BHUBANESWAR l friday l april 10, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l JEYPORE EDITION Restricting temple entry by denomination harms Hinduism: SC Hinduism will be adversely impacted if temples and mutts restrict entry on grounds of separate denominations inside a religion, SC said Thursday ‘state can step in under article 25(2) (b)’ specificity of denomination not good: sc A nine-judge Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant was responding to submissions of senior advocate C S Vaidyanathan that Article 26(b) supersedes Article 25(2)(b). The SC did not agree with supremacy of Art 26(b) over 25(2b). Justice Nagarathna said the State can step in under Article 25(2)(b) to ensure access to temples to all sections ■ ■ Vaidyanathan, for devotees of Lord Ayyappa of Sabarimala temple, submitted that they constitute a separate religious denomination and hence have the right to manage the temple’s affairs To his submission, Justice Nagarathna said, “... if you say only my denomination will attend the temple, that is not good for Hinduism” 9 judge constitution bench is hearing the sabarimala entry case | P7 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 Race to secure 78.22% 85.51% 89.87% energy supplies Democracy wins with record voting amid ceasefire Massive K e r a l a A s s a m turnout Pondy The SIR, which reduced the total number of voters in Kerala by a little over seven lakh, appears to have had a bearing on the voting percentage S o v i V i d ya d h a r a n , P r a s a n ta M a z u m d a r & De b j a n i D u t ta @ T’Puram/ Guwahati & Pondy India sends petroleum minister Puri to Qatar, external affairs minister Jaishankar to UAE day 41 batting for lebanon Turkey, Russia and Germany said the Middle East ceasefire should include Lebanon, which has been pummelled by ongoing Israeli attacks Pakistan praised the “restraint demonstrated by all sides” in the West Asia war, but condemned ongoing Israeli attacks on Lebanon IMF expects to have to provide up to $50 billion in financial aid to countries affected by the West Asian war Iran rules out any restrictions on its enrichment of uranium, saying the demand by the US and Israel “won’t come true” Lebanese PM declared Thursday a national day of mourning Navigation in the Strait of Hormuz must be ensured with no payment or toll whatsoever... International law provides for the freedom of navigation European Union Petroleum minister Hardeep Singh Puri with Ambassador Vipul and a QatarEnergy official in Doha on Thursday | X J AYA N TH J ACOB @ New Delhi IN a diplomatic push amid shifting geopolitical currents in West Asia, India has dispatched two senior ministers to the Gulf, leveraging the narrow opening created by the US-Iran ceasefire. Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri arrived in Qatar on Thursday for a two-day visit, while External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar is scheduled to visit the United Arab Emirates from April 11 to 12. Puri’s visit to Qatar reflects India’s urgency to stabilise vital supply lines as regional tensions disrupt established trade flows. A key energy partner, Qatar’s role has come into sharper focus amid shipping uncertainties, with discussions expected to ‘prioritise reliability and continuity of supplies’ rather than routine engagement, officials pointed out. India’s energy security is tied to West Asia, as half of the natural gas demand is met by LNG imports—55 % of which transit through the Strait of Hormuz, which has become a chokepoint during the war. Qatar is the single largest supplier, contributing 40% of India’s LNG imports (11.2 million tonnes in 2024-25, met through long-term deals with QatarEnergy as well as spot purchases). Dependence is similarly high for LPG, with imports meeting 60% of the demand and 90% of which also pass through Hormuz and Qatar again is the leading supplier. QatarEnergy’s declaration of force majeure has disrupted supply commitments. Along with Indian envoy to Qatar, Vipul, Qatar Energy officials too was present to receive Puri on his arrival. India’s diplomatic outreach is also anchored in protecting its vast diaspora and reinforcing strategic ties in a region that has become volatile. Over 10 million Indians reside across the Gulf, making their welfare a central concern. Jaishankar’s upcoming visit to the United Arab Emirates will aim to review bilateral cooperation and deepen the comprehensive strategic partnership, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said. India team to go to US for resuming trade deal talks India and the United States are set to resume negotiations on their proposed interim trade agreement, with an Indian delegation expected to visit Washington later this month | P7 Extremely high voter enthusiasm became the main talking point across Kerala, Assam and