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 ■ ■ kOCHI l saturday l October 11, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 16 l LATE city EDITION Nobel Peace Prize goes to Venezuelan leader Machado, who dedicates it to US President Humbled, grateful Thank god it’s not Trump! Agencies There was a collective sigh of relief across the world after the Norwegian Nobel committee awarded the Nobel Peace Prize to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, passing over US President Donald Trump in the process. Months of badgering by Trump for the most coveted award came to nought despite loads of nominations in his favour. He knew he had little chance of making it, as most of those nominations came after the February 1 deadline for this year’s award, yet he went on bullying the Nobel committee like a spoilt child. That the panel showed spine to fob him off came like a breath of fresh air. After the announcement, he went into a sulk, despite Machado dedicating the award to Trump. “Today more than ever , we count on President Trump, the people of the United States, the peoples of Latin America, and the democratic nations of the world as our main allies to achieve freedom and democracy she said. ,” Her opposition to Venezuela President Nicolas Maduro aligns with the Trump administration’s stance. Secretary of State Marco Rubio had previously praised her as ‘the personification of resilience, tenacity and patriotism’. , The first nation to face Trump’s anger was China, as he said he no longer felt it nec- essary to meet President Xi Jinping at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit later this month. He lit into China’s hostile trade practices, including new export controls on rare earths, and threatened it with massive tariff hikes. Democracy activist Machado who sought to challenge President Maduro in last year’s elections, has become a “unifying” figure in Venezuela, the Nobel jury said. “In the past year, Ms Machado has been 50% of NH 66 work to be over by March ’26 Express News S ervi ce @ Kochi Sha inu M oh an & Krishna Ku mar K E T express read CM meets PM, seeks relief for Wayanad New Delhi: Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Friday met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and sought the Centre’s intervention on various issues, including the immediate release of funds for Wayanad relief works and setting up of an AIIMS in Kozhikode. P5 18 child marriages in 10 months in state T’Puram: Kerala in 2024-25 reported the highest number of child marriages compared to the preceding two years. As many as 18 incidents of child marriage took place in the fiscal until January 15, 2025, compared to 14 in 2023-24 and 12 in 2022-23, reveals data. P5 forced to live in hiding,” said Jorgen Watne Frydnes, chair of the Nobel committee. “Despite serious threats against her life, she has remained in the country, a choice that has inspired millions. When authoritarians seize power, it is crucial to recognise courageous defenders of freedom who rise and resist.” Machado was set to run against Maduro in last year’s presidential election, but the government disqualified her. She then campaigned for her stand-in, ex-diplomat Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, seen by much of the international community as the rightful winner. The run-up to the election saw widespread repression, including disqualifications, arrests and human rights violations to ‘steal’ the mandate. It’s not for me to judge whether the current US president deserves the Nobel prize — I don’t know. He’s really doing a lot to resolve these complex crises, which have lasted for years, even decades Vladimir Putin, Russian President It should... remind those of us lucky enough to live in America that we have a solemn responsibility to constantly preserve and defend our own hard-won democratic traditions Barack Obama, former US President Democracy is a precondition for peace. However, we live in a world where democracy is in retreat Nobel Peace Prize jury Vigilance report reveals ‘theft’ of more gold in Sabarimala 13 toll plazas he National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is likely to complete the six-laning work on more than half of the 644-km NH-66 stretch across Kerala by March 2026, with four key stretches — covering about 145 km — expected to be opened to traffic by the end of this year, senior officials said. But quicker travel is likely to come at a price. Once the entire work is completed, NH 66 will feature a total of 13 toll plazas in the state — 11 finalised while two more are under consideration, the officials said. The first of the new plazas — at Mambuzhappalam in Pantheerankavu — is set for trial this week. Three of the toll booths will come up at Eramalloor (Aroor–Thuravoor elevated highway), near Kripasanam in Alappuzha ( T h u r avo o r – P a r avo o r stretch), and Ochira (Paravoor–Kottukulangara). The toll rates are still being finalised, while existing plazas on the highway are functional at Thiruvallam, Kumbalam and Thiruvangad. Among the four stretches set for December launch, the 39-km Thalappady–Chengala stretch in Kasaragod, executed by ULCCS, has already been opened to traffic. The other three stretches likely to be completed by end of this year are Ramanattukara–Valanchery (39.68 km; 99.36% complete), Valanchery–Kappirikkad (37.35 km; 98.65%), and Vengalam–Ramanattukara Junction (28.4 km; 80%). Widening work on six other stretches — together covering 202 km — including