kannur l saturday l june 22, 2024 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l city EDITION Jail terms for Four members of UK’s hinduja family in Switzerland A Swiss court on Friday sentenced four members of the wealthy family to between four and 4 1/2 years in prison for exploiting their domestic workers guilty of exploiting workers at swiss villa Accused of ‘profiting from misery’ The court said the four were guilty of exploiting workers and providing unauthorised employment. Indian-born tycoon Prakash Hinduja, his wife, son and daughter-in-law brought people from India to be employed at their luxurious lakeside villa in Geneva. They paid their staff a pittance and gave them little freedom to leave the house, the prosecution argued ■ ■ Prakash and wife Kamal Hinduja each got four years and six months, while their son Ajay and his wife Namrata received four-year terms Household staff were paid between 220 and 400 francs a month, far below what they could earn in Switzerland. “They’re profiting from the misery of the world,” Geneva prosecutor Yves Bertossa argued $20 billion the current net worth of the hinduja family as per forbes 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 HC stays trial court’s order on Kejri’s bail wORLD SEES yOGA AS AGENT OF GOOD: PM F aya z W a n i @ Srinagar Reserves verdict; asks all parties to file submissions by Monday S u c h i t r a K a lya n M o h a n t y @ New Delhi With the Delhi High Court on Friday staying a trial court’s order to release AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal on bail, the chief minister will have to stay in Tihar jail till the judge pronounces his order. Staying the trial court’s order, a vacation bench of Justice Sudhir Kumar Jain, reserved his judgment on the Enforcement Directorate’s appeal, adding he would pass the order in twothree days, possibly Tuesday. “Till the pronouncement of this order, the operation of the impugned order shall remain stayed,” Justice Jain said and asked the parties to file written submissions by June 24. Additional Solicitor General (ASG) S V Raju, for the ED, argued that the trial court’s bail order was perverse as it was contrary to the mandate of Section 45 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. “We are not given an opportunity to represent our case in the trial court. When I tried to submit, the trial court said I have to deliver judgment. Be brief,” he said. Senior advocate Vikram Chaudhari, appearing for Kejriwal, raised a preliminary objection to the listing of the matter during vacation because the trial judge had granted bail through a resend order. “What is the justification of approaching the HC,” he asked. Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singvhi described the ED’s approach as deplorable. “The accused cannot be kept indefinitely in jail... It is very unfortunate that the ASG is maligning the judge merely because an adverse order was passed,” he said. Opposing the ASG’s argument that he was not given an opportunity to argue, Singhvi said the hearing in the trial court lasted five hours out of which ED took 3.45 hours. “Where is the question of the ED being denied the opportunity to present its case,” Singhvi argued. E X P R E S S R EA D Defer new criminal laws, says Mamata Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to defer the implementation of the three “hurriedly passed” criminal laws that are set to be rolled out on July 1. Banerjee stressed having a fresh review of the laws by Parliament India flays Canada for honouring Nijjar New Delhi: India on Friday objected to Canadian parliament observing ‘one minute silence’ in memory of Canada-based Khalistan extremist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, who was killed last year. Canada must act against anti-India elements, said MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal Adhir quits as Bengal Cong chief Kolkata: Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury resigned as the West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee chief on Thursday after a meeting of the state unit, party sources said. There was no official confirmation from the Congress leadership on whether his resignation has been accepted. P8 SIT: Negligence in gaming zone fire Ahmedabad: A Special Investigation Team appointed by the Gujarat government to probe the May 25 Rajkot game zone fire incident, which claimed 27 lives, has found negligence on the part of various departments. P8 Prime Minister Narendra Modi performs yoga during celebration of Int’l Day of Yoga, in Srinagar | PTI tHE world is looking at yoga as a powerful agent of global good, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday on the occasion of the 10th International Yoga Day. Choosing the Sher-i-Kashmir International Conference Centre on the picturesque banks of Dal Lake in Srinagar to lead the nation in celebrating, Modi said the ‘yoga economy’ has immense potential for employment generation as there is a growing global demand to learn authentic yoga from India. “Yoga helps us live in the present moment without the baggage of the past,” he noted, while observing that Jam- Union tourism ministry steps in as Varkala