AIR INDIA MOST PUNCTUAL OF ALL The Tata group-owned airline clocked an impressive 90.8% on-time performance in October, the best among all carriers. In October, Vistara and AirAsia India claimed the second spot with on-time performance score of 89.1% each, followed by IndiGo (87.5%). IndiGo was the most punctual airline in February (95.4%) and March (93.9%). BENGALURU  WEDNESDAY  NOVEMBER 23, 2022  `9.00  PAGES 20  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 ■ TADEPALLIGUDEM ■ NAGAPATTINAM ■ THRISSUR ■ KALABURAGI Mukesh to pass on RIL baton to Anant, Dhanraj S H A H I D F A R I D I @ New Delhi PRIME Minister Narendra Modi received a young visitor at his 7, Lok Kalyan Marg residence late evening in the middle of October. The meeting signalled a big change at the top level of India’s largest private sector corporation — Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL). The man who drove into the Prime Minister’s residence in a black Mercedes was Anant Ambani, the younger son of India’s second richest man Mukesh Ambani. Sources said RIL chairman Mukesh Ambani has handed Dhanraj Nathwani Anant Ambani over the job of handling matters relating to government, politics and legal affairs to Anant. The young Ambani has been travelling to states to meet chief ministers. He is said to have developed a good rapport with several chief ministers, including prominent ones from the BJPruled states, with whom he is maintaining close contact. His one-and-half-hour meeting with the prime minister was focused on the impending change of guard at Maker Chamber in Mumbai, RIL’s headquarters, it is reliably learnt. The 27-year-old Anant will handle the legacy business of oil, while his older siblings Akash and Isha will focus on the group’s new ventures — digital, including telecom, and retail. Akash, along with sister Isha, will also look after marketing and brand building. Anant was inducted into the board of RIL’s clean energy companies last year. Sources said the Reliance group’s key troubleshooter and Rajya Sabha member, Parimal Nathwani, will also hand over the baton to his son, Dhanraj Nathwani, who will henceforth handle corporate affairs in the national capital. Dhanraj has so far been handling RIL’s affairs in Gujarat. He is now being given a new office in Delhi. Dhanraj is married to the daughter of Ahmedabad-based businessman Rajesh Khandwala. Khandwala has had financial links with Jay Shah, son of Union home minister Amit Shah. Dhanraj was last week elected as the president of Gujarat Cricket Association, a post earlier held by Narendra Modi and Amit Shah. Dhanraj also played a key role in the construction of the Narendra Modi Cricket Stadium in Ahmedabad. WHAT UNDID THE ALBICELESTE? Saudi Arabia’s energy and highintensity caught Argentina unawares. The Saudi primary league has been shut since October third week, so players have been in sync with each other, training together and playing friendly matches for the last two months. That level of understanding showed in a display full of heart and effort from the first to the final whistle GOMUTRA INCIDENT It's a very heavy blow, a defeat that hurts, but we must continue to have confidence in ourselves. This group is not going to give up. We will try to beat Mexico Lionel Messi Argentina captain SAUDI ARABIA DECLARES WEDNESDAY AS PUBLIC HOLIDAY Dejected Lionel Messi walks off the pitch as Saudi Arabia celebrate after their stunning victory over Argentina at the World Cup in Doha on Tuesday | AP Voter data theft: Shivakumar to file complaint with EC E X P R E S S N E W S S E R V I C E @ Bengaluru KARNATAKA Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president D K Shivakumar has raised many questions over the deletion of 27 lakh names from voters list. He said he will meet the Election Commission on Wednesday and lodge a formal complaint in this regard. “Despite ‘Form 7’ from electoral rolls being mandatory for adding or removing voters’ names, how can 27 lakh names be removed without any mandatory procedure being followed? Who is the officer who signed on them and authorised these applications?,” asked Shivakumar. The senior Congress leader said, “We have sought time from the Election Commission on Wednesday to file a formal complaint. There are a lot of legal aspects to the issue which need to be addressed. All the 28 field returning officers should be booked.” Dalits demand entry into temples, hotels K S H I V A K U M A R @ Mysuru THE main accused in the untouchability case reported from Chamarajanagar district has been arrested. The accused, belonging to an upper caste community, had cleaned a water tank with gomutra (cow urine) after a Dalit woman drank water from the tap of the tank. Following the arrest, Dalit organisations have called off their protest which they had launched across the district. However, Dalits from Heggavatar village have urged Deputy Commissioner D S Ramesh to allow them entry into temples and hotels where they have been denied access for CONTINUED ON: P5 decades. PRESS INTAKE Mangaluru blast case to be handed over to NIA B A L A C H A U H A N @ Bengaluru Shariq’s condition stable THE November 19 Mangaluru blast case will be handed over to the National Investigation Agency (NIA), informed sources told TNIE. “The NIA has been roped into the investigation from day one of the blast investigation. With the invocation of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, the case will be handed over to the NIA. The agency has the infrastructure, resources, data and capability to mine the cross country and international network data to investigate cases that threaten national security they added. ,” “But before they hand over the case to NIA, the state police will try and get strong leads. The main accused Mohd Shariq is still in the ICU and not in a condition to give any statement Mangaluru: Mangaluru City police commissioner N Shashi Kumar said prime accused H Mohammed Shariq’s condition is stable and only after medical fitness certification is issued, they will go ahead with questioning him. We work for a united Congress, says Tharoor in Kerala | P5 to the police,” added sources. Meanwhile, intelligence agencies have warned of similar blasts like last weekend in Karnataka by “highly radicalised lone terrorists,” said sources. “The new modus operandi to strike terror is to do it alone to hoodwink law enforcement agencies. The target could range from a right wing leader to common public. The extent of damage and casualty will be less but enough to strike terror in people’s minds,” sources said. P4 India-Australia free trade agreement gets go-ahead | P9 EXPRESS READ Six die in violence on Assam border SC concerned over short tenure of CECs Court allows polygraph test on Shraddha killer Guwahati/ Shillong: Six persons, including a forest guard, were killed in violence at the disputed Assam-Meghalaya border in the early hours of Tuesday after a truck allegedly laden with illegally felled timber was intercepted by forest guards from Assam. Following this, the Assam police sounded an alert in all districts bordering P10 Meghalaya. New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday termed the exploitation of the “silence of the Constitution” and the absence of a law governing the appointments of election commissioners and chief election commissioners a “disturbing trend”. It said the CEC, with his truncated tenure, cannot do anything P9 substantial. New Delhi: Aftab Amin Poonawala, who allegedly killed his 27-year-old live-inpartner Shraddha Walkar and dismembered her body, on Tuesday told a Delhi court that he committed the crime in the “heat of the moment”. The Metropolitan Magistrate also extended his custody by four more days and allowed his polygraph test.