The Editorial Page: Trump is succeeding because of leaders who want to be little Trumps 10 FRIDAY, JANUARY 23, 2026 Journalism of Courage AHMEDABAD, LATE CITY, 20 PAGES ₹5.00 l www.indianexpress.com DA I LY F R O M : A H M E DA B A D , C H A N D I GA R H , D E L H I , J A I P U R , KO L K ATA , L U C K N O W , M U M B A I , N AG P U R , PAT N A , P U N E , VA D O DA R A Delhi court acquits Kejriwal in two ED cases over summons U.S. ANNOUNCES ‘NEW GAZA’ PLAN As Trump unveils his Board of Peace, Delhi waits, watches Not intentional disobedience, says judge; Satyameva Jayate: AAP chief Sohini Ghosh & Nirbhay Thakur NATION New Delhi, January 22 A DELHI court Thursday acquittedformerDelhiChiefMinister and AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal of the charge of disobeyingapublicservant’sorder forskippingsixsummonsfrom theEnforcementDirectoratein connection with its probe into the Delhi excise policy case. The court of Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Paras Dalal ruled that mere non-appearance following the summons was not “intentional disobedience”. happening today lPRImE mINISTER Narendra Modi will flag off four new train services in poll-bound Kerala. He will also address a rally in Madurathakam, Tamil Nadu. l SHIV SENA (UBT) chief Udd- hav Thackeray and MNS president Raj Thackeray will together address their party workers in Mumbai to mark Bal Thackeray's 100th birth anniversary. TRACK THESE AND MORE ON www.INDIANExPrEss.cOm ExPlAINED P 16 P 15 India, China, Russia, much of Europe skip event, Pak there Rs 10-LAKH HEALTH COvER FOR ALL: AAP gOvT IN PUNjAB AAP leaders hailed the verdict and Kejriwal, in a post on X, said, “Satyameva Jayate”. The ED had filed two criminal cases against Kejriwal – these were registered in February and March 2024 – under IPC Section 174 (non-attendance in obedience to an order »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 New Delhi, January 22 Ahead of EU leaders’ visit External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar with ambassadors from European Union countries in New Delhi on Thursday. “Spoke to them about the current state of the world with volatility and instability as the new normal,” Jaishankar said in a post on X. ANI REPORT, PAGE 15 Sports alarm bells: Toxic outdoors, no weather-proof indoors, IOC takes note exclusive Nihal Koshie & mihir Vasavda New Delhi, Mumbai, January 22 ■ At the India Open last week, international badminton stars questioned Delhi’s place on the global calendar, citing health concerns from the toxic air. Some of them even complained to the International Olympic Committee (IOC). “We can confirm that the IOC Athletes’ Commission has re- EvERYONE WANTS TO BE A PART: TRUMP AT DAvOS P17 Shubhajit Roy INTERNATIONAL SHUTTLERS WRITE TO OLYmPICS BODY ON DELHI’S AIR ExPrEss ThE wOrlD sPOrTINGExODus INDIA-SOUTH AFRICA Test coach Deepali Deshpande said smog has reduced visibility. ASIAN GAmES medallist Tejaswin Shankar shifted base to South Africa, US. “I was in Delhi for 10 days to spend time with my family. Then I moved to South Africa, and then the US. The idea was to try and avoid time in Delhi during those months.” WHEN THE heat peaks, many wrestlers migrate to hill towns like Shilaroo, Shimla or Nainital. But Railways coach Kripa Shankar Patel said: “You can’t run long training cycles there... The oxygen is lower because of altitude.” moved to Kolkata last year. SHOOTERS TRAINING at the Dr Karni Singh Shooting Range in Delhi are travelling to Bhopal. Beyond health concerns, national IN 2023, the Cycling Federation of India moved the national camp for road and endurance cyclists from Delhi to Guwahati. In 2024, it was shifted to Patiala. ceivedtheinformationandisin touch,”theIOCtoldTheIndian Express. ■ Dronacharya Award-winning hockey coach Pritam Siwach is worried. At the Sports Authority of India’s Sonepat centre, dust and toxic air have left her players coughing and allergic. “They fall sick, recover and fall sick again. It doesn’t end,” she said. The doctors are blunt: the air and water are unfit. ■ DecathleteTejaswinShankarsaidwintertraininginDelhi