will make their debutat the event.

The expo will be held atthe India Expo Mart inGreater Noida, from February 914. A day ahead of theformal inauguration on February 8, a media previewand unveiling of new models is scheduled.

The show, with ‘Cocreate, coexist and celebrate’ as its theme, is beingorganised by SIAM in association with the Automotive Component Manufacturers Association of India(ACMA) and CII.

Chairman of SIAM TradeFair group Arun Malahotracounted EVs and innovative technologies amongthe highlights of the show.An Auto Gaming Arenawould form part of the sixzones where the �rst all India Auto Gaming Championship is to be held, hetold the media on Friday.

SIAM deputy directorgeneral Sugato Sen and director, Head Trade Fair &Events, Debasish Majumder said a special emoji wasbeing created by Twitterfor the show and bookingof online entry tickets hadbegun.

Auto expo to focus fullyon mobilityecosystem


HYDERABAD


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A ND-NDE

BUSINESSEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE



IN BRIEF

TCS secures $2.25bncontract from Nielsen NEW DELHI

Tata Consultancy Services(TCS) has bagged a $2.25billion outsourcing contractfrom Nielsen, a televisionrating measurement �rm.The partnership, signed inOctober this year, is arenewal of TCS’ existingcollaboration with Nielsen.The two companies hadstruck a 10year deal in 2008for $1.2 billion, which wasexpanded to $2.5 billion in2013. Under the new deal,the terms of the agreementhave been extended by anadditional �ve years. PTI

Jayem to use Tata fundsto develop EV drives COIMBATORE

Jayem Automotives hastransferred the �10 crore,contributed to it by TataGroup’s chairman emeritusRatan N. Tata, to atechnology �rm that willdevelop electric drivesystems. The contributionwas made in February forearly development of electriccars and was held aspreference shares by Jayem.With opportunitiesexpanding, Jayem said it haddecided to form a separateentity using the funding.

E.I.D.Parry to hive o�biopesticides businessCHENNAI

E.I.D.Parry India Ltd. hassigned a term sheet totransfer its biopesticidesbusiness through a slumpsale, together with its entirestake in Parry America Inc.USA, to CoromandelInternational Ltd. for a totalconsideration of �338 crore.“The transaction is part of aplan to consolidate and focuson its core businesses in foodand nutraceuticals space,” A.Vellayan, chairman, E.I.D.Parry, said in a statement.

Funds raised in Indiathrough share sales reachedthe most in a decade thisyear thanks to boomingstock markets, but the rushto raise capital while investor sentiment remained bullish pushed dealmakers’ feeratio to multiyear lows.

India’s main stock indexessurged almost 30% in 2017 asinvestors bet on economicreform and corporate earnings recovery. That spurredalmost $30 billion worth ofshare sales including a record $11.5 billion in initial public o�erings (IPO).

But for banks which arrange the sales, fees earnedas a percentage of fundsraised hit the lowest in fouryears, Thomson Reuters data showed. That made arranging work in Asia’s thirdlargest economy the worstpaid out of 11 Asian markets.

To be sure, the structureof Indian dealmakingmeans fees are often comparatively small. But this yearwas particularly low becausea high proportion of deals involved staterun �rms whichtypically pay paltry fees.

Competition intensi�esCompetition was also higherwith dealmakers such asIDFC Bank Ltd. and IIFLHoldings Ltd. gaining marketshare, while entrants such asChina’s Haitong SecuritiesCo. Ltd. made headway, industry participants said.

“In a buoyant marketthere is no cause for anxietyfor issuers, so low fees are nosurprise. In a weak market,issuers may be willing to payhigher fees but the numberof issues are fewer,” saidPrithvi Haldea, chairman ofdata provider Prime Data

base. “That said, India hasbeen a lowpaying market foryears and that’s unlikely tochange anytime soon,” hesaid.

Optimistic about 2018 Bankers are optimistic about2018’s deal pipeline whichthey expect to include IPOs,real estate investment trustsand statebacked share sales.But some fear a continuedmarket boom will keep feeslow.

Fees this year averaged0.8% of deal proceeds, from1.3% last year, Thomson Reuters data showed. The average was 2% in Hong Kong,2.6% in Shanghai and Shenzhen and 2.8% in Tokyo. NewYork averaged 3.2%.

“While fees in India(usually) are attractive in theIndian context, they are notprobably as attractive in anAsian or a global context,”said V. Jayasankar, head ofequity capital markets (ECM)at Kotak Mahindra Bank

Ltd.’s investment bankingarm, which Thomson Reuters data showed arrangedthe most deals this year bytotal value.

Kotak and four otherbanks split a 0.1% fee for arranging the $1.7 billion IPOof staterun General Insurance Corp. of India, theyear’s biggest IPO.

Six banks arranging a $2.3billion followon share o�ering by State Bank of India —2017’s largest ECM deal — received a token fee of �1($0.016), according to bankers. It is not uncommon fordealmakers to agree to suchterms for the opportunity totake part in blockbusterdeals. The low fees can bepartially attributed to thestructure of dealmaking inIndia where, unlike elsewhere, banks do not risk underwriting share sales.

“We don’t see a materialchange in the fees paid, andwe are at least �ve to 10 yearsaway from an underwriting

fee model,” said Jibi Jacob,head of ECM at Edelweiss Financial Services Ltd., 2017’ssixthranked IPO arranger inIndia this year, ThomsonReuters data showed.

An increasing number ofbanks involved in each dealalso means fees are beingsplit between more dealmakers, said the ECM head at amultinational bank, who wasnot authorised to publiclycomment on fees and so declined to be identi�ed. Thereis also a “new cycle of peoplewilling to go down the feecurve,” the banker said.

Larger IPOs aheadLooking at 2018, bankers including Citigroup Inc.’s IndiaECM head Arvind Vashisthasaid they expected averageIPO sizes to be larger, withfundraising picking up insectors such as infrastructure, real estate, metals andmining.

“The big risk continues tobe that of the global geopolitical environment and of valuations which in some caseshave run up signi�cantly.But the fundamental appetite for India paper in 2018should continue to be veryrobust,” said Mr. Vashistha atCiti, ranked second amongshare sale arrangers.

But low fees mean regardless of higher deal volumes,many banks — especially foreign banks with high coststructures — are not aggressively expanding ECMteams, bankers said.

“When you have limitedresources and deal volumespick up, I think the onlything we can do is be disciplined about which clients,what transactions, ratherthan trying to do everything,” said a senior banker at aforeign bank’s India arm.

India’s record share sales bring banks little cheer in feesWhile volume of share sales almost $30 bn, arrangers’ fee ratio at fouryear low

Reuters

MUMBAI/HONG KONG

Zero risk: Unlike elsewhere, in India, banks do not risk underwriting share sales. * REUTERS

Ace Manufacturing Systems,a manufacturer of machinetools for the automobile, aerospace and medical industries, has opened a secondfactory in Bengaluru at acost of �80 crore and plansto add a third facility within�ve years as it bets that demand for its products willcontinue to show stronggrowth.

‘Remedial action’“This year we have seen ahuge surge in demand formachine tools,” managingdirector P. Ramadas said inan interview. “While demand picked up, unfortunately the supplies dropped.

We have now taken remedialaction and hope to bringdown the lead times of ourmachines in the next fewmonths.”

The second factory wouldincrease Ace’s annual capacity from the current 1,200computer numerical control(CNC) machines to morethan 3,000, Mr. Ramdassaid. Normal machines aremanually controlled byhand wheels or levers, whilein CNC machines computersexecute preprogrammedsequences of commands.

The company’s customers in the automobile sectorinclude the Daimler Group,Jaguar Land Rover, Bentley,Maserati, BMW and Volvo.About 70% of the �rm’s ma

chines are sold to automobile companies. It also supplies machines toengineering, defence, power, oil and gas and energycompanies.

“Our goal is to be able toproduce and sell machinesto the full capacity of thisfactory by the year 2021.Currently we have presencein over 15 countries. Our focus on export markets willalso continue throughstrengthening relationshipwith our dealer partners andintroduction of dealers innew markets,” Mr. Ramadassaid.

The �rm expects revenueto grow to �500 crore in thecurrent year, from �416crore in the last �scal.

Ace Manufacturing adds �80 cr. second plant in Bengaluru


Bengaluru

‘Saw huge surge in demandfor machine tools in 2017’

Rating agency Crisil hasupgraded the �xed deposit(FD) rating of SundaramBNP Paribas Home FinanceLtd. to ‘FAAA’, the highestrating, with stable outlook.