Cliff erosion worsens S h a i n u M o h a n @T’Puram On-site inspection The Ministry of Tourism has directed the district collector and Geological Survey of India officials to conduct an onsite assessment of the collapsing cliff on Saturday With the Varkala Cliff — an iconic national geological monument and geo-heritage site — eroding at an alarming rate, the Ministry of Tourism has stepped in, directing the district collector and Geological Survey of India (GSI) to conduct an on-site assessment on Saturday . Minister of State for Tourism Suresh Gopi will also take part in the site inspection and assessment of the degradation of the cliff. In the latest collapse, a major portion of the Varkala Cliff caved in near the Edava Beach last Friday, raising safety concerns further. The heavy rains that lashed the district in the past couple of months have accelerated the pace of erosion of the Varkala Cliff, setting off alarm bells. The decision of the district collector to knock down a portion of the cliff near the Bali Mandapam had invited widespread criticism and prompted the GSI authorities to step in and fight for the conservation of the cliff. Following directives from the district collector, the Varkala municipality has decided to take steps to remove the unauthorised structures on the cliff, which are a threat to its stability There are around 250 trade . outfits, including restaurants, handicraft shops and other establishments, on the North Cliff. It is learned that 80% of the structures are unauthorised. Sanjay Sahadevan, advisor to the Varkala Tourism Development Association(VTDA), said the association has urged the authorities to grant permission to reconstruct the pathway on the North Cliff. “We are ready to cooperate with the munici● More on P4 pality said Sanjay ,” . mu and Kashmir can benefit by attracting more yoga tourists. The PM took part in a yoga session, which was delayed by over an hour due to rains. The event was scheduled to be held in the open but had to be shifted indoors due to incessant showers. Unmindful of the rain, scores of students joined the PM in performing various asanas on the occasion. He expressed gratitude for being present in Jammu and Kashmir, the land of Yog and Sadhna, on International Yoga Day “The atmosphere, energy . and experience from yoga can be felt in Jammu & Kashmir today he said. After the event, ,” PM Modi interacted with the yoga practitioners. Coming soon: Kerala’s own T20 premier league E x p r ess News S e r v i c e @T’Puram Kerala will soon have its own cricket league on the lines of the hugely popular Indian Premier League (IPL). The Kerala Cricket Association (KCA) on Friday announced that the franchisee model cricket league will be conducted in the Twenty20 format and will begin in September. A total of six teams will compete in the state premier league which will be held under the rules and regulations of the BCCI and ICC. The event will begin as soon as the Twenty20 cricket league in Karnataka concludes. “We will call for expression of interest from franchisees next week. A base price of `1 crore has been fixed for the franchisees to participate in the bidding process,” KCA president Jayesh K George said. The matches will be telecast on Star Sports 2, and in its HD format as well, he said. Digital streaming of matches are also being planned. The proposed state league will be held over a period of 19 days, including two reserve days. The matches are planned to be held at The Sports Hub at Kariavattom. Only players registered in Kerala will be able to play in the league. Poll season EC to update voter list in J-K, 3 other states M U K E S H RAN J AN @ New Delhi A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi indicated that preparations for Jammu and Kashmir elections were underway, the Election Commission on Friday set the ball rolling for holding the electoral exercise by ordering a special summary revision (SSR) of the electoral rolls in the Union Territory . The poll panel has also ordered updation of electoral rolls in Maharashtra, Haryana, and Jharkhand, where Assembly elections are due this year. SSR involves reviewing the voter list and unveiling a draft electoral roll. It is usually held prior to polls to ensure the list is as updated as possible. The process involves adding newly eligible voters and removing duplicate and deceased voters, and those who have moved out of the constituency . In identical official communications to the chief electoral officers of the three states and Jammu and Kashmir, the poll panel said the revision exercise would start from July 25 and culminate on August 20. July 1 will be the qualifying date for roll updation. Before the revision exercise, the poll panel would carry out pre-revision activities in the poll-bound states from June 25 to July 24. The draft rolls would be published on July 25, after which electors can file claims and objections till August 9. The publication of the final electoral roll will be done by August 20. The Supreme Court had in December last year directed the Election Commission of India to hold assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir by September 30. Min’s ‘relief’ gift