Daily Briefing: Rajasthan political crisis; INLD’s joint Opposition rally in Haryana; and more

As the Congress high command’s inclination to hand over the chief ministership to Sachin Pilot became apparent, around 90 MLAs loyal to Gehlot submitted their resignation to Rajasthan Assembly Speaker C P Joshi late on Sunday.

The MLAs want Gehlot to continue as the CM and the next best scenario is for someone else from their camp to become the CM.

The deft power play by Gehlot has once again raised questions on the party leadership’s ability to manoeuvre decisions towards desired outcomes. Gehlot has emphatically signalled he would not be a pushover and would like to remain the king in his backyard.

Only in the Express

In the latest edition of Idea Exchange, Karnataka Minister of School Education BC Nagesh talks about controlling the learning loss in schools, the hijab row and textbook revision.

In an interview with The Indian Express, BJP’s Shahnawaz Hussain speaks about Union Minister Amit Shah’s two-day visit to Bihar, and his party’s strategy to counter the social combination of the Nitish Kumar-led Mahagathbandhan (grand alliance).

From the Front Page

A joint Opposition rally held in Haryana saw leaders seek a united front against the BJP. While the Congress was not invited for the rally, organised by the INLD to mark the birth anniversary of Haryana strongman Devi Lal, JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar said that the Congress should be part of any such coalition.

Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi, who was learnt to have earlier conveyed his willingness to the government’s request to be Attorney General of India, has declined the offer. When asked  what prompted him to change his mind, Rohatgi said there was “no specific reason”.

A provisional postmortem report in the Uttarakhand receptionist murder case has confirmed that the cause of death of 19-year-old Ankita Bhandari was drowning and said there were antemortem injuries (injuries before death) on her body, suggestive of blunt force trauma.

Angry at the government for not releasing funds to registered cattle pounds and shelters, the charitable trusts running them are setting them free, often into government buildings. By Sunday, nearly 1,750 cowsheds run by such trusts, housing over 4.5 lakh cattle, had joined the agitation.

Must Read

Assistant sub-inspector Rajendra Bhosle’s team between 2008 and 2015 registered 166 cases of missing girls at Mumbai’s DN Nagar police station. Last month, ‘Girl No 166’, Pooja Gaud, who went missing in 2013, was united with her family. However, she continues to deal with the physical and mental trauma that she suffered during nine years under alleged captivity.

Once a dacoit in the MP’s Chambal region, Ramesh Sikarwar has now pledged to protect the cheetahs brought in from Namibia. He says: ‘If anyone attacks a cheetah in Kuno, they will have to face me’. Sikarwar’s old days during the 1970s and 80s at Kuno National Park in hiding prompted him to come forward as a “cheetah mitra”.

Archeological Survey of India (ASI) during a recent excavation near Chennai has found hand axes, scrapers, cleavers and choppers as old as 12,000 years, with some even dating back to the Sangam era. Scholars have called it as a crucial chapter in bridging the gap in Tamil history. Some artefacts found indicate active trade with the Romans.

And Finally…

“Jab bijli hi nahi hai toh phone kaise hoga?”: Ashakiran Barla, who won the 800m title at the recent Youth Nationals in Bhopal said. Unable to call his mother to share the news of her success, Ashakiran’s family got to know about the medal from a neighbour. Ashakiran’s home in the Adivasi village of Nawaidh, about 100 km from Ranchi, is yet to receive an electricity connection despite several pleas to local authorities. Jharkhand girl has grown up in poverty, but it hasn’t stopped her from winning Jr Natl gold & being U18 season leader in 800m in the continent.

Delhi confidential: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to visit Japan to attend the state funeral for former PM of Japan Shinzo Abe on Tuesday.

In today’s episode of the ‘3 things’ podcast, we talk about the murder case of a 19-year-old receptionist in Uttarakhand. We also discuss the proposed Ambedkar circuit tourism and the permanent resettlement process of the Bru migrants in Tripura.

Until tomorrow,

Sonal Gupta and Susobhan Roy