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 ■ ■ mangaluru l saturday l november 08, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 16 l city EDITION sheikh Hasina keen on fighting inclusive polls Gautam Lahiri Independent journalist A fter 15 months of her stay in an undisclosed location in India, exiled former Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina has finally spoken her mind in an exclusive e-mail interview. For the first time, she accepts “leadership responsibility” for the killing of citizens during the mass protest against her government from July 15 to August 5, 2024. Here’s the full text of the interview: The Bangladeshi authorities have banned the Awami League from contesting the general elections early next year. Are your party members considering running as independents? The decision to ban the Awami League is deeply undemocratic and a clear violation of Bangladesh’s constitution and of the fundamental rights of the electorate. It short-changes millions of people. Historically, when parties have not participated in previous elections, Bangladeshi voters have simply not voted, rather than transfer their vote press clusive to other parties. So our priority is to continue fighting for the rights of our voters. If the Awami League and its members refuse to contest elections in any form, what do you think the impact will be for Bangladesh? We are not refusing to contest elections. On the contrary we , ardently wish to participate. But we have been banned from doing so by an administration that is itself unelected and which clearly has no respect for democracy . We have to break this cycle of parties either boycotting elections or being banned, because it undermines the legitimacy of the gover nment. Bangladesh badly needs to hold a free, fair and inclusive election, so that the country can begin to heal and move towards reconciliation. You cannot achieve this by banning the Awami League. We are woven into the country’s modern history and independence, and tens of millions support us. A report by the Human Rights Watch estimates that When parties don’t participate in polls, Bangladeshi voters have simply not voted, rather than transfer their vote to others around 1,400 people were killed and thousands were injured during the anti-government protests between July 15 and August 5 over a year ago. The report says the vast majority were shot by Bangladesh’s security forces. As the Prime Minister at the time, do you take responsibility for the state-inflicted violence that led to your ouster? I mourn each and every life lost in the tragic violence of last summer’s uprising. As the country’s leader, I ultimately take leadership responsibility but the implication that I ordered or directed the actions of the security forces on the ground is fundamentally incorrect. All actions were taken in good faith and with the sole intention of minimising the loss of life or the further breakdown in law and order. Top court fiat to clear public spaces nationwide of stray dogs, cattle Send them to designated shelters after sterilisation, vaccination, says three-judge bench s u c h i t r a k a lya n m o h a nt y Farmers celebrate the state government’s revised price for sugarcane at Gurlapur Cross in Mudalagi in Belagavi district on Friday | express @ New Delhi Govt offers `3.3k for tonne of cane, ryots call off 9-day strike Tushar A Majukar & S u n i l Pat i l @ Belagavi After nine days of intense agitation, sugarcane farmers in Belagavi finally withdrew their protest on Friday evening after the state government announced a revised price of Rs 3,300 per tonne of sugarcane. The protest was called off after the second round of talks between Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, sugar factory owners and farmer representatives. Of Rs 3,300, Rs 3,250 per tonne is to be paid by sugar factories and Rs 50 subsidy by the government. The announcement triggered celebrations at protest sites, where farmers burst crackers, distributed sweets and danced in jubilation. Earlier, the government had offered Rs 3,200 per tonne, which farmers rejected, insisting on Rs 3,500 per tonne in line with rates in neighbouring Maharashtra. Though ministers HK Patil and Shivanand Patil visited them, the farmers refused to relent, accusing the government of neglecting their demands. Tension escalated on Friday afternoon when the protest turned violent near the Hattargi Toll Naka in Hukkeri taluk. A peaceful sit-in spiralled into clashes after the police allegedly assaulted a protesting driver while trying to remove his vehicle. Angry farmers retaliated by throwing stones, damaging a police van and a goods vehicle. Six police personnel sustained injuries in the chaos. CM: Ready to take delegation to Centre The government is ready to take an all-party delegation to the Centre to address the concerns of sugar mill owners and farmers, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said on Friday | P4 Superintendent of Police Dr Bheemashankar Guled, who rushed to the spot, said, “The stone-throwing occurred due to a misunderstanding while clearing the road. Six officers were injured. Police did not resort to a lathi-charge. We appeal to farmers to maintain peace.” Over 50 CCTV cameras were installed at the toll gate to identify the miscreants involved in the violence, he added. Farmer leader Chunnappa Pujari condemned the incident, clarifying that “a few