BENGALURU  TUESDAY  SEPTEMBER 26, 2023  `9.00  PAGES 24  LATE CITY EDITION ASIAN GAMES: SHOOTING STARS AND GOLDEN GIRLS WORLD RECORD FOR SHOOTING TEAM The men’s 10m air rifle team kept the hosts at bay with a world record score to win the team gold. Their combined 1893.7 eclipsed the record held by China (1893.3). In fact, all three finished in the top eight in the qualifying but Divyansh didn’t advance as only the top two from each NOC could feature in the final. In the final, Aishwary won bronze The men’s 10m air rifle team and the women’s cricket side won India the first gold medals in Hangzhou. A look at Monday’s haul ■ FIVE GOLD FOR WOMEN’S CRICKET SIDE Captain Harmanpreet Kaur, back after serving a two match suspension, marshalled the bowling troops well to beat Sri Lanka by 19 runs in the final. Opting to bat first on a tricky surface, they made 116 before restricting the Islanders to 97. For India, Titas Sadhu excelled with the ball, picking 3/6 in her four overs | P19 ROWERS FINISH ON A HIGH WITH FIVE MEDALS 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 LAW PANEL’S ‘ONE POLL’ REPORT TO SUGGEST 2029 ROLLOUT P R E E T H A N A I R @ New Delhi LAYING the groundwork for the Centre’s ‘One Nation, One Poll’ proposal, the 22nd Law Commission will submit its final report on the feasibility of holding simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha and state assemblies, according to top sources in the law ministry. The commission headed by Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi has been working on the final re- port since February this year. The first meeting of a highlevel committee on simultaneous polls headed by former President Ram Nath Kovind was held last Saturday . The Justice Awasthiled panel held extensive consultations with political parties, bureaucrats, academicians and experts. “I won’t say that there was consensus among parties on the idea,” an official said, adding that the government may send the Law Commission’s report to the Kovind-led committee for their perusal. Speaking to this newspaper, the official said the law panel would recommend synchronised elections in the next five years so that the simultaneous poll rollout will start in 2029. To synchronise PRESS CLUSIVE the elections, the process has to begin from this year, the official said. He also dismissed the possibility of holding simultaneous polls to the Lok Sabha and state assemblies in 2024. The commission has drawn most of its recommendations from the draft report of the pre- vious Law Commission led by Justice B S Chauhan, submitted in 2018, said the source. “We have taken many recommendations of the Justice Chauhan committee report into consideration. On the same lines as the previous law commission’s report, we have recommended synchronisation of elections in the next five years,” he said. The suggestions of the previous Law Commission included advancing or postponing elec- tion timings in certain states, such that polls to all state assemblies and the Lok Sabha may be held together. If assembly elections are due before Lok Sabha elections, it said that the term of these assemblies may be extended to synchronise it with the Lok Sabha elections, by amending the Constitution. “We have also made proposals on similar lines. It is up to the government to take the final call,” the official said. AIADMK makes break-up official, exits NDA T M U R U G A N A N D H A M @ Chennai A woman farmer performs ‘Urulu Seve’ in protest against the release of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu, in front of the ZP office in Mysuru on Monday | UDAYASHANKAR S Cauvery: B’luru bandh today, may be lukewarm THE uneasy relationship between the AIADMK and BJP, which had endured for four years due to various political compulsions, came to an end on Monday with the Dravidian major unambiguously calling it quits. The AIADMK also announced that it had exited the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and would form its own alliance to face the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. The AIADMK’s decision, just seven months before the parliamentary polls, is seen as a setback for the BJP at the national level as it was one of the few key allies of the saffron party . “The decision to leave the AIADMK general secretary EPS at party headquarters on Monday | P JAWAHAR NDA was taken unanimously and in deference to the views and feelings of more than two crore AIADMK cadre who were outraged by the continued criticisms of the BJP’s state leadership. The AIADMK will face the Lok Sabha elections by forming an alliance with likeminded parties” the party’s EXPRESS READ Cong reluctantly backed women’s Bill, says Modi Jaipur: PM Narendra Modi on Monday said the Congress and other I.N.D.I.A bloc allies are against women’s reservation and that they “reluctantly” supported the women’s reservation bill | P12 Schools, colleges to shut; ban orders imposed EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ Bengaluru THE state capital will witness two bandhs this week — Tuesday and Friday — against the release of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu. Karnataka Jala Samrakshana