NEW DELHI 16 november 2025 SUNDAY `12 PAGES 24  facebook/TheMorningStandard  X.com/TheMornStandard https://epaper.morningstandard.in PLUS: 12 PAGES MAGAZINE Red Fort Attack Exclusive Voices Devil’s Doctor Lessons from the Hills A Lot can Happen Over Coffee Babur and the Blunders of Bias Anand Neelakantan Prabhu Chawla Ravi Shankar Shankkar Aiyar Neha Sinha Nirupama Rao Shampa Dhar-Kamath CM expected to dissolve House, stake fresh claim on Monday daughter quits lalu family, politics Far from Roots and Rhymes ‘I Enjoy Playing Complex People’ LJP(RV) chief Chirag Paswan greets Chief Minister Nitish Kumar in Patna | PTI Mind games by Nitish before 10th term shot RAJ E SH KUMAR THAKUR @ New Delhi A day after the NDA registered a stunning landslide victory in the Bihar elections, there was no doubt in anybody’s mind that Chief Minister Nitish Kumar will get a record 10th term at the government’s helm. But Nitish being Nitish, he could suggest to the BJP that it should lead the government since it emerged as the single-largest party For its . part, the BJP could graciously insist that the mandate was for Nitish in the hot seat and should stay that way . In 2024, when he returned to the NDA after walking out of the Mahagathbandhan, Nitish enacted the same drama of asking the BJP to stake its claim for chief ministership, but the BJP respectfully turned it down. Of course, the final call will be taken by the BJP’s national leadership. “But, there is no chance of the BJP leading the government; it will send a wrong message within the NDA. The current arrange- ment is working fine,” remarked a senior BJP leader. The swearing-in ceremony is tentatively expected between November 18 and 21, depending on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s availability . Given the solid performance of Chirag Paswan’s LJP(RV) at the hustings — 19 out of 25 seats it contested, it could be rewarded with a deputy chief minister’s position. As for the BJP, it could name a Yadav leader from the party like Ram Kripal Yadav for the second deputy CM’s slot. The idea is to consolidate the BJP’s position in the Yadav vote bank, especially after making inroads into this demographic this time around. A state cabinet meeting on dissolving the outgoing assembly is expected on Monday, after which Nitish will submit his resignation to the Governor. Later, a meeting of the NDA legislative party will elect Nitish as its leader. Nitish will then return to Raj Bhavan and stake his claim to form the new government. BJP suspends R K Singh | P8 Tribals’ role in freedom struggle suppressed: PM On the 150th birth anniversary of tribal icon Bhagwan Birsa Munda, PM Modi said that the Congress failed to recognise tribals’ contributions to freedom struggle. He added tribal sacrifices in the freedom struggle were suppressed to glorify “a few families”. | P8 The Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the alleged Aland voter theft case has started the interrogation of 27-yearold Bapi Adya, who was arrested from a village in Nadia district of West Bengal on November 12. Adya was brought to Bengaluru on transit remand and produced before the First Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate court in Bengaluru on Thursday. He was sent to 12-day police custody . Besides his custodial interrogation, the SIT will also ex- amine his digital devices and send them for forensic exam, said sources on condition of anonymity . “Adya reportedly provided phone numbers and one-time passwords (OTPs) to the Kalaburagi-based makeshift call centre set up by the four alleged suspects—Akram, Ashf a q u e, N a d e e m a n d Mushtaq—for filing online applications on the Election Commission website for deletion of names of some genuine voters of Aland in 2023. The SIT zeroed in on Adya based on the banking transactions of The Bhagwant Mann cabinet on Saturday approved a new farmhouse policy for lands delisted under the Punjab Land Preservation Act (PLPA) in the eco-fragile Kandi region of the lower Shivalik Hills, stretching from SAS Nagar to Pathankot. The policy which regularises , existing structures and permits low-impact residential development, is seen as a move that effectively “rescues” influential landowners, including politicians and bureaucrats. It establishes a standardised framework for the regularisation of authorised structures and for construction of new farmhouses on de-listed lands, The AAP govt’s policy is seen as a move that “rescues” influential landowners, including politicians and bureaucrats. The govt has been under pressure from the “powerful lobby” to bring the policy as a number of VIPs have already built farmhouses in the delisted land and they had been facing demolition notices for violating housing norms. mandating a minimum plot size of 4,000 