Sundaram Home Finance has a deposit base ofover �1,000 crore andclose to 20,000 depositors.The company is looking toraise �2,000 crore this yearto fund its growth plans.

‘The upgrade in ratingrecognises the inherentstrength of the companyand growth opportunities.With this upgrade, we expect to further increaseour deposit base as part ofour fund raising plans,’’said Srinivas Acharya, MD,Sundaram BNP ParibasHome Finance.

Sundaramarm’s FD gets‘FAAA’ ratingk.t. jagannathan

Chennai

Asian Paints Ltd., which issetting up two plants in theSouth, is all set to increaseproduction capacity by 11lakh kilolitres in 18 months,according to a topexecutive.

“The �rst plant in Mysuru, with 6 lakh kilolitres,will go on stream byend2018,” said Amit Syngle,chief operating o�cer,Asian Paints. “The secondplant at Visakhapatnamwith 5 lakh kilolitres will begin production by the �rsthalf of 2019.”

Recently, Asian Paintscompleted expansion activities at its Rohtak plant in Haryana, and modernised itsplants in the West andNorth. The total investment

in these two new plants isabout �4,000 crore, according to sources.

“The proposed unitswould take care of AsianPaints’ sales volume for thenext three to four years. Wealso have two units in Sriperumbudur near Chennai. Ithas reached full capacityand we are not expanding itfor want of space,” he said.

Asian Paints to boostproduction capacity To add 11 lakh kilolitres in 18 monthsSpecial Correspondent

CHENNAI

Amit Syngle


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welcomed with a cut overpoint and Chathuranga deSilva with a drive and a cuto� the �rst two balls he bowled. Asela Gunaratne’s onlyover saw Rohit following upsuccessive boundaries withas many sixes.

Thisara bore the bruntagain as Rohit continued todominate the battle of theleaders with four sixes in the11th over. ‘The Hitman’, whothen equalled the fastesthundred record with a disdainful cover drive o� Mathews, took his helmet o� andacknowledged a packedstadium.

Once Rohit had reached

The boundaries were short.The out�eld was wet, makingit tougher for bowlers to gripthe ball. And the Holkar Stadium pitch was at its �attest.

Still, when Thisara Pererainserted India in to bat in thesecond Twenty20 International, he would have hopedto chase a total of around200 and keep the seriesalive. Instead, Rohit Sharmaand K.L. Rahul tormented alacklustre attack to seal theseries with an emphaticopening partnership.

Rohit’s second T20Ihundred — the jointfastestever, coming in just 35 balls —broke the Lankan attack’sbackbone and Rahul’s rollicking 89 ensured the statisticians were kept busy. Des

pite Sri Lanka pulling thingsback at the death, pickingfour wickets o� the last 10balls, a gargantuan 260 for�ve was going to be unassailable.

Upul Tharanga and KusalPerera ensured Sri Lankaavoided a meek surrenderlike the one in Cuttack twonights earlier. Despite tallying 172 for nine — AngeloMathews did not bat afterlimping out of the �eld whilebowling the 12th over of India’s innings — the visitorscouldn’t prevent India fromrunning away with theseries.

The moment Rohit stoodtall and lofted Mathews overmidwicket for a frontfootpull o� the �fth ball of thematch, one sensed that thecaptain was on to somethingspecial. And for the nexthour or so, Rohit mauled theLankan bowlers.

When Akila Dananjaya’sunorthodox spin was introduced, he was sent packingover mido�. Thisara was

the landmark, Rahul returned to the golfhitting prowess he had shown plenty inthe PowerPlay overs.Dropped by Sadeera Samarawickrama on six, o� Mathews in the third over, Rahuldecided to keep hitting in theV. And the stylish openerclubbed virtually everythingthat was pitched fuller.

Had it not been for Niroshan Dickwella’s stunningcatch — diving to his right topouch a thick edge o� Rahul’s willow — India couldwell have had two centurionsin a T20I innings. Despitemissing the landmark, Rahulhad ensured India had taken

the game out of Sri Lanka’shands.

The Sri Lankan toporderthen recti�ed its mistakes inCuttack, with Tharanga playing the pacers well and Kusalgoing after Kuldeep Yadavearly in the innings. The duo’s 109run partnership forthe second wicket kept SriLanka a�oat in the game.

However, once Tharangamiscued a slog to o�er Yuzvendra Chahal a skier o� hisown bowling in the 14th over,the middleorder crumbledagainst the wristspin duo.

Sri Lanka did not last thefull quota for the secondtime in succession.

Rohit at his rollicking and marauding best Indian skipper hits recordequalling century and Rahul also delights to smother Sri Lanka and seal the series

LANKANS IN INDIA

Amol Karhadkar

INDORE

Going ballistic: Rohit Sharma was in a belligerent mood as he tore the Sri Lankan attack toshreds while registering the joint-fastest T20I hundred on Friday. * PTI

DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

Fastest T20I hundreds

B 35 balls: Rohit Sharma (Ind)vs Sri Lanka, 2017

B 35: David Miller (RSA) vsBangladesh, 2017

B 45: Richard Levi (RSA) vsNew Zealand, 2012

B 46: Faf du Plessis (RSA) vsWest Indies, 2015

B 46: K.L. Rahul (Ind) vs WestIndies, 2016

B 47: Aaron Finch (Aus) vsEngland, 2013

B 47: Chris Gayle (WI) vsEngland, 2016

DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

CMYK

A ND-NDE

SPORTEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE



Chennai City FC (CCFC)played a valiant second halfbut it was East Bengal whichran away with a 21 win in theHero ILeague thriller at theNehru Stadium here on Friday. It was a sweet revengefor the visitors as they gonedown 32 to the same team inthe last edition at Chennai.

East Bengal seemed to bein control initially but withthe crowd by its side, theCCFC men quickly foundtheir feet and marched boldly into the rival camp.

Skipper M. Soosairaj andJoachim made best use of

yawning gaps to create someopportunities but it broughtno result.

Just when the goinglooked good for CCFC, EastBengal silenced the 15,000odd crowd with two goals inthe space of �ve minutes.

The �rst came in the 27thminute Wills Plaza, the danger man, packed in a pass toM. Amna who essayed a shotfrom the right and Yusa Katsumi tapped the ball in a hurry into the net.

Five minutes later, CharlesDe Souza cashed in on a defensive lapse to head it safelyhome.

Alexander Romariobrought some relief to thesupporters just before the le

mon break with a beautythat left the East Bengal custodian Luis Barettoconfused.

Lot of heatThe second half generated alot of heat as the playersfrom both sides went into theattack. With time runningout, CCFC applied the pressure upfront even as the visiting side tried to slow thingsdown a bit.

CCFC’s Edwin Vanspaulhad the East Bengal custodian in a spot of bother yetagain with only a few minutes left for the �nal hooterbut his curling free kicksailed over the goalmouth.Uros Polaniec, CCFC’s custo

dian, took home the playerof the match award.

“We are happy to go homewith a positive result. Wewant to carry this into ournext match,” said Khalid Jamil, East Bengal’s headcoach.

CCFC’s chief coach V.Soundararajan was disappointed. “We missed two golden volleys at the start andthat was costly.”

The results:

Chennai City FC 1 (AlexanderRomario 43) lost to East Bengal2 (Yusa Katsumi 26, Charles DeSouza 31).

At New Delhi: Indian Arrows 0lost to Gokulam Kerala FC 2(Daniel Addo 11, Khaled Alsaleh64).

Sweet revenge for East Bengal

On the move: Katsumi Yusa, who netted one of East Bengal’stwo goals, tries to get past Chennai City FC’s SebastianThangmuansang. * M. PERIASAMY

I-LEAGUE

Rayan Rozario

COIMBATORE

India: Rohit c Dananjaya bChameera 118 (43b, 12x4,10x6), K.L. Rahul c Dickwella bPradeep 89 (49b, 5x4, 8x6),M.S. Dhoni b Perera 28 (21b,2x4, 2x6), Hardik c Samarawick-rama b Pradeep 10 (3b, 1x4,1x6), Shreyas lbw b Perera 0(1b), M. Pandey (not out) 1 (1b),D. Karthik (not out) 5 (2b, 1x4);Extras (lb-3, w-6): 9; Total (forfive wkts, in 20 overs): 260.

Fall of wickets: 1-165 (Rohit,12.4 overs), 2-243 (Rahul, 18.3),3-253 (Hardik, 18.6), 4-254(Shreyas, 19.2), 5-255 (Dhoni,19.4).