Samiti (KJSS) has called for Bengaluru and Ramanagara bandh on Tuesday while Kannada Okkoota (Kannada Organisations’ Federation) has called for Karnataka bandh on Friday . Schools and colleges in the city will remain closed on Tuesday Bengaluru Urban Deputy . Commissioner KA Dayananda issued an order on Monday declaring a holiday for schools and colleges in the district on Tuesday Bengaluru City University . (BCU) has postponed examinations for BA and BSc students (semesters 2 and 4) from September 26 to October 3. The city police have imposed prohibitory orders from 12 am on Tuesday to 12 am on Wednesday. While farmer leader and convenor of KJSS Kuruburu Shanthakumar claimed that more than 150 organisations What’s on, what’s not  Cabs and autorickshaws to ply as usual  BMTC & KSRTC services likely to be affected Will do caste census if Cong wins, says Rahul  Malls & multiplexes to open post noon  Shops to remain open have extended support to the bandh call, some associations, which had initially extended support, withdrew it by Monday evening. BJP JDS and Aam , Aadmi Party have extended their support. However, the bandh call is expected to receive a lukewarm response as private transporters and hotels and restaurants have decided to operate as usual. Autorickshaw drivers’ unions, Ola & Uber cab drivers’ association and the Bruhat Bengaluru Hotels’ Association have only extended moral support. Shanthakumar said a massive procession will be taken out from Town Hall to Freedom Park. P4 GOWDA SEEKS PM’S INTERVENTION Seeking Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s intervention to resolve the dispute between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka over sharing of Cauvery water, former prime minister HD Deve Gowda on Monday appealed to him to direct the Union Jal Shakti Ministry to file a review petition before the Supreme Court. Gowda insisted that the Centre constitute a committee of experts to study the ground reality in Karnataka. P6 deputy coordinator KP Munusamy told reporters after the meeting chaired by general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami in Chennai. Munusamy said the resolution adopted by the meeting said that for the past year the BJP’s state leadership, with ulterior motives, has been criti- AUSPICIOUS BEGINNING Defence Minister Rajnath Singh draws an Om as part of the ceremony to induct the first C-295 MW transport aircraft into the Indian Air Force at Hindon Air Force station on Monday | PARVEEN NEGI DEEP SEA HOMEMADE SUB GETS READY FOR 6-KM DIVE India is developing a worldclass submersible — ‘Samudrayaan’, a threemember mission — slated for launch in late 2025 in ‘Matsya 6000’. With this, India will become the sixth country after the US, Russia, France, Japan and China to deploy a manned submersible | P11 Raipur: Congress MP Rahul Gandhi said PM Modi is denying SCs, STs & OBCs their fair share by refusing to do the caste census. He said Cong will do it if voted to power | P12 Boy slapping case: SC for probe by IPS officer New Delhi: The SC on Monday directed the UP government to appoint a senior IPS officer to probe the case of a boy who was slapped by his classmates on the instruction of his teacher | P11 Plaint against CM’s son over ‘gifts’ remark E X P R E S S N E W S S E R V I C E @ Mysuru WITH a video clip of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s son Yathindra claiming to have gifted pressure cookers and iron boxes to members of the Madiwala community ahead of the 2023 Assembly elections going viral, a complaint has been registered against him in the Nanjangud police station. In his complaint, AN Rangu, a resident of Alaguru in T Narasipur taluk, alleged that Yathindra, while speaking at a function to inaugurate the association of Madiwalas in Nanjangud on September 15, stated that iron boxes and pressure cookers were gifted to the community members during cam- paigning for the Assembly elections. This violated the election code of conduct and Yathindra should be booked under RPI1951 and IPC. “Thus, I appeal to you to book Yathindra and also Siddaramaiah and hold a fair probe in this regard,” Rangu stated in his police complaint. SC hears arguments from deaf lawyer for the first time FOR the first time, a deaf lawyer argued her case before the Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud, paving the way for more physically-challenged lawyers to defend their cases. Sarah Sunny on Friday argued her case with the help of an Indian sign language interpreter. Senior advocate Sanchita Ain made a plea to Chief Justice Chandrachud to let Sa- rah argue her case with an interpreter. He immediately gave his assent. This historic moment would not have taken place as the control room responsible for managing virtual hearings hesitated to accommodate Sarah and her interpreter. With the CJI’s approval, the control room accommodated Sarah, who is based in Banga- lore, and her interpreter, Saurav Roychowdhury too appear, ing virtually . As Sarah’s turn came, her interpreter stepped forward and acted as a bridge between her and the world. In the process, he received praise from Solicitor General Tushar Mehta who said the speed