chennai l tuesday l november 10, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l vellore EDITION Milestone unlocked: Shrivatri becomes India’s 100th GM The 22-year-old earned his third and final GM norm by winning the 7th ASEAN Plus Individual Open, becoming the 100th GM from the country first gm to come from Madhya Pradesh Anuj Shrivatri, who had earned the title of an International Master just before the Covid pandemic, has taken a circuitous route to becoming GM. A self-taught player, he had opportunities to go abroad for work but had eschewed that in favour of completing his GM norms. On Sunday, he achieved that while also becoming the first from Madhya Pradesh to do so ■ 15 From Anand to Anuj: India’s journey ■ When Viswanathan Anand became the country’s first GM in 1988, it was held as a dream for many chess players India’s GM growth curve was turbocharged around the time of the pandemic. The country has produced an average of five grandmasters per year in the last six years | P11 grandmasters India have produced since 2025 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 UCC should be pan-India, no reason to restrict its rollout: Law minister Arjun Ram Meghwal says it has a constitutional basis; cites SC observations on the matter Shah: NDA-ruled states to implement it by 2029 Rajesh Kumar Thakur @ New Delhi Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Law and Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Arjun Ram Meghwal has said the government is committed to implementing the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) across the country and asserted that its “constitutional basis” makes it difficult to justify restricting the legislation to a few states. Asked whether the Uniform Civil Code would remain confined to BJP-ruled states or eventually be implemented across the country, Meghwal said: “The Uniform Civil Code was discussed in the Constituent Assembly, and the makers of the Constitution incorporat- Man alleges assault by Dy Speaker over civic issue Express news service @ Tiruchy Deputy Speaker of the legislative assembly and Thuraiyur MLA M Ravi Shankar landed in a controversy after a video purportedly showing him assaulting a man who approached him allegedly to raise a civic issue went viral on Sunday . The incident took a complicated turn hours later when the complainant, Kar thik Kumar, a photogr a p h e r, r e leased a clarification video sitting next to the deputy speaker, M Ravi Shankar stating the incident was misrepresented and was merely a brief pushing and shoving in a crowded area. However, in a dramatic twist shortly after, Kumar released a third video alleging that the MLA had threatened to kill his family if he did not record the clarification. Kumar further claimed that a police officer intimidated him and forced him to film the retraction video at the MLA’s residence. He also sought protection for his family , alleging threats from the MLA’s supporters. In a video on Sunday Karthik , Kumar, a resident of Ward 23 in Thuraiyur Municipality, is seen approaching Ravi Shankar, and getting slapped by him. Later, Karthik visited the Manachanallur GH for treatment. Police said Karthik was in an inebriated state, but he denied the charge.  P5 Union Home Minister Amit Shah had earlier described a common civil law for every citizen as a commitment of the BJP “since its inception”. He has also expressed confidence that the UCC would be implemented in all 21 BJP- and NDA-ruled states before 2029 ed a provision for it under Article 44. The Supreme Court has also made observations on the subject on several occasions. It is encouraging that some states have come forward to implement the UCC. Goa has had a common civil code for a long time, even when the BJP was not in power there,” he said in an exclusive interview with The New Indian Express. He added: “We believe that the UCC should be implemented across the country, and our government is committed to this objective. It has a constitutional basis, and there is no reason why its implementation should remain restricted to a few states. The issue is also increasingly finding a place in the election manifestos of political parties.” Uttarakhand became the first state to enact a UCC law in February 2024 and remains the only state to have fully implemented the legislation. Gujarat subsequently passed it while Assam became the first northeastern state to pass such legislation in May 2026. Madhya Pradesh has also moved towards adopting the code, approving it unanimously at a special Cabinet meeting in Bhopal in August. The UCC remains one of the BJP’s longstanding ideological objectives, alongside the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya and the abrogation of Article 370, both of which have been achieved.  