DAILY FROM: AHMEDABAD, CHANDIGARH, DELHI, JAIPUR, KOLKATA, LUCKNOW, MUMBAI, NAGPUR, PUNE, VADODARA JOURNALISM OF COURAGE SATURDAY, APRIL 6, 2024, NEW DELHI, LATE CITY, 18 PAGES ANANTHAKRISHNAN G NEW DELHI, APRIL 5 THE SUPREME Court Friday stayed the Allahabad High Court order which had declared the Uttar Pradesh Board of Madarsa Education Act, 2004, “unconstitutional”onthegroundthatitviolated “the principle of secularism” and fundamental rights provided under Article 14 of the Constitution. Issuing notice to the Uttar Pradesh government on a clutch of appeals against the March 22 High Court order, a three-judge bench of Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud and Justices J B Pardiwala andManojMisrasaid, “We are of the view that the issuesraisedin thepetitionsmerit CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 EXPRESS NETWORK MAHARASHTRA COMMISSION FINDINGS IN STATE AFFIDAVIT BEFORE BOMBAY HC Panel sets stage for Maratha quota: Share in Govt jobs falling, girl-child marriage uptick OMKAR GOKHALE MUMBAI, APRIL 5 UNDERLINING THE inadequate representation of the Marathas in all public service sectors and how the community has been “completely out of the mainstream”, the Maharashtra State Backward Class Commission (MSBCC), led by retired Justice Sunil B Shukre, has found an “alarming” rise in the girl child marriage rate within the community, up from 0.32 per cent to 13.7 per cent in the last six years. ‘COMPLETELY OUT OF MAINSTREAM’ ■ Decreasing representation in govt services ■ Increase in number of BPL households, landlessness ■ Living conditions are worsening ■ Caste-related inferiority, occupational stigma E EXPLAINED SC stays order striking down UP madrasa law, says High Court misread Act It has also found that 43.76 per cent of Maratha women are involved in manual labour for a livelihood, and that representa- ■ Rising superstitious practices ■ Increase in farmer suicide, girl child marriages ● tion of Marathas in government services has declined from 14.63 per cent in 2018 to 9 per cent in 2024. The contents of the MSBCC report form part of an affidavit filed by the State General Administration Department (GAD), through its Secretary Sumant N Bhange, in response to a clutch of petitions challenging the 10 per cent reservation granted to Marathas under the Socially and Educationally Backward Class (SEBC) category in jobs and education. The challenge to the SEBC Act, 2024, which was based on the recommendations of the Shukre Commission, is likely to CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 50% women quota in It’s a do-or-die battle for Central jobs, easing bail democracy, defending law: Cong in manifesto the core of India: Stalin Silences telling: On CAA, OPS, AFSPA P6 ARUN JANARDHANAN CHENNAI, APRIL 5 SC GRANTS BAIL TO SHOMA SEN IN ELGAR PARISHAD CASE P 8 BUSINESS AS USUAL BY UNNY Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge with senior party leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi in Delhi. Anil Sharma MANOJ C G NEW DELHI, APRIL 5 FACING AN uphill electoral battle, the Congress Friday released its poll manifesto, announcing a `7.00 (`8 BIHAR & RAIPUR, `12 SRINAGAR) WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM SINCE 1932 bunch of promises to woo marginalised castes, such as raising the 50% cap on reservation for SC, ST and OBCs and reservation in private educational institutions, outlining steps to create CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 AS TAMIL Nadu gears up to vote for the Lok Sabha elections in a fortnight,aspartof thefirstphase on April 19, Chief Minister M K Stalin, who is leading the INDIA blocinthestate,says:“Itfeelslike we are in the midst of a second struggleforIndependence.It'sall about defending the core of India: democracy, secularism and our pluralistic society, not to mentiontheprincipleof federalism... from what I would frankly call fascist forces.” In an interview with The IndianExpressathisChennairesidence, the DMK chief said that if the BJP's main weapon is projecting Prime Minister Narendra Modi as “a larger-than-life” persona, the Opposition has on its side “a strong team”. 7TH TIME REPO RATE UNCHANGED AT 6.5% RBI holds repo rate, says it’s waiting for inflation ‘elephant’ to walk away Bank retains FY25 projections for real GDP at 7% and inflation at 4.5%; projects inflation dip in Q2 below 4% HITESH VYAS MUMBAI, APRIL 5 THE SIX-MEMBER Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Friday kept the repo rate — the rateatwhichRBIlendsmoneyto banks to meet their short-term funding needs — unchanged for the seventh consecutive time at 6.5 per cent. RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das with his deputies at the RBI headquarters in Mumbai, Friday. Pradip Das It also indicated the possibility of retail inflation coming below the crucial level of four per cent in the second quarter (JulySeptember) of FY 2025 raising expectations of a rate cut this fiscal. The RBI last cut the repo rate by 40 basis points to 4 per cent CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 THE EXPRESS INTERVIEW Pin code MH-1718: In Antarctica, M K STALIN CHIEF MINISTER, TAMIL NADU “Leaders like Akhilesh Yadav, (Arvind) Kejriwal, Uddhav Thackeray, Mamata Banerjee and Tejashwi Yadav, they are all initwithus.Weareunitedinthis fight, recognising the gravity of the moment... In the coming elections, a dynamic young leader like Rahul Gandhi is set to dismantle that cultivated image of Modi and the broader RSS CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 a post office with Indian address PAVNEET SINGH CHADHA PANAJI, APRIL 5 IN 1984, shortly after India’s first foray to Antarctica, its first post office on the icy continent was set up at Dakshi Gangotri — the nation’sfirstscientificbasethere. Within the first year, as many as 10,000lettersandmailhadbeen posted and ‘cancelled’ at thehis- Cancelled post from Maitri North Goa research base toric post office. And so began what officials describe as a “unique experiment”forIndia’spostalfraternity. Dakshin Gangotri submerged in ice in 1988-89 and was subsequently decommissioned. On January 26, 1990, a post office branchwassetupatIndia’sMaitri research station on Antarctica. Since then, for more than 35 CONTINUED ON PAGE 2