BENGALURU  SUNDAY  DECEMBER 14, 2025  `12.00  PAGES 26  LATE CITY EDITION 19 U.S. STATES SUE TRUMP OVER $1,00,000 FEE ON NEW H-1B VISA The Democrat-ruled states warned that the policy will worsen labour shortages in key sectors such as health care, education and technology PETITIONERS SAY FEE HIKE AGAINST LAW COALITION LED BY NEW YORK ATTORNEY GENERAL The attorneys general argued that the new fee breaches both the Administrative Procedure Act and the Immigration and Nationality Act, as it was introduced without congressional approval or the required rulemaking process. “The administration thinks it can raise costs on a whim, but the law says otherwise,” said the California attorney general | P11 ■ ■ New York Attorney General Letitia James (L) led 18 other attorneys general in filing the lawsuit. In September, President Donald Trump announced a one-time $1,00,000 fee on all new H-1B petitions Many states depend on H-1B visa to fill essential roles. For instance, about a third of health care workers in New York are H-1B visa holders $2K-5k IS HOW MUCH IT COST TO FILE AN H-1B APPLICATION BEFORE THE FEE HIKE 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 Resolution in US House against 50% tariff on India J AYA N T H J A C O B @ New Delhi LEFT: Fans turned violent after Leo Messi suddenly left the Salt Lake Stadium due to security reasons; and (R) Telangana CM Revanth Reddy, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi with Messi in Hyderabad | PTI/VINAY MADAPPU Shivakumar will become CM on Jan 6: Congress MLA D EVA RA J B H I R E H A L L I @ Bengaluru KARNATAKA Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar’s aide and Congress MLA from Ramanagara Iqbal Hussain on Saturday said that Shivakumar will become the state’s chief minister on January 6, 2026. Replying, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said in Lakshmeshwar, “I will only list e n t o wh at t h e h i g h command says.” A visibly embarrassed Shivakumar, who is also KPCC president, told reporters at Devanahalli, “I don’t believe what Iqbal has said. He has a habit of making statements like these. Action should be taken against him.” Hussain was earlier served a show-cause notice by the party for issuing a similar statement favouring Shivakumar as CM. Hussain’s statement came on the eve of Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar’s visit to New Delhi to take part in the vote chori rally on Sunday along with high command P4 leaders. MESS IN BENGAL, GRACE IN HYD No glimpse of star leads to paying public rage in a car, accompanied by his Inter Miami teammates Rodrigo ALL for a glimpse of Messi. de Paul and Luis Suárez, things For a Messi fan, it’s all that started getting out of hand. matters. As soon as I reached Fans were delirious. the gates of the Salt Lake However, the scenes turned Stadium at 8.30 am, fatigue chaotic after guests in the corfrom overnight journey just doned-off VVIP area crowded disappeared. The stadium was around Messi, blocking his view. draped in Argentina colours, The event organiser was heard with people in jerseys with repeatedly urging them to step Messi written on their aside. All of a sudden backs. There were giant the situation went out cutouts and paintings of control and Messi of him as well. Fans and his entourage were I am deeply from across the country escorted out of the stadisturbed & were there. My ticket dium. We in the crowd allowed me to one part shocked by the did not know what was mismanagement of the stands. happening. Word spread today. I More than 60,000 fans that Messi had left. This apologise to would have gathered in- Messi, as well as sparked anger. Bottles side by 10.30 am. There were hurled onto the to all sports was a cultural profield, banners were violovers & fans gramme highlighting lently torn down, and India and Argentina, Mamata Banerjee the situation deterioratfollowed by a friendly ed. Fans began breaking football match between Dia- chairs and throwing them in the mond Harbour Club and Mo- s t a d i u m . S eve r a l p e o p l e hun Bagan. Fans were kept en- breached barricades and engaged, but as soon as the tered the ground. Makeshift announcer hollered in stadium tents were overturned, chairs PA system that Messi would be smashed.Even the goalpost was entering, at around 11.30 am, damaged. excitement quickly turned into Eventually, exhausted and a frenzy Fans began climbing disillusioned, fans began leav. the barriers placed in front of ing the stadium. Shah Rukh the stands to catch a glimpse of Khan and Sourav Ganguly who the World Cup winner. were part of the event cancelled P13 As Messi entered the stadium their appearances. A S H U T O S H A C H A R YA @ Kolkata I went to jail, don’t warn me: DKS threatens BAF treasurer over