is no longer about grit, but pollution.Shankar,whohailsfrom Delhi, left in November to train »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 ASUSPresidentDonaldTrump unveiledhisBoardofPeaceand son-in-law Jared Kushner announced plans for a ‘New Gaza’ rebuilt from the ruins of the Israel-Hamas war, India stayed away from the ceremony in DavosThursday,optingtowalk the diplomatic tightrope for now by neither declining nor acceptingTrump’sinvitationto Prime Minister Narendra Modi to join the board. Sources said India has strong reasons for not joining ThE IDEAs PAGE SHOULD INDIA jOIN THE BOARD? BEST OF BOTH SIDES PAgE 11 the board immediately, and will prefer to wait and watch. It’s weighing a range of factors – from the cast of countries on the board, its legitimacy and longevity, challenge to the UN framework and multilateral- DAY AFTER ICC ULTImATUm Bangladesh firm on World Cup: ‘Willing to play, not in India’ Decision paves way for ICC to call Scotland as replacement Business as Usual By EP UNNY Express News Service E. ExPlAINED Why the dilemma India’s dilemma over the Board of Peace has much to do with balancing its longstanding foreign policy principles, especially on multilateralism and the issue of Palestine, against the strategic benefits of joining an elite global platform, and potential diplomatic fallout with the US if it were to decline the invitation. ism, the board’s scope and mandate, India’s own stand of anegotiatedtwo-Statesolution totheIsrael-Palestinequestion, andconsequencesfromTrump if it does not join or vacillates. »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Congress mP’snephew ‘shoots’wife, self,Gujarat Policeprobe Express News Service Ahmedabad, January 22 A GOVERNMENT employee allegedly shot his wife, leading to her death, before taking his own life with the licensed gun in their apartment on Judges Bungalow Road in Ahmedabad, police said on Thursday. Kolkata, January 22 TRUMP’S gAMBIT ON gREENLAND HAS PARALLELS WITH THE PAST GujArAT P4 BCA POLLS: FIELD SET FOR CLOSE CONTEST AS ROYAL ENDS TIE-UP WITH REvIvAL, FORMS UNITED FRONT TENSION IN mANIPUR AGAIN Meitei man married to Kuki-Zo woman shot, video captures killing & a message Sukrita Baruah Guwahati, January 22 A MAN from the Meitei community was shot dead in Manipur’s Churachandpur on Wednesdayevening—akilling that was recorded on video and circulated, interrupting months of relative peace in NATION P12 ROLE OF KUKI gROUP NOT IN PACT SUSPECTED the state. The man had been living with his wife, who is from the Kuki-Zo community, for the pastmonthinavillageinChurachandpur. Inthevideo,whichsurfaced late Wednesday night, the man can be seen sitting on the ground outdoors in the dark. The 1-minute, 12-second video »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 NATION PAgE 12 ANDHRA gOvT LOOKS AT SOCIAL MEDIA BAN FOR UNDER-16 USERS MUMBAI, PUNE AND NAgPUR SET TO HAvE WOMAN MAYORS A DAY after the International Cricket Council (ICC) asked the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) to confirm whether their team would play the T20 World Cup in India next month as scheduled, the Bangladesh government responded on Thursday, reiterating that its players are keen to participate but not in India. The decision sets the stage for the ICC to replace the team with Scotland, as the global governing body had decided during its Board meeting on Wednesday when Bangladesh was given the ultimatum. Speaking to reporters after holding a “high-level meeting” with BCB president Aminul Islamandtheteam'scricketers, Bangladesh's Sports Advisor Asif Nazrul said they want to play the tournament in Sri Lanka, which are the co-hosts along with India -- a demand that had already been rejected by the ICC. “While our cricketers have »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Yashrajsinh Durgeshsinh Gohil and Rajeshwari married around two months ago Thecouplewasduetotravel abroadonaholidayandhad returnedfromdinneratanaunt's place when the incident happened late evening on Wednesday, police said. »CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Ahmedabad