Sri Lanka bowling: Mathews2.2-0-16-0, Chameera 4-0-45-1, Pradeep 4-0-61-2, Danan-jaya 3.4-0-49-0, Perera 4-0-49-2, Chathuranga 1-0-16-0,Gunaratne 1-0-21-0.

Sri Lanka: N. Dickwella c Hardikb Unadkat 25 (19b, 2x4, 1x6), U.Tharanga c & b Chahal 47 (29b,3x4, 2x6), Kusal Perera cPandey b Kuldeep 77 (37b, 4x4,7x6), Thisara Perera c Hardik bKuldeep 0 (1b), A. Gunaratne stDhoni b Kuldeep 0 (1b), S.Samarawickrama st Dhoni bChahal 5 (2b, 1x4), Chaturanga bChahal 1 (2b), A. Dananjaya cPandey b Chahal 5 (3b, 1x4), D.Chameera b Hardik 3 (5b), N.Pradeep (not out) 0 (5b), A.Mathews (absent hurt); Extras(lb-2, w-7): 9; Total (in 17.2overs): 172.

Fall of wickets: 1-36 (Dickwella,4.3), 2-145 (Tharanga, 13.2), 3-155 (Thisara, 14.1), 4-156 (Kusal,14.2), 5-161 (Gunaratne, 14.5),6-162 (Chathuranga, 15.1), 7-164 (Samarawickrama, 15.2), 8-170 (Dananjaya, 15.5), 9-172(Chameera, 17.2).

India bowling: Unadkat 3-0-22-1, Bumrah 3-0-21-0,Kuldeep 4-0-52-3, Hardik 3.2-0-23-1, Chahal 4-0-52-4.

Toss: Sri Lanka.

Man-of-the-Match: Rohit.

India won by 88 runs to leadseries 2-0.

SCOREBOARD

The Australian women’scricket team will play threeODIs against India in Vadodara next March as partof the ICC women’s championship 20172020. Afterthat the BCCI will host aT20 triseries with Englandas the third team.The schedule: ODI series:March 6 & 8: warm-upmatches vs India A, Mumbai;March 12,15 and 18: ODIs,Vadodara.

Twenty20 tri-series (allmatches at Brabourne, Mum-bai): March 22: India v Aus-tralia; March 24: Australia vEngland; March 26: India vEngland; March 28: Australiav England; April 1: India v En-gland; April 3: Final.

India to hostAustralia,England


Mumbai

Sachin Tendulkar wants India to be a “sport playing”and not just a “sport watching” nation. Not allowed todeliver his maiden speechin the Rajya Sabha onThursday, he posted hisviews for public consumption through YouTube andFacebook and also sharedhis thoughts with The

Hindu.“I’ve been pursuing this

idea for the last four yearswith the HRD and sportsministries. We’ve beenworking on this concept ofmaking India a sportingcountry,” Tendulkar said.

“Respect and recogniseyour sporting history.There is nothing wrong infollowing sporting feats ofother nations but also celebrate your own sportingconquests.

“A lot can be achieved ifsport is made a subject inschools. You have to identify talent at the age of 45and not past 10. Why doyou want to wait until 12 or13 to decide if the talent isgood? We should also useretired sportsmen by reemploying them in schoolsso that they share their experience and wisdom.”

Tendulkar suggested,“We have to mark pocketsfrom where we can identifytalent for a particularsport. I am amazed at thetalent that is waiting to betapped in the north east.

“They are so good in archery, boxing, and football. Punjab and Haryanahave champion wrestlers.

“Kerala has wonderfulathletes. Goa and Bengalhave superb footballers. Itis quite possible to get agood wrestler in Kerala,who can be better if hetrains at an academy in Haryana or Punjab.

“A footballer from Mumbai can gain if he trains atan academy in Kerala.”

Tendulkar’sviews onsports

Sachin Tendulkar.* FILE PHOTO

Vijay Lokapally

HYDERABAD

Rohit Sharma stressed thatIndia’s nearperfect homeseason will give the teamcon�dence for the overseaschallenges lying ahead, starting with the tour of SouthAfrica in the new year. The pressure of captain-ing the team: After the �rstODI, there was a lot of pressure on me. In Dharamshala,we were in a position wherethe side could have foldedfor its lowest score.

After that game, I thoughta lot about my captaincy andthe team. I was leading forthe �rst time and had beenput in this situation. Wherever you play, against any opposition, there’s always pressure. 150 or 140 crore peoplelive in India and there’s thepressure of expectation fromthem as well.

We’ve won the series buteach and every match is important. It’s crucial to useeach and every opportunity.Don’t know when I’ll lead In

dia again. So, for me, everymatch, every series and every moment on the �eld isimportant.The impact the serieswins in India will have onthe South Africa tour:When you travel overseas,the last series does have animpact. The momentum thatyou generate and the rhythmof the team give a lot of con�dence. But once you gothere, how you adapt to theconditions and show yourskills remain the key.

Even their fast bowlerswill be much di�erent thanSri Lanka’s. Every tour has itsown challenges and everyteam doesn’t have the samebowling attack.

When you travel overseas,the skills and mental approach need to be changed.You can carry the con�denceyou have generated from therecent success in the Test,ODI and T20 series, so as ateam we are on a high andthe con�dence will help us inSouth Africa.

‘We can carry thecon�dence to S. Africa’Special Correspondent

Indore

After dominating for themost part, Chennaiyin FCthought it had bagged threepoints courtesy a contentious penalty in the 89th minute only to be denied by astoppagetime goal from C.K.Vineeth that stunned thehome crowd into silence.

Kerala Blasters FC skipperSandesh Jhingan was adjudged to have handledFrancisco Fernandes’ shot —replays showed it brushinghis ribs — and the refereepointed to the spot. Rene Mihelic, who came in the 76thminute, converted with easeto give Chennaiyin the lead.

Jhingan made up for his

mistake in the �nal minute ashe set up Vineeth from theright �ank for an easy tap infrom within six yards.

Earlier, in the �rst half,the home team controlledpossession and created a fewhalf chances. In the 12th minute, Jude Nworuh releasedJeje on the left �ank but thelatter’s wasteful cross wentout for a goalkick.

Anirudh Thapa, whostarted instead of the suspended Dhanapal Ganesh,looked solid in mid�eldalong with Raphael Augusto.In the fourth minute, Thapa’s sublime ball into the boxfound Nworuh on the volley.However, the Nigerian’s effort just missed the left postand he was also deemedo�side.

Kerala, on the counter,managed to ask some questions thanks to some impressive runs from Courage Perkuson. In the 22nd minute,he capitalised on a defensivelapse in the centreline andset up an easy shot for Jacki

chand Singh, who made amess out of it, shooting overthe crossbar with only the’keeper to beat. In the last 20minutes, Chennaiyin won afew corners and even a freekick just outside the box, butfailed to create any meaning

ful chance. The story in thesecond half remained thesame with neither team ableto create chances.

In the 71st minute, Perkuson produced a brilliant shotthat needed an acrobatic effort from Chennai goalkeeper Karanjit Singh, diving tohis left. In the 80th minute,the Kerala ’keeper produceda onehanded save to blockGregory Nelson’s shot.

In the end, it was a heartbreak for John Gregory’sside, losing two crucialpoints, though his sidemoved to the top of the tablewith 13 points after sevengames.The result: Chennaiyin FC 1(Rene Mihelic 89) drew withKerala Blasters FC 1 (C.K. Vi-neeth 90+4).

Vineeth helps Blasters snatch a dramatic draw Chennaiyin FC had scored in the 89th minute through a contentious spot kick

ISLS. Dipak Ragav

CHENNAI

Getting ready: Rene Mihelic lines up to convert the penaltythat gave Chennaiyin the lead against Kerala Blasters. * R. RAGU


460490

#4 6 0 4 9 0

CMYK

A ND-NDE




SPORT

SUDOKU

Solution to puzzle 12195 Solution to yesterday’s Sudoku

DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

Vedanta Desika, in his Garuda Dandakam, speaks of the glories of Garuda, the mount of Lord Mahavishnu, said Akkarakkani Srinidhi in a discourse. Desika says that when serpents that adorn Garuda spread their hoods, the gems intheir hoods throw brilliant rays. These rays seem like a mangala harathi to Garuda.

There are four vyuha forms of Lord Narayana, namely Vasudeva, Sankarshana, Pradyumna and Aniruddha. Of these,Garuda is Sankarshana. Garuda has divided himself into �veforms — Satya, Suparna, Garuda, Taarkshya and Vihageswara. These �ve forms correspond to the �ve Vayus — praana,apaana, samaana, udhaana and vyaana. Garuda’s talons arelike goads that check the elephants guarding the directions.Garuda’s teeth look like Indra’s mighty weapon — the vajra.

