tirupati l tuesday l may 19, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l late city EDITION CIC u-turn: BCCI not a public authority under RTI Act Central Information Commission says body not liable to answer queries under transparency law as it isn't public authority under the RTI Act No government control: Commission Systems of other cricket boards The CIC, whose 2018 order was appealed, said BCCI is independent. "There exists no control of the government over the functions, finance, administration, management and affairs of BCCI," it said. While the BCCI does select national teams and organise tournaments, the Commission held that cannot be grounds for giving it public authority character ■ ■ Most other frontline cricket boards are categorised as autonomous boards who don’t take government funding. But many voluntarily disclose information. Almost all international cricket boards are private bodies for the purpose of legalese The original RTI application was from a citizen in 2017 2018 was when CIC said BCCI is a public authority. BCCI went on Appeal 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 Team Satheesan takes charge Announces free travel for women in state-run buses from June 15, dedicated govt department for senior citizens E XPR E S S N E W S S E RVIC E @ T’Puram AMID thunderous cheers from a teeming crowd and in the presence of a galaxy of VIPs, V D Satheesan was sworn in as Kerala’s 13th chief minister along with 20 cabinet colleagues at a glittering ceremony at Central Stadium, Thiruvananthapuram on Monday . True to his word, Satheesan wasted no time in rolling out two major poll promises: free travel for women on KSRTC buses from June 15 and the launch of India’s first dedicated government department for senior citizens. In a major relief for striking ASHA workers, he also announced a `3,000 hike in their honorarium. Addressing a packed press conference after his cabinet’s first meeting, a composed Satheesan said he was fully aware of the enormity of the task ahead and made it clear his administration would break from rigid precedents. Satheesan said the new elderly welfare department would, within two months, prepare a comprehensive road map inspired by global models such as White paper on state’s financial health The new government would publish a white paper to give people a clear picture of the state’s financial health. The administration will also chart its next course after receiving a detailed report on the economic impact of the fuel price hike s u c h i t r a k a lya n m o h a n t y @ New Delhi SIT to probe police action against Cong workers Satheesan also announced the formation of an SIT to probe the alleged police excesses against Congress workers during the Nava Kerala Sadas in 2023. Declaring, “We will not forget anything,” he insisted the move was not driven by political vendetta Japan’s to ensure senior citizens can live with dignity The . CM said the government’s goal was to build a system that would make Kerala stand out as a truly civilised society . Signalling immediate relief for grassroots health and welfare workers, the cabinet approved a first-phase `3,000 hike in the honorarium of ASHA workers, raising their monthly The oft-invoked phrase that bail is the rule and jail is the exception is not merely an empty slogan flowing from CrPC Kerala Chief Minister V D Satheesan flanked by Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress leaders KC Venugopal, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi, and ministers Sunny Joseph and Ramesh Chennithala after the swearing-in ceremony | B P Deepu pay from `9,000 to `12,000. The government also announced a `1,000 salary hike for anganwadi workers, helpers, cooks, and pre-primary teachers. Earlier, Governor Rajendra Arlekar administered the oath of office and secrecy to Satheesan and his cabinet colleagues at a ceremony that lasted over an hour. In accordance with a recent Union home ministry directive, the programme began and ended with the recital of the full version of the national song ‘Vande Mataram’ followed by the national anthem. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM D K Shivakumar, Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy Himachal Pradesh Chief , Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, Leader of the Oppositiondesignate Pinarayi Vijayan, AICC leaders K C Venugopal and Deepa Dasmunsi, CPI state secretary Binoy Viswam, and BJP state president and MLA Rajeev Chandrasekhar were also present. India will continue to Naidu: Stick to Irrigation Calendar, buy Russian oil: Govt ensure non-stop funding for projs RAK E S H KU M AR @ New Delhi amid uncertainty over the status of the US sanctions waiver on Russian crude imports, India on Monday said it will continue to buy Russian oil. “Enough crude has been tied up... waiver or no waiver, it will not affect,” Sujata Sharma, joint secretary in the petroleum ministry, told reporters during a media briefing. The clarification came after the temporary US sanctions waiver expired on May 16. She said India had been sourcing crude from Russia even before the sanctions and would continue