Saturday, February 14, 2026 | Vol. 69 No. 112 | 39 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 l E-paper edition is not a replica of the print edition THE COMEBACK KID | Khaleda Zia’s son Tarique Rahman set to become Prime Minister of Bangladesh. Jamaat alliance bags over 77 of 300 parliamentary seats BNP IN LANDSLIDE WIN ‘India must correctly judge neighbourhood’ Sufia Chowdhury DHAKA In a decisive turn of events after months of unrest and economic strain, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) swept to a landslide victory in parliamentary elections held on Thursday, returning to power after nearly two decades and positioning its leader, Tarique Rahman, to become prime minister. Official results released by the Election Commission showed the BNP won 213 of the 299 seats contested in the Jatiya Sangsad, or House of the Nation—well above the 151 required for a simple majority in the 300-member Parliament. Its principal rival, an alliance led by the Islamist party Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, secured more than 77 seats, while smaller parties and independents took the remainder. At Dhaka’s Paltan Road, Lal Miyan, 54, paused his cyclerickshaw to glance at the Dainik Inquilab newspaper dumped outside a vendor’s stall. The banner headline read: “BNPir Dhumiswat Bijay” FPJ INTERVIEW Ashwin Ahmad NEW DELHI BNP’s Hindu leader wins Gayeshwar Chandra Roy, a senior BNP leader and a prominent figure from the minority Hindu community, won the Dhaka-3 constituency in Bangladesh’s parliamentary elections. Roy secured 99,163 votes, defeating Jamaat-e-Islami candidate Md Shahinur Islam, according to the staterun news agency BSS. Roy, a former state minister, clinched the seat against the backdrop of heightened concerns over the safety of minority communities in Bangladesh. In a related development, the only Hindu candidate fielded by the Jamaat-e-Islami was defeated in the Khulna-1 seat. Krishna Nandi polled 70,346 votes, while BNP’s Amir Ejaz Khan garnered 121,352 votes. (BNP’s landslide victory). Miyan frowned as he leafed through the papers stacked on the footpath, voicing fears that the polls would leave two of the most street-smart, cadre-based BNM parties out in the cold. “They won’t take this kindly,” he said gravely. 4Contd on | nation 4See also | edit, world Husain Haqqani, former ambassador of Pakistan to the US, is Diplomat-in-Residence at the Anwar Gargash Diplomatic Academy in Abu Dhabi and Senior Fellow at the Hudson Institute in Washington DC. He is the author of four books, including ‘Reimagining Pakistan: Transformation of a Dysfunctional Nuclear State’ and an expert on South Asian politics. In an exclusive interview with FPJ, he speaks about the Bangladeshi elections, India-Bangladesh ties and what Pakistan’s interests are in Bangladesh Why do you feel IndiaBangladesh ties are going through a low in recent times? The 15-year-rule of Sheikh Hasina was in many ways a golden period for India’s relationship with Bangladesh. But it was an unrealistic way of maintaining a relationship. You cannot have somebody who is autocratic at home, unable to handle any opposition, crushing all opponents and describing them as agents of Pakistan or as extremist Islamists. That created the situation in which the July 2024 uprising took place. Now I believe that the Awami League still has a substantial following and support in Bangladesh. That is why they had to be banned. Nobody bans a party that is not going to have any support. So they have been banned essentially to make it easier for the others to sort of have a cakewalk. 4Contd on | nation Modi calls Rahman, hails BNP’s victory BNP renews Hasina extradition demand BNP thanks India, hopes boost in ties PM Narendra Modi on Friday spoke to BNP leader Tarique Rahman on his party’s sweeping victory in Bangladesh polls, reaffirming India’s commitment to peace, progress and shared prosperity in the region. “Delighted to speak with Mr Tarique Rahman. I congratulated him on the remarkable victory in the Bangladesh elections,” Modi said in a post on X. He said India would continue to support Rahman in fulfilling aspirations of the Bangladeshi people. The BNP reiterated its uncompromising demand for the extradition of ousted PM Sheikh Hasina from India to face trial in Bangladesh. Senior BNP leader Salahuddin Ahmed said the party fully backed the government’s efforts to pursue Hasina’s return through diplomatic channels. “The foreign minister has already placed the case for her extradition, and we support it. We will continue to press for her extradition strictly in accordance with the law.” The BNP thanked India and PM Modi for recognising the verdict of Bangladesh’s elections and expressed hope that ties