Desika recounts the incident of the valakilya sages beinginsulted by Indra. The story goes that Indra and the valakilyas were on their way to sage Kashyapa’s yaga. The valakilyas were tiny and they fell into a puddle of water and Indramocked them. The sages then performed a yaga, out ofwhich emerged the Pakshindra — the king of all birds — andthat Pakshindra was Garuda. To release his mother frombondage, Garuda went to fetch nectar in Indra’s abode, defeated him and carried away the nectar. The Mandaramountain was used to churn the milky ocean, which yieldednectar. Desika compares Garuda to the Mandara mountainand says that Garuda churns the Vedas and extracts Vidyafrom them. So Desika prays to Garuda asking for Brahma Vidya, for the ability to distinguish between knowledge worthy of acquiring and false knowledge. At the end of his Garuda Dandakam, Desika says that when a person recitesGaruda Dandakam, attacks by enemies will be repelled.

FAITH

Glory of Garuda 6 High quality rump steak son

rejected after ordering (8)

7 One after the other from jail

picked up (2,4)

13 Masses join in moving

spontaneous performance

(3,7)

15 Fine cricket here, allround

absorbing (8)

17 Fabulous winner to scale over

peaks of tennis order (8)

18 Fruits of exercise, pain and

suffering (7)

20 Did a security job by calling

out raid (15)

21 Time to look for pudding (6)

23 Notice in passing, old piece of

information (4)

14 Doctor cutting a narrow path

around or near the kidneys (7)

16 Proclaim it a tear inducing

parody (7)

19 Make an anagram correspond

with another (8,7)

22 Starting off ham radio

broadcast with a bang? (6)

24 Press chasing actors very hard

(44)

25 Fine writer Elia's other avatar

(8)

26 Wise bird losing head and

one's heart (6)

n DOWN

1 Wealthy and affluent to keep an

eye out for capital (8)

2 Squeal when jet's cold with

temperature dropping (6)

3 Dabs lotion to deal with

discolouration (10)

4 One hopeful catch ends in drop

(7)

5 Turning ten was excellent (4)

(set by Buzzer)

n ACROSS

8 Hundreds of thousands provided

in recession from public

treasury (6)

9 Unaided, caught top gangster

(2,6)

10 Forcibly �t digging tool

through cut (8)

11 Prepare to stop (4,2)

12 Submit gooey junk for review?

I can't believe it! (3,4,2,6)

THE HINDU CROSSWORD 12196

Malan calls foraggression from EnglandMELBOURNE

Inform batsman DawidMalan says the Ashes may begone but England mustremain aggressive in the finaltwo Tests against Australia. “Ibelieve we need to be asaggressive with these guys asthey are with us. If you evertake your foot off the gaswith these blokes, they seemto really dominate,” he saidwhile addressing reportershere. AFP

IN BRIEF

Want to win titles withLiverpool: SalahLONDON

Liverpool’s key forwardMohamed Salah on Friday saidhe is determined and workinghard to win titles with theMerseyside football club. “Icame here to win titles. Towin something for the club,for us, for the fans. I wouldlove to win something here,”Salah said to Sky Sports. IANS

Paco Jamez replacesPaquito Ortiz MADRID

Struggling La Liga side UD LasPalmas confirmed Paco Jemezas its fourth coach of thecurrent season. The formerCruz Azul and Rayo Vallecanoboss replaces Paquito Ortiz,who had been in charge on atemporary basis following thesacking of Paco Ayestaran atthe end of November,according to reports. IANS

No letup on bouncerbarrage, says SmithMELBOURNE

Australia captain Steve Smithsays his fast bowlers willcontinue to bombardEngland’s tailenders withshortpitched deliveriesdespite claims theirbeleaguered batsmendeserve more protection fromthe umpires. “We obviouslyhad a plan from the start ofthe series that we were goingto bowl a lot of short stuff tothose guys, much like we didback in 2013. And no doubt ifthey have the kind of paceour bowlers could generatethey would probably do thesame thing,” Smith toldreporters here. AFP

New Zealand vs West Indies: 2nd ODI, SS Select 1 (SD& HD), 3.30 a.m.ILeague: STAR Sports 2 (SD& HD), 1.50 p.m.ISL: STAR Sports 2 (SD & HD),5.30 & 8 p.m.PBL: STAR Sports 1 (SD &HD), 7 p.m.

TV PICKS

Tokyo 2020 unveilsbudget cutsTOKYO

Tokyo 2020 organisers onFriday unveiled a “significant”cut in their budget for hostingthe games, as the city comesunder pressure to keep a lidon spiralling costs. The overallgames budget now stands at atotal of 1.35 trillion yen ($12.6billion), organisers said in astatement. This represented acut of $1.4 billion comparedto the previous version of thebudget unveiled lastDecember and $0.3 billioncompared to an interim figureagreed in May. AFP

Delhi’s Rashid Khan playedconsistently well to repeathis �rst day’s performance of�veunder67 on the secondday of the McLeod RusselTour Championship golf.This became the secondround’s best score hoistingRashid to sole lead with anaggregate 10under134 atthe Royal Calcutta Golf Club,a course where he has beendoing well over the years.

Rashid Khan had a dreamstart on Friday as he birdiedthe �rst four holes thanks tosome extremely accurateiron shots. He established aoneshot lead over Bengaluru golfer Rahil Gangjee, aformer resident of this city,who remained the only oneto be bogeyfree through the�rst 36 holes. He scored a 68in the second round to occupy second place at nineunder135.

Opening round leader,Shubhankar Sharma ofChandigarh, dropped tothird after a 70 that broughthis total to eightunder136.

A twotime Asian Tourwinner, Rashid slipped a bitwith a doublebogey on theseventh which happened ashe could not recover from atough ‘lie’ in the rough in his�rst attempt. Rashid recovered well with two long birdie conversions on the ninthand 14th to return to fourunder for the day.

He also had a stroke ofgood luck on the 18th wherehis approach shot from therough hit the �ag stick andlanded two feet from thehole thereby giving him a‘tapin’ birdie.

Gangjee also had consistent putting that kept him inthe hunt on day two. Hewent errorfree for the second straight day and madea 35footer for a birdie on the12th.

Shubhankar, though, hadan o�day with the putter. Hemade pars on the �rst 10holes but then picked up thepace with three birdies onthe next �ve holes. But hedropped a bogey on the 16thto close the day two strokesbehind the leader.

Local favourite S.S.P.Chawrasia scored fourunder68 in his second roundto improve his position byeight spots from overnight’stied 12th. He shared fourthplace with Patna’s Aman Rajat �veunder139.The scores (top 10, after roundtwo): Rashid Khan (67, 67) 134,Rahil Gangjee (67, 68) 135,Shubhankar Sharma (66, 70)136, S.S.P. Chawrasia (71, 68)139, Aman Raj (69, 70) 139,Ajeetesh Sandhu (72, 68) 140,Khalin Joshi (71, 69) 140, VeerAhlawat (71, 69) 140, Viraj Madappa (70, 70) 140, N. Thangaraja (69, 71) 140, Abhijit SinghChadha (70, 71) 141.

Rashid moves to the topReturns best card of the second round; Gangjee remains bogey-free

Amitabha Das Sharma

KOLKATA

In full �ow: Rashid Khan sank birdies on the �rst four holes tojump into the lead on Friday. * PTI

PGTI FINALE

MUMBAI: Supreme General, ridden by P. Trevor, won the RajpiplaTrophy, the feature event of Friday’s (Dec. 22) evening races here.The winner is owned by Mr.M.A.M. Ramaswamy Chettiar OfChettinad Charitable Trust.Karthik Ganapathy trains thewinner.Trainer Pesi Shroff and Jockey P.Trevor scored a treble each.

1 WILD EAGLE PLATE (2,000m),Cl. IV, rated 20 to 46: MASQUER-

ADE (David Probert) 1, It’s A Deal(C.S. Jodha) 2, Finest Moment(Dashrath) 3 and Gdansk (A. ImranKhan) 4. 3, 51/4 and 1/2. 2m,05.00s. �15 (w), 11, 16 and 26 (p).SHP: 45. FP: 47. Q: 91. Tanala: 232and 85. Favourite: Masquerade.Owners: Mr. & Mrs. Mehernosh H.Deboo. Trainer: P. Shroff.

