MADURAI l Monday l march 24, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 14 l late city EDITION israel army steps up ground offensive in gaza strip Israel’s army pressed ground operations across the Gaza Strip on Sunday, urging Palestinians to flee an offensive in Hamas-ruled Rafah city Palestinian toll in Gaza’s war passes 50,000 ‘israel’s plans violate global laws’ More than 50,000 Palestinians have officially been declared to have been killed in the war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the territory’s Health Ministry said on Sunday, even as new Israeli airstrikes killed at least 26 Palestinians overnight, including a top Hamas political leader and several women and children | P11 ■ ■ Israel’s Cabinet approved a proposal to set up a new directorate for advancing “voluntary departure” of Palestinians in line with Donald Trump’s proposal to depopulate Gaza Palestinians say they don’t want to leave, and rights groups say Israel’s proposal amounts violation of international law 13 new settlements in the occupied West Bank to be created by israel 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 Do not dispose of phone or tamper with data, HC CJ tells judge Varma Shekh a r S i n g h @ New Delhi DELHI High Court Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya has instructed Justice Yashwant Varma not to dispose of his mobile phone(s) or delete, modify, or tamper with any conversations, messages, or data. The directive conveyed through a formal letter dated March 21 follows an order from Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna, emphasising the need to preserve evidence. In a subsequent letter addressed to the CJI, Chief Justice Upadhyaya said he had requested the Delhi Police commissioner to furnish call detail records (CDR) and internet protocol detail records (IPDR) of Justice Varma’s mobile phone for the past six months. “The call detail records have Kerala BJP bets on Rajeev Chandrasekhar as new chief E x p r e s s N e w s s e r v i c e @ T’Puram The BJP has selected former Union minister and businessman Rajeev Chandrasekhar to lead its Kerala unit. The decision was finalised during a meeting chaired by BJP central observer Pralhad Joshi in New Delhi on Saturday party sourc, es said. The BJP’s core committ e e m e t i n T h i r u va n a n thapuram on Sunday to endorse this decision, with attendees including Kerala in-charge Prakash Javadekar and co-incharge Aparajita Sarangi, MP . The official announcement is expected on Monday during the state council meeting in Thiruvananthapuram. On Sunday, Chandrasekhar submitted his nomination before the retur ning officer, Narayanan Namboothiri, at the BJP headquarters in the state capital. Given that Chandrasekhar is the sole nominee, his election on Monday is expected to be a mere formality. He will succeed K Surendran who served as state president for five years, including two years as interim chief. By taking Chandrasekhar on board, the BJP is signalling its focus on securing the uppercaste Hindu vote base. Yashwant Varma been received and are being forwarded in a pen drive along with this letter. As for the IPDR, the same shall be provided as soon as it is received from the Commissioner of Police, Delhi, or the relevant mobile service provider,” the letter stated. The letter stated that a formal request had been made to the DCP (Security) to obtain details of personal security officers and security personnel stationed at Justice Var ma’s residence over the last six months. Once received, these records would be duly submitted. The developments come in the wake of a fire that broke out at Justice Varma’s residence on Tughlaq Road on the night of March 14, leading to the discovery of currency notes in a storeroom inside the judge’s official residence. Justice Varma, on his part, has dismissed the allegations and termed them “a conspiracy to tarnish” his reputation. In a written response to Chief Justice DK Upadhyaya on March 22, Justice Varma stated, “... No cash was ever placed in that storeroom either by me or any of my family members. The suggestion that one would store cash in a commonly-used storeroom verges on the incredible and incredulous.” Sunrisers’ Smashing Start Kishan makes a statement Kishan makes his SRH debut with a ton as his team beats RR. A look... After being sidelined from the Indian setup, Ishan Kishan, for his new IPL team, smashed an unbeaten 47ball 106 helping Sunrisers Hyderabad to 286/6. His first IPL century played a part in Rajasthan Royals falling short by 44 runs Records tumble in Hyd In what is one of the flattest grounds of the IPL, bowlers were taken for a ride in Hyderabad on Sunday. Jofra Archer’s 0/76 became the most expensive spell in the history of IPL as four bowlers across sides went over 50 runs Noor nails it at Chepauk One of the most anticipated combinations this season, Afghanistan spinner Noor Ahmad showed why he is going to be lethal for Chennai Super Kings as he took 4/18 in four overs against Mumbai Indians at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. His spell helped CSK beat MI by four wickets Reservation based on religion is against Constitution: Hosabale RSS general secretary says it is only possible for backward classes within a religion D e v a r a j B H i r eh a l l i & RAJ E S H K U M AR T H A K U R @ B’luru / New Delhi Amid the controversy over the Karnataka government’s decision to introduce a 4% reservation for Muslims in government contracts and projects, RSS General Secretary Dattatreya Hosabale said on Sunday that the move is untenable as the Constitution does not allow religion-based quota. “Reservation based on religion is not possible; it is possible only for backward classes within a religion,” he said. On the Karnataka government’s decision to bring in a quota for Muslim contractors, Hosabale said such attempts were made earlier by Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra, but those were futile as high courts set aside the decisions. “Religion-based reservation is not accepted in the Constitution authored by Babasaheb Ambedkar. Anybody doing it is going against the architect of our Constitution,” he added. The remarks by Hosabale, who holds the second-highest position in the Sangh hierarchy were made in , Bengaluru on the concluding HDK to clear JDS stand today Janata Dal (Secular), an NDA ally, is reportedly in a Catch-22 situation as to whether to support the 4% quota or not. Sources said Union minister and JDS state president H D Kumaraswamy will make the party’s stand clear in New Delhi on Monday. “It is likely that JDS will support the BJP on the quota bill,” said a party leader Aavin milk procurement falls by 4L litres amid rise in heat, incentive release delay B A N B U S E LVA N @ Chennai