Rajnath Singh and other NDA functionaries arrive for the floor leaders meet at Parliament House on Sunday (Photo credit: ANI)

NEW DELHI: The prospect of disruption looms over an already truncated winter session of Parliament as a united opposition on Sunday pressed for a discussion on SIR, an issue that had all but washed out the previous session, as govt remained non-committal to its demand.At an all-party meeting chaired by defence minister Rajnath Singh, Congress and a host of other opposition parties also sought debate on several other issues, including national security following the Delhi blast, and rising air pollution, but the nationwide Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls emerged as their rallying point.Ram Gopal Yadav of SP, whose contingent of 37 Lok Sabha members is the second largest in the opposition, sent out an ominous message as the 19-day session covering 15 sitting begins Monday. “We will not allow Parliament to function if a discussion is not held on SIR,” he said, alleging the review of rolls is marred by irregularities and that some booth-level officers ended their lives due to stress. Many SP lawmakers, including him, have been put on “C category” (requiring more documentation), as a targeted segment of voters is being deleted from rolls, he claimed.Parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju told the opposition that he would get back to them on their demand after consulting key govt functionaries, but gave no assurance. Rijiju had in the last session cited a ruling by then LS Speaker Balram Jakhar in 1988, when Congress was in office, that the House could not debate decisions and functioning of Election Commission to reject opposition’s demand for a discussion on SIR.The opposition’s protest had washed out LS and Rajya Sabha proceedings, except for a discussion on Operation Sindoor, in that session.At Sunday’s meeting, BJP ally and JDU working president Sanjay Jha made light of the opposition’s case against SIR by highlighting that its strident stand cut little ice with people in Bihar, the first state where it was carried out, and no voter or political party came forward with any official complaint.In the meeting attended by 50 representatives from 36 parties, govt shared 14 items, including 13 bills, of its tentative agenda and sought the opposition’s support. Rijiju conveyed govt’s keenness on a discussion of Vande Mataram, the national song whose 150th anniversary was observed with much fervour recently by BJP-led NDA.Congress later held a strategy meet of its key leaders with sources saying the party was veering to the stand that the demand for a SIR discussion was non-negotiable.In business advisory meetings of LS and RS, in which govt and opposition functionaries work out Parliament’s agenda, the deadlock remained. Some opposition members, including CPM’s John Brittas, suggested a short-duration discussion on electoral reforms to get around govt’s unwillingness to discuss SIR as the issue can also cover the ongoing exercise in 12 states and UTs.

Lankan cricket team’s tour of Pakistan faced uncertainty following a bomb blast in Islamabad

The Sri Lankan cricket team’s tour of Pakistan faced uncertainty following a bomb blast in Islamabad. Several players expressed concerns about their safety and considered returning home due to security risks.The situation was resolved with the involvement of Pakistan’s military forces. Social media was flooded with images showing the extensive security measures implemented to protect the Sri Lankan cricket team.Sri Lanka’s captain Dasun Shanaka addressed the security situation after the conclusion of the tri-series involving Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Zimbabwe.“We enjoyed this tournament as a group. Unfortunately, we were not allowed to go out much,” he said after the tri-series final on Saturday, referring to restrictions put on the team following a bomb blast.Shanaka expressed gratitude towards the Pakistan Cricket Board for ensuring their safety during the tour.“Credit to the security forces; they supported us in every situation. It’s not easy to handle all this, to organise everything. I must thank PCB for ensuring our safety,” he added.The Sri Lankan team struggled to perform well against Pakistan in the tri-series final. Shanaka acknowledged their batting challenges, particularly against spin bowling.“We must realise when to take chances against spin – especially left-handers getting out to off-spinners and right-handers to left-arm spin. Those were avoidable,” he said.Despite the security concerns and performance issues, Shanaka maintained a positive outlook for future cricket engagements with Pakistan.“We take this as learning. Hopefully, we’ll correct these issues,” he said.The Sri Lankan captain expressed his willingness to return to Pakistan for future cricket series, adding, “I’m very confident about that… Hopefully, in the future, I’ll get the chance to come to Pakistan again and play good cricket.”

