The Evening Wrap: China confirms Xi Jinping will skip G-20 meet, Premier Li Qiang to attend

China’s Foreign Ministry announced on September 4 that President Xi Jinping will for the first time skip a G-20 summit, with the Chinese Premier and second-ranked leader Li Qiang instead deputed to attend the September 9-10 meet in New Delhi. No reasons have been given for Xi skipping the summit, a key annual diplomatic event that China has usually placed special emphasis on, viewing it as an important platform to shape the global order and exert its rising clout. Xi only recently attended the BRICS summit in South Africa on August 24, when he hailed the decision to expand the grouping. Xi and Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not have a formal bilateral meeting in South Africa but held an informal conversation on the sidelines, during which they discussed the as yet unresolved crisis along the Line of Actual Control. The Chinese Foreign Ministry on Monday announced that “at the invitation of India, Chinese Premier Li Qiang will attend the G-20 summit from September 9 to 10 in India.” “China looks forward to the G-20 New Delhi summit reaching a consensus on tackling challenges in the economy and development, conveying confidence to the outside world and promoting shared prosperity and growth,” a spokesperson said. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador have already regretted being unable to attend the summit. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Mexican Economy Minister Raquel Buenrostro Sanchez will attend in their place. ASI’s survey technique may damage Gyanvapi mosque, says mosque management committee The Anjuman Intezamia Masjid Committee, which manages the Gyanvapi mosque, has moved an application before the Varanasi district judge claiming that the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is not using the GPR technique to conduct the survey and the agency is digging the premises which is against the court’s directions. The mosque committee’s application came days after the ASI filed an application in the Varanasi district court seeking further eight weeks’ time to complete its survey of the mosque. “The ASI is defying the orders of the Supreme Court and the Allahabad High Court which have particularly asked the agency to conduct a scientific survey of the mosque premises using scientific and GPR method. In its application, the ASI has proposed to do the survey after removing the debris/garbage etc. ASI has not been authorised to conduct survey after cleaning any debris or garbage,” the mosque committee’s application reads. It further said that the ASI has removed two trucks of soil from the storeroom of the mosque which was later collected on the open land on the western side of the mosque. “....collecting the debris by bringing it to another place is a threat to the building of the mosque and it may collapse due to this,” the mosque committee’s application said and urged the court to not grant any further extension of time to the ASI. The ASI is conducting a scientific survey of the Gyanvapi mosque, since August 4, on the orders of the Varansi district court given on July 21, 2023. The aim is to determine if the mosque was constructed over a pre-existing structure of a Hindu temple. The survey will take place in the entire premises of the mosque except ‘wuzukhana’. The orders were given taking on record an undertaking made on behalf of the ASI that no excavation would be done at the site and no damage would be caused to the structure. Hate speeches: SC adjourns Brinda Karat’s plea for FIR against BJP’s Anurag Thakur, Parvesh Verma to Oct 3 The Supreme Court on Monday adjourned till October 3 the hearing on the plea of CPI(M) leader Brinda Karat challenging the Delhi High Court’s order dismissing a petition against the trial court’s refusal to order registration of an FIR against BJP leaders Anurag Thakur and Pravesh Verma for their alleged hate speeches over anti-CAA protests. A Bench of Justices Abhay S. Oka and Pankaj Mithal deferred the matter after Additional Solicitor General S.V. Raju submitted a request for adjournment. The top court said no further adjournment will be granted to the respondent in the case. The apex court on April 17 had issued notice to the Delhi Police on the plea filed by Karat. On June 13 last year, the Delhi High Court had dismissed the petition filed by CPI(M) leaders Brinda Karat and K.M. Tiwari against the two BJP MPs for their alleged hate speeches. The high court had refused to interfere with the trial court’s order, saying under the law sanction is required to be obtained from the competent authority for registration of FIR in the present facts. The petitioners had claimed in their complaint before the trial court that Thakur and Verma had sought to “incite people as a result of which three incidents of firing took place at two different protest sites in Delhi”. The petitioners