Q&A: P7 Amid UP seat wrangling, Samajwadi Party surveys Gandhi family fiefdom N a m i ta B a j pa i @ Lucknow AMID seat-sharing talks between INDIA bloc partners, Samajwadi Party and Congress, Akhilesh Yadav’s party has commissioned surveys in constitutiencies traditionally associated with the Nehru-Gandhi family. Informed sources said the SP is trying to gauge voter sentiment and assess Congress strength in these seats, including in Amethi and Rae Bareli, before finalising seat-sharing for the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections. Despite assertions by both parties that they are committed to fighting the ruling BJP together, there has been little progress in talks. SP insiders indicated the party is seeking micro feedback from voters in Congress bastions, particular- File pic ly, in the Rae Bareli-Amethi belt and adjoining constituencies, including those in Sultanpur. Notably Akhilesh launched , his ‘PDA Rath Yatra’ from Rahul Gandhi’s Rae Bareli seat in September. The objective of the surveys is two-fold — first, to estimate the Congress’s ability to independently garner votes, and second, to deter mine whether conceding a large number of seats to the grand old party would be beneficial for the alliance. “This exercise is intended to provide empirical backing to SP’s negotiating position,” said Prof A K Mishra, a political scientist. The Congress state leadership has also indicated it is seeking a much larger share of seats than in the past. In 2017, SP spared it just 105 seats when they contested the Assembly polls together. UP Congress incharge Rajendra Pal Gautam has said the party should contest 180 to 200 seats this time. “We have given an initial list of 175 seats to the SP he said. The ,” demand reflects the Congress’s renewed confidence following the recent Rahul-led protests and the party’s relatively improved performance in some segments in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections when the party raised its tally from one MP to six. D h a k a j u n k s r e q ue s t Hasina stirs the pot, seeks fresh B’desh passport J aya n t h j a c o b @ New Delhi In an apparent bid to corner the Bangladesh government amid its continued insistence on her extradition, former prime minister Sheikh Hasina has sought a fresh passport and national identity card (NID) from the Bangladesh High Commission in New Delhi. Hasina, 79, has been living in India since her government was ousted in a student-led uprising in August 2024. Her legal representatives at London-based Matrix Chambers have approached the Bangladeshi mission seeking fresh documents. “Our request is made on the basis of her Bangladeshi nationality in accordance with any obligations arising under the laws of Bangladesh as well as any applicable obligations arising under international human ‘Political stunt’ rights instruments,” her lawyers Sheikh Hasina’s wrote to Preeti Rahman, acting request for a passport High Commissioner at the Bangla- was a “political desh mission. posturing” and she has The request, confirmed by Hasi- no genuine intention of na’s Awami League party, was swift- returning to the ly rejected by Dhaka. Bangladesh country, Dhaka’s Chief Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Prosecutor Md Aminul Humayun Kobir said: “Bangladesh Islam said does not issue passports to terrorists. We have asked for them (terrorists) to be handed over,” Kobir told journalists at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. “She is a fugitive criminal. We have an active extradition treaty with India. We want her handed over,” he said. The Awami League said a fresh passport and national identity card are crucial towards fulfilling Hasina’s stated intention of returning to Bangladesh in December. E x p r e s s Re a d TN forms new corpn to handle major infra projects Chennai: TN has established TN Infrastructure and Construction Corporation to execute major infrastructure and construction projects that are worth over `200 crore. The state PSU will also explore revenue generation through project management and consultancy services | P2 State to cancel all book procurement orders Chennai: School Education Minister A Rajmohan on Monday said the state government would cancel all book procurement orders that have been placed so far, including those for the yet-to-be-inaugurated Kamarajar Grand Library in Tiruchy | P4 3 workers die of asphyxiation at Tata Electronics plant in K’giri express news service @ Krishnagiri Three contract workers died of suspected asphyxiation while carrying out maintenance and cleaning work inside a nano-filtration feed tank at Tata Electronics Private Limited near Uddanapalli in Krishnagiri district on Monday evening. The workers were allegedly exposed to toxic gas while checking the tank. with the incident raising questions over safety measures at the facility The fa. cility near Hosur manufactures components for Apple iPhones. The deceased were identified as B Akmal (28) of Thinnur village in Panchapalli, P Kaveri (32) of Hanumanthapuram and M Sarathikumar (25) of Belrampatti near Palacode, all in Dharmapuri district. Speaking to TNIE, Krishnagiri Collector C Dinesh Kumar said the three workers were part of a team engaged in cleaning the Effluent Treatment Plant (ETP) at the facility in Vanniyapuram near Uddanapalli. “There were no proper safety measures in place while handling the ETP. The district administration is inquiring into the incident,” he said. According to the collector, Akmal first attempted to look inside the tank but fainted after inhaling gas. Kaveri then allegedly asked Sarathikumar to check on him. Sarathikumar too fainted inside the tank. Kaveri subsequently entered the tank to check on the two and also collapsed. The fourth member of the team, who witnessed the incident, sought help. All three workers were rescued and rushed to a private hospital in Hosur, where they were declared brought dead. The collector said the workers were employed by another company that had been engaged by Nalco for maintenance work on the water filtration tank.  