The peak of the summer season is yet to set in this year, but across the state, the daily milk procurement of Aavin has already witnessed a decline of 4 to 5 lakh litres. Besides heat stress among cattle — typically reported during April and May — affecting milk yield, factors such as private firms raising milk procurement prices and an alleged delay in the full disbursement of incentives to Aavin milk suppliers have also resulted in the decline in procurement. Though tight-lipped Aavin officials are yet to acknowledge the drop in procurement, the dairy cooperative on Thursday invited tenders to purchase 500 MT of butter at `24 crore. Traditionally, Aavin purchases butter for reconstitution, along with milk powder, to boost milk production during shortages. Two Pondy PWD officials among three held by CBI for corruption; `76L seized e x p r e s s ne w s s e r v i c e @ Karaikal The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Sunday seized `75.5 lakh in unaccounted cash and arrested two senior engineers of the Puducherry Public Works Department (PWD) and a construction contractor for alleged corruption in awarding government contracts. The sleuths had detained several PWD officials, including the suspects, while the latter were meeting with contractors at a private hotel in Karaikal on Saturday, and interrogated them for over 20 hours till Sun- day afternoon. The arrested persons have been identified as chief engineer M Dhinadayalan (58), executive engineer (buildings and roads) R Chidambara-nathan (58) and Ilamurugu, a contractor from Mannargudi in Tiruvarur district. According to sources, Dhinadayalan was on the CBI’s radar over allegations of graft in the awarding of PWD contracts in exchange for financial gains. On Saturday, he visited Karaikal ostensibly to inspect the progress of ongoing civic body works. Later, he went to a private hotel near Karaikal Beach Road, where, along with several PWD officials, he is learnt to have met a few contractors. Around 2 pm on Saturday , a team of CBI officials entered the hotel and detained the officials. While their interrogation was under way, more CBI teams searched the offices and houses of the chief engineer in Puducherry and of the other officials in Karaikal. Following the investigation, the CBI arrested the trio on Sunday afternoon. P7 During the searches, the teams seized `65 lakh in cash from the house of the PWD chief engineer and `8 lakh from the house of the executive engineer CBI rare find ASI discovers 110 megaliths near dam in Kerala Pa r v e z Su lta n @ New Delhi The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has stumbled upon a cluster of over 110 megaliths (large stones used to build structures and monuments) near the Malampuzha dam in Palakkad, Kerala, during a recent exploration expedition. According to ASI officials, the discovery could offer more insights into ancient civilisations and their practices. Megaliths indicate significant burial sites, ritualistic areas, or places of cultural importance. Megalithic structures were built using large, rough stones without mortar or cement. Such chambers were common during Neolithic and Bronze Ages. The presence of ancient bur- The site near Malampuzha dam in Palakkad where ASI officials found the megalithic structures | Archaeological Survey of India ial chambers suggests there could be a large organised settlement at the site and it could shed more light on the region’s history . “Recent explorations near the Malampuzha Dam in Palakkad, Kerala, has led to a discovery of megalithic structures spread across island-like day of the RSS’ annual Akhil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha, which serves as the highest decision-making body of the RSS. On the demand of Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal to remove the tomb of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb in Maharashtra, he regretted that Aurangzeb who was against the ethos of Indian culture is being idolised. “Aurangzeb’s brother mounds. The team of ASI surveyed the area and came across more than 110 me g aliths spreading across 45 hectares of land,” the ASI posted on X. The ASI said most of the burials are of ‘cist’ variety — both single and multiple chambered — stone circles, urns, dolmens, and dolmenoids. “These structures are primarily constructed with massive granite slabs and boulders, some also incorporate laterite stones,” it added. Cist graves are small stonebuilt coffin-like boxes used to hold dead bodies. Megaliths are found across India. Most notable sites include Brahmagiri in Karnataka and Adichanallur in Tamil Nadu. Recently, the ASI discovered a large collection of antiquities at Ratnagiri in Odisha. Prize catch The discovery of such a large number of megalithic burials in clusters could provide more insights about the early Iron Age society and belief system in Kerala, ASI officials said. The rich pottery adds depth to the site’s cultural story When contacted by TNIE, Aavin officials claimed the order was for the production of milk products and that there would not be any impact on milk supply to consumers. Generally, Aavin procures 35.5 lakh litres of milk every day, including 3.5 lakh litres sold by local dairy farmers. Over the last two weeks, the dairy cooperative’s procurement has dropped to 29-30 lakh litres, bringing the total procurement along with the local supply to 31.5 lakh litres a day , according to multiple sources from district cooperative milk producers’ unions. P7 Dara Shikoh was not made an icon. Are we going to move forward by idolising someone who has gone against the ethos of India or are we going to go with those who worked according to the traditions of this land? Aurangazeb doesn’t sit well here, but his brother does,” he said. On the Karnataka government’s resolution pressing the Centre to allocate grants for Scheduled Castes / Tribes in proportion to their population, he said any move for the betterment of society is welcome. Responding to a question on whether the RSS considers the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya as its achievement, he said the shrine is the achievement of the Hindu society as a whole. Express read 13 pupils beat up senior in college; suspended Coimbatore: Thirteen students from a private engineering college in Coimbatore were suspended on Saturday for allegedly brutally assaulting a senior student, accusing the latter of stealing money and personal items from their hostel rooms | P4 Pope Francis back home after 5 weeks in hospital Vatican City : A frail Pope Francis returned to the Vatican on Sunday after a five-week hospitalization for life-threatening double pneumonia, and he made a surprise stop at his favorite basilica on the way home before two months of recovery | P11