tirupati l monday l january 19, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l anantapur EDITION Advocates can’t use RTI Act to seek details for clients’ cases: CIC Using the transparency law in this manner fails to advance its core objectives, the Central Information Commission (CIC) has observed Case relates to dispute over a supply deed ‘RTI act can’t be used for personal ends’ The case relates to the termination of a fruit and vegetable supply contract at Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya in Haryana. The supplier’s advocate sought to use the RTI Act to obtain information on behalf of his client. “It appears that the appellant has sought information on behalf of his client per se, which is not permissible,” the CIC said ■ ■ Quoting a Madras High Court order, the CIC underlined that “laudable objectives of RTI Act cannot be used for personal ends” The Madras High Court had cautioned against allowing advocates to use the RTI Act to obtain information on behalf of clients, stating that this “does not advance the objects of the scheme” 17.5 lakh the overall number of RTI applications filed during 2023-24 CHENNAI ■ MADURAI ■ VIJAYAWADA ■ BENGALURU ■ KOCHI ■ HYDERABAD ■ VISAKHAPATNAM ■ COIMBATORE ■ KOZHIKODE ■ THIRUVANANTHAPURAM ■ BELAGAVI ■ BHUBANESWAR ■ SHIVAMOgGA ■ MANGALURU ■ TIRUPATI ■ TIRUCHY ■ TIRUNELVELI ■ SAMBALPUR ■ HUBBALLI ■ DHARMAPURI ■ KOTTAYAM ■ KANNUR ■ VILLUPURAM ■ KOLLAM ■ TADEPALLIGUDEM ■ NAGAPATTINAM ■ THRISSUR ■ KALABURAGI Modi targets Congress, Trinamool in poll-pitch against ‘infiltrators’ Don invites PM Modi to join ‘Board of Peace’ Accuses the two parties of endangering national security for the sake of vote-bank politics P RASAN TA M A Z U M DAR & S U B H E ND U M AI T I @ Guwahati / Kolkata PRIME Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday mounted a sharp political attack on the Congress and Trinamool Congress (TMC), accusing the two parties of endangering national security by protecting infiltrators for vote-bank politics. After laying the foundation stone for the `6,957 crore Kaziranga Elevated Corridor, and virtually flagging off two Amrit Bharat trains from Kaliabor in election-bound Assam’s Nagaon district, Modi accused the Congress of allowing infiltrators in exchange for votes during its years in power in the north-eastern state. Taking potshots at the Congress for its poor show in the recent Bihar Assembly election and Maharashtra local body polls, Modi said the grand old party has lost the trust of the nation and the BJP has become the first choice of people. “In the recent Bihar elections, even after 20 years, people gave a record number of votes to the BJP helping it win , Projects worth `7,787cr launched Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses a gathering during the foundation stone laying ceremony for the Kaziranga Elevated Corridor, in Nagaon, Assam on Sunday | pti a record number of seats. Mumbai, for the first time, gave a record mandate to the BJP. In most cities of Maharashtra, people gave the BJP an opportunity to serve them,” he said. Modi also pointed to the BJP’s electoral breakthrough in Kerala, where the party secured the mayor’s post in Thiruvananthapuram for the first time. According to Modi, the results across states reflected a consistent national trend. “The voters today want good governance and development. That is why they like the BJP , ,” he said, adding that the results show the Congress is being repeatedly rejected by voters. Later in the day addressing a , rally at West Bengal’s Singur, Modi accused the TMC government of sitting idle on the Centre’s request to acquire land for fencing the Bangladesh border. “The Centre has been writing to the TMC government in Ben- PM launched development projects worth `7,787 crore in poll-bound Assam and Bengal. In Assam, he laid the foundation stone for the `6,957 cr Kaziranga Elevated Corridor and virtually flagged off two Amrit Bharat trains. In West Bengal, he launched projects worth over `830 crore and flagged off three Amrit Bharat trains connecting Kolkata with other parts of the country gal for the past 11 years requesting land for border fencing to prevent infiltration in the state. But it sits idle on the issue,” Modi alleged. Sharpening his attack on the TMC, he said the party is “playing with the country’s security” by giving support to infiltrators from Bangladesh. “The state government is giving safety and security to infiltrators and that’s why they vote for TMC,” the PM said. Intel agencies warn of LeT recruitment drive in PoK M U K E SH RAN J AN @ New Delhi Video shoot: TTD lodges complaint against two E x p r e s s Ne w s Se r v i c e @ Tirumala The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) has lodged a formal complaint with police against Praveen Kyasa and Sidha Moni Mahinder, two self-styled social media influencers, for allegedly misusing the sanctity of the hill shrine to promote an unauthorised lottery scheme. This is the second case registered against the duo. The first was filed at Yellareddyguda, Panjagutta, Hyderabad, based on a complaint by actress Padala Kalyani, popularly