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 ■ ■ BHUBANESWAR  SUNDAY  JULY 06, 2025  `12.00  PAGES 26  JEYPORE EDITION The three chariots parked in front of Shree Jagannath temple after conclusion of Bahuda Yatra, in Puri on Saturday night | PIC COURTESY: SJTA ADR moves SC over Bihar spl poll roll revision Bahuda Yatra smooth; FIGHT GOES TO TOP COURT S U C H I T R A K A LYA N M O H A N T Y @ New Delhi AMID mounting concerns, the Association For Democratic Reforms (ADR) on Saturday moved the Supreme Court challenging the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in pollbound Bihar. It claimed that the Election Commission of India (ECI)’s exercise was violative of Articles 14, 19, 21, 325, 326 of the Constitution, provisions of the Representation of the People Act, 1950 and Registration of Electors Rules, 1960. “The SIR order, if not set aside, can arbitrarily and without due process disenfranchise lakhs of voters from electing their representatives, thereby disrupting free and fair elections and democracy in the country,” the petition said. SPL SUMMARY REVISION ALREADY OVER BETWEEN OCT 29, 2024 AND JAN 6, 2025. WHY FRESH ITERATION WITH NEW PARAMETERS? 1 Exclusion of Aadhaar or ration cards as id proof makes the poor vulnerable to exclusion from poll roll, says ADR 2 The petition claims that the ECI shifted the onus of being on the voters’ list from the state to the citizens It pointed out that the documentation requirements, lack of due process as well as the unreasonably short timeline for the electoral roll revision would result in removal of names of lakhs of genuine voters from the poll rolls. The petition charged that the ECI shifted the onus of being on the voters’ list from the state to citizens. It excluded identifica- Nirav Modi’s brother held in US on charges of laundering M U K E S H R A N J A N @ New Delhi US authorities have arrested fugitive diamantaire Nirav Modi’s younger brother, Nehal Modi, following extradition requests from the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), officials said on Saturday . Nehal, who is the subject of a Red Notice issued by the Interpol, was taken into custody on Friday, US officials told Indian authorities. The next hearing in the matter is scheduled for July 17, during which Nehal Modi, a Belgian national, may seek bail — a move expected to be contest- ed by US prosecutors, officials said. The arrest stems from a joint extradition plea submitted by the ED and the CBI. The proceedings, led by US federal prosecutors, are based on two charges — one count of money laundering and one count of criminal conspiracy under sections 120B (criminal conspiracy) and 201 (disappearance of evidence) of IPC. Nehal (46) is an accused in the `13,000 crore Punjab National Bank fraud. He was arrested a day after he walked out of a US prison after serving a nearly three-year sentence in a cheating case following India’s request. 3 Over 3 crore people could be excluded from voting due to the the requirements as mentioned in the SIR order 4 Petition says ECI fiat lacks recorded reasons supported by evidence or transparent methodology tion documents such as Aadhaar or ration cards, which makes marginalised communities and the poor more vulnerable to exclusion from voting. “The Declaration as required under the SIR process is violative of Article 326 in so far as it requires a voter to provide documents to prove his/her citizenship and also citizenships of his/her mother or father, failing which his/her name would not be added to the draft electoral roll and can be deleted from the same,” the ADR said. It termed the ECI’s order as unreasonable and the timeline impractical to conduct SIR in Bihar where elections are due in November 2025. There are many who may be able to procure the documents but the short timeline mentioned in directive may preclude them from being able to supply the same within the time period, the ADR said. “Bihar is a state with high poverty and migration rates where many lack access to documents like birth certificates or parental records. As per estimates over 3 crore voters and more particularly from marginalised communities could be excluded from voting due to the stringent requirements as mentioned in the SIR order.” Trinity returns home R A J K U M A R M O H A N T Y @ Puri WITH the government leaving nothing to chance after the gross mismanagement of Rath Yatra, which eventually led to loss of three lives in a stampede, and Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi himself taking the reins, the Bahuda Yatra (return journey) of the Holy Trinity was conducted smoothly in Puri on Saturday . Shaken by the series of untoward incidents, the administration meticulously planned the Bahuda event, revamping traffic arrangements and the command and control centre to effectively manage the crowd. The government engaged with the servitors to perform all rituals on time, including the conduct of the pahandi (ceremonial procession of the deities to the chariots). As a result, the pahandi was completed by 12.30 pm, two hours before the scheduled time. The Chhera Pahanra ritual was performed by Puri king Gajapati Dibyasingha Deb on the three chariots and completed by 2.40 pm, one hour ahead of schedule. The chariot pulling was scheduled for 4 pm, but the first Taladhwaja rath of Lord Balabhadra rolled out at 3 pm. The sky was thickly overcast, and it was drizzling all through the day Over half a million dev. otees converged at Badadanda (Grand Road) and participated in the pulling of the chariots to their destination, the Jagannath temple. CONTINUED ON P7 Twenty years on, Thackeray cousins bury the hatchet S U D H I R S U R YA W A N S H I @ Mumbai SHIV Sena (UBT) president Uddhav Thackeray on Saturday said he and his cousin, MNS chief Raj Thackeray have , joined forces in the interest of ‘Marathi pride’ while sharing a political stage with him after nearly 20 years. Uddhav sounded bullish when he said he and Raj will capture power in the Mumbai civic body elections and Maharashtra together. “We have come together to stay together,” he asserted. At the public rally titled ‘ waj Marathicha’ to celebrate A the rollback of two govern- MNS chief Raj Thackeray and Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray | PTI ment resolutions on introducing Hindi as a third language from Class 1 in state schools, Uddhav said, “We won’t let the government impose Hindi on us.” MNS leader Amit Thackeray, Raj’s son, was seen sharing a hug with Uddhav’s son Aaditya on the stage. Uddhav alleged that the people who are in power in Maharashtra, are “slaves of two Gujaratis. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Eknath Shinde are in power, not to serve the interest of Maharashtra and Marathi manoos, but of their bosses in Delhi. We will never tolerate Hindi in Maharashtra. We will fight to safeguard our culture and language.” On the rollback of the three- language formula in Maharashtra, both brothers said the BJP-led government had no other option. “The government rolled back the decision on the three-language formula due to the strong unity shown by Marathi people. This decision was a precursor to the plan of separating Mumbai from Maharashtra,” the MNS chief said, with Uddhav seated next. Raj, in a lighter vein, credited Fadnavis with bringing him and Uddhav together, a feat even Balasaheb Thackeray could not accomplish. “Your power is in the legislature, ours on the streets,” Raj said to thunderous applause. WITH THIS ISSUE DESI COOL THE AGE OF AUTHENTICITY AND CULTURAL NATIONALISM IS HERE PLUS 12 P AGES NEERAJ CHOPRA TOPS PARTY HE ORGANISED India’s javelin star Neeraj Chopra won the inaugural edition of the NC Classic at Sree Kanteerava stadium in Bengaluru with a 86.18 m throw