square yards, imposing a low floor area ratio, limiting site coverage, and restricting buildings to ‘G +1’ structures. Commercial activities are strictly prohibited, and environmental safeguards form a key part of the policy, including mandatory plantation of indigenous species, use of sustainable building materials, and provisions for rainwater harvesting and solar energy . A committee formed under chief secretary KAP Sinha and headed by housing secretary Vikas Garg framed the guidelines. Sources said the policy will primarily benefit farmhouse owners on the periphery of Chandigarh, many of whom had faced demolition notices for violations due to the absence of any formal policy . Forest officials noted that the policy faced hurdles from the Periphery Act. More arrests in terror module case MHA probe into nowgam blast The Home Ministry (MHA) said a probe has been ordered to determine the cause of the Nowgam police station ‘accidental’ blast that killed 9 people, including cops, on Friday accidental explosion: dgp The explosion at Nowgam police station on Friday in Srinagar has raised serious questions on handling of explosives by police. DGP Nalin Prabhat said it was an “accidental explosion” | P7 A police woman consoles relatives of Mohammad Shafi Parry, a tailor who was among nine killed in the explosion at Nowgam police station | Zahoor punjabi e x p r e s s n e w s s e r v i ce @ Kolkata/Chandigarh/Srinagar MORE arrests continue in the Delhi car blast case with the National Investigation Agency (NIA) detaining Zanishar Alam, a 2024 MBBS graduate of Al Falah University, from his village in Suryapur market of Dalkhola in West Bengal’s North Dinajpur district on Saturday . The man had returned home on November 12 to attend a wedding before his arrest. NIA officials traced him from Ludhiana, where his father lives. Acting on a tip-off, NIA officials contacted Touhid in Ludhiana and collected details of his son. They came to know about Zanishar’s location from his father and then rushed to Dalkhola, sources added. Al Falah University and its land records are also under scrutiny by revenue officials. Meanwhile, a surgeon from Pathankot linked to Al Falah University and two doctors and fertilizer store owners from Haryana was also detained. Sources said that 45-year-old Dr Rayees Ahmad Bhat, presently associated with White Medical Akram, Ashfaque, Nadeem and Mushtaq,” the sources said. “Ashfaque, who had left for Dubai after being questioned in the case in 2023 by the Kalaburagi police, has returned and co-operated with the SIT probe. He is said to have told the SIT about two portals, which provided them with the OTPs for a certain commission per OTP,” added the sources. Of the four, one is reportedly an online political surveyor, one is a data operator and two others are well versed in filing online applications. E x p r e ss Ne ws Se r v i ce @ New Delhi four people, including three minors, have been arrested for allegedly firing outside a restaurant in Jhilmil Industrial area in East Delhi, officials said on Saturday The main accused has . been identified as Manav, 19. Along with the minors, he also fired from a pistol near the restaurant and sustained injuries in the process when a restaurant guard counter-fired at him. One of the minors ran a social media channel, ‘Shahdara Shooters’, where gang members uploaded crime videos to gain followers. The minor was involved in a murder case. A restaurant official filed a complaint stating that at around 10.40 pm on November 9, two people riding a scooter came in front of the eatery As they passed, she heard what sounded like . two rounds of gunfire, she said. At around 12.40 am, the same scooter, along with a motorcycle, stopped in front of the restaurant and the riders fired four rounds in her direction, she said. But none of the bullets struck her, and guard Ravi fired two shots in the direction of the attackers from his licenced firearm. o f f - f ie l d a u c ti o n Samson to CSK, Jadeja RR dominates buzz; KKR brace for auction E x p r e s s Ne w s Se r v i ce @ Chennai The trading window of the Indian Premier League has shown signs of maturity as the league grew over the years. With window closing on Saturday, all teams have seemed to have covered their bases with Mumbai Indians, Royal Challenger Bengaluru and Punjab Kings making the most of it. Going by the money left in the purse, Kolkata Knight Riders after a poor last season outing is looking to rebuild the team. CSK too is following a similar script. The two are expected to engage in a fierce battle to secure the choicest of players. Interestingly, some of the top players in the pool would be the ones released by teams including CSK and KKR. In fact the Kolkata team would be looking for a captain. The central figures