known as Karate Kalyani. According to TTD Vigilance officials, the two influencers, who got a modest following online, conducted a video shoot lasting more than 30 minutes in front of the Lord Venkateswara temple, the Akhilandam, and other parts of the shrine. During the shoot, they reportedly urged subscribers to pay `399 to register for a “lucky dip”, promising prizes such as a Toyota Fortuner, an Apple iPhone, a twowheeler, and a television. The complaint noted that they changed costumes during filming, suggesting a deliberate plan to exploit religious sentiment for commercial gain. TTD Vigilance sleuths got FIR copies from Telangana police before filing the complaint. Pakistan-based terrorist organisation Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) has launched a renewed and intensified recruitment campaign with an aim to establish new training camps in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), Indian intelligence agencies have learned. The recruitment campaign is being spearheaded by senior LeT commander Nasr Javed. Sources said Javed has visited several strategic locations in PoK over the past few months to mobilise local youth. Over the past two weeks, he was in Mirpur, Kotli and Poonch districts of PoK. During these visits, he addressed more than four open rallies organised by the PoK unit of Lashkar-e-Taiba and held over 10 closed-door meetings with local operatives and sympathisers. The primary objective of these engagements, intelli- Three soldiers injured in J&K encounter Three soldiers were injured in a gunfight with terrorists in a remote forested area in the upper reaches of Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar district on Sunday, officials said gence sources said, is to recruit young men for the new LeT training camps expected to come up soon in PoK. Javed is considered a key operational figure within LeT and is known for his expertise in terrorist training. As per the sourc- es, Javed has been tasked with raising a new unit in PoK, with a specific mandate to prepare recruits for counter-insurgency and cross-border operations. Noting that the recruitment push is not confined to PoK, the intelligence sources said in November last year, Javed, along with LeT operative Abdul Rauf, held more than 50 rallies and secret meetings across Pakistan’s Sindh province. “Security agencies assess that these coordinated visits across provinces point to an effort to build a broader pool of recruits and revive LeT’s operational strength nationwide,” a source said. Meanwhile, intelligence inputs suggest that efforts to reactivate Markaz-e-Taiba, the LeT’s headquarters, are gaining pace. Buildings damaged during Operation Sindoor are being repaired with photographs and videos of construction activity circulating on social media, sources said. express read Kohli ton in vain as India suffer historic loss Iran protests net death toll over 5,000 INDORE: Virat Kohli smashes his 85th international ton, but New Zealand had the last laugh as they beat India by 41 runs to win their first ODI series in the country. Less than 18 months ago, Black Caps handed India a 3-0 hammering in red-ball cricket and now have followed it up with a sensational ODI series win weeks before the T20 World Cup. Dubai: At least 5,000 people have been killed in protests in Iran, including about 500 security personnel, Reuters reported citing an unnamed Iranian official on Sunday. The consolidated death toll was based on verified figures, with the official accusing “terrorists and armed rioters” of killing “innocent Iranians”. | P9 J aya n t h J a c o b @ New Delhi People protesting US President Donald Trump’s policy towards Greenland in front of the US consulate in Nuuk, Greenland early on Sunday | AP Strong EU pushback against Trump’s tariff war over Greenland manuel Macron will ask the EU to activate a never-beforeEUROPEAN leaders on Sun- used “anti-coercion instruday slammed US President ment” against the United Donald Trump’s threat of tar- States if Trump makes good iffs over their opposition to on his tariff threat, Macron’s his designs on Greenland, aides said. warning transatlantic ties The bloc’s weapon, dubbed were at risk. its trade “bazooka”, allows Several European countries curbing imports of goods and — including Denmark, of services into the EU, a market which Greenland is an auton- of 27 countries with a comomous territory — bined population of emphasised they 450 million. “stand united” Trump had on Satagainst Trump’s vow urday threatened to on Saturday to hit Tariff threats are punish eight Eurounacceptable, them with tariffs of pean countries with have no place. up to 25 percent untariffs after they sent We’ll ask the EU to a few dozen troops to less Greenland is cedactivate ‘antied to the United Greenland as part of coercion’ if US States. a military drill. imposes tariffs “Tariff threats unItaly’s far-right dermine transatlan- Emmanuel Macron, Prime Minister, GiorFrance President tic relations and risk gia Meloni, called the a dangerous downthreatened tariffs a ward spiral,” Britain, Den- “mistake”. mark, Finland, France, GerDutch