THIRUVANANTHAPURAM l monday l june 27, 2022 l `9.00 l PAGES 16 l LATE city EDITION g7 takes aim at Putin’s war chest with gold import ban The Group of Seven on Sunday agreed to ban import of Russian gold in a bid to undermine Kremlin’s war efforts moscow to lose access to its key market Gold is Russia’s second largest export item and a significant source of revenue for President Vladimir Putin and his allies. Since 90% of its gold exports go to G7 countries, especially Britain, the US-led ban will hit Russia hard. It will also hurt Russian oligarchs who have converted their assets to gold in a bid to shield them from Western sanctions $15.45 bn Macron pushes for cap on oil price ■ To tighten the screws further, French President Emmanuel Macron urged oil producers to cap prices to limit Russia’s gains ■ The G7’s gold ban comes as Russia made significant gains in Ukraine’s east over the past week, taking full control of Severodonetsk and entering nearby city of Lysychansk | P9 Revenue earned by Russia through export of gold last year 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 BJP wrests key UP seats from SP in LS bypoll Blow for AAP as pro-Khalistan leader wins Sangrur in Punjab; Tripura CM gets elected E x p r e ss N e ws Se r v i c e @ New Delhi Tripura Congress leader Birajit Sinha being treated for injuries sustained during clashes LOK SABHA Uttar Pradesh Rampur: BJP wrests from SP Azamgarh: BJP wrests from SP Punjab Sangrur: SAD (Amritsar) wrests from AAP STATE ASSEMBLIES Tripura: Jubarajnagar: BJP wrests from CPM Surma: BJP retains Town Bardowali: BJP retains Agartala: Cong wrests from BJP Delhi Rajinder Nagar: AAP retains Jharkhand Mandar: Cong retains Andhra Pradesh Atmakuru: YSRC retains The BJP wrested two prestigious seats from the SP in Uttar Pradesh while Punjab sent a pro-Khalistan leader to Parliament, dealing a stunning blow to the ruling AAP as results of , the Lok Sabha by-polls came in on Sunday . In the bypolls to seven Assembly seats in four states, the BJP won three of four in Tripura, while the ruling YSRC retained a seat in Andhra Pradesh, AAP in Delhi and Congress in Jharkhand. There were allegations of BJP goons indulging in violence after it lost the Agartala seat in Tripura to the Congress, with at least 19 people, including Tripura Congress chief Birajit Sinha, suffering injuries. In Uttar Pradesh, BJP’s Dinesh Lal Yadav ‘Nirahua’ won from Azamgarh while Ghanshayam Singh Lodhi snatched the Rampur seat defeating SP’s Dharmendra Yadav and Asim Raja, respectively, by margins of 8,679 and 42,192 votes. Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and SP leader Azam Khan had vacated their Azamgarh and Rampur seats, respectively, hence the bypoll. In Punjab, the ruling Aam Aadmi Party suffered a severe blow as Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar) president Simranjit Singh Mann won in the Sangrur Lok Sabha constituency, the bastion of Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann. Simranjit Singh Mann defeated AAP’s Gurmail Singh in a neck-and-neck fight. However, Delhi did not disappoint the AAP as its candidate Durgesh Pathak comfortably retained the Rajinder Nagar Assembly seat by 11,000 votes. In Tripura, BJP Chief Minister Manik Saha won in Town Bardowali constituency, defeating Congress candidate Ashish Kumar by 6,104 votes. He needed a win to continue as the CM. The party defeated CPI(M) in its stronghold Jubarajnagar by 4,572 votes. The saffron camp retained Surma while Congress wrested away its Agartala seat. In Andhra, YSRC retained Atmakuru assembly constituency with its candidate Mekapati Vikram Reddy defeating BJP rival by 82,888 votes. Congress candidate Shilpi Neha Tirkey won Jharkhand’s Mandar seat.P8 police custody Activist Teesta Setalvad being brought to the Metropolitan Magistrate Court in Ahmedabad on Sunday after she was arrested by the Gujarat Crime Branch over alleged criminal conspiracy in connection with 2002 communal riots in the state. The court remanded her in police custody till July 2 | PTI | P7 Stop arresting those Cong points out: CPM E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @T’Puram/Kalpetta CPM state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan said on Sunday that the party will take strict action if any of its members are found to have been involved in the attack on Rahul Gandhi’s office in Wayanad. He, however, disapproved the manner in which arrests were being made in connection with the incident, saying police should not go around picking up those who are pointed out by the Congress workers. Meanwhile, the CPM took out a massive rally at Kalpetta protesting against large-scale violence in UDF demonstrations in the wake of the MP office attack. Condemning the attack on Rahul’s office, Kodiyeri said the incident should not have occurred at all. Such attacks will only alienate the party from the people. “CPM cadre have been asked CPM workers taking out a protest march in Kalpetta, Wayanad, on Sunday | Express to carry out protests only in a peaceful manner and desist from targeting offices of other parties... The party is enquiring into the incident (in Wayanad) and strict action will be taken if any CPM member is found involved,” he said. Briefing reporters after the CPM state committee meeting