MADURAI l saturday l january 18, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 14 l LATE CITY EDITION former pakistan pm Imran Khan, wife sentenced for corruption A Pakistani court sentenced jailed former PM Imran Khan and his wife Bushra Bibi to 14 and seven years in prison respectively in a graft case Imran Khan (right) with his wife Bushra Bibi | file photo all about the al-qadir trust case pti cadres livid; imran can file appeal The couple are accused of accepting a gift of land from Malik Riaz, a realty tycoon. The case centres on allegations that $240 million, returned to Pakistan by the UK as part of a settlement with Malik Riaz, was misused. Instead of going into the national treasury, the funds were redirected to benefit the businessman who helped Khan and Bibi establish a university ■ ■ The judgment comes amidst the ongoing negotiation between the government and Khan’s PTI to address the instability in Pakistan Shortly after the verdict, lawmakers from Khan’s PTI protested outside Parliament in Islamabad, saying the former PM had been wrongly punished. Khan can file an appeal against the order | P11 $240 mn said to be misappropriated by khan and his accomplice 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 Israel nod to truce deal a step away Resolve TN Guv-govt ED attaches `300 cr worth MUDA scam First hostages to be freed Sunday; Hamas required to furnish hostage names by Saturday Naysayer in cabinet ap & agencies @ Jerusalem ISRAEL’s security cabinet on Friday recommended approval of a ceasefire deal after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed an agreement had been reached that would pause the 15-month war with Hamas in Gaza and release dozens of hostages held by militants there. Mediators Qatar and the US announced the ceasefire on Wednesday, but the deal was uncertain as Netanyahu insisted there were last-minute snags he blamed on Hamas. The truce deal now goes to the full Israeli cabinet for its final approval. The cabinet is Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir threatened to quit if a ceasefire is approved, although his resignation wouldn’t derail the ceasefire deal. His resignation could, however, destabilise the coalition govt cobbled together by Netanyahu expected to approve the pact. Netanyahu instructed a special task force to prepare to receive hostages returning from Gaza, and said their families were informed about the deal. The prime minister’s office said the ceasefire could start Sunday when the first hostages are freed. Under the deal, 33 of some 100 hostages in Gaza will be released over six weeks in exchange for hundreds of Palestinians imprisoned by Israel. As for Israel, its forces will have to pull back from many areas in Gaza, allowing hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians to return to what’s left of their homes. The remaining hostages, including male soldiers, are to be released in a second — and much more difficult — phase. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir voted against the deal at the security cabinet, but were in a minority . Israel’s Justice Ministry published a list of Palestinian prisoners slated for release in the first phase. The list includes 95 women and children held in Israeli jails. The deal stipulates that Hamas provide Israel with names of the hostages it will release by Sunday . Several clues found in Saif case, says CM A g e n c i e s @ Mumbai A day after actor Saif Ali Khan was stabbed multiple times in Mumbai home, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday said the police have found several clues in the case and will arrest the culprit soon. Fadnavis, who holds the home portfolio, said: “Police investigation is going on....they have got many clues and I feel the police will very soon zero in.” More than 30 teams are on the lookout for the culprit. And minister ruled out an underworld link to the brutal attack. The police picked up a carpenter as he resembled the intruder, and brought him to the Bandra police station for questioning, but released him later. “This seems to be a stray incident. The intruder was not working for any gang as per prima facie investigation. He probably was not even aware whose house he had entered in,” a police officer said on condition of anonymity . Budget session to begin on January 31 Parliament’s Budget session will begin on January 31. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will table her 8th straight budget on February 1 khel ratnas President Droupadi Murmu confers the Khel Ratnas to (from left) Paris Olympic double medallist Manu Bhaker, Paris Para-Olympics gold winner Praveen Kumar, Paris hockey medallist Harmanpreet Singh and world chess champion D Gukesh | PTI | P13 BJP decides to go all out on one-nation-one-poll plan R A J ESH KUM A R TH A KUR & J AYA NTH J A COB @ New Delhi Signalling its resolve to roll out the ‘one nation, one election’ plan, the BJP has constituted a high-powered committee chaired by Union agriculture minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan to shape public opinion and align its own state and local body governments with the importance of the idea. BJP leaders Sunil Bansal, Om Prakash Dhankhar, Surendra Nagar, Kamakhaya Prasad Tasa and Anil Antony are the other members of the panel. The six-member team will plan th e outre ach p ro grammes and campaigns in this regard even as a Joint Parliamentary Committee on the matter, chaired by BJP leader P P Chaudhary, is deliberating the issue. In March last year, a panel led by former President Ram Nath Kovind proposed the idea of holding state and general elections simultaneously in its 18,626-page report. An introductory meeting of the Chauhan-led committee has already been held, and a detailed meeting will take place in the coming days, where the complete roadmap for the plan