HYDERABAD l friday l February 06, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 40 l LATE CITY EDITION gujarat to reclaim asaram’s ashram land near ahmedabad The Gujarat High Court allowed the state govt to resume possession of over 45,000 sq m of land from godman Asaram Bapu’s ashram at Motera illegal constructions on govt land allotment rules circumvented, hc told The state government submitted that the land had been allotted several decades ago solely for religious use. These conditions were violated over time, with construction carried out on the land far in excess of what was originally allotted, Gujarat submitted. The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation apprised the court of illegal constructions in the premises ■ ■ On a plea by ashram authorities to stop the takeover, the court observed that the allotment conditions were specific and binding, and that record showed construction beyond the permitted limits Self-styled godman Asaram, the owner of the ashram, is serving a life sentence in a rape case and is presently out on bail for six months `500 cr is the value of the land under the possession of the ashram 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 Those waiting to dig my grave will be disappointed: Modi in RS speech Says there is renewed hope of global stability after India’s recent trade deals with EU, US RA J E S H K U M AR T H A K UR Why the PM did not speak in the LS @ New Delhi A day after his scheduled address in the Lok Sabha had to be cancelled amid repeated disruptions by Opposition MPs, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday launched a blistering attack on the Opposition while replying to the Motion of Thanks on the President’s Address in the Rajya Sabha. He began his speech by highlighting India’s recent trade agreements with the European Union and the US, which he said instilled greater confidence in the country in the eyes of the global community. “When we signed the trade deal with the EU, it instilled confidence and hope about bringing global stability After the trade . deal with the US, the world became even more confident that with stability, they can sense speed, too,” he said. Opposition MPs raised slogans but he continued his speech, taking a jibe at Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge, saying: “Considering his age, he can sit and raise slogans.” Prime Minister Narendra Modi replies to the Motion of Thanks in the Rajya Sabha | pti Modi, then, turned his focus squarely on the Opposition and continued his fiery speech despite repeated disruptions. Tearing into the Congress, Modi flagged the party’s use of spiteful words such as gaddar (traitor) and kabr (grave). In a sharp jibe at the Gandhi family Modi said some “habit, ual thieves” have even stolen the surname of a Gujarati, Mahatma Gandhi. When Opposition MPs staged a walkout during his address, he took a sarcastic swipe, remarking thak gaye, chale gaye (they are tired, so they left). Giving a political twist to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s ‘traitor’ jibe against Union minister Ravneet Singh Bittu on Wednesday Modi said , the comment amounted to an insult to the entire Sikh community “How can the country . tolerate a citizen being called a traitor? Such people will sink the Congress,” Modi said, targeting Rahul over his remarks against Bittu, who was earlier with the Congress. Referring to the slogan Modi teri kabr khudegi that was BJP taking protection money from BRS to shield KCR, KTR: CM In an unprecedented development, the Lok Sabha on Thursday passed the Motion of Thanks on the President’s address without the customary reply by the PM. Speaker Om Birla said he had information that Congress MPs planned “some unexpected act” by reaching the PM’s seat. Following this, he requested the PM not to come to the House | P11 raised against him during a recent Congress rally he said the , Opposition could raise any slogans, but they won’t come true. “Why do you want to dig Modi’s grave? This is not just a slogan. It is a reflection of the hatred within,” he said, noting it’s an irony that such hateful slogans come from a party that talks of Mohabbat ki dukaan (shop of love). He also criticised the TMC for allegedly protecting infiltrators in Bengal, DMK for promoting dynasty in Tamil Nadu, and CPI(M) for neglecting development in Kerala. Kuki-Zo council boycotts 3 MLAs who joined govt P r a s a nta M a z u m d a r @ Guwahati THE Kuki-Zo Council (KZC), which represents Manipur’s Kuki-Zo tribes, on Thursday announced a social boycott of all three Kuki-Zo legislators who on Wednesday joined the newlyformed government, even as the seventh session of the legislative assembly commenced with Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla’s address. “By joining the for mation of a Meitei-dominated government, these MLAs have effectively aligned themselves with our enemy, disregarding the imNemcha Kipgen mense pain and sacrifices endured by the Kuki-Zo community the KZC said ,” in a statement. The organisation viewed the act as a serious betrayal and a deliberate attempt to undermine the unity, sentiments, and collective political stand of the Kuki-Zo