3 Things

Today, we will be taking a look at the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.First, The Indian Express’ Asad Rehman joins us to talk about Akhilesh Yadav's new PDA formula for defeating BJP in Uttar Pradesh.Second, we talk to Indian Express' Mallica Joshi about the Delhi slums and how they have become a battleground for AAP and BJP. (12:05)Lastly, we talk about Ajit Pawar's faction being declared as the real NCP in Maharashtra, by the Election Commission. (19:37)Hosted by Niharika NandaWritten and Produced by Niharika Nanda and Shashank BhargavaEdited and Mixed by Suresh Pawar

This is the Catch Up on 3 Things for the Indian Express and I'm Flora Swain.It’s the 6th of February and here are the headlines.Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami today tabled the Uniform Civil Code Bill in the state Assembly. The Bill seeks to bring uniformity in laws governing marriage, divorce, and inheritance, among other things, across religions. It proposes the banning of practices like polygamy and bringing in a uniform marriage age for citizens from all communities. The Opposition today said the draft should have been tabled before the Assembly at least a day earlier so that MLAs got the time to study it.The Bill to prevent paper leaks, introduced in Lok Sabha on Monday, said it will serve as a "model draft for States to adopt at their discretion." The Indian Express investigated 41 documented instances of leaks over the last five years in recruitment exams across 15 states — their governments cutting across party lines. What emerged was startling: The leaks derailed schedules of as many as 1.4 crore applicants, applying for a little over 1.04 lakh posts.Former Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren on Monday hit out at the BJP and said he would quit politics and leave the state if any proof regarding his alleged illegal acquisition of 8 acres of land was tabled in the Assembly. In custody of the Enforcement Directorate (ED), Soren was allowed to vote in the trust motion that the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM)-led alliance won in the Assembly on Monday.The Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra is set to enter Odisha from Jharkhand today. Before resuming the Yatra from Jharkhand’s Khunti district this morning, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi paid floral tribute at the statue of tribal icon Birsa Munda. Gandhi is scheduled to address the press at Basia in Gumla and then a public rally in Simdega district today.Upholding the conviction of a man for raping a seven-year-old girl in a temple in Madhya Pradesh in 2018, the Supreme Court has sentenced him to 30 years in jail while noting that his action was barbaric. The victim girl’s grandmother lodged an FIR against the man who was 40 years old at the time of the crime, for kidnapping and raping the minor. The trial court awarded him the capital punishment, but the Madhya Pradesh High Court, commuted the same to life imprisonment for the remainder of the convict’s natural life.This was the Catch-Up on the 3 Things by The Indian Express.

A recent investigation by the Indian Express reveals that under the policy that allows MLAs to seek funds from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) for civic works, only the 21 ruling MLAs have been able to receive funds. In this episode, Indian Express’ Pratip Acharya, who accessed official records obtained under the Right to Information Act, tells us what the investigation reveals and the concerns it raises for Mumbaikars.Hosted and produced by Shashank BhargavaEdited and mixed by Suresh Pawar

This is the Catch Up on 3 Things for the Indian Express and I'm Flora Swain.It’s the 5th of February and here are the headlines.Recording of statements to seizure of assets; summons to searches of premises; getting details from Income Tax and RBI – and detection of money laundering violations. These are the key aspects of the Enforcement Directorate’s ongoing action in the Pandora Papers investigation that shows probes have been “initiated” for almost all Indian owners of offshore firms named in the 2021 investigation by The Indian Express. They include Anil Ambani to Sachin Tendulkar, Unitech promoters and Niira Radia; Gautam Singhania to Lalit Goyal and Malvinder Singh, according to the current status of the probes. The Pandora Papers refers to a trove of 11.9 million secret documents from 14 offshore service providers that give details of ownership of 29,000 offshore entities used by the super-rich to manage their global money flows.Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, during the Question Hour in Lok Sabha today, rejected claims of ‘discrimination in allocating funds to non-BJP states’ and said, quote, “There is no way political interests would come in the way of the states getting the funds. It’s a charge that vested interests would like to go around. I don’t have the discretion, it’s the Finance Commission that takes the decision.” Unquote.Jharkhand Chief Minister Champai Soren won the trust vote in the state assembly today. While 47 MLAs voted in favour of the trust motion, 29 legislators opposed it in the 81-member assembly. Meanwhile, former Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren alleged that the Raj Bhawan was involved in his arrest carried out by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with a money laundering case.Ahead of Lok Sabha polls, the Election Commission today asked political parties not to use children in campaigning “in any form whatsoever”, including for distribution of posters and pamphlets or sloganeering. In an advisory sent to parties, the poll panel conveyed its “zero tolerance” towards use of children in any manner during the electoral process by parties and candidates. The poll watchdog said political leaders and candidates should not use children for campaign activities in any manner including holding a child in their arms, carrying a child in a vehicle or in rallies.Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu today said the first group of Indian military personnel will be sent back from the island nation before 10th of March, while the remaining Indian troops manning two aviation platforms will be withdrawn by 10th of May. In his maiden address to Parliament, Muizzu said he believes a large majority of Maldivians support his administration with the expectation that they will remove foreign military presence from the country, and recover the lost oceanic territory.This was the Catch-Up on the 3 Things by The Indian Express.

