kochi l saturday l april 11, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 16 l late city EDITION Commonwealth sports delegate satisfied with amdavad venues A three-member CS team led by its president Donald Rukare visited all the sporting infrastructure to assess preparation chief rukare satisfied with preparations ‘india ready to put on a grand show’ CS chief Rukare said that all the venues were inspected and was satisfied with preparation for 2030 Games. Venues include Narendra Modi Stadium, Veer Savarkar Sports Complex, Mahatma Mandir and IIT Gandhinagar. The delegation undertook a comprehensive multi-city visit from April 8 to 10 across Amdavad, Gandhinagar, Vadodara and Ekta Nagar ■ Rukare said that “From what we saw yesterday (Thursday) and the day before (Wednesday), it’s very clear that with the facilities that are available, India is ready to put on a show.” ■ CEO Katie Sadleir and Director of Games and Assurance Darren Hall were part of the three-member delegation | P11 16-17 number of sports that may be included in the Games roster 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 Tehran hardens stance ahead of talks with Vance Demands ceasefire in Lebanon; Vance flies to Islamabad; Iranian delegation yet to arrive time-consuming and complex. Iran’s Supreme National SecuAS the Pakistan-brokered lim- rity Council has indicated that ited ceasefire between the US the talks could continue for 15 and Iran appeared to hold for days, which means the 15-day the fourth day on Friday, US ceasefire would be extended. Vice President J D Vance left The truce pact is already facfor Islamabad to hold talks with ing pressure with both the US Iranian negotiators on Satur- and Iran flagging violations. Isday mor ning local rael has stepped up time. US President day its attack on LebaDonald Trump’s sonnon. Iran continues in-law Jared Kushner to control the Strait and special envoy Steof Hormuz and has ve Witkoff are part of not been allowing the US team. free movement of Iran’s delegation vessels, drilling holes led by Foreign Minisin Trump’s claim that ter Abbas Araghchi he got Iran to open up and Parliament the vital passage. Speaker Mohammad Taking to his social Bagher Ghalibaf was media platform Truth expected to reach IsSocial to vent his lamabad on Friday angst, Trump said evening, but has not. Iran was doing “a Hinting that Tevery poor job” in freehran might pull out, ing the Strait of HorIf the Iranians are Ghalibaf said a cease- willing to negotiate muz. “That is not the fire must take hold in in good faith, we’re agreement we have!” Lebanon and Iran’s he r ued. He also certainly willing to assets must be un- extend open hand. If threatened to strike locked before the they’re going to try again if Iran does not to play us, then talks can begin. agree to a deal. US, Iran and Paki- they’re going to find Before boarding his the negotiating team stan have conflicting is not that receptive plane, Vance warned accounts on whether Iran not to try to J D Vance Israel’s strikes on “play” the US unless Iran-backed Hezbolit wants bad results. lah in Lebanon are part of the The talks are scheduled to ceasefire agreed on April 7. happen in Islamabad’s Serena Iran and Pakistan claim Leba- Hotel. US and Iranian teams non is part of the deal; US says won’t sit across the table, but in it is not. separate rooms. Pak officials Even if the talks take place will go from one room to the as scheduled, no breakthrough other to pass messages. U.S. drafted Sharif’s is expected on Day 1. Negotiatruce appeal to Don: P9 tions with Iran are known to be A g e n c i e s @ Washington/Islamabad 42 Vrindavan tragedy Rescue personnel during a search operation in the Yamuna River after a boat capsized near Kesi Ghat, Vrindavan, in Mathura district, on Friday. At least 10 people, primarily from Punjab, were reportedly killed and several others missing. The accident happened when the boat moved into deeper waters and hit a floating pontoon | pti | p8 Marco Rubio to come calling in May J aya n t h J a c o b @ New Delhi Secretary of State Marco Rubio will visit India in May, the United States announced, signalling renewed momentum in ties between New Delhi and Washington after recent strains over trade issues. The visit comes as both sides are preparing to revive negotiations aimed at sealing an interim trade agreement, indicating a shared push to their economic engagement. The announcement followed a “productive meeting” between Rubio and Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri at the White House, where both sides reviewed key pillars of the bilateral relationship, including trade, critical minerals, defence cooperation, and the Quadrilat- First trip to India since taking office US Secretary of State Marco Rubio eral Security Dialogue. US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor, who attended the meeting, confirmed the upcoming visit in a post on X. “Secretary Rubio looks forward to visiting India next month,” Gor said. The envoy said that discussions with Misri focused on strengthening cooperation across stra- The visit, which will be Rubio’s first to India since assuming office, comes at a time when both countries are working to recalibrate