Daily Briefing: BJP, Cong knock on EC’s doors ahead of poll verdict; Idea Exchange with Indian hockey coach; and more

The Opposition’s appeal to the poll body on Sunday to ensure that counting of postal ballots is completed first stems from a change in the EC’s guidelines in 2019. We explain why the EC tweaked the guidelines after the 2019 polls.

Meanwhile, with the exit polls predicting a big win for the BJP-led NDA in India’s 18th general elections, a confident saffron party is learnt to be planning a “political event”, which is likely to be scheduled for the weekend.

🔴 Only in Express

In the latest edition of Idea Exchange, we speak with India hockey team coach Craig Fulton, who has taken over a team that returned to the Olympic podium after over four decades. He talks about the preparations “for every single eventuality”, the team-building process, and his understanding of the country’s caste system and its impact on individual performances.

📰 From the Front Page

By the end of vote counting day on Sunday, the BJP and the Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM) retained their hold over northeastern states of Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim with landslide victories, respectively. Soon after the Assembly polls results were declared, Arunachal CM Pema Khandu and Sikkim CM Prem Singh Tamang, both of whom are likely to hold the position for another term, spoke to Liz Mathew.

The biggest purchaser of electoral bonds was “Lottery King” Santiago Martin’s Future Gaming and Hotel Services Pvt Ltd which donated almost 40% of its total purchases to the DMK. Now, The Indian Express has learnt that not just Central agencies, but at least three MPs, including two from the BJP, had also alerted the government that the company was allegedly indulging in “malpractices” leading to money laundering and tax evasion.

The decision to send a team of women police officers to arrest rape-accused JD(S) MP Prajwal Revanna from the Bengaluru airport was a “conscious call” to “send a message” said a senior officer of the Karnataka Police’s Special Investigation Team — half of which is made up of women.  

👩‍💻 Must Read

In our Opinion section today, Sandip Roy weighs in on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s controversial ‘no one knew about Mahatma Gandhi’ remark: “Certainly Gandhi and its eight Oscars made Mahatma Gandhi part of international pop culture’s mainstream. But to say the world only became curious about Gandhi after the film is sheer mann ki baat, not fact.”

Economists at the public sector Bank of Baroda have published a report about the finances of Indian states for the financial year ended March. The report analyses state-level finances, showing a North-South and East-West consumption divide among states, a proxy for income levels. We break down the data for you. 

⌛And Finally…

Express in Norway: On a significant day for Indian chess, Praggnanandhaa took down World No. 2 Fabiano Caruana in Round 5 of Norway Chess. The result means that he has now beaten the World No.1 (Magnus Carlsen) and World No.2 in the same event in the classical format.

Delhi confidential: At the virtual meeting of Congress leaders and candidates yesterday, Mallikarjun Kharge asked Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah about his expectations from the state in the Lok Sabha poll results. Siddaramaiah said he believed the Congress will win 15-20 seats. Don’t miss today’s column for more!

In the latest episode of our ‘3 Things‘ podcast, we discuss heat waves, how they affect our bodies, and the precautions you should take to stay safe. A public health expert joins us in this episode so tune in!

Until tomorrow,

Vibha B Madhava and Ayesha Jain

Cartoon by E P Unny