will be chalked out, sources told this newspaper. The committee may also be expanded, they added. According to a BJP functionary, the plan is to draw a strategy to bring on board every stake holder as the party is confident of getting past the hurdles for passing the necessary constitutional amendments. The BJP wants to have a synchronised approach from its leaders, office-bearers, legislators, and local body representatives to “constantly and comprehensively” address the topic in public forums. The party also intends to engage Bar Associations, Chambers of Commerce, women’s self-help groups and various student organisations in the campaign. Shivraj Singh Chauhan Chauhan to lead outreach Six-member panel to direct campaigns and outreach initiatives to bring on board stakeholders Union agriculture minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan to head the panel BJP believes constant poll preoccupation is disrupting the country’s development road rules thrown to wind 3 of 4 motorists in 7 dists don’t wear helmet C SHI V A KUM A R @ Chennai Only one in four adult motorists riding two-wheelers in seven districts of Tamil Nadu, including Madurai and Tiruchy, wears a helmet, a study has found. Chengalpattu, Kancheepuram, Cuddalore, Tiruvarur and Tiruvannamalai are the other five districts where helmet compliance among adults is below 25%, according to the study conducted by Citizen Consumer and Civic Action Group (CAG). The highest compliance of around 75% was observed in Coimbatore and Tirunelveli, while in Chennai and Salem, the compliance rate was above 50%. The highest rate of compliance among children was observed in Salem and Tirunel- veli districts, the report said. The report said the overwhelming belief by the riders on their ability to avoid road accidents and the general perception that helmets were unnecessary for short trips are the major reasons for the nonuse of helmets. Parents transporting children to schools displayed the lowest compliance, the report said. The CAG carried out the study at two traffic intersections each in 11 districts of Tamil Nadu in November 2024. In absolute numbers, 1,729 adults were observed in Chennai, of them, 1,023 were found wearing helmets. In Coimbatore, 2,565 of the 3,320 observed adults wore helmets. However, the numbers were drastically low in districts like Madurai where only 242 of 2,034 observed adults wore helmets. Besides Madurai, complia n c e w a s a l s o l owe r i n Kancheepuram and Tiruvannamalai districts. The low compliance among adults directly influences the low or nearly non-existent helmet use among children, the study said. The compliance among children was negligible in Tiruchy , Madurai, Chengalpattu and Kancheepuram districts. In Chennai, too, it is below 25%, said the report. P7 TN must ensure helmets are widely available and affordable, especially in low-income and rural areas. Norms must be developed for lightweight and climateappropriate helmets Study issues or we will do it, says Supreme Court assets in case linked to Siddu S u c h i t r a Ka lya n M o h a n t y E X PRESS NEWS SER V ICE The Supreme Court on Friday said if the pending issues between Governor R N Ravi and the Tamil Nadu government, including selection and appointment of Vice-Chancellors (V-Cs) to state universities, are not resolved by the next date of hearing, the court will intervene to resolve the issues. A two-judge bench of Justices J B Pardiwala and Justice R Mahadevan made the remarks after hearing an interlocutory application filed by Tamil Nadu challenging the inaction of the governor in deciding on bills, files relating to sanction for prosecution, and selection and appointment of V-Cs. “By the next date, if it is resolved well and good. Otherwise, we will resolve it,” the bench said, and fixed the next hearing in the matter to January 22. Two writ petitions have been filed by Tamil Nadu against Governor R N Ravi regarding delay in deciding on several bills passed by the legislature and files submitted by the state government. Tamil Nadu government ar- THE Directorate of Enforcement (ED), Bengaluru, has provisionally attached 142 immovable properties with a market value of about `300 crore under the money laundering Act, in connection with a case against Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and others. The attached properties are in the names of individuals working as real estate businessmen and agents, according to a statement issued by the ED. The ED launched an investigation on the basis of an FIR registered by Lokayukta Police, Mysuru, under various Sections of IPC, 1860, and the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, against Siddaramaiah and others. The Lokayukta Police are investigating the MUDA sites allotment case against Siddaramaiah and others. It is alleged that Siddaramaiah used his political influence to get 14 compensation sites in the name of his wife B M Parvathi in lieu of 3 acres and 16 guntas of land acquired by MUDA. The land was acquired by MUDA for `3,24,700. @ New Delhi @ Bengaluru gued that as per Article 200 of the Constitution, the governor is obliged to return the Bill “as soon as possible”. Tamil Nadu said the governor is acting as “political rival” which has resulted in a “constitutional deadlock”. The Tamil Nadu government has also contested three notifications unilaterally issued by the governor for constituting search-and-selection committees for the appointment of Vice-Chancellor in Bharathiar University Tamil Nadu Teach, ers Education University, and Madras University . The Tamil Nadu gover nment’s interlocutory application said the governor does not have any power under the Constitution to refer the 10 Bills (most of them relating to appointment of V-Cs) for the consideration of the President when the 10 bills were re-enacted by the State Assembly . P7