would strengthen under the new government. BNP standing committee member and chief election coordinator Nazrul Islam Khan said the party appreciated Modi’s message congratulating Tarique Rahman. He said it was encouraging that a democratic country like India had acknowledged the will of the Bangladeshi people. AI jitters spark sharp sell-off I ndian equities slid sharply on Friday as intensifying anxiety over artificial intelligence disrupted risk appetite and triggered heavy selling in technology and metal stocks. The Sensex fell more than 1,000 points and the Nifty dropped over 330 points amid weak global cues and a broad retreat from growth sectors. The combined market capitalisation of companies listed on BSE shrank by nearly Rs 7 lakh crore in a single session. Shares of Tata Consultancy Services touched multi-year lows, underscoring fears that rapid automation could erode traditional outsourcing revenues and unsettle earnings visibility. With earnings season drawing to a close, attention is shifting towards global inflation data, geopolitical signals and policy discussions on artificial intelligence. 4See also | money FPJ News Service The SC on Friday urged music composer AR Rahman to acknowledge the contribution of the Dagarvani tradition to the song “Veera Raja Veera” from the Tamil film Ponniyin Selvan II, saying there should be “some acknowledgement” of Dhrupad vocalist Ustad Faiyaz Wasifuddin Dagar and his predecessors. Celebrating excellence and innovation in school education across the city PM dedicates Seva Teerth to the nation Gaurav Vivek Bhatnagar NEW DELHI Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday dedicated to the nation the new central government office complex, Seva Teerth, which will house the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), the Cabinet Secretariat and the National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS). Inaugurating the complex, the Prime Minister said Seva Teerth would stand as a lasting symbol of duty, compassion and commitment to the principle of “India First”, guided by the spirit of ‘Nagrik Devo Bhava’ — the idea that the citizen is akin to god. He described the new complex as a reflection of the government’s resolve to place public service, efficiency and accountability at the heart of governance. Located on Dara Shikoh Road in the national capital, Seva Teerth replaces the colonial-era South Block as the seat of the Prime Minister’s Office. Spread across nearly 2.26 lakh square feet, the complex has been built at an estimated cost of around Rs 1,200 crore and comprises three distinct buildings. Seva Teerth 1 will house the PMO, Seva Teerth 2 the Cabinet Secretariat, and Seva Teerth 3 the NSCS along with the office of the National Security Advisor. The complex also includes India House, a dedicated conference facility for high-level meetings and interactions with foreign dignitaries. Designed as a modern and future-ready workspace, the complex incorporates sustainable and green building systems. 4Contd on | nation RELIANCE GETS Telecom spectrum for the common good: SC LICENCE TO BUY The Court held that ownership and control of spectrum, including the economic benefits derived from it, cannot be VENEZUELAN OIL determined solely through the lens of FPJ News Service NEW DELHI The Supreme Court on Friday held that telecom service providers cannot invoke the moratorium under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (IBC), to restructure or defer payment of licence and spectrum dues owed to the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) by treating spectrum as Agencies NEW DELHI/ SINGAPORE The United States has issued a general licence to India’s Reliance Industries Ltd that lets the oil refiner buy Venezuelan crude directly without breaching U.S. sanctions, two people familiar with the matter said. The licence, granted after Washington’s recent capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, authorises the purchase, exportation and sale of Venezuelan-origin oil that has already been extracted, including its refining. U.S. officials said the move is part of efforts to ease sanctions on Venezuela’s energy industry and support a $2 billion oil supply deal between Caracas and Washington as well as an ambitious $100 billion reconstruction SC seeks Dagar credit in AR Rahman song row NEW DELHI FPJ’s Mumbai School Survey 2025 A Bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi was hearing Dagar’s appeal against a September 2025 order of a Division Bench of the Delhi High Court that set aside an interim injunction granted by a single judge in his copyright dispute over the song, Live Law and Bar & Bench reports. 