TheIndian EXPRESS LATE CITY, 26 PAGES, NEW DELHI, `6.00 (`8 PATNA & RAIPUR, `12 SRINAGAR) ● WEDNESDAY, APRIL 11, 2018 ● WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM DAILY FROM: AHMEDABAD, CHANDIGARH, DELHI, JAIPUR, KOLKATA, LUCKNOW, MUMBAI, NAGPUR, PUNE, VADODARA JOURNALISM OF COURAGE NUCLEAR SUPPLIERS GROUP Delhi works on Beijing to drop objections on n-club entry Talks more positive than in the past SHUBHAJIT ROY NEW DELHI, APRIL 10 EMBOLDENED BY its entry into three of the four multilateral export control regimes over the last two years, India on Tuesday once again reached out to China and tried to convince the interlocutors in Beijing to lift their objections at the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG). Joint Secretary (DisarmamentandInternational Security) Pankaj Sharma met Beijing’s top interlocutor Wang Xun, who heads the disarmament division in the Chinese government. Almost two years ago, in June 2016, Wang had blocked the proposal to include India as a member of the elite exportcontrolgroupataplenary meeting in Seoul. The Indian Express has learnt that the talks were “constructive” and “forward-looking”. “Therewasalotof candourinthe conversation, and it was in the right direction,” said a source, but did not disclose whether there was a breakthrough. In a step forward, the Indian side indicated that both sides emphasised the importance of “bilateral dialogue”. In an official statement issued on Tuesday night, the Indian embassy in Beijing said, “Both sides underlined the importance of the bilateral dialogue as an important mechanism between the two countries for consultations on important issues... The Indian, Chinese officials in talks in Beijing Tuesday. PTI ROAD SINCE DOKLAM 2017 August: Doklam crisis ends September: Modi, Xi meet at BRICS November: Modi-Li Keqiang meet in Manila December: Wang Yi, Sushma Swaraj meet; Doval, Yang Jiechi meet 2018 February: Skip Tibetan events: Foreign Secy to Cab Secy March: Meeting on trans-border rivers delegations exchanged views on varioustopicsof mutualinterest, including,developmentsrelated to disarmament and non-proliferation at multilateral forums, nuclear issues, role of science and technology in the context of international security and disarmament as well as outer space.” Pointingtothetalksbetween then Foreign Secretary CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 India’s Muhammed Anas Yahiya finished fourth in the finals of 400 metres at the Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast. He clocked 45.31seconds, missing out on a podium finish by 0.20 seconds, but setting a new national record. PTI PAGE 24 NCERT to Fund share: 3 non-BJP southern replace Left states meet, accuse Centre of bias textbooks: Needless controversy, says Jaitley, charges far from truth Tripura CM 15TH FINANCE COMMISSION’S TERMS OF REFERENCE EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, NEW DELHI, APRIL 10 THREE NON-BJP ruled southern states and Union Territory Puducherry Tuesday expressed serious reservations on the Termsof Referencestipulatedby the Centre in the 15th Finance Commission for devolution of funds to states. At a conclave of finance ministers of southern states in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Puducherry said that the ToR contradicted the principles of federalism and morenon-BJPruledstateswould be involved to debate the issue. The ToR, the states argued, would lead to states with higher population bagging a larger share of tax resources and a loss 15 THEIDEASPAGE Ensuring Equity Debate on 15th Finance Commission ignores evolution of Constitutional mechanism forstatesthathavepursuedpopulation control. Responding to these concerns, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, in a statement, deniedbiasandsaidthatFinance Commissions use both qualitative and quantitative criteria such as population and income level to decide financial needs and allocations to states. After the meeting, Kerala Finance Minister Thomas Issac said the issue is not a dispute between the South and North. Isaac said the terms of reference of the 15th FC are a threat to the federal system. “Thereisadeliberateattempt tocutdowntaxdevolutiontothe statesandforciblyimposeconditionsonthestates.Thestateshave togetconsentfromtheCentrefor borrowing funds from the market.TheFinanceCommissionisa Constitutional structure to share finances of the country between theCentreandthestates.Whatis being given from the FC should notbedepictedaslargesseof the Centre,’’ he said. The next meeting will be held in Visakhapatnam early CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 BJP MLA holds grip on village, so West Bengal poll panel girl who alleged rape has to hide reverses its own order, angry BJP moves courts MANISH SAHU UNNAO, APRIL 10 THE UPROAR over the death in custody of the father of a 17-year-old girl who alleged she had been raped by BJP MLA KuldeepSinghSengarsawUPpolice arrest Atul Singh, the MLA’s brother. On Tuesday, he became the fifth person to be held — and sent to judicial custody — in connection with the brutal assault on the girl’s father that led to his death early Monday. Police also promised to question the MLA as part of their probe. Butsuchisthecloutof Sengar and his family, so complete their grip on the village of Makhi, barely 15 km from Unnao, that the girl and her family have refused to return home, saying they fear for their lives. Stopped by the police when they tried to immolate themselves last Sunday near the Chief Minister’s residence in