HYDERABAD l friday l july 24, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 36 l LATE CITY EDITION India invites Bangladesh PM to September brics summit in Delhi India has invited Bangladesh PM Tarique Rahman to attend the BRICS summit in New Delhi in September, officials in Dhaka said could pave way for First Modi-rahman meet comes amid attempts to mend ties Bangladesh’s state minister for foreign affairs Shama Obaed Islam said Dhaka has received the invitation from New Delhi and forwarded it to the Prime Minister’s Office. If Rahman accepts the invitation, the summit could provide the first opportunity for a direct meeting between him and Prime Minister Narendra Modi since the BNP’s return to power | P7 ■ ■ The outreach comes after a turbulent period in relations between the two, with New Delhi hosting ousted leader Sheikh Hasina and reported incidents of attacks on Hindus living in Bangladesh Since Rahman’s BNP formed the government after the February polls, the two sides have attempted to rebuild the broken relations Sep 12-13 When India is set to host the 18th BRICS summit 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 Higher Education Secretary Vineet Joshi out, replaced by Naresh Kumar Gangwar; Rahul visits Gandhi Smriti 17 Delhi Metro stations to remain closed on Friday, Sonam Wangchuk urges protesters to remain peaceful CJP intensifies stir. Wangchuk fast off Pa r v e z S u lta n @ New Delhi The NEET paper leak controversy escalated into a wider political confrontation on Thursday as the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) called for nationwide protests on Friday, and the Opposition led by Rahul Gandhi staged a symbolic march to Gandhi Smriti in solidarity with the agitating students. The developments came amid heightened security and heavy deployment of personnel across central Delhi, with several metro stations shut, mobile internet services suspended in parts of the city and businesses in Connaught Place advised to close early ahead of anticipated demonstrations. Adding to the momentum of the protests, actors Kareena Kapoor Khan, Varun Dhawan, Sara Ali Khan and Ananya Panday expressed support for agitators through social media, calling for a fair, transparent and accountable exam system. Seeking to control the situation, the government shifted Higher Education Secretary Vineet Joshi to the Ministry of Panchayati Raj, appointing Naresh Kumar Gangwar as Joshi’s replacement in the higher education ministry And T K . Anil Kumar was brought in as the school education secretary . The Opposition, meanwhile, intensified its campaign against the Centre following the showdown in Parliament. Carrying copies of the Constitution and the Tricolour, INDIA bloc MPs led by Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi marched to Gandhi Smriti at Tees January Marg. At the memorial, the MPs switched on their mobile phone flashlights and observed a silent tribute to students who allegedly died by suicide in the wake of the examination controversy Sev. eral leaders also held placards demanding accountability and the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan. The visit came after the Opposition claimed it had been denied permission to assemble at India Gate. The MPs travelled from Rahul’s residence amid heavy police deployment and barricades. “In solidarity with the students, we wanted to take the Opposition MPs to India Gate, but we were not allowed. Then we decided to go to Gandhi Smriti, and even there our bus was stopped. They are doing drama because they are scared,” Rahul said. He later reiterated the Opposition’s support for the student movement. The students of our country are on the streets, so we felt the Opposition should also be on the streets. Our message is simple: we are with the students. The entire Opposition stands with them Globarena links under investigation: Revanth Rahul Gandhi Crowds pour in Despite restrictions and barricading at several major roads in Delhi, crowds continued to swell at the site amid heavy sloganeering E x p r e s s N e w s S e r v i c e @ Hyderabad Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi and opposition MPs after paying homage at the Gandhi Smriti; Sonam Wangchuk ending his fast | PTI Cabinet to discuss paper leak today: PM M U K ESH RAN J AN & RA J ESH K U M AR THA K UR @ New Delhi OU defers exams Following a student union shutdown call to protest the lathi-charge, OU postponed all exams scheduled for Friday. The revised schedule will be declared soon, officials said. AFTER a late-night message from Prime Minister Narendra Modi assuring even stricter action at Friday’s Cabinet meeting, activist Sonam Wangchuk has ended his fast at Medanta Hospital, Gurugram, in the presence of Union Ministers J P Nadda and Dr Jitendra Singh. “This was done after long negotiations on various conditions and in view of possible violence in the country I will explain the . conditions in detail in a separate video very