those from Chengala to Neeleshwaram, Neeleshwaram to Thalipparamba, and Thalikulam to Kodungallur, are expected to be completed by March 2026. ● Full COVERAGE on P2 “This is something that the Venezuelan people deserve,” Machado said in a call with the Nobel Institute. ‘I am just part of a huge movement... I’m humbled, I’m grateful and I’m honoured.” Displaced Palestinians walk along the coastal road near Wadi Gaza in central Gaza Strip on Friday | ap Gaza peace process kicks in Cautious optimism as ceasefire takes effect A ceasefire between Israel and Hamas came into effect Friday, hours after Israel’s Cabinet cleared the deal. However, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu threatened to return to war if the ‘objectives’ are not met 72-hour countdown for Hamas to release the remaining Israeli hostages began on Friday after Israeli forces said they completed the first phase of their withdrawal from Gaza India upgrades Kabul mission to embassy J aya n t h J a c o b @ New Delhi IN a recalibrated diplomatic strategy India has officially up, graded its Technical Mission in Kabul to a full-fledged Embassy , the clearest sign yet of New Delhi’s intent to deepen engagement with Afghanistan under Taliban rule. The announcement was made at External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar’s meeting in New Delhi with Afghanistan’s Acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi on Friday, where the two leaders held wide-ranging discussions spanning security cooperation, infrastructure development, humanitarian aid, education, trade, and people-to-people ties. Muttaqi used the occasion to publicly reassure India on one of its core concerns: terrorism emanating from Afghan soil. “We had a detailed discussion on security cooperation. We will not allow Afghan territory to be used against any country ,” he said. He further urged restraint over cross-border tensions, cautioning that “issues cannot be solved through this approach” and referencing Af- Palestinians start returning to Gaza After Israeli troops began pulling back under the agreement to end the war, thousands of displaced Palestinians on Friday started returning to what is left of their homes in Gaza | P9 ghanistan’s historical resistance to foreign aggression. “The Afghan people’s patience and courage should not be challenged. If someone doesn’t know, they should ask the British, Soviets, or Americans.” In response, Jaishankar acknowledged Kabul’s assurances and said India and Afghanistan shared a common goal — peace, prosperity, and regional stability. “We appreciate your sensitivity towards India’s security concerns. Your solidarity with us in the aftermath of Pahalgam attack was noteworthy he ,” said. Announcing the embassy upgrade, Jaishankar said: “Our relationship is rooted in deep civilisational ties, and this decision reflects our intent to remain a reliable development and humanitarian partner.” The gold-covered sanctum of the Sabarimala temple Devaswom Board. The handing over of gold-clad items mischaracterised as “copper plates”, the unauthorised extraction of gold from gold-clad plates, and the misappropriation of extracted gold, prima facie, constitute serious offences under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, it said. The probe report reveals that in August 2019, 14 pieces of gold-clad copper plates of dwar- Munambam land is not waqf property, rules HC Ex p r ess N ews S e rvi ce @Kochi S Jaishankar with Afghani counterpart Amir Khan Muttaqi in New Delhi | PTI The vigilance report submitted before the Kerala High Court has disclosed another misappropriation of gold in Sabarimala with regard to the plating of side frames/lintel of the sanctum sanctorum, similar to the ‘fraud’ in the gold plating in dwarapalaka idols. While considering the report filed by the chief vigilance and security officer (superintendent of police), the High Court noted that although the investigation had commenced with respect to the dwarapalakas, the foregoing facts disclose serious malpractice regarding the door frames as well. On the dwarapalaka idols, the report indicates that a substantial quantity of gold, approximately 474.9 g, was hande d o v e r t o t h e d o n o r, Unnikrishnan Potti. The records do not disclose that this gold was ever re-entrusted to the Travancore Bringing relief to the residents of Munambam, the Kerala High Court has ruled that the land where around 600 families — primarily from fishing communities — reside is not waqf property . A division bench held that the deed executed in 1950 was a gift deed in favour of the Farooq College management and not a ‘waqf deed’. “The endowment deed of 1950 never intended to create any ‘permanent dedication in favour of the Almighty God’, but was a gift deed in favour of Farooq Management and therefore could have never qualified as a ‘waqf deed’ under any of the enactments of the Waqf Act 1954, 1984, or 1995,” held the bench comprising Justice Sushrut Arvind Dharmadhikari and Justice Syam Kumar V M. The court observed the Kerala Waqf Board’s action to declare/register the prop- What the court said... The Kerala Waqf Board’s 2019 action to declare the disputed property in Munambam as a waqf was “bad in law”. The manner in which the board has acted is nothing more than a land-grabbing tactic after almost seven decades, affecting fundamental rights and livelihood of hundreds of helpless citizens. There was no reason for the board to have waited for 70 years to issue the declaration all