DAILY FROM: AHMEDABAD, CHANDIGARH, DELHI, JAIPUR, KOLKATA, LUCKNOW, MUMBAI, NAGPUR, PUNE, VADODARA JOURNALISM OF COURAGE FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2020, AHMEDABAD, LATE CITY, 18 PAGES SINCE 1932 `4.00, WWW.INDIANEXPRESS.COM TheIndian Expresswishes its readers Merry Christmas THE EDITORIAL PAGE THEFALLACYOFTHE CENTRALMODEL BY MILIND SOHONI PAGE 10 THE IDEAS PAGE Growth to break THENEWLEAGUE OFNATIONS CHRISTMAS IN THE VALLEY into positive BY SHYAM SARAN PAGE 11 At St Mary’s Church in Gulmarg, Jammu and Kashmir,onChristmas EveonThursday. Shuaib Masoodi territory in Q3, Daniel Pearl killing: Pak MINISTRY SENDS LETTER TO FARMER UNIONS says RBI study court orders release of Govt:Readyforlogicalresolution In firsthalf of Omar Sheikh, 3others 2021-22, GDP growth likelyto Directssecurity agencies nottokeep ofallissuesraisedbyfarmers be 14.2% What worked them under ‘anysortofdetention’ for growth Three farm laws have no relation to ENSECONOMICBUREAU PRESSTRUSTOFINDIA 11 Opp parties issue joint MUMBAI,DECEMBER24 ABENDINGofthe Covid- KARACHI,DECEMBER24 MSP-basedprocurement:Ministry 19 curveafter the initial Pearlwas statement against govt: WITH THE INDIAN economy surge,and a'method' to IN Asurprise move,aPakistani killedin pulling out of Covid pandemic’s the stimulus impartedto courtonThursdayordered the 2002 HARIKISHANSHARMA BUSINESSASUSUAL “deep abyss”, the real GDP is ex- the economybythe gov- release of British-born al-Qaeda NEWDELHI,DECEMBER24 who is spreading untruths? pected to break out intopositive ernment seems to be leader AhmedOmar Saeed BY UNNY territorywith aslender growth making adifference. A Sheikh and his three aides, who old Sheikh to sevenyears impris- ADAY afterfarmer unions, DMK and the Congress, to issue of 0.1per cent in October- string of liquidity meas- were convicted and sentencedin onment. The courtalso acquit- protesting at Delhi’s borders MANOJCG ajoint statement againstthe BJP December 2020 (Q3) ,and rise ures plus cash/ kind sup- the abduction and murder case tedhis three aides who were againstthe newfarm laws,said NEWDELHI,DECEMBER24 government on the farm laws. marginallyto0.7 per cent in porttothe mostvulnera- of US journalistDaniel Pearl. serving lifeterms in the case al- theyare open to talksifamore The joint statement came on January-March 2021(Q4), ac- ble in the initial months Atwo-judgebenchofthe mosttwo decades afterthey concreteproposal is made, the EVEN AS West Bengal Chief aday the Congress high com- cording to an RBI study on the wasfollowedbycali- Sindh High Court, presidedover were found guilty and jailed. government responded MinisterMamataBanerjee has mand gave itsBengal unit the go- ‘State of the Economy’. brated movestosupport by Justice KKAgha, directed se- However, the Sindh govern- Thursdaysaying it is ready for been coordinating with ahead forentering intoaseat- An updateofthe economic investment and con- curity agencies nottokeep ment refusedtoreleasethem and “logical resolution” of all issues Opposition leaders to hold ajoint sharing deal with the Leftparties activity index(EAI) in RBI’s now- sumption demand, Sheikh and other accusedunder kept them in detention under the raisedbythe farmers. rallyofanti-BJP leaders in forthe forthcoming Assembly casting assessment exercise fur- whichthe RBI study says, "anysortofdetention" and de- Maintenance of Public In aletterto40representa- Kolkata, the CPM on Thursday elections in Bengal. ther shows that in the firsthalf of is slowlyshowing results. clared all notifications of the Order.Their continuous deten- tivesoffarmer unions, Vivek worked behind the scenes to get So far, Banerjee has reached 2021-22, the economywill clock Sindh government related to tion waschallenged in the Sindh CONTINUEDONPAGE2 11 parties, including the NCP, CONTINUEDONPAGE2 agrowth rate of 14.2 per cent on their detention "null and void". High Court, whichordered their topofthe 0.4 per cent growth rate narroweddownto7.5 per cent in The courtobserved that the release. However, it asked to in the second half of 2012-20. the September quarter. fourmen'sdetentionwas"illegal". place their names on the no-fly “Over the month gone by, TheNationalStatisticalOffice’s In April, atwo-judgeSindh listsothat theycould notleave Farm protests: BJP sees aplot, other parties moreevidence has been turned (NSO)end-Novemberreleasede- High Courtbenchcommuted the country. It also directed them in to showthat the Indian econ- liveredapleasant surprise –the the death sentence of 46-year- CONTINUEDONPAGE2 omyisbreaking out amidstwin- pandemic-imposedretrench- lend their weight but are socially distanced ter’s lengthening shadows to- mentof Q1of 2020-21turnedout wardsaplace in the sunlight,” the to be muchshallowerinQ2and FORMER BJP MLA WRITES TO SARPANCHES The agitation