Monday, January 19, 2026 | Vol. 69 No. 90 | 28 Pages Reg.No MCS/048/2021-23; RNI No. 1541/1957 M.p.c.s office Mumbai. PIN 400001 THE FREE PRESS JOURNAL INDIA EDITION | www.freepressjournal.in ● Leader in E-paper circulation GAMES NATION Need to erase caste from mind to end discrimination: RSS chief Bhagwat Cinema Suniel Shetty opens up on Bharat Ke Super Founders Smriti Mandhana-led RCB will aim to extend their winning streak in the WPL against GG Edit Why Mahayuti’s BMC win is a landmark moment for Mumbai NO HOLDS BARRED | At Singur, Modi says TMC ‘playing with nat’l security’ by aiding infiltrators End ‘maha jungle raj’: PM on Didi turf FPJ News Service KOLKATA On his second day of West Bnegal visit, PM Narendra Modi on Sunday stepped up his attack on the Mamata Banerjee government, urging the electorate to end the ruling TMC’s “maha jungle raj” in the upcoming Assembly election. He was addressing a rally at Singur in Hooghly district, a site etched in the state’s political memory for the agitation led by Banerjee in 2008 against land acquisition that forced Tata Motors to pull out its Nano car project. Modi accused the TMC of "playing with national security" by protecting infiltrators for vote-bank politics, and said defeating it was vital to restoring law and order, development and investor confidence. He urged voters to back BJP's "double-engine government" model, arguing that industry and investment would come to the state only when law and order improved, and that such an environment was possible only under BJP. "TMC is playing with the security of West Bengal and the country. They protect infiltrators because they form their vote bank," he said, alleging that illegal immigration along borders had been allowed to flourish under the state government's watch. Modi said, "Border fencing has been stalled for years. Fake documents are being made. It is time to completely stop infiltration and identify and send back those who entered using forged papers. A BJP government would ensure this." 4Contd on | nation 4See also | nation On Day 2, `830-cr gift Aritra Singha KOLKATA Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday launched development projects worth over Rs 830 crore in West Bengal and flagged off three Amrit Bharat trains connecting Kolkata with other parts of the country. On the previous day, the PM inaugurated and laid the foundation stone for projects worth Rs 3,250 crore. Modi mentioned that the NDA-led central government’s push gave classical language tag to Bengali language. “It is due to the central government’s initiative that Durga Puja of West Bengal also got UNESCO heritage tag.” 4Contd on | nation TAILPIECE 8 soldiers hurt in Kashmir gunfight TRUMP’S AIDE NOW ATTACKS INDIA OVER AI Techie drowns, dad watches helplessly WHY EVERY VOTE COUNTS PTI WASHINGTON FPJ News Service CHHATRAPATI SAMBHAJINAGAR JAMMU Eight Army soldiers were injured in a gunfight with terrorists in a remote forested area in the upper reaches of J&K’s Kishtwar district on Sunday, officials said. The intense exchange of fire lasted several hours before the guns fell silent. Reinforcements have been deployed to strengthen the cordon and neutralise the terrorists. The operation, which the Army’s Jammu-based White Knight Corps has named ‘Op- eration Trashi-I’, began around noon. In a post on X, the White Knight Corps said security forces came in contact with terrorists in Sonnar, northeast of Chatroo, during a search operation conducted as part of joint counter-terror operations along with the J&K Police. “Operations remain underway, with additional forces inducted to reinforce the cordon, supported by close coordination with the civil administration and security agencies,” the Army said. 4Contd on | nation Agencies NEW DELHI Amid tensions over US tariffs, White House trade advisor Peter Navarro has sparked a fresh row by questioning why Americans are effectively paying for artificial intelligence (AI) services used in India and other countries. In an interview with former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon on Real America Voice, Navarro raised concerns about the use of US resources to support global AI platforms. 4Contd on | nation A 27-year-old software engineer died after his car fell into a 20-feet-deep water-filled pit dug for the basement of an under-construction building in Sector 150 of Greater Noida in UP. It sparked outrage among the residents, who alleged absence of reflectors along the road amid dense fog. The incident occurred in the early hours of Saturday when Yuvraj Mehta was returning to his home in Sector 150 from his office in Gurugram, police said The techie’s car fell into a ditch in dense fog. Moninder, an eyewitness, said rescue personnel were hesitant to enter the cold water on Sunday. His car hit a highground ridge that separates two drainage basins and fell into the ditch. Mehta called his father for help, who reached the spot but couldn’t save him. 4Contd on | nation Agencies It can be called an electoral photo finish. The winner in Ward 1A of Parbhani Municipal Corporation in Maharashtra was decided by just a vote. Vyankat Dahale bagged 4,312 votes, while BJP's Prasad Nagare polled 4,311, an official said on Sunday. Shiv Sena’s Mohan Sonawane got 1,363 votes, while 113 electors opted for NOTA. Against BJP’s 12 seats, Shiv Sena (UBT) won 25 in Parbhani, the lone municipality in Marathwada where it outshone the saffron party. MARATHON KING: Ethiopia’s Tadu Abate Deme won the overall men’s title at Tata Mumbai Marathon on Sunday. His compatriot Yeshi Kalayu Chekole clinched the women’s title. SEE CITY, GAMES, CINEMA Pay $1bn for seat on Trump’s Gaza Board Agencies WASHINGTON The Trump administration has told countries that want a permanent spot on the new Gaza Board of Peace (BoP), which will be responsible for rebuilding the Gaza Strip and ensuring Hamas's disarmament, that they must contribute "at least one billion dollars," Bloomberg reported. “Each Member State shall serve a term of no more than three years from this Charter’s entry into force, subject to renewal by the Chairman," a drafted charter for the BoP, reportedly seen by Bloomberg, said. "The three-year membership term shall not apply to Member States that contribute more than $1,000,000,000 in cash funds to the Board of The US president has invited Indian PM Modi to join the new peace body as he sent letters to heads of state of over 60 countries, media reports said. Pakistan said its PM Shehbaz Sharif has been invited too Peace within the first year of the Charter’s entry into force." 4Contd on | nation