NDA REACHES SEAT-SHARING DEAL IN BIHAR, JD(U) GETS 122 SEATS, BJP ONE LESS

Following hectic parleys within the NDA over the seat-sharing formula for the upcoming Bihar elections, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Tuesday said the JD(U) would contest on 122 seats and BJP on 121 in the 243-member assembly. In the 2010 Assembly elections, the JD(U) and BJP had contested on 141 and 102 seats, respectively.

“JD(U) has been allotted 122 seats. Under that quota, we are giving 7 seats to HAM. BJP has 121 seats and will accommodate Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP), the new entrant in the NDA,” Kumar said at a press conference.

This comes a day after LJP, which announced its exit from the alliance for the state polls.

Nitish Kumar also harped on the fact that Ram Vilas Paswan became a Rajya Sabha MP due to JD(U)’s help. “Ram Vilas Paswan is unwell. We want him to recover. Did he reach Rajya Sabha without JDU’s help? How many seats do they have in Bihar Vidhan Sabha? Two. So, BJP-JD(U) gave him ticket to RS,” the Bihar CM said.

Responding to a query about post-poll scenario, Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi, said, “We have said unequivocally that Nitish Kumar will be our Chief Minister. It does not matter which party gets how many seats in the elections”.

FARM LAW PROTESTS: RAHUL GANDHI GOES TO HARYANA

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi kept up his attack on the Centre over the contentious farm laws on Tuesday, saying farmers and labourers would become the “slaves of a few corporates” if the measures were implemented. Addressing a rally in Pehowa in Kurukshetra district of Haryana on the concluding day of his ‘Kheti Bachao Yatra’, Gandhi accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of snatching away rights of farmers.

“Lakhs of people work at the mandis, where will they go if there are no mandis. Whether you want to believe it or not, do remember that Rahul once told you that your land will be snatched,” Gandhi told the gathering where a number of farmers were present.

Gandhi managed to reach his rally destinations of Pehowa and Pipli amid high drama at Haryana’s border with Punjab. After winding up his last rally at Sanaur in Patiala, Gandhi drove a tractor to reach Haryana border but the procession was stopped on the highway near Teokar village on Pehowa border for an hour. State authorities eventually allowed three tractors, including Gandhi’s, to pass.

Gandhi had shared a video of the Congress cavalcade at Haryana’s border on Twitter and said that he would patiently wait for permission to proceed. “They have stopped us on a bridge on the Haryana border. I’m not moving and am happy to wait here. 1 hours, 5 hours, 24 hours, 100 hours, 1000 hours or 5000 hours,” he tweeted.

Earlier in the day, winding up his last rally at Sanaur in Patiala, Punjab, Rahul Gandhi said “give me free press and other key institutions and this (Narendra Modi) government will not last long”. The Modi government has forcibly taken control of all the key institutions, Rahul alleged.

AT QUAD, FOREIGN MINISTERS DIFFER ON WAY TO TACKLE CHINA

Individual observations by the four Foreign Ministers gathered in Tokyo for the second Quad Ministerial meeting reflected the difference in the way they seek to tackle the China threat.

The US was the most combative with its Secretary of State Mike Pompeo forthright in indicting China for the pandemic “that came from Wuhan” which was “made infinitely worse by the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) cover-up”. He also spoke of CCP’s “exploitation, corruption and coercion”. “We’ve seen it in the south, in the East China Sea, the Mekong, the Himalayas, the Taiwan Straits. These are just a few examples,” he added.

Jaishankar on the other hand did not mention China and focused on the need for “like-minded countries to coordinate responses to various challenges” and advance the security and the economic interests of countries with legitimate and vital interests in the region.

Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne like Jaishankar did not mention China nor was her tone rushed like that of Pompeo as she spoke of the Quad promoting a positive agenda. She described the Quad as a diplomatic network whose fundamental task was to work for an open, inclusive, and resilient Indo-Pacific.

The host, Japanese Foreign Minister Motegi Toshimitsu, too, spoke of a rules based order in the maritime domain and the need to take on board countries like France and Germany besides some Southeast Asian nations that share the same values. Tokyo under a new Prime Minister is reported to be working out the dates for a visit by Chinese State Councillor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi later this month.