soon. Meanwhile, I urge you all to stay very vigilant ‘Made 4 attempts for dialogue with CJP’ The Centre, which has roped in Union Ministers J P Nadda and Jitendra Singh as interlocutors to engage with the protesters, on Thursday said it had made four attempts in the past 24 hours to initiate dialogue. However, the CJP declined the offer, insisting on a ‘neutral’ venue for the talks about not allowing violence of any kind anywhere,” Wangchuk posted on X after breaking fast. In vew of the latest develop- ment, the focus must now shift from agitation to implementation, ensuring justice for students and accountability for those responsible. Hours earlier, Modi had put out a video message saying Friday’s Cabinet meeting will discuss a draft legislation on fast-track courts and stricter punishment for examination paper leak, and the draft bill will be introduced in Parliament soon. The bill is expected to be presented in Parliament next week. Earlier in the day, Modi said the government would set up fast-track courts to ensure swift punishment to the culprits. First large-scale Gen z agitation At Jantar Mantar, a protest unlike any before Ami ta v a S a n ya l @ New Delhi A protester fanning participants as a gesture of kindness | Amitava Sanyal Washout: Parliament stalled for fourth day Parliament proceedings were stalled for the fourth consecutive day on Thursday amid loud protests by the opposition over the NEET-UG paper leak | P7 Jantar Mantar is a republic of handfans these days. Hundreds of young volunteers are furiously fanning those filing in and out of the protest site in the muggy heart of New Delhi. It’s a small gesture of kindness that marks the evolution of a motley crew of first-time protesters who have learnt to organise more efficiently and sustain a movement in the face of inclement weather and immense pressure from an intemperate administration. Welcome to India’s first largescale Gen Z protest, where planning and posing go hand in hand with protesting. Here is a snake of youngsters carrying in food, water and medicine for those fasting and camping overnight. There, a group of medicos sling- All 3 pilots fall ill mid-air due to food poisoning S L a l i t h a @ New Delhi Passengers of a British Airways flight from Hyderabad to London had a close shave on Wednesday after all three pilots on board fell ill due to suspected food poisoning after having their breakfast earlier in the day. The health condition of one of the pilots deteriorated so much during the journey that he had to be provided oxygen mid-flight. The airline is probing the incident. Flight BA 276 took off by 7.45 am from Hyderabad’s Rajiv Gandhi International Airport and had a journey time of 10 hours and 35 minutes. The night before their flight, the three pilots had stayed in the regular hotel in Hyderabad, which was arranged by the airline. The trio had their breakfast in the lounge before they began their trip. One of the pilots was reported incapacitated at 30,000 feet and had to be put on oxygen, stated an international news report.  Continued on p5 Brent Crude SURGES OVER $100 | p10 ing stethoscopes are urgently effective way to undermine it. ushered in. Every few metres, On the other hand, millennial video makers are speaking into Rajesh Sau, a 31-year-old from Biphone cameras. har’s Begusarai who has come to The hoarse sloganeering of the capital for the first time, holds yesteryears is partly replaced by up a serious-minded, AI-generatprinted memes. The hued poster of the Cockmour, too, is reflective roach Janta Party’s Abof the zeitgeist. Twenhijeet Dipke next to ty-nothings from some When you enter the Bhagat Singh that he of Delhi’s top colleges claims to have downsite, a pankha is are holding up neatlyloaded from Facebook. given. When you visualised posters leave, you deposit it Kindness is mostly screaming,“There’s back so that others shown in the form of can use it 20% ethanol in my food and medicine. exam”, “Swiping left on Members of Sikh founA volunteer national issues like it’s dations are handing out Tinder” and “Dande Mataram”. khichdi plates and juice bottles to A large neem evergreen is marked outstretched hands. Garbage bags as “Pradhan resignation tree”. are filling up faster than cleaners It’s as if the Gen Z protesters are moving them out. are embodying pre-Boomer poIn a show of supreme irony, litical theorist Hannah Arendt’s parked government ambulances idea that exposing authority to are handing out masks to guard contempt through laughter is an against teargas and spraying pain-relievers on shoulders injured by lathi charges. Some among the army of volunteers are blaring whistles to referee crowds when they behave like petulant Argentinian footballers. Only a few near the stages wear the white tees sporting the ‘official’ cockroach logo. At the sanctum—the whitedecked main stage—the humour gives way to the serious demands of resignation, education reforms, court-mandated probe and the prospect of negotiating