in Thiruvananthapuram, Kodi- MLA’s personal security officer suspended Wayanad SP Arvind Sukumar on Sunday suspended Smibin K V — the personal security officer of Kalpetta MLA T Siddique — for having obstructed the police officers on duty at the Congress’ district office during Opposition Leader V D Satheesan’s presser on Saturday. P4 yeri praised the state government for its swift intervention in the incident. The police officer concerned was suspended for his ‘lapses’ and the entire issue was handled in an “exemplary manner.” While the attack evoked condemnation from all quarters, the in-flight attack on Chief Minster Pinarayi Vijayan did not evoke a similar response from the UDF, he said. Meanwhile, thousands of CPM workers, including women, took out a massive rally in Kalpetta demanding that the Congress end the widespread violence it has unleashed in the wake of the attack on Rahul’s office. Addressing the rally, CPM district secretary P Gagarin said the party had already condemned the incident at Rahul’s MP office. “CPM will never endorse such an attack. Even SFI did not have any intention of an attack,” Gagarin said. ● More on P4 S u d h i r S u r ya w a n s h i @ Mumbai PM’s Emergency anniv shot at Cong in Munich Y e s h i Se l i @ New Delhi Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday took a fresh swipe at the Congress, this time in Munich while addressing the Indian diaspora, saying 47 years ago on June 26 an attempt was made to hold democracy hostage by invoking Emergency but people gave a fitting response. , Modi is in Munich ahead of the G7 Summit, for which which he has been invited by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. “People of India answered all conspiracies to crush democracy Democracy is our pride and . in the DNA of every Indian,” Modi said in his speech at a crowded Audi Dome stadium. Lauding the contribution of the Indian diaspora, he said, “You are both India’s success story and the brand ambassadors of India’s success.” He also spoke about the success India achieved in exports, manufacturing, climate change, vaccination drive and upliftment of the poor. “Today’s India has come out of the mentality of ‘It happens, it runs like this.’ India has taken a pledge that work has to be done on time,” Modi said. “In information technology, digital technology India is making its presence felt. As many , as 40% of digital transactions in the world are from India. India is making new records in data consumption,” he said. Regarding climate change, the PM said even the youth of India are investing in electronic vehicles and other such pro-climate technologies. “ Sustainable climate practices are becoming a part of the lives of ordinary people of India today he added. Besides, the cleanliness ,” drive in India has been effective and has become part of its lifestyle as even the youth are becoming conscientious. “Tax compliance is increasing, too, which indicates India is getting rid of corruption,” he added. One more minister leaves Higher education minister Uday Samant became the eighth minister to defect to the rebel camp. He did so after attending Shiv Sena’s national executive meeting addressed by CM Uddhav Thackeray The ongoing power struggle in Maharashtra went up a notch on Sunday with the rebel Shiv Sena MLAs moving the Supreme Court against a disqualification notice issued to 16 of them, including Eknath Shinde, by the deputy speaker. A vacation bench of justices Surya Kant and J B Pardiwala will hear the writ petitions on Monday. The deputy speaker had given the rebels time till 5.30 pm on Monday to submit their response in writing. In all, two writ petitions have been filed by the rebels in the SC. Shiv Sena boss and Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray will be represented by senior advocates Kapil Sibal and Abhishek Singhvi in the SC. There was action in the Maharashtra Raj Bhavan as well, with Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari getting discharged from hospital after recovering from Covid. Shortly thereafter, he ordered security cover for all rebels and their families. Parallelly, the Centre granted Y-plus CRPF security to 15 rebel Sena MLAs and their families following a recommendation by central security agencies to the Ministry of Home Affairs. As for the Sena, it kept up its tough talk amid further desertion. Higher education minister Uday Sa- Eknath Shinde welcoming Uday Samant (R), to the rebel camp, in Guwahati | PTI 16-yr-old girl molested during train journey, father assaulted E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @Kochi A 16-year-old girl was allegedly molested by a group of men on board the Ernakulam-Guruvayur special express train while she was travelling with her father on Saturday . The incident took place around 7.50pm after the train left Ernakulam North railway station. The girl’s father alleged the men were in an inebriated state and attacked him and another youth when they intervened. The Thrissur railway police have booked five persons. The father said he and his daughter had boarded the last coach of the train and were headed to Thrissur, their native place. “Six men were sitting op- posite us. They were in an inebriated state. The coach was largely empty,” said the father, adding that the men started passing lewd comments on his daughter right from the time the train left the station. “One of them touched my daughter’s leg. She told me about it and I questioned them. However, all six men used foul language and manhandled me. A youth who was in the compartment tried to intervene but he too was assaulted,” alleged the father. He said the men got more aggressive when he and the youth tried to click their photographs. “They tried to snatch our phones, but we managed to click a few pic● More on P5 tures,” he said.  