DHARMAPURI l wednesday l april 09, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l city EDITION scientists believe they have resurrected the dire wolves Colossal Biosciences, a Dallas biotech company, has successfully “de-extincted” the dire wolf, a species that roamed America 12,500 years ago closely resembles its ancestor, gray wolf rare tooth and skull used in study By harnessing ancient DNA, cloning, and gene-editing technology, scientists have created three dire wolf pups, essentially a hybrid species that closely resembles its extinct ancestor, the gray wolf. The dire wolf, a formidable predator and inspiration for HBO series “Game of Thrones,” was characterised by its size, wider head, thicker fur, and stronger jaw ■ ■ The researchers studied a 13,000 year-old dire wolf tooth unearthed in Ohio and a 72,000 year-old skull fragment found in Idaho They took blood cells from a gray wolf and genetically modified them before transferring the genetic material to an egg cell from a domestic dog. Embryos were then transferred to surrogates | P9 62 days is the time it took for the new engineered pups to be born 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 Court invokes special powers to declare 10 TN bills as passed; sets deadline for guvs Guv sending reiterated bills to Prez illegal: SC Four timelines set for expedited action 1 2 3 In the case of withholding of assent or reservation of the bills for the President upon the aid and advice of the state’S ministers, the governor has to act within a month If assent is to be withheld, contrary to the advice of the ministers, the governor must return the bills with a message within 3 months If bill is to be reserved for the President, contrary to the advice of ministers, guv must do so within 3 months der Article 142 to make the bills re-presented to the governor, as deemed to have been In a landmark verdict, the Su- passed. preme Court on Tuesday held The court pronounced the the action of Tamil Nadu Gov- verdict after hearing a plea ernor R N Ravi to reserve 10 filed by the Tamil Nadu govbills for the President’s consid- ernment against Governor eration despite their reitera- Ravi for sitting over bills — tion by the state assembly “il- some for over three years — legal and arbitrary”. and later escalating them to The governor has no option the President. The bills were but to give assent to the bill sent to the President shortly that is presented to him after another bench in after re-passage in the the Punjab governor’s state assembly if it is case ruled that the unchanged, a two-judge gover nor does not bench comprising jushave pocket veto or tices J B Pardiwala and absolute veto over R Mahadevan said. bills by squatting over The court said the them. governor must act on “The governor canthe aid and advice of Governor R N Ravi not sit on bills and exthe state legislature. ercise pocket veto “Under Article 200 of the Con- over them. Article 200 gives the stitution, the governor does bills passed by the state assemnot possess any discretion and bly the authority of an Act. has to mandatorily act on the Without this Act, it is only a aid and advice of the council document of aspiration of peoof ministers.” Article 200 of ple which does not come into the Constitution deals with as- effect,” said Justice Pardiwala, sent to bills. who authored the judgment. The bench said once the gov- Pocket veto an indirect veto of ernor withholds assent, he is a bill by leaving it unsigned till obligated to follow the proce- it is too late for it to be dealt dure prescribed in the first with. proviso of Article 200, which is The court said though there on returning the bill to the was no specific time limit unHouse as soon as possible. It der Article 200 for the governor exercised its special power un- to take his call, it cannot lead S u c h i t r a K a lya n M o h a n t y @ New Delhi express read Youth, 3 minors held for killing, burying 20-yr-old Tirunelveli: City police arrested a 26-year-old and three minors for allegedly murdering and burying a 20-year-old as he was friends with a 13-year-old relative of one of the juveniles. The incident came to light when a suspect called up the cops in an inebriated state and informed them Teens electrocuted while putting up b’day banner Tiruvannamalai: Two teenagers, R Lokesh (15) and R Dhanushkumar (17), were electrocuted while attempting to erect a birthday greeting banner for their close friend on the Tiruvannamalai– Manalurpet Road around 10 pm on Monday China says it will act against US tariffs Beijing: China said it will take countermeasures against the US after President Donald Trump threatened an additional 50% tax on Chinese imports in retaliation for Beijing’s backlash against US’ 34% tariffs | P9 4 If a bill is reiterated by the state assembly without change, the governor must grant assent within a month Justice J B Pardiwala to inertia. “Despite there being no prescribed