First, The Indian Express’ Abhishek Angad joins us to talk about Jharkhand’s former Chief Minister Hemant Soren getting arrested, allegations against him and its political repercussions.Second, we talk to Indian Express' Deeptiman Tiwary about the emerging trend of appointing acting Director Generals of Police in certain states, reasons behind it and the concerns it raises.Lastly, we talk about Akhilesh Yadav's claim of not being invited to the UP leg of the Rahul Gandhi led Bharat Jodo Yatra. Hosted by Rahel PhiliposeWritten and Produced by Niharika Nanda, Rahel Philipose, and Shashank BhargavaEdited and Mixed by Suresh Pawar

This is the Catch Up on 3 Things for the Indian Express and I'm Flora Swain.It’s the 2nd of February and and here are the top stories of this week.Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented her sixth Budget on Thursday. This was an ‘interim Budget’ since the term of the current government will end soon and the country will go to polls. She began her Budget speech with references to the Union government’s schemes in the social sectors. No changes were announced in direct or indirect tax rates, unlike in the 2019-20 interim Budget. Fiscal Deficit came in at 5.8% — a tad lower than the target of 5.9%. Fiscal Deficit target for next financial year is set at 5.1%.Jharkhand Governor C P Radhakrishnan met five legislators of the ruling JMM-Congress alliance on Thursday, a day after JMM leader and Hemant Soren loyalist Champai Soren staked claim to form the government in the state. Hemant Soren had submitted his resignation to the governor on Wednesday night, moments before his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate. While the JMM-Congress alliance had immediately proposed appointing Champai as the leader of the legislature party, the Governor had told them that he would revert after considering all legalities.Opposition leaders in Maharashtra slammed the state government and civic authorities on Wednesday, after The Indian Express published an investigation report that revealed how over the past year, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation disbursed funds amounting to Rs 500 crore only to MLAs from the ruling BJP and Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena alliance. Demanding an inquiry, the opposition parties asked whether the government considers public funds as its exclusive property.The Reserve Bank of India on Wednesday barred Paytm Payments Bank from offering all its core services — including accounts and wallets — from March, effectively crippling the company’s business. The action is technically not a cancellation of the licence of Paytm Payments Bank, but it constricts the company’s operations to a very large extent. The RBI has allowed the withdrawal or utilisation of balance amounts by customers “without any restrictions, up to their available balance”.Congress leader Rahul Gandhi restarted the yatra from West Bengal’s Malda on Thursday and entered Murshidabad in the afternoon. The back window of Rahul's car broke on Wednesday, as thousands of people thronged Labha Bridge to see the Yatra enter the state. The Congress cried foul and initially claimed that "anti-socials" had pelted stones at Rahul's vehicle. However, the party later clarified that the window pane was damaged when sudden brakes had to be applied as a woman came in front of the vehicle. Rahul’s Yatra is set to enter Uttar Pradesh from Chandauli on 14th of Feb.This was the Catch-Up on the 3 Things by The Indian Express.

