Good morning,
From NCB giving Aryan Khan a clean chit in the drugs-on-cruise case, to Geetanjali Shree’s ‘Tomb of Sand’ becoming the first Hindi novel to win the prestigious International Man Booker Prize 2022 – here are today’s top stories
The Big Story
Months after being arrested in connection with the drugs-on-cruise case, Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan Khan was given a clean chit by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) on Friday. The seizure of his mobile phone, how it was unlocked without due procedure, and how “drug chats” referring to a period in 2018 in Los Angeles were misinterpreted are the key factors behind the NCB’s decision to drop all drug charges against Khan. The other main reasons in the chargesheet include: no recovery of drugs from him, no medical test conducted to prove consumption, WhatsApp chats not leading to any drug transaction and no witness claiming that he consumed drugs. Meanwhile, the Special Investigation Team of the NCB has recorded in an internal note that the investigating team headed by IRS officer Sameer Wankhede may have tried to “somehow implicate” Aryan. Sources said Wankhede was allowed a free hand to deal with his cases in the way he liked. His immediate superior in Mumbai, Deputy Director General Mutha Ashok Jain, proceeded on leave the day the raids were carried out — on October 2 last year.
Only in the Express
Tahir Mahmood writes on why Hindus and Muslims must give up rigid positions on contested places of worship: “Religious freedom here has its own limits for all, be it any particular minority or the dominant majority. Obstinacy and fanaticism on either side will lead us nowhere. If a minority rigidly sticks to its demands on religious grounds, the dominant majority cannot be expected to be lagging behind.” From the Front Page Author Geetanjali Shree made history on Friday, when her novel, ‘Ret Samadhi’ — which was published in English as ‘Tomb of Sand’ in 2021 — became the first book written in an Indian language to win the 2022 International Man Booker Prize. But interestingly, Geetanjali and her translator Daisy Rockwell, who have been working closely these past two years, met in person for the first time only earlier this week. Shree described her win as “a bolt from the blue” that had left her “reeling”. In the clearest indication yet of how Covid-19 exacerbated the digital divide, 43% of children from the national capital who participated in the National Achievement Survey 2021 reported that they did not have access to a digital device at home during the pandemic. Overall, Delhi ranked among the five states with the lowest average scores for Math and Language in Class 3 and was behind the national average in all subjects for Classes 3 and 5. It also registered a dip in performances in these grades compared to the last achievement survey conducted in 2017, before the pandemic. Must Read That Monkeypox has been found in people with no direct travel link to the endemic area represents a highly unusual event. Dr. Pragya Yadav, a senior scientist at ICMR- National Institute of Virology (NIV), Pune, explains why we need to be vigilant about this exotic pathogen. The Gujarat Assembly polls are just months away and the BJP is doing all that it can to win back the Patidar community, who were somewhat disenchanted before the 2017 elections following the quota agitation led by Hardik Patel. So far, of the 17 events PM Modi has addressed in his home state till March, six were organised by groups with strong links to the Patidar community. Forming around 12 per cent of the state’s 6 crore-strong population, the Patidars hold significant influence over the electoral politics of Gujarat. And Finally... Shalini Langer reviews the much-anticipated Tom Cruise starrer ‘Top Gun Maverick’: Of course the film is riding on Cruise’s still nimble shoulders, that sparkly grin, and his charm burnished with years of stardom. However, there is a settling down too, a recognition of age, of passing years – whether it is Pete wistfully looking on at the new top guns, including a woman pilot accepted as one of the boys, at a bar; or him choosing to take a seat half-way through a volleyball game, to take a breath and look lovingly on. Delhi Confidential: The Uttarakhand government’s move to set up a committee headed by Justice Ranjana Desai, former judge of Supreme Court, to draft a Uniform Civil Code is being keenly watched by the Centre. The issue of Uniform Civil Code is crucial for the BJP and has also been a part of its manifesto.
Until tomorrow,
Rahel Philipose
| 
