BHUBANESWAR l friday l may 03, 2024 l `9.00 l PAGES 22 l LATE CITY EDITION Supreme Court orders 33% quota for women in SC Bar Association The court said the order must be implemented from the 2024 election to the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) set to be held on May 16 Five seats in the executive committee At least 1 office bearer should be woman Apart from six office bearers, the SCBA has six senior executive members and nine executive members. As per the court order, at least two senior executive members and three executive members should be women. The order was passed by a bench comprising justices Surya Kant and K V Viswanathan while hearing a case involving SCBA against its former Secretary B D Kaushik | P9 ■ ■ One post of the office bearers of the SCBA should be reserved for women by turn and on rotation bases, the bench said in its order For the upcoming elections, the post of Treasurer shall be reserved for women, it said. However, this will not preclude eligible women members of SCBA from contesting for other office-bearer positions May 19 when results of the Supreme Court bar association election will be out 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 No word, but party CM files nomination from Kantabanji readies in Rae Bareli E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Bhubaneswar/Balangir Nomination deadline for Amethi, Rae Bareli seats in UP ends today BJP drops tainted Brij Bhushan, fields his son Karan in Kaiserganj P r ee t h a N a i r @ New Delhi N AMITA B AJPAI @ Lucknow With barely hours left for filing of nomination papers for the Amethi and Rae Bareli seats, the Congress is continuing to keep the suspense on whether Rahul Gandhi and his sister Priyanka will contest from the prestigious seats. Though there was no official word, sources said that Rahul is likely to enter the fray from Rae Bareli. That decision was taken after much deliberations within the party leadership. However, sources said Priyanka may not contest the general elections. On Wednesday, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said the decision would be announced by Thursday evening. Yet, there was no official announcement till going to the press. However, posters of Rahul have come up in both Amethi and Rae Bareli as the local leadership is hopeful that one of the Gandhis will contest from Amethi. “We received a message Family from the high command in the bastion evening to make preparations for Friday’s nomination. The Rae Bareli is party will also hold a rally to- prestigious for day said a leader. ,” the Congress According to sources, Con- as it was held gress chief Mallikarjun Kharge by Indira has conveyed to the Gandhis Gandhi thrice, that not contesting from Uttar her husband Pradesh would not augur well Feroze Gandhi for the party’s prospects in the twice and Hindi heartland. Rahul repreSonia from sented Amethi for three straight 2004 to 2024 terms from 2004 to 2019 before he was defeated by Union minister Smriti Irani by over 50,000 votes in 2019. Irani, who is seeking a second term from Amethi, has challenged Rahul to contest from the seat. A section of the leaders believe that if Rahul does not take up the challenge, it will only vindicate the BJP’s charges of him running away from the seat. According to sources, Rahul was not keen on Priyanka’s electoral debut as he did not want all the three members of the family in Parliament. The BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi have been constantly attacking the Congress over its dynasty politics. The BJP on Thursday dropped Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, who faces criminal charges of sexually harassing women wrestlers during his stint as the president of Wrestling Federation of India (WFI), and instead fielded his younger son Karan Bhushan Singh from Uttar Pradesh’s Kaiserganj Lok Sabha constituency . The saffron party also named Dinesh Pratap Singh as its candidate from Rae Bareli, a Gandhi family bastion that elected Congress leader Sonia Gandhi five consecutive times. Dinesh Pratap Singh, currently serving as a minister in the Yogi Adityanath cabinet, was the BJP’s candidate from the Rae Bareli parliamentary seat in 2019 as well. Even though he lost to Sonia Gandhi last time, he managed to bring down her victory margin to 1.67 lakh votes from 3.52 lakh in 2014. He was earlier with the Congress and he joined the BJP in 2018. Rajput Brij Bhushan, the sitting MP card in Kaiserganj, was forced to resign as WFI president over the By fielding