people. Amid a demand by the Kuki-Zo leaders for a separate administrative unit, BJP MLA Yumnam Khemchand Singh on Wednesday was sworn in as the 13th CM of Manipur. Nemcha Kipgen (pic), a BJP MLA who belongs to the Kuki community took oath as deputy , chief minister. L M Khaute and Ngursanglur Sanate, are the other two MLAs facing boycott. Kishan: Cong, BRS in covert pact to block corruption probes E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Hyderabad safe and sound Congress MP Shashi Tharoor in a wheelchair on Thursday after he tripped and fell on the stairs of the Parliament complex during the Budget Session in New Delhi | PTI At least 18 dead in rathole mine blast P r a s a nta M a z u m d a r @ Guwahati AT least 18 labourers were killed, and several others feared trapped following a dynamite explosion at an illegal coal mine in Meghalaya’s East Jaintia Hills early on Thursday officials said. , `2 lakh Asked whether the mine was operex-gratia ating illegally, East Jaintia Hills SuPM Narendra perintendent of Police Vikash Kumar Modi said, “Yes, it seems like that.” Rescue announced an teams have been engaged in search ex-gratia of `2 operations, Director General of Polakh for the lice I Nongrang said, adding that the next of kin of tragedy occurred in the Thangsku each deceased, area in the morning. while the “We are trying to gather informainjured would tion about the mine owner and the be given people who are running this mine. Af`50,000 ter that, we will take necessary actions,” the SP said. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) had imposed a ban on rat-hole coal mining and other unscientific mining practices in Meghalaya in 2014. Despite the ban, illegal mining continues. There have been several incidents of coal mine mishaps in Meghalaya, endowed with coal. E x press R e a d Flights booked, says SKY; govt to take semis call: Agha Mumbai: Even before the first ball of the T20 World Cup is bowled on February 7, the India–Pakistan issue has dominated discussions. At a media interaction on Thursday, India captain Suryakumar Yadav said India had no objection to playing Pakistan and would travel to Colombo as scheduled. “We haven’t said no. They have. ICC has given the fixture,” he said. In Colombo, Pakistan captain Salman Ali Agha said playing India in the knockouts would depend on government approval. “It’s not in our control. If we meet in the semi-final or final, we will have to go back to them,” he said. | P15 E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Hyderabad Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Thursday accused the BJP of collecting “protection money” from the BRS to shield K Chandrasekhar Rao, KT Rama Rao and T Harish Rao from corruption cases. He challenged the BJPled Centre to arrest them before the municipal polls on February 11. Addressing a public meeting in Karimnagar, he alleged a secret BJP-BRS pact and questioned the Centre’s inaction despite Assembly resolutions on the Kaleshwaram project. Revanth also claimed the BJP and BRS shared a “Fevicol bond” and had entered into a “secret dark pact” during elections.  p4 Union Coal and Mines Minister G Kishan Reddy on Thursday accused the Congress and the BRS of having a covert understanding to shield the previous regime from corruption probes. He alleged that senior Congress leaders had an understanding with former chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, leading to inaction against BRS leaders in the phone-tapping case. Speaking in Hyderabad, he said blame was being shifted to one officer. Later, pointing to the defection of politicians, the senior BJP leader alleged that the Congress and BRS were no different.  p4 group-I results upheld by hc The single judge’s order that had suspended results for 563 posts was set aside | P2 ‘life or death’ card Girl denied ambulance over Aadhaar; govt reply sought T G N a i d u @ Hyderabad The Telangana High Court on Thursday sought a response from the state government on whether ambulance services are being denied to medical emergency victims solely for not possessing an Aadhaar card, asking if an injured per- treatment son found on the roadside would be left denied Telangana High untreated for want of the document. A division bench of Chief Justice Court converted Aparesh Kumar Singh and Justice GM an advocate’s Mohiuddin directed the state to place letter into a suo its official position on record by filing a motu PIL over alleged denial of counter-affidavit within two weeks. The PIL, filed by K Raju, a para-legal treatment to a volunteer, alleged that emergency medi- poor patient at cal assistance was denied to a minor a Mahbubabad hospital as he girl belonging to an SC community bedid not have an cause she was not carrying her Aad- Aadhaar card | p3 haar card. According to him, in December 2024, the girl was found lying on the road, but the 108 ambulance staff allegedly refused to assist her, citing the absence of Aadhaar identification. “We want to ascertain the factual position. If a person meets with an accident and a passerby alerts emergency services, will the victim not be transported unless an Aadhaar card is produced?” the Bench observed.  continued on p3