to do so depending on commercial viability “These are com. mercial decisions taken by oil marketing companies based on national requirements and economic considerations.” The US first announced the waiver for a month in March and later extended it till May 16 amid concerns over global oil supply disruptions due to the Iran-US/Israel war. India, which imports 88% of its crude oil requirement from over 40 countries, has sharply raised purchases of discounted Russian crude since the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine War in February 2022. Despite criticism from the US and Western nations, India has maintained that crude purchases are based on affordability and national energy security needs. Notably the joint sec, re t a r y ’s c o m m e n t s came on a day when reports said Pakistan has de ployed over 8,000 troops, a ​ ull squadron of f JF-17 fighter jets, and an air defence system to Saudi Arabia under a mutual defence pact signed last year, which requires both countries to come to each other’s defence if either country comes under attack. Riyadh has been facing the brunt of the Iran-US war with Tehran targeting the kingdom’s infrastructure assets as retaliation to attacks by the US. S G u r u S r i k a n t h @ Vijayawada Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has directed irrigation officials to strictly adhere to the Irrigation Calendar, ensuring that construction, foundation works, and commissioning of projects are completed on schedule. Reviewing irrigation projects at the Secretariat, he emphasised that beyond the 25 projects already announced, 11 additional priority schemes must also be integrated into the calendar. He instructed the Finance Department to ensure uninterrupted funding for land acquisition and civil works, stressing that irrigation progress is central to agricultural stability and water security . Regarding the Polavaram Project, Officials reported that civil works are 88% complete, land acquisition has reached 93%, and R&R is 45% complete. The diaphragm wall was finished in April 2026, while Earth- Cyber cops arrest man for `5.28 crore bank loan fraud with mule accounts E x p r ess Ne w s S e r v i c e @ Vijayawada Vijayawada cybercrime police arrested a man for allegedly cheating banks by obtaining loans worth `5.28 crore through fake and mule accounts and defaulted loan repayment on Monday . From the accused, police seized 34 property documents worth about `7 crore, a car, a motorcycle, 122 grams of gold, 927 grams of silver, nine ATM cards, and `11,500 cash. Addressing a press conference, Cybercrime DCP Krishna Prasanna said the accused Neelam Pawan Kumar, a native of Guduru village in Krishna district, residing in Vijayawada and had opened 26 savings bank accounts in various Axis Bank branches in Vijayawada since SC criticises its fiat denying bail to Umar Khalid CM Nara Chandrababu Naidu addressing a review meeting on Polavaram and other irrigation projects, at the Secretariat in Velagapudi on Monday | Express Show urgency in completing Veligonda Phase - 1 by July 2026, requiring `2,019 crore for head works, canals, distributaries, R&R, and land acquisition N Chandrababu Naidu, Chief Minister cum-Rock Fill Dam Gap-1 and Gap-2 are scheduled for completion by March 2027. Twin tunnels linking the right canal are 85% complete, and works on the left canal approach channel, head regulator, and irrigation tunnel are ongoing. The Chief Minister insisted on monthly reviews, directing water release from Purushottapatnam Lift to the left canal by July 2026. He also ordered a feasibility study for the Meghadri- PHCs show sharp improvement in AP Vijayawada: PHCs in AP have shown marked improvement, with ‘A’ category centres rising from 107 in October 2025 to 312 in March 2026. ‘B’ category PHCs increased from 354 to 455. Director of Public Health Dr Padmavati informed Health Minister Y Satya Kumar Yadav that 306 PHCs improved performance, while lowercategory centres declined | P3 2019. Using these accounts, the accused allegedly availed loans and credit card facilities from the bank and later defaulted on repayments before absconding. Following a complaint, a case was registered under Sections 340(2) and 318(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Section 66-D of the Information Technology Act, 2000-2008.  P4 Vijayawada: The stage is set for the disbursement of financial aid to fishermen under the “Matsyakaarula Sevalo” scheme for the second consecutive year. CM N Chandrababu Naidu will release `262 crore to 1,30,796 families at a programme in Tummalapenta in Nellore district on Tuesday | P4 ‘Limits to UAPA section’ The statutory embargo of Section 43-D(5) of the UAPA, which has stringent bail restrictions, must remain a circumscribed restriction that operates subject to the guarantee of Articles 21 and 22 of the Constitution ‘Najeeb case binding on all courts’ The court made it clear that its order in the Najeeb case (long delay a fit ground for bail) is a binding law that cannot be diluted, or disregarded by trial courts, high courts or even by smaller benches of the Supreme Court `10,000 Bounty on husband of dead