is rippling out- wheat), talk to the farmer,ask study said. The economydipped the economyisreflating at apace VANDITAMISHRA FROM THE side the farm sector —joining, for him whyheremains poor even by arecord23.9 per cent in the thatbeatsmostpredictions,itsaid. ‘Oppose the inclusion of CHANDIGARH,AMRITSAR, instance, the theatregroup in though he workssohard. June quarterbut the contraction CONTINUEDONPAGE2 DECEMBER24 PUNJAB Amritsar,tothe trader in the “During performances now, au- FIELDS city’s famedwholesale cloth diences sing along with the cho- 121 villages around SoU FORNOW,the farmers’ protests market.Aplaywritten in the rus, ‘saade khet, saade khet(our WORLD in Punjab againstthe Centre’s early 1950s is seeing arevival to- fields, ours!)’”, says Dhaliwal. under eco-sensitive zone’ three farm laws arebringing to- day, says KewalDhaliwal, who And in the city’s Tahli Sahib gether,despitetheirdifferentand runs ManchRangmanchin Bazaar,cloth merchant AjayKu- BREAKTHROUGH: the Panchayats (Extension to oftenconflictinginterests,sections Amritsar whichhas been per- mar Arorasays:“Ibelong to afa- UK, EU AGREE ON EXPRESSNEWSSERVICE ScheduledAreas) Act, 1996 or of big and small farmers, landless forming at the protestsites. milyofbusinessmen but about BREXIT TRADE DEAL VADODARA,DECEMBER24 PESA, alaw enacted by the agricultural labourers and com- In Joginder Baharla’s “Harian 70 per cent of my customers are Government of India forensur- mission agents. It’s amoment of Saunnian”, Punjab’s twomain from the villages. If theyget TRUMP GIVES FORMER BJP MLAMotilal ing self-governance through tra- unity,too,forPunjab’snotoriously ANEXPRESSSERIESPARTTHREE crops, “Harian" and “Saunnian" good moneyfor the crop, they CLEMENCY TO MORE Vasava has written to the ditional gram sabhas forpeople fragmented farm unions. (personification of rice and CONTINUEDONPAGE2 ALLIES, INCLUDING sarpanches of 121villages living in the ScheduledAreas of MANAFORT PAGE 16 around the Statue of Unity in India as per Schedule Vofthe Narmada district, urging them Constitution. to oppose the inclusion of the In his letter,Vasava has said, areas under eco-sensitivezone “The gram sabhas arecoming up as per a2016notification of the in your respective villages be- Walking home with friend, Muslim Amshipora killings of labourers: MinistryofEnvironment, Forest tween December 28 to February and ClimateChange(MoEFCC). 6... Thegrave issue facing us as of youth booked under love jihad law Major found culpable, to face action Vasava,who also leads the nowisthe inclusion of the vil- BJP party’s tribal cell in the state, lages in the eco-sensitive zone. Iwent of my ownfreewill, says girl; her "I have told this to the magis- Julythis year,The Indian dence that “powers vestedunder hasasked the sarpanches to use Youmustremember that the trate, and Iwill saythis again. NIRUPAMA Express has learnt. the AFSPA1990 were exceeded” the upcoming gram sabhas in government has granted youthe father alleges police dictated complaint Those men had aproblem with SUBRAMANIAN The three, one of them a16- and the “dos and don’tsofChief the villages to pass resolutions rightstoprotect your properties, me walking with my friend. They MUMBAI,DECEMBER24 year-old, had gone to the Valley of ArmyStaff (COAS) as approved againstthe government order. jungles and other possessions as Uttar Pradesh, wasbookedunder made videos of me and arenow from their hometown Rajouri, by the Hon’ble Supreme Court In alettertothe sarpanches indigenous communities under ANANDMOHANJ the month-old anti-conversion calling it love jihad. Idid nothing AN ARMY officer of the rank of looking forwork. Theywere have been contravened”. of 121villages of the “eco-sensi- Schedule Vofthe Constitution BIJNOR,DECEMBER24 lawand slappedwith charges wrong. Iwent of my ownfree Major has been found culpable killedinAmshipora, avillagein The SummaryofEvidence tive zone” in Narmada, Vasava as well as the special PESAAct. under sections of the SC/STAct, will," she told The Indian Express. in the killing of three Rajouri Shopian district, in the early that followedwas completed has remindedthe tribal commu- The stategovernment,bythe DAYS AFTER her friend, with and the Protection of Children Around 10.30 pm on labourers, who security forces hours of July18. lastweek,and it found that the nities of the rightsbestowed wayofthe central government whom she waswalking home af- from Sexual Offences (POCSO) December 14,the girl, aDalit, initiallyclaimedwereterror- In September,aCourtof Major should be triedunder upon them by the Provisions of CONTINUEDONPAGE2 terabirthdayparty in Bijnor in Act, the 16-year-old stands firm. CONTINUEDONPAGE2 ists,inShopian district of J&K in Inquiryfound prima facie evi- CONTINUEDONPAGE2 PAGE1 ANCHOR OutrageasIIM-Atorazeiconic dorms