HYDERABAD l tuesday l april 29, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 16 l LATE CITY EDITION Russia announces unilateral ceasefire in Ukraine next week Russian President Vladimir Putin declared a 72-hr ceasefire from May 8 midnight to May 10 midnight to mark Victory Day Ukraine dismisses it as ‘window dressing’ Need permanent ceasefire, says Trump The Kremlin said the truce was on humanitarian grounds. “Russia believes the Ukrainian side should follow this example,” the Kremlin said, adding its forces will respond in kind if Ukraine violates the ceasefire. Dismissing Putin’s move as ‘window dressing’, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said: “If Russia truly wants peace, it must cease fire immediately.” ■ ■ The development comes after US President Donald Trump expressed doubts about Putin’s interest in ending the war. The White House said Trump wanted a permanent ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine This is the second unilateral truce offer by Putin, following a 30-hour Easter ceasefire that saw each side accusing the other of violating it May 9 Is celebrated as Victory day to mark Soviet Union’s victory in World War-II 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 will follow High command line on Operation Kagar: CM E x p re s s Ne w s Ser v i c e @ Hyderabad Making it clear that his government will announce its stand on Operation Kagar once the party high command takes a decision, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Monday opined that there should be a nationwide discussion on the issue. It may be recalled that the Peace Dialogue Committee met the chief minister and requested him to take the initiative for holding peace talks between the Maoists and the Central government. Following that, the chief minister met government adviser K Keshava Rao and former minister K Jana Reddy Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy meets senior leaders K Jana Reddy and K Keshava Rao in Hyderabad on Monday and discussed the committee’s demand for peace talks with Maoists. In an informal conversation with reporters later, Revanth responded to the BRS’s public meeting on Sunday by saying: “KCR (former chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao) is feeling insecure. Neither is there any clarity nor anything new in his speech. Prime Minister Naren- dra Modi and KCR will speak as per their political needs.” He added that people speak about administration only six months before elections. “I am receiving demands to arrest BRS leaders. However, I will act as per the law,” the chief minister asserted. Admitting that the Congress government has been lagging in implementing some works, he stated there was a need to expedite implementation of schemes. Revanth stated that they have streamlined the administration and are continuing with some officials in key posts due to lack of options. “We are lagging behind in publicising the work done in the last 15 months,” Revanth added.  continued on P4 ED raids suspects in Bhoodan land sale case E x p re s s Ne w s Ser v i c e @ Hyderabad OFFICIALS of the Enforcement Directorate, Hyderabad zone, conducted raids at the residences of a few persons in connection with alleged irregularities in the sale of Bhoodan lands, specifically relating to properties in the Maheshwara m a re a o f R a n g a re d dy district. The agency officials conducted searches at multiple residences in the Old City, including the homes of Munawar Khan, Khadeer Unnisa, Sharfan and Abdus Shukur. The ED suspects Munawar Khan and Khadeer Unnisa of being involved in the illegal sale of Bhoodan lands. Earlier, the agency had questioned former Rangareddy district collector and senior IAS officer Amoy Kumar, who is facing allegations in connection with Bhoodan land rights transfers to the above persons. Agency sources stated that there is a controversy regarding approximately 1 0 3 a c re s o f Bhoodan land located under Survey Nos. 181 and 182 in Nagaram village, Maheshwaram mandal. Of this, nearly 50 acres have reportedly been encroached upon. These 50 acres were illegally registered in the name of private parties who later divided the land into plots and began selling them. The matter is currently sub judice, and a court stay has been imposed on transactions related to the disputed land. The sources stated that the investigations revealed large financial transactions linked to the illegal sales, prompting Vigilance inquiries. Following this, the ED registered cases based on probes.  