Court of appeals chucks don’s Tariff Power; case to go to Supreme Court kozhikode l Sunday l august 31, 2025 l `12.00 l PAGES 26 l city edition Rhythm of victory Members of Village Boat Club, Kainakary, paddle in unison on board Veeyapuram Chundan which won the 71st Nehru Trophy Boat Race in Punnamada Lake in Alappuzha on Saturday. In the tightly-contested final, Veeyapuram edged past Nadubhagom Chundan, clocking 4:21.084 | A Sanesh | P2 All eyes on Modi-Xi talks to stabilise bilateral relations Both sides look to stabilise ties while addressing larger geopolitical challenges NYT: Don no longer plans to visit India for Quad Summit J aya n t h J a c o b @ New Delhi Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in China for his first visit in over seven years, marking a significant moment in the evolving IndiaChina relationship. Modi’s arrival in Tianjin on Saturday evening is set against a backdrop of global economic uncertainty by US tariffs, which have disrupted international trade and altered geopolitics. The timing of the visit couldn’t be more critical, with Modi scheduled to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping on Sunday for a high-stakes discussion on “stabilising the bilateral ties long term” and enhancing economic cooperation. The buzzword ahead of the meeting is stability Both India and China . are seeking to chart a course that ensures long-term stability in their relationship, while also addressing larger geopolitical issues. With both countries being key players in the global economic landscape, the talks will focus on collaborating to restore stability to the international economic order, which has been shaken by trade disputes, especially those instigated by Trump’s tariffs. A source said: “The long-term stability in the bilateral relationship is what the two sides are looking at, through greater trust and sensitivity E x p r e s s N e w s S e r v i c e @ New Delhi Prime Minister Narendra Modi with members of the Indian community in Tianjin, China | PTI to each other’s concerns.” Both nations have already made efforts to normalise ties since Modi and Xi’s last meeting in Kazan, prior to the 2020 border clashes that severely strained relations. The economic angle is central to the discussions. With the trade relationship under pressure, both sides are keen to explore ways to expand economic ties. Additionally, the resumption of direct flights and the revival of people-to-people exchanges are expected to be key topics. “PM Modi himself spoke about the need for India and China, as two of the world’s largest economies, to work together to bring stability to the world economy amid current volatility,” said a source familiar with the preparations. US President Donald Trump no longer has plans to visit India for the Quad Summit later this year, The New York Times reported on Saturday, outlining how relations between him and Prime Minister Narendra Modi deteriorated in recent months. In its report titled “The Nobel Prize and a Testy Phone Call: How the Trump-Modi Relationship Unraveled”, sources familiar with Trump’s schedule revealed that after initially assuring Modi of a visit to India for the Quad Summit later this year, Trump now has no plans to make the trip in the fall. There has been no official word on the NYT’s claims. The fallout reportedly began after the US President’s repeated claims that he had “solved” the India-Pakistan conflict in May — a statement India vehemently denied. The report indicates that Modi became increasingly frustrated with Trump’s interventions. GST revenue loss: 8 Oppn-ruled states seek relief for five years P r e e t h a N a i r @ New Delhi The Congress party announced on Saturday that eight opposition-led states have backed the proposal to simplify the Goods and Services Tax (GST) rate slabs and reduce rates for mass consumption items. However, these states have stressed the need for safeguards to protect their fiscal interests. Congress leader Jairam Ramesh urged the government to ensure that the benefits of rate reductions are passed on to consumers and not used as a headline-grabbing tactic. He also emphasised the importance of advancing cooperative federalism during the upcoming GST Council meeting. The eight states—Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Kerala, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, and West Bengal—have called for compensation for the potential revenue losses they will incur due to the rate cuts, with 2024-25 as the base year. They have also demanded that any additional levies on ‘sin’ and luxury goods be fully transferred to the states. State mulls law amendment to kill or capture dangerous wild animals E x p r e s s N e w s S e r v i c e @ T’Puram Memory Fights Back PLUS 12 P AGES In what could initiate fresh debate over mitigating the human-wildlife conflict, Law Minister P Rajeeve said the state government, acting on legal advice, is considering the introduction of an amendment to the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, to empower the chief wildlife warden to authorise any person to kill or capture a wild animal that causes serious injury to human beings or poses threat to a public place. The minister announced the decision while addressing a two-day regional conference on ‘Human-Wildlife Conflict and Co-Existence: Legal and Policy Perspectives’ organised by the National Legal Services Authority and the Kerala State Legal Services Authority, in Thiruvananthapuram on Saturday . Addressing the conference, which is being attended by Supreme Court and High Court judges and leading legal luminaries, Rajeeve said the current legislative framework was inadequate to protect human lives during ● More on P7 emergencies.  A federal court in the US ruled that President Trump had no legal right to impose tariffs on almost all nations. But his protectionist powers remain for now Tariffs stay in place until mid-October By 7:4, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit upheld a decision taken in May by a Manhattan Trade Court. Both courts concurred on the misuse of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act under which the tariffs were ordered. But the ruling allows Trump’s administration until mid-October to appeal to the Supreme Court 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 ■ ■