2 RAJPIPLA TROPHY (1,600m),Cl. I, rated 80 and upward: SU-

PREME GENERAL (Trevor) 1,Mekong Delta (Sandesh) 2, SilverBeauty (Yash) 3 and Raees (C.S.Jodha) 4. 4, Hd and 1/2. 1m, 37.49s.�14 (w), 14 and 11 (p). SHP: 27. FP:41. Q: 24. Tanala: 118 and 62. Favourite: Supreme General. Owner:Mr. M.A.M. Ramaswamy Chettiarof Chettinad Charitable Trust.Trainer: Karthik Ganapathy.

3 SHANTIDAS ASKURAN TROPHY

(1,000m), Cl. II, rated 60 to 86:ANACAPRI (Trevor) 1, Allora(Dashrath) 2, Vistana (Santosh) 3and Incentio (S. Amit) 4. 3/4, 3 and1/2. 58.41s. �12 (w), 11 and 16 (p).SHP: 25. FP: 27. Q: 27. Tanala: 158and 139. Favourite: Anacapri.Owners: Mr. & Mrs. Shapoor P.Mistry rep. Manjri Horse BreedersFarm Pvt. Ltd. Trainer: P. Shroff.

4 SNOW DEW PLATE (1,000m),Cl.V, rated 1 to 26: ZION (S.

Amit) 1, Adele (Zeeshan) 2, Aravan(A. Imran Khan) 3 and DivineSpark (Ajinkya) 4. Nose, 11/4 and 1.1m, 0.31s. �180 (w), 60 and 13 (p).SHP: 29. FP: 1,072. Q: 179. Tanala:7,278 and 1,559. Favourite: Adele.Owners: Mr. Adhirajsingh Jodha &Mrs. Kritika Singh. Trainer: Adhirajsingh Jodha.NOTE: Horse Power (SandeepJadhav up) stumbled and fell dislodging the rider near 600m. Itwas announced later that Sandeepescaped unhurt.

5 FREE RADICAL PLATE

(1,400m), Cl. V, rated 1 to 26:SNOW BLAST (Trevor) 1, Medellin(Ajinkya) 2, Master Sergeant(Baria) 3 and Tall Story(Raghuveer) 4. 21/2, Nk and 53/4.�15(w), 10, 18 and 21 (p). SHP: 37.FP: 65. Q: 44. Tanala: 617 and 213.Favourite: Snow Blast. Owners:M/s. Altaf Hussain & Ashok Ranpise. Trainer: Altaf Hussain.

6 DAMODARDAS C. SHAH

TROPHY DIV. I (1,200m), Cl. IV,rated 20 to 46: DEMOCRAT (C.S.Jodha) 1, Gold Field (Shubham) 2,Man Of Word (Neeraj) 3 and TallyHo (Dashrath) 4. Nk, 11/2 and 11/2.1m, 12.18s. �224 (w), 31, 26 and 25(p). SHP: 87. FP: 2,545. Q: 2,237.Tanala: 11,482 and 4,921. Favourite: Gloriana. Owners: M/s. AkhtarAdamji Peerbhoy, Mustafa M.Pardiwala, Pramod Gajanan Churi& Ajay K. Arora. Trainer: M.K.Jadhav.

7 BOURBON KING PLATE

(1,400m), Cl. III, rated 40 to66: NICHOLAS (Sandesh) 1, Turning Point (Trevor) 2, Eternalinspiration (Yash) 3 and Spiridon (S.J.Sunil) 4. 1/2, 3/4 and 21/2. 1m,24.01s. �22 (w), 14 and 18 (p). SHP:32. FP: 63. Q: 34. Tanala: 123 and53. Favourite: Nicholas. Owners:Mr. & Mrs. Vijay B. Shirke, Mr. P.Shroff, Mrs. Tina Shroff, Mr. YohanShroff & Ms. Anya P. Shroff.Trainer: P. Shroff.

8 DAMODARDAS C. SHAH

TROPHY DIV. II (1,200m), Cl.IV, rated 20 to 46: UNTITLED

(Hanumant) 1, Blazing Steps(Nikhil) 2, She’s A Tiger (Trevor) 3and Star Of Thea (Dashrath) 4. Nk,11/4 and Nose. 1m, 12.72s. �40 (w),15, 103 and 13 (p). SHP: 400. FP:8,058. Q: 4,583. Tanala: 8,040 and3,446. Favourite: Star Of Thea.Owners: Mr. Mehli A. Nazir, Mr.Adi R. Nazir & Mr. Karl A. Nazir.Trainer: H.J. Antia.NOTE: A. Sandesh, rider of Tessa,got unseated near 600m and wastaken to the hospital.

Jackpot: 70%: �5,19,243 (1 tkt) and30%: �31,790 (7 tkts).

Treble: (i) �2,819 (6 tkts), (ii) �5,218(6 tkts).

Super jackpot: 70%: �97, 653 (1 tkt)and 30%: �20, 925 (2 tkts).

Supreme Generalobliges in main event

Diana Marcinkevicabrought an end to AnkitaRaina’s �ne run in the semi�nals of the $25000 NaviMumbai ITF tournamenthere on Friday. The 25yearold Diana, ranked 294in the world, got the betterof Ankita 64, 64 in amatch that lasted 87minutes.

Diana had lost in theprequarter�nals in the ITFevent in Solapur and in the�rst round in Pune. TheLatvian and Indian hadgone into Friday’s matchwith a 11 record. Last yearAnkita had beaten Diana atthe ITF Westende event inBelgium, while Diana hadscored against the Indian atthe same event in 2015.

Diana will take on GreatBritain’s Gabriella Taylor inthe �nal. Taylor beat thequali�er from Spain, Aliona Bolsova, 63,75 in thesecond semi�nal.The results: Semi�nals: DianaMarcinkevica bt Ankita Raina64, 64; Gabriella Taylor btAliona Bolsova 63,75.

Marcinkevicastops Ankita


NAVI MUMBAI

The Army Yachting Node(Mumbai) pair of P.P. Muthuand Shubham Patel sizzledon the 470 class boat, winning all the three races, onthe �rst day of the senior National and youth sailingchampionships at the Krishnapatnam Port here on Friday.

An Olympic class boat,the 470 requires more technique than �tness and the38yearold Muthu, a �vetime National champion,guided his younger partnerShubham when shifty windsmade things di�cult. “Thecompetition is tough asthere are lot of good sailors.We have to be consistent inthe remaining three days,”said Muthu.

Nethra Kumanan of TNSAdominated the women’s laser radial section, winningthe second and third raceswhile �nishing second in the�rst. “My boat capsized inthe downwind in Race 1, butI caught up in the upwind,”said Nethra.

Gitesh and Jerome Kumar(both Army Yachting Node,Mumbai) are leading in laserstandard and RS:X (wind

sur�ng) categories.

Gitesh overcame sti�competition from Upamanyu Dutta and Vishnu Saravanan to �nish fourth, second and �rst in the threeraces. Jerome bagged the�rst place in the �rst two races while ending up third inthe last race.

The conditions weren’tdi�cult but challenging withwinds measuring between10 and 15 knots and wavesreaching up to 2m.

The results (provisional placings after best of three racesin each category): Seniors:Men: Laser Standard: 1. Gitesh(AYN, Mumbai), 2. Vishnu Saravanan (AYN), 3. UpamanyuDutta (INWTC Mumbai). 49er:1. Sandeep Jain & Munna Pandit

(AYN), 2. Brigraj Verma & Pankar Kumar (INSA/NST), 3. Narendra Singh Rajput & Satyaranjan Rout (AYN). 470: 1. P.P.Muthu & Shubham Patel (AYN),2. Ayaz Shaikh & Mahesh Chandra Yadav (AYN), 3. VirendraSingh & Sudanshu Shekar (INSA/NST). Finn: 1. SwatantraSingh (AYN), 2. Vivek (AYN), 3.M. Naven Kumar (AYN). RS:X: 1.S. Jerome Kumar (AYN), 2. K.Arjun Reddy (AYN), 3. Manpreet Singh (AYN).

Women: Laser Radial: 1. NethraKumanan (TNSA), 2. Ramya Saravanan (CESC Pune), 3. TanuBisen (NSS Bhopal).

Youth: Optimist: 1. R. Neelanand (TNSA), 2. Navyn Prabhakar (TNSA), 3. Ritika Dangi (NSSBhopal). Laser 4.7: 1. Vivin Vinil(INWTC, Mumbai), 2. NaveenKumanan (TNSA), 3. AnikethRajaram (TNSA).