at which the interpreter is interpreting in sign language is amazing. Sarah’s determination has broken down more barriers. The CJI, when he took his oath of office in November last year, had said, “My work, not words, will speak.” In line with his commitment, he established the “SC Committee on Accessibility,” chaired by Justice S R Bhat. This committee’s mission is to conduct comprehensive accessibility audits of Supreme Court premises and its opera- It’s final, BBMP to have 225 wards EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ Bengaluru THE State Government on Monday issued the final gazette notification on delimitation of wards in Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) limits. Accordingly there will be 225 wards. , The previous BJP government wanted to increase the number of wards from 198 to 243. Sources in the Urban Development Department (UDD), which oversaw the delimitation exercise, said, “This indicates that the government is only a few steps away from holding elections to the BBMP Council. The term of the council ended P3 on September 10, 2020.” Manipur Wushu player assures medal, recalls father’s sacrifice F I R O Z M I R Z A @ Chennai THE biggest Indian headlines on Day Two were at the shooting range and the cricket ground. The most poignant story though, was at the Xiaoshan , Guali Sports Centre, a venue hosting Wushu. Even as Naorem Roshibina Devi was a picture of calm, she held stories. Of a dad’s sacrifice. Of many sleepless nights worrying about the safety of her parents. And the anguish of not been able to visit family in Manipur. After being assured of a medal in the 60 kg (sanda) category Roshibina recalled some , of those to this daily . After selection trials in June, she tried to go home but could not. All she managed was Imp h a l , M a n i p u r ’s c ap i t a l . Kwasiphai Mayai Leikai, a nondescript village in Bishnupur, seemed a distant place due to the tension that had been afflicting the state since May this year. She recollected how her father Naorem Damu Singh had to come to Imphal to meet her. Days later, she learnt that her father had to sell land to fund Naorem Roshibina Devi | PIC: ‘X’ her travel. Though Roshibina was physically present in the national camp in Srinagar, her thoughts were elsewhere. She said she used to cry a lot thinking about her family members and their safety when Manipur was in turmoil. The 23-year-old wanted to travel back to see her family . Sensing the daughter’s anxiousness to go home from the camp, her father sold a piece of land to P19 fund her travel. CANADA’S 2ND INDIA TRAVEL ADVISORY OUT Y E S H I S E L I @ New Delhi ANOTHER GLASS CEILING BROKEN SHRUTI KAKKAR @ New Delhi cising the AIADMK’s ideals and leaders, including CN Annadurai, and J Jayalalithaa. Besides, the BJP’s state leadership belittled the AIADMK’s historic state-level conference held on August 20 and has been criticising the party’s general secretary . In Coimbatore, BJP state president K Annamalai said his party’s national leadership would respond to the development. “I will talk about this later,” he said. BJP state general secretary Raama Sreenivasan described the AIADMK’s move as unfortunate. “But the BJP will form its own alliance and face the Lok Sabha elections as we did in 2014,” he added. P7 If simultaneous elections cannot be conducted, all elections falling due in a calendar year should be conducted together, the panel had suggested. It would require at least five Constitutional amendments. The official further said, “The previous commission gave suggestions for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. We have considered its suggestions on hung House and no-confidence motion, etc,” he said. tions. It involves reaching out to persons with disabilities who visit the Supreme Court, soliciting their feedback, and assessing the nature and extent of the challenges they face. The ultimate goal of this initiative is to ensure that justice is accessible to all and to gain a deep understanding of the hardships faced by differentlyabled individuals in their interactions with the Supreme Court of India. CANADA on Monday updated its travel advisory for its citizens in India asking them to stay vigilant and exercise caution in the wake of the recent developments and the “negative sentiment” towards Canada. This is its second advisory within a week. It sought to flag the threat of terrorist attacks across the country “Avoid non-essential travel to Assam and . Manipur due to risk of terrorism and insurgency and avoid all travel to Jammu and Kashmir due to unpredictability, civil unrest, kidnapping,” it said. The advisory added that Canadian citizens currently in India should avoid all travel to areas within 10 km of the border with Pakistan—which includes the states of Gujarat, Punjab and Rajasthan—due to the presence of landmines and unexploded ordnance. “The level of tension between India and Pakistan may change suddenly You could experi. ence difficulties when travelling between the two countries,” it said. The advisory noted that the security situation along the border with Pakistan, especially along the Line of Control, remains volatile.