08122025-TT-01.qxd 12/7/2025 11:20 PM Page 1 13 CHANDIGARH | GURUGRAM | JALANDHAR | BATHINDA | VOL. 145 NO. 338 | 12 PAGES | ~6.00 | REGD. NO. CHD/0006/2024-2026 ESTABLISHED IN 1881  HIMACHAL PRADESH FARIDKOT GIRL STRIKES GOLD IN 25M PISTOL AT WORLD MEET SPORT /thetribunechd SC TO HEAR PLEA ON SONAM WANGCHUK’S DETENTION TODAY J&K RAHUL TO LEAD OPPN CHARGE ON ELECTORAL REFORMS NATION VIKRAM BHATT HELD IN ~30-CR CHEATING CASE BACK PAGE monday | 8 december 2025 /thetribunechd www.tribuneindia.com 650 flights cancelled as chaos atIndiGostretchesintoDay6 Shekhar Singh Tribune News Service Smoke and flames billow after a deadly fire broke out at a nightclub in Arpora, 25 km from Panaji, Goa; and (right) a firefighter examines the charred remains on Sunday. PTI 25 killed in Goa nightclub blaze Owners booked as premises without fire NOC | Witness claims fireworks led to incident Panaji, December 7 A jampacked nightclub in North Goa turned into a death trap after midnight on Sunday as a massive fire tore through it, claiming 25 lives and leaving six injured while raising serious questions about “illegal” operations and flouting of safety norms. While the police, earlier in the day, said a cylinder blast seemed to have started the blaze, a tourist who survived the tragedy claimed that fireworks were set off when dancers were performing, and it was the likely cause. Most of the deaths were caused by suffocation, as the victims, many of them employees, got trapped on the ground WEEKEND PARTY TURNS DEADLY GROSS VIOLATIONS ■ Fire broke out after midnight in ■ People rushed downstairs ■ Sources claimed the club Birch by Romeo Lane club, triggered by fireworks during dance performances, survivors claim ■ Club was overcrowded with over 100 people, leading to stampede-like situation as flames rapidly spread inside due to congestion; some got trapped on ground floor and died due to suffocation ■ Palm-leaf structures led to spread of fire, while narrow exits hindered evacuation and rescue efforts severely operated ‘illegally’ sans fire NOC, liquor licence or construction approvals ■ Safety norms were flouted with overcrowding, inadequate exits, fireworks use & no emergency preparedness floor of Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub at Arpora, 25 km from Panaji, a fire official said. While Chief Minister Pramod Sawant vowed action against officials who allowed the club to operate despite flouting safety rules, and an FIR was registered against the owners, a village official claimed that the structure itself was illegal. The deceased included five tourists and 20 staff members, while the identity of the remaining seven was yet to be established, the police said. The establishment did not possess even an NOC from the fire department or the permission to sell liquor, a Congress leader alleged. “We have registered an FIR against Saurabh Luthra and Gaurav Luthra, the owners, under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita,” a senior police officer said. An FIR was also registered against the club manager and event organisers, he said, adding that the sarpanch of Arpora-Nagoa, Roshan Redkar, who had issued a trade licence for the club in 2013, was detained. President Droupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah expressed grief over the tragedy. An ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund will be given to the next of kin of each deceased and the injured would be given Rs 50,000, the PMO said. A preliminary inquiry indicated that the fire started on the first floor and due to congestion and small doors, customers could not move out. “Some of them rushed to the ground floor and got trapped there,” CM Sawant said. continued on page 8 New Delhi, December 7 IndiGo’s operational meltdown stretched into its sixth straight day on Sunday, with 650 flights cancelled and several more delayed, even as the Civil Aviation Ministry asserted that air travel across the country was stabilising and IndiGo’s flight numbers were rising. Passengers at airports in Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bengaluru and other major cities continued to face disruptions through the day despite assurances of improvement. “To reduce passenger inconvenience at airports, multiple stakeholder engagements were held and real-time airport situations have been monitored continuously over the past four days. Regular meetings were convened with all operators, airport directors, ground-handling agencies and all other stakeholders. The operators were instructed to provide all essential facilities for stranded passengers, with special care for senior citizens and Divyang passengers,” said Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu. Meanwhile, pilot union ALPA India said in line with the DGCA’s appeal to all pilot associations, it stood ready to fully support the DGCA and the ministry in resolving the current situation and helping passengers in every way possible. continued on page 8 edit: Indigo mess Ops to stabilise by Dec 10, says airline Stranded passengers wait at an IndiGo Airlines ticket counter at Terminal 1 of Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi. MANAS RANJAN BHUI Parl panel may summon DGCA & airlines’ officials Tribune