FBI starts probe into US bridge collapse The FBI has opened a criminal investigation into the Baltimore bridge collapse incident that led to the death of six construction workers. The probe will also look into whether the crippled ship, mostly manned by Indians, left the key US port knowing the vessel had serious systems problems. The 2.6-km-long Francis Scott Key Bridge over the Patapsco River collapsed on March 26 after the ship ‘Dali’ collided against it. bengaluru l tuesday l april 16, 2024 l `9.00 l PAGES 20 l late city EDITION 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 No interim relief; AK can sign two types of papers SC issues notice to ED; Tihar DG says CM can sign only legal or property documents S u c h i t r a K a lya n M o h a n t y a n d U J W AL J ALALI @ New Delhi Incarcerated Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday got no interim relief from the Supreme Court on his plea challenging his arrest in the Delhi excise policy scam. A two-judge bench led by Justice Sanjiv Khanna merely issued notice to the Enforcement Directorate to file its reply on the CM’s plea by April 24. Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for Kejriwal, told the court that the ED hadn’t named the CM in its chargesheet, adding the objective was disable him from campaigning in the Lok Sabha elections. But the bench refused to yield. Later, a city court extended Kejriwal’s judicial custody in Tihar jail till April 23. At Tihar, Director General (Prisons) Sanjay Baniwal said Kejriwal can only sign two types of documents while in judicial custody and they can’t be , political in nature. “He or any inmate in judicial custody can only sign two types of documents, which can’t be political in nature,” Baniwal told this newspaper over phone. The two types of documents can be either a legal paper or some property related document, he added. His remarks came after AAP leaders reiterated that CM will continue to run the government from jail, and from next week he will call two ministers to Tihar every week and review their work. Meanwhile, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann accused Tihar officials of giving Kejriwal a terrorist-like treatment. “Kejriwal is given terrorist-like treatment in jail... There was a glass wall between me and him when we met today,” Mann said. But Tihar officials rebutted it, saying “There is no distinction between a hardcore or a normal criminal.” Can write to family and friends As per the jail manual, undertrial and civil prisoners shall be granted all reasonable facilities to interview or write letters only to their family members, friends and legal advisers. “Prisoners should also be allowed to correspond with the counsel handling their cases.” If it is found that the prisoner is corresponding with undesirable persons, such letters, both incoming and outgoing, shall be withheld,” the jail manual says EAM: Want to find ways to de-escalate West Asia crisis B a l a C h a u h a n @ Bengaluru External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar interacts with the media in Bengaluru on Monday | Shashidhar Byrappa To every Indian going out, you have Modi’s guarantee. Student welfare is particularly important for us S Jaishankar, External Affairs Minister External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Monday that the situation (in West Asia) is “extremely sensitive”. He told reporters here that he has spoken to his counterparts in Israel and Iran to de-escalate tensions in the region, which is extremely important for the global economy. “We also understand that they have concerns. For the rest of the world and definitely for India, we would like to find ways of de-escalating the situation there,” he said. “We have 90 lakh Indians living in this enormously sensitive region. A large part of our shipping passes through this region and also, our major oil supplies come from here,” he said. Regarding the release of 17 Indian crew members of a cargo vessel seized by the Iranian military near the Strait of Hormuz, Jaishankar said he had spoken to his Iranian counterP7 part about it. express read CVoter predicts 23 seats for BJP-JDS, 5 for Cong Bengaluru: A pre-poll survey by CVoter has predicted 21 seats for BJP, two for its alliance partner JDS and five for Congress in the LS polls. While the BJP rejoiced, the Congress rejected it | P7 20-yr-old biker falls into BWSSB trench, dies Bengaluru: A 20-year-old man died and two others were injured when their two-wheeler fell into an unguarded trench dug by BWSSB contractors to lay pipes, on Kengeri main road on Sunday | P2 Sharmila struggling in cousin vs cousin joust S N a g a r a j a R a o @ Kadapa Kadapa is witnessing a legacy joust between two cousins of a politically influential family — one of whom is a first-timer — and a triangular contest in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections. Incumbent Y S Avinash Reddy belongs to the Y S Rajashekara Reddy family tree. He is the cousin of YSR’s son and Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy, who floated his own YSR Congress. The Congress pitted Jagan’s sister Y S S h a r m i l a Re d dy a g a i n s t Avinash. Ever since 1989, when Rajasekhara Reddy won the Kadapa Lok Sabha seat, the contest here has only been about the YS family’s victory margin. This is the first time two members of the YS family are vying for the top honours. One of the backward districts in the Rayalaseema region, Kadapa witnessed a spurt in development after Rajasekhara Reddy became CM as he ensured a steady flow of funds for the family pocket borough. The only time the TDP won the seat was in 1984 when D Narayana Reddy wrested it at the height of the N T Ramarao wave. Like Shar mila, TDP’s candidate Chadipiralla Bhupesh Subbarami Reddy, too, is a firsttimer. However, he hasn’t been suddenly parachuted into Kadapa like her. Subbarami Reddy has silently been preparing the ground for the past several months. The downside for Avinash Reddy is that he is an accused in the murder case of his uncle and former minister Y S Vivekananda Reddy But . he has the solid backing of Jagan. Avinash has stayed put in the constituency since the past several months to ensure there is no dent in his influence. His victory margin last time was over three lakh votes. Speaking to TNIE, Avinash Illustration: Mandar Pardikar said spent his MPLADS (Members of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme) allocation and CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) funds generated from various corporates for the development in all assembly segments falling under his constituency. “I also took the initiative to get funds from the state government for implementing various projects in all segments,” he said. As for Sharmila, she does not have any base here, as she has been living in Hyderabad all along. Hoping to wrest the YSR legacy, she claims her father was a tall Congress leader, but Jagan left it and floated his own regional party . However, the argument doesn’t seem to be cutting ice with the people. Continued on: P7 Above normal rain this year Ji tend ra Chou b ey @ New Delhi There is a high probability that India will get above-normal rains this southwest monsoon season, the Indian Meteorological Department said on Monday It said seasonal rain. fall will be on the higher side of above-normal, with over 106% precipitation in the long-period average (LPA) of 87 cm. The weather office said favourable La Nina conditions, neutral Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD)—which occurs due to differential warming of the western and eastern sides of the equatorial Indian Ocean—and lesser snow coverage over the norther n hemisphere have brightened chances of a bountiful monsoon. Mrutyunjay Mohapatra, IMD director general said La Nina conditions are likely to develop in the second half of the monsoon season. “El Nino conditions are prevailing at present. ENSO-neutral conditions are expected in the first half of the monsoon season. Thereafter, models suggest, La Lina conditions may set in by August-September,” Mohapatra said in a press conference here. Parts of the northwest, east and northeast India are expected to receive below-normal rainfall, he added. The normal monsoon range is between 96-104% of LPA. The range 104-110% of LPA is considered above nor mal and above 110% is excess rainfall. Similarly, ranging between 9096% is considered below normal and less than 90% is deficient rainfall.
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