At an I.N.D.I.A. bloc meeting in New Delhi, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge sharply criticized Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, labeling him a rubber stamp for PM Narendra Modi and HM Amit Shah. Demanding Kumar’s resignation, Kharge urged the Opposition to reject EVMs in favor of paper ballots while raising serious concerns over the deletion of 13.3 crore voter names during the Special Intensive Revision exercise.

Data compiled by the Association for Democratic Reforms reveals that 111 elected lawmakers, including MPs and MLAs, defected to rival parties within a four-year timeframe. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party secured 29 of these switching leaders, alongside notable shifts involving parties like the TMC, NCP, and NPF. This trend underscores a concerning precedent where elected representatives alter their political affiliations post-election.

The Supreme Court of India has proposed a novel enforcement mechanism to tackle vehicle traffic fine defaulters by suggesting the integration of unpaid traffic challans directly into monthly electricity bills. This suggestion aims to ensure recovery from persistent offenders who ignore traffic citations, forcing compliance through utility billing systems across state jurisdictions.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah flagged off India’s first LNG-powered train at Sabarmati Railway Station in Gujarat as part of a Rs 1,472 crore infrastructure rollout. Highlighting a massive reduction in railway diesel consumption, Shah outlined plans to reach zero diesel dependence by 2030 while detailing progress on track electrification, the Kavach safety system, and 11,000 km of four-track corridor conversions.

Chief Minister Vijay’s Tamil Nadu government has officially rescinded its September 21 notification that brought the Public (Law and Order) Department under Section 24(4) RTI exemptions. The swift U-turn came after opposition parties and allies warned that blocking public access to critical data on custodial deaths, police torture, and crime statistics threatened democracy and risked turning the state into an unchecked police state.

The Bharatiya Janata Party is preparing its candidate matrix for ten Rajya Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh scheduled for election on October 16. With eight victories anticipated, the party management is balancing key caste equations and regional representation as it lays the groundwork for the 2027 Assembly polls. Several outgoing members and new prominent leaders are under consideration to maintain electoral strategy across various demographics.

Following widespread outcry over grave errors in Odisha textbooks, the CJP has extended its full support to the protest led by the NYC, demanding the immediate resignation of School and Mass Education Minister Nityananda Gond. The move highlights escalating public frustration with systemic governance failures and administrative negligence within the state education department, raising serious questions about ministerial oversight and accountability.

Domestic LPG consumers in India must complete mandatory biometric Aadhaar authentication by October 1 to continue receiving subsidised refills. Unauthenticated households risk losing access to subsidised pricing and will be required to purchase cylinders at prevailing market rates. Over 27.43 crore consumers, representing 89.9 percent of active domestic users, have already completed the verification process ahead of the deadline.

The Election Commission of India has issued Special Intensive Revision (SIR) notices to high-profile figures, including External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, top bureaucrats, and political leaders in Delhi. The automated flags stem from data discrepancies and unmapped records from the 2002 electoral roll revision. Officials clarified that notices serve to update ECINET records, with final rolls scheduled for publication on November 4.

In a deeply alarming health scare, Maharashtra FDA tests revealed that paracetamol and telmisartan tablets supplied to major Nagpur government hospitals failed basic quality standards. Over 1.25 lakh compromised Parasev 500 tablets were recalled alongside defective blood pressure medication that failed dissolution tests. Learn how patients can inspect pill strips, check batch numbers, and identify substandard medicines safely.