with the government. There is talk of shifting demands “from Pradhan to pradhan mantri”. There is also exhortation for restraint from the stage. CJP’s Saurav Das warns against giving in to polarising banter by “planted miscreants”. “Are we hateful?” he asks. Every time, the crowd roars back, “Nooo!” HC orders Army to protect disputed land from HYDRAA, pauses direction TG N a i d u @ Hyderabad In an unusual order, the Telangana High Court on Thursday directed the deployment of Army personnel to protect a disputed 40-acre property at Lothkunta village in Medchal-Malkajgiri district. The court was hearing a contempt petition alleging wilful violation of court orders by HYDRAA Commissioner AV Ranganath. The court, however, later kept the operation of the direction in abeyance until further orders after a request by Advocate General A Sudarshan Reddy and adjourned the case to Friday . The petition was filed by Shanta Sriram Constructions alleging that HYDRAA officials violated subsisting court orders by entering its 40-acre land in Survey Nos. 1 and 2 of Lothkunta village. Justice Anil Kumar Jukanti noted that records indicated the land falls within an Army zone and took note of allegations that HYDRAA vehicles had entered the property despite judicial directions restraining such interference. The high court also recorded that three contempt cases had already been filed against the HYDRAA commissioner, observing that the re peated violations amounted to interference with the administration of justice. In an interim direction, the court asked the registrar general to coordinate with the senior-most brigadier of the Bison formation for the deployment of 10 Army personnel, headed by an officer of the rank of lieutenant colonel, to protect the property  . Continued on p3 Alleging that Globarena Technologies belonged to a benami of KT Rama Rao, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Thursday said a vigilance inquiry was underway into the firm’s alleged role in the 2019 Intermediate examination result mess. In an informal interaction with reporters on Thursday , the chief minister demanded that the BRS leader apologise to the people over the Globarena bungling. He said, “Many irregularities happened in the 2019 Intermediate exam paper evaluation. A few students also died by suicide due to the irregularities committed by Globarena. But the previous government did not book cases against the company Later, the same compa. ny changed its name and got involved in the CBSE exams as well. In CBSE marks too, irregularities have taken place.” Revanth also challenged Rama Rao to lodge a complaint with the CCS against Globarena, maintaining that the government was prepared to conduct a comprehensive and impartial investigation. “If we conduct an investigation, they will allege that we are acting out of political vendetta. So, I demand that KTR lodge a complaint to the CCS against Globarena, and we will investigate it thoroughly he said. ,” He further accused the previous government of selling question papers. Responding to the defamation notice served on him by Rama Rao, Revanth said the BRS leader had no reason to file a defamation suit if his allegations were untrue. “A person with a reputation to protect will file a defamation suit. Rama Rao is saying that he has no connection with Globarena. From which ‘Rajus’ did he get the farmhouse at Janwada? A comprehensive inquiry is underway to unearth all these issues.”  Continued on p4 Senior Defence officials submit a representation to HYDRAA Commissioner AV Ranganath at the agency’s office on Thursday Army seeks HYDRAA’s aid to save Defence land E x p r e s s N e w s S e r v i c e @ Hyderabad Senior Defence officials have approached the HYDRAA, seeking its intervention to stop an alleged encroachment on Army land and halt an unauthorised construction. Lieutenant Colonel Jai Singh met HYDRAA Commissioner AV Ranganath and submitted a representation alleging that a G+2 building was being constructed on A-1 category Army land in GLR Survey No 507 in Quthbullapur mandal of MedchalMalkajgiri district without the required permissions. The representation sought HYDRAA’s immediate intervention to stop the construction and protect the government land from further encroachment. After examining the representation, Ranganath directed officials to conduct a detailed field inspection to verify the allegations. He instructed them to initiate action in accordance with the law if the inspection establishes that the land has been encroached upon. Controversies won’t slow us down: Ranganath Rejecting allegations that HYDRAA targets the poor or protects the influential, Commissioner AV Ranganath says the agency acts strictly in accordance with court directions. In an exclusive interaction with TNIE’s S Bachan Jeet Singh, he says opposition to HYDRAA’s drives comes mainly from organised land grabbers and asserts that the agency will continue its enforcement measures without let-up | p3