HYDERABAD l saturday l december 20, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 18 l LATE CITY EDITION donald Trump suspends green card lottery programme VISA The the US President blamed the green card lottery programme for allowing the Brown University shootings suspect to enter the US move is certain to invite legal challenge in keeping with anti-immigrant stance The diversity visa programme makes up to 50,000 green cards available each year to people from countries with little representation in the US. The lottery was created by Congress, and the move will invite legal challenges. The decision comes after it was found that the shooting suspect had used the visa to enter the US. He hailed from Portugal ■ ■ Trump has long opposed the diversity visa lottery. While pursuing deportation, Trump had sought to limit avenues to legal immigration Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said on Friday she is asking the US Citizenship and Immigration Services to pause the programme. “This heinous individual should never have been allowed in US” | P11 20 mn people applied for the 2025 GREEN CARD visa lottery 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 Student leader’s death roils B’desh Media offices torched in Dhaka; Hindu youth lynched in Mymensingh; Indian mission in Chattogram attacked J AYANTH J AC O B @ New Delhi Bangladesh has slipped into one of its most volatile moments since the 2024 students-led uprising, with political violence, attacks on the press, and the brutal lynching of a Hindu minority man pushing the country closer to the brink ahead of the national elections set for February 12, 2026. Tensions soared on Thursday night after news broke about the death of Sharif Osman Hadi, a prominent leader of the July uprising and a candidate in the upcoming elections. Hadi died in a Singapore hospital, six days after he was shot in the head by masked assailants in Dhaka. In protest, hundreds of mostly young protesters poured into the streets, setting fire to the offices of Prothom Alo, the country’s largest daily, and The Daily Star. Both dailies missed their print editions for the first time in their history Sources . said the papers may have been targeted for being seen as pro-Sheikh Hasina and pro-India, accusations they deny . In another incident on Thursday night, a Hindu man was lynched in Mymensingh city over alleged blasphemy . The victim, identified as 25-year-old Dipu Chandra Das, a factory worker, was beaten to death by a mob, hanged from a tree and later set on fire. Videos of the gruesome killing circulated widely on social media, fuelling fear. The spiralling violence has further shaken the interim government led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, which has already been under fire for failing to restore order since taking office in August 2024. The Yunus administration dismissed the attacks as the work of “a few fringe elements” and warned against mob violence. “We strongly and unequivocally condemn all acts of violence, intimidation, arson, and destruction of properties,” it said in a statement, adding: “At this critical hour, we call upon every citizen to honour Hadi by rejecting and resisting violence, incitement and hatred.” The interim government also condemned the attacks on the media, calling them “tantamount to an attack on free media” and a major obstacle to democratic progress. As for the lynching of the Hindu youth, it said “the perpetrators of this heinous crime will not be spared.” The unrest has not been confined to Dhaka. Protesters vandalised the already demolished structure of 32 Dhanmondi, the former home of Bangladesh’s founding father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, and hurled bricks and stones at the residence of the Assistant Indian High Commissioner in Chattogram. Police responded with tear gas and baton charges, detaining 12 protesters.  P11 Ab Dilli dur nahi : Hyderabad’s air slips into ‘severe’ zone Yunus admin shaken The fresh violence has shaken the Muhammad Yunus-led interim government, which is facing criticism for failing to restore order in the country since taking office in August 2024 Known for anti-India stand Sharif Osman Hadi (pic) was a key figure in the July uprising. Known for his anti-India stand, he circulated some maps showing Indian areas as part of ‘Greater Bangladesh’ K h yat i S h a h @ Hyderabad Hyderabad recorded air pollution levels on December 18 that the city has rarely seen, with the air quality index (AQI) crossing 250 at multiple locations and entering the ‘severe’ category for the first time this year. The readings place parts of Hyderabad in a bracket more commonly associated with winter smog episodes in Delhi, rather than a city long viewed as relatively insulated from such extremes. Data from the real-time air quality monitoring network showed Sanathnagar registering an AQI of 255, while the University of Hyderabad area followed closely at 253. Other l o c at i o n s, i n cl u d i n g Pa tancheru, Ramachandrapuram, Zoo