KALABURAGI TUESDAY MARCH 05, 2024 `9.00 PAGES 14 CITY EDITION PRACHANDA SNAPS ALLIANCE, LEADS NEW COALITION IN NEPAL Prime Minister Prachanda ended the 15-month partnership with Nepali Congress and formed an alliance with Communist Party of Nepal (UML) NEPAL NITISHED, 3 NEW MINISTERS TAKE OATH RIFT OVER NATIONAL ASSEMBLY CHIEF POST It was like what Nitish Kumar did in Bihar — ending an allinace and joining another in the space of a few hours while staying at the helm. Prachanda’s Communist Party (Maoist Centre) snapped ties with Deuba’s Nepali Congress. The PM then signed a deal with critic and former premier K P Sharma Oli’s UML. Three ministers then took the oath of office on Monday ■ ■ Differences between the Nepali Congress and the Maoist Centre grew over budget allocation to certain projects The other issue was the post of Chairman of the National Assembly. Nepali Congress, the largest party in the House with 89 seats, wanted the post for itself while Prachanda wanted it for his party 32 seats ALONE HELD BY PRACHANDA IN THE 275-MEMBER NEPAL HOUSE 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 Bribed lawmakers lose judicial shield Seven-judge bench overturns SC’s 1998 verdict in the JMM bribery case that protected Soren from CBI prosecution S U C H I T R A K A LYA N M O H A N T Y @ New Delhi BJP Yuva Morcha members protest against the state government over the alleged raising of ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ slogan, in Bengaluru on Monday | PTI 3 arrested for raising pro-Pak slogans at soudha E X P R E S S N E W S S E R V I C E @ Bengaluru THE Central Division police have arrested three persons for allegedly raising “Pakistan Zindabad” and other pro-Pakistan slogans at Vidhana Soudha soon after the announcement of victory of Congress candidate Syed Naseer Hussain in the elections to the Rajya Sabha from the state on February 27. The accused have been identified as Mohammed Shafi Nashipudi from Byadagi in Haveri district, Munawar from RT Nagar in Bengaluru, and Iltaz of New Delhi. They were subjected to medical tests and later produced before a judge in Koramangala. The arrest was made five days after the incident. After a video of the incident went viral, the police sent the raw footage to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) for tests to determine whether pro-Pakistan slogans were raised. The police arrested the trio based on the FSL report. The police had collected voice samples of 15 suspects and sent them to the FSL to check if they matched with those in the video. The voices of the three suspects matched. The accused have been arrested based on the FSL report, circumstantial evidence, witness statements and other evidence. The Vidhana Soudha police had registered a case after the incident, a statement from the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central) said. BJP leaders staged a protest in the Assembly on Thursday demanding that the accused be arrested soon. Further investigations are on. The state government is misleading the probe. Delay in releasing Forensic Science Laboratory report will push anti-nationalists to act further M U K E S H R A N JA N / P R AV E E N K U M A R Pvt agency report not valid: Dr G THE National Investigation Agency (NIA) has taken over the probe into the recent bomb blast at Bengaluru’s The Rameshwaram Cafe. It registered an FIR based on a direction from the Union Ministry of Home Affairs, officials said on Monday . They said the case has been handed over to NIA by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs after a team from the agency visited the blast site last week. It came a day after Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s statement that his government might consider handing over the probe to NIA, if necessary . With BJP leaders releasing a report by a private agency, confirming raising of proPakistan slogans, Home Minister G Parameshwara said reports by private agencies cannot be taken into consideration. REPORT: P4 The seven-judge bench comprising Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud and justices A S Bopanna, M M Sundresh, Manoj Misra, P S Narasimha, J B Pardiwala and Sanjay Kumar that nixed the immunity from prosecution for lawmakers | PTI Monday’s verdict authored by CJI D Y Chandrachud said, “Taking bribe is an independent offence and has no connection with what is said and done, by a MP or MLA inside House. Hence immunity granted by Constitution to them for fearless deliberation and debate of issues inside the House cannot shield them from prosecution.” The court said corruption and bribery by legislators destroy the functioning of parliamentary democracy. “Bribery is not rendered immune @ New Delhi/Bengaluru Suspect was wearing mask, glasses, cap A man wearing a cap, mask and glasses is the suspect in the case and he is still untraceable. The explosion is suspected to be carried out through an improvised explosive device The blast took place at the cafe in Bengaluru’s Whitefield area and several people were injured. Initially the Ben, galuru police registered a case under various Sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and the Explosives Substances Act. The DG & IGP of Karnataka, Alok Mohan, told reporters in AFTER LOSS, COACH BLAMES TN CAPTAIN’S ‘INSTINCT’ After an innings defeat at the hands of Mumbai, Tamil Nadu coach Sulakshan Kulkarni