News Service New Delhi, December 7 A parliamentary panel is expected to summon senior executives of private airlines and officials from the civil aviation regulator after the mass cancellation of IndiGo flights left thousands of passengers stranded across airports in the country. The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture, chaired by JD(U) leader Sanjay Jha, is likely to seek detailed explanations from airline heads as well as officials from the DGCA and the Ministry of Civil Aviation on the reasons behind the dis- ruption and the steps needed to restore normal operations. A member of the committee said the panel had taken a serious note of the difficulties faced by travellers, adding that even MPs in the national capital for the winter session of Parliament were affected by IndiGo’s cancellations and delays across other airlines. Several parliamentarians have also received complaints about airfares rising sharply amid the ongoing crisis. CPM’s Rajya Sabha member John Brittas, who is not part of the standing committee, has separately called for a joint parliamentary committee or a judicial inquiry into the large-scale disruption. Pb CM’s post costs ~500 cr, Sidhu PMtoleadLSdebateon can’t pay: Navjot Kaur sparks row Vande Mataram today PolicefileFIRagainst 16inconnectionwith 328missingsaroops Says her husband will return to politics if given leadership role Neeraj Bagga Tribune News Service One of the two cubs of cheetah ‘Veera’ got separated and was found dead on Friday, a day after being released into the wild at Kuno National Park. Cheetah cub strays out of Kuno, dies after being hit by vehicle in Gwalior Aksheev Thakur Tribune News Service New Delhi, December 7 One of the two cheetah cubs that had been missing from the Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh since last week was killed after being hit by a speeding vehicle on a highway in Gwalior on Saturday. This is the second setback in a week as another cub was found dead on Friday, a day after it was released along with its sibling and mother into the park by Chief Minister Mohan Yadav. “At 6.30 am, two 20-monthold male cheetah cubs of Gamini were crossing the National Highway-46 (AgraMumbai National Highway) near Ghati Gaon, Gwalior, when a speeding vehicle struck one of the cubs, killing it on the spot. The cheetah tracking team and local forest staff were continuously monitoring both cubs. A case has been registered and the investigation in underway. The other cub is healthy and doing fine,” said Uttam Kumar Sharma, Field Director, Project Cheetah. Incident comes day after another found dead He added that the number of cheetahs in the Kuno National Park now stood at 27, with 19 cubs and eight adult cats, and “they all are healthy and doing fine”. Wildlife experts say the tracking team, whose task is to monitor the movement of cheetahs, failed the two cubs who had strayed out of the park last week. Speaking to The Tribune, wildlife activist Ajay Dubey, who has been tracking developments related to the big cats, said there were no convictions in such cases. “This is the saddest part. Madhya Pradesh is one of the best states when it comes to conservation of tiger, leopards and elephants. But there are hardly any convictions in the road kills. The big question is what was the cheetah tracking team doing if they could not control the speed of the vehicle from which the accident happened?” Dubey said. Chandigarh, December 7 Navjot Kaur Sidhu, wife of cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Sidhu, has kicked up a political storm in Punjab by alleging that “a briefcase full of Rs 500 crore” is required to become Chief Minister in the state, something she said her husband could not pay. The former MLA was speaking to mediapersons on Saturday evening after meeting Punjab Governor Gulab Chand Kataria here on several issues, including the “deteriorating” law and order situation in the state. While she did not name any party while making the Rs 500crore remark, she said Sidhu would return to active politics in the Congress only if he was made the party’s chief ministerial face in Punjab. Pointing to Navjot Kaur Sidhu CONG EXPOSED: BJP Reacting to the comments made by Navjot Kaur Sidhu, BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi said the Congress was an ‘epitome of corruption’ & its mask was off because its own leaders were exposing the graft in the party. INSIDE infighting within the party, she said there were “already five chief ministerial faces” in the Congress who, she claimed, were “busy causing harm to the party”. “If they (the high command) understand this, it is a different matter,” she said. She said they did not have money to give to any party, but could transform Punjab into a “golden state”. Replying to a query, she said her husband was “strongly attached” to the Congress and to its leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. State Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring declined to be drawn into the controversy, saying it was for the party high command to comment. However, former Deputy CM and Gurdaspur MP Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa said the Sidhu family should be shown the door. “It