nagapattinam l wednesday l april 16, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l city EDITION Expect above-normal rainfall this Southwest monsoon: IMD Tamil nadu may see below-normal rains India will experience above-normal cumulative rainfall in the upcoming southwest monsoon, the India Meteorological Department said on Tuesday The cumulative rainfall is estimated at 105% of the long-period average of 87 cm, IMD chief Mrutyunjay Mohapatra said. However, large parts of Tamil Nadu and the northeastern region are likely to get below-normal rainfall, while the rain-deficient parts of Marathwada and adjoining Telangana are expected to witness above-normal showers ■ 26% EL nino conditions unlikely to develop ■ Mohapatra said El Nino conditions, which results in weaker monsoon in the Indian subcontinent, are unlikely to develop this time As per the IMD, the sea surface temperatures in western and eastern sides of the Indian Ocean are roughly the same, and the snow cover in Northern Hemisphere is low—both of which point to normal monsoon chance of excess precipitation, IMD director general Mohapatra said 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 Retail inflation at 67-mth low Declines to lower-than-expected 3.34% due to fooD price correction 8 Raises hopes of further repo rate cut by 50 bps in this calendar year 7.79 Retail Inflation (%) 7 6 5 4 Feb-25 Nov-24 Aug-24 Feb-24 Nov-23 Aug-23 Feb-23 May-23 Nov-22 Aug-22 May-22 Nov-21 Feb-22 Aug-21 Feb-21 May-21 Nov-20 Aug-20 May-20 Nov-19 Feb-20 Aug-19 3 May-24 3.34 3.28 D i pa k M o n d a l @ New Delhi Retail inflation in March fell to lower-than-expected 3.34%, the lowest since August 2019, vindicating the Reserve Bank of India’s decision to effect a 25basis points repo rate cut in the April monetary policy . The sharp decline in consumer inflation during the month also raised hopes of at least another 50-basis points interest rate cut in the calendar year. The March inflation nu m b e r p e g g e d at 3.34% was lower than February’s 3.61%, and 4.85% in the same month last year. The sharp fall in overall retail inflation was driven largely by a huge correction in food price inflation. Food inflation crashed to 2.7% in March compared to 8.5% in the same month last year. A large part of the drop in food inflation was, therefore, due to high base effect. The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementa- tion, which tracks the consumer price inflation, attributed the significant decline in headline inflation and food inflation during the month of March to the drop in inflation of vegetables, eggs, pulses & products, meat & fish, cereals & products and milk & products. According to D K Joshi, chief economist, Crisil Ltd, the Indian Meteorological Department’s forecast of an above-normal monsoon for the year — and Skymet’s of a normal one — adds to the happy tidings on the food inflation front. However, weather disruptions such as heat waves, could play spoilsport. Joshi said a sharperthan-expected fall in crude oil prices will help keep non-food inflation comfortable as well. The RBI has pegged the FY26 inflation at 4%. If inflation remains at these levels, the chances of more rate cuts brighten. It has already reduced the repo rate by 50 bps; experts believe further 50 bps cut is possible. CM forms high-level panel to study centre-state relations, protect rights T M u r u g a n a n d h a m @ Chennai Ex-minister Bhalaji has been accused of running a cash-for-jobs racket during the 2016-2021 AIADMK rule | express Guv gives nod to prosecute ex-min; charge sheet in 2 days S u c h i t r a K a lya n M o h a n t y @ New Delhi The Tamil Nadu government has told the Supreme Court that Governor R N Ravi has accorded sanction to prosecute former AIADMK minister K T Rajenthra Bhalaji in an alleged cash-for-jobs scam. The state told the court that the governor had accorded sanction under Section 19 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, on April 11. The probing agency will file the charge sheet in the case in two days, the state informed the bench of justices Pankaj Mithal and S V N Bhatti on Tuesday . The Madras High Court had ordered a CBI investigation into the corruption allegations against the ex-minister in the scam on January 6 after it found that the state government had not complied with its earlier direction to file charge sheet in the case. On March 17, the SC stayed the Madras HC order after hearing two pleas, including one filed by the TN government, against the HC’s decision. During the hearing, senior advocate V Giri, appearing for Bhalaji, also opposed the CBI probe on the ground that the investigation simply could not be transferred to the CBI as a matter of routine without cogent reasons. “The (HC) order was passed without hearing both the parties,” Giri had contended. The SC had then asked the TN government to provide the translated documents to the governor’s secretariat within two weeks and directed the governor’s office to take an expeditious decision on according sanction in the case.  