ties after trade-related frictions, particularly over US tariff policies tegic sectors. During his three-day visit to Washington, Misri also met US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau. According to the State Department, the two sides “reaffirmed the close partnership” and exchanged views on global and regional developments, including the situ- express read corruption probe Govt postpones e-Office platform upgrade Impeachment sword dangling, Justice Varma quits T’Puram: The state government has postponed the upgrade of e-Office and its temporary suspension that was planned to facilitate the upgrade. Opposition Leader V D Satheesan had on Friday written to the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), raising concern over the decision to roll out a new version of the e-Office system during the Model Code of Conduct period. The government, however, said the postponement was based on a direction from CEO, but for a different reason. P5 Monalisa’s marriage to Farmaan in legal trouble Bhopal: Monalisa, who shot to fame during the Mahakumbh Mela 2025 in Prayagraj, is at the centre of a legal controversy — a month after her marriage to Farmaan Khan, a UP native, at a temple in Kerala. A probe by the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes has found that she was a minor at the time of marriage. Khan has now been booked under Section 137(2) of BNS on charge of kidnapping. P8 Delimitation to have grave fallout: Cong New Delhi: Asserting that the Modi government’s proposed delimitation exercise related to the implementation of the women’s reservation law would have “grave consequences”, Congress on Friday said it will call a meeting of opposition parties to devise a strategy ahead of the Special Parliament session next week. P7 16 pages, including 4 pages of kochi Express ings by the probe panel infructuous. Amid initiation of impeachThe case stems from a fire ment proceedings in the Lok on March 14, 2025, in the Sabha following sacks of storeroom of Varma’s offiburnt currency notes found cial residence in Delhi, at his residential complex in where police found wads of New Delhi last year, Justice partially burnt currency Yashwant Varma resigned notes in gunny bags. Photos on Friday with imand videos of them mediate effect. burning were outed In his letter dated by the then Chief April 9, he conveyed Justice of India his ‘deep anguish’ to Sanjiv Khanna, who President Droupadi advised Varma to Murmu, while sayquit after an ining he did not wish house probe panel to burden her office pointed the finger with the reasons for of suspicion at him. his decision. By doVarma refused and ing so, he escaped was repatriated to the ignominy of bethe Allahabad High I would be doing coming the first Court without asmyself and the member of the highsigning judicial institution the er judiciary to be greatest disservice w o r k p e n d i n g sacked by Parliainquiry . by continuing to participate in the ment. Varma was By putting in his due to retire on Jan- present proceedings, papers, the judge thereby legitimising h o p e s t o h av e uary 5, 2031. Lok Sabha Speak- a process that calls dodged the bullet to er Om Birla had re- upon me to answer protect his pension. the unanswerable — cently shared that a Had he been imwhere did the three-member in- money come from peached, he would house probe comhave lost not just Justice Varma to mittee had been repension but other constituted under in-house probe panel retirement benefits t h e Ju d g e s ( I n as well. quiry) Act, 1968, against The bur ning question Varma. The committee com- though is the source of those prises Supreme Court judge smouldering currency notes Arvind Kumar, Bombay caught on camera at his DelHigh Court Chief Justice hi residence. The governShree Chandrashekhar and ment can coax him into reSenior Advocate Vasudeva vealing it, by initiating Acharya. Varma’s resigna- criminal proceedings since tion rendered all proceed- he is now a private citizen. N a m i ta B a j pa i @ Lucknow ation in the Persian Gulf. Separately, US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Allison Hooker emphasized expanding cooperation in security and economic domains. “We are finding practical ways to make both Americans and Indians safer and more prosperous, including through the Quad,” Hooker said. The Indian Embassy in Washington said that discussions also reviewed progress since the last Foreign Office Consultations in December and covered recent developments in West Asia and other areas of mutual interest. Rubio’s upcoming visit is expected to inject momentum to the India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership. Col Purohit, acquitted in Malegaon case, promoted to Brigadier rank JA V A R IA R A N A @ New Delhi Nearly two decades after the Malegaon blast case derailed his career, Army officer Colonel Shrikant Prasad Purohit has been promoted to the rank of Brigadier. He was acquitted in the case last year. Col Purohit, who was a Lieutenant Colonel when he was named in the case in 2008, rose to the rank of Colonel subsequently through time scale promotion during the prolonged course of the trial. The Military Intelligence officer was acquitted in 2025 by