BHUBANESWAR l tuesday l may 12, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l late city EDITION Vinesh reaches gonda, wfi refuses to let her take part Despite being cleared by Int’l Testing Agency, Vinesh Phogat was not allowed to complete verification for Sr Open rankings meet in Gonda ‘WFI CHIEF WANTS ME TO QUIT WRESTLING’ written explanation needed: WFI Vinesh presented her arguments before WFI president Sanjay Kumar Singh but those fell on deaf ears. The 31-year-old grappler alleged conspiracy being hatched against her by former WFI chief Brij Bhushan. Earlier, the two-time Worlds medallist had expressed apprehension over participating at this venue, which is considered a stronghold of Brij Bhushan | P11 ■ ■ Reacting to Vinesh’s accusations, Sanjay Singh said the wrestler has to submit a complete explanation and it would be submitted to the WFI’s disciplinary committee, which eventually will take a call WFI highlighted the secure environment provided to Vinesh during her visit from her arrival in Gonda to her departure from the venue 3 nUMBER OF TIMES vINESH pHOGAT HAS TAKEN PART IN THE oLYMPICS 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 It’s Nayagarh now! Stone mafia hack youth, chop hands Austerity pitch spooks markets, hits sentiments A s i s h M e h ta @ Bhubaneswar Sensex down 1.7%, rupee falls to 95.31, govt reviewing pricing of petroleum products D IPA K M ON D A L @ New Delhi Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call for austerity in view of the Iran war triggered sharp reactions across markets and sectors on Monday with investors interpreting the , remarks as a signal of an imminent crisis. Equity markets tumbled over 1.5%, while the rupee—which depreciated 11.5% in the past year— plunged 82 paise to settle at a record closing low of 95.31 against the US dollar. Taking cues from the PM’s warning on economic disruptions, the BSE Sensex fell 1,312.91 points, or 1.7%, to close at 76,015.28, while the NSE Nifty50 declined 360.30 points, or 1.49%, to settle at 23,815.85. During a speech in Hyderabad on Sunday , Modi called for collective participation to help India navigate global economic disruptions, supply chain challenges, and rising prices. He urged people to avoid buying gold and cut down on foreign travel, and asked companies to revive work-from-home arrangements similar to those adopted during the Covid-19 pandemic. The PM’s call for reducing petrol and diesel consumption also fuelled speculation that a retail fuel price hike was imminent. On Monday the petroleum ministry said , oil marketing companies are likely to face under-recoveries of `2 lakh crore in the first quarter of FY27. The ministry added the government is reviewing fuel pricing. Petroleum products and gold imports remain major burdens on India’s external account. In FY26, India imported petroleum products worth $172 billion while gold imports surged 24% to $72 billion. India’s foreign exchange reserves stood at $690 billion in the week ending May 1, down from a peak of $728 billion in the week ended Feb 27. The PM’s appeal for restraint on gold purchases has brought renewed attention to the free trade pact with the UAE, following which gold imports jumped from $3 billion in 2022 to $16.5 billion in 2025. Remote and hybrid work on: Nasscom On PM’s call for work from home arrangements, Nasscom said most companies have already optimised energy consumption and enabled remote and hybrid work arrangements wherever operationally appropriate to reduce energy usage and commuting Concerned about crisis: India Inc India Inc has expressed concern over the economic challenges owing to Gulf crisis. Sunil Mittal, chairman, Bharti Enterprises, said the crisis has placed pressure on global economies, including India Somnath anniv Prime Minister Narendra Modi offers prayers at Somnath Temple in Veraval in Gujarat as part of the Somnath Amrut Mahotsav, marking 75 years of the inauguration of the restored temple dedicated to Lord Shiva | PTI Sonia, Priyanka step in to break the impasse over Kerala CM candidate K S SREE J ITH @ T’Puram THE suspense over who will be the next Kerala chief minister deepened on Monday, a week after the election results gave a thumping majority to the Congress-led UDF, as the party’s central leadership summoned senior leaders from the state for another round of talks. The move comes after senior leader Sonia Gandhi and Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra favoured detailed discussions with former KPCC presidents to resolve the deadlock. Apart from Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) chief Sunny Joseph and working presidents A P Anil Kumar, P C Vishnunadh and Shafi Parambil, former KPCC presidents V M Sudheeran, K Muraleedharan, K Sudhakaran, and M M Decision today? Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, who is on a visit to his home state Karnataka, will reach Delhi on Tuesday, earlier than his scheduled return on Wednesday. This, Congress sources said, indicates an announcement is likely on Tuesday Hassan are expected to reach Delhi by Tuesday . Mullappally Ramachandran expressed his inability to travel at short notice after which senior leader Rahul Gandhi spoke to him on the phone. According to party sources, the high command is likely to meet the Kerala leaders individually to take their inputs. The three contenders for the CM’s post—K C Venugopal, Ramesh Chennithala, and V D Satheesan—have pinned their hopes on these meetings. Although the senior leaders had met the two central observers during their visit to Kerala, the latest decision is in view of the continuing stalemate over CM selection. However, there are indications that the latest round of talks is to ward off criticism that all stakeholders were not taken into confidence. Sources said both Rahul and party president Mallikarjun Kharge would meet the leaders and seek their opinion on the choice of the new CM and the overall political atmosphere. Thereafter, the high command may summon the three CM contenders and inform them of the final decision. Victory margin vs SIR New Bengal govt appeals: File fresh plea, clears land transfer for border fencing SC tells ex-CM Mamata SU B HEN D U M A ITI @ Kolkata s u c h i t r a k a lya n m o h a n t y @ New Delhi U.S. and French evacuees test hantavirus +ve An American citizen and a French woman evacuated from the cruise ship hit by a deadly hantavirus outbreak have tested positive, officials said, as the repatriation operation continued on Monday | P9 THE Supreme Court on Monday said former