of a sudden by conducting a unilateral inquiry, classifying the subject property as a waqf. The inordinate delay in itself is sufficient enough a reason to taint the whole exercise of the Waqf Board as unreasonable and arbitrary erty as waqf through its declarations and orders issued in September and October 2019 was bad in law on the grounds of being unreason- ably delayed and having been issued in violation of the provisions of the Waqf Acts 1954, 1984, and 1995, and consequently non-enforceable. “If the judicial seal of approval is placed on such an arbitrary declaration of waqf, tomorrow any random building or structure, including Taj Mahal, Red Fort, Niyama Sabha Mandiram (State Legislature Complex), or even the High Court building would be vulnerable of being painted with the brush of a Waqf property by the Waqf Board based on any random document at any point of time. The court, obligated to act under the Constitution, especially in a secular country like India cannot permit such a belated and fanciful exercise of power,” the court stated. The bench issued the order while upholding the order of the state government appointing an inquiry commission headed by former High Court judge C N Ramachandran Nair on the Munambam ● More on P4 land issue. trump tyranny? Nobel laureates Abhijit Banerjee, Duflo leaving the US a g e n c e f r a n c e p r e s s e @ Geneva US-based Nobel laureates Esther Duflo and Abhijit Banerjee will soon join the University of Zurich, where they will establish a new centre for development economics, the institution said Friday . The University of Zurich (UZH) said the married couple, who currently work at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), would join its economics faculty from July next year. The statement made no mention why the pair -- who won the 2019 Nobel Economics Prize alongside Michael Kremer for their “experimental approach to alleviating global poverty” — had decided to leave. But they will be moving to Switzerland at a time when experts are warning US President Donald Trump’s cuts to research funding and attacks on u n ive r s i t i e s ’ a c a d e m i c freedoms could lead to a brain Abhijit Banerjee Esther Duflo drain, with some countries trying to attract US scientists. Duflo, a dual US-French national, herself co-signed an edi- torial in Le Monde newspaper back in March denouncing “unprecedented attacks” on US science. She and Indian-born Banerjee will each have an endowed professorship at UZH funded by the Lemann Foundation, the university said. They will also establish and co-lead the new Lemann Center for Development, Education and Public Policy, with an aim to foster policy-relevant research and connect researchers and educa- tion policymakers around the world, it added. “We are delighted that two of the world’s most influential economists are joining UZH,” university president Michael Schaepman said. Duflo said the new Lemann Center would enable the couple, who will retain part-time positions at MIT, to “build on and expand our work, which bridges academic research, student mentorship and real-world policy impact”. apalaka idols were handed over to Chennai-based Smart Creations by Potti. Inspection revealed traces of gold on the copper sheets. Although Smart Creations indicated it did not have the technical know-how to replate such items, Potti insisted that the work be undertaken and directions were issued to utilise the gold earlier extracted as well as any leftovers from the dwarapalakas. After cleaning, gold plating was carried out in the presence of the donor and temple officials. On September 4, 2019, fourteen items of gold-plated copper plates were handed over to Potti along with a gold certificate reflecting 394.9g. The investigation also records that the recovery specialist extracted 409 g of gold from the side frame initially handed over, and 577 g from the dwarapalakas and other 14 items—totalling 989g. This total included three grams sup● More on P4 plied by Potti. Tata Trusts board meet held amid call for public listing B e n n K o c h u v e e d a n @ Mumbai The board of Tata Trusts, recently hit by an unprecedented revolt from four trustees led by Mehli Mistry — a close friend of the late Ratan Tata and first cousin of the late Cyrus Mistry — against chairman Noel Tata, held a ‘cordial’ meeting on Friday . It discussed only routine charity matters, even as the government urged the warring sides to resolve their differences quickly . The meeting took place a day after the first death anniversary of Ratan Tata and amid growing questions over Noel Tata’s leadership. Tata Trusts owns 66.6% of Tata Sons that controls around 400 companies, 30 of them publicly listed with a combined market capitalisation of about `30 trillion. While the meeting w a s u n d e rway, the Shapoorji Pallonji Group — which owns 18.4% of Tata Sons, making it the second-largest shareholder after the Trusts — issued a statement urging that Tata Sons be taken public to improve transparency and governance. The company has already missed the Reserve Bank’s September 30 deadline for its listing. “The board met for a few hours and discussed only routine issues, mainly funding for hospital and rural development projects. No contentious issues were raised, and the meeting ended cordially ,” a source said. “Though the atmosphere was tense, none of the attendees expressed it openly the source added. ,” 16 pages, including 4 pages of kOCHI Express
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