164555717523022022 first india ahmedabad

Bharuch BJP MP abuses officer over illegal sand mining
First India Bureau
Bharuch: BJP MP
Mansukh Vasava lost
his cool in Karjan talu-
ka--where illegal sand
mining is a major prob-
lem--while meeting the
kin of three people who
had been mowed down
by a truck (dumper)
carrying sand earlier.
In a video clip in cir-
culation on social me-
dia, Vasava is seen ad-
monishing govern-
ment officers and di-
recting them to stop il-
legal quarrying using
less than parliamenta-
ry language. He had
been meeting the fami-
lies of the three acci-
dent victims when the
Karjan Taluka Mam-
latdar and other offic-
ers reached the site.
Their arrival angered
the MP, who yelled at
them saying, “Stop
these dumpers at the
earliest. I know your
businesses very well,”
before breaking off
into foul language di-
rected at the officers.
Notably, this is not
the first time that Vasa-
va has spoken out
against illegal sand
mining or quarrying in
Karjan taluka, which
falls under his Lok Sab-
ha constituency of
Bharuch.
Back when he was
the Congress MLA from
Karjan, Vasava had
raised the issue of ille-
gal sand mining in the
area and had demanded
an inquiry and action
against those involved.
He also targetted those
who he claimed had
been taking “protection
money” from the quar-
riers.
This is also not the
first time that Vasava
has scolded officers in
public or criticized the
government’s perfor-
mance having earlier
attributed Gujarat’s
“poor quality of educa-
tion” as the reason be-
hind the state’s low
number of successful
candidates in competi-
tive exams for Union
government posts.
A still from the video showing Bharuch BJP MP Mansukh Vasava
abusing officers in public.
DESPERATE TIMES
Resorts to foul
language while
directing officials
to stop trucks
carrying sand
PERSPECTIVE
JAIPUR | WEDNESDAY,
FEBRUARY 23, 2022 02
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Vol 3 Issue No. 258
RNI NO. RAJENG/2019/77
764. Printed and published by Anita Hada Sangwan on behalf of First Express Publishers. Printed at Bhaskar Printing Press, D.B. Corp Limited, Shivdaspura, Tonk Road, Jaipur.
Published at 304, 3rd Floor, City Mall, Bhagwan Das Road, C-Scheme, Jaipur-302001, Rajasthan. Phone 0141-4920504. Editor-In-Chief: Jagdeesh Chandra. Editor: Anita Hada Sangwan responsible for selection of news under the PRB Act
Amit Shah @AmitShah
The road accident in Champawat
district of Uttarakhand is heart-
wrenching. In this hour of grief, my
condolences are with the families
of those who lost their lives in this
horrific accident. May God give them
the strength to bear this grief. The local
administration is providing prompt treatment to the injured.
Dharmendra Pradhan @dpradhanbjp
To promote learning in anytime,
anywhere mode, bridge digital divide,
spread digital literacy and minimise
learning loss, PM Shri @narendramodi
ji has approved Phase-III of the National
Mission on Education through ICT with
an outlay of `2,455 crore for FY 2022-27.
TOP TWEETS
SPIRITUAL SPEAK
Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot
coal with the intent of throwing it at someone
else; you are the one who gets burned.
—Buddha
s the world on
the brink of a
major war? The
answer will de-
pend on wheth-
er President Vladimir Pu-
tin launches a full-scale
war, threatening Europe.
Russia has taken its first
steps towards the invasion
of Ukraine by recognizing
the breakaway regions of
Donetsk and Lugansk. The
Russian move has prompt-
ed swift retaliation from
the West by way of sanc-
tions which may not be
enough. As the world waits
and watches President Pu-
tin’s next move, the West
has to do more than what it
has done in the immediate
aftermath of the day’s de-
velopments.
The UK an-
nounced the first tranche
sanctions on five Russian
banks. A bigger action has
been taken by Germany,
which was seen as appeas-
ing Russia, by shelving the
Russian gas pipeline
known as Nord 2 gas pipe-
line which was to supply
Russian gas to Europe “un-
der the Baltic sea”.
Russia has shrugged off
the initial action by the
West and Ukraine also
wants the US and other
countries to impose harsh-
er sanctions. It is believed
that to hurt Putin hard,
sanctions must target Rus-
sian oligarchs.
As the crisis escalates, In-
dia can’t remain unaffected
by the developments
which
may engulf the world. Oil
prices are seeing a surge in
the fear of disruption in
supplies in case the conflict
escalates. Stock market too
isinchoppywaterswithfor-
eign portfolio funds pulling
out crores of rupees.
Fasten your seat belts as
the crisis in Ukraine turns
more serious with each
passing day. It is the eco-
nomic turbulence which
will hit us harder than
what we are experiencing
at present.
As the crisis escalates,
India can’t remain
unaffected by the
developments which may
engulf the world. Oil
prices are seeing a
surge in the fear of
disruption in supplies
in case the conflict
escalates. Stock market
too is in choppy waters with
foreign portfolio funds
pulling out crores of rupees
I
WORLD
WATCHES AS
RUSSIA MAKES
ITS MOVE
THE PERSON WHO HOSTED THE TRICOLOUR
FLAG IN 1992 AT LAL CHOWK IN
SRINAGAR, PUTTING HIS LIFE AT RISK,
IS NOW THE PM OF THE COUNTRY
DOWN THE MEMORY LANE… THE MAKING OF PM MODI – PART 4
T
he 1989 general elections
were fought under the dark
shadow of Bofors scam.
BJP contested the election
in collaboration
with Jana-
ta Dal in Gujarat, where the
party won all the 12 seats it
was allocated, under the ar-
rangement. Narendra Modi
was the key strategist be-
hind the unprecedente
d
success. Modi left an indel-
ible mark on the party after
the win. Union minister
Parshottam Rupala remem-
bers the unique working
styleof NarendraModidur-
ing that period.
“Modi ji spends lots of
time in planning. Once
planning is done, he delib-
erates on minutest detail
before execution. This is
his key to success,” he said.
The 1989 Lok Sabha elec-
tions gave new vigour to
BJP. The party decide to
launch a Rath Yatra from
Somnath to Ayodhya. The
entire planning of this
yatra was entrusted with
Modi, who was credited to
have organised many suc-
cessful yatra on the past.
This yatra was looked upon
a decisive move for BJP
which was striving for the
political significance.
Soon after the independ-
ence, Sardar Patel led the
renovation of Somnath
temple. Now BJP
, under its
aegis, was striving for
building Ram Mandir in
Ayodhya, which is the birth
of Lord Ram. BJP was look-
ing at garnering public
support in favour of build-
ing Ram Temple at a place
where Mughal emperor Ba-
bar is said to have con-
structed Mosque demolish-
ing the ancient temple.
The yatra was launched
with much fanfare but it
could not reach the destina-
tion. However, BJP leader
LalKrishnaAdvaniwhoan-
chored the yatra, managed
to win public sentiments,
which led to the broadening
of BJP’s cadre base.
Modi’sorganisationskills
were proven. Now, within a
year Modi decided to go for
a mega yatra together with
the then BJP’s national
president Murli Manohar
Joshi. The yatra, which
started from Kanyakumari
was named Ekta yatra and
the plan was to hoist Indian
tricolour at Lal Chowk of
Srinagar, which was then
underinsurgency
.Themain
agenda of the yatra was to
abolish Article 370, end ter-
rorism and save India.
During that period, Paki-
stan sponsored terrorism
was at peak in Kashmir.
Terrorists in the valley
used to torture the native
Kashmiri pandits, which
had forced them to flee the
valley. The aim of this
yatra was to awake the
country against the atroci-
ties of terrorists in the val-
ley
. Shaken by the firm de-
termination
of Modi and
Joshi, terrorists
an-
nounced that they will give
reward to daredevil, who
can return alive after hoist-
ing tricolour at Lal Chowk.
Modi took up the chal-
lenge. He made the Repub-
lic Day of 1992 a memorable
one by hoisting the Nation-
al flag at Lal Chowk defying
all the terror threats. The
entire country was under
the wrap of emotions. Peo-
ple realised that Modi has
the courage, conviction and
enthusiasmforlayingdown
his life for the country
.
The emotions ran heavy
in the country
. Modi and
Joshi were successful in
stirring the sentiments of
people and planting the
seed of nationalism
in
them.TherisingHindusen-
timents during that time
culminated in the demoli-
tion of the controversial
Mosque structure in Ayod-
hya on 6th December 1992.
And this also led to fall of
BJP-Janata Dal coalition
government in Gujarat.
Rising on the Hindutva
wave, BJP contested the
elections alone in Gujarat
and gained majority for
the first time. The master
strategist behind the vic-
tory was Narendra Modi
whose efforts had finally
started bearing fruits.
BJP had come to power
withalmosttwo-thirdmajor-
ity and at that time Shankar
Sinh Vaghela was the natu-
ral choice for the chief min-
ister, but Narendra Modi’s
thoughts were different and
he created such an atmos-
phere and strategy in the
party that Keshu Bhai be-
came chief minister.
But unfortunately
, the
strong and hurt Shankar
Sinh Vaghela revolted
against his own party and
went away to Khajuraho
along with rebel MLAs
leaving his party’s govern-
ment in lurch. He blamed
Narendra Modi for the en-
tire fiasco.
The central BJP leader-
ship swing into action for
the damage control. Vaghe-
la put up a condition for
reconciliation
that Modi
should leave Gujarat. Look-
ing to the sensitivity of the
situation senior BJP leader
Atal Bihari Vajpayee ac-
cepted his terms and Modi
as a dedicated and disci-
plined party soldier left Gu-
jarat in the larger interest
of the party
. On 28th Sep-
tember, Modi resigned from
the post of state’s organisa-
tion general secretary
.
As he always believed
in —
Kya haar mein kya jeet
mein, kinchit nahin
bhaybheet main,
Kartavya path par jo
mile, yah bhi sahi, vah
bhi sahi.
But subsequently,
out-
side Gujarat responsibili-
ties provided Narendra
Modi an opportunity
to
build up his All-India vi-
sion which came in handy
when he took over the reins
of the country on 26th May
2014 as the Prime Minister.
THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY
THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL
SHASHIKANT
SHARMA
The writer is Consulting
Editor, First India
Modi’s organisation skills
under insurgency. The main
abolish Article 370, end
terrorism and save India.
Modi took up the challenge. He made the Republic Day of 1992
a memorable one by hoisting the National flag at Lal Chowk,
Srinagar defying all the terror threats. The entire country was under
the wrap of emotions. People realized that Modi has the courage,
conviction and enthusiasm for laying down his life for the country.
Narendra Modi
believes in...
Kya haar mein
kya jeet mein,
kinchit nahin
bhaybheet main,
Kartavya path par
jo mile, yah bhi sahi,
vah bhi sahi
FEBRUARY 21, 2022
Prime Minister Narendra Modi
AHMEDABAD l WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2022 l Pages 12 l 3.00 RNI NO. GUJENG/2019/79050 l Vol 3 l Issue No. 89
OUR EDITIONS: JAIPUR, AHMEDABAD, LUCKNOW NEW DELHI www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia I facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia
CORONA CATASTROPHE
Shivamogga: Six people have been arrested in con-
nection with Bajrang Dal activist Harsha murder case
here while some are at large, a senior police officer
said on Tuesday, as stray incidents of arson and
violence were reported in the city this morning.
BAJRANG DAL
MAN’S MURDER:
SIX ARRESTED
In a setback to National Conference in JK’s Pir Pan-
jal region comprising Poonch Rajouri, ex-min Syed
Mushtaq Ahmed Bukhari on Tuesday resigned saying
he was being told to stop his fight for ST status to
Pahari-speaking people in the twin border districts.
JK: PAHARIS
PRESS FOR ST
STATUS, NC LOSES
KEY LEADER
WORLD AT
BOILING POINT
Russia OK’s military use to
back ‘rebel-held regions’
New Delhi: Russian
parliament’s upper
house on Tuesday vot-
ed to allow President
Vladimir Putin to use
the Russian army out-
side the country to sup-
port separatists in
Ukraine. A total of 153
Russian senators
backed the decision,
with no one voting
against or abstaining.
Putin had asked the
lawmakers for permis-
sion to use Russia’s
armed forces abroad
after formally recognis-
ing two eastern Ukrain-
ian regions, the cham-
ber’s speaker said.