seems the mission for which the Sidhu family came to the Congress has been completed. Will he tell us how much he gave when he became the Punjab Congress president, a continued on page 8 Aditi Tandon Tribune News Service New Delhi, December 7 Prime Minister Narendra Modi will on Monday initiate the “special discussion on 150 years of Vande Mataram” scheduled in the Lok Sabha with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh expected to cap the 10-hour debate, which is expected to see fireworks and political jousting. The principal opposition party — the Congress — has also drawn up a list of heavyweights in anticipation of the treasury side’s attacks on first PM Jawaharlal Nehru and his role in the adoption of Vande Mataram, the national song, as we know it today. From the Congress, deputy leader of the party in the Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi is likely to lead the debate with MPs Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Deepender Singh Hooda, Bimol Akoijam, Praniti Iconic Dera Baba Nanak rly station losing legacy Last standing residential quarters that housed station master being razed Ravi Dhaliwal Tribune News Service Dera Baba Nanak rly station facade. Dera Baba Nanak, December 7 The century-old Dera Baba Nanak station, the last railway stop before Pakistan begins, is gradually losing its British-era character with the last standing residential quarters, part of the main structure, being razed to the ground. Officials have begun the process of pulling down the last of the 14 residential quarters that once housed the station master. Once upon a time, trains to Lahore, Sialkot, Kartarpur Sahib and Narowal used to whistle through at midnight carrying the dreams of silent passengers. The station lay at the strategic crossroads of the British empire, which hauled men and material across the region, servicing wars as well as peace. Today, huge locks hang on bolts outside the waiting room, stock room and the generator room. The town-folk, who with their own eyes saw history being rewritten with the building of the Kartarpur Sahib corridor back in 2018 — which leads to the sacred shrine of Guru Nanak on the other side of the International Border in Pakistan — have now given up c m y b hope that they can save their beloved railway station. Baldev Singh Randhawa, president of the Virasti Manch, Batala, a body which looks after heritage buildings, such as Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s summer palace in Dinanagar, told The Tribune, “It is a sad day for us. We tried our best but our best has fallen short.” Gurdaspur MP Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, whose native village Dharowali is near the station, said, “This magnificent edifice, which has a thousand tales attached to it, will now ultimately crumble and with it a continued on page 8 Fireworks likely; Gogoi, PriyankatospeakfromCong SHAH TO OPEN DEBATE IN RS ON TUESDAY In the Rajya Sabha, Home Minister Amit Shah is expected to open the Vande Mataram debate on Tuesday. Leader of the House JP Nadda is also expected to speak. Shinde, Prashant Padole, Chamala Reddy and Jyotsana Mahant to participate. Ahead of the discussion, top government sources today said many important and unknown facets related to Vande Mataram would be revealed to the nation tomorrow. “PM Modi will speak on the subject and many hitherto unknown facts will stand out for everyone to see,” official sources said. Marking the 150th anniversary of Vande Mataram on November 7 this continued on page 8 Tribune News Service Amritsar, December 7 The police on Sunday registered an FIR against 16 persons in connection with the 328 missing saroops of Guru Granth Sahib. The case was registered on a complaint filed by Gurlal Singh. Those booked are Roop Singh, Manjit Singh, Gurbachan Singh, Satinder Singh, Nishan Singh, Paramjit Singh, Gurmukh Singh, Jujhar Singh, Baaj Singh, Dalbir Singh, Kamaljit Singh, Kulwant Singh, Jaspreet Singh, Gurbachan Singh, Satinder Singh and Amarjit Singh. The Sikh Sadbhawna Dal, led by Baldev Singh Wadala, along with several Sikh and farmer organisations, has been spearheading a protest on Heritage Street, which leads to the Golden Temple, for the past five years, seeking continued on page 8 Tewari again introduces Bill to dilute party whips’ powers Tribune News Service New Delhi, December 7 Congress MP Manish Tewari has again pushed for changes to India’s anti-defection framework, introducing a private member’s Bill in the Lok Sabha to give MPs greater freedom to vote independently on most legislative issues. The draft law, tabled last Friday, seeks to loosen the grip of party whips on routine parliamentary business and restrict penal consequences to votes that directly test a government’s stability. Tewari said the long-stand- Says MPs must vote with independent judgement ing question his proposal sought to address was whether an elected representative should ultimately answer to voters who stood in long queues to elect them or to political parties that bind them to their whip. Stressing that legislators have increasingly become “instruments of party commands”, he said the current system had hollowed out meaningful law-making. continued on page 8