continued on P4 well treated President Droupadi Murmu presents Padma Vibhushan in the field of medicine to Dr D Nageshwar Reddy at Rashtrapati Bhavan, in New Delhi on Monday Omar Abdullah says he will not use the Pahalgam brutality to demand statehood Rajnath meets Modi; Pak says incursion imminent E x p re s s Ne w s Ser v i c e @ New Delhi J&K MLAs, including CM Omar Abdullah, pay homage to the victims of the Pahalgam attack, in the assembly on Monday | PTI Assault on Kashmiriyat: J&K House resolution F aya z W a n i @ Srinagar A special session of the J&K assembly on Monday passed a unanimous resolution describing the April 22 terror attack on tourists at Pahalgam as a direct assault on Kashmiriyat, the Constitution and the spirit of unity, peace and harmony. As many as 25 tourists and a local resident were slaughtered in the attack. But what caught the eye was a contrite Omar Abdullah admitting he had failed in his capacities as chief minister and tourism minister to protect the lives of tourists. Participating in the debate, he added that he will not use the Pahalgam incident to demand statehood. “How can I use the Pahalgam incident to demand restoration of statehood from the Centre? I do not believe in cheap politics... Curse on me if I go to the Centre and tell them that 26 peo- ple have died and now give me statehood.” Omar described the massacre as the beginning of the end of terror in Kashmir and cautioned against taking any step or action that “distances people from us and hurts this spontaneous protest”. He was alluding to the recent demolition of houses of terrorists and mass arrests. “This was not just an attack on people from one state — it was an attack on the very soul of India. The victims hailed from across India, from Arunachal Pradesh to Gujarat, from Kerala to J&K. The whole country has been affected by this attack,” he said. “I fully know that J&K’s security is not the responsibility of the elected government but as CM and tourism minister I had invited them to visit here and as a host it was my responsibility to ensure the safety of tourists, but I failed to do so,” the Omar said. J aya n t h J a c o b @ New Delhi R a k e s h K u m a r @ New Delhi In a move that could allow Chinese equipment manufacturers to operate in India, the Centre is considering permitting Chinese companies to invest under the Electronics Component Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme through joint ventures with Indian firms. According to industry sources, the government is mulling allowing Chinese companies to own up to 26% in JVs for specific critical electronics components, while maintaining a 10% equity cap for most other categories. In all cases, the management and control of the JV will remain with the Indian partner. Additionally, such JVs will need to secure approvals under the FDI norms. The latest move comes after Chinese companies agreed to most of the terms and conditions, including the transfer of technology to India. India-China relations touched their lowest point in April 2020 after the Galwan clashes. Subsequently, India mandated that FDI from entities or individuals based in countries sharing land borders with India would need prior government approval. The government allowed Chinese firms to operate in India only through partnerships with Indian firms. The reason for allowing Chinese firms into India is China’s existing strength in component manufacturing infrastructure and scale. The government views Chinese investment as key to building a strong component ecosystem in India and raising value addition in smartphones and consumer electronics from the current 15–20% to 30–40%. India has been also accelerating visa clearances of Chinese technicians involved in PLI scheme and electronic manufacturing projects. The United States on Monday said it is closely monitoring rising tensions between India and Pakistan in the wake of the Pahalgam terror attack and called upon the two neighbours to pursue a “responsible resolution” to the crisis. “The United States encourages all parties to work together towards a responsible resolution,” a State Depart- ment spokesperson said. The spokesperson reiterated that that Washington “stands with India and strongly condemns the terrorist attack in Pahalgam”, echoing recent remarks by President Donald Trump and Vice President J D Va n c e . B o t h leaders had expressed solidarity with Chief The churning n Secretary Santhi Kumari appointed vice-chairperson, MCRHRD Institute. She within was also named DG of the Institute (FAC) n Another shake up in the CMO expected with 2–3 more officials likely to be moved n follows the transfer of Sangeetha This Satyanarayana to the Health department n Jayesh Ranjan now in the CMO as CEO, Industry and Investment Cell and SPEED n Meanwhile, IFS officer M Chandrasekhar Reddy is likely to become Chief Information Commissioner n Boreddy Ayodhya Reddy set to bag CPRO State Information Commissioner post n officer M Shahnawaz Qasim IPS (Secretary to CM) likely to be returned to parent police department P4 Pak woman in city caught between court and Centre’s orders The April 22 terrorist attack on tourists in Pahalgam of Jammu and Kashmir — and the subsequent orders of the Union government directing almost all Pakistanis to leave India — has placed 26-year-old Khadija Noor in a rather unique situation. Originally from Faisalabad, Pakistan, Khadija is now uncertain about her next steps. The Union home ministry’s di- New Delhi: The govt blocked 16 Pakistani YouTube channels for allegedly disseminating “false, provocative and communally sensitive content” about India. It also objected to the BBC’s reportage on Pahalgam Rana’s Nia custody extended by 12 days New Delhi: A Delhi court on Monday extended by 12 more days the NIA custody of 26/11 Mumbai attack accused Tahawwur