FOLLOW US: @TheStatesmanLtd @thestatesmanltd thestatesman1875 www.thestatesman.com People’s Parliament, Always in Session India’s National Newspaper since 1818 | Pages 12 | ` 5.00 | KOLKATA | NEW DELHI | SILIGURI | BHUBANESWAR | Wednesday, 21 January 2026 SPORTS WORLD EDITORIAL Long Game Stock market witnesses sharp sell-off, indices fall over 1 pc: New Delhi: The stock market on Tuesday witnessed a sharp sell-off with benchmark indices plunging more than 1 per cent, as investors remained cautious amid uncertain global cues, including tension between the USA and its NATO allies, and cautious positioning ahead of more corporate earnings announcements. The Nifty 50 index fell below the 25,200 mark. At close, the Sensex was down 1065.78 points or 1.28 per cent at 82,180.47, and the Nifty was down 353 points or 1.38 per cent at 25,232.50. BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices also fell over 2 per cent each. The overall market capitalisation of BSE-listed firms dropped to nearly Rs 456 lakh crore from nearly Rs 468 lakh. Nifty Realty crashed over 5 per cent, and Consumer Durables 3 per cent. Page 10 All eyes on SKY’s form as India begin T20 WC dress rehearsal against NZ Page 8 Page 12 NATION Page 10 Page 6 BRIEFLY TN Guv boycotts Assembly, skips customary address B’desh court begins trial proceedings against Chinmoy Das Youngest ever, Nitin Nabin takes charge as BJP chief STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE New Delhi, 20 January N itin Nabin, the youngest ever, on Tuesday took charge as the national president of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the party headquarters in the national capital. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh were among the senior leaders present on the occasion. Mr Nabin is a five-term MLA and emerged as the sole candidate in the race, making him the youngest leader to hold the top position in the party’s history. PM Modi felicitated Nitin Nabin after handing him the certificate of election as BJP national president at the party headquarters in Delhi. Outgoing BJP national president JP Nadda, along with Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah, and Nitin Gadkari, also congratulated the newly elected president. Addressing party leaders and workers, Mr Nadda congratulated the new president and said that Nitin Nabin has taken on the responsibility as the 12th National President of such a great party. Reflecting on recent electoral performances, he added: “The results of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections did not meet our expectations. These results surprised not only the party but also the general public. A sense of disappointment arose among the country’s voters, and a feeling of resentment developed. The voters resolved that in upcoming elections, they would give their full support to Modi ji and work to further the party’s progress.” Mr Nadda recalled that after the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the Opposition was very confident in the Haryana elections. "They were already making arrangements to distribute sweets even before the results were declared. They didn’t realize that voters had decided to correct the minor mistakes caused by overconfidence. That’s exactly what happened in Haryana. We saw a record victory in Maharashtra under the leadership of respected Modi ji.and under your leadership, after 27 years, the lotus bloomed in Delhi as well, forming the BJP government.” Deputy Commissioner K. Laxman, who acted as the Returning Officer for the election, announced that 37 sets of nomination papers backing Mr Nabin, including endorsements from Prime Minister Modi, Union Ministers Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, Nitin Gadkari, Dharmendra Pradhan, Kiren Rijiju, Hardeep Puri, and outgoing president JP Nadda, were found valid. Chief Ministers and state BJP presidents from several states, including Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Goa, Arunachal Pradesh, and Delhi, also submitted nominations in his favour. PM welcomes ‘boss’ Nabin; BJP’s next-gen chief says politics not ‘bhog’ but ‘tyag’ VIBHA SHARMA New Delhi, 20 January Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday described himself as a “party worker” while welcoming Nitin Nabin (45) — the BJP’s next generation president. “When it comes to party matters, Nitin Nabin is my boss,” Mr Modi said at the Sangathan Parv event, an official ceremony to welcome the BJP's youngest ever chief, underscoring the saffron party’s worker-centric ethos and emphasis on internal democracy, at the BJP headquarters “You will think Modi is a third term PM, became CM at 50 years, has been head of government for 25 years but all these things are secondary. My greatest pride is, I am a BJP worker and Nitin Nabin ji is my boss,” the PM said welcoming the new chief on stage, marking the transition from J P Nadda. Speaking in the presence of a galaxy of BJP leaders—chief ministers, party chiefs, organisational stalwarts, PM Modi described the new BJP chief as a “millennial leader” representing a generation that has transitioned from radio bulletins to artificial intelligence. “Nitin ji in one way is a millennial. He is from a generation which has seen technological changes. He has seen the era of radio and is also an AI user. He has youthful energy and fine organisational skills which will be of great value to us,” the PM said. In his first address as the party chief, Mr Nabin described politics as a long-term commitment rooted in sacrifice and responsibility. Thanking the Prime Minister, past BJP presidents, and party workers for his rise from an ordinary karyakarta he said “politics is not indulgence (bhog), it is sacrifice (tyag); it is not luxury, but a penance (tapasya). Politics is not a position, it is responsibility,” he said, drawing applause. India and EU on the ‘cusp’ of signing FTA: European Commission President Kerala Assembly witnesses unusual scene as CM reads portions left unread by Governor UNITED NEWS OF INDIA STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE New Delhi, 20 January India and the European union (EU) are on the ‘’cusp’’ of signing the Free Trade Agreement (FTA), European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (photo) said on Tuesday, describing it as the ‘’mother of all agreements.’’ In her address at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, she said that after Davos, the next weekend, she will travel to India. She, however, said there is still work to do. “And right after Davos, the next weekend, I will travel to India. There is still work to do, but we are on the cusp of a historic trade agreement. Indeed, some call it the mother of all deals,” she said, adding that it would create a market of two billion people, accounting for almost a quarter of global GDP. "And, crucially, that would provide a first-mover advantage for Europe with one of the world's fastest growing and most dynamic continents. Europe wants to do business with the growth centres of today and the economic powerhouses of this century," Ms von der Leyen said. She said Europe wants to do business with the growth centres of today and the econo- How Pak terrorists survived at 12,000 ft: Hideout kitchen in Kishtwar indicates local nexus SP SHARMA Jammu, 20 January Following the recovery of a huge stock of public distribution rations, LPG cylinders, branded Basmati rice, desi ghee, and packed eatables from a hideout kitchen of Pakistani terrorists in the Chatroo area of Kishtwar, security forces have rounded up several locals for questioning. The presence of high-quality rations in the kitchen of the underground hideout clearly indicates that some locals and Overground Workers (OGWs) were supplying these items to the terrorists who have been operating in the Kishtwar-Kathua mountain belt for more than a year. Survival of Pakistani terrorists in the forest area at a height of 12,000 ft, amid extreme cold weather and snow, was not possible without local help. The terrorists, who seem trained in jungle warfare, managed to escape after hurling grenades at the Army's search team. A Havildar of the Army's Special Forces was killed, and seven soldiers were injured in the attack. Reports say that several individuals were detained for questioning as a massive search operation to flush out the terrorists entered the third day in the upper reaches of Kishtwar. The operation was launched in the Sonnar village near Mandral-Singhpura in Chatroo. The White Knight Corps said that the operation continues in the general area of Sonnar, north-east of Chhatru. The cordon has been further tightened, and search operations have been expanded. mic powerhouses of the century, from Latin America to the Indo-Pacific and far beyond. Ms von der Leyen said the EU is working on a new FTA with Australia. Europe is also advancing with the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and more. “Europe will also choose the world. And the world is also ready to choose Europe,” she added. European Council President Antonio Costa and von der Leyen will be chief guests at the Republic Day celebrations before jointly co-chairing the India-EU Summit. The FTA is slated to be signed the next day, i.e. 27 January. The European Union is India's biggest trade partner with bilateral trade in goods recording USD 135 billion in the financial year 2023-24. The free trade agreement is expected to significantly enhance trade ties. Besides firming up the free trade agreement, the two sides are likely to unveil a defence framework pact and a strategic agenda at the summit. The ambitious FTA is being firmed up at a time amid increasing concerns over Washington's trade and tariff policies which have impacted both India and the 27-nation EU. Thiruvananthapuram, 20 January The Kerala Assembly witnessed an unusual scene on Tuesday after Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan pointed out that Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar had avoided reading certain portions of the Cabinet-approved policy address and had added parts that were changed and left unread in the policy speech. After seeing off the Governor, CM Vijayan returned to the Assembly and announced that Governor Arlekar had made changes to certain paragraphs of the policy speech. He added that while some sections were omitted, the Governor made additions elsewhere. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan informed the Assembly that Mr Arlekar did not read the opening of paragraph 12 and the concluding portion of paragraph 15 of the cabinet-approved document. The Chief Minister said that the policy address approved by the state cabinet, printed and circulated to members, must be regarded as the official version. “The Assembly should only consider this version as the official policy address,” he said, citing constitutional principles and Assembly precedents. The Chief Minister read out the part left out by the Governor in a manner that drew the attention of the members to the omissions. Supporting the Chief Minister’s position, Assembly Speaker A. N. Shamseer said that avoiding or adding portions to the cabinet-approved address is not officially recognised, and that past precedents shall apply in this instance as well. One of the omitted portions stated: “Despite these social and institutional achievements, Kerala continues to face severe fiscal stress arising from a series of adverse Union government actions that undermine the constitutional principles of fiscal federalism.” In the Governor’s version, this was modified with the prefix “My government feels” and the critical reference was replaced with the phrase “curtailment of advances”. The Governor also altered a section concerning tax devolution, which originally stated: “Tax devolution and Finance Commission grants are constitutional entitlements of states and not acts of charity.” In his version, Arlekar added “My government feels” and removed the words “acts of charity.” Can ED invoke Article 226? SC to examine challenge after Kerala, Tamil Nadu appeals PARMOD KUMAR New Delhi, 20 January The Supreme Court on Monday issued notice to the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) on a plea by the Kerala and Tamil Nadu governments contending that the central agency is not a juristic person entitled to move High Courts under Article 226 of the Constitution for its enforcement ~ a provision that can be invoked by citizens and individuals for the enforcement of fundamental rights guaranteed under Part III of the Constitution. A Bench of Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice Satish Chandra Sharma issued notice on the pleas filed by the Kerala and Tamil Nadu governments challenging a 26 September 2025 judgment of the Kerala High Court affirming the ED’s locus to maintain writ petitions under Article 226 of the Constitution before the High Court. Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal appeared for Kerala, while Senior Advocates P. Wilson and Vikram Chowdhary represented the Tamil Nadu government. The controversy arises from a judicial inquiry commission constituted by the Kerala government in May 2021 under the Commissions of Inquiry Act, 1952, to examine allegations that central agencies ~ including the ED and Customs ~ had overstepped their jurisdiction and acted with political bias in attempting to link Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and other State functionaries to the UAE gold smuggling case. The commission of inquiry was headed by retired Justice V.K. Mohanan. The ED approached the Kerala High Court seeking to quash the State notification constituting the commission, contending that the move was malafide, contrary to federal principles, and liable to interfere with ongoing criminal proceedings under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). A single judge, by an interim order in 2021, stayed the commission’s functioning, observing that a parallel fact-finding exercise could disrupt the course of justice. The Kerala government’s appeal against that interim order was dismissed by a Division Bench comprising Justice Sushrut Arvind Dharmadhikari and Justice Syam Kumar V.M., which upheld the single judge’s order staying the commission and held that the ED had the locus to invoke Article 226. The High Court reasoned that the commission was merely a fact-finding body and allowing it to proceed alongside pending PMLA proceedings could potentially derail criminal investigations. Before the High Court, the State had argued that the ED lacked standing to file a writ petition and that any inter-governmental dispute between the Central government and one or more State governments ought to be resolved exclusively by the Supreme Court under Article 131, which confers original jurisdiction in disputes between the Union and the States. The ED countered that investigations under Central statutes such as the PMLA and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act fall within the Union’s domain. In its appeal before the Supreme Court, Tamil Nadu has contended that the Kerala High Court’s ruling would adversely impact a mining-related dispute in which the ED has invoked writ jurisdiction and sought a mandamus for registration of a case. The State asserted that disputes between a State and a central agency can be adjudicated only under Article 131. Tamil Nadu further argued that the ED, functioning under the Ministry of Finance and empowered by Section 49 of the PMLA, is not a separately constituted statutory body like the Central Bureau of Investigation, but a department of the Union itself. Emphasising the scope of Article 226, the plea states that there is no right vested in the ED to file a writ petition, adding: “Neither is the DoE a juristic person nor can claim ‘enforcement of any of the rights conferred by Part III and for any other purpose’, which is the prerequisite for the issuance of a writ under Article 226 of the Constitution by the High Court.” The issue has wider ramifications, as the Supreme Court is also seized of an ED petition filed under Article 32 of the Constitution seeking registration of a CBI case against West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. When that matter was heard on 15 January, the West Bengal government opposed its maintainability, arguing that Article 32 is a remedy for citizens and individuals against the State. The Court nonetheless issued notice in that case. The Supreme Court will now examine the maintainability of the ED’s recourse to writ jurisdiction under Article 226.