Yuzvendra Chahal posted several messages celebrating and congratulating Virat Kohli’s ton vs South Africa in Ranchi. (Agencies)

Yuzvendra Chahal did not hold back on Sunday. The leg-spinner, long known for his close bond with Virat Kohli, was at his expressive best on social media after Kohli sealed a record-breaking 52nd ODI century during India’s commanding 349/8 against South Africa in Ranchi. As Kohli marched to a sublime 135 off 120 balls — the innings built on clean hitting, precise placement and a blistering late surge — Chahal turned into the most enthusiastic commentator outside the JSCA stands.

His first post summed up the mood, delivered with trademark humour: “Bus mujhse 52 century’s jayda. Waiting kab @imVkohli bhaiya aap 100 century’s jayda honge mujhse #INDVSSAODI” (Just 52 centuries ahead of me. Waiting for when you’ll be 100 centuries ahead of me).

Chahal on X

Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!

Chahal on Instagram

The line, playful on the surface, also referenced the long-standing benchmark — Sachin Tendulkar’s 100 international hundreds. Kohli sits second on the all-time list with 82, all formats combined. While he now features exclusively in ODIs for India, the chase remains a talking point every time he crosses another milestone. As Chahal hinted, the wait to see whether Kohli can catch or surpass the iconic mark continues.Incidentally, the ton also meant that Kohli is now the all-time leader in terms of most centuries in a single format. His 52 in ODIs is now second to none, not even the legendary Sachin, who has 51 tons in Test cricket. The spinner kept the tributes flowing. Another post, full of admiration and swagger, read: “Jahan Charche Bade hote hai .. Wahan Virat bhaiya KHADE hote hai.” Chahal also shared a string of Instagram stories: one capturing the moment Kohli reached his century, filmed straight off his television screen and another celebrating Rohit Sharma’s half-century, with the playful caption “Sharma Rohitaa Sharamaaaa”.

Chahal on Instagram

Kohli’s knock had given Chahal plenty to gush over. Starting with an early slice of luck and building into controlled aggression, Kohli shifted gears after his fifty, launching two sixes off Bosch and punishing spin with authority. His acceleration after the century — including a 20-run burst off Subrayen — pushed India beyond 260 by the 40th over before he finally fell for 135.

Chahal on Instagram

KL Rahul’s 60 and Rohit Sharma’s fluent 57 completed India’s imposing total. But beyond the scorecard, the day belonged to Kohli’s milestone — and to Chahal, who turned the achievement into a mini-festival online, celebrating his “Virat bhaiya” with unfiltered joy.

PUNE/THANE/CHHATRAPATI SAMBHAJINAGAR: Three days before the scheduled polling for 288 nagar panchayats and parishads, state election commission (SEC) postponed elections in several of these local bodies across the state to Dec 20 after finding that returning officers had illegally allotted poll symbols to candidates whose appeals against nomination scrutiny were either pending, decided late or not heard at all by district courts.Calling it a clear violation of election rules, SEC said the irregular handling of appeals, delayed rulings, missing written decisions, unheard matters and cases still before courts had compromised the integrity of the election process. It, therefore, declared all such symbol allotments as “illegal”.The directive affects all 59 wards in Ambernath, six of the 49 wards in Badlapur, six of 17 local bodies in Pune, as well as three municipal councils and 18 wards across different civic bodies in Marathwada, among others. Voting in the remaining 43 wards in Badlapur municipal council will proceed as scheduled on Dec 2. The revised election notification is expected to be announced on Dec 4.

