kochi l wednesday l november 26, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 18 l LATE city EDITION Ethiopia volcanic ash cloud drifting towards China: IMD Ash clouds from volcanic eruption in Ethiopia reached the skies over Gujarat, Delhi-NCR, Rajasthan, Punjab and Haryana on Tuesday No impact on air quality or weather Flight operations disrupted “The ash cloud is drifting towards China and will move away from Indian skies by 7.30pm on Tuesday,” Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, Director General of Meteorology at the India Meteorological Department, said. He noted that the volcanic ash is present only in the upper troposphere and is affecting flight operations, but it has no impact on air quality or weather ■ ■ Air India announced it has cancelled 13 flights since Monday. Other carriers have also reported flight cancellations or delays Hayli Gubbi, a shield volcano in Ethiopia’s Afar region, erupted on Sunday, producing a large ash plume. The plume spread eastward towards the Arabian Peninsula and the Indian subcontinent 14 km The height to which the volcano spewed its ash plume 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 ’83 Nellie massacre reports One blames it on poll imposition, other doesn’t EXPRESS N EWS SERVICE @ Guwahati THE Assam government on Tuesday tabled the reports of two probe panels on the largescale violence during the peak of the anti-immigrant agitation, including the 1983 Nellie massacre, which successive governments chose to sit on. Over 2,000 people, most of them immigrant Bengali-speaking Muslims, were killed on February 18, 1983 in the small town of Nellie in Central Assam’s Morigaon district. The two reports held contradictory views on the violence amid assembly polls during President’s Rule in 1983. The Tewari Commission, officially constituted by the then CM Hiteswar Saikia of the Congress, said the violence had no ‘communal colour’. “The decision to hold the elections cannot be blamed for the outbreak of the violence of 1983,” said the commission, headed by retired IAS officer Tribhuvan Prasad Tewary It held the All Assam . Students’ Union (AASU) and Asom Gana Sangram Parishad (AGSP) “primarily responsible for launching the stir and for its consequences”. The ‘unofficial’ Justice TU Mehta Commission, formed by Mukti Jujaru Sanmilan and members of the anti-foreigners’ agitation, attributed the reason for the violence to the imposition of elections against the wishes of the people. It said the situation was not conducive to Arunachal tangle continues between India and China J aya n t h j a c o b @ New Delhi China on Tuesday rejected allegations that an Indian woman from Arunachal Pradesh was harassed by immigration officials during a layover at Shanghai airport, insisting that officers acted in accordance with the law. Pema Wangjom Thongdok, a UK-based Indian citizen, said her three-hour layover turned into an ordeal after immigration personnel declared Pema Wangjom her passport Thongdok “invalid” because it listed Arunachal Pradesh as her birthplace. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said Thongdok had not been subjected to any compulsory measures, detention or harassment. Mao also reiterated China’s claims over Arunachal Pradesh, prompting a strong pushback from India, with the MEA asserting it remains an integral and inalienable part of India. On Thongdok’s experience, the MEA said Chinese authorities had still not been able to explain their actions, which it described as violation of international conventions. 18 pages, including 4 pages of KOCHI Express Christian officer’s sacking upheld u d aya n k i s h o r e @ New Delhi CALLING a Christian army officer’s alleged refusal to enter his regimental temple’s sanctum sanctorum as the “grossest kind of indiscipline”, a Supreme Court bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymala Bagchi on Tuesday upheld his termination. Earlier, the Delhi High Court had sanctioned Samuel Kamalesan’s termination on grounds of ‘indiscipline’. Kamalesan was commissioned in 2017 into the 3rd Cavalry Regiment. The SC bench, on a plea by the officer against his termination, said while he may be an outstanding officer, “he is definitely a misfit for the Army Leaders have to lead by ... example. You are insulting your troops.” pm hoists saffron flag atop Ayodhya ram temple File picture of a family displaced after the Nellie violence in 1983 | X hold elections and put the blame on incumbent central government, Election Commission, “politicians who wanted to capture power by hook or crook”, the then Assam governor and his bureaucrats. The Mehta commission report said the Election Commission could have decided against holding the polls to stop the violence but it did not. Also, the report said, the polls were held without correcting the electoral rolls. “The evidence produced before the Commission clearly brings out the issues of foreigners, language, etc have been agitating the minds of the people for the last several decades, exploding into violence.” Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said although the Tewary report was tabled in 1987, only one copy was sent to the Speaker. The Mehta report was tabled in the House for the first time on Tuesday . Calling the moment “unique” and “divine”, PM Narendra Modi said the sacred flag is a testimony of triumph of truth. Also present were RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat and Yogi Adityanath | P10 EXPRESS READ State govt opposes proposal to rope in student volunteers for SIR T’Puram The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO)-Kerala’s move to use the services of school students for the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls has courted controversy with the state government opposing the proposal. In a statement, General Education Minister V Sivankutty said deploying school students for SIR-related work would disrupt their studies. P7 The bench pointed out that the officer had ignored even the advice of a local pastor, who counselled him and said entering a temple would not violate his faith. “You cannot have your private understanding of what your religion permits. That too in uniform,” it said. Senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, appearing for Kamalesan, said the appellant’s fundamental right to practise a religion under Article 25 cannot be taken away “Where in the . Christian faith is entering a temple barred?” Justice Bagchi asked. “In your team, there are Sikh soldiers... (for whom) there is a gurdwara. A gurdwara is one of the most secular places. Is his tone and tenor not insulting all soldiers? We are surprised he doesn’t even follow the advice of the pastor,” CJI Surya Kant said. Army: He was adamant The Army had said the officer repeatedly refused to attend mandatory regimental parades and senior officers made “multiple attempts” to counsel him, but to no avail Actor assault case verdict on Dec 8 E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Kochi Nearly nine years after the abduction and sexual assault of a popular Malayalam actor rattled the state, the Ernakulam Principal Sessions Court will pronounce its verdict in the case on December 8. Judge Honey M Varghese, who has been handling the trial, announced the date on Tuesday. Actor Dileep is the eighth among the 10 accused in the case. The incident pertaining to the case happened on February 17, 2017, when the actor was abducted and allegedly assaulted in a moving vehi- cle while travelling from Thrissur to Kochi. Five days later, the police arrested the prime accused, Sunil Kumar alias ‘Pulsar’ Suni, from a court in Kochi as he attempted to surrender. A purported letter written by Suni from the Kakkanad jail later brought the investigation to Dileep’s doorstep, leading to the actor’s arrest on July 10, 2017. He spent 88 days in jail before securing bail from the Kerala High Court. The trial, which began in January 2020, has been marked by major delays, including two years lost to the ● More on P7 Covid pandemic.  turn of events Feb 17, 2017: Actor abducted and allegedly assaulted in a moving vehicle Feb 23: Prime accused ‘Pulsar’ Suni held Jul 10: Probe team arrests Dileep Oct 3: Kerala HC grants Dileep bail Jan 30, 2020: Trial commences Oct 21, 2022: SC dismisses victim’s petition seeking change of trial court Sept 18, 2024: SC grants bail to Suni noting trial’s delay and that other co-accused were already out on bail