The Russian Presi-
dent had on Monday
night recognised the
independence of
Ukraine’s two separa-
tist regions within their
administrative borders.
Ukrainian leader Vo-
lodymyr Zelensky on
Tuesday demanded an
immediate halt to the
Nord Steam 2 project.
—Agencies
KREMLIN SAYS IT HOPES DONBASS
RECOGNITION WILL RESTORE CALM
REVIVAL OF SOVIET UNION, SAYS
UKRAINE DEFENCE MINISTER
ESCALATION OF RUSSIA-UKRAINE TENSION
MATTER OF DEEP CONCERN: INDIA AT UN
US ORDERS TRADE
BAN WITH UKRAINE
REBEL REGIONS
EU PREPARES
LIST OF RUSSIA
SANCTIONS
UNITED KINGDOM
HITS MOSCOW
WITH SANCTIONS
NATO WARNS OF
RUSSIAN ATTACK
CHINA: CONCERNED
ABOUT SITUATION
IN UKRAINE
RUSSIA MUST
STEP BACK: OZ
Moscow: The Kremlin said
on Tuesday it hoped Russia’s
recognition of two breakaway
Ukrainian regions as independ-
ent would help restore calm and
that Moscow remained open to
diplomacy with the US and other
countries. Kremlin spokesperson
Dmitry Peskov said a decision to
send in forces would depend on
how the situation developed.
KYIV: Russia’s decision to recognise two breakaway
regions means that the Kremlin has taken another
step towards the revival of the Soviet Union, Ukraine’s
Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov said on Tuesday.
“The Kremlin has taken another step towards the revival
of the Soviet Union. With the new Warsaw Pact and the
new Berlin Wall,” he said.
New Delhi: India said on Tuesday that the escalation of ten-
sion along the border of Ukraine with the Russian Federa-
tion is a “matter of deep concern” and
these developments have the potential
to undermine peace and security in the
region. At an emergency meeting called
by the United Nations Security Council
(UNSC), India said, “The escalation of
tension along the border of Ukraine with
the Russian Federation is a matter of
deep concern. These developments have the potential to
undermine peace and security of the region.”
Washington: President Biden
signed an executive order
imposing sanctions that
target two Russia-backed
breakaway republics in
eastern Ukraine in a swift re-
sponse to Russian President
Vladimir Putin’s decision
to recognise the regions as
independent.
Brussels: The Euro-
pean Union is close
to agreeing sanctions
on Russia that would
put politicians and
officials on blacklists,
ban trading in Russian
state bonds, and target
imports and exports
with separatist entities,
European Union diplo-
mats and officials said
on Tuesday.
London: The United
Kingdom has slapped
sanctions on a number
of Russian banks
and high net worth
individuals, including a
close ally of President
Vladimir Putin as Kyiv’s
Western allies punish
Moscow for recognis-
ing two breakaway
regions in eastern
Ukraine as independent.
Brussels: NATO chief Jens
Stoltenberg said Tuesday
that Russia continues to
prepare for a potential
attack on Ukraine after two
separatist regions were
recognised as independ-
ent. “We see that more
and more of the forces are
moving out of the camps
and are in combat forma-
tions and ready to strike.”
Beijing: China is concerned
about the “worsening” situa-
tion in Ukraine, Foreign Min
Wang Yi said on Tuesday, re-
peating his call for all parties
to show restraint and resolve
differences through dialogue.
The legitimate security con-
cerns of any country should
be respected, he said.
Sydney: PM Scott Morrison
has rubbished sugges-
tions Russia is sending in
“peacekeeping” troops to
eastern Ukraine, saying
Moscow has “moved in on
Ukrainian sovereign terri-
tory”. Morrison on Tuesday
warned the move could re-
sult in an “absolutely violent
confrontation with terrible
human consequences”.
P4
Six dead,12 hurt in
blast at factory in HP
Imranwantsdebatewith
PMModitoresolveissues
Shimla: At least six
women were killed and
12 others injured as a
fire broke after an ex-
plosion in a firecracker
factory at an industrial
area in the Una district
of HimachalPradeshon
Tuesday
. The explosion
occurred in the morn-
ing at about 11 am and
the fire engulfed the
whole factory trapping
everyone present at the
facility
, they added.
Deputy Superinten-
dent of Police of Haroli,
Anil Mehta, said out of
the 12 injured, two have
been referred to PGI
Chandigarh and anoth-
er 10 were admitted to
the hospital in Una.
Mehta said the vic-
tims’ bodies were badly
charred and it was dif-
ficult to identify them.
Out of six deceased,
three women were local
residents and another
was from the Bhangal
village in Punjab.
Islamabad: Pakistan
Prime Minister Imran
Khan said on Tuesday
that he would like to
have a TV debate with
his Indian counterpart
Narendra Modi to re-
solve differences be-
tween the two neigh-
bouring countries.
Khan made the re-
marks during an inter-
view with Russia’s state-
run television network
RT on the eve of his
maiden two-day visit to
Moscow. “I would love to
debate with Narendra
Modi on TV
,” Khan said
inresponsetoaquestion.
Responding to a ques-
tion, Khan said when his
party Pakistan Tehreek-
e-Insaf came into power
in 2018 he immediately
reached out to India and
asked the Indian leader-
ship to sit down at the
table and resolve the
Kashmir issue.
He, however, regret-
ted that India did not
respond positively to
his overtures.
Centre blocks
‘SFJ-linked’
Punjab
Politics TV
New Delhi: Once again
relying on intelligence
inputs and invoking the
emergency powers it
wasgivenunderthenew
InformationTechnology
Rules, the IB Ministry
has banned the digital
media resources of for-
eign-based ‘Punjab Poli-
tics TV’, which it said is
linked to the proscribed
Sikhs for Justice (SFJ)
outfit, and was trying to
disturb the public order
during ongoing polls.
The IB Ministry
said that it has “ordered
blocking of apps, web-
site, and social media
accounts of foreign-
based ‘Punjab Politics
TV’ having close links
with SFJ, an organisa-
tion that has been de-
clared unlawful under
the Unlawful Activities
(Prevention) Act, 1967”.
Police personnel with locals at the site after an explosion in a
firecracker factory, in Una district. —PHOTO BY PTI
Right to wear hijab does not fall under
Art 25 of Constitution: K’taka Govt to HC
Bengaluru: The Kar-
nataka government on
Tuesday told the High
Court that there is no
restriction on wearing
HijabinIndiawithrea-
sonable restrictions
subject to institutional
discipline. Karnataka
Advocate General
Prabhuling Navadgi
said the right to wear
the headscarf falls un-
der the category of
19(1)(A)andnotArticle
25 as has been argued
by the petitioners.
“The rights claimed
under Article 19(1)(A)
is related to Article
19(2) where the gov-
ernment places a rea-
sonable restriction
subjected to institu-
tional restriction,”
Navadgi told the full
bench of High Court.
Pegasus row: SC agrees
to hear PILs on Feb 25
Delhi: The Supreme
Court on Tuesday
agreed to hear the case
relating to the Pegasus
surveillance scandal on
25 February, after So-
licitor General Tushar
Mehta requested for a
new date before Chief
Justice NV Ra-
mana, pointing
out that he is
supposed to
be arguing
a different
part-heard
case on
Wednes-
day, 23
F e b r u -
ary
. The Pegasus panel,
appointed by the Su-
preme Court, has sub-
mitted an interim re-
port appraising the
apex court about the
progress on the probe.
The matter was listed
for hearing before a
bench headed by
Chief Justice
NV Ramana
and compris-
ing Justic-
es Surya
Kant and
Hima Koh-
li on 23
F e b r u -
ary
.
After Russian President Vladimir
Putin signed a decree recognising
two Russian-backed breakaway
regions in eastern Ukraine as
independent entities, pro-Russian
activists celebrated in the separatist-
controlled city of Donetsk, Ukraine.
Gujarat A’bad
NEW
CASES
161
NEW
CASES
367 NEW
DEATHS
04

NEWS
AHMEDABAD | WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2022
02
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Frist India Bureau
Vadodara: Waghodia
police have registered a
case against Abhishek
Mehta, talati cum man-
tri for Karmaliyapura,
Antoli, Jambuwada
gram panchayats, for al-
legedly embezzling
Rs21.85 lakh from these
three civic bodies.
Mehta is currently
absconding, and offi-
cials are attempting to
trace him, a police offi-
cial said.
According to a police
complaint filed by talu-
ka development officer
Kajal Ambaliya on the
order of Deputy Dis-
trict Development Of-
ficer, Mehta was re-
sponsible to maintain
the accounts of three
gram panchayats—Kar-
maliyapura, Antoli,
Jambuwada—in Wag-
hodia taluka. This
meant he kept diaries,
vouchers and cheque
books of these three
gram panchayats in his
possession.
An internal review
has shown that Mehta
made off with a cumu-
lative Rs21.85 lakh from
the bank accounts of
the three gram pan-
chayats, officials said.
On April 13, 2021, he
withdrew Rs7.50 lakh
from the Antoli account
at the Baroda Central
Cooperative Bank by
depositing two cheques
in his name. Three days
later, on April 16, he
withdrew Rs7.25 lakh
from the Karmaliyapu-
ra account at the same
bank by cashing two
cheques in his name.
Later on the same day,
he deposited two more
cheques, withdrawing
Rs7.10 lakh from the
Jambuwada account.
He presented incom-
plete details and vouch-
ers to embezzle Rs21.85
lakh, officials said.
First India Bureau
Ahmedabad: Jayrajs-
inh Parmar, the former
spokesperson of the Gu-
jarat Congress, joined
the BJP along with his
supporters in Gandhi-
nagar on Tuesday and
said he has joined the
ruling party without
any expectations.
He had quit the Con-
gress on February 17,
claiming that the party,
where he spent 37 years,
sidelined him for a long
time.
On Tuesday, Parmar,
along with his support-
ers, joined the BJP in
the presence of Gujarat
party unit president CR
Patil and other senior
leaders at the state BJP
headquarters 'Ka-
malam' in the capital
city
.
“I spent 37 years in
the Congress. Despite
facing adverse condi-
tions, I had worked with
total commitment for
the party. For me, poli-
tics is a means to serve
the people,” Parmar
said addressing the BJP
leaders and workers.
“I am not joining the
BJP with an expecta-
tion of getting some-
thing in return. I have
joined the BJP to fill up
what's missing,” he as-
serted.
“Many senior BJP
leaders were of the
opinion that we should
take Parmar in the par-
ty fold. Parmar told me
clearly that he did not
have any expectations
and doesn't want to
fight elections. But,
there are many other
positions in the party.
Now, the party will de-
cide about his next re-
sponsibility,” Patil said,
welcoming Parmar into
the BJP.
First India Bureau
Rajkot: A practising
lawyer was arrested
here for allegedly
hurting religious sen-
timents and attacking
police, a senior offi-
cial said on Tuesday.
Preliminary investi-
gations have revealed
accused Sohil Mor
was fond of listening
to religious sermons
of some Pakistan-
based preachers and
he had also mentioned
‘Pakistan’ in some of
his writings recov-
ered from his house,
Deputy Commission-
er of Police (Crime
Branch) Mano-
harsinh Jadeja said.
Mor, a resident of a
government housing so-
ciety in Munjka area in
Rajkot city, was booked
under section 186 and
332 of the IPC for ob-
structingandassaulting
policemen, while a sec-
ond FIR was lodged on
the complaint of a wom-
an resident under sec-
tion 295 for defiling a
place of worship and
295A for outraging reli-
gious feelings of people,
the official said.
“On February 19,
Mor posted a derogato-
ry comment about
Shivaji Maharaj on the
society’s Whatsapp
group. When a resident
objected and called him,
he misbehaved with her
over the phone. On Feb-
ruary 20, he engaged in
an act which hurt reli-
gious sentiments of
other residents, who
then called police,”
Jadeja told reporters in
Rajkot on Tuesday
.
Mor was arrested af-
ter he misbehaved and
attacked a police team
that had gone to the
housing society after a
receiving a complaint
call, he added.
Complainant Jyotiba
Sodha said she had tried
to reason with Mor over
phone on his post
against Shivaji Maha-
raj, but the latter shot
back that “Hindus
should now leave be-
cause the entire area
has become Pakistan
and all have converted
to Islam”.
