chennai l tuesday l january 28, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 24 l late city EDITION India and China agree to resume Kailash Mansarovar Yatra Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, who is in Beijing on a two-day visit, held wide-ranging talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Monday Direct flight services to be restarted both sides should seize opportunity: Wang During their talks, the two sides decided to resume the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra in the summer of this year. “The relevant mechanism will discuss the modalities for doing so as per existing agreements,” a statement by the Ministry of External Affairs said. They also agreed in principle to resume direct air services between the two countries ■ ■ “The two sides should seize the opportunity... commit to mutual understanding, mutual support, and mutual achievement,” Wang said On resuming the provision of hydrological data and boosting other cooperation related to trans-border rivers, it was agreed to hold an early meeting of the India-China Expert Level Mechanism | P11 2025 marks 75 years since India and China established diplomatic relations 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 Waqf Bill gets feting new ideas, old wisdom JPC nod with 14 amendments I Express News Service @ Chennai Report expected to be tabled in Parliament ahead of February 5 Delhi assembly polls P r e e t h a N a i r @ New Delhi What is new Right to appoint officer to determine whether a property is Waqf or not given to the state govt instead of the District Collector in proposed bill Mandatory clause to include 2 non-Muslims in Central Waqf Council and state Waqf Boards dropped. Proposes change in the composition of the Waqf Board by increasing it to three members, including a scholar What next JPC will circulate final draft among the members on Tuesday It will meet on January 29 to adopt the report Report to be submitted to LS Speaker on January 31 and tabled in Parliament before Feb 5 Delhi polls A Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) scrutinising the contentious Waqf (Amendment) Bill approved it on Monday setting the tone for its ta, bling for discussion and passage during the forthcoming Budget session of Parliament. While the panel led by BJP MP Jagadambika Pal adopted 14 amendments suggested by the ruling NDA members, all those proposed by the Opposition were rejected 10:16 by voice vote. The bill, introduced during the Monsoon session, had proposed 44 amendments to the Waqf Act, 1995. While the Opposition was up in arms against the panel chairman for allegedly breaking rules and bulldozing the proceedings, Pal said that the amendments were put to vote in a democratic manner. However, DMK MP A Raja said, “The chairman himself called the names of the mover of the amendments (given by us) and he himself moved the amendments on our behalf and conducted the head count. And he announced the rejection of our amendments. We will move the Supreme Court if it becomes a bill.” Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Pal said one of the alterations aims to empower the state government to appoint an officer to determine whether a property is Waqf or not — instead of the District Collector who was given absolute powers to do so in the proposed bill. In the Waqf Act 1995, that power is vested in survey commissioners and additional commissioners. The panel also approved changes to another contentious provision that mandated the inclusion of two non-Muslim members in the Central Waqf Council and state Waqf Boards. It dropped the term mandatory and proposed changes in the composition of the Waqf Board by increasing it to three members, including a scholar. Another change was on the ‘Waqf by user’ provision. While the bill knocked it off entirely the , panel approved amendments that said the the ‘Waqf by user’ law will not apply retrospectively , so long as the property is registered. However, Congress MP and JPC member Imran Masood contested the proposal saying 90% of Waqf properties are not registered. Speaking to this newspaper, Masood accused the government of trying to create unrest by bringing in the new bill. express read Anna University FIR leak case: SC stays HC order New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday stayed the Madras HC direction asking the TN government to conduct a departmental inquiry into the leak of FIR in the case of sexual assault of a student of Anna University. The court also stayed certain observations made by the HC against the state police in the issue | P9 Sanatana Dharma: SC bins petition against Udhaya New Delhi: The Supreme Court has rejected a batch of petitions seeking criminal action against Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin for his remarks on Sanatana Dharma. “The writ petition under Article 32 could not be maintained,” a two-judge bench of Justices Bela M Trivedi and Prasanna B Varale said | P9 mpactful conversations and thought-provoking debates marked the 13th edition of the ThinkEdu Conclave held at ITC Grand Chola in Chennai on Monday. A stellar lineup of speakers, from policymakers to academicians, reflected on the contemporary challenges and opportunities in education and beyond. The day began with a Saraswati Vandana by the students of MOP Vaishnav College for Women, followed by ceremonial lighting of the lamp. In his welcome address, Prabhu Chawla, editorial director of The New Indian Express, highlighted the legacy of ThinkEdu, presented by SASTRA University, as India’s leading education conclave and underscored its commitment to fostering dialogue between modernity and traditional knowledge. The inaugural session, moderated by Dinamani editor K Vaidiyanathan, featured Justice V Ramasubramanian, Chairperson, National Human INSIDE NHRC Chairperson V Ramasubramanian inaugurates the 13th edition of ThinkEdu Conclave 2025 in Chennai by lighting the lamp on