A village in Kasaragod comes together to save street dog Shopkeepers and cab drivers of Chullikkara village in Kasaragod’s Kodom-Bellur grama panchayat, have been awaiting the return of Muthumani. “We are told she is recovering and will return in a couple of days,” said Raju Chooranolikkal, who drives a pickup. Muthumani is an Indian pariah dog that roams the streets of Chullikkara. She recently underwent surgery at the government veterinary hospital at Trikaripur 40km away to get a mammary gland tumour weighing 5kg removed. The best part: Everyone, from the people and veterinary surgeon to the district panchayat president, came together to ens u re t h e s u r g e r y w a s a success. Every year, Muthumani gives birth and people take away the pups. Three months ago, she gave birth to two pups. “Soon, we noticed swelling near her breasts. In a week, it got very large,” said Raju. The residents Writer Chowalloor Krishnankutty dies Writer, lyricist and scenarist Chowalloor Krishnankutty, 86, passed away in Thrissur on Sunday. A recipient of Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Akademi award and Kerala Sahitya Akademi award, he served as vice-chairman of Kerala Kalamandalam. He also penned hundreds of devotional songs. P4 Power struggle intensifies, rebel MLAs move SC against disqualification notice canine’s best friends E x p r e ss N e ws Se r v i c e @Kasaragod E X P RESS READ took her to the veterinary hospital in Rajapuram where the doctor sucked the fluid out using a syringe. However, the swelling returned in a week. “We then called Dr Muraleedharan,” said Raveendran Kottody, a resident, referring to senior veterinary surgeon A Muraleedharan who worked in Rajapuram earlier. Meanwhile, with no post-operative care facility and the expensive absorbable sutures in limited supply, vets said they would take up Muthumani’s case only if people sponsored the sutures. Soon, people took up the dog’s case Muthumani has regained her health, says surgeon Senior veterinary surgeon Dr A Muraleedharan said the tumour had been bending Muthumani’s back and making her frail. “She is now recovering at the ABC centre’s shelter in Trikaripur veterinary hospital. She has regained her health and is ready to go,” he said. Muthumani, the Indian pariah dog, before the surgery. She had a mammary gland tumour that weighed 5kg | Express with district panchayat president Baby Balakrishnan when she came to Chullikkara. The district panchayat coordinates the animal birth control (ABC) centre from the Trikaripur hospital . Baby asked Dr Muraleedharan to refer the case there. A vehicle from the ABC centre came and took Muthumani away. Dr Fabin M Paily performed the surgery “He is the . district’s super surgeon, always available for an emergency He . has a safe pair of hands,” said Dr Muraleedharan. mant became the eighth minister to defect to the dissident camp. He did so after attending the party’s national executive meeting addressed by Uddhav on Saturday “We will never for. get these traitors,” Uddhav’s son Aditya warned. The eight rebel Sena ministers are Eknath Shinde, Gulabrao Patil, Dada Bhuse, Sandeepan Bhumare, Shambhuraje Desai, Abdul Sattar, Uday Samant and Bacchu Kadu. Another minister Bachu Kadu of Prahar Janshakti Party and an Independent minister from Sena quota, Rajendra Yedravkar, are with Shinde. Aditya is the lone Sena MLA minister left in the ruling Aghadi. He said about 15-16 MLAs in the rebel camp were in contact with the parent party “If they return, they would . get a warm welcome,” he addP8 ed.  Mollywood to get common plaints panel E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @Kochi The Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (AMMA) on Sunday decided to constitute a single Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) for the entire Malayalam film industry The ICC is a body that . receives and addresses complaints of sexual harassment at the workplace. The ICC of the Malayalam film industry will function under the Kerala Film Chamber (KFC). A meeting of all organisations in the industry will be held at KFC on Monday to discuss its formation. “The decision to form a common ICC was taken after interacting with other organisations in the industry,” AMMA general secretary Edavela Babu told reporters after the association’s annual general body meeting in Kochi. Babu said AMMA was not an employer as such and, here was no need for an ICC. “The earlier committee was formed as we had to move the court. After the court said a committee needs to be formed for the entire film fraternity AMMA , decided to constitute it,” he said. The meeting also decided to seek an explanation from actor Shammi Thilakan for “bringing disgrace to AMMA” through his social media ● More on P3 posts.