Sodha, in her com-
plaint, also claimed Mor
came out of his house
with large knives on
February 20 and broke
an idol kept outside the
neighbour’s flat.
“His internet surfing
history suggests Mor
was fond of listening to
religious sermons of
some Pakistan based
maulvis. We found Paki-
stan’s mention in his
writings too. We have
launched a detailed
probe about his links,
associations, if any,
with suspicious individ-
uals or organisations,”
said Jadeja.
Health Minister Rushikesh Patel claps as Jayrajsinh Parmar is welcomed to the BJP by state unit
president CR Patil in Gandhinagar on Tuesday.
New Beginning
Sheetal and Vandana, two young women who have lived at Nari Sanrakshan Gruh at
Nizampura in Vadodara for most of their lives, got married on Tuesday. Minister of State for
Women and Child Welfare, Manisha Vakil who attended the double ceremony said, “The girls
arrived here when they were three years old and today have stepped into a new future. Their
partners—Shubham Pawar and Vivek Vyas, respectively—with their families, have set a new
standard in society by accepting girls from a shelter home as their brides.”
GST dept serves notice
to 2,000 traders for
non-GST transactions
RAJKOTLAWYERARRESTEDFOR
HURTINGRELIGIOUSSENTIMENTS
First India Bureau
Surat: The GST de-
partment in Surat
has sent 2,000 notices
to traders demand-
ing to pay GST on
petrol purchase, pur-
chase on Diwali gifts,
bonus to daily wa-
gers and other mis-
cellaneous expenses.
As per law, these
things do not fall un-
der GST. As per
sources, these notic-
es were served for
transactions carried
out in the financial
year 2017-18.
CA Rajesh Bhau-
wala said, “The GST
department has sent
notices for products
and services—elec-
tricity bills, bonuses,
salaries—which as
per law are not in-
cluded in the GST,
causing panic among
traders and CAs. The
traders are already
facing financial is-
sues due to CVOID-19
and this notice has
only added to their
woes.”
CA Kishor Ghee-
wala said, “The law
and section of GST
are changed so
quickly that even
CAs are facing is-
sues.”
Allegedly said ‘area has become Pak’ when confronted over post against Shivaji Maharaj
REVENUE OFFICIAL BOOKED
FOR EMBEZZLING `21.85 LAKH
EX-CONGRESS SPOKESPERSON
JAYRAJSINH PARMAR JOINS BJP
The complaint was filed on the order of the deputy district development officer, Vadodara.
Officials say he
swindled 3 gram
panchayats
where he
managed the
accounts books
Says “I haven’t
joined the
ruling party in
hope of getting
something”

GUJARAT
03
EN ROUTE TO PROGRESS
Authorities have started to install escalators at the metro stations at Powerhouse Metro Station, along the RTO-Gandhinagar
route, in Ahmedabad. —PHOTO BY HANIF SINDHI
First India Bureau
Gandhinagar: Chief
Minister Bhupendra
Patel and Union Min-
ister of State for De-
fence Ajay Bhatt on
Tuesday chaired a
meeting to review
preparations for the
12th edition of Def-
Expo, India’s mega
defence exhibition,
that will take place
next month in Gan-
dhinagar.
During the meeting,
Chief Secretary Pankaj
Kumar briefed the oth-
er officials on the vari-
ous initiatives of the
state government.
Those in attendance in-
cluded senior officials
from the Ministry of
Defence, the state gov-
ernment, all branches
of the armed forces,
paramilitary officials
from CISF, CRFP
, NDRF,
NSG, BSF and Hindu-
stan Aeronautics Lim-
ited (HAL). As many as
973 exhibitors includ-
ing 121 foreign ones
from 63 countries have
already registered, of-
ficials said, adding that
these numbers are like-
ly to rise in the coming
days with the relaxa-
tions in COVID-19 re-
strictions.
DefExpo-2022 will be
held in a hybrid format,
with stalls in both phys-
ical and virtual realms
to ensure greater en-
gagement as the exhibi-
tors will be able to cater
to both physical and
virtual attendees. The
event is being planned
in a three-venue format,
with an exhibition at
the Helipad Exhibition
Centre (HEC), events
and seminars at the Ma-
hatma Mandir Conven-
tion Exhibition Cen-
tre (MMCEC) and live
demonstrations for the
public at the Sabarmati
Riverfront.
121 foreign exhibitors, 852 domestic ones
to participate in DefExpo-22 in March
COMING SOON
CM Bhupendra
Patel and Union
MoS (Defence)
Ajay Bhatt review
preparations
ahead of latest
edition of India’s
mega defence
exhibition, to be
held in G’nagar CM Bhupendra Patel (right) and Union Minister of State for Defence Ajay Bhatt on Tuesday reviewed
preparations for DefExpo-2022, slated to be held in Gandhinagar from March 10-14.
First India Bureau
Surat: The state gov-
ernment had an-
nounced financial
assistance of
Rs50,000 to the kin
of COVID-19 de-
ceased. Official re-
cords say Surat city
and district have to-
gether seen 2,116
deaths. However,
the Surat Collector-
ate has doled out
more than Rs42
crore to families of
8,500 victims in just
2.5 months.
But about 100 appli-
cations are still under
scrutiny, and another
25 applications were
rejected as they were
unable to produce evi-
dence of death.
A committee of city
officers, the district
health department,
and the collectorate
has been formed for
scrutinising the appli-
cants. The committee
checks the details of
the people who died at
home or the private
hospital due to nCoV
.
“We are trying our
best to ensure that the
family of the deceased
are not deprived of fi-
nancial assistance. In
addition to the gov-
ernment list, only ap-
plications with suffi-
cient evidence are ap-
proved after thorough
verification. The
amount of assistance
is then paid directly
into their account,”
said YB Zala, Resident
Additional Collector,
Surat.
First India Bureau
Patan: Days after it
constituted an in-
quiry into ragging
allegations in Am-
reli, Jawahar Navo-
daya Vidyalaya is in
the news again. This
time, a student has
alleged that a teach-
er beat him 25 times
with a stick. School
authorities have
promised to look
into the issue and
take disciplinary ac-
tion against the
teacher if needed.
According to a for-
mal complaint filed
with school authori-
ties by the student’s
parents the Class
VIII student had re-
turned to in-person
classes without com-
pleting the home-
work given to the
class by a teacher
while classes were
being held online.
This infuriated the
teacher who thrashed
the child, to the point
where the boy was
left with bruises all
over his body.
In response to a de-
mand from the boy’s
parents, school au-
thorities have said
that a discipline com-
mittee will look into
the issue and take ac-
tion against the
teacher, if he is found
to be guilty.
“Action will be tak-
en against the teach-
er,” assured in-charge
principal Mamta
Langewar, who added
that no teacher would
be violent with stu-
dents in the future.
The parents have
not filed a criminal
complaint.
Interestingly
, guide-
lines laid down by the
National Commission
for Protection of
Child Rights, call for
the abolishing of cor-
poral punishment, on
the grounds that cor-
poral—or any other—
punishment in
schools is detrimental
to the development of
children to their full
potential.
`42 cr ex-gratia released
for nCoV deaths in Surat
Corporal punishment:
Teacher thrashes Class
VIII student in Patan
Patients’ kin line up to submit forms for aid. —FILE PHOTO
Guj registers 367 new cases,four
deaths; active tally dips below 4K
Veravalyouthattacks‘love
interest’whosaidnotohim
Primary investigation has revealed that victim broke off her relationship with her
attacker who tried to slit her throat while she was alone at home, in retaliation
First India Bureau
Gandhinagar: Guja-
rat reported 367 new
COVID-19 cases on
Tuesday, taking its
overall tally to
12,21,276, and four
more deaths linked
to the infection,
while 902 patients
were discharged fol-
lowing recovery, the
state health depart-
ment said.
With four deaths reg-
istered in the last 24
hours, the tally of COV-
ID-19 fatalities rose to
10,906, it said.
As many as 902 pa-
tients were discharged,
pushing the tally of re-
covered cases to
12,06,445, said the de-
partment in a release.
The number of active
cases now stands at
3,925 with 36 patients
being on ventilator sup-
port, the release said.
District-wise, 161
new cases were report-
ed in Ahmedabad, the
highest in the state, fol-
lowed by 87 in Va-
dodara, 15 in Gandhi-
nagar, nine in Surat,
and eight in Rajkot,
among others, it said.
Out of the four fa-
talities, Vadodara re-
ported two, and
Bharuch and Por-
bandar one each, the
department said.
As many as 1.86 lakh
people received their
COVID-19 vaccine
shots in the last 24
hours, raising the num-
ber of doses adminis-
tered so far in Gujarat
to 10.24 crore, it said.
First India Bureau
Veraval: In the third
such incident in a
span of 10 days
across the state, a
youth in Veraval has
been accused of at-
tacking a woman
who turned him
down, officials said
on Tuesday.
Officials said that
the accused, Bipin Ka-
ria, entered the home
of Sanchita (name
changed) while she
was alone on Monday
evening, and tried to
slit her throat with a
knife. While neigh-
bours responded to her
calls for help, Karia
fled. The neighbours
then took Sanchita to
the hospital, where she
is currently receiving
treatment.
When in-charge Po-
lice Inspector SP Gohil
and his team reached
the crime scene, they
also found an acid bot-
tle and a hammer, an
eyewitness said.
A primary investiga-
tion has revealed that
Sanchita and the ac-
cused had been in a re-
lationship, which
Sanchita broke off af-
ter Karia started mak-
ing “demands”. The
police are now collect-
ing call data records
and even chats be-
tween the two to fur-
ther understand the
underlying issue.
For now, Karia has
been detained for ques-
tioning, and will likely
be arrested by Tuesday
evening or Wednesday
morning, officials
said, adding that he
has been booked under
various sections of the
Indian Penal Code for
attempt to murder, un-
wanted sexual activity
and trespassing.
Less than 10 days
ago, on February 12,
Fenil Goyani slit the
throat of Grishma
Vekariya in addition to
injuring her brother
and uncle after she
turned him down. Sim-
ilarly, Sanjay Thakor
attempted to slit the
throat of a young wom-
an who spurned his
advances in Limbodra
of Gandhinagar dis-
trict’s Mansa taluka on
February 18. Like
Sanchita, the Gandhi-
nagar woman was res-
cued and taken to a
hospital having sus-
tained deep injuries to
the neck and throat,
where doctors had to
administer 30 sutures
to save her life.
12,06,445
TOTALRECOVERED
902 MORE
IN A DAY
12,21,276
TOTAL CASES
367 CASES
IN A DAY
161 MAX
CASES IN
A’BAD
ACTIVE CASES
10,906
TOTAL DEATHS
3,925
04 DEATHS
IN A DAY
COVID-19 UPDATE
Bipin Karia has been detained and will likely be formally arrested on Tuesday or Wednesday.
This is the third case of a youth killing or
attempting to kill a woman who turned down their
‘romantic’ advances within a 10-day span in Guj.

PERSPECTIVE
04
Vol3IssueNo.89 RNINO.GUJENG/2019/79050.Printed and published by Anita Hada Sangwan on behalf of First Express Publishers. Printed at Bhaskar Printing Planet Survey No.148P, Changodar-Bavla Highway, Tal. Sanand, Dist. Ahmedabad.
PublishedatD/3023rdFloorPlotNo.35TitaniumSquare,SchemeNo.2,ThaltejTaluka,Ghatlodiya,Ahmedabad.Editor-In-Chief: Jagdeesh Chandra. Editor: Haresh Jhala responsible for selection of news under the PRB Act
Amit Shah @AmitShah
The road accident in Champawat
district of Uttarakhand is heart-
wrenching. In this hour of grief, my
condolences are with the families
of those who lost their lives in this
horrific accident. May God give them
the strength to bear this grief. The local
administration is providing prompt treatment to the injured.
Dharmendra Pradhan @dpradhanbjp
To promote learning in anytime,
anywhere mode, bridge digital divide,
spread digital literacy and minimise
learning loss, PM Shri @narendramodi
ji has approved Phase-III of the National
Mission on Education through ICT with
an outlay of `2,455 crore for FY 2022-27.
TOP TWEETS
SPIRITUAL SPEAK
Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot
coal with the intent of throwing it at someone
else; you are the one who gets burned.
—Buddha
s the world on
the brink of a
major war? The
answer will de-
pend on wheth-
er President Vladimir Pu-
tin launches a full-scale
war, threatening Europe.