alleged that at a rally in Rithala in the National Capital on January 27, 2020, Thakur egged on the crowd to raise an incendiary slogan, ‘shoot the traitors’, after lashing out at anti-CAA protesters of Shaheen Bagh. They claimed Verma, too, made inflammatory speech against the Shaheen Bagh protesters on January 28, 2020. The trial court had on August 26, 2021 dismissed the petitioners’ complaint on grounds that it was not sustainable as the requisite sanction from the Central government, which was the competent authority, had not been obtained. In their complaint, Karat and Tiwari had sought FIRs against the two BJP leaders under various sections, including 153-A (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc.), 153-B (imputations, assertions prejudicial to national integration) and 295-A (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs) of the IPC. They had also sought action under other sections of the IPC, including 298 (uttering, words, etc., with deliberate intent to wound the religious feelings of any person), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace), 505 (statements conducing to public mischief) and 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation). The maximum punishment for the offences is a jail term of seven years. FIR filed against Editors Guild members, they’re trying to provoke clashes in Manipur: CM Biren Singh Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh on September 4 said that his government has filed an FIR against the president and three members of the Editors Guild of India (EGI), and accused them of trying to provoke clashes in the State. Singh told a press conference in Imphal that at a time when many have been killed and left homeless, the EGI published a “totally one-sided” report without understanding the complexity of the crisis faced by Manipur, the background and the history of the State. The Editors Guild in a report published last week had critiqued media coverage out of Manipur, a State which has seen ethnic clashes for the last four months. It has criticised one-sided reporting by some media outlets, slammed the internet ban as being detrimental to press reporting and claimed there were indications that the State leadership had turned partisan during the conflict period. “The State Government has filed an FIR against the members of the Editors Guild who are trying to create more clashes in the State of Manipur,” Singh told a press conference. Besides EGI President Seema Mustafa, those who were booked are the three senior journalists — Seema Guha, Bharat Bhushan and Sanjay Kapoor — who visited the State between August 7 and 10 to study media reportage on the ethnic violence. “They are anti-State, anti-national and anti-establishment [people] who came to pour venom. Had I known it before, would not have allowed them to enter,” the Chief Minister claimed. The EGI in its report published on September 2 said it received several representations that the media in Manipur was playing a partisan role in the ongoing ethnic conflict between the Meitei and Kuki-Chin communities. “There are clear indications that the leadership of the State became partisan during the conflict. It should have avoided taking sides in the ethnic conflict but it failed to do its duty as a democratic government which should have represented the entire State,” the report said. In normal circumstances, the EGI said, reports filed by journalists are cross-checked and monitored by their editors or chiefs of bureaus from the local administration, police and security forces, but this was not possible during the conflict. “The internet ban made matters worse. Communication blockade by the government had a deleterious effect on journalism as it directly impacted the ability of journalists to communicate with each other, their editors and their sources. It also impacted the media because local news gathered without any communication links was not sufficient to give a balanced view of the situation,” the report said. It said with the internet suspended, and communication and transport in disarray, the media had to rely almost entirely on the narrative of the State Government. The EGI pointed out that members of the State leadership labelled sections of the Kuki-Zo tribals as “illegal immigrants” and “foreigners” without any reliable data or evidence. “This despite the fact that the decadal census from 1901 to 2011 has not shown any unusual growth of the non-Naga [the other minority tribal community] tribal population,” the report said. The fact that there was a military coup in Myanmar which led to an inflow of about 40,000 refugees to Mizoram and reportedly about 4,000 to Manipur “was used to brand all Kuki-Zo as illegal immigrants”. “This was presented as pressure on resources but was also a war for political space, with the politicians using the fear of the outsiders to consolidate its political position,” it said. The Editors’ Guild