Daily Briefing: Rules eased for seeking citizenship under CAA; the battle for Raebareli in Lok Sabha polls; and more

⚡ Only in Express

A school in Satara has a unique aim — to revive the ancient ‘Modi’ script of Marathi. Read more about the initiative in this week’s Postcard of Hope.

📰 From the Front Page

The Supreme Court has asked the State Bank of India to furnish the details of the electoral bonds today. The Election Commission will put out the details, on March 15, in two separate lists — one on who purchased, another on which political party encashed. With the ‘matching’ code missing from public domain, petitioners, however, hope that the dataset will have enough evidence to establish quid pro quo.

Prime Minister Modi hailed the successful test of the new-age Agni-5 ballistic missile on Monday. The missile is equipped with multiple warhead technology and has been indigenously developed by the DRDO. This test marks a long-awaited upgrade of India’s missile system and significantly enhances its strike capability, including the nuclear option.

👩‍💻 Must Read 

In today’s Opinion section, former election commissioner Ashok Lavasa writes on the vacancies in the Election Commission. “The EC’s compact is with the voters and its responsibility is to safeguard their rights. It is in this context that one should examine the government’s intent in introducing certain provisions in the CEC Bill and later amending them.”

While Rahul Gandhi’s 2019 loss to Smriti Irani in Amethi still rankles, the Congress will be desperate to hold on to Raebareli – the only seat it won from the state in the 2019 elections, writes Liz Mathew. A win or loss here will determine the Congress’s future in the heartland and send out signals right down to the grassroots.

⌛ And Finally…

Having endured the underdog tag throughout their cricketing history, India’s innings-and-64-run win against the Bazballers was their 178th win in their 579th Test appearance. What significant statistical milestone did India achieve with the Dharamsala Test win over England? Read here

Delhi Confidential: The Congress leadership, it is said, was keen on Ashok Gehlot contesting the Lok Sabha elections but the former Rajasthan CM expressed his unwillingness to fight the polls this time. Instead, he wanted his son Vaibhav to try out his luck once again. Vaibhav who lost the 2019 elections from Jodhpur has been fielded from Jalore this time. 

In our latest edition of the 3 Things podcast, we discuss Election Commissioner Arun Goel’s resignation, the Bengaluru water crisis and GN Saibaba’s case

Until tomorrow,

Sonal Gupta and Aradhana Kalia

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