Indian Express' Udit Misra joins us to discuss everything you need to know about the Interim Budget 2024.Hosted and produced by Shashank BhargavaEdited and mixed by Suresh Pawar

This is the Catch Up on 3 Things for the Indian Express and I'm Flora Swain.It’s the 1st of February and here are the headlines.Presenting the interim Union Budget in Parliament this morning, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced that there would be no change in tax rates for direct and indirect taxes, including import duties. Meanwhile, the fiscal deficit for 2024-25 is estimated at 5.1 per cent of GDP against 5.8 per cent in the current financial year. With the Lok Sabha polls right around the corner, Sitharaman kicked off her Budget speech by highlighting the economic triumphs of the Modi government over the last decade.The political reactions to the Budget were largely along expected lines. Political leaders from the ruling NDA alliance have welcomed it, while some Opposition leaders very quickly wrote it off as “disappointing”. While, Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh called the Budget “encouraging”, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said, quote, "It was one of the shortest speeches on record in the Budget. Not very much came out of it,” Unquote.Amid the ongoing political crisis in Jharkhand following the Hemant Soren’s resignation and subsequent arrest last night, Governor CP Radhakrishnan has agreed to to meet the coalition legislators today. Late night, Champai Soren, the state’s Transport Minister and a loyalist of the CM, had staked claim to form the government, but the Governor had sought time saying he will revert on their proposal after considering the legalities.The Supreme Court today asked the Anjuman Intezamia Masajid, which had approached it against the Varanasi district court’s order allowing Hindus to perform prayers in the Gyanvapi mosque’s southern cellar, to move the Allahabad High Court. The mosque committee, as a result, moved the Allahabad High Court. The Advocate on Record for the mosque committee, this morning, had moved an urgent application before the Supreme Court seeking its intervention.The Madhya Pradesh High Court has acquitted a 40-year-old man, who spent nearly 12 years in jail, after finding that his daughter’s rape allegation against him was made after her father had objected to her being in a relationship. The court also found that she had previously admitted that her father did not have sexual relations with her. The HC noted that it was “clear like noon day that her statement by no stretch of imagination can be said to be of sterling quality”.This was the Catch-Up on the 3 Things by The Indian Express.

First, we talk about the Mayor elections in Chandigarh and how they transpired and to give us details, we have Indian Express' Hina Rohatki joining us.Second, we talk about the Maratha reservation issue and the new draft notification that has come out with regards to it. To give us a better understanding we have Indian Express' Alok Deshpande joining us. (10:55)Lastly, we talk about the Varanasi District Court allowing prayers to take place in the Gyanvapi mosque complex. (19:47)Hosted by Niharika NandaWritten and Produced by Shashank Bhargava and Niharika NandaEdited and Mixed by Suresh Pawar------------------------Episode Notes:ASI Report http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fvCSAL0Ojg

This is the Catch Up on 3 Things for the Indian Express and I'm Flora Swain.It’s the 31st of January and here are the headlines.While addressing the Parliament Budget Session today, President Droupadi Murmu said that the “dignity of every citizen is paramount” and the government is emphasising on “human-centric development.” She added that the government is working on a “big vision — it has a roadmap for the next 25 years”. In an address before the commencement of the Budget Session, Prime Minister Narendra Modi told Opposition MPs that it was an “opportunity to repent and leave behind positive footprints”.In Mumbai, the country’s financial capital, with the civic elections on hold for two years now, the quality of infrastructure in the neighbourhood could very well depend on which party the MLA is from. An investigation by The Indian Express has revealed that under a February 2023 policy that allows MLAs to seek funds from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation for civic works, each of the 21 ruling alliance MLAs sought, and got, funds till December 2023. In stark contrast, not one of the 15 Opposition MLAs (of the Uddhav Bal Thackeray Shiv Sena and Congress) got any money even though as many as 11 of them had asked for funds. The Indian Express spoke to each of the 15 Opposition MLAs to independently verify if they applied for funds, and if the Guardian Ministers approved it. Despite repeated attempts, BMC Commissioner IS Chahal was not available for comment.The back window of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s car broke today as thousands of people thronged Labha Bridge in West Bengal’s Malda to watch the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra enter the state from Bihar. While Rahul was on a bus when the incident took place, Congress leaders cried foul, calling it a security lapse. A senior Congress leader said, quote, “All policemen are busy with Mamata Banerjee’s rally scheduled in Malda today. Very few police officials have been deputed for this ceremony,” Unquote.As many as 134 roads, including four national highways, were closed in Himachal Pradesh and normal life was disrupted as tribal areas and other high reaches received the first major snowfall of the year today. The local MeT department has issued an orange warning of heavy snow and rains at isolated places for today and tomorrow.Soldiers of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army recently stopped shepherds in Ladakh from grazing their cattle near the Line of Actual Control. The incident – which took place in Nyoma in eastern Ladakh, came to light after a purported video emerged on social media. Chushul councillor confirmed to The Indian Express that the incident took place on 2nd of January 2 and the “issue has been resolved since”.This was the Catch-Up on the 3 Things by The Indian Express.