members were booked under various sections of the IPC including 153A (promoting enmity between two communities), 200 (using false declaration as true), 298 (deliberate intent to wound religious feelings), and under provisions of the Information Technology Act and Press Council Act. Complaint filed against Udhayanidhi Stalin in Muzaffarpur court for his remarks on Sanatana Dharma A complaint has been filed against Tamil Nadu Sports Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin before the Muzaffarpur Chief Judicial Magistrate Court in Bihar for his remarks on Sanatana Dharma. Lawyer Sudhir Kumar Ojha has filed the complaint claiming that Udhayanidhi’s statement had hurt the religious sentiments of crores of Hindus. Bihar Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) State president Samrat Choudhary too slammed Udhayanidhi and sought clarification from Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and Janata Dal (United) over the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) leader’s remark. RJD and JD(U), along with the DMK, are part of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA). Udhayanidhi’s comments calling for the eradication of Sanatana Dharma has triggered a political row. “Just like how dengue, malaria, or coronaviras need to be eradicated, and not just opposed, we have to eradicate Sanatana,” he had said while addressing a conference organised by the Tamil Nadu Progressive Writers Artists Association in Chennai on Saturday. “I have filed a criminal case against Tamil Nadu Sports Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin and his father M.K. Stalin who is the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu. I have filed the case under Sections 500, 504, 295,298 and 120(B) of Indian Penal Code. Udhayanidhi Stalin has intentionally issued the statement to eradicate Sanatana. His comment has hurt the sentiment of crores of Hindus. He has issued the statement on the instruction of his father M.K. Stalin for political gains,” Ojha said. The court has accepted the complaint and hearing in the case will take place on September 14. Choudhary on the other hand sought clarification from ruling RJD and JD(U) stressing that both parties should clarify their stand on the statement of the DMK leader. “RJD and JD(U) are supporting DMK so they should clarify their stand on his statement. Do they support his statement or not? These people are doing politics of appeasement and we cannot tolerate such statements. Bihar is the birthplace of Maa Sita and Lord Ram is worshiped in the entire country. The people of Bihar will teach lessons to the ghamandiya [arrogant] alliance,” Choudhary said. He further claimed that eradicating Sanatana Dharma was the agenda of INDIA bloc leaders during the Mumbai meet. Choudhary said RJD supremo Lalu Prasad, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi should speak on Udhayanidhi’s statement. Talk of early election is a sign that Narendra Modi is panicking after formation of INDIA bloc, says Congress A meeting of the newly constituted Congress Working Committee (CWC), a public rally in Hyderabad, meeting of floor leaders of INDIA bloc at party chief Mallikarjun Kharge’s official residence and a meeting by the parliamentary strategy group to be chaired by Sonia Gandhi ahead of the five-day special session of Parliament are a series of political announcements the Congress made on Monday, even as it categorically rejected the idea of “one nation, one election”. Addressing a joint press conference with communication chief Jairam Ramesh, party general secretary-organisation (GSO) K.C. Venugopal, however, said the party was ready for early election. “We are prepared for anything. If they want an early election means they have totally panicked. After INDIA alliance formation and our three meetings, they have totally panicked,” Venugopal said. Asked about the party’s future roadmap with regard to its opposition to simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha, Assemblies and local bodies, he said the party would have a joint strategy with partners of the INDIA bloc. Ramesh said ‘one nation, one election’ was impossible without amending the Constitution, and to do so, there had to be consensus. “In 2017, there was a paper of the NITI Ayog, the topic had been discussed extensively in a paper and it mentions what amendments are to be done. But if you see the terms of reference of the latest committee, they [Narendra Modi government] seem to have decided to conduct ‘one nation one election,’” he alleged. The party’s first announcement was about holding the first meeting of the newly formed CWC in Hyderabad on September 16 and an extended CWC meeting a day later, in which Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) chiefs, Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leaders and office-bearers of Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) parliamentary party