Dinesh Singh sexual harassment scandal after the wrestlers launched a proand Karan Bhushan(pic), test. By denying ticket to Brij BJP hopes to Bhushan, the BJP has sought to send out a message of distancplacate ing itself from tainted leaders. Rajput With Brij Bhushan, the total community number of MPs benched by the voters, who BJP in UP in the ensuing elecwere upset with the party tion has touched 15. A six-time MP, Brij Bhushan has won not only from Kaiserganj but also neighbouring constituencies like Gonda and Balrampur. An influential regional leader, he has sway over half-a-dozen Lok Sabha seats in and around Gonda in central UP . Brij Bhushan has formidable clout in Kaiserganj and adjoining districts as he owns over 50 educational institutions in the region. He had been pitching hard for a seat for himself while the BJP reportedly gave him two options — to field his wife Ketaki Singh or elder son Prateek, an MLA from Gonda Sadar. Ketaki Singh was BJP’s Gonda MP in 1996. Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Thursday filed his nomination papers from Kantbanji Assembly seat in Balangir district, the second constituency from where he is contesting apart from Hinjili in Ganjam district. The chief minister landed at a temporary helipad near Titlagarh before heading to the subcollector’s office where he was welcomed by hundreds of party workers and locals. Unlike Hinjili which is a traditional BJD stronghold, the regional party had finished third in Kantabanji in 2019. The BJD had managed to win the constituency only once in 2014 when Mohammed Ayub Khan Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik handing over his nomination papers from the Kantabanji Assembly constituency at the sub-collector’s office in Titlagarh | Express defeated Congress’ Santosh Singh Saluja. Sources in BJD said this time the party is targeting to garner 30,000 to 40,000 more votes than 2019 when its candidate Ajaya Kumar Das had polled 54,527 votes. This will ensure the defeat of Saluja, a four time MLA who is seeking re-election for the fifth time. The other immediate benefit EC orders transfer of Sujata Karthikeyan E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ New Delhi/Bhubaneswar The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Thursday ordered the transfer of commissioner-cum-secretary of Mission Shakti department Sujata Karthikeyan to a non-public dealing department with immediate effect. Sujata is the wife of 5T chairman and BJD leader VK Pandian. Sources in the ECI confirmed The New Indian Express that the action was taken following a complaint by the BJP regard- ing alleged misuse of public of- by the ruling dispensation to fice and authority by the influence voters to vote for BJD officer. in the simultaneous Earlier in the day, Lok Sabha and Assemthe BJP had moved bly elections. the poll panel accusAs part of its charing Sujata of misuster of duty the depart, ing her position to inment promotes varifluence voters through ous women self help Systematic Voters’ groups (SHGs) and Education and Elecprovides gainful activtoral Participation ities to its members (SVEEP) programme by providing credit, Sujata Karthikeyan for electoral gains of market linkage and BJD. In its complaint, the BJP other financial benefits with a alleged the Mission Shakti de- budget running into thousands Continued on P5 partment was being misused of crores. Deaths THIS EDITION INCLUDES 8 PAGES ANNIVERSARY SUPPLEMENT EXPRESSIONS during trespassing on railway tracks not eligible for compensation The Orissa Hc has held that individuals who trespass on railway tracks are ultimately responsible for their own safety | P2 Drying up A fisherman strolls on the Mahanadi river bed after anchoring his boat at Mundali, on Thursday | Shiba Prasad Sahu BJP scramble to save Sikri fort from popular Kargil war veteran’s Hand N a m i ta B a j pa i @ Lucknow Known for being the seat of the famous Sufi saint Salim Chishti and the fort of Mughal Emperor Akbar, Fatehpur Sikri is the youngest parliamentary constituency in Uttar Pradesh. It was carved out of Agra in 2008. BJP’s Rajkumar Chahar had won it in 2019 with a thumping five lakh-plus vote margin. But this time around, the contest seems to be evenly poised between the BJP and the Congress. Sikri goes to polls on May 7. Congress candidate Ram Nath Sikarwar — popularly known as Fauji Baba — is giving a tough fight to Chahar, who is reeling under antiincumbency besides intraparty rebellion. In 2019, Chahar was a giant killer, having defeated Raj