Russia has taken its first
steps towards the invasion
of Ukraine by recognizing
the breakaway regions of
Donetsk and Lugansk. The
Russian move has prompt-
ed swift retaliation from
the West by way of sanc-
tions which may not be
enough. As the world waits
and watches President Pu-
tin’s next move, the West
has to do more than what it
has done in the immediate
aftermath of the day’s de-
velopments. The UK an-
nounced the first tranche
sanctions on five Russian
banks. A bigger action has
been taken by Germany,
which was seen as appeas-
ing Russia, by shelving the
Russian gas pipeline
known as Nord 2 gas pipe-
line which was to supply
Russian gas to Europe “un-
der the Baltic sea”.
Russia has shrugged off
the initial action by the
West and Ukraine also
wants the US and other
countries to impose harsh-
er sanctions. It is believed
that to hurt Putin hard,
sanctions must target Rus-
sian oligarchs.
As the crisis escalates, In-
dia can’t remain unaffected
by the developments which
may engulf the world. Oil
prices are seeing a surge in
the fear of disruption in
supplies in case the conflict
escalates. Stock market too
isinchoppywaterswithfor-
eign portfolio funds pulling
out crores of rupees.
Fasten your seat belts as
the crisis in Ukraine turns
more serious with each
passing day. It is the eco-
nomic turbulence which
will hit us harder than
what we are experiencing
at present.
As the crisis escalates,
India can’t remain
unaffected by the
developments which may
engulf the world. Oil
prices are seeing a
surge in the fear of
disruption in supplies
in case the conflict
escalates. Stock market
too is in choppy waters with
foreign portfolio funds
pulling out crores of rupees
I
WORLD
WATCHES AS
RUSSIA MAKES
ITS MOVE
THE PERSON WHO HOISTED THE TRICOLOUR
FLAG IN 1992 AT LAL CHOWK IN
SRINAGAR, PUTTING HIS LIFE AT RISK,
IS NOW THE PM OF THE COUNTRY
DOWN THE MEMORY LANE… THE MAKING OF PM MODI – PART 4
T
he 1989 general elections
were fought under the dark
shadow of Bofors scam.
BJP contested the election
in collaboration with Jana-
ta Dal in Gujarat, where the
party won all the 12 seats it
was allocated, under the ar-
rangement. Narendra Modi
was the key strategist be-
hind the unprecedented
success. Modi left an indel-
ible mark on the party after
the win. Union minister
Parshottam Rupala remem-
bers the unique working
styleof NarendraModidur-
ing that period.
“Modi ji spends lots of
time in planning. Once
planning is done, he delib-
erates on minutest detail
before execution. This is
his key to success,” he said.
The 1989 Lok Sabha elec-
tions gave new vigour to
BJP. The party decide to
launch a Rath Yatra from
Somnath to Ayodhya. The
entire planning of this
yatra was entrusted with
Modi, who was credited to
have organised many suc-
cessful yatra on the past.
This yatra was looked upon
a decisive move for BJP
which was striving for the
political significance.
Soon after the independ-
ence, Sardar Patel led the
renovation of Somnath
temple. Now BJP
, under its
aegis, was striving for
building Ram Mandir in
Ayodhya, which is the birth
of Lord Ram. BJP was look-
ing at garnering public
support in favour of build-
ing Ram Temple at a place
where Mughal emperor Ba-
bar is said to have con-
structed Mosque demolish-
ing the ancient temple.
The yatra was launched
with much fanfare but it
could not reach the destina-
tion. However, BJP leader
LalKrishnaAdvaniwhoan-
chored the yatra, managed
to win public sentiments,
which led to the broadening
of BJP’s cadre base.
Modi’sorganisationskills
underinsurgency
.Themain
abolish Article 370, end ter-
rorism and save India.
During that period, Paki-
stan sponsored terrorism
was at peak in Kashmir.
Terrorists in the valley
used to torture the native
Kashmiri pandits, which
had forced them to flee the
valley. The aim of this
yatra was to awake the
country against the atroci-
ties of terrorists in the val-
ley
. Shaken by the firm de-
termination of Modi and
Joshi, terrorists an-
nounced that they will give
reward to daredevil, who
can return alive after hoist-
ing tricolour at Lal Chowk.
Modi took up the chal-
lenge. He made the Repub-
lic Day of 1992 a memorable
one by hoisting the Nation-
al flag at Lal Chowk defying
all the terror threats. The
entire country was under
the wrap of emotions. Peo-
ple realised that Modi has
the courage, conviction and
enthusiasmforlayingdown
his life for the country
.
The emotions ran heavy
in the country
. Modi and
Joshi were successful in
stirring the sentiments of
people and planting the
seed of nationalism in
them.TherisingHindusen-
timents during that time
culminated in the demoli-
tion of the controversial
Mosque structure in Ayod-
hya on 6th December 1992.
And this also led to fall of
BJP-Janata Dal coalition
government in Gujarat.
Rising on the Hindutva
wave, BJP contested the
elections alone in Gujarat
and gained majority for
the first time. The master
strategist behind the vic-
tory was Narendra Modi
whose efforts had finally
started bearing fruits.
BJP had come to power
withalmosttwo-thirdmajor-
ity and at that time Shankar
Sinh Vaghela was the natu-
ral choice for the chief min-
ister, but Narendra Modi’s
thoughts were different and
he created such an atmos-
phere and strategy in the
party that Keshu Bhai be-
came chief minister.
But unfortunately, the
strong and hurt Shankar
Sinh Vaghela revolted
against his own party and
went away to Khajuraho
along with rebel MLAs
leaving his party’s govern-
ment in lurch. He blamed
Narendra Modi for the en-
tire fiasco.
The central BJP leader-
ship swing into action for
the damage control. Vaghe-
la put up a condition for
reconciliation that Modi
should leave Gujarat. Look-
ing to the sensitivity of the
situation senior BJP leader
Atal Bihari Vajpayee ac-
cepted his terms and Modi
as a dedicated and disci-
plined party soldier left Gu-
jarat in the larger interest
of the party
. On 28th Sep-
tember, Modi resigned from
the post of state’s organisa-
tion general secretary
.
As he always believed
in —
Kya haar mein kya jeet
mein, kinchit nahin
bhaybheet main,
Kartavya path par jo
mile, yah bhi sahi, vah
bhi sahi.
But subsequently, out-
side Gujarat responsibili-
ties provided Narendra
Modi an opportunity to
build up his All-India vi-
sion which came in handy
when he took over the reins
of the country on 26th May
2014 as the Prime Minister.
THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY
THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL
SHASHIKANT
SHARMA
The writer is Consulting
Editor, First India
Modi’s organisation skills
under insurgency. The main
abolish Article 370, end
terrorism and save India.
Modi took up the challenge. He made the Republic Day of 1992
a memorable one by hoisting the National flag at Lal Chowk,
Srinagar defying all the terror threats. The entire country was under
the wrap of emotions. People realized that Modi has the courage,
conviction and enthusiasm for laying down his life for the country.
Narendra Modi
believes in...
Kya haar mein
kya jeet mein,
kinchit nahin
bhaybheet main,
Kartavya path par
jo mile, yah bhi sahi,
vah bhi sahi
FEBRUARY 21, 2022
Prime Minister Narendra Modi

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BJP FACES OWN TACTICS IN BIHAR OVER
RUMOURS ABOUT ‘ASHOKA PILLAR’
Moni Sharma
New Delhi: Till now,
the situation was that
the Opposition parties
had to answer the ru-
mors spread by the
BJP’s IT cell and its
army of workers. But
this time the BJP is up-
set and is being made to
answer many kinds of
rumours. Among these
there is a rumor that
the Ashoka Pillar is be-
ing removed from the
seals of the central gov-
ernment and all the
government places.
From Awadh to Praya-
graj and in the areas of
Purvanchal and Bun-
delkhand, where there
is a large number of
Kushwaha population,
this rumour is causing
a lot of trouble to the
BJP. Keep in mind that
the Kushwaha society
considers itself a de-
scendant of Emperor
Ashoka. In such a situ-
ation, everything from
the Ashoka Chakra to
the Ashokan Pillar is an
object of pride for it.
These ru-
mours have
been further
strengthened
by the devel-
opments in
Bihar. In Bi-
har, a pillar is
being con-
structed in
front of the
assembly on
the occasion
of completion
of hundred
years of the as-
sembly. Howev-
er, the symbol of
A s h o k a
Chakra or
Ashoka Pil-
lar is not be-
ing put on
top of that
pillar, but
instead the
symbol of
Swastik is be-
ing put in its
place. Protest
has started in
Bihar regard-
ing this and
Leader of Oppo-
sition Tejashwi
Yadav has at-
tacked both BJP and
JDU, saying that for the
first time after inde-
pendence, it is happen-
ing that Ashoka Chakra
is not being installed on
any pillar. This matter
has now reached Uttar
Pradesh as well, where
there is already a ru-
mor that the emblem of
Emperor Ashoka is be-
ing removed from the
government seals of the
Centre. This rumour
and incident in Bihar
can cause big loss to
BJP in its core vote.
INDIA
05
BJP’s double engine
govt building Ram
temple: Adityanath
Ayodhya: Uttar
Pradesh chief minister
Yogi Adityanath on
Tuesday wondered if
Congress could have
built Ram temple, say-
ing it’s now being con-
structed because of the
double engine govern-
ment of the Bharatiya
Janata Party (BJP) at
the Centre and the state.
Addressing a public
rally at Bikapur in Ayo-
dhya, he said, “Could
Congress have con-
structed Ayodhya’s
Ram Temple? Could the
Bahujan Samajwadi
Party (BSP) have done
it? Could ‘babua’ (Akh-
ilesh yadav of the Sa-
majwadi Party) have
done it? Will those, who
fired at Ram bhakts,
would have built it?
Will those, who locked
Ram Temple, would
have built it? Who is
building it?. It’s the
double engine govern-
ment of the BJP.”
Attacking the SP
chief, he said, “Sama-
jwadi Party is with ter-
rorists. They don’t want
the state to develop. the
BJP’s double engine
Government is working
to establish a ‘Ram Ra-
jya’. The BJP will give a
strong and stable gov-
ernment in the state.”
Voting for the re-
maining three phases
of the seven-phase UP
elections will take place
on February 27, March
3, and 7. The counting
of votes will take place
on March 10. —PTI
UP CM addresses a public
meeting for Assembly polls.
New Delhi: Uttar
Pradesh Law Minister
Brajesh Pathak who is
facing Samajwadi Party
candidate and two-time
Corporator Surendra
Singh Gandhi in the
Lucknow Cantonment
seat is among the prom-
inent contender in the
fourth phase of the state
Assembly elections for
which polling will be
held on Wednesday
.
Pathak exuded confi-
dence in the victory of
the Bharatiya Janata
Party and said that the
latter will not allow op-
position parties to fulfil
their dream of coming
to power in the state.
“We (BJP) are going
to break the record of
the last elections. We
will not allow the Oppo-
sition parties to fulfil
their dream. They are
trying to come to the
power with the help of
the mafias which will
never happen. The BJP
has built AIIMS, air-
port, metro and has pro-
vided cereals to poor
people,” the state Law
Minister told media.
He also hit out at the
Opposition for mislead-
ing people, supporting
mafias and goons in Ut-
tar Pradesh. He rejected
the claims that the BJP
has a tough task in the
ongoing polls.
Another keenly
watched seat in this
phase is the Sarojini Na-
gar seat in Lucknow
where the former joint
director of Enforce-
ment Directorate,
Rajeshwar Singh, is pit-
ted against a former IIM
professor and a close
aideof theformerChief
Minister Akhilesh Ya-
dav, Abhishek Mishra.
Raebareli Sadar is
also one of the key bat-
tles to watch out for
with its sitting Con-
gress MLA Aditi Singh
now being a BJP nomi-
nee.
The59Assemblyseats
are spread across the
districts of Pilibhit,
Lakhimpur Kheri, Sita-
pur,Hardoi,Unnao,Luc-
know,RaeBareli,Banda,
and Fatehpur. —ANI
59 assembly constituencies to vote in 4th phase today; 624 candidates in fray. —FILE PHOTO
HEAVYWEIGHTS IN UP PHASE 4
BJP’s Brajesh Pathak,
Aditi Singh in poll ring
‘Achhe din’
is poll time
deception
of BJP, says
Priyanka
New Delhi: The
Congress national
general secretary
Priyanka Gandhi
Vadra on Tuesday
tweeted “Achhe din”
is just a deception of
Bharatiya Janata
Party’s (BJP) in
times of elections.