chief minister Mamata Banerjee and others can file fresh applications regarding their claim that the victory margins in 31 constituencies in the recent assembly polls in West Bengal were less than the number of voters challenging their deletion from the electoral rolls — during the special intensive revision (SIR) — before appellate tribunals. A bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi took note of the submissions after senior advocate and TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee referred to an earlier observation of Justice Bagchi that the court can look into the grievances if victory margins are less than the number of names deleted during the SIR. Claiming that SIR impacted the Bengal poll coutcome, Banerjee submitted that in one constituency his party candi, date lost by 862 votes while more than 5,000 names were removed from the rolls. He added that the vote gap between the TMC and the BJP was 32 lakh while 35 lakh appeals were pending before appellate tribunals. The Election Commission opposed Banerjee’s submission, saying that the only remedy was an election petition. It said it can be held accountable for issues related to the SIR only. “The law is clear ... every issue arising out of SIR could not be separately litigated,” the poll panel further argued. The bench said the mechanism for adjudication of these appeals could be improved. express read Odisha ranks top 4 in violent crime: NCRB BJP org rejig, cabinet revamp likely soon 3 held for gunning down Suvendu’s assistant Bhubaneswar: Witnessing a huge surge in violent crimes, Odisha has been ranked among the top four states with high crime incidence in the country, as per the latest NCRB data. Odisha recorded 75,403 violent crimes in 2024 just behind Uttar Pradesh which reported 85,647 cases | P3 New Delhi: After the conclusion of Assembly elections in three states and one union territory, the BJP is expected to undertake a major organisational overhaul either by the end of this month or during the first week of June, party sources said. Speculation is also mounting over a possible reshuffle of the Union cabinet | P7 Kolkata, Lucknow and Patna: Three people were arrested from UP and Bihar in connection with the murder of West Bengal CM Suvendu Adhikari’s personal assistant (PA) Chandranath Rath (45). The three accused were remanded to 13-day police custody after they were brought to Bengal | P8 The new BJP government in West Bengal, in its first cabinet meeting, approved the long-delayed transfer of land to the BSF for fencing along the border with Bangladesh. “The transfer process of land for border fencing will start within 45 days of the formation of our government in the state, and it was our commitment. The state chief secretary and land and land reform department secretary will work together to hand over land to the BSF,” Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari said. He said that as per the knowledge he acquired during his previous tenure as the Leader of Opposition, The transfer some 90 per cent of the process will begin land required to comimmediately, and the plete the border fenccabinet has ing exercise was alempowered the chief re a dy u n d e r s t at e secretary and the acquisition. “I will secretary of the state’s land and land have to go through the revenue department papers to figure out the to complete the exact status of the land process within the required, and for which next 45 days I will need some more time,” he said. Suvendu Adhikari While campaigning for the recently-held assembly elections in the state, top BJP leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah, had accused the previous Trinamool Congress government of compromising the country’s security by delaying the land transfer to the BSF. In another major decision, the government approved rolling out the Centre’s health insurance scheme Ayushman Bharat in the state. He assured that no existing social security schemes, including, Swasthya Sathi, a health scheme launched by Mamata Banerjee, will be withdrawn. In a chilling display of brutality, members of a laterite stone mafia hacked a 38-year-old man to death after severing both his wrists in Nayagarh district late on Sunday . The incident took place under Odagaon police limits in the early hours when the victim, Ajit Sahu, and his friend Santosh Pradhan allegedly tried to stop two mini-trucks illegally transporting laterite stones. Police said the duo intercepted the vehicles at around 12.50 am. One of the drivers reportedly alerted truck owner Purnachandra Nayak who reached the spot with five associates. A heated altercation followed and soon escalated into a brutal attack. Preliminary investigation revealed that one of the accused pinned Ajit down while another attacked him with a sword. His right wrist was chopped off and he was repeatedly stabbed. In the assault, his left wrist was also nearly severed. Santosh, who tried to rescue Ajit, was attacked too but managed to flee. The murder posed serious questions over police response after Santosh alleged calls seeking help from Odagaon police yielded no assistance as cops were deployed at a temple for ‘Chapa Khela’ rituals. “I informed the IIC about illegal transportation of laterite stones. He asked me to contact an ASI who when I called said he was busy with temple duty. Suddenly, the goons attacked us. I escaped but they killed my friend,” Santosh told mediapersons. The victim Ajit Sahu He claimed both he and Ajit had been opposing the illegal laterite stone trade for several months and repeatedly informed police about the racket. Ajit’s sister Prabhasini demanded string ent action against those involved in the murder. A scientific team visited the crime scene on Monday while IG (Central Range) Satyajit Naik and Nayagarh SP S Susree took stock of the investigation. Police said four accused, including the two prime suspects who allegedly wielded the sword, have been apprehended so far while raids are underway to nab the remaining accused. “Scientific and digital evidence is being collected to ensure a foolproof investigation. Strict action against illegal stone quarry operations and criminal syndicates is also being initiated in coordination with Revenue and Mining departments,” Naik said. Sources said police had seized a vehicle linked to one of the accused in an illegal laterite stone transportation case just days before the murder. “Prima facie, it appears the mafia members targeted Ajit for demanding money not to disclose about the trade to police,” Susree said.