DAILY FROM: AHMEDABAD, CHANDIGARH, DELHI, JAIPUR, KOLKATA, LUCKNOW, MUMBAI, NAGPUR, PUNE, VADODARA JOURNALISM OF COURAGE MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2024, NEW DELHI, LATE CITY, 18 PAGES `7.00 (`8 BIHAR & RAIPUR, `12 SRINAGAR) WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM SINCE 1932 ‘BLACK COAT SYNDROME’ ALARM BELLS IN LONDON, WASHINGTON PAGE 9 ■ Mexico route ■ Canada route 40,000 20,000 2024* 2023 2022 JAY MAZOOMDAAR 2021 0 Source: US Customs & Border Protection; *January to June parallel concerns over Canadabound Indian passengers seeking asylum in the UK while in transit. According to the latest US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) data, an all-time high of 5,152 undocumented Indians entered the US from Canada on foot this June alone. And, the CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 NEW DELHI, SEPTEMBER 1 THE RISING number of Indian walk-ins and asylum-seekers in the US and the UK has brought the spotlight on the immigration systems in these countries that are already overburdened by the number of cases and pendency Lateral entry to Gaza: K C Tyagi, who took clear stands, resigns as JDU spokesperson DEEPTIMAN TIWARY & SANTOSH SINGH NEW DELHI, PATNA, SEPTEMBER 1 VETERAN JD(U) leader K C Tyagi on Sunday resigned as the party's national spokesperson citing personal reasons. Tyagi, who held the post since 2000 — except a twomonth break in 2023 — told The Indian Express that he resigned last year itself but the party asked him to continue in the post. “This year again it appointed me as the spokesperson. It is a tough job. I am available from 7 am to 11 pm every day. It is time for the younger generation to take over,” he said. Tyagi’s resignation comes in in clearing the backlog. Result: even though few are granted asylum or other stay permits, removal proceedings can drag on indefinitely, allowing migrants to stay put. UK data reviewed by The Indian Express shows that Indians stand the ● least chance (6-9%) ofgetting relief among the top 15 asylum seekers by nationality E EXPLAINED BEFORE WINTER AT LAC, FOCUS ON LAST MILE CONNECTIVITY THE NUMBER of undocumented Indians crossing over from Canada to the US on foot has reached an all-time high, data reviewed by The Indian Express show. This spike has placed Canada’s visa screening process under the lens — more so, due to 60,000 2020 NEW DELHI, SEPTEMBER 1 80,000 2019 JAY MAZOOMDAAR INDIANS INTERCEPTED AT U.S. LAND BORDERS 2018 Canada’s visa process under lens, spike prompts calls for tighter screening 2017 EXPRESS NETWORK Murmu wake-up call to judiciary: How Indians stand little Poor afraid of chance of asylum but still manage to stay on going to courts Canadian visa in hand, record number of Indians illegally enter US, seek asylum in UK 2016 BY UNNY 2015 BUSINESS AS USUAL CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 THE WORLD President Droupadi Murmu and CJI D Y Chandrachud with the new Supreme Court flag, in New Delhi on Sunday. PTI Time for younger generation to take over: Tyagi the backdrop of his recent articulation of some rather aggressive positions on ideological issues close to the BJP, according to sources in the JD(U). These statements on certain “sensitive issues” put the party in a difficult position within the NDA, the sources said. “He is a very respected leader, but he had started issuing statements without asking the high command about the party line. Lateral entry, UCC etc are very sensitive issues. Strong statements President flags ‘culture of adjournment’, delays in deciding heinous crime cases ANANTHAKRISHNAN G NEW DELHI, SEPTEMBER 1 ISRAEL RECOVERS BODIES OF SIX HOSTAGES IN GAZA PAGE 12 KOLKATA HITS THE STREETS A protest march in Kolkata demanding justice in the R G Kar hospital rape and murder case, on Sunday. Thousands of people, including prominent film personalities, took part in the march. Partha Paul DHANKHAR: ‘BARBARITY EXPRESSED IN EXTREMITY’, PAGE 8 CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 ‘The biggest challenge for our court is religious minorities... The problem is here and now... it’s getting worse’ FLAGGING THE “culture of adjournment” in deciding cases, President Droupadi Murmu on Sunday said that the poor from the villages are still anxious to approach courts as they feel that fighting for justice will make their lives even more difficult, and termed it the ‘Black Coat Syndrome’. Addressing the valedictory event of the two-day National Conference of the District Judiciary, Murmu also said that delays in deciding heinous crime cases such as rape forces the common man to think that the judicial process lacks sensitivity. This comes a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi, speaking at the inaugural session of the conference, called for quick disposal of cases of crimes against women, saying that the faster the decisions are taken in such cases, “the greater will be the assurance of safety for half the population”. In her address, Murmu said, “I have seen that the poor people of the villages are afraid of going to court. They become a participant in the judicial process of the court only under great compulsion. Often they tolerate injustice silently because they feel that fighting for justice can make their lives more miserable. For them, going away from the village to the court even once becomes a cause of great mental and financial pressure. In such a situation, many people cannot even imagine the pain that the poor experience due to the culture of adjournment. Every possible measure should be taken to change this situation.” “We know and hear about Panel flagged sexual 2 dead in Manipur flare-up, police harassment in Telugu say drones fired RPGs on village film industry, Telangana Anger as BJP skips half the Valley JIMMY LEIVON & SUKRITA BARUAH govt found it ‘vague’ seats in round 1, drags feet on next 2 SAURABH KIRPAL SUPREME COURT LAWYER CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 PAGE 14 SREENIVAS JANYALA HYDERABAD, SEPTEMBER 1 ACCESS TO workplaces for women, especially junior artistes, in the Telugu film industry come with conditions that amount to seeking sexual favours and harassment. This was one of the findings of a report submitted by a subcommittee constituted by the Telangana government in April 2019 to probe allegations of sexual harassment in the Telugu film industry, it is learnt. The then government under Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao did not make the report public, which was submitted in June 2022. With the storm that has enveloped the Malayalam film industry, the fate of that report is back in focus. Former minister of cinematography, animal husbandry, and fisheries, Talasani Srinivas Yadav, told The Indian Expressthat the report was “very vague” anddid not have anything to work on. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 IMPHAL, GUWAHATI, SEPTEMBER 1 IN A flare-up of violence in Manipur’s inter-district boundary areas after several months, two people were killed and 10 — including two police personnel and a television reporter — injured in gunfire and bombings in Imphal West’s Koutruk area Sunday. “In an unprecedented attack in Koutruk, alleged Kuki militants have deployed numerous RPGs (rocket-propelled grenades) using high-tech drones,” said a statement by the Manipur police. A senior police officer estimated that seven such “explosives” had been used to target the village. “While drone bombs have commonly been used in general warfares, this recent deployment of drones to deploy explosives against security forces and civilians marks a significant escalation. The involvement of highly trained professionals, possibly with technical expertise and support, cannot be ruled out,” said the statement. Officials identified one of the deceased as 35-year-old Nganbam Surbala, who received a bullet injury to her head. Her 11-year-old daughter sustained a bullet injury in her right arm. The firing started around 2 pm on Sunday and, according to a senior police official, continued till around 7:30 pm, though the situation remained tense into the night. According to locals from Koutruk, houses in the village were set ablaze, and most villagers were evacuated to safer places. Koutruk is a Meitei village located in Imphal West district, close to the border with KukiZomi majority Kangpokpi district. It has been one of the worst affected areas in the ongoing conflict, reporting recurring incidents of gunfire. CONTINUED ON PAGE 7 BASHAARAT MASOOD SRINAGAR, SEPTEMBER 1 WHILE THE BJP has seen resignation of two old-time leaders in Jammu over ticket distribution for the coming Assembly elections, there's some amount of anger and hurt among party leaders in Kashmir as well — particularly over the BJP’s decision not to contest as many as half the seats (eight of 16) in the Valley that are voting in the first phase PTI Union ministers G Kishan Reddy & Jitendra Singh flag off video vans ahead of J&K polls, in Jammu on Sunday. on September 18. Though the BJP has also announced 29 names for the second and third phases of voting, only one of them so far is for a Valley seat, which is adding to the anxiety in its ranks. In the recent Lok Sabha elections, the BJP had not fielded candidates in any of the three seats in Kashmir. Many leaders say they had been instructed by the party to start preparing for the elections and then “let down”, including CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 In shadow of Maruti Suzuki plant near Delhi, a ‘mini Japan’ takes shape PAGE 1 ANCHOR AISWARYA RAJ GURGAON, SEPTEMBER 1 STEPPING INTO Tower 6 of TDI Lake Grove in Sonipat’s Kundli is like being transported to Japan. Photos of pink cherry blossoms line the wall, set alongside images of the glorious snowcapped Mt. Fuji. At the far end, a wooden board has instructions in Japanese on elevator use while Asian Community News and Gekkan Chalo — both popular magazines that cater to the Japanese living in India — are piled on a corner table, along with the menu for an in-house Japanese restaurant, Umaya. Tower 6 is one of two residential towers at TDI Lake Grove taken on lease to offer accommodation to Japanese nationals setting up the ambitious 800acre Maruti Suzuki plant at the Industrial Model Township in Kharkhoda, Sonipat, some 60 km from Delhi. The plant, whose foundation stone was laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August 28, 2022, is expected to begin functioning from next year and will manufacture 2.5 lakh vehicles/year, eventually scaling up production to 10 lakh vehicles/year. When completed, it is expected to be the automaker’s largest plant in the country yet. So far, there are only 50 erection engineers from Japan — the people setting up the Maruti plant — living in TDI Lake Grove. According to officials from Maruti, this is currently a floating population, with most of them living here without their families and having plans to return home to Japan once the plant is set up. Despite this, the plant is already beginning to subtly alter Express Japanese restaurant Umaya in Tower 6 of TDI Lake Grove. the character of the area, with new Japanese hotels and restaurants coming up not only in this area but also the nearby towns of Kundli and Bahadurgarh. According to Ashutosh Maithani, a sales manager at TDI, property rates have gone up thrice, from `20,000-25,000 per square yard to `70,000 per square yard. Once the plant begins functioning, the area is expected to host 2,000-3,000 of Maruti’s Japanese employees and their families. According to the TDI Group, most of the Japanese occupants here are employees of Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. “By mid-October, the Kharkhoda plant will start manufacturing its first assembly line and trainees and engineers are expected to come around this time,” says Yogesh Sharma, a TDI official. “While employees are not currently arriving with their families because they are here for a short duration, long-term workers are likely to settle down with their families from March.” Other industries too are expected to follow, with vendors and suppliers also setting up base here. Already, a third batch of Japanese people are expected to arrive at TDI Lake Grove this October. A third tower has been taken on lease to accommodate this batch. At Tower 6, Seiya Suzuki, a 24-year-old engineer who came to Sonipat from Tokyo in July, is lounging in his 2 BHK apartment. On his first visit to India, Suzuki works for Parker Engineering, a subsidiary company at the plant, and is on his first official visit to India. He likes it here but still misses home, he says. Prominently displayed on the wall is a photo of a Japanese city. “This is Osaka,” he says, laughing. For many locals, the changing demographic has presented better employment opportunities. Nitesh Chaudhary, a 26-year-old CONTINUED ON PAGE 2