5 stories you must read today, November 19: From a BLO’s death by suicide due to ‘work pressure’ to 272 prominent citizens criticising Rahul Gandhi’s ‘vote chori’ attacks

A group of 272 prominent citizens, including former judges, civil servants and military veterans — have issued a sharp critique of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, accusing him of venting “impotent rage” after repeated electoral defeats and undermining the Election Commission of India. In a joint statement, they said Gandhi’s allegations of “vote theft” and threats to “hound” officials lack credibility, noting he has not filed any formal complaint with an affidavit. They argued that his attacks, echoed by some opposition leaders and activists, are an attempt to mask political setbacks as institutional failure and called for respect for democratic processes. Read more

The Supreme Court on Wednesday urged the CAQM to consider directing Delhi-NCR schools to shift sports activities scheduled for November–December to safer months, citing severe air pollution. The bench, led by CJI B R Gavai, noted submissions that holding outdoor events during peak pollution “would amount to putting children in a gas chamber.” The Court also stayed a Punjab and Haryana High Court order that had paused the Punjab government’s directive requiring brick kilns to use cleaner paddy straw pellets instead of coal. The Centre and Punjab argued that pellets produce significantly lower emissions and are crucial to reducing pollution. Read more

Anthropic has secured up to $15 billion in new investments from Microsoft and Nvidia, boosting its valuation to $350 billion, up from $183 billion in September. The partnership deepens collaboration between the three companies: Microsoft and Nvidia will fund Anthropic’s AI development, while Anthropic will purchase $30 billion in Azure computing powered by Nvidia systems. Satya Nadella stressed that OpenAI remains a key partner even as Microsoft expands ties with Anthropic. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang called the collaboration a “dream come true.” Founded in 2021 by former OpenAI leaders, Anthropic is known for its Claude models, including the new Claude Sonnet 4.5. Read more

A Booth Level Officer (BLO), Shantimoni Ekka, died by suicide in Malbazar, West Bengal, with her family alleging unbearable pressure from Special Intensive Revision (SIR) duties. The 48-year-old anganwadi worker was reportedly overburdened as the only BLO in her booth, struggling with extensive form work and language barriers. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee blamed the Election Commission’s “inhuman workload,” claiming 28 BLOs have died since SIR began. A report has been sought by the Chief Electoral Office. The incident follows another recent BLO death in Purba Bardhaman, intensifying concerns over high-pressure election-related duties in the state. Read more