4Contd on | nation plan for Venezuela’s oil sector, Reuters reports. Giving Reliance the licence could speed up Venezuela’s oil exports and cut crude costs for the operator of the world’s biggest refining complex, the sources said. Reliance applied for the licence in early January. The company did not respond to an email request for comment, and the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control did not immediately reply outside business hours. 4Contd on | nation a corporate asset. In Union of India Vs State Bank of India, a Bench of Justices PS Narasimha and Atul Chandurkar ruled that material resources must be managed in a manner that subserves the common good. The Court held that ownership and control of spectrum, including the economic benefits derived from it, cannot be determined solely through the corporate restructuring lens of corporate restructuring, Bar & Bench reports. A detailed copy of the judgment is awaited. The case arose from insol- 4Contd on | nation `5K each for 1.31 cr TN women Probe to see if N Chithra CHENNAI In a significant pre-election move, the DMK Government in Tamil Nadu on Friday credited Rs 5,000 each to the bank accounts of 1.31 crore women beneficiaries under the Kalaignar Magalir Urimai Thogai scheme. This is a scheme under which eligible women heads of families are given a monthly “rights grant” of Rs 1,000. The bulk disbursal, announced ahead of this year’s Assembly elections, represents a one-time outgo of over Rs payment of the monthly “rights grant” of Rs 1,000 under the scheme for February, March and April, along with a special summer assistance of Rs 2,000. He alleged that there had STALIN’S POLL-EVE GIFT been attempts to stall the disbursal of the grant by cit6,550 crore from the State ex- ing the impending polls, chequer. prompting his government to Chief Minister M. K. Stalin release the funds in advance. said in a video message that the 4Contd on | nation Rs 5,000 included an advance David fells Goliath, India fans happy Haridev Pushparaj MUMBAI Zimbabwe pulled off the biggest upset of the ongoing ICC Men’s T20 World Cup when they stunned cricketing giants Australia by 23 runs in Colombo but a Zimbabwean victory has elated Indian cricket fans as much as supporters of the African nation. And there is a little but very crucial stat behind the joy of Indian cricket lovers after the shock victory Zimbabwe at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. vency proceedings involving Aircel Ltd., Dishnet Wireless Ltd. and Aircel Cellular Ltd. The companies had entered the voluntary corporate insolvency resolution process (CIRP) under Section 10 of the IBC. They had acquired telecom licences in 2006 under Unified Access Service Licence (UASL) agreements and had also obtained spectrum through government auctions. During CIRP, the right to use spectrum was treated as part of the corporate debtor’s assets. The last two times Zimbabwe beat Australia in cricket World Cups, India have gone on to become World Champions and clinch the titles and this was in the 1983 Prudential World Cup and the inaugural T20 World Cup in 2007. The stat was brought into the domain of social media by former India cricketer Virender Sehwag who posted the interesting trivia on his Instagram handle. Coming to the game in Colombo, Zimbabwe were facing an injury depleted Australia, who were without their pace trio of Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc, but a terrific all-round effort ensured the former T20 World Cup winners were consigned to defeat. 4Contd on | nation 4See also | games rules bypassed ANI NEW DELHI Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh on Friday said he was not aware of any proposal to introduce new guidelines for retired Army officials writing books, amid the controversy surrounding the unpublished memoirs of former Army Chief General MM Naravane. Speaking to ANI, Singh said that existing rules and laws already govern such matters, including the Official Secrets Act (OSA). He said the main issue was not the absence of guidelines, but whether any existing rules had been bypassed. "I am not, frankly, aware of this particular issue you are mentioning regarding whether new guidelines are being considered. There are existing guidelines, and the Official Secrets Act applies. In this case, the issue is not that guidelines do not exist; the issue is whether someone has tried to bypass them. From public sources, I know that the agencies are looking into this. However, I am not aware of any new guidelines, and in any case, existing guidelines and existing laws, particularly the OSA, do apply when it comes to sensitive matters," Rajesh Kumar Singh said. The remarks come amid a political row over General Naravane’s unpublished memoir, titled 'Four Stars of Destiny'. 4Contd on | nation