miscreants” had disrupted the otherwise peaceful movement. “We apologise to the injured officers. The protest will now continue peacefully at Gurlapur Cross in Mudalagi taluk,” he said. The unrest also spread to other parts of Belagavi. At Gurlapur Cross, angry farmers hurled slippers and bottles at Sugar Minister Shivanand Patil’s vehicle, while in Panchagavi village, government chief whip Ashok Pattan was confronted and forced to retreat. P4 IN a sweeping directive on Friday, the Supreme Court ordered the removal of stray dogs from educational institutions, hospitals, railway stations, bus stands and other public places, directing that they be relocated to shelters following sterilisation. The court made it clear that stray dogs cannot be released back into the areas from which they are picked up. A special three-judge bench comprising justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta, and N V Anjaria issued the order while hearing a long-pending case on stray dogs. “Every stray dog shall be forthwith removed from such premises and relocated to a shelter after sterilisation. They shall not be released in the same area,” the bench said. The bench held that the recurrence of dog bite incidents within institutional areas, including sports complexes, re- Highlights of the Sc order SC has made it the responsibility of the municipal body to remove stray dogs 1 School, colleges to conduct awareness sessions on first-aid in dog bite cases, reporting protocols 2 Dedicated highway patrol teams to to report in case of a cattle blocking highway flected not only administrative apathy but also a “systemic failure” to secure these premises from preventable hazards. The court expressed concern that India continues to report one of the world’s highest stat i s t i c s o f r ab i e s - re l at e d mortality . The bench then directed authorities to ensure the removal of all cattle and other stray animals from state highways, It is time to celebrate the courage, creativity and impact of women of substance at the 35th edition of Devi Awards organised by The New Indian Express in Bengaluru today . In this edition, 11 women achievers who have been chosen to be conferred with the awards come from a wide spectrum of domains, ranging from the field of sports to a multilingual actor, a social entrepreneur to a craft innovator, an educationist to a management professional, a sustainable enterprise leader to a celebrated author – chosen for their outstanding 4 SC says all highways to prominently display helpline numbers at regular intervals national highways and expressways, stating that “it is a matter of grave and continuing public concern... that accidents caused by cattle on publ i c r o a d s h ave b e c o m e alarmingly frequent.” The bench categorised its order in three parts. The first dealt with compliance, and mandated all states and Union Territories to submit comprehensive affidavits within eight Land deal involving son cancelled: Ajit Pawar Mumbai: Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Friday said his son Parth and his business partner were not aware that the land in Pune, which their company purchased belonged to the government, and the transaction has been cancelled | P10 SC to hear TN govt’s plea against SIR on Nov 11 New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday decided to hear on November 11 a plea filed by the Tamil Nadu government challenging the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls ordered by the Election Commission of India in the state | P7 Continued on: P12 Third attack Another farmer killed by tiger in Mysuru dist E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Mysuru Yet another farmer fell victim to a tiger attack in Saragur taluk of Mysuru district on Friday taking the number of peo, ple killed by tigers in the region since October 26 to three. The incident again raised questions over whether forest officials, who have already captured four tigers in the region, caught the right tiger responsible for the series of human deaths. The deceased, 35-year-old Chowdaiah Nayaka, was ploughing his field in Hale Heggudilu village near Nugu dam when the tiger pounced on him from behind and dragged him into the forest. The oxen pulling the plough panicked and ran back to the farmer’s house, alar ming the family Suspecting danger, the . family and villagers rushed to the spot. When Chowdaiah was not found in the field, they searched the area and found his partially devoured body in a ditch inside the forest. It was only last year that Chowdaiah had suffered a broken hip in an elephant attack while working in the field. After months of recovery he had , resumed farming just three months ago, only to lose his life to the tiger attack. He is survived by his wife Rukmini and three daughters. Hediyala ACF Paramesh, RFO Amrutha and other forest staff visited the spot and initiated an investigation. P7 Vande Mataram cuts sowed seeds of Partition, says Modi Chaos at Delhi airport People wait outside the arrivals gate at the Indira Gandhi International Airport. The Delhi airport, the country’s busiest, plunged into chaos on Friday as 800 flights were delayed due to tech glitches in the air traffic control system | pti Saluting 11 inspiring women of substance today @Bengaluru All govt and private hospitals to maintain a stock of antirabies vaccines express read Devi Awards 2025 E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e 