Rana. The special court extended his custody on NIA’s request after his previous 18-day remand got over Man held for window damage at mission London: An Indian-origin man was arrested on Sunday for allegedly smashing the windows of the Pak High Commission here following protest over the Pahalgam massacre. Ankit Love, 41, was charged with criminal damage India may let China Work towards a responsible resolution, says US invest via JV route guns and roses R a m a s h a n k a r @ Patna 16 Pakistani Youtube channels blocked Amid heightened security activity in J&K as India weighs it options following the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, defence minister Rajnath Singh on Monday met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and briefed him on the ongoing operations. The closed-door meeting lasted around 40 minutes. Earlier in the day Rajnath , was given a detailed briefing by Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi on the ground situation in J&K. Rajnath Singh, The meet- defence minister ing came on a day when Pakistan’s defence minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif told news agency Reuters that a military incursion by India was imminent. “We have reinforced our forces because it is something which is imminent now,” he said, adding some strategic decisions have been taken. Asif said Pakistan would only use its arsenal of nuclear weapons if “there is a direct threat to our existence”. Meanwhile, the Line of Control remained active with Pak Army indulging in small arms fire in the Kupwara and Poonch sectors. rective, issued after the Pahalgam attack that left 26 dead and several injured, asked states to ensure that all Pakistani citizens on tourist or extended visas exit Indian territory within the stipulated timeframe. Khadija was arrested on August 8, 2022, at the India-Nepal border, allegedly attempting to enter India without a valid visa through the Bhitthamore check post in Bihar’s Sitamarhi district. At the time of arrest by Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) personnel, she was accompanied by her alleged lover, Syed Ahmed, a native of Telangana, and another acquaintance. An inquiry ruled out any ‘spy angle’ and authorities maintained that Khadija posed no threat to national security. However, she was arrested and a trial followed. While Khadija and Ahmed were granted bail by the Sitamarhi district court on October 18, 2022, the Pakistani woman could not be released because she could not produce two guarantors mandatory for the bail. Khadija remained in custody for over two years before Ahmed managed to convince his brother to stand as guarantor. Finally, she was granted conditional bail from the Patna High Court and walked out of jail on March 19. The conditions imposed by the Patna High Court require her to report monthly to the Sitamarhi court until the conclusion of her trial. She has since been staying with Ahmed in Hyderabad and continues to travel to Sitamarhi each month as directed.  continued on P4 New Delhi following the April 22 assault, which left 26 dead, with Trump describing it as a “bad one” and acknowledging the deep-rooted tensions over Kashmir. “This is an evolving situation and we are monitoring developments closely. We have been in touch with the governments of India and Pakistan at multiple levels,” a US State Department spokesperson told Reuters in an emailed statement. The statement said that the US administration is in touch with the governments of India and Pakistan at “multiple levels”. The United States encourages all parties to work together towards a responsible resolution — US State Department spokesperson India, France ink `63K cr deal on Rafale-M fighters Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh with other officials during the signing of an Inter-Governmental Agreement for the procurement of 26 Rafale aircraft | PIB via PTI M aya n k S i n g h @ New Delhi India and France on Monday formally concluded the `63,000crore ($7.4 billion) deal for 26 Rafale-Marine fighter jets, in a move aimed at significantly enhancing the Indian Navy’s maritime combat capabilities. According to the contract, French military aircraft manufacturer Dassault Aviation will deliver 22 single-seater jets and four twin-seater trainers. T he pact includes training, simulator, associated equipment, weapons and performance-based logistics. It also includes additional equipment for the existing Rafale fleet of the Indian Air Force. Sources said the delivery of the first Rafale-M aircraft is ex- pected to be delivered by May 2028 and the 26th aircraft by 2030, with the crew undergoing training in France and India. “There would be aircraft-specific inspections to check and validate Indian Navy specific enhancements,” they added. The agreement includes transfer of technology for integration of indigenous weapons in India. It also includes setting up of a production facility for Rafale fuselage as well as maintenance, repair and overhaul facilities for aircraft engines, sensors and weapons in India. The Indian Air Force already operates 36 Rafale combat jets. The new contract is for 26 naval variant of the Rafale combat jets.