Apt. Bill M O H A M M E D YA C O O B @Bengaluru KARNATAKA Deputy CM and Bengaluru Development Minister DK Shivakumar kicked up a controversy after he warned a Bengaluru Apartment Federation (BAF) representative over the delay in modification and implementation of the Karnataka Apartment (Ownership and Management) Bill. Shivakumar’s statements came at a meeting with representatives of the Bengaluru Apartment Federation and other associations at Vidhana Soudha. “One Mr Kiran Hebbar (treasurer of BAF) has written a threatening letter, saying apartment owners could influence the GBA (Greater Bengaluru Authority) elections if the government doesn’t listen to them. We are not scared of threats. One must have basic common sense. Who are they talking to? We are here for you and that is why we are calling you here and seeking your feedback,” he said. “Let me tell you, Atmosphere electric as city salutes soccer royalty @ Hyderabad 70-foot Leo Messi statue was unveiled by the legend | SRI LOGANATHAN VELMURUGAN Bengal CM orders high level probe Rahul joins the fun Stating that she was shocked and deeply disturbed by “mismanagement” at the Leo Messi’s event, CM Mamata Banerjee announced the constitution of a high-level panel to probe incident. “I am consti-tuting an enquiry panel under the chairmanship of Justice (Rtd) Ashim Kumar” Congress leader Rahul Gandhi joined Messi and Reddy at the felicitation towards the end of the event, posing for photos in front of the sponsorship hoardings. Earlier, Messi took a tour of the stadium. He will reach Mumbai on Sunday for his third leg of the GOAT Tour 2025 DKS: SIT chargesheet in Aland case full of truth A N I L S @ T’puram BENGALURU: DCM DK Shivakumar said everything SIT has said in its chargesheet in the Aland “vote theft” case was true. Chargesheet has been reportedly filed against seven persons, including former MLA Subhash Guttedar and his son Harshanand Guttedar | P6 Ex-MLA Dr Nimbalkar saves life mid-air DK Shivakumar at an event in Bengaluru on Saturday | SHASHIDHAR BYRAPPA I did not fear PM and home minister , and went to jail. You think I will be scared of some Hebbar. You can’t warn this government,” he threatened. As his statement flooded social media, Mohandas Pai, former Infosys CFO, was quick to condemn his statement. He said, “Minister @DKShivakumar, this is very wrong. Yes, you are our Minister, but you are our representative, not our Master. We are a democracy and have a right to question Ministers. Very wrong to talk to citizens like this and create Fear. Citizens are suffering and need help. Good for you to help.” P6 RBI: Rural women better employed than urban BENGALURU: Karnataka’s rural women are better employed in comparison to their counterparts in urban areas, said an RBI report. Unemployment rate of women in rural areas was 9 per 1,000 in 2023–24 and 13 in 2022–23. In urban areas, unemployment rate of women during 2023–24 was 44 and during 2022–23, it was 51 | P5 WITH THIS ISSUE The Wars Behind the War PLUS 12 P AGES Strong UDF show, BJP takes T’puram EXPRESS READ BELAGAVI: Former Congress MLA Dr Anjali Nimbalkar saved the life of a co-passenger aboard a Goa– New Delhi flight. Shortly after take-off, a woman complained of chest pain and a weak pulse. Dr Nimbalkar stayed by her side throughout the journey ensuring her welfare | P7 joined by Luis Suárez and Rodrigo De Paul, with Revanth alongside them, a tableau that HYDERABAD put its best foot blurred lines between sport, forward on Saturday by ensur- spectacle and dream. For the ing that the visit of Lionel Mes- record, Revanth found the net si to India was a resounding once and Messi twice. success. While the football was After the exhibition game limited to an exhibition match ended, Messi made a slow lap of between Team Revanth Reddy the ground, turning the moSingareni and Apar na All ment into something personal. Stars, playing for MesA gentle kick sent the si, the atmosphere was ball sailing into the electric at the Rajiv stands, triggering a Gandhi International scramble of joy At the . It’s been great to football clinics, young Stadium, Uppal. be part of the The stadium and its players shared the pitch tour. I am very vicinity turned into a with the legend, exhappy to be in roaring cauldron of changing crisp tiki-taka Hyderabad in the song, colour and belief midst of the love passes. The loudest apon a night Hyderabad plause came when a and affection came to salute football shown by you all child joined Messi on royalty. First, Chief the grass, the two sharLionel Messi Minister A Revanth ing a brief, unguarded Reddy stepped onto the moment that drew pitch with his team, drawing smiles across the stadium. loud cheers. Addressing the crowd in A while later, Messi appeared, Spanish, Messi kept