“
Assoonastheelec-
tions get over, expen-
sive days will become
a problem for the peo-
ple,” said Vadra.
She added, “The
price of liquefied pe-
troleum gas (LPG)
may double and that
of petrol-diesel will
increase as well.”
Priyanks alleged
that the ruling govt
has no plans to fight
inflation. —ANI
Cong not to take action against Tewari, Preneet!
Sharat K Verma
Chandigarh: Congress
party is not going to take
any action against two
Punjab MPs Manish
Tewari and Preneet
Kaur.InformedCongress
leaders say that many
complaintshavereached
the party and the disci-
plinary committee can
consider them but no ac-
tion will be taken at the
moment. However, both
the leaders are making
every effort to ensure
that the party takes ac-
tion against them. Man-
ish Tewari recently
called himself not a ten-
ant, but a stakeholder in
the Congress. Such
things are not tolerated
in Congress. Then he
also commented in pro-
test on the statement
given by Chief Minister
Charanjit Singh Channi
onthebrothersof UP
,Bi-
har and compared it to
the treatment of black
people in America.
Similarly, Preneet
Kaur is continuously
campaigning for her
husband Captain Ama-
rinder Singh and has
also participated in BJP
roadshows.BeforeAmit
Shah’s visit to Patiala,
she also went to the BJP
office and attended the
preparatory meeting.
Despite this, Congress is
nottakingactionagainst
both of them. If Con-
gress takes action, they
will be free from Con-
gress.If Congressexpels
them from the party,
their membership will
remain. That’s why they
are provoking Congress
but the party will wait
till the election results.
Many leaders believe
that if the Congress
wins, these leaders will
automatically shut up
and follow the discipline
of the party
. If Congress
does not win then these
people will be unbridled
but the party will hardly
act even then.
Manish Tewari Preneet Kaur
Not in politics to grab power, but
build nation, says Rajnath Singh
Ballia: Ahead of the
polling for phase four of
Uttar Pradesh Assem-
bly elections, Defence
Minister Rajnath Singh
on Tuesday said that
politics is not just for
forming governments
but about building soci-
eties and the country
.
“We are in politics not
just to form govern-
ments but to build soci-
ety and the country
.
That explains we are not
reluctant to take tough
decisions,” Singh said at
a rally in Sikandarpur
area of Ballia.
Singh said that the
Bharatiya Janata Party
(BJP) will not allow the
trustof thepeopleof the
country to be broken.
“...carefully weigh
the options, see if it is
right and then vote.
Many parties have been
formed and have be-
come extinct over the
years. There was a cri-
sis in politics due to the
false assurances of the
leaders. There was an
issue of unreliability
about the politicians.
The BJP has erased this
notion,” added Singh.
Addressing a public
meeting, he added, “We
fulfilled our promise to
remove Article 370. Citi-
zenship Amendment Act
was enacted to fulfil
promisesmadetothepeo-
ple. There should be no
division in the name of
religion. After Independ-
ence, India and Pakistan
were divided on the basis
of religion. We fulfilled
thepromiseof buildinga
grand Ram temple in
Ayodhya.PMModigavea
grandlooktoKashiVish-
wadham.” —PTI
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh
Out on furlough,
Ram Rahim gets
Z-Plus security
New Delhi: Dera Sacha
Sauda chief Gurmeet
Ram Rahim Singh has
beenprovid-
ed Z-Plus
category se-
curity on
his release
from jail fol-
lowingreportsof threats
to his life from pro-Khal-
istan activists.
The Haryana govern-
ment’s decision to grant
the top-tier security cov-
er comes after his re-
quest for furlough was
approved earlier this
month. Ram Rahim was
released from Rohtak’s
Sunaria jail on a 21-day
furlough on Feb 7. —PTI
Mamata writes to PM
over Ganga erosion
Kolkata: West Bengal
Chief Minister Mamata
Banerjee has written to
Prime Minister Naren-
dra Modi on the issue of
“perpetual river ero-
sion” along the river
Ganga- Padma in dis-
tricts of south-central
WestBengalresultingin
severe loss of public
utilities, private proper-
ties and agricultural
lands. Banerjee urged
the Prime Minister to
kindly reconsider the
decision of Farraka
Barrage Project Author-
ity (FBPA) of withdraw-
al of the extended juris-
diction so as to fulfil the
earlier commitment of
the Central government
and arrange for taking
up bank protection
schemes in the entire
stretch of the extended
jurisdiction. —Agencies
Mamata Banerjee
NORTH-EAST IS GROWTH ENGINE OF
INDIA, SAYS PM IN MANIPUR RALLY
Imphal: PrimeMinister
NarendraModionTues-
day slammed Congress
for “making fun of the
culture of the North-
eastern states”. He said
that the North-eastern
states for the BJP if the
growth engine for the
country
.
While addressing the
election rally in Ma-
nipur’s Heingang,
Prime Minister
slammed the Congress
leaders for making
make fun of the culture
of Northeast India.
“Congress leaders
come to Manipur and
make big claims but
make fun of the dresses
and culture of North-
eastIndiainotherstates.
Congress divided Ma-
nipur between hills and
valleys and played poli-
tics over it. They never
worked on developing
and improving connec-
tivity in the region.”
He further said that
the NDA government
believes that the north-
eastregionisthegrowth
engine for India.
PM Modi said that
decades of Congress
rule in Manipur result-
ed in inequality
.
“TheBJPgovernment
hasmadetheimpossible
possible. Every region
of Manipur has had re-
lief from bandhs and
blockades. Congress, on
the other hand, had
made bandhs and block-
ades the main feature of
Manipur. The BJP gov-
ernment has written a
new chapter of change
for Manipur, taking eve-
ryone forward. The
youth has given up arms
andiscomingforwardto
lead the development
surge,” he added. —ANI
Prime Minister Narendra Modi greets BJP supporters during an election campaign rally for the
upcoming Manipur Assembly polls in Imphal on Tuesday. —PHOTO BY ANI
WITH OVER 300 SEATS, BJP,
ALLIES WILL FORM GOVERNMENT
IN UP, SAYS AMIT SHAH
Lucknow: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday
said the BJP and its allies will form the government in
Lucknow by winning over 300 seats in the state Assembly
polls. In a veiled attack on Samajwadi Party and Bahujan
Samaj Party, Shah said, “Bua aur Babuwa (aunt-nephew)
ruled UP for 15 years but did not even build toilets for the
poor. The BJP has constructed the toilets for 2.61 crore
poor houses.” Attacking the SP chief Akhilesh Yadav,
Shah said, “If Akhilesh’s government comes to power
then people facing criminal cases like Azam Khan, Atique
Ahmed, Mukhtar Ansari will come out of jail.” Praising the
work of UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Home Minister
said that “Yogi Sarkar has done a reduction of 72 per cent
in dacoity, 62 per cent in robbery, 29 per cent in kidnap-
ping and 50 per cent in rape cases”. The seven-phased
Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh commenced on Feb-
ruary 10. The first three phases of the elections have been
concluded. Polling for subsequent phases will take place
on February 23, 27, and March 3 and 7. The counting of
votes will take place on March 10. —PTI
50% cap on rallies, roadshows removed
New Delhi: The Election Commission (EC) on
Tuesday relaxed the previously imposed 50 per cent
capacity cap on meetings, rallies, and roadshows of
political parties.

INDIA
06
Mahesh Sharma
New Delhi: All parties
should learn from the
Bharatiya Janata Party
how elections are
fought. Although in the
first several elections,
the BJP
, under the com-
mandof NarendraModi
and Amit Shah, has
given hints on how to
fight the elections, but
this time, the Punjab
election is a case study.
The West Bengal elec-
tion could also be a case
study but there was po-
tential for polarisation
and the base for the BJP
was formed in the 2019
assembly elections. On
the contrary, there was
no visible possibility of
polarisation in Punjab,
the BJP’s performance
in the 2019 Lok Sabha
elections was very me-
diocre, getting only nine
per cent votes and this
time it was contesting
alone for the first time.
Despite this, the BJP
changed the whole pic-
ture of the election.
The saffron party did
not have a big face and
did not have a strong
party organisation in
the state. There was an
atmosphere against it in
the whole state because
there was resentment
among the people of the
state due to the agricul-
tural law and farmers’
movement. For the first
time, the BJP was con-
testing the elections
separately from its old
ally Akali Dal. Strong
parties like Congress,
Aam Aadmi Party and
Akali Dal were already
present in the state. De-
spite this, the BJP is a
player in the fight and it
is certain that there will
be a big jump in its vote
share.
Despite all its short-
comings and weakness-
es, the BJP fought the
election vigorously and
left no stone unturned
to make a dent. It took
along with it Captain
Amarinder Singh, who
broke away from Con-
gress, co-ordinated with
Dhindsa’s party, who
broke away from the
Akali Dal. Both Modi
and Shah met the head
of the Radha Soami sat-
sang. The Dera Sacha
Sauda chief, convicted
of murder and rape,
was released on parole
from a Haryana jail.
The party got Kumar
Vishwas, who worked
for the BJP indirectly
, to
make a statement prov-
ing Arvind Kejriwal a
Khalistani. The attempt
to polarise Hindu was
done by the Prime Min-
ister himself. The BJP
has shown that even if
the result is known, it
should fight till the re-
sult is not received and
every means should be
used in the fight, even if
that means is not sa-
cred.
BJP TAUGHT TO FIGHT IN PUNJAB
HOW TO CONTEST POLLS?
Shivamogga: Six peo-
ple have been arrested
in connection with Ba-
jrang Dal activist Har-
sha murder case here
while some are at large,
a senior police officer
said on Tuesday, as
stray incidents of arson
and violence were re-
ported in the city this
morning.
The victim’s sister
rued the “brutal” man-
ner in which Harsha
was killed and appealed
to people to give up fa-
naticism. She also won-
dered if there was no
value for humanity
.
Meanwhile, the Depu-
ty Commissioner of the
district Selvamani R an-
nounced that CrPC sec-
tion 144 has been ex-
tendedbytwomoredays
till Friday morning.
The 28 year-old Har-
sha was stabbed to
death on Sunday night
here leading to clamp-
ing of prohibitory or-
der even as the city wit-
nessed arson, violence
and stone pelting.
“We have arrested Mo-
hammed Kashif, Syed
Nadeem, Ashifullah
Khan, Rehan Khan, Ne-
hal and Abdul Afnan in
connection with the
case. All are aged be-
tween 20 to 22 years, ex-
cept Kashif who is 32.
They are all residents
of Shivamogga,” Super-
intendent of Police BM
Lakshmi Prasad told
said. —PTI
COMMUNAL HOTSPOT IN K’TAKA
BAJRANG DAL MAN’S MURDER: 6 HELD,
UNEASY SHIVAMOGGASIMMERS
Bengaluru: A day
after Bajrang Dal
activist Harsha was
murdered in Shi-
vamogga district,
Karnataka’s Addition-
al DGP Pratap Reddy
on Tuesday said that
all the accused have
been identified and
the work is underway
to arrest the sus-
pects. Speaking to
reporters, Additional
DGP Pratap Reddy
said, “All accused
have been identified.
So, work is going on
and we are on the
verge of completing
the detection and
arresting the accused
persons.” —ANI
ALL ACCUSED
IDENTIFIED,
SAYS K’TAKA
ADDL DGP
Victim’ssisterappealsagainstfanaticism;section144
extendedtillFridaymorninginK’taka’sShivamogga
India sends 2,500 tonnes
of wheat to Af via Pak route
Harsh V Shringla, flags off the first consignment of
wheat to Afghanistan on Tuesday. —PHOTO BY ANI
New Delhi: India on
Tuesday sent the first
shipment of 2,500
tonnes of wheat to Af-
ghanistan via Paki-
stani land route, over
four months after an-
nouncing the humani-
tarian aid for the Af-
ghan people.
In a ceremony held
in Amritsar, Foreign
Secretary Harsh Var-
dhan Shringla along
with Afghan Ambas-
sador Farid Ma-
mundzay and World
Food Program Coun-
try Director Bishaw
Parajuli flagged off
the first convoy of 50
trucks carrying the
consignment.