on the last day of trading were Sanju Samson and Ravindra Jadeja. The wicket-keeper batter was traded with the left-armspinning all-rounder. Samson landed with CSK for a figure of `18 cr while Jadeja left for Rajasthan Royals, surprisingly on a pay cut – `14 crore. For CSK, the Karma Demystified Move to ‘rescue’ influential landowners 27-yr-old from Bengal ‘gave’ OTPs to ‘Shahdara Shooters’ free K’taka call centre in voter theft case meal plan lands in soup B a l a C h a u h a n @ Bengaluru Swami Sukhabodhananda speaks Mann cabinet okays farmhouse policy for de-listed Punjab lands H a r p r ee t B a j w a @ Chandigarh R a m a s h a n k a r @ Patna A day after the Rashtriya Janata Dal-Congress-led Mahagathbandhan’s crushing defeat in the Bihar Assembly elections, a feud erupted within RJD leader Lalu Prasad’s family, with his daughter Rohini Acharya announcing that she was quitting politics and severing all ties with the family . “I am quitting politics and also disowning my family. This is what Sanjay Yadav and Rameez had asked me to do. I am taking all the blame,” Acharya wrote on X. Sanjay Yadav is an RJD MP and a close confidant of Lalu’s younger son, Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, while Rameez is Tejashwi’s friend from neighbouring Uttar Pradesh. Neither Sanjay nor Rameez reacted, deepening the Rohini Acharya mystery and fuelling speculation of pressure within the party and the family . Rohini Acharya had previously made headlines when she donated one of her kidneys to her ailing father, Lalu Prasad. Responding to Rohini’s announcement, her brother Tej Pratap, who himself was expelled from the party a few months back, said: “Those who are trying to harass my sister will not be spared. ‘Jai Chand’ (traitor) will be taught a lesson at an appropriate time.” JD(U) MLC Neeraj Kumar said, “The daughter who saved the life of Lalu is now saying in pain that she is stepping down from politics and snapping ties with the family It is a big question on . Lalu and Rabri Devi.” Saddling Up in Style move would help consolidate their fans as well as fortifying their keeping with icon Mahendra Singh Dhoni, at 44, not growing any younger. CSK’s Sam Curran move to RR too was part of deal. CSK have managed to free up some `40 crore after releasing a host of players including stars like New Zealand’s Devon Conway and Rachin Ravindra, former India spinner R Ashwin, Deepak Hooda and Matheesha Pathrirana. Purse `64.30cr `43.40cr Remaining KKR CSK Similarly, KKR have 13 slots open, including six overseas. Mohammed Shami will move to Lucknow Super Giants from Sunrisers Hyderabad. Though MI, the five-time champions, have a smaller purse (`2,75cr), they have already got a balanced team after securing the services of Shardul Thakur, Sherfane Rutherford and Mayank Markande. Same is with RCB and PBK. P11 College in Pathankot, was detained by NIA and is being questioned after investigators found that he was allegedly in touch with Dr Umar Un Nabi, the Delhi blast kingpin. Sources said Bhat was taken into custody to ascertain whether he was part of the “white-collar” terror module managed by Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed and Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind. The NMC has cancelled the registrations of the four doctors — Dr Muzaffar Ahmad, Dr Adeel Ahmad Rather, Dr Muzamil Shakeel and Dr Shaheen Saeed with immediate effect — for their alleged involvement in the terror module. In its notice, National Medical Commision (NMC) cited charges mentioned in FIRs and said Ahmad, Rather and Shakeel—who were registered with the Jammu and Kashmir Medical Council—were found to be involved in the plot on the basis of evidence collected by investigating agencies. These doctors “can no longer practise medicine or hold any medical appointment anywhere in India”, the notice from NMC reads. Express read targets pak India flags ‘vested interests’ at UN India has expressed concern about a United Nations Security Council member with “vested interests” chairing subsidiary bodies, in an oblique reference to Pakistan co-chairing the counterterrorism panel, citing conflicts of interest. | P7 talk to kharge Rahul okays Sidda cabinet reshuffle Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah is said to have got the clearance from Rahul Gandhi to reshuffle his cabinet on Saturday. He met Gandhi after Bihar results. Rahul said the CM discuss the reshuffle with Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge. | P4 Hotspots identified ‘PM10 emissions behind pollution’ Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa has said the city is seeing high pollution levels primarily due to PM10 emissions from construction activity, dusty roads, and traffic congestion and 62 hotspots have been identified. | P3