Park and Somajiguda, were either at the threshold or within the severe range, pointing to a citywide problem rather than isolated pockets of pollution. In Delhi, such readings usually trigger health advisories, school-level precautions and restrictions on outdoor activity In . Hyderabad, however, no formal alert was issued. The Pollution Control Board (PCB) said residents could access real-time data themselves. A senior official said all AQI readings from the 14 monitoring stations were pub- @ Hyderabad The Dr BR Ambedkar statue stands above a dense layer of smog covering residential buildings on Friday amid worsening air quality in Hyderabad | SRI LOGANATHAN VELMURUGAN Location Central University Patancheruvu Sanathnagar Zoo Kapra IITH Kandi Kompally TSIIC New Malakpet Somajiguda Ramachandrapuram Lowest 87 (Dec 12) 115 (Dec 18) 90 (Dec 12) 98 (Dec 12) 91 (Dec 12) 101 (Dec 12) 93 (Dec 12) 97 (Dec 12) 97 (Dec 12) 109 (Dec 12) 88 (Dec 12) licly available and that citizens could track the numbers and take precautions on their own. Environmental exper ts warned that this underplays the seriousness of the situation. Highest 253 (Dec 18) 249 (Dec 18) 255 (Dec 18) 245 (Dec 18) 235 (Dec 18) 234 (Dec 18) 237 (Dec 18) 233 (Dec 18) 236 (Dec 18) 236 (Dec 18) 239 (Dec 18) Category Moderate to Severe Poor to Severe Moderate to Severe Moderate to Severe Moderate to Severe Poor to Severe Moderate to Severe Moderate to Severe Moderate to Severe Poor to Severe Moderate to Severe Senior environmentalist Gufran Beig said that when AQI levels enter the severe category , they should be treated as a public health warning rather than routine data.  continued on P5 P r e e t h a N a i r @ New Delhi No one can stop the democratic progress through threat, terrorist activities or bloodshed —Muhammad Yunus A girl rescues books from a shop near the premises of the Prothom Alo daily newspaper in Dhaka | AP/PTI E x p r e s s Re a d 97,37,831 TN voters off electoral rolls after SIR Chennai: A total of 97.37 lakh names have been removed from the electoral rolls in Tamil Nadu after the enumeration phase of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) under the categories of Absent, Shifted, and Dead as per the data released on Friday | P7 We cannot help but take note of the govt’s relaxed attitude towards the security of news outlets — The Daily Star Special session of Telangana Legislature likely by December-end or early January to take up “special issues”, including SIR of electoral rolls, but the main focus will be on the Congress government’s two years in office | P4 Congress sources said the party decided to attend it this time around following a decision by AICC chief Mallikarjun Kharge. While the Opposition remains opposed to the bills, they felt the Chair was relatively fair during this session. This, they said, was in contrast to the previous session, when they were not allowed to speak. When SP leader Dharmendra Yadav observed that the Winter Session was one of the shortest, the PM told him in a friendly manner that it was good for his throat as he didn’t have to shout for too many days, inviting laughter from those present, sources said. RSP’s N K Premachandran too complained about the short session, with Speaker Birla reminding him that he had given him ample opportunities to speak on any subject. Priyanka joined in, saying that many MPs like her always look at Premachandran’s conduct in the House and try to learn various aspects of parliamentary proceedings, sources said. Those who attended the Speaker’s tea party included Manickam Tagore, Kumari Selja, Mohd Jawed, Supriya Sule, A Raja, Ram Mohan Naidu, Rajiv Ranjan Singh and Chirag Paswan. Bondi attacker renewed Dhurandhar past Baahubali, eyes `1K cr-club passport in city in 2022 At a time when most films struggle to go beyond a week or two in their theatrical run, Aditya Dhar’s Dhurandhar has done the seemingly impossible. After earning more than `200 crore in its first week, the film outdid those figures in week two. For small films that sometimes pick up gradually, it’s a great accomplishment. For a big money-g rosser like Dhurandhar, it is almost like spotting a shooting star. The film centred on an Indian intelligence operative (Ranveer Singh as Hamza Ali Mazari), who infiltrates Pakistan’s underworld, has been receiving rave reviews from celebs and fans, even if quite a few critics haven’t taken a shine to it. And the juggernaut is showing no signs of slowing down. After breaching the `500 crore mark in 10 days, Dhurand- har has earned over `700 crore globally and is well on track to , enter the `1,000 crore club. In its run so far, the film has comfortably crossed the domestic collections of landmark films like SS Rajamouli’s Baahubali, Rajinikanth’s 2.0, Aamir Khan’s Dangal, and Prabhas’ Salaar. There is a case to be made about the blurring lines between fact and fiction in Dhurandhar, with the disclaimer saying it is a work of fiction, but it includes audio and visuals from real-life incidents. On