DAILY FROM: AHMEDABAD, CHANDIGARH, DELHI, JAIPUR, KOLKATA, LUCKNOW, MUMBAI, NAGPUR, PUNE, VADODARA JOURNALISM OF COURAGE BUSINESS AS USUAL BY UNNY HAD CHALLENGED ARREST, REMAND IN DELHI EXCISE POLICY CASE HCrejectsKejriwalpetition:EDmaterial showshe‘conspired’,sought‘kickbacks’ AAP says it will move SC immediately, BJP pushes for his resignation as CM EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, APRIL 9 EXPLAINED ECONOMICS FORECASTFOR FOOD INFLATION P7 `6.00 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM SINCE 1932 THE DELHI High Court Tuesday dismissed Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s plea against his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate in the Delhi excise policy case, noting there was “sufficient material”withthe agencyfor hisarrest and remand. The single-judge bench of Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma, rulingonthematterafterreserving the verdict on April 3, said, “To summarise, the material… reveals that Arvind Kejriwal had allegedly conspired with other persons and was involved in the formulation of Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22, in the process of demanding kickbacks from the South Group, as well as in generation, use and concealment of proceeds of crime.” Was arrested on March 21 “He is allegedly involved in theoffenceof moneylaundering in two capacities. Firstly, in his personal capacity as he was in- volved in formulation of the Excise Policy and in demanding kickbacks.Secondly,inhiscapacity as the National Convenor of Aam Aadmi Party as per Section 70 (1) of PMLA, for use of proceeds of crime of Rs 45 crores in the election campaign of Aam Aadmi Party in Goa Elections 2022, which are prima facie apparent from the material relied upon by the respondent (ED) as wellasthestatementrecordedon 08.03.2024 of one of the candidatesof AamAadmiPartyinGoa Elections 2022,” the bench said. ItclarifiedthatKejriwal’splea challenged his arrest as “illegal” andwasnotanapplicationseeking grant of bail. It said the “cumulative effect of material collected by the ED so far” on Kejriwal’s alleged role reflected ED’s “reasons to believe” that he was “guilty of offenceof moneylaundering”,and theneedtointerrogate,confront him with witnesses statement andothermaterial,coupledwith his conduct of not joining investigation after being served nine summonsinasix-monthperiod, “necessitated” his arrest. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 India has 2nd highest hepatitis cases, over 11% of global burden, says WHO report ANONNA DUTT NEW DELHI, APRIL 9 INDIA HAS the world’s second highest prevalence of viral hepatitis cases, accounting for over 11 per cent of the global burden in 2022, according to the Global Hepatitis Report 2024 released by the World Health Organisation(WHO)onTuesday. Accordingtothereport,there were 254 million people living with Hepatitis B and 50 million withHepatitisCacrosstheworld in2022.Ofthese,Indiaaccounted for 29 million Hepatitis B cases, second only to China at 79 million; and 5.5 million Hepatitis C cases,afterPakistanat8.8million. An estimated 1.23 lakh people died due to hepatitis in India, whileover50,000newHepatitis Bcasesand1.4lakhnewHepatitis C cases were reported in 2022. Globally, with an estimated 1.3 million deaths per year, viral hepatitis kills as many people as tuberculosis. InIndia,whilethetuberculosis toll remains higher — 3.31 lakh people are reported to have died due to TB in 2022 — what is concerningisthathepatitisdiagnosis and treatment remains very low. According to the report, only 2.4 percentof HepatitisBcaseswere diagnosed, while none received treatment in 2022. On the other hand, 28 per cent of Hepatitis C cases were diagnosed, while 21 per cent received treatment. THE WORLD INDIA NUMBERS Hepatitis B (Total) 2.97 cr Infection load* 98,305 Diagnosis 2.4% Hepatitis C (Total) 0.55 cr Infection load Incidence Deaths 11.2% 1,44,187 26,206 Diagnosis 28% Treatment** 21% Source: Global Hepatitis Report 2024 (figures pertain to 2022); *Proportion of global infections; **Hep B treatment coverage: 0% Viral hepatitis is an infection that causes liver inflammation, damageandmayleadtolivercancer. Hepatitis B is known to cause acuteinfection,withnausea,vomitingandyellowingoftheeyeand skin for several weeks. In severe cases, it can even cause liver failure.ThechallengeisthatHepatitis Bcanleadtochronic,life-longliver disease in some, especially when theinfectioniscontractedinchildhood. The chronic infection can lead to scarring of the liver tissue, called cirrhosis, and increase the risk of liver cancer. BothHepatitisBandHepatitis C can be transmitted through blood transfusion, infected needles, contact with infected blood CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 PrimeMinisterNarendraModiwithUPChief MinisterYogiAdityanathand BJPcandidate JitinPrasadainPilibhit,Tuesday. Express ‘Ram ka apmaan’: PM attacks Congress, SP over no-show at temple consecration MAULSHREE SETH PILIBHIT, APRIL 9 PRIME MINISTER