FIRST WOMEN TEAM INDUCTED INTO CRPF’S CoBRA UNIT In a first, the Central Reserve Police Force on Saturday inducted 34 women commandos in its specialised jungle warfare commando force CoBRA which will soon be deployed in the anti-Naxal operations grid of the country. A ceremonial event was held at the forces’ camp in Kadarpur village near Gurugram with CRPF Director General A P Maheshwari witnessing combat drills | P9 BENGALURU  SUNDAY  FEBRUARY 07, 2021  `8.00  PAGES 28  LATE 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 ■ WARANGAL ■ TADEPALLIGUDEM ■ NAGAPATTINAM ■ THRISSUR ■ KALABURAGI SC Judge Shah heaps lavish praise on PM K A N U S A R D A @ New Delhi KOVIND (Left) Securitymen at the barricaded Ghazipur border in New Delhi during the farmers’ chakka jam on Saturday; police arresting a protester in Bhubaneswar | PTI, BISWANATH SWAIN INAUGURATES GENERAL THIMAYYA MUSEUM A museum celebrating the life of former Army Chief General Kodandera Subayya Thimayya, housing a variety of antique weaponry and war relics, was inaugurated by President Ram Nath Kovind on Saturday | P4 CEMENTING A STORY Set Gandhi Jayanti deadline for Union govt to repeal farm laws; Tikait says won’t wilt, insists talks only on equal terms EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ New Delhi P2 WITH THIS ISSUE THE K WAVE PLUS 12 PAGES Kisans ready for long haul, to protest till Oct ANNOUNCING that the agitation against the farm laws would go on till October, farmer leader Rakesh Tikait declared on Saturday that talks with the government would not happen under any pressure. Addressing farmers during the nationwide chakka jam protest, Tikait said they were giving the government time till October 2 to repeal the contentious laws, till then they would stay put on the borders.It was not clarified if the deadline had anything to do with the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.He said there was no chakka jam in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand as they had inputs that some people might take advantage of the protest and could indulge in violence. “If the government is placing nails on our way then we will grow crop there. We are ready to talk but it has to be on an equal platform, no pressure tactics will work,” he said. In sharp contrast to the farmers’ tractor rally on January 26, which turned violent, Saturday’s protest was completely peaceful and took place under heavy security cover in Delhi and adjoining states. With the Capital, Uttar Pradesh, and Uttarakhand out of the ambit of the road blockade, traffic was affected mainly in Punjab, Haryana, and Rajasthan. Roads were blocked in several places in Punjab and Haryana from 12 noon to 3 pm. Farmers parked tractors, trailers and other vehicles on national, state highways and other roads. Ambulances and school buses were not stopped. Women took part in large numbers in Sangrur and Ludhiana. Punjabi actors Binu Dhillon and Dev Kharoud with singer Pammi Bai participated in the blockade in Patiala. There were similar scenes in Rajasthan. Most cities saw tractor rallies on state and national highways. Meanwhile, farmers in Odisha, Bihar and Jharkhand expressed solidarity by staging protests in their P9 respective states. Police removing an agitator from Sadahalli toll gate in Bengaluru on Saturday | ASHISHKRISHNA H P Farmers in K’taka block highways, taken into custody EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ Bengaluru AS part of the nationwide chakka jam protest, farmers blocked highways at several places across the State, including Bengaluru, Mysuru, Belagavi, Kalaburagi, Shivamogga, Hassan and Kolar, from 12 noon to 3 pm on Saturday . At many places, farmers sat in the middle of busy highways blocking traffic. In Belagavi, a number of women farmers joined the protest and members of pro-Kannada and Dalit organisations too lent their support to the agitation. In Mysuru, a protesting farmer complained of breathlessness and was rushed to a hospital. After traffic was affected along several highways in the state, police took a number of P4 farmers into custody . IN another instance of a Supreme Court judge praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi in an open forum, Justice M R Shah described the PM as a “popular, loved, vibrant and visionary leader”. Speaking at the Gujarat High Court’s diamond jubilee celebration, which was attended by Modi also, on Saturday, Justice Shah said: “I feel proud and privileged to participate in this function to release the commemorative stamp of Gujarat High Court and that too, by our most popular, loved, vibrant and visionary leader, honourable Prime Minister Narendabhai Modi. I consider it a very special privilege to be a part of this function.” The effusive praises were mutual as Modi hailed the judiciary for performing “its duty well in safeguarding people’s rights, upholding personal liberty, and also in the situations when national interests need to be prioritised”. This is not the first time Justice Shah has praised the PM. CONTINUED ON: P9 EXPRESS READ Cong releases draft law for Sabarimala IPS officer files dowry case against IFS hubby T’puram: The Congress in Kerala on Saturday released the draft of a law it promised to enact for the protection of traditional practices at the Sabarimala Ayyappa temple if it came to power after the Assembly polls. P7 Bengaluru: Karnataka IPS officer Vartika Katiyar (34) has filed a dowry harassment case against her husband Niteen Subhash Yeola, an IFS officer serving in Delhi, and his family. Cubbon Park police are investigating the case. P5 TRUMP UNFIT TO RECEIVE INTEL BRIEFING, SAYS BIDEN IN a break from tradition, former US president Donald Trump will not be given access to classified intelligence briefings due to his “erratic behaviour”, US President Joe Biden said in a TV interview. “What value is giving him an intelligence briefing? What impact does he have at all, other than the fact he might slip and say something?” Biden said. Biden said he did not want to “speculate out loud” but made it clear that he thinks there is no need for Trump to have any more intelligence briefings. ENS