India had sent a
proposal to Islamabad
on October 7 seeking
a transit facility to
send 50,000 tonnes of
wheat to the people of
Afghanistan via Paki-
stani soil. It received a
positive response on
November 24.
Following this, both
sides were in touch to
finalise the modali-
ties for the transpor-
tation of the ship-
ment.
“The shipment is
part of the commit-
ment made by the
Government of India
to supply 50,000 met-
ric tonnes of wheat
for the people of Af-
ghanistan. The wheat
assistance will be de-
livered in multiple
consignments. —PTI
Dubai: Dubai on Tues-
day removed the re-
quirements for Indian
travellers to undergo
rapid RTPCR at Indian
airports before depart-
ing to UAE. An advisory
issued by the Dubai Air-
port updated the travel
requirements for pas-
sengers from India, Sri
Lanka, Bangladesh and
Pakistan.
The fresh advisory
requires Indian nation-
als to produce a nega-
tive COVID-19 test cer-
tificate taken up to 48
hours before the sched-
uled departure of the
flight, from an approved
health service provider.
The passengers will re-
quire to undergo a PCR
test upon their arrival
in Dubai. For transit
passengers, the rules
governing entry at the
final destination will be
applicable.
The responsibility of
ensuring that the condi-
tions of travel are met
will lie with the airline
operators. The revision
in travel requirements
will ease the situation
for a large number of
Indians who either re-
side in or travel fre-
quently to the city
.
India recorded 13,405
new Covid-19 cases and
235 deaths in the last 24
hours, according to the
Union Ministry of
Health and Family
Welfare.
The country’s active
cases currently stand at
1,81,075 and the total
number of recoveries
in the last 24 hours is
34,226. The daily posi-
tivity rate stands at 1.24
per cent whereas the
weekly positivity rate is
1.98 per cent.
New Delhi: NCP’s Su-
priya Sule and BJD’s
Amar Patnaik are
among 11 MPs who will
be getting the Sansad
Ratna Award 2022,
Prime Point Founda-
tion said on Tuesday
.
The jury committee
has also nominated sen-
ior BJP leader from Ta-
mil Nadu HV Hande
and Congress veteran
M Veerappa Moily for a
lifetime achievement
award while four parlia-
mentary standing com-
mittees — agriculture,
finance, education and
labour — will be award-
ed for their contribu-
tions.
The 11 parliamentar-
ians include eight from
the Lok Sabha and three
from the Rajya Sabha,
the foundation said in a
statement. The 12th edi-
tion of the Sansad Rat-
na Award function will
be held on February 26
in the national Capital.
According to the
foundation, Nationalist
Congress Party (NCP)
MP Sule, Revolutionary
Socialist Party (RSP)
MPNKPremachandran
and Shiv Sena MP
Shrirang Appa Barne
will be awarded the
‘Sansad Vishisht Ratna’
award.
Trinamool Congress
MP Saugata Roy, Con-
gress MP Kuldeep Rai
Sharma, and BJP MPs
Bidyut Baran Mahato,
Heena Vijayakumar
Gavit (Maharashtra)
and Sudhir Gupta (Mad-
hya Pradesh) will get
the Sansad Ratna
Award for their perfor-
mance in the 17th Lok
Sabha, it said. —PTI
Abu Dhabi/New Del-
hi: To achieve global
security, stability and
sustainable develop-
ment, it is imperative
for all nations to unite
in the fight against ter-
rorism and extremism,
said Lok Sabha Speaker
Om Birla at the plenary
session of Federal Na-
tional Council (FNC) of
the UAE on Tuesday
.
Om Birla addressed
members of the Federal
National Council of the
United Arab Emirates
in the sixth plenary ses-
sion of FNC in Abu
Dhabi on Tuesday
.
Speaking on the occa-
sion, Birla said that In-
dia has always opposed
terrorism in all its
forms. The Lok Sabha
Speaker stressed that
for global security, sta-
bility and sustainable
development, it is nec-
essary that all the na-
tions of the world come
together to fight the
challenges of terrorism
and violent extremism.
Patna: A day after a
special CBI Court in
Ranchi sentenced RJD
chief Lalu Prasad
to five years im-
prisonment and
imposed a Rs 60
lakh fine on him,
RJD vice presi-
dent Shivanand
Tiwari alleged that Bi-
har Chief Minister Nit-
ish Kumar was also
“involved” in the fodder
scam and had “taken
the money from the
kingpin Shyam Bihari
Sinha”.
Tiwari’s statement
came after Nitish said
that the leaders who
were involved in filing
the petition
against Lalu, are
working as advi-
sors of the party
and sitting close to
him.
“Nitish has be-
come vocal these days
afterPMNarendraModi
gave him the socialist
leader certificate. BJP
Rajya Sabha MP Sushil
Kumar Modi had al-
leged that Nitish Kumar
was also involved in fod-
der scam,” Tiwari said.
Dehradun: Fourteen
people returning from a
wedding, including five
women and two chil-
dren, died and two were
injured when a vehicle
fell into a deep gorge on
the Sukhidhang-Dan-
daminar road in Uttara-
khand’s Champawat
district on Tuesday
.
Their bodies were re-
covered from the gorge
after a nearly 11-hour-
long rescue operation,
Champawat Superin-
tendent of Police (SP)
Devendra Pincha told
PTI from the spot.
Five women, a four-
year-old girl and a teen-
aged boy are among the
dead, he said. The de-
ceased also include a
mother-daughter duo,
the SP said. All of them
died on the spot as the
gorge was deep and the
car was badly damaged
in the accident on Mon-
day night, he said. —PTI
New Delhi: Greater
power and stronger
capabilities should
lead to responsibil-
ity and restraint and
result in economics
free of coercion and
politics devoid of the
threat of use of force,
External Affairs Minis-
ter S Jaishankar said
on Tuesday, spelling
out challenges in the
Indo-Pacific region. In
an address at the EU
Ministerial Forum on
Indo-Pacific in Paris,
he said the challenges
being faced in the re-
gion could extend to
Europe as “distance is
no insulation”. Jais-
hankar said the host-
ing of the forum at a
time when Europe has
been grappling with a
serious crisis.
INDO-PACIFIC ISSUES MAY EXTEND
TILL EUROPE, SAYS S JAISHANKAR
IN THE COURTYARD
14 dead as
vehicle falls
into gorge in
Uttarakhand
SC TO HEAR PLEA TODAY SEEKING
CANCELLATION OF CLASS X, XII EXAMS
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday
directed the Maharashtra government to com-
pletely hold back the ongoing investigation
against former Mumbai Police Commissioner
Parambir Singh over the allegations of mis-
conduct and corruption. A bench of Justices
SK Kaul and MM Sundresh expressing con-
cern over the “messy state of affairs” high-
lighted by the ongoing legal battle between
Singh with the state administration, said that
“it is a very very unfortunate situation”.
Beijing: China has promised to India to work for
the “early return” of over 23,000 Indian students
stranded at home for over two years due to
Beijing’s rigid Covid-19 visa ban and assured New
Delhi that they will not be discriminated against in
any manner, as their resumption of studies is not a
“political issue”. In its first positive communication
on the vexed issue of stranded Indian students.
New Delhi: The
Supreme Court on
Tuesday agreed to list
for February 23 a plea
seeking cancellation
of physical exams for
Class X and XII to be
conducted by all State
Boards, CBSE, ICSE
and National Institute
of Open School-
ing (NIOS). A
bench headed
by Justice AM
Khanwilkar
asked the ad-
vocate of the
petitioner to serve the
copy of the petition to
the CBSE and all State
Boards. The apex court
agreed to list the matter
for Wednesday after the
counsel of the petition-
er urged for an urgent
list of the case said that
even Covid-19 situa-
tion has improved,
classes have not
been conducted
offline. The pe-
tition was filed
by child rights
activist.
SC DIRECTS MAHA GOVT TO ‘HOLD
BACK’ PROBE AGAINST PARAMBIR
CHINA PROMISES TO ‘WORK FOR EARLY
RETURN’ OF STRANDED INDIAN STUDENTS
Dubai ends rapid RTPCR test at airport for fliers
NCP’s Supriya Sule among 11 MPs
to be conferred with Sansad Ratna
All nations should unite
against terrorism: Birla
Nitishwasalsoinvolvedin
fodderscam:RJDleader
NCP’s Supriya Sule
Bajrang Dal workers organise a march to demand justice for Harsha. —FILE PHOTO
EAM S Jaishankar with
Jutta Urpilainen
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla
—FILE PHOTO

BIZ BUZZ
07
Promoted by
AU Small Finance Bank
Crude prices posing challenge
to financial stability: FM
New Delhi: Finance
Minister Nirmala Si-
tharaman on Tuesday
said the Russia-
Ukraine crisis and the
ensuing jump in global
crude prices are a chal-
lenge to financial sta-
bility in India.
The two issues were
discussed at the meet-
ing of Financial Stabil-
ity Development Coun-
cil (FSDC).
“It is difficult to say
how it (crude prices)
will go. Even today, in
the FSDC, when we
were looking at the
challenges which are
posed for the financial
stability, crude was one
of the things. Interna-
tional worrisome situa-
tions where we actually
voiced that we want a
diplomatic solution for
the situation that is de-
veloping in Ukraine...
all these are head-
winds, Sitharaman,
who is on a two-day
visit to the financial
capital, said.
She said the Brent
has touched over $96
per barrel on Tuesday
after tensions between
Russia and Ukraine es-
calated after Moscow
ordered troops into two
breakaway regions in
eastern Ukraine and
added that the country
is keeping a watch on
the same. The finance
minister said the oil
marketing companies
will take a call on the
retail prices.
India, which meets
nearly 80% of its needs
through oil imports, is
worried about the ris-
ing crude oil prices as
it could widen its oil
import bill while lead-
ing to inflationary
pressures.
Trade has not been
impacted because of
the geopolitical ten-
sions but the govern-
ment is keeping a close
watch on the same, Si-
tharaman said adding
that we are careful that
the exporters should
not suffer. —PTI
UKRAINE SITUATION
THERE’S BUZZ,
INTEREST IN
MARKET FOR LIC
IPO, SAYS FM
Mumbai: Finance
Minister Nirmala
Sitharaman on
Tuesday said that the
government will go
ahead with the IPO
of the life insurance
behemoth LIC. She
said that there is a
buzz and interest in
the market for the
LIC IPO and we will
be going ahead with
it. The DRHP of LIC
IPO was filed with
market regulator
SEBI earlier this
month on February
13. The government
plans to sell up to
316.25 million shares
or nearly 5% stake
in the life insurance
giant. On being asked
about the spike in
global crude oil
prices, Nirmala said
that increasing crude
prices is a challenge
discussed at the
meeting on financial
stability and we will
keep a watch on it.
It is difficult to say how it (crude prices) will go. Even today, in the FSDC, when we were look-
ing at the challenges which are posed for the financial stability, crude was one of the things.
International worrisome situations where we actually voiced that we want a diplomatic solu-
tion for the situation that is developing in Ukraine.... all these are headwinds
— Nirmala Sitharaman, Finance Minister
India’sfueldemand
expected to grow
5.5% next fiscal
New Delhi: India’s
fuel demand is likely
to grow 5.5% in the fis-
cal year beginning
April 1 as economic
activity picks up after
devastation caused by
the pandemic, govern-
ment estimates
showed on Tuesday
.
Fuel consumption
in 2022-23 is estimated
to rise to 214.5 million
tonnes from 203.2 mil-
lion tonnes expected
sales in the current
fiscal year ending
March 2022, according
to the oil ministry’s
Petroleum Planning
and Analysis Cell.
It will cross the pre-
pandemic level sales
in the current fiscal.
Demand for petro-
leum products grew by
4.9% in the first nine
months of the current
fiscal year that began
in April 2021. Fuel con-
sumption was 148.3
million tonnes in
April-Dec 2021.
India consumed
194.3 million tonnes of
petroleum produced
in 2020-21 – the year
that saw a pandemic-
related lockdown crip-
pling economy and
mobility
.