time limits, Article 200 cannot be read in a manner which allows the governor to not take action on the bills, which are presented to him for assent and thereby delay, and essentially roadblock law-making machinery in the state,” it said. For the first time, the court set timelines for gubernatorial clearance of bills, adding failure to adhere to them could invite judicial scrutiny. It gave governors just one month to decide if they wanted to reserve a bill for the President’s consideration. If they wanted to withhold assent without the aid and advice of the council of ministers, they have to return the bill within three months. If the bill is reiterated after re-consideration by state assembly, the governor will have to mandatorily give his assent within a month. The governor must perform his role as a friend, philosopher and guide with dispassion and not be guided by political considerations, the verdict said. “In times of conflict, he must be the harbinger of consensus and resolution, lubricating the functioning of the state machinery by his sagacity wisdom, and not run it into , a standstill.” bills that were cleared 2 020 Bill to amend the Tamil Nadu Fisheries University Act, 2012 2 020 Bill to amend the TN Veterinary and Animal Sciences University Act, 1989 2 022 Bill to amend the Universities Laws 2 022 Bill to amend the TN Dr. Ambedkar Law University Act, 1996 2 022 Bill to amend the TN Dr MGR Medical University, Chennai, Act, 1987 2 022 Bill to amend the TN Agricultural University Act, 1971 2 022 Bill to amend the TN Universities Laws 2 022 Bill to amend the Tamil University Act, 1982 2023 Bill to amend the TN Fisheries University Act, 2012 2023 Bill to amend the TN Veterinary and Animal Sciences University Act, 1989 ‘Verdict a win not only for TN but all states’ E x p r e s s N e w s S e r v i c e @ Chennai Chief Minister M K Stalin on Tuesday described the Supreme Court verdict, which held that Tamil Nadu Governor R N Ravi’s action of not granting assent to the 10 bills readopted by the state Assembly as illegal, as a monumental victory not only for Tamil Nadu but for all the state governments. Stalin said this while infor ming the Assembly about the SC verdict, which ruled that the 10 bills be considered to have been assented to by the governor. “I convey the happy news to the House regarding the historic verdict which the Supreme Court has just delivered in favour of the Tamil Nadu government,” Tamil Nadu he said. fought. Tamil Later, in a post on X, StaNadu will fight. lin said, “We thank and Tamil Nadu welcome today’s historic will win judgment of the Hon’ble M K Stalin, Supreme Court, reaffirmTN Chief Minister ing the legislative rights of state le gislatures and putting an end to the trend of union government-nominated governors stalling progressive legislative reforms in oppositionruled states.” This is another crucial step in restoring balance in union-state relations and a landmark victory in TN’s continuous struggle to usher in a truly federal India. “My congratulations to the people of Tamil Nadu and our legal team!,” he added. Earlier, speaking in the Assembly, he highlighted the governor had returned several important bills passed by the House that were sent for his assent. “The House re-adopted those bills and sent them back,” the CM said.  P5 what does ruling mean for tamil nadu’s universities? | P4 Most tn parties welcome sc order, demand guv’s resignation | P4 Bitter infighting within Trinamool out in open SULAGN a SENGUPTA @ Kolkata THE infighting within West Bengal’s ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) surfaced on Tuesday after a video showing an alleged verbal altercation between party MPs and screenshots of their exchanges from its official WhatsApp group went viral on social media. Amit Malviya, head of BJP’s IT cell, shared the screenshots, claiming they revealed a bitter a r g u m e n t b e t we e n TMC MPs Kalyan Banerjee and Kirti Azad. The authenticity of the screenshots couldn’t be independently verified. But this newspaper spoke to many senior leader of the TMC and none of them refuted the incident though they didn’t divulge any detail. Roy declined comments, while party MP Mauha Moitra said, “I will inform the TMC head office.” Banerjee, speaking to reporters in Kolkata, acknowledged the altercation but blamed the woman MP involved. “I’ve been in politics for 40 years. This woman MP asked the security at the EC office to arrest me. She hurled abuses at me. It’s me who fights in Parliament, not someone obsessed with a particular industrial house,” said Banerjee, the party’s chief whip in the Lok Sabha. He didn’t name the woman MP. Senior TMC leaders said the issue has been brought to the attention of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. Malviya claimed that the WhatsApp duel was triggered by an earlier spat between two TMC parliamentarians at Election Commission headquarters. The MPs had gone there to submit a memorandum, but tensions escalated, leading to the confrontation. Senior TMC MP Sougata Roy chided Kalyan Banerjee for damaging the party’s reputation. “What he did has tarnished the party’s image. He should be immediately removed as chief whip.” Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge, and Sonia Gandhi during the CWC meeting | PTI Cong resolution calls Waqf Act polarising, foreign policy weak P r e e t h a N a i r @ Ahmedabad From opposing the Waqf Act to India’s foreign policy, One Nation, One Election bill and proposed delimitation to economic and education policy the , political resolution being discussed at the All India Congress Committee session in Ahmedabad vows to strengthen organisational capacity and competence to fight for Nyay (justice) for every Indian. While the Congress Working Committee meeting on Tuesday gave the draft resolution its final shape, it is expected to be passed at the AICC session on Wednesday . Reaffirming the party’s opposition to the contentious Waqf Act and anti-conversion laws, the resolution said the party is committed to fighting the politics of religious, linguistic, caste-based, and regional divisions. The resolut i o n s a i d t h e Wa q f a n d anti-conversion laws are part of BJP’s polarising strategy . “We will not allow India to be divided, nor will we allow those who seek to divide it to succeed in their diabolical designs. Our path is clear: Quit hate, Unite India,” it said. Terming the Centre’s foreign policy a weak-kneed one, the Nationalism pitch Terming the Congress party’s idea of nationalism as one that binds people together, the resolution said ‘the pseudo-nationalism of the BJP-RSS’ seeks to divide the nation over region, language, attire, and food habits resolution said the BJP government has compromised the country’s foreign policy at the altar of individual branding and serving vested interests. “Though Congress remains a strong votary of close ties with the US, it can never happen at the expense of India’s national interests,” said the resolution. “During the PM’s visit to Washington, D.C., we were publicly insulted and our country was labelled as a ‘Tariff Abuser’. Indian migrants were treated like animals and deported from the US in chains and handcuffs,” it said. On the border dispute, the resolution said China has illegally occupied 2,000 sq km of Indian territory in Eastern Ladakh. Yet, the BJP government has failed to restore the status quo ante, as it existed before April 2020, the Congress resolution noted. Centre files caveat in SC in Waqf case; Act comes into effect E x p r e s s N e w s S e r v i c e @ New Delhi Food for thought Union Home Minister Amit Shah with J&K Lt Governor Manoj Sinha and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah during a meeting in Srinagar on Tuesday | pti THE Supreme Court is likely to hear on April 15 a batch of petitions challenging the constitutional validity of the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025. The Centre on Tuesday filed a caveat in the Supreme Court and sought a hearing before any order was passed in the matter. Caveat is filed by a party in courts to ensure that no orders are passed without hearing it. Former Additional Solicitor General (ASG) and senior Supreme Court lawyer, K C Kaushik, speaking to this newspaper, said the Centre wanted a representation before any order is passed by the SC. In another significant development, the Waqf Amendment Bill, passed by Parliament last week, has come into effect on Tuesday , following the President’s assent. So far, there were 15 petitions filed in Supreme Court challenging the Waqf Amendment Act. HC flays TN for keeping it in dark on transfer pleas R SIVAKUMAR @ Chennai High drama unfolded in the Madras High Court on Tuesday over the hearing of the writ petitions filed by the Tamil Nadu government and its business entity, Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (Tasmac), against the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) raids as a divi- sion bench slammed the state government for keeping it in the dark over the transfer petitions filed in the Supreme Court to shift the case to the apex court. In strong remarks, the division bench of justices S M Subramaniam and K Rajasekar said the state gover nment had “insulted” and “disre- spected” the court and misrepresented the facts. As agreed by the parties in the previous hearing, the petitions were liste d fo r h e a r i n g o n Tuesday. When the hearing came up, a special gover nment pleader sought ‘pass over’ of the case to enable a senior counsel to appear. When the case was taken up at 12 pm, state government pleader Edwin Prabhakar informed the court about the transfer petitions. Even as he made the submissions, the bench grilled him as to why it had not been informed as soon as the court assembled in the mor ning or at least when the pass over was sought for.  P5