to teenager Most centres for NEET-UG retest on Sunday changed also goes cycle thieves’ way Joint CSIR-UGC-NET exam postponed Ex p r ess News S e rv i ce @ New Delhi A n u K u r u v i l l a @ Kochi June began on a glad note for 15-year-old Avantika C J as she received a brand new bicycle as a gift from General Education Minister V Sivankutty to replace the one that had been stolen. Sadly, though, the happiness was a short-lived. Thieves struck again and made away with her beautiful new pink Pop Star Florence model bicycle. According to Gireesh Madhavan, Avantika’s father, CCTV footage shows the thief in the act around 4:30am on Friday. “The house next to our rented building has a CCTV camera. We approached the owner, who consented to our request for the footage. Even in the previous instance, we had provided Avantika C J and her father in front of the Palarivattom police station to file a complaint | Express CCTV footage to police. I hope that this time around the cops will nab the thief,” says Avantika, whose family lives in Palarivattom. According to her, the face of the thief, who was wearing a raincoat, is not clear ● More on P4 in the image. With the embattled National Testing Agency (NTA) preparing to conduct the NEET-UG retest for 1,563 students on Sunday, it became known that it has changed six of the total seven centres and issued admit cards to the candidates. These students were beneficiaries of grace marks because of loss of time. After it created a national uproar, the compensatory marks were scrapped and a retest window opened with the proviso that the score in the fresh test alone will be considered for those who take it. The only exam centre that was not changed is in Chandigarh, where only two students will sit for the retest. Officers of the NTA and the education ministry will be The NTA on Friday announced the postponement of the Joint CSIRUGC-NET, scheduled to be held between June 25 and June 27, citing unavoidable circumstances and logistic issues Police detain Congress workers who were staging a protest against the NEET-UG, in Mumbai on Friday | PTI present at the new centres to ensure fairness amidst concerns of paper leak. When asked about the expected turnout for Sunday’s retest, an official responded, “Admit cards have been issued to all. We will only know the turnout only on Sunday .” Earlier in the day, the Supreme Court refused to defer the NEET-UG counselling, scheduled to begin on July 6, saying it is not an “open and shut” exercise. The Opposition continued to put the government on the mat with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi saying he will personally raise the NEETUG issue in Parliament demand justice for students. Meanwhile, Sanjeev Mukhiya alias Lutan, the kingpin of the NEET-UG paper leak in Bihar, is still on the run. The Economic Offences Unit of the Bihar Police has intensified raids to arrest him. MVD initiative Kanavu project ‘drives’ Marayur tribal women’s ‘dreams’ for a better life Nejm a S u l a i m a n @ Marayur (Idukki) ‘Kanavu’ has allowed them to ‘dream’ of a better life. Tribal women of the remote village of Marayur have unearthed newfound mobility, freedom, selfesteem and prosperity, all thanks to a rigorous empowerment project launched by officials of the sub-regional transport office in Devikulam. Marayur, located in the Devikulam taluk of Idukki, is home to two major tribal groups — the Muthuvans and the Hill Pulayas. Though the Hill Pulayas are relatively progressive, the Tribal women in Marayur being given driving lessons under the leadership of Devikulam MVD officials Muthuvans continue to lead a more secluded life in their forest settlements. In fact, as many as 18 of the 25 settlements in the panchayat are so off the beaten track with only an isolated stretch of winding mud road linking them to the outside world. The seclusion got to many of the residents, especially the women, who believed they will never have access to a h e a l t hy l i f e a n d b e t t e r opportunities. This was relayed to officials of the Devikulam transport office when they visited the settlements as part of the Ak- shaya Big Campaign for Document Digitisation (ABCD) programme launched by the district administration last March. “Though our mission was to empower the residents by imparting free two-wheeler driving instructions, a woman named Suganthy, from Alampettikudi, surprised us all by clearing her driving licence test. This got us thinking about expanding the programme to include more women, which shaped the ‘Kanavu’ project, perhaps the first of kind in the state,” Deepu N K, a motor vehicle inspector with the De- vikulam office, said. The initiative included counselling of the women, convincing chiefs and parents, medical examination of applicants, fund sourcing, and training, before finally getting to the actual test. “Despite the herculean tasks, the results have been very rewarding as the department was able to issue driving licences to as many as 41 women in the first year of the project,” he said. Devi Ponnisami, a widow and mother of two from Nellikkampetty, is one of those driving the change. ● More on P4
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