3 weeks, detailing steps taken to address lapses identified in the amicus curiae’s report. Chief Secretaries will be held accountable for lapses, it said. The second part reaffirmed an earlier Rajasthan High Court directions on stray cattle, instructing all states to conduct joint drives to remove stray animals from highways. The third part requires all states and UTs to identify government institutions, hospitals, sports complexes, railway stations, and bus terminals within two weeks and secure them with fencing to prevent stray animal ingress. Local bodies and panchayats must inspect all listed premises once every three months. Any failure will attract strict action against responsible officials. The Supreme Court was hearing a suo motu case, initiated on July 28 over a media report on stray dog bites leading to rabies, particularly among children, in the national capital. The next hearing is on January 13. As for the UN’s fatality estimate, we dispute that figure. It is significantly higher than the Ministry of Health’s own calculations and is based on undocumented and closely controlled evidence supplied to the UN Human Rights Commissioner by the interim government. It also appears to contain many members of the security forces and Awami League officials killed in the riots, but that hasn’t been made clear. The government has had over 15 months to arrive at an accurate death count, yet has still not published a definitive list of the dead. work, shaping communities, her brilliant writing across breaking barriers and inspir- genres; Nooraine Fazal, eduing change through dyna- cationist and CEO of Invenmism, courage and innova- ture Academy for her work in , tive skills. raising the bar for quality edThe women chosen to ucation; Mayura Balasbe honoured with the ubramanian, founder Presents aw a r d s a r e Ve d a of Craftizen FoundaKrishnamurthy former , tion, for making craft a cricketer and broadtool for empowerment; caster, for her contribuDeepthi Bopaiah, sports tion to the sport; Sahar administrator, for drivMansoor, founder of ing systemic change in Bare Necessities, for sports; Hema RavichanDEVI helping people live a der, management prozero-waste life; Shrad- AWARDS fessional, for managedha Srinath, multilinment of crises; Divya Bengaluru gual actor, for excelRaghavendra Rao, colence in enter tainment; founder of The RameshwarPragati Mathur, textile artist am Café, for her visionary and handloom innovator, for role in bringing authentic and weaving absolute magic; Ani- hygienic food while transta Nair, acclaimed author, for forming a humble idea into WOMEN’S AWARDS FOR DYNAMISM & INNOVATION one of India’s most celebrated food brands; and Chayaa Nanjappa, social entrepreneur and founder of Nectar Fresh, for making business serve a social purpose. The awards will be presented by Kris Gopalakrishnan, Chairman, Axilor Ventures, at a grand event at ITC Gardenia at 6 pm. The prestigious Devi Awards was instituted in New Delhi in December 2014, and has since paid tribute to over 300 women achievers across the country in the preceding 34 editions held in various cities. This will be the third time that Devi Awards is hosted in Bengaluru, with the previous two editions held here in 2015 and 2024. Pa r v e z S u lta n @ New Delhi In a veiled criticism of the Congress, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said significant stanzas of the ‘Vande Mataram’ were axed in 1937, which sowed the seeds of Partition. He further asserted that ‘divisive philosophy’ is still a challenge before the country . “The spirit of Vande Mataram illuminated the entire nation during the freedom struggle. But unfortunately, in 1937, the key verses of Vande Mataram, a part of its soul, were separated. This division of Vande Mataram also sowed the seeds of the nation’s division. Why was this great mantra of nation-building treated with such injustice? This is important for today’s generation to understand because that divisive thinking remains a challenge for the country even today Modi said. ,” He was speaking at the inauguration of the year-long commemoration of 150 years of the national song ‘Vande Mataram’ in New Delhi. He also released a commemorative stamp and coin on the occasion. The PM remarked that those who consider the nation a geo- Prime Minister Narendra Modi releases a commemorative coin and stamp to mark 150 years of Vande Mataram, in New Delhi on Friday | PTI political entity, may find the idea of treating the nation as a mother puzzling. “But India is different. In India, the mother is the giver of birth, the nurturer, and when her children are in danger, she is also the destroyer of evil. In the past, the world has seen the rise of this form of India,” he said. Noting that Vande Mataram is relevant in every era, in an apparent reference to Operation Sindoor, he said, “When the enemy dared to attack India’s security and honour through terrorism, the whole world saw that if the new India is the embodiment of Kamala and Vimala (forms of Goddess Durga) for the service of humanity, then it also knows to become Durga — the wielder of 10 weapons — for the destruction of terror,” Modi added. The PM said Vande Mataram is not merely a word; it is a mantra, energy a dream, and a , solemn resolve. “This one word fills our present with self-confidence, and gives new courage to our future. There is no such goal that we Indians cannot achieve,” said Modi.