Menstrual hygiene: SC pulls up states, UTs over lack of response The court expressed displeasure over states and Union Territories not responding to the Centre on menstrual hygiene judgment’s implementation Act soon or face contempt action, warns SC THIRUVANANTHAPURAM l monday l October 19, 2026 l `10.00 l PAGES 12 l late city EDITION Dec 14 In a major judgment earlier this year, the apex court held that menstrual health is a fundamental right. During a hearing on October 13, the Centre informed the court that it had sought details from states and UTs on the judgment’s implementation When the but received no response. The court warned of contempt action matter will be if states and UTs don’t respond by the next hearing heard again 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 UDF govt puts horti wine rule in cold storage 7 held in Kolkata stampede case Pandal organisers among those arrested; SIT under sitting HC judge to probe tragedy E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e 15 killed as truck rams devotees outside temple @T’Puram The UDF government on Sunday froze an LDF-era decision that allowed bakeries, supermarkets and malls to sell fruit-based wine with high alcohol content, and removed a top-level excise official who had issued the licence to a bakery in Thrissur. The firstof-its-kind decision of the previous government will remain on hold until the new liquor policy expected by November, end, is announced. The move followed a row over MRC bakery in Thrissur’s Chalakudy securing the first-ever licence to sell horti wine with up to 15% alcohol content. The owner, Krishnakumar, bought the first stock on Saturday How. ever, following news reports, Excise Minister M Liju froze the decision, telling reporters that the government was not told about the licence. On his instructions, Deputy Excise Commissioner C K Anil Kumar, who issued the licence, was removed. Liju sought a report from Excise Commissioner Sambasiva Rao on how the licence was issued and asked the additional chief secretary (taxes) to seek legal advice. “The government is not against horti wine or farmers. However, we cannot accept the idea of wine with 15% alcohol content being sold at bakeries. It can still be sold via Bevco outlets,” Liju told TNIE.  ● More on P4 A N URAAG SI N GH @ Bhopal Police personnel produce an accused in court on Sunday; Union Home Minister Amit Shah visits an injured | PTI, X s u b h en d u m a i t i @ Kolkata TMC targets Suvendu A day after the Chorbagan Sarbojanin Durgotsav pandal stampede in north Kolkata, police on Sunday arrested seven people, including the puja committee’s secretary and vicepresident, even as the state moved to fix responsibility for the colossal crowd-management failure. Meanwhile, two more victims died on Sunday, raising the toll to 19. Those arrested are secretary Raj Kumar Sewda alias Raja; vice-president Santanu Dubey; Kaushik Saha, in charge of verifying passes and crowd management; Biplab Mukhopadhyay, involved in the pandal’s bamboo structure; Pintu De; Suman Chakraborty; and Rajesh Pal. Fourteen people have been detained so far, and suo motu FIRs have been registered. Chief Minister Suvendu The Mamata Banerjee faction of the Trinamool Congress accused the police and administration of failing to ensure crowd control. The party’s MP Abhishek Banerjee demanded accountability, asking CM Suvendu Adhikari, “When will you put your nephew in jail?” Adhikari, who visited the injured late on Saturday, has announced a special investigation team headed by a sitting Calcutta High Court judge, with senior STF and CID officers. “No one, including committee members and police, would be spared if found negligent,” the CM said. The probe is set to be politically sensitive. The puja committee’s chairman is BJP MLA Bijoy Ojha of Jorasanko, while the CM’s nephew Debdeep Adhikari is a member. Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday visited the injured at Kolkata Medical College and Hospital, where several remain critical, and postponed other programmes, including a visit to Belur Math. The state government will pay `25 lakh and a job to one member of each victim’s family and `5 lakh to every injured. , A separate team of Rajesh Singha, secretary, disaster management; Anuj Sharma, D-G (fire) and Javed Shamim ADG (STF) has been tasked with inspecting infrastructure, fire safety and crowd management at big-budget pandals. The tragedy occurred around 7.30 pm on Saturday, when a downpour sent thousands rushing into the pandal on a narrow stretch off Central Avenue. Those inside could not get out as people outside pushed in, and many lost balance on a makeshift staircase. A speeding truck headed to Punjab with paddy crushed 15 devotees to death and injured another 26 outside the Sheetla Mata temple, 17km from Gwalior city, in the early hours of Sunday The Circle SP and eight . other cops were suspended after the heavy vehicle sped through a no-entry zone. Devotees had queued up for prayers on Maha Ashtami day . The condition of four injured persons is critical. Police said the victims are from Gwalior and nearby districts. Sarla Tomar, 50, was the sole woman among the deceased. Of the other 14, nine were aged between 13 and 18 years. The tragedy occurred around 1.30 am, when truck driver Dilbag Singh, lost control of the vehicle. A Gwalior police official said despite a ban on vehicle entry, none of the cops on duty stopped the truck. “Investigation suggests the brakes of the truck failed, causing it to ram the boundary wall and entry gate of the temple. The ran over the devotees lined up to enter the temple,” the official said. Dilbag Singh from Delhi and the truck’s owner Harpreet Singh from Ludhiana were detained. Actor safe; 2 persons injured Gunmen open fire at Tiger Shroff’s car S u d h i r s u r ya w a n s h i @ Mumbai Unidentified gunmen opened fire at Bollywood actor Tiger Shrof f ’s vehicle in the Juhu area of Mumbai on Sunday evening. The actor escaped unhurt, while his driver and a local autorickshaw driver sustained injuries. A viral video on social media showed two bike-borne assailants firing at Shroff ’s car from close range and escaping on a bike. Police said seven shots were fired at the car. The incident took place near Pushpa Park at JVPD Grounds in Juhu when Shroff was travelling in his car. Soon after the incident, an audio file emerged in which an alleged representative of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang claimed responsibility for the attack, saying Shroff had ignored their warning and continued to work with actor Salman Khan. The police said 12 specialised teams have been formed to analyse CCTV footage and track the suspects. The attack drew sharp criticism from the Opposition. “This is very unfortunate that no one is safe in Mumbai. This is a failure of intelligence agencies,” Nationalist Congress Party MLC Zeeshan Siddiqui said. Mumbai Congress president Varsha Gaikwad demanded that Maharashtra have a separate home minister, blaming Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis for the situation. “If actors and political leaders are not safe, what can we say about the safety of ordinary citizens?” she asked. EXPRESS READ Waqf chief contradicts CM on Munambam Kozhikode: The controversy over the dissolution of the LDF-appointed Kerala Waqf Board deepened on Sunday, with new chairman M C Mayin Haji asserting that the disputed Munambam land is Waqf property, directly contradicting Chief Minister V D Satheesan.  P4