HYDERABAD FRIDAY APRIL 26, 2024 `9.00 PAGES 46 LATE CITY EDITION INDIGO ORDERS 30 WIDE-BODY JETS TO BOOST ITS OVERSEAS OPERATIONS TO COMPETE WITH AIR INDIA ON LONG-HAUL ROUTES Wide-body aircraft like the A350-900 typically seat over 300 people and can fly 18,000 km non-stop, making them ideal for overseas operations. IndiGo’s latest order comes at a time when efforts are underway to make India a global aviation hub. With wide-body planes, IndiGo will be directly competing with Air India on long and ultra-long haul routes | P12 India’s largest airline said on Thursday it placed orders for 30 Airbus A350-900 aircraft which will allow it to expand its international operations ■ 2027 DEAL’S SIZE ESTIMATED AT $9.5 BILLION ■ Airbus no longer puts out prices of its planes. As per the 2018 list price of the A350-900 jets, the deal should be worth $9.5 billion The A350-900 planes will be powered by Rolls Royce’s Trent XWB engine. IndiGo has been facing problems with the Pratt & Whitney engines powering many of its existing Airbus planes WHEN AIRBUS’ DELIVERIES OF A350-900 JETS TO INDIGO ARE DUE TO START 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 In a 1st, EC takes note of MCC violations by PM Issues notice to party head Nadda; parallel notice to Kharge on charges against Rahul M U K E S H R A N J A N @ New Delhi POSSIBLY taking cognisance for the first time of a model code violation complaint against a prime minister, the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Thursday issued a notice to BJP president J P Nadda on the charge that Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave a divisive speech in Rajasthan’s Banswara. Parallelly, it issued a notice to Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, asking him to respond to the complaints filed by the BJP against him and party leader Rahul Gandhi regarding their offensive remarks. Both Nadda and Kharge were directed to file their replies by 11 am on Monday (April 29). The names of neither Modi nor Rahul or Kharge were mentioned in the notices. But the representations received by the poll panel against them were attached to the letters addressed to the respective party chiefs. The ECI invoked provisions of the Representation of the People Act to hold the party presidents responsible as the first step to rein in their star campaigners. While individual star campaigners would continue to remain responsible for their speeches, the ECI said it will address party chiefs “on a case-to-case basis”, thus adding a layer of responsibility on them. In its notice to Nadda, the poll panel cited complaints by the Congress, CPI, CPI (ML) and civil society groups on Modi’s allegation that the Congress wanted to redistribute the wealth of the country to Muslims, adding the grand old party won’t even spare the mangalsutra of women. The ECI also advised Nadda to bring to the notice of all star cam- You are directed, as President of the National Party to bring to the notice of all your star campaigners to set high standards of political discourse and observe provisions of MCC in letter and spirit —Election Commission What’s in Cong chargesheet BJP accused of betraying Telangana by forcibly merging 211 villages of Khammam into AP BJP did not implement a single assurance as mandated in AP Reorganisation Act, like setting up of Bayyaram Steel Plant, Kazipet railway coach factory & 2,400 MW NTPC plant, alleges Cong Union Home Minister Amit Shah with BJP Medak candidate M Raghunandan Rao during a public meeting in Siddipet on Thursday Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy speaks after releasing a chargesheet against the 10-year rule of BJP at Gandhi Bhavan in Hyderabad on Thursday Will nix Muslim quota in TG, BJP will scrap reservations give it to SCs, STs, BCs: Shah by 2025 if it wins: Revanth P K R I S H N A @ Siddipet UNION Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday said that the BJP would revoke the Muslim quota implemented by the BRS and Congress governments in Telangana and extend it to SC, ST and OBC communities if it retains power at the Centre. Addressing a public meeting organised here in support of BJP Medak candidate M Raghunandan Rao, Shah alleged that the BRS and Congress colluded with each other to loot the state. “Elect BJP candidates, Modi will free Telangana from corruption,” he said. Shah exuded confidence that the BJP would win 12 of the 17 Lok Sabha seats in the state. Terming the Congress and BRS as two sides of the same coin, he urged people to make Modi the prime minister for the third consecutive time to ensure comprehensive development of Telangana and eradicate corruption in the state. Listing the abrogation of Article 370 in Kashmir, making triple talaq illegal and the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya as the achievements of the BJP government under Modi’s leadership, Shah said that the Centre overcame legal hurdles for the temple construction and celebrated its completion on a global scale. He alleged that during the 10year rule of the BRS, corruption was rampant in the name of Kaleshwaram and Dharani portal while the fourmonth-old Cong ress government turned Telangana into an ATM for Delhi. “The Congress and BRS are colluding with each other. That is why the Congress government is not probing the Dharani scam and Kaleshwaram ir re gularities,” Shah alleged. He alleged that the Congress and BRS were against construction of the Ram temple and also criticised the two parties for failing to observe Telangana Liberation Day on September 17 “as they were afraid