Lucknow to protest police inaction, they CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 16 WORLD FBI RAIDS OFFICE OF TRUMP LAWYER, SEIZES DOCUMENTS DEFEXPO A RED initiative appears in today’s edition of The Indian Express. These pages are an initiative of the marketing solutions team of The Indian Express Group and contain content paid for by advertisers. These pages should be read as an advertisement. KATHUA CHARGESHEET HE GOES FOURTH TO CONQUER SANTANU CHOWDHURY KOLKATA, APRIL 10 BUSINESS AS USUAL BY UNNY The deserted village of Makhi, home of the girl who alleged rape by BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar; (above) Atul Singh, the MLA’s brother, in custody Tuesday. Vishal Srivastav A DAY after extending the last date to file nominations for the panchayat elections in May, the West Bengal State Election Commission (WBSEC) Tuesday recalled the order citing “legal” complexities and after receiving lettersfromthegovernmentand TMCleaderKalyanBanerjee.The move drew sharp criticism from theOppositionBJPandLeftwhich alleged the WBSEC had acted under government pressure. The BJP Tuesday moved the Supreme Court and the Calcutta High Court, challenging the decision of the state election commissiontowithdrawtheextended deadline. The Supreme Court has agreed to take up the matter Wednesday after the BJP sought an urgent hearing. While the Calcutta HC granted an interim stay on the WBSEC notification, the court’s order was 13 EXPLAINED State Election Commission: Its role, its powers issued after 3 pm deadline, which meant candidates were unable to file nominations. Late on Monday, State Election Commissioner A K Singh had issued a notification which extended by a day the deadline for filing nominations. In the order, Singh had noted that the SEC had received complaints from Opposition parties that candidates were “prevented”fromfilingnominations. “Hon’ble Supreme Court of CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 ● PAGE ONE ANCHOR BEYOND URBAN SQUALOR , HOPE LIES WITH SWACHH BHARAT’S RURAL FOOTSOLDIERS SPECIAL TO THE TAVLEEN SINGH EXPRESS CHAMPARAN (BIHAR), APRIL 10 PRIME MINISTERS are not born with a thousand hands,” Narendra Modi said exultantly, “but now I know that you young people have given me a thousand hands.” Below him, under a vast white tent sat more than 20,000 young men and women who came to Champaran from villages across India to participate in the inaugural of a movement that is being called ‘Satyagraha se Swachhagraha’. The Prime Minister said they had gathered in Champaran becauseahundredyearsagoitwas Nitish Kumar welcomes Modi to Patna Tuesday. Also present is Governor Satyapal Malik. PTI ANOTHER REPORT, PAGE 7 from here that Gandhiji created the idea of Satyagraha to drive theBritishoutandhehopedthat Swachhagraha would succeed onedayindrivingunsanitarybehaviour out of India. During his speech, he acknowledged more than once the role played by the thousands of swachhagrahis in taking his idea of Swachh Bharat and making it a people’s movement. These swachhagrahis are mostlyyoung,mostlyvolunteers and mostly women who have taken up the cause of bringing sanitation to rural India as if it were a personal crusade. The Prime Minister also acknowledgedtheworkdoneby the Secretary in the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation, CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 RAHUL TRIPATHI AGARTALA, APRIL 10 CHARGINGTHETripuraBoardof Secondary Education (TBSE) under the previous Left governmentof spreadingMarxistpropaganda over the last two decades, BJP Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb Tuesday said his government will soon “introduce” NCERT syllabus CM Biplab in the state-run Kumar schools. He said Deb the government is in the process of “setting up a committee” to discuss adopting NCERT over the state board. Speaking to The Indian Express at the first NITI Aayog meet for the Northeast, Deb said CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 INTERVIEW PAGE 8 In J&K child gangrape, rituals, a chilling invite and a police cover-up MUZAMIL JALEEL NEW DELHI, APRIL 10 THE EIGHT-YEAR-OLD was gangraped thrice inside the Devasthan or prayer hall, after themastermindhad“performed rituals”. One of the rapists was calledfromMeerutto“satisfyhis lust”. The girl was confined using sedatives, then strangled and hit on the head twice with a stone — “in order to make sure” she was dead. But not before another accused, a police personnel, asked the others to “wait because he wanted to rape” her one last time. And all this, to “dislodge” a group of Bakherwal Muslim nomads from Rasana village in Kathua near Jammu. These are just some of the chilling details in the 18-page chargesheetfiledMondaybyJ&K Police’sCrimeBranchagainstthe eight accused in the rape and murder of the girl who went missing from near her house in RasanaonJanuary10—herbody 14 THEEDITORIAL PAGE On Monday, lawyers tried to stop filing of chargesheet wasfoundsevendayslaterinthe forests nearby. In the days that followed, the chargesheet states, the accused paid Rs 1.5 lakh as a bribe to local policemenwhoknewwherethe girl was kept and helped cover up the crime initially. The killing had sparked outrage across J&K with the government handing over the case to the Crime Branch following protests from the Bakherwal community. The case took a communal turn in Kathua, whereanoutfitcalledHinduEkta Manch was set up by politicians CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 The problem of identities BY PRATAP BHANU MEHTA