HYDERABAD l wednesday l may 13, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 16 l LATE CITY EDITION Himanta takes oath as Assam CM for second successive term 25-minute ceremony saw top BJP leaders Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya administered the oath of office to Sarma and the four legislators at a 25-minute ceremony held at the Veterinary Ground in Khanapara area in Guwahati. Besides PM Modi and Amit Shah, Union ministers Rajnath Singh, Nitin Gadkari, Sarbananda Sonowal, Pabitra Margherita, and other top leaders were present | P8 The BJP-led NDA assumed the mantle of power for the third term on Tuesday when Himanta Biswa Sarma was sworn as in CM of Assam ■ 102 great day for assam, says pm modi ■ The PM said NDA assuming office for the third consecutive term was a ‘’great day for Assam’’ and congratulated Sarma BJP’s Rameshwar Teli and Ajanta Neog, AGP’s Atul Bora, and Charan Boro of BPF also took oath as ministers, representing the tea community, women, the regional community and the Bodo tribe seats of 126 seats in assam were won by the bjp-led nda coalition 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 NEET-UG cancelled, CBI begins paper leak probe Re-exam notice in 7-10 days; one accused arrested from Nashik Similarities in sequence of options, language Rajasthan Police said the match with the guess paper was not limited to the questions alone. Investigators found similarities in sequence of options, language and punctuation marks lal i tha s , s udh i r s u r ya w an s h i & r a j e s h a s nan i @ New Delhi/Nashik/Jaipur E x p r e s s Re a d Lift paddy on mission, CM orders collectors Hyderabad: Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy instructed the district collectors to expedite the paddy and maize procurement and complete the purchase process in mission mode across the state. During a video conference with district collectors, the chief minister warned the officials that any kind of neglect would not be tolerated during the procurement process | P4 SFI members and supporters stage a protest against the cancellation of NEET 2026, after NTA cancelled the exam held on May 3, in New Delhi on Tuesday | Praveen negi ing Manish Yadav from Jaipur and Rakesh Mandawaria from Sikar. Manish Yadav is said to be the ‘mastermind’ of the paper leak operation in Rajasthan. Investigators also found that all 90 Biology questions and all 45 Chemistry questions in NEET exam matched the circulated material. Preliminary investigations suggest that a student from Churu, currently pursuing MBBS in Kerala, allegedly sent the question bank to a person in Sikar, who passed it to a PG accommodation operator in Sikar, who further shared it among students there. After the examination on May 3, a PG operator in Sikar filed a complaint with the Udyog Nagar police station and the NTA, alleging that a large number of students had received the suspected question bank before the exam. Following this, police sprang into action, sources said. The CBI registered cases of criminal conspiracy, cheating, criminal breach of trust, theft and destruction of evidence under BNS, besides offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act and Public Examination (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, 2024.  P7 Initial charges n  FIR dated The May 8, 2026 was initially registered at the Pet Basheerabad Police Station under Sections 74 and 75 of the BNS, along with Section 11 read with Section 12 of the POCSO Act n  Charges altered later based on the victim’s statement and Section 5(1) read with Section 6 of the POCSO Act invoked n  74: BNS Violating the modesty of a woman, if done by criminal force Punishment: 1 to 5 yrs in prison + fine. n  75: Sexual BNS Harassment Punishment: RI up to 3 years or fine or both. n  POCSO Sec. 11 r/w 12: Sexual harassment of child Punishment: Imprisonment up to 3 years + fine. Altered case n  POCSO Sec. 5(l) r/w 6: Penetrative sexual assault. Aggravated penetrative sexual assault if it happens more than once/ repeatedly (Sec. 5(l)). n  Punishment: 20 years RI 4.00% CEA: West Asia crisis a stress test for India 3.00% D i pa k M o ndal @ New Delhi 7.00% Figures speak 6.00% 5.00% 2.00% 1.00% December October November nInflation in 2025 nInflation in 2026 September July June August -2.00% May 0.00% -1.00% April THE selection of the next CBI chief on Tuesday was marred by controversy as Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi issued a dissent note on the selection process. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi and Chief Justice of India Justice Surya Kant are part of the selection committee. They met on Tuesday but there was no official announcement on the panel’s decision at the time of going to press. However, Rahul presented a two-page dissent note to the PM alleging that despite repeated written requests, he was not provided with self-appraisal reports or 360degree reports of the eligible candidates. “Instead, I was expected to examine the appraisal records of 69 candidates for the first time during the meeting. The 360-degree reports were denied to me,” he alleged. “This deliberate denial of information, without any legal basis, makes a mockery of the selection process and ensures that only your predecided candidate is selected,” he alleged. Rahul accused the government of reducing the selection process to a mere formality, adding the LoP cannot be a rubber stamp. While several IPS officers were on the shortlist, discussions at the meet centred on four: Parag Jain, Shatrujeet Kapoor, Yogesh Gupta and G P Singh. Incumbent CBI Director Praveen Sood is scheduled to retire on May 24. March @ New Delhi February Sum i t Kuma r S i ngh January Rahul dissent note to panel tasked to pick new CBI boss THE NEET (UG) 2026 exam held on May 3 was cancelled on Tuesday amid allegations of paper leak, with the CBI registering an FIR after the government asked it to probe the “irregularities”. The National Testing Agency (NTA), which conducts the exam for admission to undergraduate courses in medical colleges, said fresh dates will be notified in the “next seven to 10 days” for the re-exam. The cancellation triggered nationwide outrage among medical aspirants, with students raising questions on NTA’s competence and demanding that the exam be conducted by AIIMS-Delhi. The Opposition attacked the Centre, alleging administrative failure, insensitivity toward students and “repeated lapses” in the conduct of national-level competitive examinations. Figures speak Rajasthan Special OperaThe Inflation in 2025 tions Group (SOG), which Inflation in 2025 probed the leak first, found that 2025 2026 before the exam, a 150-page “guess2.22% paper” was circulated January 4.92% among1.31% students in Jaipur, Sikar, February 5.02% MarchJhunjhunu and Churu districts. 1.06% 5.83% April The document contained 410 1.26% 5.81% May questions of which 135 figured 0.55% June in the -0.93% exam paper. actual July -0.44% As per Rajasthan Police, the Augustmatch0.94% not limited to the was September -0.15% questions alone. Investigators October found -1.16% similarities in sequence November -0.10% of options, language and puncDecember 1.77% tuation marks. The SOG has so far detained 15 people, includ- BAMS graduate arrested in Nashik, probe on A 30-year-old BAMS graduate from Nashik was arrested Tuesday. Police said he bought the leaked paper for `10L and resold 10 sets at `15L lakh each in Rajasthan and Maharashtra Cops alter charges, summon Bandi’s son in POCSO case TG records India’s highest retail inflation for 4th month Manda Ravinder Reddy @ Hyderabad Telangana continued to record the highest retail inflation among all states in the country in April 2026. According to data released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, the state recorded an inflation rate of 5.81%, while the all-India inflation rate stood at 3.48%. The gap between Telangana and the next highest inflationre c o rd i n g s t at e, A n d h r a Pradesh, was 1.61 percentage points. AP recorded 4.2%, Tamil Nadu 4.18%, Karnataka 4% and Rajasthan 3.57%. Telangana has been recording the highest inflation rate in the country since January 2026. The state’s inflation rate stood at 4.92% in January, 5.02% in February, 5.83% in March and 5.81% in April. In contrast, during 2025, the state’s inflation rate fluctuated considerably with deflation re, corded in five months. For April 2026, Telangana recorded rural inflation at 6.23% and urban inflation at 5.51%, taking the overall inflation rate to 5.81%. Economists said the increase was linked to the rollout of the new Consumer Price Index (CPI) series. The West Asia crisis has become a live balance-of-payments stress test for India, with direct implications for inflation, the current account deficit (CAD) and the rupee, Chief Economic Advisor V Anantha Nageswaran said on Tuesday. “Managing the current account credibly, financing it sustainably, and preventing further currency depreciation are the central macroeconomic imperatives of FY27,” he said at the CII’s Annual Business Summit. CAD is expected to rise to 2.2% of GDP in FY27 from an estimated 0.8% in FY26. CAD is a situation when a country’s imports exceed exports. A higher CAD weakens the currency increases inflation risks , and reduces economic stability The rupee on Tuesday fell . to another low of 95.63 against the dollar. Nageswaran said 87% of crude oil is imported, with a major share transiting through or near the Hormuz. Around 60% of LPG comes from the Gulf, while 38% of annual remittances originate from Gulf nations. “These are not the readings of a temporary shock that will self-correct when the situation stabilises.” The CEA warned that the global economic