a special NIA court after a 17year legal battle. He was due to retire on March 31, 2026 as 54 years is the retirement age for Colonel, but the Armed Forces Army officer Shrikant Prasad Purohit Tribunal put his retirement on hold, keeping him in service and within the promotion pipeline. Col Purohit had moved the tribunal seeking consequential benefits including promotion following his acquittal. In its order staying his retirement, the tribunal observed that “he was denied promotion on account of the illegal and fabricated manner in which he was implicated in the case, which was clearly established by the criminal court while acquitting him.” The retirement age for officers of the Brigadier rank is 56 years and the promotion effectively extends Col Purohit’s service till March 31, 2028. Army sources said the tribunal’s intervention was the key factor, as continuity in service is a prerequisite for consideration by promotion boards. His case has long highlighted the institutional dilemma facing the Army when officers get entangled in prolonged criminal proceedings. Though he was granted bail in 2017 and rejoined service, he remained under suspension until July 2020. Post-poll punch: PC, Shone take on Church E x p r e s s N e w s S e rv i c e @Kottayam A day after polling, BJP’s father-son duo P C George and Shone George launched a scathing attack on the Catholic Church, accusing it — and its official mouthpiece, Deepika daily — of working against the N DA i n t h e a s s e m b l y elections. “If the Church doesn’t want us, we don’t want them either,” Shone said on Friday Claiming . that Christian leaders in the BJP had effect ive ly i n t e rvened in issues af fecting the Church, including the controversial FCRA Bill, he asked, “What will I tell Amit Shah if he asks me what the Church has done for us in return?” However, he later softened his stance, saying he would raise a complaint with the bishops over what he described as biased coverage targeting the BJP . BJP state vice-president Shone is the NDA candidate in Pala and P C George in neighbouring Poonjar. “We intervened in the FCRA issue after taking the concerns of the bishops and the Church seriously. Subsequently parliament post, poned the bill. The BJP and the Union government have already assured discussions to address these concerns. Despite this, attempts were made from various quarters to deliberately harm the BJP I strongly . condemn the campaigns carried out by the Deepika daily on election day he said. ,” “Certain individuals, not the Church, are engaging in unholy acts in support of the LDF and UDF. The Church must rein them in; otherwise, our interventions on its behalf will be undermined. I will raise this with the bishops,” Shone ● More on P4 added. Harivansh nominated to the rajya sabha Rajya Sabha’s outgoing deputy chairman Harivansh on Friday took oath as a member of the Upper House after President Droupadi Murmu nominated him following a vacancy created by the retirement of former chief justice of India Ranjan Gogoi. Harivansh’s second term in RS ended on April 9 | P7 Missing Palakkad teen found dead after 3 days T h i p p e r u d r a p pa B @ Chikkamagaluru Three days after she went missing, Sreenanda, a 15-yearold from Palakkad, was found dead about 2,000 ft below the Manikyadhara waterfalls in the Chandradrona Hill ranges in Karnataka on Friday . Sreenanda, Class 10 student of Kadampazhipuram High School, was part of a 40-member tourist group that had visited Datta Peeta and Manikyadhara falls in Chikkamagaluru district on the evening of April 7. She reportedly got separated from her family and went missing the same day . Sreenanda’s body was traced after a joint effort by the Karnataka forest department, fire and emergency services, police and SDRF personnel. The operation had continued for three days, with teams using thermal drones and combing the difficult terrain. As news of her death reached the family, scenes of grief unfolded at the site. Her mother, Rohini, inconsolable, questioned the circumstances sur rounding her daughter’s death. Rohini said she could not believe her daughter had slipped accidentally near the falls. She alleged the possibility of foul play, claiming that someone might have taken advantage of the girl being alone and abducted her after administering dr ugs. “A detailed probe must be conducted to find out whether it is a murder or an accidental fall,” she said. Earlier, the girl’s uncle, Sasikumar, had filed a missing complaint with the police. Chikkamagaluru Superintendent of Police Jitendra Kumar Dayama said it was too early to conclude whether the death was due to a fall or suicide. “It is yet to be ascertained whether it was a slip or a jump. The case has been registered, and probewill be carried out from all possible angles,” he said, adding that the exact cause of death would be known after the postmortem report is received. Wester n Range IG Amit Singh had visited the spot and supervised the search operation. Deputy Commissioner N M Nagaraj said it was unfortunate that the girl was found dead despite extensive efforts. The postmortem was conducted in the Mallegowda General Hospital and the body was handed over to the family members. P5