CIC: Advocates can’t use RTI Act to seek details for clients’ cases The Central Information Commission (CIC) has ruled that advocates cannot use the Right to Information (RTI) Act to seek details regarding cases they are handling for clients. Quoting a Madras High Court order, the CIC underlined that “a practising advocate cannot seek information relating to the cases instituted by him on behalf of his client”. kalaburagi l Monday l January 19, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 14 l city EDITION CHENNAI ■ MADURAI ■ VIJAYAWADA ■ BENGALURU ■ KOCHI ■ HYDERABAD ■ VISAKHAPATNAM ■ COIMBATORE ■ KOZHIKODE ■ THIRUVANANTHAPURAM ■ BELAGAVI ■ BHUBANESWAR ■ SHIVAMOgGA ■ MANGALURU ■ TIRUPATI ■ TIRUCHY ■ TIRUNELVELI ■ SAMBALPUR ■ HUBBALLI ■ DHARMAPURI ■ KOTTAYAM ■ KANNUR ■ VILLUPURAM ■ KOLLAM ■ TADEPALLIGUDEM ■ NAGAPATTINAM ■ THRISSUR ■ KALABURAGI Modi targets Cong, TMC in poll pitch Don invites PM to ‘Board of Peace’ Accuses the two parties of endangering national security for the sake of vote-bank politics PRASA N TA M A Z U M D AR & S U BH E N D U M AITI @ Guwahati / Kolkata J aya n t h J a c o b @ New Delhi US President Donald Trump has invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to join a proposed “Board of Peace” for Gaza, in a significant outreach as Washington seeks to shape post-war governance and reconstruction of the besieged enclave. The invitation letter was sent on January 16. Pakistan’s Foreign Office had earlier said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had also been invited to be part of the initiative. Several global leaders have been invited too, including Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and leaders of France, Germany, Australia and Canada. Details about the peace board surfaced after letters sent by Trump to Argentine President Javier Milei and Paraguayan President Santiago Peña were posted by the two leaders on social media. In his letter to Milei, Trump said the board would work to “solidify peace in the Middle East.” A draft charter circulated by the Trump administration to 60 countries reportedly requires member states to contribute $1 billion in cash for memberships extending beyond three years. People protesting US President Donald Trump’s policy towards Greenland in front of the US consulate in Nuuk, Greenland, early on Sunday | AP EU pushback against Trump’s tariff war A G E N CI E S EUROPEAN leaders on Sunday slammed US President Donald Trump’s threat of tariffs over their opposition to his designs on Greenland, warning transatlantic ties were at risk. Several European countries — including Denmark, of which Greenland is an autonomous territory — emphasised they “stand united” against Trump’s vow on Saturday to hit them with tariffs of up to 25 percent unless Greenland is ceded to the United States. “Tariff threats undermine transatlantic relations and risk a dangerous downward spiral,” Britain, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden warned in a joint statement Sunday . The European Union, which clinched a deal with Washington in July for most EU exports to face a 15-percent US levy, has called an extraordinary meeting of its ambassa- dors in Brussels on Sunday . France’s President Emmanuel Macron will ask the EU to activate a never-beforeused “anti-coercion instrument” against the United States if Trump makes good on his tariff threat, Macron’s aides said. The bloc’s weapon, dubbed its trade “bazooka”, allows curbing imports of goods and services into the EU, a market of 27 countries with a combined population of 450 million. Trump had on Saturday threatened to punish eight European countries with tariffs after they sent a few dozen troops to Greenland as part of a military drill. Italy’s far-right Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, called the threatened tarif fs a “mistake”. Dutch Foreign Minister David van Weel meanwhile called Trump’s threat an “inexplicable” “blackmail”. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer was planning to discuss the situation with Trump “at the earliest opportunity .” PRIME Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday mounted a sharp political attack on the Congress and Trinamool Congress (TMC), accusing the two parties of endangering national security by protecting infiltrators for vote-bank politics. After laying the foundation stone for the `6,957 crore Kaziranga Elevated Corridor, and virtually flagging off two Amrit Bharat trains from Kaliabor in election-bound Assam’s Nagaon district, Modi accused the Congress of allowing infiltrators in exchange for votes dur- ing its years in power in the north-eastern state. Taking potshots at the Congress for its poor show in the recent Bihar Assembly election and Maharashtra local body polls, Modi said the grand old party has lost the trust of the nation and the BJP has become the first choice of people. “In the recent Bihar elections, even after 20 years, people gave a record number of votes to the BJP helping it win , a record number of seats. Mumbai, for the first time, gave a record mandate to the BJP. In most cities of Maharashtra, people gave the BJP an opportunity to serve them,” he said. express read CM’s convoy gets caught in Suttur Jatra traffic snarl Mysuru: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah was briefly caught in a traffic jam while returning from the Suttur Jatra Mahotsava near Mysuru on Sunday. Heavy vehicular movement and a large gathering of devotees returning after the mega religious event at Suttur Sri Kshetra resulted in traffic jams on the route. The police struggled to clear the traffic and ensure smooth passage for the CM’s convoy, which was stuck for several minutes | P4 Kohli ton in vain as India suffer historic loss Iran protests death toll over 5,000 Indore: Virat Kohli smashes his 85th international ton, but New Zealand had the last laugh as they beat India by 41 runs to win their first ODI series in the country. Less than 18 months ago, Black Caps handed India a 3-0 hammering in red-ball cricket and now have followed it up with a sensational ODI series win weeks before the T20 World Cup | P13 Dubai: At least 5,000 people have been killed in protests in Iran, including about 500 security personnel, Reuters reported citing an unnamed Iranian official on Sunday. The consolidated death toll was based on verified figures, with the official accusing “terrorists and armed rioters” of killing “innocent Iranians” | P11 PM Narendra Modi addresses a gathering in Nagaon, Assam, on Sunday | pti Modi also pointed to the BJP’s electoral breakthrough in Kerala, where the party secured the mayor’s post in Thiruvananthapuram for the first time. According to Modi, the results across states reflected a consistent national trend. “The voters today want good governance and development. That is why they like the BJP he said, , ,” adding that the results show the Congress is being repeatedly rejected by voters. Later in the day addressing a , rally at West Bengal’s Singur, Modi accused the TMC government of sitting idle on the Centre’s request to acquire land for fencing the Bangladesh border. “The Centre has been writing to the TMC government in Bengal for the past 11 years requesting land for border fencing to prevent infiltration in the state. But it sits idle on the issue,” Modi alleged. Nod given to KSCA conditional, says Dr G E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Bengaluru Home Minister G Par ameshwara told reporters here on Sunday that the state government has given permission to host matches at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, subject to certain conditions. He said the Justice D’Cunha Commission submitted its recommendations on the safety measures to be implemented, and they were also sent to the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA). A committee was constituted to oversee the safety measures implemented and the matter was discussed in the Cabinet. The committee observed that the recommendations had been complied with. Before submitting its report to the Cabinet, KSCA had requested permission to host matches, assuring the government that it would fulfil all the recommendations. During the Cabinet meeting, it was discussed that both long-term and shortterm measures should be implemented. P7