mangaluru l friday l june 06, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 14 l city EDITION Trump bans citizens of 12 countries from entering U.S. VISA President Donald Trump cited national security concerns to ban citizens of 12 countries from Africa and West Asia from entering the US Policy takes effect from monday trump cites ‘terrorism risk’ for move The policy takes effect Monday at 12:01 am and does not have an end date. The travel ban applies to citizens of Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen; apart from restricted entry for citizens of Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela ■ ■ Since returning to White House, Trump has launched an unprecedented campaign of immigration enforcement that has pushed the limits of executive power and clashed with federal judges Trump said nationals of countries being banned pose ‘terrorism’ and ‘public-safety’ risks, as well as risks of overystaying on their visas | P11 Jan 20 order seeking to identify ‘hostile attitudes’ toward U.S. behind fiat 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 Stampeding crowd ideal for Covid surge; against state’s own advisory R i s h i ta K h a n n a @ B e n g a l u r u WHILE the Chinnaswamy Stadium tragedy that claimed 11 young lives is shocking, another possible tragedy may be in waiting — a massive surge in Covid-19 cases in Bengaluru. The lakhs-strong gatherings on Wednesday — of about 1 lakh in front of Vidhana Soudha — for the felicitation of the IPL 2025 champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) team — and about 3 lakhs around M Chinnaswamy Stadium who were trying to attend the celebrations inside the stadium — were in complete contradiction to the Covid Appropriate Behaviour (CAB) advisory that the Karnataka government itself had issued on May 23, even as the cases were rising. Incidentally, on Wednesday, the fateful day when the large gatherings led to the fatal stampede, the Health and Family Welfare Department reported a massive jump in the number of Covid cases from 53 to 153, while the positivity rate was 25.8% and the case fatality rate was 1.3%. The state has recorded seven deaths so far in the latest Covid surge as of Thursday . The state health department issued a clear advisory on May 23, warning of a steady rise in Covid cases. The advisory had urged the public to strictly follow CAB, especially in crowded places. Vulnerable groups were specifically advised to wear People had gathered in large numbers in Bengaluru’s CBD on Wendesday to watch the feliciation of RCB | express masks. It also recommended hand hygiene and use of sanitizers. And yet, the government that issued this warning went HC poses 9 questions to K’taka govt; State orders judicial, CID probe into stampede tragedy senior cops fall guys, HC takes up suo motu PIL Yat h i r a j u & A s h w i n i M S r i pa d @ Bengaluru The Karnataka government on Thursday late evening suspended Bengaluru Police Commissioner B Dayananda and four other police officials hours after Karnataka High Court registered a suo motu public interest litigation while taking cognisance of the stampede at Chinnaswamy Stadium on Wednesday, which claimed 11 lives when the crowds were trying to enter the stadium for the celebrations organised by the IPL-2025 winners RCB and the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA). This is the first time that a Bengaluru Police Commissioner has been suspended. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said after a late evening cabinet meeting that he has ordered the DG & IGP MA Saleem to arrest representatives of RCB; DNA Networks, the event manager, and the KSCA. The Cubbon Park police, under whose jurisdiction stadium falls, has already registered an FIR against the three. The CM cited “substantial dereliction of duty” while suspending Ben- FIRs registered No. of injured touches 64 Seemant is new B’luru top cop The Cubbon Park police investigating the stampede incident have registered an FIR against the RCB Franchise, DNA Entertainment Pvt Ltd and Karnataka State Cricket Association Administrative Committee | P2 The number of people injured in the stampede has risen to 64. The State Government will bear the treatment costs of those injured in the stampede, Chief Secretary Dr Shalini Rajneesh said on Thursday | P2 IPS officer Seemant Kumar Singh, who was ADGP, Bangalore Metropolitan Task Force, was appointed as Bengaluru City Police Commissioner after the State Government suspended incumbent B Dayananda following the stampede Justice V Kameswar Rao and Justice CM Joshi passed the order registering a suo motu PIL while taking cognisance of the fatal stampede, and seeking to ascertain the reasons leading to the tragedy and whether the , tragedy could have been prevented, besides the remedial measures needed to prevent such tragedies in future. The court, however, considering communications and emails received from various IN a quiet closed ceremony that flew under the radar, and possibly under the political grapevine, Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra has married Supreme Court lawyer and former BJD MP Pinaki Misra. Neither Moitra (50) nor Misra (65) issued any official statement on the wedding but the TMC MP posted a photo of them together, in a way confirming the news but without divulging the details. Reports said they married in Germany on May 30. The fierce speaker seen sparring in Parliament with trademark fire and flair, traded her punchlines for pallu— and looked every bit the graceful bride in traditional attire, topped off with gold jewellery that did a fair bit of sparkling on its own. Her new husband brought IN a major boost to India’s defence manufacturing sector, French aviation giant Dassault Aviation has joined hands with Tata Advanced Systems Ltd (TASL) to build a dedicated facility in Hyderabad to manufacture Rafale fighter jet fuselage for global markets. On Wednesday, both companies signed production transfer agreements. The deal is expected to strengthen the country’s aircraft manufacturing skills and support the global aerospace supply chain. The Hyderabad facility will make key structural parts of the Rafale jet, including lateral shells of the rear fuselage, the complete rear section, central fuselage and front section. The first fuselage sections are expected to roll off the assembly Key partnership TASL said its partnership with Dassault will strengthen India’s position as a key player in the global aerospace supply chain line in FY2028, with