blamed the captain’s inner voice for the defeat. A look... D I V YA C U T I N H O @ Mangaluru THE MATCH Sai Kishore, TN captain under Article 105 or 194 because a member indulging in bribery indulges in a criminal act which is not essential for the function of casting a vote or giving a speech in the legislature,” the bench ruled. If the JMM bribery case verdict protected JMM chief Shibu Soren from prosecution, Monday’s ruling put his MLA daughter-in-law Sita Soren in On a surface with some spice for the pacers, TN captain Sai Kishore won the toss. But he went conventional wisdom — and the dressing room — in deciding to bat first. The visitors were blown away for 146. They couldn’t recover from that setback as they went down by an innings and 70 runs on Monday We lost the match at 9.00 AM on Day One. I can take the horse to water but the horse has to drink. We should have bowled but the captain has a different instinct. Ultimately he’s the boss and I can only give suggestions —Sulakshan Kulkarni, TN coach VIDARBHA IN COMMAND In the other semifinal, Vidarbha assumed total command. They lead Madhya Pradesh by 261 runs with four wickets remaining “Corruption and bribery of members of the legislature erode the foundation of Parliamentary democracy. It... creates a polity which deprives citizens of a responsible, responsive and representative democracy,” the bench said Bengaluru that the case will be handed over to NIA for further investigation. The eight teams of the Central Crime Branch that were formed to probe the case will assist NIA officials. “Procedures are being followed to hand over the case to NIA,” Mohan said. A team of NIA officials met the state police chief and Bengaluru City Police Commissioner B Dayananda at the state police headquarters on Monday afternoon. After NIA officially takes over the case, all case properties, including material evidence, CCTV footage and related files, will be handed over to it. The city police will also share all information they have gathered with NIA officials. EXPRESS READ CM to chair meet on water crisis today Bengaluru: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah will hold a video conference on the drinking water crisis in the state with deputy commissioners, district-in-charge ministers and other officials on Tuesday. The CM will also take stock of the fodder shortage and matters pertaining to agriculture | P4 SC raps Udhayanidhi for Sanatan comments New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday rebuked Tamil Nadu minister Udhayanidhi Stalin over his “eradicate Sanatan dharma” remark and asked why he moved the court for clubbing the FIRs filed against him after abusing his right to freedom of speech | P5 ‘Diagnosed with cancer on Aditya-L1 launch day’ EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ Bengaluru AS India burst into celebration on the day when India’s AdityaL1 mission soared towards the Sun (September 2, 2023), ISRO chairman S Somanath had some bad news. For, the head of ISRO was diagnosed with stomach cancer and had to undergo a surgical procedure and subsequently chemotherapy . During an interview with Anantha Krishnan M from Tar mak Media House, Somanath revealed that he underwent a scan in the morning of the Aditya-L1 mission launch and later got the news that he had stomach cancer. “It was after the scan I became aware of the growth in my stomach. I became aware of it as soon as the launch took place. It was a hereditary condi- tion,” he said. He said the diagnosis was a “shocker” to his family members. However over time, the journey with cancer is a solvable challenge rather than an obstacle. “Now I perceive cancer and its treatment as a solution. There is a message that it is not incurable and people are well aware of it. I will be un- Now I am completely cured. I have resumed my duties. I spent four days in hospital and resumed work. There were some health issues during Chandrayaan-3. However, it was not clear to me at that time — S Somanath, ISRO chairman the soup. It was Sita who had filed the appeal that was decided by the seven-judge bench against her. She was accused of taking bribe to vote for a particular candidate in the 2012 Rajya Sabha polls in Jharkhand. She, however, did not vote for the candidate. When the CBI went after her, Sita moved the Jharkhand High Court citing the 1998 rul- ERODES FOUNDATION OF DEMOCRACY After home ministry’s direction, NIA takes over Bengaluru cafe blast case — BJP MLA Jilted lover held for splashing acid on DK college girl A minor girl suffered severe burns when a 23-year-old jilted lover splashed acid on her at Kadaba government college in Dakshina Kannada district on Monday morning. Two others, who were sitting with her, also suffered burns in the attack. The police arrested the accused, Abin, who was in a relationship with the girl for two years. The second PU students were making last-minute preparations for their examination when the incident occured, according to police. Abin, a resident of Malappuram district in Kerala, is pursuing MBA. Wearing a cap and uniform (blue trousers and white shirt) similar to that of the government college to conceal his identity Abin went to , the college with a bottle of acid and splashed it on the 17-yearold science student around 9.55am, the sources said. He was sitting on the college premises along with other students. Nobody suspected