Nethra Kumanan dominates women’s laser radial

K. Keerthivasan

MUTHUKUR (Nellore)

Brilliant: P.P. Muthu, left, and Shubham Patel made the 470 class races all their own. * K. KEERTHIVASAN

Muthu and Shubham excel

NATL. SAILINGATK and Delhi Dynamos,with just one win in �ve outings, have had a similar storyin the fourth season of IndianSuper League. Lying at thebottom half of the standings,the two have failed to do wellin the attack zone.

As the two geared up tomeet at the Salt Lake Stadium on Saturday in the sixthround of action, there wastalk of stability and the way

forward for them. “It is important we stabil

ise after a tough start. Weknow we need to start winning on a regular basis. It wasfantastic to get a win �nallyafter how we performed inour �rst four games,” saidATK’s English coach andformer Manchester Unitedstar Teddy Sheringhamabout his team’s �rst success(against Mumbai City FC) after remaining winless.

“Mistakes and scoring

goals change games. I wouldnot be taking this match easybecause I know how well Delhi can play,” said Sheringham. He is banking on Irishstriker Robbie Keane, whohas bolstered the attack afterreturning from an injury layo�.

After su�ering fourstraight losses, includingthree at home, the bottomplaced Dynamos will be keento reverse the trend. The visitors will be missing head

coach Miguel Portugal andVenezuelan defender GabrielCichero due to suspension. Ithas a problem in goal too as�rstchoice goalkeeper Albino Gomes has been ruled outwith injury.

“It will be di�cult withouthim (Portugal) but we are going to do the same things together and operate as a technical team in imparting ourcoach’s philosophy,” said Dynamos’ assistant coach Shakti Chauhan.

ATK, Dynamos sailing in the same boatAmitabha Das Sharma

KOLKATA

CHANDIGARH: Uddayvir Singhbagged a double crown ashe won the boys’ u18 andu16 titles in the AITA Championship series junior tennis tournament at the CLTAComplex on Friday. NiratKaur Atwal and Simran Pritam won the girls’ u18 andu16 titles respectively.

The results (�nals): Boys: Under18: Uddayvir Singh btSukhpreet Singh Jhoje 62,62. Under16: Uddayvir Singhbt Shrut Mohan Nargeta 64,62.Girls: Under18: Nimrat KaurAtwal bt Princy Panchal 46,62, 62. Under16: SimranPritam bt Pawandeep Kaur62, 60.

Double for Uddayvir

Hogging the limelight: Champions and runnersup of thetournament. * SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

In a bizarre incident,nearly 20 Pakistanicricketers including topnames like Saeed Ajmal,Yasir Hameed and ImranFarhat were left strandedin Uganda over paymentdispute with a T20 leagueorganiser.

The players had gone toKampala, Uganda, to playin a T20 league.

But, upon landing inKampala, they found outthat the league has beenabandoned after a dispute

over payment issues.After the �rst two days

of the league were washedout, the Pakistanicricketers demanded 50%of their contractual fees ascommitted by the UgandaCricket Association.

But the organisersrefused to disburse themoney, stating that thesponsor of the league haswithdrawn. The playerssaid that they hadcontacted the PCB and thePakistan embassy and werenow preparing to returnhome later on Friday.

Pakistan playersstranded in UgandaPress Trust of India

Karachi


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SPORT

Ederson offers to play out of goal for City MANCHESTER

Manchester City goalkeeper

Ederson has jokingly offered

to play outfield for Pep

Guardiola’s rampant side.

“When I started, I was a

leftback and I do have some

qualities playing with my

feet. It’s a huge responsibility

to play at the back. But if

there was a situation where I

was ever needed outfield,

yeah, I’d definitely give it a

go,” said the Brazilian. AFP

IN BRIEF

Eibar and Alaves postcontrasting winsMADRID

Inui hit a brace as Eibar

scored a 41 win over Girona

in the La Liga on Thursday. In

another match, Munir’s strike

helped Alaves beat Malaga.The results: Eibar 4 (Inui 1,54; Charles 10, JordanMoreno 90+2) bt Girona 1(David Timor Copovi 26);Alaves 1 (Munir 60) btMalaga 0.

Bayern’s Coman penscontract extensionBERLIN

Bayern Munich’s Kingsley

Coman agreed on a contract

extension ahead of schedule,

it was announced via the

club’s official homepage. The

France international

extended his running

contract on Thursday,

stipulated until 2020, for

another three years. IANS

Mourinho escapes FAsanctionsLONDON

The FA said on Thursday that

Jose Mourinho will face no

sanctions following an

investigation of comments he

made before the recent

Manchester derby. AFP

Whenever a SainaSindhuclash is round the corner,everything else takes a backseat.

The Premier BadmintonLeague (PBL) Season 3 is nodi�erent. The inaugural contest between defendingchampion Chennai Smashers and Awadhe Warriors atthe N.C. Bordoloi Indoor Stadium here on Thursday, hasbecome an a�air of secondary importance due to thepossible faceo� betweenthe two World and Olympicmedallists.

In their last outing in theNational championship’s title clash in Nagpur lastmonth, Saina Nehwal hadgot the better of P.V. Sindhu.

So, is it revenge time forSmashers’ Sindhu?

“You win some, you losesome. It is not about revenge. When you go on to

the court, anybody can win.So both of us will play aggressively and it is also forthe team,” said Sindhu.

Keeping a watch on Saina,who has “recovered” froman injury, will be interestingthough.

BalanceSmashers has a lot of balance. Frenchman Brice Leverdez and Thailand’s WorldNo. 12 Tanongsak Saensomboonsuk will lead the challenge in men’s singles, whilethe Adcock couple, Chrisand Gabrielle, will be incharge of the mixed doublesdepartment.

Chris may join hands withKorean Lee Yang for men’sdoubles.

Saina and K. Srikanth arethe top stars in the Warriorsteam, which is one of themost consistent out�ts.

Srikanth’s �tness will holdthe key for Warriors. P. Kashyap, who is the other leadingmen’s singles player and

missed most of the seasondue to injuries, will try tomake the most of the opportunity.

Fine doubles playersThe team has some �ne doubles players in Hendra Setiawan, Or Chin Chung and TanChung Man and women’sdoubles specialist World No.7 Christinna Pedersenn.

Besides, focus will be onsome of the elite players, including women’s World No. 1Tai Tzu Ying (Ahmedabad),men’s No. 1 Viktor Axelsen(Bengaluru) and Olympicchampion Carolina Marin(Hyderabad), with the progress of the event, which hastwo new teams in NorthEastern Warriors and Ahmedabad Smash Masters.

Star attraction: The focus will be on some of the elite players, including Carolina Marin of Hyderabad Hunters. * PTI

Mouthwateringclashes in the o�ngSaina-Sindhu encounter round the corner

PBL

Y.B. Sarangi

GUWAHATI

DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

B Chennai Smashers vsAwadhe Warriors, 7 p.m.

DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

PLAYING TODAY

World and Olympic silvermedallist P.V. Sindhu said aplayer should be wiseenough to choose tournaments in order to performwell despite a hecticcalendar.

“We know the BadmintonWorld Federation (BWF) hasmany tournaments, but wecannot blame them for that.We need to pick tournaments we need to play. Weneed to be �t and injuryfree, and need to plan accordingly. If we don’t playsome tournaments, theyoungsters can get some exposure,” said Sindhu here onFriday.

Asked which she wouldselect from the World Championship, Commonwealth

and Asian Games, Sindhusaid, “Those tournamentsare important. I need to bementally and physically �t.Of course, I should play (inall three). The Commonwealth and Asian Games are

not (held) every year.”

She refused to blame PBLfor making the alreadycramped schedule tighter.

“Yes, it is a tight schedule.These leagues should happen so that the internationalplayers come here and motivate the youngsters.”

Looking back at her performances in 2017, which included two Super Series titles and also three defeats inbig �nals, including theWorld Championship, Sindhu felt she had done welldespite the losses.

“We keep playing againsteach other. We know theirgame and they know ours. Itis just that on that day whoplays better wins. Sometimes you play brilliantly, sometimes you don’t play sowell,” said Sindhu.

We need to pick tournaments wisely, says SindhuY.B. Sarangi

GUWAHATI

‘PBL will motivate youngsters’

P.V. Sindhu. * RITU RAJ KONWAR

Kamal Chawla, the IBSFWorld 6Red snooker runnerup, held his nerve to getthe better of Ishpreet Singh53 in an exciting quarter�nal of the Phoenix SereneSpaces National 6Redsnooker here on Friday.

With not an inch given, allquarter�nals were foughthard and coming out on topwere Pankaj Advani, AkshayKumar and Saurav Kothariapart from Chawla.

