Chouhan to oversee key meeting in bihar The BJP on Sunday appointed Union minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan as the central observer for the election of its legislative party leader in Bihar. A statement from the BJP headquarters said the parliamentary board has appointed Chouhan as “central observer for electing the leader of legislature party in Bihar”. His appointment sets in motion the process of the formation of a new government in Bihar tirupati l monday l april 13, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l anantapur EDITION Shivraj Singh Chouhan Nitish Kumar 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 Trump threatens to block Strait of Hormuz as US-Iran peace talks fail Says US Navy will “blockade any and all ships” trying to enter or leave the shipping route a g en c i e s @ Islamabad, Washington Asha Bhosle: September 8, 1933-April 12, 2026 Forever young, always distinct N A M RATA J OS H I A ge is just a number” is an adage Asha Bhosle believed in and lived by Among the many facets of . her long, abundant, and well-spent inning—professional as well as personal—the most distinct was the versatile voice: hearty playful, coquettish, , saucy, sensuous, spiritual, soulful and energetic by turns and the one that stayed forever youthful and timeless, just like Asha Tai herself. The fact that the sound of Asha remained robust was the reason why in her over eight-decade long career in a notori, ously ageist industry , she didn’t just sing for multiple films but became the voice of several generations of actresses—from Meena Kumari to Zeenat Aman to Rekha, from her contemporary Shakila in the sad version of Leke pehla pehla pyaar in CID (1956) to someone who could well be her daughter’s age, like Urmila Matondkar in Tanha tanha yahan pe jeena in Rangeela (1995). She worked with possibly every major music director down the years: O P Nayyar, Shankar Jaikishan, Jaidev, Madan Mohan, Khayyam, the Burmans, A R Rahman and Sandeep Chowta. She sang duets with male singers across Her life was all ages, from Kishore Kumar, Mohammad adventurous. Rafi, and Mahendra Kapoor to Sonu Nig- At 16, she am. Winner of several awards, including eloped with two National Awards, Asha received the Ganpatrao Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 2000 and the Bhosle and Padma Vibhushan in 2008. However, these markers aside, Asha be- married him. came a legend of playback singing because Years later, of the extraordinary ability to imbibe the she married personality of the actor, get into the mood R D Burman. of the moment, respond to the space and She made her setting of the sequence and catch the emo- acting debut tive soul of a song with the amazing texin 2013 at 79 ture and timbre of her voice. She could become the innocent and impoverished street kids in Boot Polish (1954) in songs like Nanhe munne bachche teri mutthi mein kya hai, Thehar zara o janewale, Chali kaunse desh just as effortlessly as she’d be the sexy Helen in a cabaret club in Piya tu ab to aaja in Caravan (1971) or Yeh mera dil in Don (1978). Asha’s father, Pandit Deenanath Mangeshkar, was an eminent musician himself, and so were the siblings—Lata Mangeshkar, Meena Khadikar, Usha Mangeshkar, and Hridaynath Mangeshkar. There had been tales of sibling rivalry between her and the legendary elder sister, Lata Mangeshkar, but both eventually carved enviable and influential niches for themselves and ruled the male-dominated industry with confidence and conviction. The last of an entire generation of playback stalwarts of the Golden Era of Hindi film music, her clear vocalisation, perfect diction and right enunciation were enough for her to embrace a range of languages and dialects, both Indian and international. The range extended from classical, folk, bhajans to the Westernised cabarets and discos. US President Donald Trump on Sunday claimed the US Navy would immediately begin a “blockade” to stop ships from entering or leaving the Strait of Hormuz, after US-Iran peace talks in Pakistan ended with no a g reement in sight. Iran has demanded the right to collect tolls from vessels traveling through the strait, but Trump said no one who pays Tehran will “have safe passage on the high seas.” He also threatened, yet again, to destroy Iranian energy infrastructure, telling Fox News: “I can take out Iran in one day .” day 44 Earlier in the day the US and , Iran ended 21 hours of face-toface talks in Islamabad in a stalemate, leaving the fate of the tenuous two-week ceasefire unclear. The war that has killed thousands of people and shaken global markets has entered its seventh week. The US delegation led by Vice President J D Vance and the Iranian delegation led by parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf had discussed how to advance a ceasefire already threatened by disagreements and Israel’s continued attacks on Lebanon. Vance, while leaving Pakistan after the talks, said the US US Vice President J D Vance talks to Pakistan’s Chief of Defence Forces Field Marshall Asim Munir before flying out of Islamabad on Sunday | AP had made its “final and best offer” for a deal, adding: “We’ll see if the Iranians accept it.” Ghalibaf said on X that Washington was “unable to gain the trust of the Iranian E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Tirupati Tirupati police have achieved a major breakthrough in solving a series of sensational ‘murder for gain’ cases that terrorised women living alone. The arrest of P Viswanath alias Prashanth, later identified as AM Ajij alias Abdul Ajij alias Kar nataka Ajij, has brought closure to multiple unsolved crimes and exposed the operations of one of South India’s most wanted fugitives. District SP L Subbarayudu disclosed the details at a press briefing on Sunday noting that , the accused had been absconding since 2018 after escaping from Kerala police custody during a robbery-cum-murder investigation. Concealing his identity Ajij settled in Tirupati , under the false name “Viswanath,” using an Aadhaar card P from Gulbarga, Karnataka.  