During the next fis-
cal 2022-23, petrol,
used mainly in cars
and two-wheelers, is
expected to rise by
7.8% to 33.3 million
tonnes.Sales of diesel
is slated to grow by
3.9% to 79.3 million
tonnes. —PTI
Govt looking into lapses in NSE: FM Sitharaman
Mumbai: Finance
Minister Nirmala Si-
tharaman on Tuesday
said the government is
looking into the gov-
ernance lapses that had
happened at the Na-
tional Stock Exchange
(NSE) but declined to
comment on whether
there was an adequate
correctional step in
terms of actions taken
against those who were
held responsible for the
lapses.
Earlier this month,
markets watchdog Sebi
penalised NSE and its
former MDs and CEOs,
Chitra Ramkrishna
and Ravi Narain, and
others for various vio-
lations in a case related
to the appointment of
Anand Subramanian
as Group Operating Of-
ficer and Advisor to
then MD Ramkrishna.
The regulator also
imposed a fine of Rs 3
crore on Ramkrishna,
Rs 2 crore each on the
NSE, Narain and Sub-
ramanian and Rs 6 lakh
on V R Narasimhan,
who was then the Chief
Regulatory Officer and
Chief Compliance Of-
ficer.
Sitharaman told re-
porters here on Tues-
day that the govern-
ment was looking into
the governance lapses
that had happened at
the exchange.
“I have no comment
to make on whether
there was an adequate
correctional step in the
sense of penalising or
anything taken against
those who were held re-
sponsible for it.
“I have no view this
way or that way till I re-
ally get to the bottom of
what is available before
me. I am looking into it
but I won’t be able to
comment on it at the
moment,” Sitharaman
said.
She was responding
to queries, including on
whether the penalties
imposed were ade-
quate. —PTI
SENSEX RECOVERS 906 PTS FROM LOW, ENDS 383 PTS DOWN
Mumbai: The BSE benchmark
Sensex plummeted about 383
points to close at 57,300-level
on Tuesday, tracking massive
selloffs in global markets.
After sinking about 1,300
points in early deals, the
Sensex staged a sharp
recovery but still ended 382.91
points lower at 57,300.68.
The NSE Nifty too reclaimed
part of its early losses before
closing 114.45 points lower at
17,092.20. —PTI
` SLUMPS 29 PAISE TO CLOSE AT 74.84 AGAINST $
Mumbai: The rupee depreciated by 29 paise to 74.84 (provisional)
against the US currency on Tuesday as riskier assets took a hit
amid deepening geopolitical tensions. At the interbank foreign
exchange, the rupee opened at 74.71 against the American dollar
but later dropped to a low of 74.99 against the greenback. The
local unit was quoted at 74.84 at close, down 29 paise from the
previous close. —PTI
NEW DRAFT POLICY MANDATES GOVT BOIDES TO
COMPULSORILY SHARE DATA WITH EACH OTHER
New Delhi: All Central and state govt bodies will have to
compulsorily share data with each other to create a common
“searchable database”, a draft policy has made it mandatory. The
policy document provides an update to the existing policies,
including the National Data Sharing and Accessibility Policy
(NDSAP) and the Open Government Data Platform (OGD) India.
Hence, now for sharing the data, the Central and state govt bodies
will have to create a common “searchable database”. –Agencies
Barclays pegs
India’s Q3 GDP
growth at 6.6%
New Delhi: Forecast-
ing a lower-than-previ-
ously projected 10%
GDP growth for the fis-
cal year 2022 due to the
third wave of the pan-
demic, foreign broker-
age Barclays said the
Indian economy is like-
ly to have expanded by
6.6% in the Dec quarter.
The economy had a
relatively stable Q3
with several sectors re-
turning to pre-pandem-
ic level of activity, with
services playing a big-
ger role in activity, it
said, adding that with
the mild Omicron
wave, there is clear
downside risks to the
earlier growth forecast
of 10% in FY22. In the
July-Sept quarter, the
Indian economy had
clocked a growth of
8.4%. —PTI
I-T dept warns against fraudulent job offers
New Delhi: Caution-
ing public against fall-
ing prey to fraudulent
job offers, the Income
Tax Department on
Tuesday said aspirants
should only consider
offers or advertise-
ments on official web-
sites of SSC or the de-
partment.
“Income Tax Depart-
ment cautions the pub-
lic not to fall prey to
fraudulent persons
misleading job-aspir-
ants by issuing fake ap-
pointment letters for
joining the Depart-
ment,” the I-T depart-
ment tweeted.
In a public notice,
the apex direct tax
body said it has come
to its notice that some
fraudulent persons are
misleading candidates
by issuing fake ap-
pointment letters for
joining the I-T depart-
ment. It said direct re-
cruitment in all Group
B and C posts are con-
ducted by the SSC and
notification/results
are made available on
the SSC website. —PTI
LPG DEMAND RISE
Bengaluru: Indian food delivery company Swiggy, which is
backed by SoftBank Group, has started preparations to raise
at least $800 million in an IPO early next year, according to
reports. Swiggy has begun adding independent directors to
the board, and plans to position itself as a logistics
company and not just a food delivery firm. Swiggy
doubled its valuation to $10.7 billion in its latest
funding round, Reuters reported. Rival Zomato
Ltd, which saw a stellar market debut last year has
struggled to keep the momentum going. It reported
tepid order value growth in the third quarter. —PTI
SWIGGY EYES $800 MILLION IPO EARLY NEXT YEAR
New Delhi: Jalan-Kalrock consor-
tium-owned Jet Airways on Tues-
day announced the
appointment of
former SriLankan
Airlines’ CEO,
Vipula Gunatille-
ka as the Chief
Financial Officer. “We are excited to
welcome Vipula Gunatilleka to our
young and energetic team. Vipula is
an aviation expert and is regarded
as a turnaround specialist in the
industry. He has been shortlisted
after a rigorous process run by our
Executive Team over the last several
months,” said Ankit Jalan, Member
of the Monitoring Committee of Jet
Airways part of the Jalan-Kalrock
Consortium. Gunatilleka, who
served as the CEO of SriLankan
Airlines till January this year. —PTI
VIPULA GUNATILLEKA
NAMED JET AIRWAYS CFO
New Delhi: Asserting that artificial
intelligence is a promising area for
India’s future, a renowned Indi-
an-American expert has urged Prime
Minister Narendra Modi to not only
rope in but also encourage and
motivate the private sector to build
applications for healthcare, edu-
cation and banking sectors for the
benefit of India’s rural population.
AI is a branch of computer science
that replicates the human mind’s
problem-solving and decision-mak-
ing capabilities. —PTI
‘PVT AI PLAYERS MUST PLAY
BIG ROLE IN INDIA’S GROWTH’
Potential investors in LIC
IPO fret over govt control
New Delhi: Prospec-
tive investors in LIC
$8-billion IPO are
seeking assurances
from company man-
agement that it will
not sacrifice their in-
terests to meet the
goals set out by the
government, its con-
trolling shareholder,
sources said. LIC man-
agement and the IPO
bankers have been
peppered with ques-
tions about the insur-
er’s past investments
and their quality. LIC
has in recent years
been a key buyer of
shares in state-owned
firms sold off, often
bailing out less-than-
successful public is-
sues of shares. It has
also been tapped to
rescue struggling fi-
nancial institutions.
Finance
Minister Nirmala
Sitharaman

COVID-19
UPDATE
WORLD
59,12,403
TOTAL DEATHS
35,41,88,279
TOTAL RECOVERED
6,68,31,255
ACTIVE CASES
42,69,31,937
TOTAL CASES
INDIA
5,12,371
TOTAL DEATHS
4,21,58,510
TOTAL RECOVERED
1,81,048
ACTIVE CASES
4,28,51,929
TOTAL CASES
08
2NDFRONT
12 VHP ACTIVISTS HELD FOR
PROTESTING HIJAB IN SURAT
Hijab-wearing girls were not students of the school, but were there to take a competitive exam
First India Bureau
Surat: At least 12 ac-
tivists of the Vishwa
Hindu Parishad
(VHP) were on Tues-
day detained for pro-
testing against a
group of girls wear-
ing hijab at a school
in Surat, police said.
The VHP activists
were detained from the
school premises, where
they had gathered to
protest against some
girls wearing hijab, in-
spector MB Rathod of
Kapodra police station
said.
The girls wearing hi-
jab were not students of
the school, but had gone
there to attend a com-
petitive exam for which
the institute was a ven-
ue, the official said.
Activists sporting
saffron scarves protest-
ed peacefully at the
school even as students
gave their exam. The
principal informed the
police, which rushed to
the site and detained
them, he said.
“We rushed to the
school and detained 12
protesting members
and brought them to the
police station. No hin-
drance was caused to
the girls taking the
exam in a classroom,”
the inspector said.
Protesters claimed
that the girls were at-
tending school wearing
hijab as part of a con-
spiracy to turn Gujarat
into Shaheen Baug, a
site of sit-in protest by
Muslims against the
Citizenship (Amend-
ment) Act.
Meanwhile, Surat
Congress leader Aslam
Cyclewala said some
groups are deliberately
trying to disturb peace
in the state. “It appears
to be a conspiracy of
some right-wing outfits
to disturb peace in Gu-
jarat,” he said.
MLA files complaint after
BJP workers demolish benches
First India Bureau
Veraval: Veraval MLA
Vimal Chudasama
has lodged a police
complaint against the
husband of a BJP
councillor and the
corporation presi-
dent for allegedly
damaging benches al-
lotted from his grant
in a public garden.
The legislator also
handed over to the po-
lice a recording of a tel-
ephonic conversation
with the councillor’s
husband. According to
the MLA, in the record-
ing, the councillor
Bhartiben Chandani’s
husband Laxmanbhai
is heard saying that he
damaged the benches
on the instructions of
Palika President Pi-
yush Fofdi. The MLA
has also approached the
commissioner of the
corporation, seeking
the removal of the Pa-
lika president as per the
act of the corporation.
He said, “In my con-
stituency, there is a
grant for placing
benches with our
nameplates for sitting
in public places, which
was allotted a few days
ago in the public gar-
den at Shripal Society
inward no. 1. When we
were informed that the
benches had been dam-
aged, we rushed to the
spot and saw that the
benches were ham-
mered and the plates
and nuts and bolts were
removed.”
LOP Rathva accuses BJP
govt of `500 cr land scam
First India Bureau
Gandhinagar: Lead-
er of the Opposition
in the Gujarat As-
sembly, Sukhram
Rathva on Tuesday
accused the govern-
ment of allowing a
massive scam in the
name of zonal chang-
es, adding that Rs500
crore has been em-
bezzled so far.
Addressing the me-
dia, Rathva said that
citizens’ money is
stuck in different
scams across the state.
“It is the govern-
ment’s duty to find a
way to get the people
out of these scams and
see to the refund of this
money
. But it seems dif-
ferent for the BJP run
government. Former
CM Vijay Rupani and a
BJP leader from Rajkot
are involved in a huge
scam worth Rs500 crore
to the benefit Sahara
group, which has cheat-
ed thousands of people
of their home dreams,”
Rathva asserted.
He also said that a
scheme championed
by Rajkot Urban Devel-
opment Authority has
made some changes in
the zone for housing
development by simple
resolution.
He further added
that former CM Rupa-
ni had also pressured
then- collector Vikrant
Pande to change the
purpose of parcels of
land in Thaltej and
Vastrapur, in which he
amassed a total of
Rs100 crore.
“The government
should suspend the
scheme of change of
zone in favour of the
citizens and all of the
parcels of land ac-
quired through these
scams should be expro-
priated. An investiga-
tion should also be
launched to inquire
into the said scams to
bring the former CM
Vijay Rupani, Bhard-
waj and all perpetra-
tors involved in the
land scams to book,”
he said.
First India Bureau
Vadodara: To provide
better healthcare to
patients, 12 super-spe-
ciality doctors and
alumnus joined Sayaji
Hospital under the CM
Setu Yojana initiative.
Keeping in view the
specialhealthcareneeds
of Vadodara,Chief Min-
ister Bhupendra Patel
had approved the ser-
vicesof 12superspecial-
ity doctors instead of
eight in Sayaji Hospital.
In addition to the proper
working environment,
the state government
also provides them an
honorarium of Rs900.
These doctors daily di-
agnose 30 patients and
also perform operations
when needed.
Medical superinten-
dent of Sayaji Hospital
Ranjan Krishna Aiyar
said, “So far the servic-
es of super-speciality
doctors in government
hospitals like Sayaji
have been like a miss-
ing link and, patients
often had to opt for ex-
pensive private hospi-
tals for treatments.
