Bengaluru l Monday l September 29, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 22 l LATE CITY EDITION new trade arrangements will emerge in time, says Jaishankar External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said the world will need a global workforce, while stressing India’s growing ties with S America and Caribbean S Jaishankar Howard Lutnick answer lies in capacity building, says eam Need to ‘fix’ India, says U.S. COMMERCE SECY Speaking at an Observer Research Foundation (ORF) panel on the sidelines of the 80th UN General Assembly session in New York, the EAM said it is important to build capacities for greater self-reliance, in this turbulent atmosphere. Jaishankar’s remarks come amid recent moves by the US to raise new H-1B visa fees and impose unilateral tariffs on India to ‘fix’ countries like Brazil and India, asserting that “these nations need to open markets and refrain from harming American interests” ■ Lutnick said these countries have to understand that if “they want to sell to the US consumers, they’ve got to play ball with US President” ■ US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has said that the US will have 50% is the tariff that indian goods now face upon entry into the u.s. 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 Oppn questions govt, police deny lapses; TVK approaches HC for independent probe blame game begins as Karur toll rises to 40 Barricades, banners, flags and slippers left behind in the chaos of Saturday evening in Velusamypuram (left); Family members of one of the stampede victims wracked with grief as they received the body on Sunday | m k ashok kumar express news service @ Karur/Chennai A day after the stampede at actor-politician Vijay’s campaign rally at Velusamypuram in Karur, located 82km from Tiruchy the death toll rose to 40 , with the death of a 17-year-old boy on Sunday Of the deceased, . 17 were women and 10 were children, the youngest being only two years old. The bodies were released to the families and laid to rest. Before the dust settled, the opposition parties, AIADMK and BJP questioned the Tamil , Nadu police and Karur administration, alleging more police should have been posted at the spot given the crowds that throng the rallies of Vijay Kol, lywood’s biggest superstar, and president of the fledgling TVK. While Chief Minister M K Sta- lin visited the survivors and bereaved at the Karur Medical College Hospital in the wee hours of Sunday, Deputy CM Udhayanidhi Stalin visited later in the day both opting not to , “talk politics”. Vijay, who returned to Chennai Saturday night, took to social media on Sunday to announce financial assistance of `20 lakh each to kin of the deceased and `2 lakh each to the injured. “I know this is not a big amount in the face of such loss. Yet at this time, it is my duty as one of your own to stand with you in spirit,” he said. Meanwhile, ADGP (Law & Order) S Davidson Devasirvatham cited overcrowding, heat stress and a sudden surge of people eager to see Vjiay, who arrived at the site three hours late, as reasons behind the stampede. Stating 500 police personnel were posted at the venue, he pushed back against criticism that police had denied permission for the event to be held at a larger site, claiming the original choice was a “high-risk” location. “No matter the force size, when 10,000 to 20,000 people push against the police, it becomes uncontrollable,” he said. For its part, the TVK has approached the Madras High Court seeking an independent probe. Raising doubts over the root cause of the tragedy and calling to preserve CCTV footage, it asked Justice M Dhandapani to take up a suo motu case. The judge, who will be sitting in the vacation court at the Madurai bench, agreed to hear the petition on Monday if filing formalities are completed.  Full coverage on P7 ‘Police did not help us’ Eyewitnesses also spoke of a complete absence of timely police intervention. Subashini (25), another survivor, said she fell down with three others near cops. “But they did not help us,” she said ‘Ploy to stop devotees from visiting D’sthala’ E x p r e s s N e w s S e r v i c e @ Mangaluru Dharmasthala Dharmadhikari Dr Veerendra Heggade on Sunday said that by constituting a Special Investigation Team (SIT), truth has come out and the intention of the conspirators to stop devotees from visiting Dharmasthala has been revealed. Addressing devotees at a Satdarshana Samavesha organised by 81 villagers from Belthangady taluk after a Chandika Homa at Dharmasthala, he said, “I thank the state government for constituting the SIT. If it had not been formed, the truth would not have come out. We welcomed the formation of SIT on the first day and now it has been revealed who all the conspirators are.”  CONTINUED ON P7 Sexual assault accused godman in 5-day custody Modi praises RSS again, says its guiding principle is ‘nation first’ P r a b h at s h u k l a @ New Delhi RA J ESH k u m a r THAKUR @ New Delhi A Delhi court on Sunday remanded self-styled godman Chaitanyananda Saraswati to five days in police custody in an alleged sexual harassment case involving 17 women students at a southwest Delhi management institute he once headed. The prosecution highlighted CCTV cameras installed in bathrooms to monitor students and threats issued to victims. Despite defence claims of recorded statements and health issues, the court allowed custodial interrogation of the 62year-old to verify testimonies and digital evidence. PRIME Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday showered praise on the Bharatiya Janata Party’s ideological parent Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) for its selfless service and discipline, brushing aside speculations about a rift between the ruling party and the Sangh. In his Mann Ki Baat address, Modi said the Sangh operates with the guiding principle of ‘nation first’ and its volunteers have been working tirelessly towards this goal. Noting that the RSS was founded with the aim of freeing the country from intellectual subjugation, Modi said the organisation’s journey since its inception in 1925 has been deeply inspiring. Modi’s latest commendation comes three days before the RSS completes 100 years on October 2. This is the third time in the recent past that Modi has lauded the RSS and its leadership. In his Independence Day address, he termed the organisation as the world’s biggest NGO that shapes citizens. On September 11, Modi commended the intellectual depth and empathetic leadership of RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat. Modi also said that the government is working towards getting Chhath festival included in the UNESCO’s list of Intangible Cultural Heritage. Chhath is largely celebrated in poll-bound Bihar. When Chhath Puja is included in the UNESCO list, people worldwide will be able to experience its grandeur and divinity he added. , Whenever a natural disaster strikes anywhere in the country, RSS volunteers are the first to reach there. This spirit of ‘nation first’ remains paramount in every action and every endeavour of millions of volunteers Narendra Modi, PM tilak & spinners guide india to glory in dubai e x p r e s s n e w s s e r v i c e @ Chennai ONE of the most toxic cricket tournaments in recent times finished with India beating Pakistan for a third time on the bounce in as many as Sundays. This one, the one that really mattered, saw them winning the Asia Cup for a ninth time under the Dubai lights on a tense Sunday night. Both teams had legit claims on lifting the title with 30 of the 40 overs done on a raucous occasion filled with subtext. In the end, Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube and Sanju Samson held their nerves in the cauldron to guide India home in a relatively modest chase of 147 before Rinku Singh, playing his first ball of the tournament, lofted Haris Rauf over the in-field to spread scenes of unbridled joy and riotous celebration among the Indian team. While Varma’s unbeaten 53-ball 69 will brag headlines, India’s spin troika — Axar Patel, Varun Chakravarthy India’s Tilak Varma (3rd L) congratulated by teammates after the match on Sunday | ap and Kuldeep Yadav — did a lot of the damage after the Pakistan openers threatened to run-up a big score. That’s when Suryakumar Yadav, turned full-time to his spinners. Luckily for him, Chakravarthy, Patel and Yadav bent the final of the Asia Cup, the first time the summit clash has featured these two nations in the over 40year history of the tournament, towards India. P17 express read Shah rejects ceasefire offer from Maoists Chandigarh: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday rejected the ceasefire offer given by Maoists, saying if the extremists want to surrender and lay down arms, they are welcome, and assured that security forces would not fire a single bullet on them | P11