DAILY FROM: AHMEDABAD, CHANDIGARH, DELHI, JAIPUR, KOLKATA, LUCKNOW, MUMBAI, NAGPUR, PUNE, VADODARA JOURNALISM OF COURAGE WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2024, LUCKNOW, LATE CITY, 18 PAGES `6.00 WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM SINCE 1932 ORDER IN LOTTERY KING SANTIAGO MARTIN CASE The Indian Express wishes its readers A Merry Christmas. We are closed today. There will be no edition of the newspaper on Thursday, December 26, 2024. SC red line for ED: Can’t copy, access content from laptop, mobile phones Protect fundamental right to privacy, petitioners pleaded RITU SARIN BUSINESS AS USUAL BY UNNY NEW DELHI, DECEMBER 24 IN A SIGNIFICANT order that could prompt a rethink by probe agenciesbeforetheyseektoconfiscate mobile phones or laptops of citizensforallegedcrimes,the Supreme Court has restrained the Enforcement Directorate (ED)fromaccessingandcopying content from electronic devices seized during searches conductedon“lotteryking”Santiago Martin,hisrelativesandemployees in November. ED searched Santiago Martin’s premises in Nov The searches were conducted by the ED in 22 places in six states following a complaint by Meghalaya Police, which al- leged that Future Gaming and Hotel Services Private Limited had “illegally” captured the lottery business in the state. The searches had yielded Rs 12.41 crore in cash. Santiago Martin’s company Future Gaming was the single largest donor of electoral bonds, having purchased Rs 1,368 crore inbondsbetween2019and2014. It donated across party lines — Trinamool Congress was its biggestbeneficiaryatRs542crore, DMK came a close second at Rs 503 crore. YSR Congress CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Police notice to Kerala journalist for phone over report triggers a furore SHAJU PHILIP THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, DECEMBER 24 AJOURNALISTinKeralahasbeen sent a notice by police demanding that he produce his mobile phone as partof an investigation into a newsreport that he wrote, prompting the Kerala Union of Working Journalists (KUWJ) on Tuesday to take out protest marches to the offices of the statepolicechief andvariousdistrict police chiefs. The news report in question, whichappearedonJuly28inthe Malayalam daily Madhyamam, wasaboutanallegedleakof data of job applicants at the state CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 NITI AAYOG INVITES ECONOMISTS Lucknow bank heist case: Two accused gunned down in encounters MERRY CHRISTMAS A RED initiative appears in today’s edition of The In dian Express. This page is an initiative of the marketing solutions team of The Indian Express Group and contain content paid for by advertisers. This page should be read as an advertisement. MEERUT: PROBE UNIT DISBANDED PAGE 3 NEW DELHI, DECEMBER 24 FAREWELL TO THE MASTER LUCKNOW, DECEMBER 24 CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 DEEPTIMAN TIWARY Economists say cut I-T rates to boost demand, incentivise hiring of women EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE THE UTTAR Pradesh Police gunned down two alleged criminals early Tuesday morning, both of whom were wanted for their alleged involvement in a daring heist at a private sector bank in the Chinhat area on Sunday. One of the deceased, identifiedasSunnyDayal,waskilledin Ghazipur, while the other, Sobhind Kumar, was shot dead in Lucknow in the early hours of the day. The two accused were also carrying a reward of Rs 25,000 each on their heads. Police said that they recovered a weapon each from the two deceased at the sites, along with white and yellow objects. Police also said they recovered Rs 35,500 in cash from Dayal. “Seven persons were involved in the bank robbery. Three were arrested yesterday, and two were killed this morning.Effortsareunderwaytotrace Former Army Chief Gen V K Singh appointed Mizoram Governor Actor Naseeruddin Shah was among those who paid tribute to veteran filmmaker Shyam Benegal, who was cremated with full state honours at Shivaji Park Crematorium in Mumbai on Tuesday. Pradip Das REPORT,PAGE8 Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman at the meeting with economists, Tuesday. PTI AANCHAL MAGAZINE NEW DELHI, DECEMBER 24 WITH JUST OVER a month left for Union Budget 2025-26, Prime Minister Narendra Modi told economists Tuesday that deeper reforms were required for the economy to grow faster. Inameetingorganisedbythe