Babbar, the then state president of the Congress. But now Chahar, the national chairman of the BJP’s Kisan Morcha, is caught in a double whammy . Apart from Sikarwar, Chahar is also facing a tough challenge from Rameshwar Chaudhury, son of sitting BJP MLA Babulal Rajkumar Chahar Ram Nath Sikarwar Illustration: Mandar Pardikar Chaudhury. Rameshwar has raised the flag of revolt and is contesting as an independent. He is believed to have better clout than Chahar among the Jat voters. The BJP recently expelled Rameshwar after all efforts to pacify him failed. Chahar also has to deal with grumpy Kashtriyas because of a perceived slight against the community by the BJP’s candidate in Gujarat’s Rajkot, Parshottam Rupala. Since Sikarwar is a Kshatriya, he is getting resonance from the community . To save the seat, senior BJP leaders like Rajnath Singh, a prominent Thakur face, and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath are holding multiple rallies in Sikri and Agra to placate the Kshatriyas. The BJP has also roped in retired Air Chief Marshal R K S Bhadoria, another Thakur from Bah who recently joined the party to pacify the Thakurs. , Bhadoria held a roadshow for the BJP candidate. Chahar is mainly relying on the ModiYogi factor to stay afloat. As for the Congress, its leadership is trying to put in more efforts to wrest the seat. Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi is scheduled to hold a roadshow in Fatehpur Sikri on Friday . Besides, Sikarwar has his own following. He resides in the Kheragarh village, often stays in a village temple and travels in a four-wheeler. A Kargil war hero, he retired from the Army in 2004. His popularity especial, ly among the deprived sections, is giving Chahar more worries. The BSP has fielded Ram Niwas Sharma, a Brahmin, making it a quadrangular contest. Sikri has 1.75 lakh Jats, 3.5 lakh Thakurs, 3 lakh Brahmins, 1.4 lakh Kushwahas, 1.25 lakh Nishads, and Muslims and Vaishyas at 1 lakh each. of the chief minister’s candidature is that it will check the growth of BJP in the Assembly segment and enable BJD to give a tough fight to the saffron party in the Lok Sabha seat from where sitting MP Sangeeta Kumari Singhdeo is seeking reelection. In 2019, BJD candidates had won from four Assembly segments while Congress had won two seats. BJP had won from one segment. 5T chairman VK Pandian, senior BJD leader AU Singhdeo, Water Resources Minister Tukuni Sahu and other senior leaders were present at the office of the Titlagarh sub-collector when the chief minister filed his nomination papers. The chief minister had filed his nomination for Hinjili Assembly constituency on Tuesday . ‘Prajwal flew to Germany on diplomatic passport’ Y E S H I S E L I @ New Delhi SUSPENDED Janata Dal (Secular) MP Prajwal Revanna, who is in the eye of a storm over his alleged sexual harassment of women, travelled to Germany on a diplomatic passport without political clearance, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Thursday . “No political clearance was either sought from or issued by MEA in respect to his travel to Germany… Obviously, no visa note was issued either,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on Thursday. Diplomatic passport holders can travel to over 100 countries, including Germany, without visa. “The ministry has not issued visa note for Revanna for travel to any other country,” the MEA spokesperson said, adding that parliamentarians are entitled to have diplomatic passports. Prajwal is the sitting MP from Hassan, from where he is seeking re-election. Diplomatic passports are issued to diplomats, government officials and individuals who are authorised to undertake official travel on behalf of the government. Under international law, diplomatic passport holders enjoy certain privileges and immunities, including immunity from arrest in the host country . On Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah’s demand for revocation of Revanna’s diplomatic passport, the MEA spokesperson said it can be taken only on the directions of a court. “As regards the possible revocation of the passport of any individual, I would refer you to the relevant provisions of the Passport Act 1967. A direction should come from a court for revocation of passport. We are not in receipt of any directions from any court in this regard,” he said. Prajwal, 33, is the grandson of former PM and JD(S) chief H D Deve Gowda. He was suspended from the party after the controversy broke out.
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.