KOLLAM l Thursday l January 25, 2024 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l city EDITION russian plane shot down with ‘65 ukrainian Pows’ on board Russia accused Ukraine of downing the plane which was carrying 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war and nine others, including six crew members jet had missiles on board: Ukrainian media kyiv verifying Russian claims on pows Russia said the prisoners of war were being transported to its Belgorod region for a prisoner exchange. Russian radar registered the launch of two Ukrainian missiles from Kharkiv bordering Belgorod. Ukrainian sources told the local media that the country’s army downed the plane, and that it was carrying missiles. Ukraine has not confirmed its role in the incident ■ ■ ■ An Ukrainian official said the country’s intelligence agency is checking the Russian claim that Ukrainian prisoners of war were on the plane Kyiv said the claims could be part of Russia’s manipulation campaign Unverified videos on social media showed a plane falling from the sky and a massive ball of fire erupting where it apparently hit the ground 8,000 Ukrainians including civilians in Russian custody, says Ukraine 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 INDIA double whammy as Mamata, Mann to go solo express read Mammootty’s AI avatar in upcoming movie Kochi: An upcoming Malayalam film will feature the AI-generated clone of actor Mammootty to depict him in his 30s for a flashback sequence. It will not require his presence on the set. Mammootty has consented to the use of his digital replica | P4 Trinamool, AAP rule out pre-poll pact in West Bengal and Punjab PRANAB MONDAL & HARPREET B A J W A @ Kolkata / Chandigarh IN a major blow to the opposition parties’ INDIA bloc, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her Punjab counterpart Bhagwant Mann on Wednesday ruled out any pre-poll pact with the Congress for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The two CMs said their parties — the Trinamool Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party — will fight the general elections independently . “We will fight in Bengal alone. I am not concerned about what will be done in the country but we will defeat the BJP in Bengal alone,” said Mamata. The firebrand Bengal politician did not mince words as she rubbished Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s claim just a day ago that talks with the TMC were in progress for seat-sharing in Bengal. “I had no discussions with the Congress. I gave many proposals but they rejected them. We don’t need anyone,” she said while slamming the Congress for not showing the basic courtesy of informing her about Rahul’s Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra passing through her state. “For the sake Mamata Banerjee and Bhagwant Mann Didi hurt after her car makes sudden halt Mamata Banerjee sustained a minor forehead injury after her car driver applied sudden brakes to avoid hitting a police car, which suddenly came in front of her convoy. She was returning from Burdwan to Kolkata by road as the helicopter could not fly because of bad weather of alliance, I could have been given the schedule of Nyay Yatra in Bengal. But I was told nothing,” she said. Caught off guard by the TMC’s decision, the Congress called it a temporary setback and claimed the differences would be sorted out. “INDIA bloc will fight the Lok Sabha polls in West Bengal and all partners will participate,” said Congress leader Jairam Ramesh. The Trinamool Congress is an “important pillar” of the opposition alliance, he said, adding that it is difficult to imagine an Opposition alliance without Mamata Banerjee. West Bengal has 42 Lok Sabha seats. TMC had reportedly offered two seats to the Congress but the latter wanted more. In Chandigarh, Punjab CM Mann said his party AAP will not have any truck with the Congress and that the Arvind Kejriwal-led party will contest all 13 seats in the state. “Punjab will become a hero in the country and the AAP will win 13-0 in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls,” he said. “The AAP is not going with the Congress in Punjab. For 13 Lok Sabha seats, the names of 40 probable candidates have come up so far. There are 3-4 probable candidates per constituency Sur. veys will be conducted and we have kept winnability as the criterion for fielding a candidate,” Mann added. The Congress party’s local units in West Bengal and Punjab are also against any tie-ups with the TMC and AAP respectively , . ED questions Bineesh Kodiyeri in FEMA case Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan inaugurating ThinkEdu Conclave by lighting a lamp along with TNIE CEO Lakshmi Menon, Editor 50 Santwana Bhattacharya, Editorial Director Prabhu Chawla, and SASTRA V-C Vaidhyasubramaniam | Ashwin prasath star speakers Ideas take centre stage on Day 1 16 2 Days Intense hours E x pre s s N ew s Ser v i c e @ Chennai PresenTs THInKedu COnCLaVe February 9-10 ITC Grand 2023 read CHOLa CHennaI 10:00 a m inside Onwards Presenting Partner Associate Partners Arif MOHD khan flags conflict of interest more on P5 The 13th edition of the ThinkEdu Conclave started in Chennai on Wednesday with mesmerising exchange of ideas. With renewed conversations and invigorating debates, the event, presented by SASTRA University, saw more than 25 speakers articulate their position on a host of issues. The highlight of the day was the session with Union Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri. The two-day event with more than 15 sessions on the first day garnered a spectacular crowd of more than 300 students and 275 delegates. The day started with lighting of lamp by Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan, Celebrating India’s Republic Day We celebrate India’s history as the nation progresses to becoming Aatmanirbhar in aerospace and defence. TNIE Editorial Director Prabhu Chawla, Editor Santwana Bhattacharya, CEO Lakshmi Menon, and SASTRA V-C Vaidhyasubramaniam, followed by the inaugural address by the governor. Khan spoke about his role as Kerala governor and maintaining the autonomy of state universities. The fiery panel “Poll Position: Who will win the people’s mandate” saw actor-politician Khushbu Sundar, MP John Brittas, Congress spokesperson Prof Gourav Vallabh, and DMK spokesperson Saravanan Annadurai fight it out. The last session saw Gopalkrishna Gandhi taking an enthralled audience through Gandhiji’s journey P5 . Kochi: The ED questioned Bineesh Kodiyeri, the son of late CPM veteran Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, in a Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) violation case. The ED suspects that Bineesh received funds from Gulf countries in violation of FEMA norms | P4 Rebels without class Recurring instances of campus violence have cast a shadow on Kerala’s higher education sector. TNIE lists violent incidents that marred college campuses, right from the first in 1974, and talks to alumni and teachers to know their thoughts on the way forward p2