Monday; (from left) SASTRA University V-C S Vaidhyasubramaniam, Dinamani Editor K Vaidiyanathan, TNIE CEO Lakshmi Menon and Editorial Director Prabhu Chawla are seen | P Ravikumar Rights Commission (NHRC), who tackled the complex relationship between rights, duties, and the Indian soul. Lok Sabha MP Shashi Tharoor, in a session moderated by senior journalist Kaveree Bamzai, decried the rising animosity between the government and opposition. Dr Ujwala Chakradeo, V-C, SNDT Women’s University, assess performance, not dna of nhrc: Ramasubramanian I P5 HC reserves order on CBI probe in MUDA E X PRESS NE W S SERV I C E @ Bengaluru THE Karnataka High Court on Monday reserved its order on a petition seeking transfer of the MUDA case, currently being probed by the Lokayukta police, to the CBI. The court took on record the sealed-cover report submitted by the Lokayukta police on its probe into the alleged illegal allotment of 14 sites to Karnakata Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s wife B M Parvathy by the Mysuru Urban Development Authority. Justice M Nagaprasanna directed the Lokayukta police not to submit the final probe report to the trial court till the high court pronounces its judgment. Appearing for the petitioner, Mysuru-based social activist Snehamayi Krishna, senior advocate Maninder Singh argued the matter should be referred to the CBI for impartial investigation. Opposing it, the state government’s counsel senior advocate Kapil Sibal said the probe is underway and a status report is already filed. Meanwhile, the high court stayed the summons issued to Parvathy and state urban development minister Byrathi Suresh by the ED in connection with the MUDA case. The stay is till February 10. Samsung union gets TN labour dept’s approval Modi, Trump discuss West Asia, Ukraine in wide-ranging talks Ni r u pa m a Vi s w a n at h a n J aya n t h J a c o b @ New Delhi After a prolonged battle, the Tamil Nadu Labour Department on Monday issued the certificate of registration to the CITU-affiliated Samsung India Workers Union (SIWU) under the Trade Unions Act, 1926. The approval came hours before the lapse of the six-week deadline set by the Madras High Court for the department to decide on the application for registration filed by SIWU in July 2024. As per the Act, the department must decide and issue the certificate of registration within 45 days. “For over six months, we were not asked for any documents or clarifications, meaning there was no reason for the delay Neverthe. less, it’s a big win for the workers’ protest,” said SIWU president E Muthukumar. P9 Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump discussed a range of issues, including the wars in West Asia and Ukraine, in their first telephonic conversation after the latter was sworn in as the 47th president of the United States. “Delighted to speak with my dear friend President @realDonaldTrump @POTUS,” he said. “We are committed to a mutually beneficial and trusted partnership. We will work together for the welfare of our people and towards global peace, prosperity, and security Modi wrote on X. ,” Modi congratulated Trump on his “historic second term”, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said in a statement. The two leaders discussed @ Chennai Checks at U.S. gurdwaras for illegal immigrants various aspects of the wideranging bilateral Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership and measures that could be taken to advance it, including in the areas of technology trade, invest, ment, energy, and defence, the PMO said in the statement. They exchanged views on global issues, including the situation in West Asia and Ukraine, and reiterated their commitment to work together to promote global peace, prosperity and security it said. , , They agreed to meet soon. Officials from the US Department of Homeland Security have started visiting gurdwaras in New York and New Jersey to search for undocumented immigrants after Trump administration removed protections shielding religious places from immigration and customs enforcement actions | p11 and Prof Basuthkar J Rao, V-C, University of Hyderabad, shared their insights on making campuses more inclusive. In a session moderated by Prof S Vaidhyasubramanian, UGC Chairman Mamidala Jagadesh Kumar proposed adaptive testing models and emphasised the need to align entrance exams with school curricula to reduce the reliance on coach- ing centres. In a forward-looking session on AI, Shekar Nair, Co-founder of Upekkha, tackled the hype and reality of AI. The afternoon sessions shifted focus to political and cultural narratives. In ‘The Culture Project: Values for the Viksit Bharatiya’, Mukunda CR, joint general secretary of the RSS, advocated for a three-language policy encompassing one’s Director told me not to take characters home, says Karthi I P5 mother tongue, a regional language, and a career language. Praveen Chakravarty, Chairman, Professionals’ Wing and Data Analytics, Congress, shared his vision for ‘The Future of the Congress’ in a session moderated by TNIE Editor Santwana Bhattacharya. The conversation on governance continued with first-time MPs Angomcha Bimol Akoijam, Dr RN Behera, and John Brittas, who discussed the challenges of making their voices heard in Parliament. Dr Sudha Seshayyan and Dr K Sivaprasad, in a session on doctors and engineers, stressed the need for holistic medical and technical education. Meanwhile, economist Subramanian Swamy advocated for income tax abolition and a reassessment of foreign policy . The day ended with a session featuring actor Karthi who reflected on how he embodies the characters he plays. Day 1 brought together 25 speakers across 14 sessions, engaging 254 students and 150 delegates, alongside educators and thought-leaders. As the conclave continues on Day 2, the focus remains on shaping a future that integrates knowledge, culture, and innovation. COngress in search of a new look: Praveen chakravarty I P6