Poor patients from Cen-
tral Gujarat and espe-
cially from the tribal
belt have benefitted due
to the presence of these
12 super-speciality doc-
tors at the hospital.”
The services of these
doctors are available at
the OPD or ward ac-
cording to their seating
arrangements, sched-
uled for one to three
hours per week. Till
now, 2,221 patients have
benefited and 67 surger-
ieshavebeenperformed
by these super-speciali-
ty doctors.
12 superspeciality doctors join Sayaji Hospital under CM Setu Yojana
SPECIAL TREATMENT

67
operations
done by
these doctors
and 2,221
patients
benefitted
so far
SSB rescues 8 fromAssam
including minors from Gujarat
First India Bureau
Guwahati: The Sa-
shastra Seema Bal
(SSB) personnel have
rescued eight persons
including minors from
Gujarat who were be-
ing held by a gang on
the pretext of provid-
ing jobs to them.
Alok Sharma, an of-
ficial of the 24 battal-
ion, also said that all
the eight persons have
been handed to Rail-
way Protection Force
(RPF) at the Kam-
akhya railway station
in Guwahati.
The victims are
from the Daranga Ka-
lipur area in Assam’s
Baksa district and
were taken to Gujarat
by a gang on the pre-
text of providing jobs.
According to re-
ports, the gang had
taken one year’s salary
of Rs5 lakh from them.
Alok Sharma, said,
“We have rescued
eight persons includ-
ing minor girls and
minor boys from Guja-
rat and took them in
Gandhidham express
from Gujarat to Guwa-
hati.”
“The rescued per-
sons belong to an eco-
nomically poor family
living in the bordering
areas of Assam. The
gang led by a woman
named Manjana had
cheated the persons.
The family members
of the victims request-
ed us to help the vic-
tims and finally, we
have rescued them,”
Alok Sharma said.
The family mem-
bers of the victims had
lodged complaints
against the gang at Ku-
marikata police sta-
tion in Assam’s Baksa
district.
GOOD CAUSE
MLA Chudasama has
called for the removal
of city councillor
Bhartiben Chandani
Protesters showed up outside the school where the exam was being held on Tuesday.
Veraval MLA Vimal Chudasama —FILE PHOTO
Sukhram Rathva —FILE PHOTO
Once a person learns to give
without expecting anything in
return, he can achieve anything.
—Jagdeesh Chandra, CEO Editor-in-Chief, First India

lthough su-
p e r m o d e l s
and glamour
industry art-
ists may
have been re-
vered for
their enviable style
and penchant for
luxury, they also
grappled with trou-
bled upbringings
and challenges
throughout their
lifetimes. But Shr-
ishti Khatri, an
18-years old gor-
geous model from
Pink City writes
her own rules.
W h e n
a s k e d
about her
e a r l y
life, the
r av i s h -
ing beauty said, “I did my
schooling from India Inter-
national School Jaipur but
my parents are from Nepal.
I am a second culture kid
so I was born and brought
up here.” She further add-
ed, “I’ve been into model-
ling since a kid and when I
grew up I gradually real-
ised that I was made for it
so I joined the industry
again after a gap of a few
years. When I turned 16, I
wanted to leave a huge
mark in the modelling and
fashion industry.”
I have done four beauty
pageants as of now.”
A multitalented sports lov-
er with dancing and acting
as her passion, Shrishti
looks up to Aditi Hundia,
fashion influencer and
Miss Supranational 2018 as
her role model.
Khatri aspires to earn a
huge name and fame and
leave her footprints on
the inter-
national beauty platforms.
Shrishti has been a fash-
ionista and a diva since
childhood. Her family and
friends have been a huge
support. She said that she
has learnt a lot from Gaurav
Gaur, the Director of Elite
Miss Rajasthan after she
participated in the beauty
pageant. She also paid grat-
itude to her parents for al-
ways uplifting her during
the hard times.
Whenaskedwhatmes-
sageshe’dliketogiveto
younggirlsof herage,
she said, “When
you’re deter-
mined to reach
a goal, you just
havetogoforit,
keep your head
high and keep
moving. Ev-
erything is possible if you
try, things take time but in
the end, it’ll be all worth it.”
www.firstindia.co.in I www.firstindia.co.in/epaper/ I twitter.com/thefirstindia
facebook.com/thefirstindia I instagram.com/thefirstindia 09
AHMEDABAD, WEDNESDAY,
FEBRUARY 23, 2022
A
MITALI DUSAD
mitalidusad01@gmail.com
A PERFECT CREATION
Supermodel Shrishti Khatri, who hails from Rajasthan, opens up to City First
about her life as a young model and her down to earth approach to beauty!
—PHOTOS
BY
MUKESH
KIRADOO
SHRISHTI

10
ETC
DAMINI
GUPTA,
Influencer
FACE
OF
THE
DAY!
Aries
MARCH 21 - APRIL 20
On professional front,
recognition for good
work would motivate
you to work harder.
Efforts made to
improve looks or personality will bring
desired results. Those awaiting an
affirmation on romantic front are likely
to get lucky today, as partner responds
positively.
Gemini
MAY 21 - JUNE 21
A sound financial health
of businessmen would
enable to give monetary
benefits to employees.
Your sole dependency
on friends may fail to bring any respite
from loneliness today. It is good day to
confess your love as stars appear
favourable for positive reply. Those
awaiting for love may get lucky today.
Leo
JULY 24 - AUGUST 23
Health tips from an
expert will enable you
to follow fitness goals.
Chances of being
misled by competitors
in business are high, so remain alert.
Your generous behavior would enable
to enjoy some lovely moments with
family. Love comes your way as
friendship turns into romance.
Libra
SEPTEMBER 24 - OCTOBER 22
Some of you are going
to experience emotional
fulfillment on romantic
front. Yoga would help
in raising energy levels
and improve your metabolism. Place
emphasis on domestic affairs to
enhance the domestic tranquility and
harmony. Associating yourself with
humanitarian group would benefit you.
Sagittarius
NOVEMBER 23 - DECEMBER 22
Your hard work and
dedication are likely to
be noticed by seniors,
paving way for
promotion or increment.
Family will be supportive of career
aspirations. A promising day overall as
you stay in limelight without any efforts.
Harsh words may create a rift in your
romantic relationship; be careful.
Aquarius
JANUARY 21 - FEBRUARY 19
You will succeed in
resolving misunder-
standing with family,
normalizing ties. Seek
proper valuation of the
property you are planning to buy. You
will remain much in demand on social
front. You need to stand by romantic
partner during testing times to make
the relationship stronger.
Taurus
APRIL 21 - MAY 20
You succeed in
completing an important
project well before
deadline. Disagreements
on the family front are
foreseen. Be careful about the legal
apprehensions in the property you are
planning to buy. Your intuition will save
you from a tricky spot today. Probably,
think of taking up a new job.
Cancer
JUNE 22 - JULY 23
You will have an
awesome day today.
Continue to put in
efforts at work will
bring promising
opportunities. Matrimonial match for
siblings will bring happiness for family.
You will get a good price for your prop-
erty. You may receive invaluable
guidance from a spiritual leader.
Virgo
AUGUST 24 - SEPTEMBER 23
Implementation of new
ideas and projects
would add to your
prestige. A sound
monetary position
would enable you to keep pace with
changing times. Avoid raising
controversial issues at home to
maintain harmony. It is a wonderful day
to build new connections.
Scorpio
OCTOBER 23 - NOVEMBER 22
Seek the opinion of
your family before
finalizing a property
deal. An impromptu
invitation to a function
from an unexpected friend is likely to
be received. Your bold initiatives on
romantic front bring back passion and
spark in romantic relationship. Your
relationship requires you to be tactful.
Capricorn
DECEMBER 23 - JANUARY 20
Those suffering from
chronic ailments may
find remarkable
improvement in their
health. Today you will
enjoy the trust of senior management.
Minor domestic disputes may
snowball into a major row, so give
attention to the family. Rewards will
come your way in a social endeavour.
Pisces
FEBRUARY 20 - MARCH 20
Paying special attention
to plan your career
would give immense
joy. You are likely to get
clearance or approval
for your construction plans. You find
things moving in the way you want
them. Gifting something to your
beloved is likely to make the day
memorable.
ife is an unpre-
dictable crea-
ture. In order to
safeguard our-
selves, we plan
copiously, to in-
vest immense
time and effort in mak-
ing every measurable
aspect of our lives ‘se-
cure’ so that imminent
risks are mitigated. Fac-
ets such as education,
career, choosing a life
partner are just a few
areas that we approach
with premeditated cal-
culation and logic. The
result? It is an undenia-
ble fact that a vast ma-
jority of people are woe-
fully unhappy in life –
particularly in their ca-
reers and in their mar-
riages. To what avail
was all that meticulous
planning?
I can tell you from
personal experience, in
my 30s, I took what
would be described as a
huge risk. Left a decade-
long, well-established
media career in Mum-
bai, moved back to my
hometown of Jaipur,
and decided to Teach.
Has that risk paid off ?
Absolutely. Not only am
I infinitely more content
than I ever was, I now,
finally, feel a sense of
self-pride and my own
existential crisis is over.
I am sharing all this
today because I feel that
more and more, young
people, children and stu-
dents in India, are deny-
ing themselves the right
of discovering their
true passions. Our stu-
dents are not taking a
chance on what they re-
ally love to do, choosing
instead to tread a clini-
cal, predetermined path
(that is too often dictat-
ed by family and/or so-
ciety). Our students opt
for subjects, courses,
and eventually careers,
that come with some
kind of assurances –
primarily that of a
steady, secure income.
Little else is a factor
when determining life’s
path. And that to my
mind is a crying shame.
Because these students
may well solicit admis-
sions in the world’s best
colleges and institu-
tions, even land plum
jobs at big corporations
thereafter – ultimately,
they are becoming part
of a robotic, passionless
workforce that may be
earning well, though,
are miserable in what
they are doing!
And that is what
brings me to my original
point. If we don’t take
risks if we don’t explore
if we don’t experiment,
then how can we possi-
bly fulfill what our
hearts and minds truly
desire! This play-safe
outlook has permeated
every aspect of our lives
– from small decisions to
big ones. Want to go on
vacation? We will, more
often than not, choose
the tried-and-tested,
popular destinations,
rather than venture into
uncharted territory. The
same ethos applies to ca-
reer, education, and
most everything.
Imagine a young child
who is, say thirteen
years of age, and is deep-
ly passionate and talent-
ed in Singing. As this
child grows older, his
passion is relegated to a
hobby, with family and
society saying that sing-
ing can’t possibly be a
career choice! Later
still, during and after
this young person’s En-
gineering or MBA, the
little time dedicated to
music also stops (as a
natural consequence of
having no time and/or
energy). We would all be
pretending if we said
that this individual
would be happy. He or
she, in fact, would be a
deeply frustrated, unful-
filled individual. Should
inner happiness not
then dictate at least
some choices that
youngsters make?
Had I not taken a risk
by shifting career paths,
I know today for a fact,
that I would have been
earning a lot more mon-
ey
. But would I have been
happy? Would I have
been content? Would I
have been satisfied? The
answer is an emphatic –
NO! I can now, through
personal experience,
only use my own exam-
ple to propel young peo-
ple to seriously look in-
ward, undertake an hon-
est process of introspec-
tion, and during their
schooling years, really
zero in on what makes
them truly happy. The
good news today is that
the world is a vastly dif-
ferent place than it was
a decade, or even five
years earlier. Several so-
called ‘alternative’ in-
terests and passions –
from Sports, Arts and
Video Gaming can now
be legitimate, sustaina-
ble and lucrative ca-
reers. My final advice,
therefore, is that there
really is no reason to
sacrifice one’s original
passions. Take risks,
and take flight!
KARTIK BAJORIA
(the author is a Jaipur-based
Communication Skills
Educator Writer)
L
YOUNGSTERS
YOUNGSTERS,
,
TAKE RISKS TO BE HAPPY!
TAKE RISKS TO BE HAPPY!
If we don’t
If we don’t
take risks if
take risks if
we don’t
we don’t
explore if
explore if
we don’t
we don’t
experiment,
experiment,
then how can
then how can
we possibly
we possibly
fulfill what
fulfill what
our hearts
our hearts
and minds
and minds
truly desire!
truly desire!
YOUR DAY Horoscopeby
SaurabbhSachdeva
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