In its order issued on Saturday, SEC said all symbol allotments made after Nov 26 in such cases were illegal.Just last week, Supreme Court had cleared the decks for SEC to go ahead with the election process as scheduled for all municipal corporations, zilla panchayats and panchayat samitis in the state where the total reservation does not exceed the 50% cap. It said results of the 57 local bodies where reservation exceeds 50%would be subject to the outcome of pending petitions. It’s set to hear these petitions on Jan 21.“Despite appeals being decided on or after Nov 23, without written orders or without being heard, returning officers proceeded with symbol allotment without providing the mandatory three-day withdrawal window,” said SEC secretary Suresh Kakani in a letter.Pune collector Jitendra Dudi had submitted a detailed report to SEC stating that elections in Baramati, Phursungi-Uruli Devachi, Talegaon Dabhade, Lonavla, Daund and Saswad must be postponed since district courts had delivered decisions on nomination-related appeals beyond the Nov 22 deadline set by the SEC.As per an official release, in Nanded district, polls to Mukhed and Dharmabad municipal councils as well as ward each in Bhokar, Loha and Kundalwadi municipal councils have been deferred. Ditto the case Vasmat municipal council in Hingoli and two wards in Hingoli municipal council. In Parbhani, elections to two wards from Purna municipal council and a ward in Jintur municipal council will have polling on Dec 20.In Beed, polls were deferred for four wards each in Ambajogai and Parli municipal councils and a ward each in local self-governing bodies of Beed and Kille Dharur. Details of other districts in Marathwada were unavailable till late evening.Chandrapur, Akola, Gadchiorili and Amravati also stand affected.SEC has directed collectors to compile lists of all affected seats and bodies, certify that Rule 17(1)(b) of Maharashtra Municipal Election Rules, 1966, was not followed, and implement a revised election schedule. Under the rules, candidates aggrieved by a returning officer’s decision on nomination scrutiny may file appeals before the district court, and several such appeals were filed. These appeals were required to be decided by Nov 22 to ensure that candidates received the mandatory three-day period under Rule 17(1)(b) to withdraw their nominations. Only after this could returning officers allot election symbols on Nov 26. However, SEC found that in multiple bodies, appeals were decided late, written orders were not issued in time, some appeals were never heard, and several cases remained subject to court directions. Despite this, returning officers allotted symbols without giving candidates the required withdrawal period.In cases where the appeal pertains to the post of chairman, like in the case of Ambernath, the election for the entire municipal council or nagar panchayat has been deferred. “District collectors have been instructed not to conduct polling for these bodies under the earlier election programme announced on Nov 4,” an SEC official said.The state poll body’s order on the second last day of campaigning left all candidates in Ambernath deeply disappointed. All political parties had been campaigning intensively and had completed their preparations for voting day. In contrast, in Badlapur, except for the six affected wards, the election campaign continued actively on Sunday.Meanwhile, seven of the 16 Sena (UBT) candidates in Badlapur announced that they would not support their own party’s nominee for the post of president in the municipal council, Priya Gawli, and instead declared support for Ruchita Ghorpade from BJP.

Operators DIAL and MIAL have challenged a TDSAT verdict striking down their hypothetical regulatory asset base (HRAB) claim, which refers to the capital value of the assets used to calculate the costs of the regulated services, for the first two years of these airports during PPP era, which started about 20 years ago

NEW DELHI: As a Rs 50,000-crore sword hangs over air travellers at Delhi and Mumbai airports, the Centre has decided to back passengers in an old legal battle between airport operators and the Airports Economic Regulatory Authority of India (AERA), which has now reachedSupreme Court, where the matter will be heard on Dec 3.The case relates to “hypothetical regulatory asset base (HRAB)”, the capital value of the assets used to calculate the costs of the regulated services, for the first two years of these airports during the PPP era, which started about 20 years ago.

After a protracted legal battle followed by the recent Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) judgment, the case has now reached SC, where the two operators of the Delhi and Mumbai airports, DIAL and MIAL, have challenged the tribunal’s order striking down theirRs 50,000-crore HRAB claim.“Aviation ministry is going to back AERA in this case as the implications of fares on air travellers are immense. If the private operators of Delhi and Mumbai airports win the case, we are looking at about Rs 50,000 crore getting due to these two operators, which could mean a manifold hike in both user development fees (UDF) paid directly by passengers, and airline landing and parking charges that air carriers factor in while calculating airfares. Overall, the burden for passengers could increase majorly. So, govt has decided to back AERA completely,” officials said, adding UDF alone could rise by about nine times in Delhi and 21 times in Mumbai.Civil aviation ministry estimates domestic UDF at Delhi could rise from Rs 129 by almost 10 times to Rs 1,261, and at Mumbai from Rs 175 by 22 times to Rs 3,856.In early 2006, Delhi and Mumbai airports were handed over to private players for being developed in PPP (public private partnership) mode. Until then, the state-run Airports Authority of India used to have common charges for all its airports.AERA, which determines tariffs for major airports, came into being in mid-2009. “The dispute essentially is for the period between the airports being handed over to GMR Group in Delhi and the then GVK Group in Mumbai, and the time when AERA started deciding aeronautical tariffs. If this amount of Rs 50,000 crore becomes due to the developers, the same will be recovered through passengers paying more, and this has to be fought tooth and nail legally. Aviation ministry will do just that,” said sources.“DIAL and MIAL want a much higher value of assets they got in 2006. What were the assets that time at the two ariports? Run-down terminals barely worth a few hundred crores. They want value of non-aero assets to be added in the regulatory asset base. If that happens and value of non-aero development like hotels, malls and other commercial development is added, the entire model of brownfield airport development will go for a toss as it will come too expensive for users,” officials said.