architecture is undergoing a structural challenge rather than a temporary disruption. Seven-year-old mauled by pack of stray dogs, critical E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Hyderabad A pack of stray dogs attacked a seven-year-old boy in Teachers Colony near BN Reddy Nagar around 8.30 pm on Monday leaving , him critically injured. The boy, identified as Advik from Sircilla district, was rushed to a corporate hospital in L B Nagar, where he remains unconscious. He suffered severe injuries to his scalp and face, and doctors are performing plastic surgery . According to authorities, Advik had come to Hyderabad for summer holidays and was staying at his relatives’ house in the colony Resi. dents said he and a few other children were playing cricket outside the house. After the game, the other children went home while Advik remained outside alone. Locals said a pack of four to five stray dogs suddenly charged at him. In an attempt to escape, the boy ran into the cellar of a nearby apartment, but the dogs chased and mauled him. A motorist who heard his cries drove the dogs away and alerted residents. The boy was found bleeding heavily and unconscious. D Sudheer Reddy former corpo, rators and leaders from political parties visited the hospital. The incident has triggered debate in Hyderabad over stray dog control measures and the safety of children in residential colonies. Meanwhile, the veterinary wing of the Malkajgiri Municipal Corporation deployed dog squads to the area and caught around 15 stray dogs in the locality by Tuesday evening. The drive will continue on Wednesday officials said. , C H I T H A L U RI R E V A N T H / T G N A I D U @ Hyderabad The Pet Basheerabad police on Tuesday summoned Bandi Sai Bhageerath (23), son of Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Bandi Sanjay Kumar, in connection with a case registered under the BNS and the POCSO Act, and directed him to appear before investigators on Wednesday . Hours earlier, Bhageerath moved the Telangana High Court seeking anticipatory bail in connection with the case. The notice, served to his maternal uncle Ch Vamshi Krishna, instructed him to produce Bhageerath before the Pet Basheerabad inspector by 2 pm on Wednesday for examination and investigation. “Please note that failure to comply with this notice may result in legal action being initiated against you in accordance with law,” the notice stated. According to sources, the police were trying to reach Bhageerath, but he was unavailable. According to the petition, the FIR dated May 8, 2026 was initially registered at the Pet Basheerabad Police Station under Sections 74 (criminal force to woman with intent to outrage modesty) and 75 (sexual harassment) of the BNS, along with Section 11 read with Section 12 of the POCSO Act dealing with sexual harassment and nonpenetrative acts involving sexual intent. Police later altered the charges based on the victim’s statement and invoked Section 5(1) read with Section 6 of the POCSO Act relating to aggravated penetrative sexual assault. Section 6 of the Act prescribes punishment ranging from a minimum of 20 years’ imprisonment to life imprisonment or death. continued on p4 Society itself became my family. I stood like an elder son for every family in distress, but I could not give enough time to my own son. The mistake is mine Bandi Sanjay Kumar, Union Minister of State for Home Affairs ‘sextortion’ racket One more arrested on POCSO charges E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Hyderabad The Jubilee Hills police have registered another POCSO case in connection with the alleged “sextortion” racket in the city, taking the total number of cases registered so far to five. In the latest case, police arrested a 22-year-old man, identified as Jithender alias Jathin, for allegedly sexually assaulting and blackmailing a minor girl. He has been remanded to judicial custody. Police said Jathin is a friend of K Chandrasekar Azad alias Arjun, who was arrested earlier in a separate POCSO case linked to the same network. Sources told TNIE that the accused allegedly took photo g raphs of minor girls after befriending them, sometimes by invoking caste identity to gain trust. Investigators suspect that fake or controlled Instagram accounts were created in the names of the victims and kept in private mode, where the photographs were uploaded. The accused allegedly threatened to make the accounts public unless the girls paid money . A few days ago, Hyderabad Police Commissioner VC Sajjanar had questioned Azad, 29, a native of Guntur, who had earlier been arrested in 2025 for allegedly stalking and harassing the same girl. According to police, after securing bail, he resumed contact with the victim. He was arrested again recently , and the Nampally court granted police custody for further investigation.  continued on p4