of the CONTINUED ON P4 AIMIM.” Varun rejects Gandhi vs Gandhi duel from Rae Bareli LS segment S H A H I D FA R I D I @ N E W D E L H I The BJP’s three-term Member of Parliament, Varun Gandhi, has turned down his party leadership’s request to take on Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, who is likely to be fielded by the Congress from the Rae Bareli Lok Sabha constituency in UP. According to sources, Varun was approached by BJP president JP Nadda and Union minister Amit Shah with the offer. But he refused to accept the offer. Sources said Varun told his party leadership that it would not be right for him to take on his sister. Varun has been upset with the BJP leadership for denying him a ticket from Pilibhit, a constituency he has represented twice in the LS. The BJP top leadership is sure that Rahul and Priyanka will contest the current LS election from Amethi and Rae Bareli, respectively. Sources said the party got a survey done for Rae Bareli to find the best candidate against Priyanka. Among the names it asked the voters as its possible candidate were former Union minister Uma Bharti, UP deputy CM Brajesh Pathak, founder-president of Bajrang Dal Vinay Katiyar and Rakesh Pratap Singh of the Sheogarh royal family of Rae Bareli. The result of the survey showed none of the names being considered were in a position to defeat Priyanka. To the party’s surprise, Varun was mentioned by most respondents as the best candidate. M A N DA RAV I N D E R R E D DY @ Hyderabad ALLEGING that the BJP and RSS have declared a war on the Constitution with the aim of scrapping reservations for SC, ST and OBC communities, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Thursday said that the saffron party was hoping to win 400 seats to implement this agenda. “The BJP is trying to win 400 seats so that it gets two-thirds majority in Lok Sabha. This will enable it to pass a Bill scrapping the reservation system. The RSS has a policy to abolish quotas by 2025, as mentioned by its leaders on numerous occasions,” the chief minister alleged. The TPCC president was speaking after releasing a chargesheet against the BJP and its 10-year rule at the Gandhi Bhavan in Hyderabad along with AICC incharge Deepa Dasmunshi, paigners of the party to “set high standards of political discourse and adhere to the norms of the MCC in letter and spirit”, as campaign speeches made by those holding high positions have serious consequences. In its similarly worded notice to Kharge, the BJP’s complaint was attached. It accused Rahul of malafide during a speech in Kottayam, Kerala, where he alleged that the PM was pushing for one nation, one language and one religion. co-in-charge Rohith Choudhary, Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, TPCC working president Mahesh Kumar Goud, ministers Komatireddy Venkat Reddy, Konda Surekha, Ponnam Prabhakar and others. Warning the people that voting for the BJP would contribute to abolition of the reservation system in the country, the chief minister said that if the saffron party gets even a single seat in Telangana, it would deprive them of their rights. “This election is a battle between upholding reservations and their abolition,” Revanth said. He recalled that the BJP opposed implementation of the Mandal Commission report that recommended reservations for OBCs. At that time, its senior leader LK Advani toured the country in a rath spreading communal hatred so that attention was diverted from reservations, Revanth alle g ed. CONTINUED ON P4 KLIS panel open to summoning ‘anyone’ V V B A L A K R I S H N A @ Hyderabad UNCERTAINITY looms over whether former chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao will be summoned by Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose, heading a judicial commission investigating the irregularities and corruption allegations in the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme. When TNIE posed the same question to Justice Ghose, who commenced his work at the BRKR Bhavan on Thursday, he shot back: “Do you want me to summon him?” When TNIE reminded that Justice BK Somasekhara, the one-man Commission of Inquiry that probed into the alleged scam in paying compensation for the land acquired for the Yeleru canal in combined Andhra Pradesh summoned former chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu, Justice Ghose said that functioning and thinking of one judicial commission would be different from other. He, however, hastened to add that ‘facts’ were more important than ‘faces’. He was also non-committal about summoning KCR. He, however, said that if needed, they would summon anyone. The Commission issued a notification seeking suggestions from the public on Kaleshwaram. Once the Commission receives the information, then it may summon the engineering officials involved in the construction works and the representatives of contracting agencies of KLIS to depose before it. The Commission would also study the Vigilance and Enforcement report on Medigadda and the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report on KLIS. It also requested the National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA) to give its preliminary report immediately . Justice Ghose told TNIE that he would visit Medigadda, Annaram and Sundilla barrages in his next visit to the state. The deadline for him to submit the report is June 30. However, the Commission wants to give its report at CONTINUED ON P6 the earliest. 