thrissur l monday l april 13, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l city EDITION Chouhan to oversee key meeting to pick new Bihar chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan Nitish Kumar Process on to form new state government 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”. Chouhan’s appointment sets in motion the process of the formation of a new government in Bihar after Chief Minister Nitish Kumar took oath as a member of Rajya Sabha on Friday The BJP on Sunday appointed Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan as the central observer for the election of its legislative party leader in Bihar Nitish kumar likely to resign on Tuesday ■ ■ Nitish has convened a meeting of his cabinet on April 14, following which the JD(U) president is expected to relinquish the CM’s post Senior JD(U) leader and Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Vijay Kumar Chaudhary said, “the new chief minister will be elected by the NDA, upon the recommendation of the BJP, which has a big role to play” | P8 11 am when the cabinet meeting will begin on tuesday 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 es @ Islamabad, Washington Asha Bhosle: September 8, 1933-April 12, 2026 Forever young, always distinct N A M R ATA J O S 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 all ages, from Her life was Kishore Kumar, Mohammad Rafi, and Ma- adventurous. hendra Kapoor to Sonu Nigam. Winner of At 16, she several awards, including two National eloped with Awards, Asha received the Dadasaheb Ganpatrao Phalke Award in 2000 and the Padma VibBhosle and hushan 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 emotive soul of a song with the amazing tex- acting debut ture and timbre of her voice. She could in 2013 at 79 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, P5 bhajans to the Westernised cabarets and discos.  Poll violence 205 incidents reported after MCC enforced in Kerala As many as 212 FIRs were registered in connection with these incidents that took place since March 15, reveals police data. On the cyber front, 51 cases were registered and 4,000 URLs of objectionable content were purged by sleuths | P4 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 agreement 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 .” 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 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 day 44 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 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 delegation in this round of negotiations”. Iranian and US media said the main sticking points in the talks were the No anti-incumbency, LDF will cross 85 seats: CPM T’Puram: The LDF is likely to win more than 85 assembly seats, the CPM state secretariat concluded in its internal assessment. It said there is no anti-incumbency against the government. CPM state secretary M V Govindan said people would prefer Pinarayi Vijayan as CM, though the party would take a final call | P4 ‘Churches don’t hoard money, unlike temples’ Kochi: Fr Paul Thelakat, a priest of Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, ignited a war of words when he said Christian churches do not hoard money, unlike temples. In a recent interview, he said churches use their money for public service. He also questioned the thought behind the FCRA Bill | P5 Palakkad girl’s autopsy indicates accidental fall Chikkamagaluru: The initial autopsy report of Palakkad teen Sreenanda, whose body was found in the forests of Chikkamagaluru, attributed her death to severe head injuries sustained during the fall. The procedure was done by a panel of two doctors on Friday | P5 Nithin’s death: Clip alleges PM Modi to address women’s insults, threat by teachers meet ahead of Parl session standing, and also ragged by senior students of the college. An audio clip believed to be of Nithin “We think the voice clip belongs to Raj R L, 22, a first-year BDS student Nithin. Further examination will be who died by suicide at Kannur Dental conducted as the investigation College in Anjarakandy last week, progresses,” said Kannur city police surfaced in the media on commissioner Nidhinraj Sunday, accusing the priJ. vate institution’s teachers On his directive, a sevof insulting him and his en-member special invesfamily and also threatentigation team led by Kaning him with violence. nur ACP R Hariprasad has In the voice note reportbeen formed to probe in edly sent to a friend, detail the reasons that Nithin, a resident of prompted Nithin to take Nithin Raj Puthukulangara in Thiruthe extreme step. vananthapuram who be“We have recorded the longed to a Scheduled statements of Nithin’s Caste community, alleged Student laid friends and family and exto rest that he was subjected to amined his chats as well as repeated verbal abuse by Nithin Raj was laid to voice notes. Detailed staterest at his family teachers, including being ments from his roommates called an “idiot”. property at and hostelmates will be reHe claimed a teacher Uzhamalakkal in corded,” the commissionthreatened him with vioNedumangad on er said. lence if he stepped outside Sunday in the Maintaining that all the the college gate. He ac- presence of mourning individuals against whom cused another teacher of relatives, neighbours alle gations have been insulting his mother, inand friends. raised were arraigned, the cluding making remarks His family have officer said sections relatabout a surgery she underdemanded a ed to abetment of suicide went, and deliberately redetailed probe into and the SC/ST (Prevention ducing his marks. The anhis death | P5 of Atrocities) Act have swer sheet was then shown been added to the FIR. to classmates and he was ridiculed “The injury caused by the fall led to and humiliated on its basis, Nithin Nithin’s death. There is no doubt alleged in the clip. about this being a suicide. What led The contents of the voice note ap- to it has to be found,” he said. peared to back the parents’ allegaDuring the investigation, they also tions that Nithin was subjected to found out that Nithin had taken loans caste-based discrimination, insulted from online apps and faced threats, ● More on P5 based on his colour and financial Nidhinraj said.  E x p ress N e w s S er v i c e @Kannur IPL controversy Mobile phone in RR dugout: ACSU investigation on g omesh s & f i ro 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 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. The failure of the talks will raise concerns that a return to fighting could drive world energy prices higher and further damage shipping and oil and gas facilities in the Gulf. An EU spokesman said diplomacy would be “essential” to securing peace and hailed Pakistan’s mediation efforts, while the UK and Oman agreed it “was vital there was a continuation of the ceasefire.” express read 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.  Cong seeks all-party meet Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge has conveyed to PM Narendra Modi that the special Parliament session being convened 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 RAJESH KUMAR THAKUR @New Delhi Ahead of an extended threeday 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 vis i o n o f Vi k s i t Bharat 2047.