Chawla had to use all hisexperience to quell an attacking challenge from Ishpreet, who potted fearlessly.

“I just wanted to �nish assoon as I could because hewas potting balls like a pistol,” said Chawla. “He wasjust brilliant, “ Chawla saidof Ishpreet.

With both winning six

frames, Chawla stepped uphis game at the right time tocompile a break of 44 andheld on to go past the winning line. “Tomorrow is anew day, and let’s see how itgoes,” the former Asian goldmedallist said.

Advani had to endure anobdurate Sandeep Gulati before he could progress.

With the two resorting toexcellent safety play, thegame was slow.

After twogames all, Adva

ni raced ahead and Gulatidid not have enough fuel tostop him.

Local boy R. Girish triedhard but could not keepAkshay Kumar from takingaway the game.

“I played well and I’mlooking forward to playingthe same way in the semis,”Akshay said.

Sourav Kothari trailed bytwo frames but gathered momentum and took the nextthree frames with breaks of

46, 63 and 44. Although Varun tried to come back, Sourav stayed �rm.

All the semi�nalists, willrepresent India in the Asian6Red snooker championship to be held next year.The results: Quarter�nals: Akshay Kumar btR. Girish 52 (3629, 1048, 3914, 52 (44)4, 4111, 2533, 2814); Kamal Chawla bt IshpreetSingh Chadha 53 (1031, 510,1035, 3428, 400, 3340, 44(44)0, 3327); Sourav Kotharibt Varun Madan 53 (2346, 139, 46 (46)0, 68 (63)0, 48(44)0, 2733, 52 (52)7, 495);Pankaj Advani bt Sandeep Gulati 53 (1742, 3425, 489, 539,4616, 4330, 1738, 458).Prequarter�nals: Akshay Kumar bt G. Prabhu 53; R. Girishbt Avinash 51; Kamal Chawlabt Vinayak Agarwal 51.

Ishpreet Singh Chadha btMalkeet Singh 53; Varun Madan bt I.H. Manudev 52; Sourav Kothari bt Vijay Nichani 51;Sandeep Gulati bt Sahil Nayyar51; Pankaj Advani bt Pushpender Singh 51.

Chawla holds nerve to best IshpreetAdvani goes past an obdurate Gulati; Akshay and Sourav also advance

Focused: With Ishpreet Chadha potting well, Kamal Chawlahad to pull out all stops to reach the semi�nals. * V. GANESAN

R. Venkatnarayan

Chennai

6-RED SNOOKER

Vijender Singh is not taking anything for granted ashe gears up to defend hisWBO Asia Paci�c andOriental titles against Ghana’s Ernest Amuzu here onSaturday. The 32yearoldwill be squaring o� againstAmuzu in a supermiddleweight clash.

“It is a matter of just onegood punch and the bout isdecided. Many a times wehave seen lowerrankedboxers defeat higherratedrivals. I am not takinganything easy,” Vijendersaid.

“It is often said that everything is fair in love andwar and this bout is alsolike a war,” he added.

Vijenderready forthe battle


JAIPUR


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WEEKEND SPORT


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LIFE

Salman is highest-paidcelebrity in India: ForbesMUMBAI

Actor Salman Khan has once

again topped Forbes’ annual

list of the highestearning

entertainers in the country.

The 51yearold pipped Shah

Rukh Khan after raking in

�232.83 crore in the period

from October 1, 2016, to

September 30, 2017. Shah

Rukh, with �170.5 crore,

retained last year’s position

at number two, and was

followed by cricketer Virat

Kohli with �100.72 crore.

Priyanka Chopra is the only

woman in the top 10, with

earnings of �68 crore. PTI

IN BRIEF

Facebook signs deal with Universal Music NEW YORK

Facebook and record label

Universal Music Group have

signed a deal that will let

users of the social networking

site share videos that have

the label’s music in them. At

present, if Facebook’s users

upload videos that contain

Universal’s music, the videos

get taken down. The

companies did not say when

users would be able to share

music in videos. They hinted

that more music features

could be coming soon. AP

She started the year leadingthe chorus of opprobriumagainst U.S. President Donald Trump but 12 monthson Meryl Streep, multipleOscarwinner and doyenneof the liberal Hollywoodelite, has become a targetherself.

The 68yearold is comingunder �re over her denialsthat she knew about themisconduct of movie mogulHarvey Weinstein, who is alleged to have spent his career sexually assaulting, harassing and intimidatingwomen. The preeminentactress of her generation,Streep has had a glittering40year career that has seenher play everything from aNazi concentration campsurvivor to an ABBAsingingmother.

On Tuesday, around a dozen posters appeared in LosAngeles, depicting Streep asan enabler of Weinstein,who has always denied nonconsensual sexual contactwith any of his accusers.

Film in limelightSabo, a 49yearold rightwing guerilla artist andformer U.S. marine claimedresponsibility for the posters, which show Streepwith a red stripe across herface and the text, “Sheknew.”

He added that he hadconceived the campaign asretaliation for Streep usingher latest �lm The Post to attack Trump, who is facing

accusations of his own by asmany as 16 women who sayhe sexually assaulted them.

Streep has worked on several Weinstein produced�lms and jokingly referredto him as “God” at the 2012Golden Globes.

Rose McGowan, one ofthe #MeToo social mediacampaign’s most prominentadvocates and an allegedvictim of Weinstein, criticised Streep in a sincedeleted tweet over plans for actresses to wear black to theGolden Globes in a silentprotest against sexual assault. “YOUR SILENCE isTHE problem. You’ll accepta fake award breathlessly &a�ect (sic) no real change. Idespise your hypocrisy,”McGowan tweeted.

Streep recently responded in a lengthy statement tothe Hu�ngton Post that she“did not know about Weinstein’s crimes, not in the 90swhen he attacked (McGowan), or through subsequent decades when he proceeded to attack others.”

“She knew,” says poster campaign


Los Angeles

Meryl Streep. * AFP

Streep’s brand at riskover Weinstein denial

For decades, a confessionalin a church in Lithuania’scapital Vilnius kept a precious secret: a trove of documents o�ering an unprecedented glimpse into Jewishlife in Eastern Europe beforeand during the Holocaust.

The cache, with documents dating back to themid18th century, includes religious texts, Yiddish literature and poetry, testimoniesabout pogroms as well as autobiographies andphotographs.

“The diversity of materialis breathtaking,” said DavidFishman, professor of JewishHistory at New York’s JewishTheological Seminary, describing the discovery as a“total surprise”.

“It’s almost like you couldreconstruct Jewish life before the Holocaust based onthese materials becausethere is no aspect and no region and no period that ismissing,” he added.

The trove was discoveredearlier this year during acleaning of the church thatwas used as a book repository during Soviet times.

The documents, togetherwith a larger cache found inVilnius nearly three decadesago, are “the most signi�cantdiscovery for Jewish history

since the discovery of theDead Sea Scrolls in the1950s”, Mr. Fishman said.

Treasured manuscriptsAmong the most treasured�nds are several original manuscripts of poems writtenin the Vilnius ghetto by celebrated Yiddish poet AvromSutzkever, including thehaunting To My Brother.

“We had the versions thathe reconstructed from memory and published right after the war,” Mr. Fishmansaid of Sutzkever, who survived the Holocaust.

“Now we have the manu

scripts that he actually wrotein the ghetto and there aredi�erences — that was a verypowerful �nd.”

An 1857 agreement between the Jewish water carriers in Vilnius and the city’sfamous Ramailes rabbinicTalmudic academy, or yeshiva, o�ers a telling insight into everyday life 160 yearsago.

In exchange for copies ofthe Bible and Talmud, theyeshiva agreed to let the water carriers use a room forprayers on the Sabbath andholidays free of charge.

After occupying Vilnius in

1941, the Nazis destroyed theJewish community and plundered its cultural wealth.

Jewish poets and intellectuals were coerced by theNazis in the Vilnius ghetto into selecting Yiddish and Hebrew books and documentsfor an institute in Germany.

The Germans sent a portion of the plundered texts toFrankfurt, but the Jewish archivists risked their lives tohide a vast array of preciousdocuments from theirtormentors.

Soviet troubleAfter the war, a Lithuanian librarian, Antanas Ulpis, intervened to save those documents that had survived theNazis from the country’snew Soviet occupiers, whowere bent on destroyingthem as part of dictator Joseph Stalin’s antireligiouspurges.