4 INTER STUDENTS DIE IN ROAD ACCIDENT | P2 FACTOIDS FACTOIDS 88 LS SEATS (General 73; ST 6; SC 9) in 13 states/ UTs OVER 16 LAKH POLLING OFFICIALS DEPLOYED 15.88 CRORE VOTERS 8.08 crore male, 7.8 crore female, 5,929 third gender to exercise franchise across 1.67 lakh polling stations 34.8 LAKH FIRST-TIME VOTERS are registered to cast their votes. There are 3.28 crore voters in the age group of 20-29 yrs 1,202 3 candidates (1,098 male, 102 female, 2 third gender) are in the fray helicopters, 4 special trains and nearly 80,000 vehicles deployed to ferry polling and security personnel Webcasting to be done in over 50% of the polling stations Polling stations in all states/UTs except Bihar and Kerala have less than 1,000 average electors per polling station. The corresponding figure for Bihar is 1,008; it is 1,102 for Kerala 2nd phase voting for 88 seats today R A J E S H K U M A R T H A K U R @ New Delhi THE second phase of Lok Sabha polls on Friday for 88 Lok Sabha seats in 13 states and Union Territories will seal the electoral fate of several heavyweights including Union ministers Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Kailash Choudhary and Rajeev Chandrasekhar, and opposition leaders Rahul Gandhi and Shashi Tharoor, among others. The contest is very tight in several constituencies where candidates are locked in a three-cornered fight. The BJP is confident of retaining its sway in its strongholds and disrupting the Congress-CPM duopoly in Kerala. The party is eyeing Thrissur where actor Suresh Gopi is a strong contender, Thiruvananthapuram where Chandrasekhar is pitted against Tharoor, and Pathanamthitta where veteran Congress leader A K Antony’s son Anil Antony is the BJP candidate. Union minister of Shekhawat is pitted against Congress candidate Karan Singh Uchiyarda in Rajasthan’s Jodhpur, while Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla will take on Prahlad Gunjal, who switched over from the BJP to Congress, in Kota. The fate of actor-turned-politician Hema Malini from Mathura LS seat will also be sealed on Friday Mukesh Dhangar of the . Congress is her main rival. In 2019, the BJP had won 53 and its allies 12 of these 88 seats, while the constituents of the INDIA bloc had won 23. However, senior BJP leaders admit that the contest is tougher than the first phase of elections held on April 19. The low turnout in the first phase of polling was a matter of concern for the party but sources said they are hopeful the voting percentage will be better in the second phase. Battle of perception with Ram chant in land of revolution N A M I TA B A J PA I @ Lucknow “Yeh Arun Govil ji ka election hee nahin raha. Yeh Ram ki pratishtha ka election hai (This isn’t an election for Arun Govil but for the prestige of Lord Ram). We will do everything to get a high voting percentage,” is the common refrain among the BJP cadre in Meerut, the land of revolution, which is poised for a battle of perceptions in the Lok Sabha elections. Remember, the first war of Independence in 1857 began in Meerut. The constituency goes to polls on Friday . While the BJP is riding on the perception of Lord Ram to see Arun Govil, the silver screen ‘Ram’ of 1987 TV serial, sail through, the Opposition INDIA bloc is confident that Sa- majwadi Party candidate Sunita Verma will pose a strong challenge because of her popularity among the Dalits and Muslims and her perception of being a good former Mayor. Muslims and Dalits constitute over 50% of electorate in Meerut, making it a formidable combination. The BSP, too, is a claimant of the same combo, with Mayawati giving the ticket to Devvrat Tyagi. Since all the three main candidates belonging to the majority community, the division of Hindu votes is inevitable. It is expected to put the BJP at a disadvantage. BJP’s experienced MP Rajendra Agarwal had to make way for Govil. In 2019, Agarwal defeated BSP’s Haji Mohammad Yaqoob with a thin margin of little over 4,700 votes. Govil, though tagged as an outsider by his rivals, is commanding attention and respect from the generation of viewers of the 80s, and also ILLUSTRATION: MANDAR PARDIKAR the section that got introduced to him via the telecast of Ramayan during the Covid period. Leading the campaign in a simple kurta-pyjama, he is striving to shed his outsider tag through his promise of making Meerut, which is his janmabhoomi (birth place), his karmabhoomi (workplace) and permanent abode. But SP’s Sunita, who belongs to the Dalit community dismiss, es Govil as a ‘false Ram’, claiming elections can’t be fought on a p a s t i m a g e r y. “BJP has committed a mistake by fielding Arun Govil, who does not belong to Meerut. Lord Ram is in Ayodhya, not on roads seeking votes. There could have been some fight if the ruling party candidate hailed from the constituency. I see no challenge,” says Sunita, the former BSP mayor of Meerut who switched over to the SP. It was after much flip-flop that Sunita got the ticket. Initially, Bhanu Pratap Singh was the nominee. He was replaced by sitting SP MLA from Sardhana Atul Pradhan who, was seeking the ticket for his wife. Pradhan was finally axed and Sunita chosen instead. However, BJP workers are confident of Govil’s win, hoping the Dalit-Muslim votes would be divided between the SP-Congress and the BSP. It is also depending on the Jat support from the RLD.
Express Network Private Limited publishes thirty three E-paper editions of The New Indian Express newspaper , thirty two E-paper editions of Dinamani, one E-paper edition of The Morning Standard, one E-paper edition of Malayalam Vaarika magazine and one E-paper edition of the Indulge - The Morning Standard, Kolkatta.