will participate. With a clear focus on the upcoming Telangana election, the top leadership will launch five guarantees for the State at a public rally in Hyderabad on September 17. “After the public meeting, the Congress president will flag off the cavalcade of CWC members, PCC presidents and CLP leaders who will go to each of the 119 Assembly constituencies and spend the night,” Venugopal said. “While MPs will be exempted because of Parliament session on September 18, other leaders will take our guarantee programme door to door, have lunch with influencers and have a ‘Bharat Jodo padayatra’ in the evening in every constituency,” he added. The Congress GSO also informed that on Tuesday the party’s parliamentary strategy group would meet at Sonia Gandhi’s official residence at 5 p.m. and this would be followed by a meeting of floor leaders of like-minded parties at Kharge’s residence at 8 p.m. “As far as issues to be raised in the special Parliament, we are meeting tomorrow and will decide. But it will all be current issues,” he said when asked if the latest charges against the Adani group would be raised in the five-day session. As reported by The Hindu earlier, he also announced a symbolic yatra across 722 districts of the country to commemorate the first anniversary of ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ (BJY) on September 7. “The BJY was one of the reasons why we won big in Karnataka and it is also the reason for the political atmosphere changing in the country,” Venugopal said. When asked if the second edition of the BJY on the East-West corridor would be launched on October 2, he said, “Please wait and see what happens”. In Brief: The Centre and other respondents accused in the Supreme Court on September 4 National Conference party leader Mohammad Akbar Lone, a petitioner in the Article 370 abrogation challenge case, of raising slogans, including ‘Pakistan Zindabad’, in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly in 2018 and still feeling remorseless about it. Appearing before a Constitution Bench headed by Chief Justice of India, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, for the Union government, demanded that Lone be made to file an affidavit pledging his allegiance to the Constitution of India. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. [logo] The Evening Wrap 04 September 2023 [The Hindu logo] Welcome to the Evening Wrap newsletter, your guide to the day’s biggest stories with concise analysis from The Hindu. [[Arrow]Open in browser]( [[Mail icon]More newsletters]( China confirms Xi Jinping will skip G-20 meet, Premier Li Qiang to attend [China’s Foreign Ministry announced on September 4 that President Xi Jinping]( will for the first time skip a G-20 summit, with the Chinese Premier and second-ranked leader Li Qiang instead deputed to attend the September 9-10 meet in New Delhi. No reasons have been given for Xi skipping the summit, a key annual diplomatic event that China has usually placed special emphasis on, viewing it as an important platform to shape the global order and exert its rising clout. Xi only recently attended the BRICS summit in South Africa on August 24, when he hailed the decision to expand the grouping. Xi and Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not have a formal bilateral meeting in South Africa but held an informal conversation on the sidelines, during which they discussed the as yet unresolved crisis along the Line of Actual Control. The Chinese Foreign Ministry on Monday announced that “at the invitation of India, Chinese Premier Li Qiang will attend the G-20 summit from September 9 to 10 in India.” “China looks forward to the G-20 New Delhi summit reaching a consensus on tackling challenges in the economy and development, conveying confidence to the outside world and promoting shared prosperity and growth,” a spokesperson said. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador have already regretted being unable to attend the summit. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Mexican Economy Minister Raquel Buenrostro Sanchez will attend in their place. ASI’s survey technique may damage Gyanvapi mosque, says mosque management committee [The Anjuman Intezamia Masjid Committee, which manages the Gyanvapi mosque]( has moved an application before the Varanasi district judge claiming that the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is not using the GPR technique to conduct the survey and the agency is digging the premises which is against the court’s directions. The mosque committee’s application came days after the ASI filed an application in the Varanasi district court seeking further eight weeks’ time to complete its survey of the mosque. “The ASI is defying the orders of the Supreme Court and the Allahabad High Court which have particularly asked the agency to conduct a scientific survey of the mosque premises using scientific and GPR method. In