Ulpis deftly hid some ofthe manuscripts “under apile of Soviet journals —that’s why no one botheredto look, that’s why they weren’t discovered sooner,”said Renaldas Gudauskas, director of Lithuania’s National Library. There they remained untouched fordecades in the confessionalin St. George’s Church thatthe Soviets used as a book repository after the war.

Jewish trove hidden from Nazis gives up its secrets Yiddish literature, poetry and texts from 160 years ago found in Lithuanian church

In safe hands: Researcher Lara Lempertiene shows a book thatis part of a Jewish collection found in Vilnius. * AFP


Vilnius

Hong Kong’s soaring property prices have pushed tens ofthousands of families into tiny, partitioned apartments,sparking calls for creative solutions, including convertingshipping containers andeven water pipes into temporary homes.

The former British colony,one of the most densely populated places on Earth whereindividual, caged beds o�erthe only living space forsome of the very poor, hasseen home prices shatter historic records for 12 straightmonths. In November, anapartment sold for

HK$132,060 ($16,915) persquare foot, making it themost expensive apartmentper square foot in Asia.

This has forced some

2,00,000 individuals into tiny partitioned �ats, averaging a mere 62 sq.ft.

Government �gures released on Wednesday show

the number of householdsliving in “inadequate housing”, including partitioned�ats and industrial buildings,surged 9% this year.

Hong Kong had wonpraise for a postwar programme that put hundredsof thousands into publichousing and cleared hillsidesof precarious, �repronesquatter villages, but demand has since outstrippedsupply, inspiring ideas forshortterm solutions.

Concrete water pipes —some measuring 2.5 metresin diameter — could be converted into a 120sq.ft. miniapartment for two, completewith a shower and a toilet,

Chineseruled city has said itwill continue to tackle thehousing shortage and that itis exploring di�erent formsof “transitional housing”.

Nongovernmental groupssay while pipes and containers could provide temporaryreprieve, they cannot be thesolution. “We welcome anypossibilities to speed up theprovision of temporaryhousing,” said Lai Kinkwok,convener of Platform Concerning Subdivided Flats inHong Kong. “But I want tostress these can only beshortterm arrangements.Ultimately the governmentmust speed up the construction of public housing.”

according to architect JamesLaw.

They could be stacked between the city’s highrisesand utilise space otherwisegoing to waste, Mr. Law said,adding that he was seekinggovernment approval.

Short-term solutionsDemand for shipping container homes has surged,with one manufacturer,Markbox, saying demandhad doubled in the past year.

Online advertisements forconverted containers, whichare legal to build but illegalto live in, tout monthly rentsof HK$3,000 to HK$5,000.

The government in the

Many in Hong Kong literally live in a box Soaring property prices have sparked calls for converting shipping containers and water pipes into homes

Concrete pipe converted into a miniapartment. * REUTERS

Reuters

Hong Kong

An owl peeping out of its nest at RCD Hospital in Visakhapatnam. * C.V. SUBRAHMANYAM

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Well spotted

He is still too young to talk,but a twoyearold boy hasbecome a modernday Mowgli and a subject of local intrigue after befriending agang of langur monkeys.

Samarth Bangari’s unusual friendship was discovered when the youngsterwas spotted alone in his village in Karnataka playingwith nearly two dozen greylangurs.

The child’s uncle BaramaReddy said it was “strange”for the monkeys to behavelike that, and villagers fearedthe boy would be attackedwhile his parents worked ina nearby �eld.

But it soon became clearthey were more than com

fortable in his presence,with the youngster happy toshare some of his food withthe visiting troupe.

Daily visitThe monkeys kept returning, day after day, to visittheir young friend in Allapur, 400 km from Bengaluru. “Since that day, the monkeys haven’t missed a day.They come to the housearound the same time,” saidMr. Reddy.

“Even if he is sleeping,they �rst wake him up, andthen sit with him for an houror two.”

The unusual relationshippiqued local interest, andsoon people began visitingthe house to catch a glimpseof young Samarth tottering

around the farm with 20 langurs in tow. Thinking themonkeys must enjoy thecompany of children, another child was plonked next toSamarth but the langur packbecame aggressive, Mr. Reddy said.

He said Samarth was nowa local legend due to his“special bond” with themonkeys, whose sounds hemimics even though he cannot speak yet.

“Everyone thinks that heis special and they are communicating with each other,and can understand what isbeing said,” Mr. Reddy said.

Mowgli is a character inThe Jungle Book, RudyardKipling’s tales about a boywho grew up in the wild inIndia.

Toddler in Karnataka forges bond with wild monkeys


Dharwad

Peaceful time: Samarth Bangari with langurs in Allapur in Karnataka. AFP

A modern Mowgli

Researchers have found evidence to show that a star 550light years from the earth isslowly consuming its “o�spring” — crushing one or moreplanets in its orbit into vastclouds of gas and dust — likethe ancient Greek god Cronus who devoured hischildren.

The discovery that thestar, RZ Piscium — located inthe constellation Pisces — isan insatiable “eater ofworlds” was published inThe Astronomical Journal.

The researchers foundthe star’s temperature to be

about 5,330 degrees Celsius— only slightly cooler thanthe sun. The study alsoshowed that the star couldbe relatively young.

Solar system insight“This discovery really givesus a rare and beautifulglimpse into what happensto many newly formed planets that don’t survive theearly dynamical chaos ofyoung solar systems,” saidcoauthor of the study, Catherine Pilachowski, an astronomer at Indiana Universityin the U.S.

“It helps us understandwhy some young solar sys

tems survive — and somedon’t,” Ms. Pilachowski said.

The discovery may shedlight on a brief but volatileperiod in the history of many solar systems, includingour own.

“We know it’s not uncommon for planets to migrateinward in young solar systems since we’ve found somany solar systems with‘hot Jupiters’ — gaseous planets similar in size to Jupiterbut orbiting very close totheir stars,” Ms. Pilachowskisaid. Doomed worlds that �ytoo close to their sun are o�cially known as “disruptedplanets.”

Sunlike star found eatingits own planetary o�springIndo-Asian News Service

Washington

Working at “Hazara”, a restaurant in the Pakistani cityof Quetta, is a potentiallydeadly political act: all of theeatery’s employees are female members of a Shiiteethnic minority often targeted by extremists.

The outlet is named afterthe ethnic Hazara who makeup a large part of Pakistan’sShiite minority, which accounts for about 20% of thecountry’s 207million Sunnimajority population.

The Hazara, whose Central Asian features make

them easily recognisable, area soft target for Sunni militants who consider them heretics.

The Shiite community’spresence is particularlystrong in Quetta — the restivecapital of impoverished Balochistan province — that also serves as the headquarters of the Afghan Taliban,and where sectarian attacksare frequent.

The eatery is located inHazara Town, one of twoneighbourhoods in Quettawhere the community isguarded by armed checkpoints.

The protection is necessary: Hazaras — who makeup roughly 500,000 of thecity’s 2.3 million population— are living practically undersiege.

In October, three Hazaravegetable vendors who ventured outside their enclavewere shot in the head atpointblank range, just thelatest in a series of attackstargeting the group.

They still live with the violent memory of two attacksin January and February2013 that killed nearly 200 ofits members.

The events had a powerful

e�ect on Hameeda Ali Hazara, a member of the localcommunity, whose houseadjoins the site of an attack.

Helping hand“I told myself that I had tohelp the victims,” Hameedasaid.

She set up Hazara restaurant, which opened twomonths ago, hoping to provide a way to help familiesand female victims of sectarian attacks.

She has three employeeswho are all victims of violence, she said, includingone who lost her husband

broidery or smallscale trading at markets.

“Opportunities to start abusiness or join a companyare rare” for them, said Hameeda.

Her restaurant initiativealso aims to push the sta� to“seize work opportunities instead of staying home with aneedle and thread”, shesays.

A chance that Masooma —a cook and waitress at the eatery as well as a student —has grasped. “I work here toearn money for my familybut also to pay my schooling,” she says.

during a bomb attack.To the di�culty of being

Hazara is added that of beinga woman in very conservative community.

In Pakistan, women account for just 25% of the labour force, according to thelatest �gures from the International Labour O�ce.

Women’s employmentdrops to 2% in the servicesector in Balochistan, a placethat operates largely according to patriarchial tribalcustoms.

The meagre incomesavailable to women generallycome from homemade em

Pakistan’s Hazara women �nd safe space in social venture Entrepreneur sets up restaurant to serve a neighbourhood in Quetta, where sectarian attacks are frequent


Quetta

Food for the soul: Hameeda Ali Hazara cooks at herrestaurant in Quetta. * AFP