P5 IOA chief Usha loses internal polls In d r a n e e l d a s @ Chennai sky is the canvas Fireworks light up the sky above the St Lourdes Matha Shrine in Madurai as part of Deepavali celebrations on Sunday | k k sundar Finally, amid allegations of interference and manipulation, the Sportspersons of Outstanding Merit (SOMs) election was over with current Indian Olympic Association president PT Usha losing. The result would have been shocking but after the last date of withdrawals, there were enough hints that pointed at change. This means that she will no longer be the president, at least, as of now. On Saturday, as reported by this daily four male candidates , were elected unopposed – Olympic medallists Gagan Narang, Yogeshwar Dutt and Vijender Singh along with former TT champion Kamlesh Mehta. However, in the female category, despite hectic parley, Usha finished fifth behind Saina Nehwal who polled 43 against Usha’s 40. Anju Bobby George managed to secure the highest number of 53 followed by Rani Rampal, Dola Banerjee and Nehwal. There were concerns about Saina and it is understood that a lot of negotiations were on to secure her victory . With the way things panned out since Saturday, there were enough indications of her not making it. Yet, as an IOA president, her team was expecting to finish in the top four. With this, the focus would be on Gagan, who shifted his base from Hyderabad to Ahmedabad recently Gagan is considered to be a . front-runner in the IOA election to be held on December 5. Usha is technically out but can be proposed by NSFs. Since she is not a member, it needs to be seen how. Police official murdered for questioning youth bursting crackers on road in Theni Five, including 3 sisters, drown in T’malai lake a dip that turned deadly EXP R ESS N EWS SE R VICE @ Theni A 57-year-old Special Sub-Inspector (SSI) died after being allegedly assaulted by a group of youngsters for questioning them for bursting firecrackers in the middle of a public road and blocking traffic at Samatharmapuram in Theni on Sunday night. CM C Joseph Vijay on Monday announced a solatium of `40 lakh to the deceased officer’s family Police have ar. rested six persons in connection with the incident. The killing of SSI his home at AllinagarSenthilkumar and nearam in plainclothes after ly nine more murders, duty around 10.30 pm on all unconnected, reportSunday when the trageed from various parts of dy happened, police TN on Sunday and Monsources said. day, drew sharp critiOn his way he noticed , cism from opposition a group of youth, allegparties who slammed edly in an inebriated Senthilkumar the TVK government for state, bursting crackers poor law and order. on a public road and causing Officer Senthilkumar (57), at- inconvenience to road users. tached to the Palanichettipatti Citing public safety Senthilku, police station and working with mar advised them to clear the the Theni DSP’s camp office on road and attempted to record deputation, was returning to themon his mobile phone.  P5 N i m i s h a S Pr a d e e p @ Tiruvannamalai What was meant to be a refreshing end to a festive holiday turned into a tragedy on Monday afternoon as five people, including three young sisters, drowned in Samuthiram lake in Tiruvannamalai. The three sisters had only just returned to their government-aided girls’ hostel after celebrating Deepavali with their family. Looking to wash away the travel exhaustion, the (From left) Sisters Vijayalaksmi, Bhoomika and Alli | Express siblings, accompanied by a few friends, went to the lake for a bath. The sisters allegedly got trapped in a deep pit while bathing. One of the friends and their hostel nurse also drowned when the latter attempted to rescue them. The victims were identified as sisters Vijayalakshmi (15), Alli (14) and Bhoomika (13), their friend Valliammal (16), and hostel nurse Thenmozhi (23). The sisters had gone to their home at Karapattu village in Chengam, Tiruvannamalai, for the Deepavali holidays on November 6. They returned to the Children Home for Girls, run by TDH Core Trust at Anaipiranthan village, around noon on Monday . According to Child Welfare Committee (CWC) officials in Tiruvannamalai, the incident occurred around 1.30 pm when the four girls, along with 10 other students and Thenmozhi, went to spend time near the lake. The four allegedly entered the lake to bathe but got trapped in a deep pit and could not make their way out. Thenmozhi, who entered the water to rescue them, also got trapped and drowned.  P5