Niti Aayog, the Prime Minister stressed on the need to undertake new and bold reforms and invited suggestions from the economists. The meeting comes amid slowing of economic growth, tepid urban consumption, persisting external volatility, and the threat of high tariffs further impeding world trade and stoking global inflation. India’s GDP rose by 5.4% in July-September, the lowest rate in seven quarters, as weaker expansions in manufacturing and consumption hurt the economy. Sources said the ideas put forward by the economists ranged from land and labour reforms to states taking the lead in easingregulationsthatareaconstraining factor for businesses, sources said. Economists also spoke on the pace of fiscal consolidation,theneedtolowerpersonal income-tax rates, and tax incentives for companies employing women. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 As Opp protests against Shah, Yogi slams Congress & SP: ‘Anti-Ambedkar mindset’ EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE LUCKNOW, DECEMBER 24 ACCUSING THE Congress and the Samajwadi Party (SP) of repeatedly “disrespecting” Dr B R Ambedkar, Uttar Pradesh Chief MinisterYogiAdityanathsaidon Tuesday that the Congress, SP have “anti-Ambedkar”mindset. Adityanath's remarks come amid protests by several Opposition parties, including Congress, SP and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), over his remarks CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 SHUBHAJIT ROY NEW DELHI, DECEMBER 24 IN WHAT is expected to be the first high-level contact between the incoming Trump 2.0 administration and the Indian government in its third term, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar is likely to meet the new Trump team in the US. On a six-day visit to the US from December 24-29, Jaishankar will start his engagements by meeting the outgoing Biden administration officials. He is likely to meet Secretary of State Antony Blinken, NSA JakeSullivanandotherseniorofficials from the Biden team. Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri is already in the US, and, togetherwithIndianambassador to theUSVinayKwatra,metDeputy SecretariesofStateKurtCampbell andRichardVermatosetupsome of these conversations. E Looking at the road ● ahead INDIA WILL look to not just insulate but deepen its ties with the US, especially those important from the strategic perspective, once the change of guard in the US is completed. THE GOVERNMENT on Tuesday announced new gubernatorial appointments, including former Union Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla as Governor of Manipur and former Army Chief GeneralVKSinghasGovernorof Mizoram. Among the other appointments by President Droupadi Murmu on Tuesday are: Kerala GovernorArif MohammedKhan as Governor of Bihar; Mizoram Governor Dr Hari Babu Kambhampati as Governor of Odisha; and Bihar Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar as Governor of Kerala. The choice of Bhalla as Manipur Governor is significant astheCentrehasbeenstruggling to control the ethnic violence in thestateforoverone-and-a-half years. Bhalla was Union Home Secretary when the violence began on May 3, 2023. Despite the deployment of Central Armed Police Forces and Army personnel in significant numbers, violence between the NEW GOVERNORS AJAYKUMAR BHALLA MANIPUR GENERAL VKSINGH MIZORAM ARIFMD KHAN BIHAR HARIBABU KAMBHAMPATI ODISHA RAJENDRAV ARLEKAR KERALA Meitei and Kuki populations in the state has continued unabated. Bhalla, who retired in August this year, will be expected to use his experience as Union Home Secretary to check the violence and find a way to CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 THE WORLD IRAN ENERGY CRISIS: INDUSTRIES FORCED TO SHUT DOWN AMERICAN AIRLINES FLIGHTS RESUME AFTER BRIEF HALT P 12 Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in Lucknow on Tuesday. Express As Biden makes way for Trump, Jaishankar goes to US for talks on deepening relations EXPLAINED At the encounter site in Lucknow on Tuesday. PTI Ahead of Budget, PM calls for deeper and bolder reforms for higher growth Former Home Secy Bhalla is Governor of Manipur, Arif Khan goes to Bihar Sources said the idea behind thevisitistoensureIndia-USties are not impacted by the polarised political atmosphere in the US. Jaishankar said at an event in New Delhi that Trump has had a positive political view of India and the country is in a much more advantageous position than many others to build “deeper” relations with his administration. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Cong’s dissent on NHRC chief pick: ‘Ignored consensus, balance of caste’ DEEPTIMAN TIWARY NEW DELHI, DECEMBER 24 CALLING THE selection of the new chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC)“apre-determinedexercise that ignored the established tradition of mutual consultation and consensus”, the Congress has accused the Narendra Modi government of pushing the appointment through its majority in the selection committee and disregarding India’s diversity in the process. The Congress made these allegationsinadissentnotesigned by party president Mallikarjun Kharge and Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhitotheselectioncommittee that shortlists and recommends names for the NHRC chairperson to the President. On Monday, the government announced the appointment of former Supreme Court Justice V Ramasubramanian as the new NHRC chairperson. Arguingthatwhilemeritwas the primary criterion in selecting the chairperson and members of the NHRC, the party said “maintaining a balance that reflects the regional, caste, community,andreligiousdiversityof the nation is equally important”. The Congress note said the balance of caste and community CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Almost 4 decades after ban, The Satanic Verses is on a bookshelf, in a store PAGE 1 ANCHOR SOHINI GHOSH & MANOJ C G NEW DELHI, DECEMBER 24 NEARLY 37 years after its import wasbannedbytheIndiangovernmentamidmuchsoundandfury, Salman Rushdie’s The Satanic Verses has made a quiet return. The book under ‘Limited Stock’isnowondisplayatDelhi’s prominent Bahrisons Booksellers. The Khan Market bookstore has posted a message about its latest acquisition on X, and including a mention of the controversysurroundingthebook.“The Satanic Verses is now in stock at Bahrisons Booksellers! This groundbreakingandprovocative novel has captivated readers for decadeswithitsimaginativestorytelling and bold themes. It has alsobeenatthecentreof intense global controversy since its release, sparking debates on free expression, faith, and art,” it posted Tuesday. On August 12, 2022, Rushdie, facing an Iranian fatwa over the book, was stabbed multiple times by 24-year-old LebaneseAmerican Hadi Matar who was quotedashavingjustifiedtheattack saying Rushdie had “attacked Islam.” The sale of the book, which is available in Delhi only at Bahrisons for now, has begun a month-and-a-half after the Delhi High Court noted in response to a plea that it has no other option “except to presume that no such notification (about a ban) exists”. Salman Rushdie’s The Satanic Verses on display at Bahrisons Booksellers in Delhi’s Khan Market. Amit Mehra This was after government authorities failed to produce the saidOctober5,1988,notification banning the import of The Satanic Verses. The ban had been ordered by the Rajiv Gandhi government at a time when it was trying to balance Muslim sentiments and a rising Ayodhya temple movement. Two years earlier, the government had passed a law overturning a Supreme Court order for alimony to be paid to Shah Bano, under pressure from some Muslimquarters,whocalleditintervention in Islamic personal law. Facing backlash over this fromHindugroups,theRajivgovernment had facilitated removal of locks to a structure containing idolsatthedisputedRamtemple site. The temple movement that surgedafterthiseventuallypaved thewayfortheBJP’smeteoricrise. BeforeTheSatanicVersesrow, the Rajiv government was left further bruised by the Bofors scandal and an anti-defamation Bill, which was criticised for trying to censor the media. Finally, under increasing calls from Muslim clerics, the government banned the book on October 5, 1988, via a Customs order. Later, it would use that as a fig-leaf, saying it was not the book that was banned, but just its import. Among those who castigated Rajiv for the “capitulation” was Rushdie himself, who wrote an open letter to the then PM. OnTuesday,asthebookmade a return, there was conspicuous silence from the political class. Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram, who was Union Minister of State for Home Affairs in the Rajiv government, said a few years ago that the CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Lucknow