its application, the ASI has proposed to do the survey after removing the debris/garbage etc. ASI has not been authorised to conduct survey after cleaning any debris or garbage,” the mosque committee’s application reads. It further said that the ASI has removed two trucks of soil from the storeroom of the mosque which was later collected on the open land on the western side of the mosque. “....collecting the debris by bringing it to another place is a threat to the building of the mosque and it may collapse due to this,” the mosque committee’s application said and urged the court to not grant any further extension of time to the ASI. The ASI is conducting a scientific survey of the Gyanvapi mosque, since August 4, on the orders of the Varansi district court given on July 21, 2023. The aim is to determine if the mosque was constructed over a pre-existing structure of a Hindu temple. The survey will take place in the entire premises of the mosque except ‘wuzukhana’. The orders were given taking on record an undertaking made on behalf of the ASI that no excavation would be done at the site and no damage would be caused to the structure. Hate speeches: SC adjourns Brinda Karat’s plea for FIR against BJP’s Anurag Thakur, Parvesh Verma to Oct 3 The [Supreme Court on Monday adjourned till October 3 the hearing on the plea of CPI(M) leader Brinda Karat]( challenging the Delhi High Court’s order dismissing a petition against the trial court’s refusal to order registration of an FIR against BJP leaders Anurag Thakur and Pravesh Verma for their alleged hate speeches over anti-CAA protests. A Bench of Justices Abhay S. Oka and Pankaj Mithal deferred the matter after Additional Solicitor General S.V. Raju submitted a request for adjournment. The top court said no further adjournment will be granted to the respondent in the case. The apex court on April 17 had issued notice to the Delhi Police on the plea filed by Karat. On June 13 last year, the Delhi High Court had dismissed the petition filed by CPI(M) leaders Brinda Karat and K.M. Tiwari against the two BJP MPs for their alleged hate speeches. The high court had refused to interfere with the trial court’s order, saying under the law sanction is required to be obtained from the competent authority for registration of FIR in the present facts. The petitioners had claimed in their complaint before the trial court that Thakur and Verma had sought to “incite people as a result of which three incidents of firing took place at two different protest sites in Delhi”. The petitioners alleged that at a rally in Rithala in the National Capital on January 27, 2020, Thakur egged on the crowd to raise an incendiary slogan, ‘shoot the traitors’, after lashing out at anti-CAA protesters of Shaheen Bagh. They claimed Verma, too, made inflammatory speech against the Shaheen Bagh protesters on January 28, 2020. The trial court had on August 26, 2021 dismissed the petitioners’ complaint on grounds that it was not sustainable as the requisite sanction from the Central government, which was the competent authority, had not been obtained. In their complaint, Karat and Tiwari had sought FIRs against the two BJP leaders under various sections, including 153-A (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc.), 153-B (imputations, assertions prejudicial to national integration) and 295-A (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs) of the IPC. They had also sought action under other sections of the IPC, including 298 (uttering, words, etc., with deliberate intent to wound the religious feelings of any person), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace), 505 (statements conducing to public mischief) and 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation). The maximum punishment for the offences is a jail term of seven years. FIR filed against Editors Guild members, they’re trying to provoke clashes in Manipur: CM Biren Singh [Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh on September 4 said that his government has filed an FIR]( against the president and three members of the Editors Guild of India (EGI), and accused them of trying to provoke clashes in the State. Singh told a press conference in Imphal that at a time when many have been killed and left homeless, the EGI published a “totally one-sided” report without understanding the complexity of the crisis faced by Manipur, the background and the history of the State. The Editors Guild in a report published last week had critiqued media coverage out of Manipur, a State which has seen ethnic clashes for the last four months. It has criticised one-sided reporting by some media outlets, slammed the internet ban as being detrimental to press reporting and claimed there were indications that the State leadership had turned partisan during the conflict period. “The State Government has filed an FIR against the members of the Editors Guild who are trying to create