4 Modi to address women’s Phase I Godavari Pushkaram meet ahead of Parl session works launched with `9.55 cr infra boost along 212 km stretch of river RA J E S H K U M AR T H A K U R @ New Delhi Ahead of an extended three-day special session of Parliament from April 16 to 18 to discuss amendments to Women’s Reservation Act 2023, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to address a first-of-its-kind “Nari Shakti Vandan Sammelan” in Delhi on Monday . As per sources, the conference is aimed at generating widespread support for amendment to the Women’s Reservation Act 2023. It forms a part of the BJP’s broader electoral strategy, bringing together eminent personalities and accomplished women from diverse fields to deliberate on the necessity of reserving seats for women in legislative bodies. According to an official statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office, the conference is being organised “to reinforce the government’s commitment to increasing women’s participation in shaping India’s development trajectory”. “It will also highlight the increasing role of women in governance and leadership across all levels, from Panchayats to Parliament. The programme will underscore the importance of enhanced representation of women in decision-making processes,” the PMO said in the statement. In addition, the event will spotlight the role of women in India’s journey towards the vision of Viksit Bharat 2047. “It will reflect the Cong seeks all-party meet after elections Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has conveyed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi that the special session of Parliament being convened to discuss women’s quota in the middle of the elections is “a clear breach of the Model Code of Conduct”. He demanded that an all-party meeting be called on the matter after the current round of state polls are over on April 29 | P7 government’s continued commitment towards women-led development as a central pillar of the vision for Viksit Bharat 2047”, it said. In September 2023, Parliament passed the ‘Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam’, which provided for the reservation of one-third of seats for women in the Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies. The provision to provide 33% reservation to women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies was brought by amending the Constitution in 2023. However, the women’s quota would have come into effect only after the completion of the delimitation exercise on the basis of the 2027 Census. This meant the reservation would not have become enforceable before 2034. To implement it from the 2029 Lok Sabha elections onwards, changes are needed in the Act. IPL controversy Mobile phone in RR dugout: ACSU investigation on g o me s h s & f i r o z m i r z a @ Chennai A day after Rajasthan Royals team manager Romi Bhinder was seen using a mobile phone while sitting in the dugout — which could be in violation of Players and Match Officials Area protocol — during an Indian Premier League match, BCCI has said that their Anti Corruption and Security Unit (ACSU) will investigate the matter and submit a report. The incident occurred during the 11th over of the IPL tie between Royals and Royal Challengers Bengaluru on Friday night at the ACA Barsapara Stadium in delegation in this round of negotiations”. Iranian and US media said the main sticking points in the talks were the Strait of Hormuz and Tehran’s insistence on a right to enrich uranium for civilian use. Later, in a Fox News interview, Trump threatened to impose a 50% tariff on Chinese imports if Beijing tries to help the Iranian military. Trump did not name the other countries he expects to join the US Navy cordon and, before his post, many international capitals had called for the temporary truce in the Gulf to be preserved. “We’re not going to let Iran make money on selling oil to people that they like... It’s going to be all or none,” he said. Most-wanted serial killer arrested Screengrab of Rajasthan Royals team manager Romi Bhinder using a phone in the dugout next to Vaibhav Sooryavanshi Guwahati. Bhinder was using his phone in the dugout while teen sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi was seen taking a look at the screen during the broadcast. In the aftermath, the ACSU have already begun their investigation on the matter. “We have asked the ACSU to investigate and file a report on the incident,” IPL Governing Council Chair Arun Dhumal told this daily . As per the IPL document titled ‘PMOA PROTOCOL – 2026’, team managers may use a phone in the dressing room, but not in the dugout, which is near the boundary ropes. “Mobile Phones and other electronic communications equipment are not allowed to be used in the PMOA other than for a few members of the team. The Team Manager may use a phone in the Dressing Room area but NOT in the Dugout. The Analyst may use his computer at the analyst table. Player and support staff items i.e. phones, smart watches or any other communication devices should be turned off and given to the team SLO (Security Liason Officer) for storage on arrival at the stadium,” the document reads. Are there any exceptions to the rule? Why was Bhinder using the phone? These are some of the questions the franchise will have to answer in the next couple of More on P11 days.  E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Rajamahendravaram `51.79 cr for 43 temples A sum of `51.79 crore has been sanctioned for the development of 43 temples in the erstwhile undivided twin Godavari districts. Tenders for the works have already been invited, the Endowments Minister said Preparations for the Godavari Pushkarams 2027 have formally begun in East Godavari district with the launch of Phase I development works worth `9.55 crore. Endowments Minister Anam Ramanarayana Reddy laid the foundation stone for the development works in Rajamahendravaram on Sunday joined by , MP Daggubati Purandeswari, MLA Adireddy Srinivas and MLC Somu Veerraju. The foundation laying ceremony was held under the aegis of the Endowments Department, with Vedic scholars and students welcoming the dignitaries in traditional manner. Ramanarayana Reddy said temple renovation and infrastructure upgrade are being taken up as part of arrangements for the Pushkarams. Three State-level review meetings on Pushkaram arrangements have already been held, including one chaired by the Chief Secretary another by , a Cabinet Sub-committee, and the third under the chairmanship of Chief Minister N ChanP4 drababu Naidu.