the facility expected to deliver up to two complete fuselages per month. Dassault Aviation’s chairman and CEO Eric Trappier said this is the first time Rafale express read Ayodhya Ram temple prasad scam busted Ashwani Lohani named new director of PMML Lucknow: Ayodhya police busted one of the biggest cyber scams in the history of the temple town, with around `3.85cr allegedly siphoned from unsuspecting devotees in the name of distributing the ‘prasad’ of Ram Lalla | P10 New Delhi: Former head of Air India and chairman of the Railway Board Ashwani Lohani is the new Prime Ministers Museum and Library (PMML) director. The official order for his appointment was issued on Wednesday | P9 World’s highest railway arch bridge Moitra Weds Misra: SC Lawyer Wins the Argument @ New Delhi/Kolkata persons on the tragedy and submissions made by advocates, issued a notice to the state government and directed it to submit replies on the further status report based on nine questions (in the box on P5) by June 10, the next date of hearing. This had left the state government in a tight spot, which is seen as the trigger for the decision to suspend the senior police officials citing “substantial dereliction of duty”. P5 a cool, courtroom calm to the equation—a senior lawyer and ex-MP from Odisha. Despite their prominent roles in public life, the two managed to keep their nuptials out of the limelight. The low-key wedding caught many off guard, especially given Moitra’s recent headline-heavy year, which included a public spat lawyer Jai Anant Dehadrai, the man who accused her in the “cash-forquery” scandal that led to her expulsion from the Lok Sabha last December. In a world where personal lives of public figures are often dissected in real time, their d e c i s i o n t o ke e p t h i n g s private is radical as it is intensely Private. CHENAB RAIL BRIDGE 1,315 metres PM Narendra Modi is scheduled to inaugurate it on Friday cricket match is a large gathering — and there are no curbs on such events right now,” Rao said. However, although such mass gatherings are not currently restricted under Covid guidelines, experts have said that the government should not have rushed into organising the event without factoring in public health. They have pointed out that even other viral infections are circulating and often hit the most vulnerable first.  P4 Made-in-India Rafale fighter jet fuselages to roll out in 2028 @ New Delhi / Hyderabad new alliance E x p r e s s Ne w s Se r v i c e erings create “vulnerable clusters” which contributes to the Covid infection surges. When The New Indian Express questioned Karnataka Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao about this, he said there are currently no mandatory protocols in place for masking or crowd control, except for those who are immunocompromised. “Even the Government of India hasn’t issued any specific restrictions at this point. If you look at it that way every , M AYAN K SINGH & M ANDA RAVIND E R R E DD Y Karnataka Home Minister Dr G Parameshara takes stock of the situation at M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Thursday | Allen Egenuse J galuru City Police Commissioner B Dayananda; Additional Commissioner of Police, West Division, Vikash Kumar Vikash; Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central) HT Shekhar; Assistant Commissioner of Police (Cubbon Park) C Balakrishna; and Inspector of Police (Cubbon Park) AK Girish, with immediate effect. The suspension order stated that the Office of the Commissioner of Police had failed to give a written reply rejecting permission to RCB to hold a victory parade on June 4. The Karnataka government ordered a judicial probe by a one-man commission headed by retired HC Judge, Justice John Michael D’Cunha, besides a parallel probe by a Special Investigation Team under the Criminal Investigation Department into the stampede. He said they have given 30 days’ time to commission to submit a report. Earlier on Thursday a HC di, vision bench of acting Chief on to organise one of the largest mass gatherings just days later at the felicitation on the grand steps of Vidhana Soudha — with no safety measures. Although the advisory had called for caution, the State Government itself threw that very caution to the winds. The teeming crowds near Chinnaswamy Stadium featured no distancing, masking, or health protocols in place, while doctors and medical experts explained that such gath- long steel arch bridge 30,000 tonnes steel used to build the bridge 260 kmph Jammu & Kashmir Udhampur Can withstand wind speeds of up to 260 kmph Bridge will enhance connectivity between Jammu and Srinagar | Built to last 120 yrs | Project cost: `1,486 cr 17 spans 133.7m Max. height Total length 1.3 KM Situated at a height of 359 m above the river File photo | P10 fuselages will be made outside France. “This is a major step in building our supply chain in India,” he added. Sukaran Singh, CEO and managing director of Tata Advanced Systems, said the partnership shows India’s growing role in global aerospace. “Making the entire Rafale fuselage in India proves the strength of our partnership with Dassault and the capability of our aerospace ecosystem,” he added. Dassault Aviation has till now delivered over 10,000 military and civil aircraft (including 2,700 Falcons) in more than 90 countries over the last century. It has deep expertise in design, production, sale and support of all types of aircraft. Tata Advanced Systems Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Tata Sons, has a strong portfolio of joint ventures with global aerospace and defence firms, a statement said. Maoist top gun gunned down in Bijapur E JAZ K AIS E R @ Raipur IN a big blow to the Maoist leadership, security forces eliminated CPI (Maoist) central committee member Narasimha Chalam alias Sudhakar, 67, in the National park area of Bijapur on Thursday . After neutralising CPI (Maoist) general secretary Basavaraju on May 21, the death of another senior leader comes as a severe blow to the banned outfit. Acting on specific intelligence, a joint team of personnel from district reserve Sudhakar guard, STF, and C o B R A launched a coordinated operation on June 5 inside Indravati National Park. “An encounter ensued following which forces recovered the body of CCM member Narasimha Chalam, with an AK-47 rifle. He is responsible for a host of violent incidents,” P Sunderraj, IG (Bastar range) told this newspaper. So far this year, 186 bodies of Maoist cadres have been recovered in Bastar region.