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 ■ ■ chennai l wednesday l september 23, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 20 l late city EDITION Vande mataram No action on conscientious objectors: SC S U C H I T R A K A LYA N M O H A N T Y @ New Delhi “WE expect no criminal consequences for conscientious objectors to Vande Mataram,” the Supreme Court on Tuesday told the Centre on Tuesday while hearing a plea filed by Carnatic musician and author, T M Krishna. Krishna’s writ petition challenges the constitutional validity of the 2026 amendment to the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act of 1971, which extends penal protection to Vande Mataram, read with the Ministry of Home Affairs’ directions mandating singing of all six stanzas of the song at official functions. The last four stanzas of the song, which refer to Hindu deities, violate the secular character of the nation, his petition contended. The Bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and justices V Mohana and Joymalya Bagchi said it will examine whether the right not to sing the song, recognised in T M Krishna Bijoe Emmanuel, is protected under the amended law. The SC added it expects the 1986 precedent to apply ensuring no , penal action against those who do not sing the Vande Mataram on religious grounds. The court said it is for the state to decide the contours of the song, but religious freedom under Articles 25 and 26 must be safeguarded. The SC judgment in Bijoe Emmanuel versus State of Kerala protected the right of individuals to refuse to sing the National Anthem on grounds of religious conscience. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta argued that the issue should not be viewed narrowly through the lens of secularism. Senior advocate S Muralidhar, for Krishna, questioned the legal framework extending statutory protection to Vande Mataram. His plea argued that the directions compel citizens to participate in singing the last four stanzas and are violative of fundamental rights. CM C Joseph Vijay having breakfast with students after launching the Kamarajar Breakfast Scheme at a government middle school in Chennai | Ashwin Prasath | P5 US Prez claims he has to decide whether to make a deal with Iran or annihilate it; berates the country for stalling an accord on Hormuz until after the midterm polls Don defends Iran war; says he’ll use Russia tariff tool if required A G E N C I E S @ United Nations On sanctions against Russia and AI 1 Donald Trump said he will use, if needed, sanctions to end the “disastrous war” between Russia and Ukraine 2 Trump repeated his claim that he settled the war between India and Pakistan last year 3 Signed an agreement with Denmark and Greenland aimed at strengthening Arctic and North Atlantic security 4 Told UNGA that artificial intelligence will be named “super intelligence” in all US govt documents PRESIDENT Donald Trump returned to the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, defending his decision to go to war with Iran even as the conflict weighs o n h i s p a r t y ’s m i d t e r m prospects. “I have a big decision to make -- will a deal be made with Iran that lets them rebuild and create a far greater country than it ever was before, or do I annihilate the Islamic Republic and do it quickly?” Trump said. Trump accused Iran of stalling to make a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and negotiate an endgame to the war until after the US midterm elections. He insisted the tactic would have no effect on how he approaches the conflict. “We will get it (deal) done one way or another. We will get it done and get it done fast,” Trump said. “The terrorist regime is behaving badly because they are weak and desperate,” Trump said. “If we stand united, we will see a world free of the menace of Iranian terror.” Most of Iran’s delegation walked out of the chamber as Trump railed against the Islamic Republic. On Russia, he said he continues to seek an end to the disastrous war with Ukraine. “Last week, in honour of Senator Lindsey Graham, I signed a powerful new law As president of the most extraordinary nation in history, I have no interest in leaving dangers to grow for another day. I do not believe in letting problems fester Donald Trump, US President at UNGA passed by Congress providing me with enormous new tariff authorities - and if necessary I , will use them... “It is time to stop the killing,” Trump said. Referring to the proposal to slow down development of artificial intelligence (AI) and calls for their international supervi- sion, Trump called them a “globalist scheme” to control the new technology He instead an. nounced that the US government would henceforth use the term “super intelligence” instead of artificial intelligence in its communications. “It sounds much better” and “it’s much more accurate,” he added, wondering whether the rest of the world would adopt the term. He also dismissed warnings about climate change. “The very same people who said we’ll all be dead in 12 years because of global warming... are now saying that AI is going to kill us all, that robots are going to attack us, and that everything is going to be a total disaster.” The president renewed his attack on what he said were “globalist” bodies, including the United Nations and the International Criminal Court, which he urged other countries to boycott. He, however, hailed a deal with Greenland under which he said Washington would build a couple of bases in the Arctic. Later, US and Iranian officials held talks on options to end the war. Trump confirmed the talks but offered few details about how the discussions transpired or the substance of the exchange. “It was a very good meeting ... It’s to their advantage to make a deal,” he said. The Iranian side did not confirm the meeting. E x p r e s s Re a d Ex-staffer arrested in Veeramani case Chennai: An ex-employee of GEM Granites was arrested by the Chennai CCB for allegedly possessing a video purportedly showing baron R Veeramani sexually assaulting a minor. Ganesan was sent to jail on Tuesday for failing to inform the police about the video | P4 Liquor prices in TN to rise as `20 cess kicks in Chennai: Liquor prices in Tamil Nadu are likely to rise, with the state government introducing a cess of up to `20 on every bottle or tin of alcoholic beverage sold in the state. The last liquor price revision was implemented on February 1, 2024 | P4 special session of parliament during Navaratri? A special session of Parliament to push the delimitation bill and women’s reservation could be held during the Navaratri season, sources said | P9