more clashes in the State of Manipur,” Singh told a press conference. Besides EGI President Seema Mustafa, those who were booked are the three senior journalists — Seema Guha, Bharat Bhushan and Sanjay Kapoor — who visited the State between August 7 and 10 to study media reportage on the ethnic violence. “They are anti-State, anti-national and anti-establishment [people] who came to pour venom. Had I known it before, would not have allowed them to enter,” the Chief Minister claimed. The EGI in its report published on September 2 said it received several representations that the media in Manipur was playing a partisan role in the ongoing ethnic conflict between the Meitei and Kuki-Chin communities. “There are clear indications that the leadership of the State became partisan during the conflict. It should have avoided taking sides in the ethnic conflict but it failed to do its duty as a democratic government which should have represented the entire State,” the report said. In normal circumstances, the EGI said, reports filed by journalists are cross-checked and monitored by their editors or chiefs of bureaus from the local administration, police and security forces, but this was not possible during the conflict. “The internet ban made matters worse. Communication blockade by the government had a deleterious effect on journalism as it directly impacted the ability of journalists to communicate with each other, their editors and their sources. It also impacted the media because local news gathered without any communication links was not sufficient to give a balanced view of the situation,” the report said. It said with the internet suspended, and communication and transport in disarray, the media had to rely almost entirely on the narrative of the State Government. The EGI pointed out that members of the State leadership labelled sections of the Kuki-Zo tribals as “illegal immigrants” and “foreigners” without any reliable data or evidence. “This despite the fact that the decadal census from 1901 to 2011 has not shown any unusual growth of the non-Naga [the other minority tribal community] tribal population,” the report said. The fact that there was a military coup in Myanmar which led to an inflow of about 40,000 refugees to Mizoram and reportedly about 4,000 to Manipur “was used to brand all Kuki-Zo as illegal immigrants”. “This was presented as pressure on resources but was also a war for political space, with the politicians using the fear of the outsiders to consolidate its political position,” it said. The Editors’ Guild members were booked under various sections of the IPC including 153A (promoting enmity between two communities), 200 (using false declaration as true), 298 (deliberate intent to wound religious feelings), and under provisions of the Information Technology Act and Press Council Act. Complaint filed against Udhayanidhi Stalin in Muzaffarpur court for his remarks on Sanatana Dharma [A complaint has been filed against Tamil Nadu Sports Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin]( before the Muzaffarpur Chief Judicial Magistrate Court in Bihar for his remarks on Sanatana Dharma. Lawyer Sudhir Kumar Ojha has filed the complaint claiming that Udhayanidhi’s statement had hurt the religious sentiments of crores of Hindus. Bihar Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) State president Samrat Choudhary too slammed Udhayanidhi and sought clarification from Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and Janata Dal (United) over the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) leader’s remark. RJD and JD(U), along with the DMK, are part of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA). Udhayanidhi’s comments calling for the eradication of Sanatana Dharma has triggered a political row. “Just like how dengue, malaria, or coronaviras need to be eradicated, and not just opposed, we have to eradicate Sanatana,” he had said while addressing a conference organised by the Tamil Nadu Progressive Writers Artists Association in Chennai on Saturday. “I have filed a criminal case against Tamil Nadu Sports Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin and his father M.K. Stalin who is the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu. I have filed the case under Sections 500, 504, 295,298 and 120(B) of Indian Penal Code. Udhayanidhi Stalin has intentionally issued the statement to eradicate Sanatana. His comment has hurt the sentiment of crores of Hindus. He has issued the statement on the instruction of his father M.K. Stalin for political gains,” Ojha said. The court has accepted the complaint and hearing in the case will take place on September 14. Choudhary on the other hand sought clarification from ruling RJD and JD(U) stressing that both parties should clarify their stand on the statement of the DMK leader. “RJD and JD(U) are supporting DMK so they should clarify their stand on his statement. Do they support