Narendra Modi on Tuesday launched a frontal attack on INDIA bloc alliance partners Congress and Samajwadi Party over not attending the consecration ceremony of the Ayodhya temple early this year, calling it “Ram ka apmaan”, an insult to Lord Ram. Addressing a public rally in Uttar Pradesh's Pilibhit, his first as Prime Minister in the constituency, in support of BJP candidateJitinPrasada,Modialleged that the SP and the Congress were so engrossed in the politics of appeasement that they were even opposing the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). Senior party leaders Maneka Gandhi and her son Varun Gandhi, who have represented the Pilibhit Lok Sabha seat for nearly 25 years, gave the rally a miss. “INDI alliance partners SP and Congress do not care about thecountry'sheritage.Thegrand Ram Temple was constructed in Ayodhya after a wait of 500 years. Kalyan Singh ji (former UttarPradeshchief minister)not NEW DELHI, APRIL 9 WITH REVAMPED airfields and jetties to additional logistics and storage facilities, habitat for troops to a robust surveillance infrastructure, the strategic Andaman and Nicobar Islands are in the middle of a major military infrastructure upgrade, senior officials familiar with the developments have told The Indian Express. The enhanced infrastructure isaimedtofacilitatedeployment of additional military forces, facilities for larger and more warships, aircraft, missile batteries and troops. The ongoing large-scale construction activities come amid growingChineseattemptstoexpand its influence in the region, which includes construction of a military facility at Myanmar’s Coco Islands lying 55 km north E Importance ofthechain ● ofislands THE ANDAMAN and Nicobar Islands are of great strategic importance since they straddle one of the busiest sea lanes in the world and give India the reach to monitor the flow of traffic from the South China Sea (Pacific Ocean) to the Andaman Sea (Indian Ocean) via the Strait of Malacca that’s key to trade and oil shipments in the Indo-Pacific. of A&N Islands. Thereare836IslandsinA&N, of which only 38 are inhabited. The Andaman and Nicobar Command (ANC) is the first and only tri-service command in the CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 just gave his life but also sacrificed his government for the cause. Every family from across the country contributed for the cause, and so did Pilibhit. But these people of the INDI alliance havelongharbouredahatredfor theRamTemple,”Modiclaimed. There is poison in the minds of SP and Congress leaders and that is why they expelled leaders who attended the temple consecration, he alleged, adding that people will never forget those who committed such “sins”. Reiterating his charge that CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 DECISION 2024 MVA PACT: UDDHAV SENA TO CONTEST 21, CONG 17, PAWAR 10 YOGI INVOKES PAK: ENEMY SCARED OF NEW INDIA PAGES 4, 3 DIVYA A NEW DELHI, APRIL 9 THE CENTRE'S unprecedented order of January 8 curtailing the powersof theLalitKalaAkademi (LKA) Chairman, V Nagdas, within just 10 months of his appointment,wasprecededbyaseries of disagreements between himandtheCultureMinistryover the administration and finances ofthepremierartsinstitution,The Indian Express has learnt. As reported by The Indian ExpressonMarch28,Nagdaswas barred from taking “any administrative actions including appointment, recruitment, transfer, disciplinary actions and financialdecisions”withoutconsulting the ministry. In its order, the ministry had cited Nagdas's failure to respond to an earlier “complaint” and also alleged non-compliance with its “administrative directions”. Lalit Kala Akademi Chairman V Nagdas The Indian Express has now learnt that the order came amid differencesbetweenNagdasand theministry overadministrative issues, including the appointment of consultants, transfer of officialswithintheAkademi,and selection of invitees for the Akademi'sannualnationalexhibition and national award ceremony. While the ministry is learnt to have been unhappy with the LKA Chairman for taking decisions without its concurrence, sources close to Nagdas said the disagreements mainly arose as he sought to operate the Akademi “as an autonomous CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 The Kerala Story enters state’s political theatre: ‘That one phone call shattered us’: More dioceses back film screening, BJP cheers Family of student found dead in US Film being screened with particular agenda, don’t fall into RSS trap: CM theIdukkidioceseandscreenthe controversial film, as part of efTHIRUVANANTHAPURAM, forts to “enlighten teenagers APRIL 9 against love jihad”. The decision of the A YEAR after its release, dioceses follows veheTheKeralaStoryisroiling ment criticism by the rulthe state’s heated politing CPI(M) and ical battlefield, with Opposition Congress of other Catholic dioceses state-runDoordarshanfor DECISION its screening of the film, announcingplanstofol2024 low in the footsteps of days ahead of the Lok SHAJU PHILIP