Good morning, Big Story With the counting of votes underway in Maharashtra and Jharkhand, all eyes today are on the battle between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and the INDIA bloc. And we're catching all the action live on indianexpress.com. What's at stake today? For the BJP, the results will determine how the party fared in the battle of perception after its underwhelming performance in the Lok Sabha elections. On the other hand, a loss in both states, or at least in Maharashtra, will give way to the perception that Lok Sabha results were a reflection of a trend that is, by and large, continuing - a conclusion that may have far-reaching consequences for the party. Today is also key for the Congress as well as the other regional parties in the INDIA bloc, who are looking to propel the 'BJP is on a decline' narrative. A loss in both states, especially in Maharashtra, will put a bigger question mark on the INDIA bloc's unity. Since the Lok Sabha results, leaders of the INDIA bloc have not been seen together — even for perfunctory photo ops — despite the alliance existing on paper. PS: Catch the latest updates on Maharashtra and Jharkhand throughout the day. Later today, we will also be decoding the poll results live. Only in Express “That the Goa service sector has outpriced itself and not bothered to remain competitive with comparable international tourist destinations is undeniable.” In our Opinion pages today, Coomi Kapoor writes about the ‘desi tourist’ in Goa, reflecting on the reasons behind the state’s tourism woes. Express Explained State-of-play: “If you and I don’t have trust, then the countries cannot have trust,” a senior Chinese government official told The Indian Express last week. The official was referring to the trust deficit between India and China over the last four-and-half years of the border standoff in Ladakh. As both countries move to repair ties, the messages from Beijing and New Delhi have convergences and divergences. In Sports The New MAGA: Donald Trump is 'Making America Golf Again' and the greens around the world are buzzing. Politicians are dusting off their clubs to bond with the golfer president-elect and the pros are desperate to play a round or two with him. But it is the serious golfers who are seeking the urgent intervention of Trump, and his virtual running-mate Elon Musk. They want the two to end the long-standing stand-off that threatens to divide the global golfing landscape. Movie Review In her latest glowing review, Shubhra Gupta will give you FOMO for not having watched Payal Kapadia’s ‘All We Imagine As Light’, which she describes as “a lyrical ode to working-class Mumbai and female friendship”. That’s all for today. Until Monday, Ayesha Jain