Foreign Minister m a ny, t h e N e t h e rl a n d s, David van Weel meanwhile Norway and Sweden warned called Trump’s threat an “inin a joint statement Sunday . explicable” “blackmail”. The European Union, which British Prime Minister Keir clinched a deal with Washing- Starmer was planning to diston in July for most EU ex- cuss the situation with Trump ports to face a 15-percent US “at the earliest opportunity .” levy, has called an extraordi- Norway targeted by Trump’s , nary meeting of its ambassa- tariffs threat but, like Britain, dors in Brussels on Sunday . not an EU member, said it was France’s President Em- not looking at retaliation. AG E NCI E S US President Donald Trump has invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to join a proposed “Board of Peace” for Gaza, in a significant outreach as Washington seeks to shape post-war governance and reconstruction of the besieged enclave. The invitation letter was sent on January 16. Pakistan’s Foreign Office had earlier said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had also been invited to be part of the initiative. Several global leaders have been invited too, including Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and leaders of France, Germany, Australia and Canada. Details about the peace board surfaced after letters sent by Trump to Argentine President Javier Milei and Paraguayan President Santiago Peña were posted by the two leaders on social media. In his letter to Milei, Trump said the board would work to “solidify peace in the Middle East.” A draft charter circulated by the Trump administration to 60 countries reportedly requires member states to contribute $1 billion in cash for memberships extending beyond three years. Trump has named former British prime minister Tony Blair as a founding executive member of the board, alongside his son-in-law Jared Kushner, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and World Bank Group President Ajay Banga. It’s not me, they resorted to ‘credit theft’ for recognition, asserts Naidu E x p r e s s Ne w s Se r v i c e @ Vijayawada Turning the tables on his detractors, particularly the YSRCP, Chief Minister and TDP supremo N Chandrababu Naidu on Sunday accused them of “claiming credit for work they never did.” Speaking at a meeting at the TDP headquarters to mark the 30th death anniversary of party founder NTR, Naidu alleged that his rivals were “spreading falsehoods while scrambling for recognition.” He pointed to several marquee projects as examples. “Kakinada’s AM Green is investing $10 billion, the Bhogapuram airport land acquisition was done by us, and the Civil Aviation University is being set up for the first time. Yet they shamelessly claim it as their achievement,” he said. He reminded TDP cadre that CM Naidu speaks at the party meeting held at the TDP headquarters on Sunday to mark the 30th death anniversary of Telugu Desam founder NTR | Express similar claims were made earlier about Kia Motors, despite the opposition having “no role whatsoever” in it. He accused the YSRCP of running a parallel narrative. “They cry ‘credit theft’ while actually stealing credit themselves. Cyberabad, Kia, Google, Bhogapuram, and green energy — these are all TDP’s contributions. Their credit lies elsewhere - sand, wine, mines, drugs and ganja. Spending `700 crore of taxpayers’ money to get his image printed on survey stones. That’s their record,” P4 Naidu thundered.  RTC plans to develop 6 bus stations under PPP mode, unions oppose move P h a n i n d r a Pa pa s a n i @ Vijayawada The Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC) has proposed the development of six major bus stations across the State under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model with an aim to modernise passenger infrastructure and generate addi- tional non-fare revenue. However, the move has triggered a strong opposition from RTC employee unions, who fear backdoor privatisation of public assets for three to five decades will leave the corporation crumbled, limiting the exploration of revenue. According to sources, the proposed projects include the redevelopment of integrated bus terminals at Autonagar in Vijayawada, Rajvihar in Kurnool, Guntur and Kadapa, besides the construction of a modern intermodal station in Tirupati, and a bus stationcum-commercial complex in Chittoor. The total estimated investment of six projects runs into `958 crore. Among the six projects, the redevelopment of Autonagar Integrated Bus Terminal in Vijayawada at an estimated cost of `154 crore is stated to be “ready to bid.” The Tirupati Intermodal Station, pegged at `495 crore, has completed its Detailed Project Report (DPR). The remaining four projects are still at the DPR preparation stage. The six projects are planned under different PPP formats such as Design-Finance-BuildOperate-Transfer (DF-BOT), BOT with Viability Gap Funding (BOT-VGF), and BOT with revenue-sharing mechanisms. On the other hand, RTC union leaders have raised serious concern over the move, alleging that the PPP model would ultimately benefit private companies at the cost of the corpoP4 ration.