HAMAS SAYS ISRAELI TRUCE PROPOSAL UNDER REVIEW XI MEETS WITH RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER LAVROV P 10 AMRITA NAYAK DUTTA & MAHENDER SINGH MANRAL Lalit Kala Akademi: Fallout with ministry before the curb order 50,083 Deaths Longer runways, jetty, road expansion amid China bid to expand influence AKADEMI CHAIRMAN’S POWERS CURTAILED 11.7% Incidence Strategic military infra upgrade in the works for Andaman & Nicobar Islands E X P L A I NE D WEDNESDAY, APRIL 10, 2024, LUCKNOW, LATE CITY,14 PAGES Was released in May last year Sabha elections in Kerala. They had also approached the Election Commission seeking a directive to ban its telecast. The movie depicts the story of four women from Kerala converting to Islam and joining the Islamic State (IS), with the filmmakersclaimingthatthousands of women from the state had fallen to this. The film had faced several court cases ahead of its release in May 2023. On Tuesday, as the dioceses’ move became known, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan slammedthefilmas“againstthe cultural ethos of the state”. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 SREENIVAS JANYALA HYDERABAD, APRIL 9 A PHONE call from the Indian Consulate in New York on the eve of Eid shattered thefamilyof Mohammed Abdul Arfath – the 25-year-old Indian student who went missing in the US last month and has been found dead in Cleveland, Ohio. Ever since Arfath went missing in March, and the Indian Consulate told them it was working with law enforcement Mohammed Abdul Arfath. (Twitter/ @IndiainNewYork) authorities to find him, the family had been holding on to hope. Arfath had gone to the US in May 2023 to pursue Masters in ITfromClevelandUniversity.“He used to call regularly and would tell us he missed us. He said he was doing well in his studies; he hadbigaspirationsanddreams,” said a family member. The family, residing in Hyderabad’sMalkajgiri,lostcontact with him around March 7, when they discovered that his mobile phone was switched off and he had not contacted them for two-three days. This was CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Citizenship dream turns sour for lives caught in swap of enclaves PAGE 1 ANCHOR RAVIK BHATTACHARYA & ATRI MITRA COOCH BEHAR, APRIL 9 LONG BEFORE the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) became a reality, they were the nowhere people of Partition whobecamethecelebratednew citizens of India. Nineyearslater,livingupto25 people in two-bedroom apartments,withpropertypapersstill nottransferredtothem,awaiting promisedcashdoles,andlacking joboptions,theysaytheywantto return across the border. On April 19, as Cooch Behar votes in the first phase of the Lok Sabha elections, on the electoral rolls will be the 15,421 people who became Indians over a period after Delhi and Dhaka signed a historic land boundary agreement in 2015 covering their respective enclaveslying in each other's territories. It will be their second tryst with general elections. In 2019, the BJP had won an overwhelming victory from here. However, their numbers, at 15,421, mean these 'new residents' remain on Cooch Behar WEST BENGAL Kolkata INDIA BANGLADESH themarginsof thepollcampaign — amidst all the CAA talk. As part of the IndiaBangladesh agreement, 111 'Indian' enclaves spread over 17,160 acres inside Bangladesh At Madhya Masaldanga in Cooch Behar district. Partha Paul went to Bangladesh, while 51 'Bangladeshi' enclaves occupying 7,110 acres in India became the property of India. The residents of these enclaves were giventheoptionof acceptingcitizenship of either country. Eventually,while921crossed over to this side with much fanfare,14,500residentsof formerly Bangladeshienclaveswereidentified as Indians. Both say their plight is no better – if not worse – though the residents of former Bangladeshi enclaves concede they “at least have roads now”. The 921 who lived in 'Indian' enclavesinBangladeshwhocame to India in phases were initially kept in makeshift tin-roof camps on open grounds in Dinhata 1 Block of Cooch Behar district. After five years of tortuous summers and monsoons spent in these accommodations, in 2020, the state government moved them into three apartment clusters with funds providedbytheCentre.Whileoneof these clusters is located in Dinhata Block, the other two are in Haldibari and Mekhliganj blocks of Jalpaiguri Lok Sabha seat,whichalsovotesonApril19. Kashem Ali, 65, has now been sharing his two-room apartment in Dinhata with his family of 22 for three years. There are 58 families, same as his, living in this cluster, all of whomcame from Kurigram district in Bangladesh. All of Kashem's five sons are migrant labourers, earning daily wages in places like Delhi, Haryana, Gujarat, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. Says Kashem: “When we came, we were assured we wouldberehabilitated,giventhe same amount of land as we had in Bangladesh and get employment, apart from Rs 5 lakh per family. None of that has happened.” CONTINUED ON PAGE 2