P5 Fifty-six years after the then Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi constituted the P V Rajamannar Committee in 1969—the first such panel in India’s history formed to study centre-state relations—his son and current CM M K Stalin on Tuesday announced the formation of a high-level committee to study the constitutional and legal provisions that impact the centre-state relations. The committee would make recommendations to protect the legitimate rights of the state while improving relationship between the centre and state governments, the chief minister said. The committee will be headed by retired Supreme Court Judge Kurian Joseph. Retired IAS officer Ashok Vardhan Shetty and former vice-chairperson of the State Planning Commission, M Naganathan, will be its members. The panel CM Stalin making the announcement at the Assembly on Tuesday | express will submit its interim report in January 2026 and final report in two years. Announcing the constitution of the committee under Rule 110 of the Assembly, the CM said it will suggest ways to bring back to the State List subjects which were transferred to the Concurrent List over time and recommend how states could function with maximum autonomy in the administrative departments, assemblies and judicial branches, without compromising the unity and integrity of the country. The committee will suggest measures needed to address the challenges faced by the states in delivering good governance. Stalin said the committee has been conceived not just for Tamil Nadu but for all states to protect the principle of ‘unity in diversity’. He said such a committee has become an imperative at this critical juncture where states’ rights are continuously being taken away and they are forced to fight with the centre even for the basic rights of the people. The vast country of India is being protected by the states formed based on linguistic rights, and the country will become stronger only when the states have all necessary powers, Stalin said.  P4, P5 e x pr e s s r e a d 4 killed after 2 bikes collide in Ranipet Tasmac: HC asks ED to submit FIR Chahal is King as Punjab defend 111 Ranipet: Four young men were killed in a head-on collision involving two motorcycles near Ranipet on Monday night. The deceased have been identified as D Dinesh (23), V Ranjith (21), M Priyakumar (20), and S Vetrivel (21). After passersby alerted police, they were rushed to Arakkonam GH where they were declared brought dead | P3 Chennai: The Madras HC has directed the Enforcement Directorate to submit copies of the FIR registered by the DVAC which formed the basis for the searches carried out by the agency at the premises of the Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation Limited (Tasmac) under the Prevention of the Money Laundering Act | P2 Mullanpur: Yuzvendra Chahal led a stunning comeback for Punjab Kings with a brilliant 4/28 as the hosts defeated Kolkata Knight Riders by 16 runs in a low-scoring IPL thriller. After restricting PBKS for 111 inside 16 overs, KKR looked comfortable reaching 60/2 in seven overs. But PBKS made an unlikely comeback skittling KKR for just 95 in 15.1 overs. | P11 Heat on gandhi family ED chargesheets Sonia, Rahul in $400 Natl Herald case million S h e k h a r S i n g h @ New Delhi The Enforcement Director at e ( E D ) h a s f i l e d a chargesheet against Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi in a Delhi court in the National Herald money laundering case. Also named in the chargesheet are Sam Pitroda, the party’s Overseas Department Chief, veteran journalist Suman Dubey, and several others. The case revolves around financial transactions linked to the now-defunct National Herald newspaper and its parent company As, sociated Journals Limited. Justice Vishal Gogne of the Rouse Avenue Court examined the chargesheet filed on April 9. He said the court will consider on April 25 whether to take cognisance of the complaint. The court said a fresh prosecution complaint under sections 44 and 45 of Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) 2002 for commission of offence of money laundering as defined under Section 3 read with Section 70 and punishable under Section 4 of PMLA, 2002 filed by the ED, has been received by way of assignment. “Let the complaint be checked and registered. The ED is directed to file a soft copy of the complaint and documents in readable/OCR Johnson & Johnson said it expects $400 million in tariffrelated costs Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi | PTI file Majority shareholders in Young Indian China orders its airlines not to take any further deliveries of Boeing US commerce dept probing how import of computer chips and products that contain them affect national security Trump hints at easing of 25% auto tariff Sonia and Rahul are majority shareholders of Young Indian with 38% shares held by each one of them. They were questioned by the ED in this case a few years back. Young Indian owns AJL, which is the publisher of the National Herald platform. format by the next date,” the court said. For its part, the Congress slammed the Centre over the chargesheets against Sonia and Rahul, saying it was playing vendetta politics. “Filing charg esheets against Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and some others is nothing but politics of vendetta and intimidation by the prime minister and the home minister gone completely berserk,” Congress general secretary incharge communications Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X. Vadra quizzed for 8 hours in money laundering case M u k e s h R a n j a n @ New Delhi The Enforcement Directorate on Tuesday