TUESDAY 1,00,000 HAMAS ACCEPTS EGYPTIAN-QATARI PALESTINIANS CEASEFIRE PROPOSAL TO HALT WAR IN RAFAH WERE 07 MAY, 2024 ORDERED BY ISRAEL TO LEAVE THE TOWN epaper.morningstandard.in Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh on Monday informed Qatar and Egypt that his group accepts their proposal for a ceasefire in Gaza facebook.com/TheMorningStandard X.com/TheMornStandard RUSSIA WARNS UK PLANS NUKE DRILLS AS TENSIONS RISE Moscow threatens to strike British military facilities saying it would hold drills simulating the use of battlefield nuclear weapons PAGE 11 ISRAELI DELEGATION SKIPPED PEACE TALKS A CAPITAL VIEW OF NEWS NEW DELHI J8.00 PAGES 14 Details of the proposal were not immediately released. But Egyptian and Hamas officials have said the ceasefire would take place in stages and Hamas would release hostages in exchange for Israel troop pullout from Gaza. There was no immediate reaction from Israel, which did not send a delegation to Cairo for talks, and is opposed to withdrawing its troops from Gaza | P11 LG picks ‘K’ word for NIA probe against Kejriwal SC to hear plea today The Supreme Court last week indicated that it may consider granting Kejriwal interim bail on Tuesday in view of the elections. The AAP chief is in Tihar jail; he was arrested on March 21 by the Enforcement Directorate in the scrapped Delhi liquor policy case EXPRESS READ 16 Gujarat schools get hoax email threats On the eve of Lok Sabha elections in Ahmedabad, as many as 16 schools here received an email on Monday threatening bomb blasts, though a police statement said this was a hoax as searches failed to unearth anything suspicious. Eleven of these schools have been designated as polling booths for Lok Sabha voting on Tuesday, informed Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch) Sharad Singhal. The 16 schools comprise 12 in the city and four on the outskirts, Singhal added. Question paper leak claim baseless: NTA The reports claiming question paper leak in the medical entrance exam NEET-UG are “completely baseless and without any ground”, the National Testing Agency (NTA) clarified on Monday. Stressing that every question paper has been “accounted for”, the NTA said that purported images of the question paper circulating on social media have no relation with the actual paper. “To put rumours to rest, it is also stated that every single question paper has been accounted for,” said the NTA. P9 Cops release sketch of 2 militants in J&K The security forces on Monday released a sketch of two militants involved in Saturday’s attack on an IAF convoy in the forest area of J&K’s border district of Poonch, in which a soldier was killed and four others injured. A reward of `20 lakh has been announced for those providing information about the two militants. For the third consecutive day, security personnel continued a search operation in the dense forest area to track down the militants involved in the attack. P9 A S H I S H S R I V A S TA V A @ New Delhi A day before the Supreme Court is set to take up bail plea of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Lieutenant-Governor VK Saxena on Monday recommended a National Investigation Agency (NIA) probe involving the CM for allegedly receiving political funding from banned Khalistani organization, Sikhs for Justice (SJF). The ruling AAP rejected the charge. The LG’s move came against the backdrop of indications by the Supreme Court last week that it may consider granting Kejriwal interim bail on Tuesday in view of the Lok Sabha elections. Stakes high for Kharge, BSY, NCP in Phase 3 BJP sees it as one of consolidation; 30-40 seats to witness triangular contests today RAJESH KUMAR THAKUR AND DEVARAJ B HIREHALLI @ New Delhi/ Bengaluru THE electoral fate of half-a-dozen Union ministers and two former chief ministers will be sealed on Wednesday in the third phase of the general elections is 93 constituencies in 11 states and Union territories. The BJP sees the third phase as one of consolidation as compared to the first two phases. Prominent among the heavyweight candidates in this phase are Union home minister Amit Shah in Gandhinagar, Union health minister Mansukh Mandaviya (Porbandar), civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya M Scindia (Guna), former Madhya seats for which Pradesh chief minister Digvijaya Singh polling will be (Rajgarh), NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar)’s Supriya Sule (Baramati) and Adhir Ranheld in 11 states/UTs jan Choudhary (Berhampur). In Uttar Pradesh, representatives of the Mulayam Singh Yadav clan are contesting in this phase — Dimple Yadav from Maincandidates including around 120 puri, Akshaya Yadav, son of Ram Gopal women, in the fray Yadav, from Firozabad and Aditya Yadav, son of Shivpal Yadav, from Budaun. In Karnataka, the last of the 14 seats will go to polls in what is being seen as a people eligible to vote high-stakes battle for Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge. For, most of the seats Entire Gujarat are in North Karnataka, which is regardand Goa, 11 seats in ed as his home turf. The elections are Maharashtra, 10 in equally important for former chief minisUP, 14 in Karnataka, ter B S Yediyurappa, whose son Vijayen7 in Chhattisgarh, 5 in dra is the state BJP president. Bihar, 4 each in Assam Prominent among those in the fray in and West Bengal to Karnataka are former CMs Basavaraj go to polls Bommai (Haveri) and Jagadish Shettar (Belgaum), Union ministers Pralhad Joshi (Dharwad) and Bhagwant Khuba (Bidar), Yediyurappa’s son Raghavendra (Shivamogga) and Kharge’s son-in-law Radhakrishna Doddamani (Gulbarga SC). According to sources, around 30-40 constituencies in the third phase will witness triangular contests, giving sitting Lok Sabha members a really tough time. Most of the sitting MPs MORE REPORTS ON PG 5, 6, 7 AND 10 are from the ruling BJP . PHASE 3 FACTOIDS 93 The AAP chief, who is in Tihar jail, was arrested on March 21 by the Enforcement Directorate in the excise policy-linked money laundering case. The LG’s letter to the Union home secretary said he received a complaint that the Kejriwal-led AAP allegedly received $16 million in funding from extremist Khalistani groups “for facilitating the release of Devendra Pal Bhullar.” Bhullar is currently lodged in Amritsar Central Jail. The complaint was filed by Ashoo Mongia, national general secretary, World Hindu Federation India based on a video where wanted Khalistani leader Gur- India’s medical support for Paris Olympics: Sleep therapist, physios, recovery room and air coolers sion to have a proper medical team like some of the bigger THE Indian Olympic Associa- squads (Germany US and Ja, tion (IOA) have made elabo- pan). What used to happen is rate plans to take a battery of our physiotherapists used to support staff including a sleep be there, we did have a physitherapist and a small army of cian who would help with physiotherapists to help the services but we didn’t have a Indian contingent at full (medical) team. the Paris Games. CLUSIVE Whenever somebody Unlike in the previhad an injury, they ous Games, they will would do an MRI and also get a full-fledged recovery contact me here. But it’s diffiroom. The advantages include cult to do it online.” The well-equipped recovery cryotherapy chambers and ice baths to help athletes recover room will be a first-of-its-kind faster in their quest for Olym- for Indian athletes. “When you are doing high-level sports, pic glory . “This year,” Dinshaw Pardi- you require a full support syswala, the Chief Medical Of- tem,” Pardiwala, who has ficer (CMO) of the delegation, mended the bones of almost said, “the IOA took the deci- every medal-winning Indian S W A R O O P S W A M I N AT H A N @ Mumbai Dinshaw Pardiwala, head of Centre for Sports Medicine at Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital in Mumbai Olympian in the 21st century, said. “Although the Olympic Village has a polyclinic and some physiotherapy services, it’s difficult when you have 10000 athletes and 12 ice baths.” He was very elaborate when speaking about the need for a sleep therapist in the modern world. At least some of it has CRACKDOWN ON GANGSTERS NEXUS Amid a diplomatic row between New Delhi and Ottawa, investigating agencies have prepared a list of pro-Khalistan terrorists and gangsters living in Canada or having links with them. P9 11 crore ILLUSTRATION: MANDAR PARDIKAR B I J AY C H A K I @ Kendrapara From left: Jay Panda (BJP), Anshuman Mohanty (BJD), Siddharth Swarup Das (Cong) the son of Nalini Kanta Mohanty a former min, ister and close aide of Biju Patnaik, and Siddharth Swarup Das of the Congress, a new face with no experience of fighting election at this level. As one traverses through Kendrapara, the election fervour seems to be conspicuous by its absence. There is no perceptible tilt, but scratch the surface and there is a simmer for change, particularly in the rural parts. “No doubt, the BJD and its leaders have done good work in the constituency But we should . also examine what other political parties are offering. Baijayant Panda is a known leader nationally,” said Biraja Das, a paan shop owner at Chhapali square under Mahakalapada Assembly segment. The sentiment was echoed by to do with the Paris Games’ desire to be carbon-neutral. “It’s also going to be important because the Games have decided that they won’t have air-conditioning in the Village as they would like to go green.” India, like some of the other contingents, are planning to take their air cooling units but the sleep therapist will act as a backstop in case this plan doesn’t work out. “The process is going on, we have requested ACs. If that doesn’t happen, we will have to manage our own air cooling systems. In case there’s a heat wave, it will be difficult to adjust at the last minute. So, we have taken that factor into consideration also (to have a sleep therapist).” NIA 1,300 L 30 CRORE AND COUNTING Enforcement Directorate officials counting unaccounted cash to the tune of over `30 crore recovered from the premises of Jahangir Alam, the domestic help of Jharkhand minister Alamgir Alam’s secretary Sanjiv Lal, in Ranchi on Monday | PTI It’s Modi factor vs Biju legacy in Kendrapara WHEN BJP’s national vicepresident Baijayant Jay Panda was named the party candidate for the Kendrapara Lok Sabha seat, the question on everyone’s mind was if he could make it this time. Panda had won twice from the seat in 2009 and 2014 as a BJD candidate. But electoral success seems to have deserted him after he joined the saffron party Once a close confidant of . Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, Panda switched over to the BJP in 2019 after a bitter fallout with the BJD chief. He contested the 2019 Lok Sabha election as a BJP candidate but was trounced by Odia film star Anubhav Mohanty fielded by the BJD. This time, Panda is locked in a triangular contest with Anshuman Mohanty of the BJD, patwant Singh Pannun mentioned AAP for receiving the fund from Khalistani groups between 2014 and 2022. The LG also mentioned that a clandestine meeting took place in 2014 between Kejriwal and proKhalistani elements at Gurudwara Richmond Hills, New York. In that meeting the Delhi CM purportedly promised to facilitate the release of Bhullar in return for financial backing. Bhullar is a convict in a 1993 Delhi bomb blast case. Bhullar was convicted in the killing of nine people and injuring 31 others in a blast outside the Youth Congress headquarters in Delhi. another voter. “The time has come for a change. The same party has been ruling for too long. Development is too slow,” said Sadasiv Patra of Pospura. Basic issues such as roads, water, hospitals, schools, and unemployment are on top of voters’ mind. However, voting behaviour is more inclined to emotion and attachment, where problemsolving becomes secondary As . a youth in Kendrapara town put it — the fight is between the popularity of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Biju legacy. The legacy has held strong since former CM and Naveen’s father Biju Patnaik made Kendrapara his seat and won it thrice in 1977, 1980 and 1984. The baton was passed on to the BJD, which has held it since 1998 after it came into being. Can Panda breach the BJD bastion and help the BJP gain a foothold in coastal Odisha? CONTINUED ON P5 3 held for impersonating as NEET-UG candidates EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE @ New Delhi DELHI Police arrested three people from two south Delhi schools for allegedly impersonating and appearing on behalf of candidates in the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (Undergraduate), a senior police official said on Monday . According to the official, the accused, all from Rajasthan, were identified as Abhishek (24), a Jodhpur resident, Gajraj Singh (21)of Dausa, and Barmer resident Rakesh (21). Deputy Commissioner of Police (South) Ankit Chauhan said on May 5, a NEET-UG exam was held on Sunday at some schools in the South District area wherein complaints from two schools — Sarvodaya (Co-Ed) School in Begumpur, and Mount Columbus School in Dakshin Puri - regarding fake candidates were received at Malviya Nagar and Ambedkar Nagar police stations. Acting on the calls, police teams were dispatched to the schools. “Abhishek was nabbed from Mount Columbus School, while Gajraj and Rakesh were arrested from Sarvodaya (CoEd) School,” said the DCP Two separate cas. es have been registered. Multiple FIRs have been filed under section 419 (cheating by personation), 468 (forgery for cheating), 471 (using as genuine a forged document), 120B (criminal conspiracy) and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code at Malviya Nagar and Ambedkar Nagar police stations. Court rejects bail to Kavitha in liquor scam S U C H I T R A K A LYA N M O H A N T Y @ New Delhi A Delhi court on Monday refused to grant BRS leader K Kavitha interim bail for her alleged involvement in the Delhi excise policy-related money laundering case. Dismissing her plea, Judge Baweja said, “In the light of the discussion, the material on record and the seriousness of allegations against the accused, this court is not inclined to admit the applicant on bail at this stage.” This was the third time the Delhi court had rejected her bail application, after noting that her alleged complicity in the case could not be ruled out. “There is every likelihood of her influencing witnesses if she is allowed to be released on bail,” the order read. Kavitha, pleaded for interim bail on the ground that being a woman, she is seeking bail as she falls within the first proviso to Section 45 (1) of PMLA. Opposing her bail plea, the ED claimed that Kavitha allegedly destroyed material evidence and influenced witnesses in the case.
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.