Puducherry, which went to polls on Thursday, giving all major players bragging rights to anticipate a good outcome. Kerala recorded its fourthbest tally at 78.22%, with all three fronts — the Left Democratic Front (LDF), the United Democratic Front (UDF) and the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) — claiming the surge reflected a mandate in their favour. The state had seen higher tur nouts in 1960 (85.70%), 1987 (80.53%) and 1977 (79.20%). The previous assembly election, which broke a four-decade-long trend of voting out incumbent governments, had recorded a turnout of 74.02%. The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, which reduced the total number of voters in the state by a little over seven lakh, appears to have had a bearing on the voting percentage. Constituencies that had recorded some of the lowest voter participation in 2021 — particularly in Thiruvananthapuram’s urban areas — wit- Voters at the Matha Nagar Public School near Kadavanthara in Kochi, during Kerala assembly polls; (R) people queue up in large numbers to cast their votes at a polling station in Guwahati for the Assam assembly elections | A Sanesh/pti nessed a marked rise in polling, with increases ranging between 7 and 11 percentage points. In Assam, the voter turnout at 8 pm stood at 85.51%, better than 82.42% in 2021 and 84.72% in 2016. The final tally is expected to creep up further. The ruling BJP and the Congress were upbeat after the unprecedented turnout on a rain-soaked day when polling was by and large peaceful. In 2016, the NDA had wrested power by dislodging the 15-year-old Cong ress government. Pointing out that the voter participation at many polling Kozhikode dist tops polling percentage Data released by the election commission in Kerala after 8 pm showed Kozhikode district recorded the highest polling percentage at 81.02%, followed by Palakkad with 80.47%. Pathanamthitta at 70.75% was the laggard. The polling process was largely smooth and peaceful across the state Now, Aparajita bats for Metro Rail, urges CM to revive project given the significant population growth, rising traffic congestion and Days after the state cabinet decided strain on existing public transport to stop the Metro Rail project for the systems. capital city and the larger T he MP argued Bhumetropolitan region, Bhubaneswar needs a high-cab a n e sw a r M P Ap a r j i t a pacity cost-efficient and mod, Sarangi has requested Chief ern public transport system Minister Mohan Charan Maand a metro will be the most jhi to reconsider the deciviable long-term solution, sion, in view of rapid urban which would cater to neighexpansion, traffic pressure bouring regions such as Cutand strong public sentiment tack, Jatni and Khurda. in favour of the mass rapid Stating that she had advotransit system. cated for commencement of Bhubaneswar “There is visible public Metro Rail project in Bhuneeds a highsupport for the Metro Rail baneswar and Cuttack in 2022 capacity, costproject in Bhubaneswar. Igto the then CM Naveen Patefficient and noring the public desire and naik, Sarangi termed that modern public demand risks belying theirsome of the rationale cited transport expectations and weakening for premature closure of the system and a metro will be trust in development promproject are not based on facises,” said the BJP MP in a the most viable tual analysis. long-term She said the projected popletter to the chief minister. solution ulation growth and urban exSarangi’s letter comes in wake of the April 4 cabinet Aparajita Sarangi, pansion around the state capital justify the metro rail decision to scrap the agreeBhubaneswar MP system. It would also add valment with Delhi Metro Rail ue to Bhubaneswar which is Corporation. The MP said, she wanted to convey the popular sen- being positioned as one of the most timent with regard to the ‘abrupt clo- investor-friendly cities in the counsure’ of the project and pointed out try as well as one with immense tourContinued on P5 that the city is at the tipping point ism potential.  E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Bhubaneswar Fog of war Army steps up info-warfare game, psy-ops after Operation Sindoor lessons J AVARIA RA N A @ New Delhi THE Indian Army has operationalised a dedicated Information Warfare Organisation and is in the process of expanding its psychological and cyber units down to the Corps level after absorbing lessons from Operation Sindoor, Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi confirmed on Thursday . Speaking at the Ran-Sanwad triservices dialogue in Bengaluru on Thursday, the Army chief said the new organisation comprises a Psychological Defence Division and a Command Cyber Operations Wing. “The Psychological Defence Division under a Brigadier is playing a very pivotal role,” Gen Dwivedi said, adding the Command