Stoinis steals it for Lucknow at the death HYDERABAD WEDNESDAY APRIL 24, 2024 `9.00 PAGES 18 LATE CITY EDITION Ruturaj Gaikwad after scoring hundred for CSK Marcus Stoinis in fine form for LSG Chennai: An incredible unbeaten 124 from Marcus Stoinis helped Lucknow go past Chennai in their IPL game on Tuesday. Needing 211 to win, the visitors had looked out of it after Nicholas Pooran departed with 52 still needed in 3.3 overs. But the Australian produced a nerveless display of end-overs power-hitting to take them above the hosts on the points table | P13 | ASHWIN PRASATH 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 Renovation of Rahul’s Amethi house adds to candidature buzz N A M I TA B A J PA I @ Amethi AMID a strong buzz around former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi’s candidature from Amethi in the Lok Sabha elections, a viral video showing the cleaning and renovation of his dwelling in Gauriganj here has invigorated the party cadre. While the Congress cadre are working silently on the ground, BJP workers along with party candidate Smriti Irani are already engaged in an aggressive villageto-village campaign. Congress leaders claim they want to keep it issue-based rather than falling for the BJP trap of making it a Smriti vs Rahul battle. Party insiders are confident that Rahul and his sister Priyanka would be fielded from Amethi and Rae Bareli, respectively. A formal announcement is expected after April 26 when Wayanad, from where Rahul is a contestant, would vote. AMRUT `3,849.1 CR FOR SEWERAGE PROJECTS IN TELANGANA The Centre, under Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation 2.0 (AMRUT), has approved proposals for 39 sewerage plants as part of Musi riverfront project | P3 Cong plans to cut Dalit quota, give it to Muslims: PM R A J E S H A S N A N I @ Jaipur PRIME Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday added another layer to his attack on the Congress over its proposed redistribution of wealth, alleging it intends to cut the quota for Dalits and backward classes so as to allocate them to the Muslims. He claimed that in 2004, shortly after it came to power, the Congress tried to provide reservation to Muslims in Andhra Pradesh by reducing the proportion of the SC-ST quota. Although it was a pilot project, the party was intent on rolling it out nationwide, he added. “Between 2004 and 2010, the Congress made four attempts to implement the Muslim quota in Andhra Pradesh. But because of legal roadblocks and an alert Supreme Court, they were unsuccessful in their designs,” Modi said. He made the allegations while addressing an election rally at Uniara in Tonk, Rajasthan. “Will the Congress at least now assure the nation that they will not redistribute the SC/ST and OBC quotas to benefit the Muslims?” In an apparent attempt to consolidate the Hindu votes, Modi recalled that a shopkeeper in Karnataka was beaten up merely for listening to Hanuman Chalisa in his shop. “Under the Congress government, even listening to Hanuman Chalisa has become a crime,” he alleged. The Congress, he added, is hatching a deep conspiracy to snatch people’s property and distribute it among its favoured groups. “My previous revelations created panic within the Congress and the INDI alliance,” he said. INSIDE EC EXAMINING COMPLAINTS AGAINST PM Complaints against Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s speech in Banswara are under the ECI’s consideration, sources said. On April 21, Modi had said, “The Congress manifesto says they will calculate the gold with mothers and sisters, and distribute that property... Manmohan Singh’s govt has said that Muslims have the first right to the country’s assets.... It will be distributed to the infiltrators. Should your hard-earned money go to the infiltrators?” KCR DENIES ROLE IN PHONE TAPPING, WASHES HANDS OF MEDIGADDA I P4 Western media trying to meddle with Indian democracy: Jaishankar N A V YA PA R V AT H Y @ Hyderabad UNION External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar said that the Western media criticises India’s democracy because they consider themselves to be “political players” in our elections. Speaking at a talk titled ‘Foreign Policy the India Way: From Diffidence to Confidence’ here on Tuesday, the diplomat-turnedpolitician said, “This is domestic politics going global and global politics feels that they must now intrude in India.” The former foreign secretary said that India chose not to have an ambassador and embassy in Israel from 1948 to 1992 and that no Indian PM visited Israel till Narendra Modi did. “Think about it and then tell me that faith has no influence on our policy Is this not vote . bank?” he asked. He said that the transition from diffidence to confidence was marked by a change in mindset. As a result, the country thinks and behaves very differently he added. , He claimed that the previous UPA government decided not to do anything after the Mumbai terror attacks in 2008 as “it would cost more to attack Pakistan than not atCONTINUED ON P6 tacking it”. Thrissur key to BJP’s bid to break Kerala jinx R A J E S H R A V I @ Kochi THE opening move for the battle for the Thrissur Lok Sabha constituency was made on January 3, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended a gathering of 2 lakh women and conducted a 1 km-long roadshow in the heart of the city . Two weeks later, on January 17, he visited the Guruvayur temple for the wedding of actor-turned-politician Suresh G o p i ’s d a u g h t e r B h a g ya Suresh. In a rare and symbolic gesture, the PM presented wedding garland to the couple. During the same trip, Modi made an impromptu visit to the Sree Rama temple in Triprayar within the constituency . Months later, Gopi was chosen as the NDA candidate for Thrissur. The PM made an additional visit to the area in ILLUSTRATION: MANDAR PARDIKAR April, dropping enough hints on how much importance the BJP gives to the region. The BJP’s primary goal is to break the Kerala jinx and secure a seat that could establish a foundation for the party’s future in the state. Once a prominent figure in Mollywood, Gopi captivated audiences with his roles as a good Samaritan battling sinister forces. Despite losses in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections and the 2021 state assembly polls, Gopi has remained active in the constituency, addressing neglected issues and helping the needy, which gained him immense popularity . The CPM-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) has fielded V S Sunil Kumar from the CPI in Thrissur. Kumar, who hails from the district, transitioned from student leader to MLA and minister, earning the local community’s trust over the years. Meanwhile, the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) replaced sitting MP T N Prathapan with K Muraleedharan, the son of late K Karunakaran. Muraleedharan’s strong familial and political connections bolster his candidacy . The election fervour in the constituency is palpable. The streets are lined with towering hoardings, colourful posters, and banners. Despite the heat, party workers from all three fronts remain enthusiastic. CONTINUED ON P6
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