his statement or not? These people are doing politics of appeasement and we cannot tolerate such statements. Bihar is the birthplace of Maa Sita and Lord Ram is worshiped in the entire country. The people of Bihar will teach lessons to the ghamandiya [arrogant] alliance,” Choudhary said. He further claimed that eradicating Sanatana Dharma was the agenda of INDIA bloc leaders during the Mumbai meet. Choudhary said RJD supremo Lalu Prasad, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi should speak on Udhayanidhi’s statement. Talk of early election is a sign that Narendra Modi is panicking after formation of INDIA bloc, says Congress [A meeting of the newly constituted Congress Working Committee (CWC), a public rally in Hyderabad]( meeting of floor leaders of INDIA bloc at party chief Mallikarjun Kharge’s official residence and a meeting by the parliamentary strategy group to be chaired by Sonia Gandhi ahead of the five-day special session of Parliament are a series of political announcements the Congress made on Monday, even as it categorically rejected the idea of “one nation, one election”. Addressing a joint press conference with communication chief Jairam Ramesh, party general secretary-organisation (GSO) K.C. Venugopal, however, said the party was ready for early election. “We are prepared for anything. If they want an early election means they have totally panicked. After INDIA alliance formation and our three meetings, they have totally panicked,” Venugopal said. Asked about the party’s future roadmap with regard to its opposition to simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha, Assemblies and local bodies, he said the party would have a joint strategy with partners of the INDIA bloc. Ramesh said ‘one nation, one election’ was impossible without amending the Constitution, and to do so, there had to be consensus. “In 2017, there was a paper of the NITI Ayog, the topic had been discussed extensively in a paper and it mentions what amendments are to be done. But if you see the terms of reference of the latest committee, they [Narendra Modi government] seem to have decided to conduct ‘one nation one election,’” he alleged. The party’s first announcement was about holding the first meeting of the newly formed CWC in Hyderabad on September 16 and an extended CWC meeting a day later, in which Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) chiefs, Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leaders and office-bearers of Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) parliamentary party will participate. With a clear focus on the upcoming Telangana election, the top leadership will launch five guarantees for the State at a public rally in Hyderabad on September 17. “After the public meeting, the Congress president will flag off the cavalcade of CWC members, PCC presidents and CLP leaders who will go to each of the 119 Assembly constituencies and spend the night,” Venugopal said. “While MPs will be exempted because of Parliament session on September 18, other leaders will take our guarantee programme door to door, have lunch with influencers and have a ‘Bharat Jodo padayatra’ in the evening in every constituency,” he added. The Congress GSO also informed that on Tuesday the party’s parliamentary strategy group would meet at Sonia Gandhi’s official residence at 5 p.m. and this would be followed by a meeting of floor leaders of like-minded parties at Kharge’s residence at 8 p.m. “As far as issues to be raised in the special Parliament, we are meeting tomorrow and will decide. But it will all be current issues,” he said when asked if the latest charges against the Adani group would be raised in the five-day session. As reported by The Hindu earlier, he also announced a symbolic yatra across 722 districts of the country to commemorate the first anniversary of ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ (BJY) on September 7. “The BJY was one of the reasons why we won big in Karnataka and it is also the reason for the political atmosphere changing in the country,” Venugopal said. When asked if the second edition of the BJY on the East-West corridor would be launched on October 2, he said, “Please wait and see what happens”. In Brief: The [Centre and other respondents accused in the Supreme Court on September 4 National Conference party leader Mohammad Akbar Lone]( a petitioner in the Article 370 abrogation challenge case, of raising slogans, including ‘Pakistan Zindabad’, in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly in 2018 and still feeling remorseless about it. Appearing before a Constitution Bench headed by Chief Justice of India, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, for the Union government, demanded that Lone be made to file an affidavit pledging his allegiance to the Constitution of India. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. 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