Actor Twisha With a Bhopal court rejecting the anticipatory bail plea of lawyer Samarth Singh following the suspicious death of his wife and actor Twisha Sharma, the police announced a `10,000 bounty for any information leading to his arrest. Samarth is the son of retired judge Giribala Singh, who managed to get advance bail | P8 sixth arrest E x p r e s s Re a d CM to disburse `262 cr aid to fishermen today Vijayawada Cybercrime DCP K Krishna Prasanna takes a look at the gadgets used in `5.28 crore loan scam during a press conference on Monday | Prasant Madugula gadda-Champavathi link, and instructed that R&R be completed by April 2027. Plans for an iconic bridge downstream of the spillway were announced to position Polavaram as a tourism landmark. The Chief Minister underscored urgency in completing Veligonda Phase - 1 by July 2026, requiring `2,019 crore for head works, canals, distributaries, R&R, and land acquisiP4 tion.  SC bench of justices B V Nagarathna and Ujjal Bhuyan STRESSING that “bail is the rule and jail is the exception” is not merely an empty statutory slogan, the Supreme Court on Monday questioned its January 5 judgment denying bail to activists Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam in the case of larger conspiracy behing the 2020 Delhi riots. A bench of justices B V Nagarathna and Ujjal Bhuyan, while granting bail to J&K resident Syed Iftikhar Andrabi in a narcoterror case probed by the NIA, said that it has “serious reservations” on the reasoning adopted by a different bench of the Supreme Court in the Delhi riots case. The court said that the right to speedy trial cannot be curtailed only because charges have been invoked under the stringent UAPA. In the Gulfisha Fatima case, which dealt with bail pleas linked to the Delhi riots, while several accused got relief, a two-judge bench comprising justices Aravind Kumar and N V Anjaria on January 5, 2026 refused bail to Khalid and Imam and said they can file fresh bail applications following the examination of protected witnesses after one year. A review petition was also dismissed on April 16, 2026. Writing for the bench, Justice Bhuyan noted “serious reservations” about the Gulfisha Fatima ruling. “We have serious reservations on various aspects of the judgment in the Gulfisha Fatima case, including foreclosing the right of the two appellants to seek bail for a period of one year.” The bench even compared the case of Andrabi with the earlier K A Najeeb judgment — which holds an accused cannot be jailed indefinitely — that bars indefinite incarceration as a narrow exception to Section 43D(5), applicable only in extreme facts. Diluting the scope of Najeeb judgment was what troubled the bench on Monday . The Najeeb judgment, which was delivered in 2021 by a three-judge bench of the Supreme Court headed by Justice (later CJI and now retired) N V Ramana, is considered one of the most significant rulings on bail under the UAPA. It held that the bar under Section 43D(5) of UAPA is a limited restriction and must operate within the safeguards of Articles 21 and 22 of the Constitution. “We have no doubt that under UAPA too, bail is the rule and jail the exception” the court noted. Khalid, Imam and others had been arrested between January 2020 and September 2020 in connection with the Delhi riots. CBI arrests Latur coaching centre founder in NEET-UG leak case s u d h i r s u r ya w a n s h i @ Mumbai THE CBI has arrested the founder of a coaching centre based in Maharashtra’s Latur over his alleged involvement in the NEET-UG paper leak, officials said on Monday . Shivraj Raghunath Motegaonkar, who runs Renukai Chemistry Classes (RCC), was arrested on Sunday evening after CBI recovered a leaked question paper of the examination held on May 3 from his mobile phone during searches at his premises, officials said. Motegaonkar was allegedly an “active member of the organised gang” involved in the leakage and circulation of NEET UG 2026 exam. Retired chemistry professor Maharashtra is focal point of NEET probe Motegaonkar’s arrest is the sixth in Maharashtra in the NEET UG paper leak case. Earlier, the CBI had arrested PV Kulkarni, Manisha Mandhare, Subham Kharinar, Dhananjay Lokhande, and Manisha Waghmare for their complicity in the case PV Kulkarni, who was earlier arrested by the CBI for leaking the NEET exam paper, is suspected of having provided the paper to Motegaonkar. Kulkarni was part of the NEET exam paper selection committee. Motegaonkar’s coaching centre has nine branches, includ- ing the main branch in Latur. As part of a conspiracy with other accused, Motegaonkar received the question paper and answers on April 23, nearly 10 days before the examination was held across the country and abroad, the CBI said. The CBI said Motegaonkar provided copies of the leaked question papers and answer sheets to several people in the form of handwritten notes that were destroyed after the examination, for huge sums ranging between `5-10 lakh. Motegaonkar’s son was in Class 12 and a NEET aspirant. For his son’s benefit, Motegaonkar tried to help him, The court has granted nine days’ custody of Motegaonkar to the CBI.