Mumbai: In a first, the MSRTC has launched a dedicated helpline for thousands of students in Maharashtra – 1800221251. Officials said this helpline will provide assistance to school and college students if they face any difficulties during state bus travel while going to school or returning from school, or if buses do not arrive on time or are suddenly cancelled.The depot managers and their supervisors will be held responsible if school and college students miss classes or are unable to reach examinations on time owing to state transport buses departing late or being cancelled. “If written complaints about educational loss due to mismanagement of school bus services are made by students or by headmasters and principals of schools and colleges, supervisors or officers responsible will be suspended or sent on compulsory leave for as many days as the educational loss occurs,” an official said.From Monday to Friday between 5-6 pm, supervisors of all depots have been asked to stand in uniform at main bus stations and stops where student boarding and alighting is high and manage traffic. The supervisors should not move from there until the last school boy or girl has safely reached home by bus, said MSRTC chairman Pratap Sarnaik.When Sarnaik recently visited Dharashiv Central bus station, school students raised several problems and complaints. “Several students complained that many school buses do not depart on time, do not stop at bus stops due to overcrowding, buses arrive late or are suddenly cancelled, causing educational loss to many students,” he said. “Also, in the evening after school and college hours, children are expected to reach home within at least one hour. But due to buses not arriving on time or being suddenly cancelled, children reach home very late. In many places, due to misunderstandings, parents have even punished students for coming late. As an adverse consequence, there have been incidents where girl students have committed suicide,” Sarnaik pointed out.The state govt provides a 66.66% discount on monthly passes through ST for school students to commute between home and school. Under the Punyashlok Ahilyabai Holkar scheme, girls up to 12th standard are given free monthly passes.

NEW DELHI: The Centre is set to levy a new cess on tobacco, tobacco products and pan masala after the phaseout of GST compensation cess to ensure that price of these products do not fall as they are sin goods.At the time of GST revamp, govt had announced continuation of compensation cess only for tobacco and pan masala, while withdrawing it on all other products and changing the rates, which resulted in lower levy for several products. Some of the goods had moved into the 40% sin goods bracket.

While the compensation cess on tobacco products and pan masala is to be levied up to March 2026, there is a possibility of the levy being withdrawn earlier as the Centre will be able to raise resources to meet the bond payment requirement. As a result, the health and security cess that is proposed on these two sin goods segments will kick in from the date that will be notified.On Monday, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman is scheduled to introduce a bill “to augment the resources for meeting expenditure on national security and for public health, and to levy a cess for the said purposes on the machines installed or other processes undertaken by which specified goods are manufactured or produced and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto”, according to the business listed for the Lok Sabha.The move also paves the way for the govt to allocate more resources for defence, amid heightened tension in the neighbourhood.Govt is hoping that the bill is passed during the Winter Session itself so that the date can be notified, whenever required.At the time of the GST revamp announcement in Sept itself, govt had indicated that a new cess will be imposed on the two products. “The idea is to ensure that prices remain the same for consumers. It is not a revenue raising exercise,” said a govt official.At the time of the launch of GST in 2017, the Centre and the states had agreed to the compensation cess on sin and luxury goods, such as cars, yacht, soft drinks, coal, tobacco and pan masala. The idea was to ensure that states were assured of an annual 14% increase in their indirect tax kitty for five years. Covid outbreak and the lockdown, however, upset the calculations resulting in the cess continuing till March 2026, until the GST Council agreed to the restructuring earlier this year.