it simple. first watching quietly from the “I feel very happy and grateful sidelines, smiling at the noise to see so many people, and I am he had summoned without very happy to be in Hyderatouching the ball. When he fi- bad,” he said. Suárez and Guinally walked onto the field, the do Rodríguez echoed the sentistadium erupted. Phones went ment, speaking of their delight up, voices cracked, and the sta- at being part of The GOAT Indium shook. Messi waved, took dia Tour. The evening closed in the scene, and soon offered with a brief felicitation on the flashes of the touch that has de- field by Revanth and Congress fined a generation. He was MP Rahul Gandhi. EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE THREE Democratic lawmakers in the US House of Representatives have introduced a resolution seeking to terminate tariffs of up to 50% imposed by President Donald Trump on imports from India, calling the measures illegal and harmful to the US economy and bilateral relations. Representatives Deborah Ross, Marc Veasey and Raja Krishnamoorthi tabled the resolution on Friday If at all . the resolution is adopted, it would end the national emergency declared on August 6, 2025, under which the tariffs were imposed, and roll back the additional duties levied on Indian goods. The tariffs were invoked under the Inter national Emergency Economic Powers Act. They began with a 25% levy in August and were later supplemented with “secondary” duties, pushing effective rates to as high as 50% on several categories of Indian imports. The lawmakers said the tariffs have disrupted supply chains and increased costs for American consumers and businesses, while under mining long-ter m US-India relations. Krishnamoorthi, an Indian-American lawmaker, said the tariff strategy was c o u n t e r p r o d u c t ive a n d failed to advance US economic or security interests. He argued ending the duties would help strengthen cooperation between Washington and New Delhi. UDF workers celebrating the bloc’s victory in Kochi | TP SOORAJ LOCAL body polls often signal the changing course of Kerala politics. On Saturday, political Kerala witnessed one of the biggest comebacks of recent times, with the Congress-led UDF scripting an authoritative victory in the two-phase local body elections held on December 9 and 11, and the ruling LDF nearly washed out. Riding on an anti-incumbency wave, the UDF garnered a stupendous victory, winning four out of six municipal corporations, seven district panchayats, 54 municipalities, 79 block panchayats and 505 grama panchayats. The LDF lost KERALA LOCAL POLLS four sitting municipal corporations, as many district panchayats, more than 100 GPs, half of the block panchayats and around 20 municipalities. The writing on the wall is clear: despite all its inherent weaknesses, the Congress front appears to be on a comeback path. However, the biggest takeaway is the BJP front clinching the Thiruvanathapuram city corporation—a win that has the potential to fuel the party’s growth in Kerala. The BJP-led NDA wrested the civic body from the LDF, winning 50 of 100 wards. The NDA has managed to proved itself a formida- ble contender to both fronts, with its comprehensive win in a municipal corporation, a first for it in the state. In an election that was supposed to be a referendum on a decade of CPM-led rule under Pinarayi Vijayan, the LDF was banking mainly on the recent hike in social welfare pensions, while its cyber team focused on the Mankootathil issue. The voters, however, were in no mood to take the bait. On the other hand, the UDF and the NDA based their campaign on the Sabarimala gold theft, which seems to have made an impact on the faithful as well as the discerning public. BORROWED INTELLIGENCE AI changing creative landscape of Sandalwood A S H W I N I M S R I PA D @ Bengaluru MUSIC is an integral part of cinema, so it is for Kannada cinema too. Many movies owe their success to songs, which are a creative collaboration of lyricists, composers and singers. But now, AI is re-writing that familiar song. “AI is being used to write lyrics, especially in low-budget movies. Once you get the lyrics, it gives thousands of tunes to render it. It even asks whether you want male or female singers. When you push the button, the song is ready with an AI-based singer belting out an AIbased song of AI-composed music from AIpowered lyrics,” said well-known music composer, actor and film director V Manohar. “If this continues, singers and musicians will have less or no work in the coming days. But it may not succeed either. A few years ago, dubbing was allowed and people could watch movies in any language they preferred. But not many took to it as they wanted to watch a movie in the original,” he said. CONTINUED ON: P7