him as students from other colleges were also there to appear for the exam. The victim sustained severe burns on her face, neck and back. However, she is out of danger. Two girls, who were with the victim, also suffered burns. All three were shifted to a private hospital in Mangaluru, Dakshina Kannada SP CB P5 Ryshyanth told TNIE. IN a landmark ruling, a sevenjudge bench of the Supreme Court on Monday unanimously said an MP or MLA cannot claim immunity from prosecution on a charge of bribery in connection with the vote or speech in the legislature. The ruling overturned a fivejudge bench’s 3:2 verdict in 1998 in the JMM bribery case to save P V Narasimha Rao’s minority government. The CBI had accused JMM chief Shibu Soren of taking a bribe to defeat a noconfidence motion against the government in 1991. The 1998 ruling said lawmakers had immunity from prosecution if they cast their vote in the House or spoke on a subject after taking bribe. That verdict created a peculiar situation as a lawmaker who took bribe but did not vote in favour of the bribe giver became liable for prosecution. dergoing regular check-ups every year. I will be undergoing scans. But now I am completely cured. I have resumed my duties,” he said. “I spent four days in hospital and resumed work,” Somanath said with a faint smile. Somanath said he felt some symptoms during the Chandrayaan-3 Mission launch, but was not sure. “There were some health issues during Chandrayaan-3. However, it was not clear to me at that time,” he added. ing to seek protection from prosecution. But the HC rejected it on the ground that she had not cast her vote in favour of the alleged bribe giver and was thus not entitled to the protection under Article 194(2). Commenting on the 1998 verdict, the seven-judge bench said, it resulted in a paradoxical outcome as it rewarded a lawmaker who accepted bribe and voted on agreed terms with immunity but prosecuted those who accepted illegal gratification but voted independently. The minority judgment highlighted the prima facie absurdity in the paradox, it added. The bench said a member engaging in bribery commits a crime. “This action may bring indignity to the House of Parliament or Legislature and may also attract prosecution. What it does not attract is the immunity given to the essential and necessary functions of a member of Parliament or Legislature,” it said. BUYING TIME Extend electoral bond data sharing deadline to June 30: SBI to SC ers had a right to know which party is getting money from whom and how much before THE State Bank of India on they excercise their franMonday sought to buy time chise. Polling is expected to from the Supreme Court for be over by June 30. In its application, the SBI submitting to the Election Commission of India full contended that retrieval of data on electoral bonds en- information stored in each silo and the procecashed by political dure of matching parties. the information of With the SC’s one silo with the deadline for the SBI set to end on Chronology samjhiye: other is a time-conMarch 6 (Wednes- first elections, then suming exercise. The data related day), the bank re- disclosure of electoral quested time till bonds. What makes to the issuance of the ruling party so the bond and the June 30 to complete nervous about data on their rethe task. revealing the source demption was kept In its landmark of its bottomless recorded in two difverdict last month campaign finance ferent silos. No striking down the coffers? central database electoral bonds Jairam Ramesh, was maintained. scheme for politiCong gen secy This was done to cal funding, the ensure that donors’ court had ordered , the SBI to furnish the data to anonymity the SBI said. “It is submitted that donor the poll panel by March 6. The ECI was directed to pub- details were kept in a sealed cover at the designatlish the information on its ed branches and all website by March 13. The court such sealed covers had the upwere deposited in coming Lok the Main Branch Sabha elecof the Applicant tions in mind bank, which is when it set the located in Mumtimelines bebai,” the plea cause it said votsaid. EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ New Delhi Ready to appear before the ED virtually, says Kejriwal A N U P V E R M A @ New Delhi DELHI Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday skipped the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) eighth summons in connection with the excise policy case. Again terming the summons ‘illegal’, Kejriwal said he can appear before the agency virtually after March 12. Kejriwal is scheduled to appear before a city court on March 16 for repeatedly skipping ED’s summonses for questioning in the excise policy case. The AAP said that the motive behind summons is not to question the party chief, but to arrest him before the Lok Sabha elections. It said that the BJP has been completely exposed, hence it is playing vendetta politics. The party argued that when the CM is ready to respond virtually, why was the ED not questioning him. It stated that the central agencies can question him through video conference and the whole process should be telecast live. Delhi BJP secretary Harish Khurana said, “Kejriwal can do that even today if he wants to appear virtually Right now .” he is doing a mockery of the summonses, he added.
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