questioned businessman Robert Vadra, the husband of Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, for over eight hours in connection with its probe into money laundering linked to a Gurugram land deal. His statements were recorded under provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, sources said. Vadra walked from his residence at Sujan Singh Park in central Delhi to the ED headquarters on APJ Abdul Kalam Road, a stretch of about 2 km. Before entering the agency’s premises, he said, “This is nothing but political vendetta. Whenever I speak for minorities, they try to stop me, crush us... they tried to stop Rahul (Gandhi) in Parliament too. This is misuse of agencies and this is political vendetta.” He said he will not be intimidated and will continue to cooperate with the agency . The probe pertains to a land deal in February 2008 where a company linked to Vadra—Skylight Hospitality Pvt Ltd— purchased a piece of 3.5 acre land in Shikohpur village in Gurugram from Onkareshwar Properties for a price of `7.5 crore. It is alleged that the mutation of this land was done within hours. Police and parents gathered outside the school in Tirunelveli | v karthikalagu TN boy attacks classmate with sickle in tiff over pencil E x p r e s s Ne w s Se r v i c e @ Tirunelveli A Class 8 student of a private school at Palayamkottai in Tirunelveli district suffered injuries to his hand, head, and shoulder after one of his classmates attacked him with a sickle following a tiff over sharing a pencil, police said. The boys had quarrelled last month and were not on talking terms. The juvenile had brought the weapon by hiding it in his schoolbag, sources said. A woman teacher who tried to intervene also sustained minor injuries. The boy suffered “minor cut injuries in two or three places” and his condition is “normal,” a senior police official said. The teacher and the boy are receiving treatment at a private hospital and they are out of danger, sources said. A case was registered, and the attacker (aged 13 to 14) was produced before the Juvenile Justice Board and sent to an observation home, police said. Palayamkottai assistant commissioner of police N Suresh told reporters that the boys were friends and sat on the same bench in the classroom. A month ago, a verbal fight broke between them over sharing a pencil, and they stopped talking to each other, he said.  P5 Hospital must immediately lose licence if newborn is trafficked, says SC Guidelines, contempt of court warning Bail granted to accused cancelled. Cases go back to trial courts, which shall frame charges against the accused within a week thereafter If the accused are absconding, trial courts shall issue NBWs to secure them After charges are framed, the trial court shall record evidence preferably on day-to-day basis; complete trial within six months State govt must appoint three special public prosecutors for the trials State govt must provide police protection to victims Police have two months’ time to trace all the accused persons State govt must admit trafficked children in schools At the end of the trial, the trial court shall pass appropriate orders on compensation to the victims All HCs shall direct trial courts handling child trafficking cases to complete trials within six months and file compliance report Non-compliance of directions or any laxity can attract contempt S u c h i t r a K a lya n M o h a n t y @ New Delhi The Supreme Court on Tuesday laid down strict guidelines for all states to prevent child trafficking and the offences arising out of it, warning that any laxity in implementing them could be treated as contempt of court. A two-judge bench comprising justices J B Pardiwala and R Mahadevan ordered lower courts to complete trials in such cases within six months. It added that if any newborn infant is trafficked from any hospital, its licence should be suspended immediately over and above other actions in accordance with law. When any woman comes to deliver her baby in a hospital, it is the responsibility of its administration to protect the newborn in all respects, the bench said. The court issued the directions after hearing petitions against anticipatory bail grant- ed by the Allahabad High Court to 13 accused in trafficking cases in Uttar Pradesh. It cancelled the bails, saying the “cry of the collective for justice, its desire for peace and har mony” couldn’t be trivialised. The bench advised parents to remain extremely vigilant and careful with their children. The pain and agony a parent may have to face when a child dies is different from that when Whiplash for remark against rape victim Taking strong exception to a recent Allahabad HC remark against a rape victim that she had “invited trouble”, the SC cautioned judges against making such inappropriate observations | P7 they lose their children to such gangs engaged in trafficking, the court observed. The court directed all state governments to go study a 2023 report by the Bharatiya Institute of Research and Development on human trafficking and implement it at the earliest. The court slammed both the Allahabad High Court and the UP government for the manner in which they dealt with the matter. “The HC dealt with bail applications callously It led to . many accused to abscond.” It chided the UP government for not filing any appeal against the HC verdicts.