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Journalism of Courage
🚨Big Story
🔴In a move that has further strained the relationship between the MK Stalin-led DMK government and the Raj Bhavan, Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi dismissed jailed Minister Senthil Balaji, arrested in an alleged job scam in 2015, from the state Cabinet. The dismissal order was later put “on hold” pending legal advice.
🔴What this means: The decision tests the constitutional limitations on the role of the Governor and pushes the Raj Bhavan into uncharted political territory.
🔴What has the DMK govt said? Soon after the dismissal, CM M K Stalin said Ravi has “no power” to issue such an order, and said that the DMK is weighing legal options. “The Governor has no power to dismiss a minister…we will face this legally,” he said.
🔴 DMK govt’s subject of ire: While the standoff between the state government and Ravi is not new, the relations hit a critical point in a series of clashes this year. Who is RN Ravi? We explain
⚡Only in the Express
In our opinion section today, Vivek Katju writes on how Barack Obama was “out of line” in commenting on India’s ‘secular’ nature–”The question, though, is if the Modi government has been wise in responding to them in the manner it has or, if it would have been wiser to simply ignore them”
📰From the front page
👉🏽After being stopped by police en-route to Manipur’s Churachandpur by road, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who is on a two-day visit to the state, reached the town by helicopter, five hours behind schedule. “Manipur needs healing. Peace has to be our only priority,” Gandhi said.
👉🏽In the run-up to the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, a line of meetings including that of PM Narendra Modi with the Council of Ministers and zone-wise meetings of state BJP leaders in the first week of July are likely to be the BJP’s last major attempt to re-organise the party and the government.
👉🏽With West Bengal panchayat polls scheduled due next week, The Indian Express meets candidates in North and South 24 Parganas, where they spoke of an atmosphere of terror and intimidation, pointing fingers at the ruling TMC. Read here
👩🏽💻 Must Read
New Delhi has positioned itself as a player in the critical semiconductor technology field with a hugely significant partnership with the US. But it must make up for the 2-4-decade delayed start — and negotiate the formidable challenges that lie ahead. We explain why chips are the ‘new oil’, and more.
Eight years after their first-ever detection, scientists have now picked up evidence to suggest that a multitude of gravitational waves are ever-present in any area of the universe. Here is a primer on what this new discovery means, and how a Pune-based astrophysics lab contributed to it.
India’s export of aviation turbine fuel could touch an all-time monthly high in June and the country is likely to be Europe’s biggest source of jet fuel in July, which marks the peak of the continent’s summer travel season. Read our data analysis to understand the impact of this in more depth.
⏱️And finally
♟️ Grandmaster Levon Aronian, in an interview with The Indian Express, discusses how a trip to Goa resuscitated his chess career, why the sport won’t go out of fashion in India, and its similarities to meditation.
🤫 Find out which books Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge’s gifted to the German Ambassador and Australian High Commissioner in his recent meetings with them, and which state unit of BJP is bracing for an internal battle, only in today’s edition of Delhi Confidential!
🎧 In the latest episode of the ‘3 Things’ podcast, we discuss how insurgents are making matters worse in Manipur, the significance of the Keeladi excavation site in Tamil Nadu, and an update about the artificial sweetener Aspartame.
Until next time,
Varsha Sriram and Arushi Bhaskar