the surface, Dhurandhar probably works like a conventional gangster drama, and the apolitical audience members are enjoying it superficially . On the other hand, it frequently scrapes on our real wounds made by turbulent ties with Pakistan. This illusion is what has made the film and its responses a major talking point. The reconstituted Special Investigation Team (SIT) is likely to become an albatross around the neck of politicians involved in the phone-tapping case, as the investigation team has reportedly adopted a sevenpronged strategy to fix respons i b i l i t y. B e f o r e f i l i n g a supplementary chargesheet, the reconstituted SIT has planned a detailed investigation process, primarily focusing on the involvement of politicians. First, Hyderabad Police Commissioner VC Sajjanar has decided to directly question T Prabhakar Rao, former SIB chief and the main accused in the case. Sajjanar may begin questioning Prabhakar Rao from Saturday, as his police custody was extended by the Supreme Court on Friday by a bench of Justice BV Nagarathna and Justice R Mahadevan. The apex court said he would be released after interrogation on December 26 and directed that no coercive action be taken against him until the next date of hearing. It may be recalled that the latest SIT, constituted on Thursday with nine officials, is working under the direct supervision of Sajjanar. Second, IPS officers in the SIT, including Ambar Kishor Jha and others, will simultaneously question the other accused — Radhakishan Rao, Bhujanga Rao, Thirupatanna, Praneeth Rao and Shravan Kumar. Based on the first SIT report, the second SIT may pose additional questions to them.  Continued on P4 Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra at the tea party | PTI polarising juggernaut B H H a r s h @ Hyderabad New SIT draws seven steps to corner kingpin I r e d dy S r i n i vas R e d dy Learning Malayalam, Priyanka tells Modi at Speaker’s ‘chai pe charcha’ A light-hearted exchange over ‘Wayanad turmeric’ and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent Ethiopia visit figured in the friendly conversation between Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and the PM at the customary tea hosted by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Friday af, ter the conclusion of the Winter Session of Parliament. Priyanka, the Congress MP from Kerala’s Wayanad, is understood to have told Modi that she is learning Malayalam so that it helps while conversing with her constituents. She also asked the PM about his recent three-nation trip to Africa and the Middle East. Modi is learnt to have said that the impression many people have in India about Ethiopia is quite different from the actual position of that country which , is progressing very well socially and economically . The tea party is a customary meeting hosted by the Speaker with leaders of different parties after every session. The Opposition had stayed away from the meeting since the 2024 Monsoon Session alleging that its members were not allowed to speak during debates. Tapgate probe E x p r e ss N e w s S e r v i c e @ Hyderabad Sajid Akram, one of the perpetrators of the Bondi Beach massacre in Australia, renewed his passport with a changed address — from Doodh Bowli to Tolichowki — during his last visit to Hyderabad in July 2022 to visit his mother and sister, a source confirmed to TNIE. However, when pressed about this at a press meet at his office on Friday, DGP B Shivadhar Reddy remained tight-lipped. Nevertheless, the DGP con- firmed that Sajid Akram met his mother and sister during his July 2022 visit to the city . Shivadhar Reddy said that Sajid Akram left India in November 1998 and first visited the city again in October 2000 after marrying a European woman named Venera Grosso. “We first got the information from the central agencies that he was from Hyderabad. Following this, we conducted an inquiry ,” the DGP said, adding that there was no communication with Australian agencies regarding Sajid Akram.  continued on p2 Environmental responsibility part of CSR: SC su c h i t r a k a lya n mo h a n t y @ New Delhi The Supreme Court on Friday held that companies cannot claim to be socially responsible while disregarding the protection of wildlife and fragile ecosystems af fected by their operations. A bench of Justices PS Narasimha and Atul S Chandurkar while hearing submissions in the long-running case on conservation of critically endangered Great Indian Bustard held that Corporate Social Responsibility cannot be divorced from a company’s environmental responsibility. “CSR funds are not acts of philanthropy but instruments to discharge constitutional and fiduciary duties, particularly where corporate activities threaten endangered species,” the bench said. The case was filed in 2019 by MK Ranjitsinh seeking urgent measures to prevent the extinction of the Great Indian Bustard, whose populations have declined due to habitat loss and collisions with overhead power lines in Rajasthan and Gujarat.