Cyber Operations Wing would also go down to the Corps headquarters later. This means, the Army’s 14 Corps-level formations will have their own info-warfare capabilities. The Army chief was candid that this is the beginning of a longer journey “This is phase 1. Based on . this, we will move on to phase 2 and phase 3.” The phased rollout mirrors Army’s recognition that information warfare is not a monolithic challenge. Domestic operations carry a different character from what expeditionary forces face when deployed in unfamiliar territory “When the expeditionary forc. General Upendra Dwivedi es go, they have a different concept because they are going to an alien area. They don’t even know the culture of that area,” he said, underlining the layered complexity of perception management in foreign operational environments. A key operational decision during Operation Sindoor was to shut down all Army social media handles, leaving only the official ADG Strategic Communication channel active. “We closed on all other social media handles... so there was a single source of truth, which went from the soldier to the topman to everybody looking to get the information,” Gen Dwivedi said. This centralisation prevented adversaries from exploiting a fragmented information environment. The Army is also expanding its communication footprint, including on Instagram, to create a clear and authoritative information pipeline for personnel. booths had crossed 95%, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma described it as historic. His bete noire and Assam Congress president, Gaurav Gogoi, was equally optimistic. He expressed gratitude to people for turning out in “unprecedented numbers to vote for a change”. Puducherry saw its highestever voter turnout of 89.87%; the previous highest of 85.57% was recorded in 2011, when N Rangasamy led the All India NR Congress (AINRC) to power. He was back in the saddle after the NDA wrested power in the 2021 polls. express read CM launches `616 cr power projects, warns officials of action for outages Bhubaneswar: Issuing a strong warning against unscheduled power cuts during the summer month, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Thursday said it would not be tolerated and officials responsible for the negligence will be taken to task. “The government will not even hesitate to send them to jail,” Majhi said while dedicating grid sub-stations and transmission lines developed by OPTCL at an investment of `616 crore | P3 Fire Services wing proposes special protection unit for VVIP safety Bhubaneswar: To provide protection to VVIPs from fire mishaps during their movement and public meetings in the state, the Directorate of Fire and Emergency Services (DF&ES) of the Odisha government has proposed the establishment of a 90-member Special Fire Protection Unit. Currently, there exists no dedicated unit tasked with VVIP fire protection duties, and even the chief minister’s carcade gets limited sanctioned strength | P2 TDP backs women’s bill, says South won’t lose out on delimitation P r ee t h a N a i r @ New Delhi In a significant endorsement of the Centre’s push to pass the amendments to the Women’s Reservation Bill, the NDA’s key ally Telugu Desam Party (TDP) on Thursday dismissed concerns that the South would be disadvantaged by the proposed delimitation exercise, asserting that a proportional increase in Lok Sabha seats would maintain the existing balance of representation. Speaking to this paper, TDP parliamentary party leader Lavu Krishna Devarayalu said that with a proposed 50% expansion in Lok Sabha strength, the relative share of each state would remain unchanged. “After the increase, the percentage of a state’s representation in the Lok Sabha will stay the same. For instance, Kerala now accounts for 3.6% of the total 543 seats in Lok Sabha. After a 50% increase, Kerala will retain the same percentage with 30 seats,” he said, dispelling fears of political marginalisation in the South. His remarks come amid mounting Opposition criticism that the proposed changes linked to the rollout of the Women’s Reservation bill could widen the gap between the more populous northern states and their southern counterparts. Opposition parties have argued that states like UP would gain disproportionately , increasing the seat differential with states such as Tamil Nadu and potentially diluting the South’s influence in Parliament. The TDP’s remarks came a day after the Union Cabinet’s clearance of a draft bill to increase Lok Sabha seats from 543 to 816, with 273 reserved for women, ahead of the 2029 general elections. The exercise will be based on the 2011 Census, rather than waiting for fresh population data. Dismissing allegations of inadequate consultation with the opposition, Devarayalu said they were given ample opportunity to present their views.