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

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TRUMP READY FOR ROUND TWO, BUT WILL OPPOSE A MUTE BUTTON

President Donald Trump “intends to be ready to debate” Democratic nominee Joe Biden next week, despite having been hospitalized with Covid-19, Trump campaign spokesman Tim Murtaugh said Monday.

Murtaugh added, however, that the campaign would not agree to the moderator being able to mute the candidates when their time has expired to prevent the kind of interruptions and cross-talk — mostly by Trump — that marred the first presidential forum last week.

“We would adamantly oppose a mute button, which would place too much authority and power into the hands of a member of the media to decide what a candidate for president is permitted to say to the American people,” he said. “No one elected the moderators to anything.”

Biden said earlier Monday that he would meet Trump in a second debate “if the scientists say that it’s safe.” Biden and Trump are scheduled to meet Oct. 15 in Miami, which is just two weeks after Trump was diagnosed.

CHINA’S UNPOPULARITY HITS HISTORIC HIGHS IN MANY COUNTRIES, SAYS PEW RESEARCH POLL

Unfavorable views of China have soared to historic highs in many countries in a new global poll by Pew Research Center, with the highest in Australia.

A majority of those polled in each of the 14 advanced economies had negative views of China. But in nine of them, China’s unpopularity was at the highest Pew had recorded since it started tracking this subject more than a decade ago-- in Australia, Germany, the United Kingdom, the United States, the Netherlands, Canada, Spain, Sweden and South Korea.

A median of 73% of those polled in 14 countries (Belgium, Japan, Italy, Denmark and France in addition to the nine named above) had unfavorable views of China.

Australians had soured the most, with 81%, going up by 24 points over 2019; the last year has seen a sharp deterioration in ties between the two countries. Negatives views of China went up by double digits in the last one year in the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, the US, South Korea and Spain.

And China’s handling of the Coronavirus epidemic appeared to be central to its record unpopularity. A median of 61% of the respondents across all 14 countries polled said China had done a bad job dealing with the epidemic, worse in every case than their own country and global bodies such as WHO.

BLACK HOLE DISCOVERIES WIN 2020 NOBEL PRIZE IN PHYSICS

Britain’s Roger Penrose, Reinhard Genzel of Germany and American Andrea Ghez won the 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics on Tuesday for their discoveries about one of the most exotic phenomena in the universe, the black hole.

Penrose, 89, professor at the University of Oxford, won half the prize of 10 million Swedish crowns ($1.1 million) for his work using mathematics to prove that black holes are a direct consequence of Albert Einstein’s general theory of relativity.

Genzel, of the Max Planck Institute and University of California, Berkeley, and Ghez, at the University of California, Los Angeles, shared the other half for discovering that an invisible and extremely heavy object governs the orbits of stars at the centre of our galaxy.

Ghez---only the fourth woman to be awarded the Physics prize after Marie Curie in 1903, Maria Goeppert-Mayer in 1963 and Donna Strickland in 2018--- said she hoped it would inspire others to enter the field.

THE REST

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ON "CUSHIONED SOFAS" BARB, RAHUL GANDHI POINTS TO 8,400 CRORE PLANE FOR PM

Congress MP Rahul Gandhi - mocked for sitting on cushioned seats during an anti-farm laws tractor rally in Punjab yesterday - hit back today by accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi of "wasting" thousands of crores on a set of two custom-made Boeing airplanes that "did not just have a cushion but a whole lot of luxury beds for his comfort".

Questioning the need to spend such a large amount of money "when China is at our borders" - Gandhi suggested PM Modi wanted the planes - one of which is Air India One - because "his friend Donald Trump (the United States President) has one (Air Force One)". "Why don't you question them about this? It is strange that nobody is asking about the Boeing 777 purchased for this whopping amount but everyone is quick to point to a gaddi (cushion)," he told reporters.

Mr Gandhi's comment triggered an immediate response from sources in the government, which pointed out that the procurement process for the planes - one of which is for VVIPs - was started under the Congress-led UPA administration and said it had simply concluded the purchase. The planes, they further said, were meant to replace those currently in use. These are over 25 years old, "incapable of long, trans-Atlantic flights... and are also fuel guzzlers of epic proportions".

Overall, the planes cost ₹ 8,400 crore.

NSCN(IM) WANTS PM TO BE INVOLVED IN NAGA PEACE TALKS

The NSCN (IM) has demanded direct involvement of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the talks to resolve the festering insurgency in the northeastern state and insisted that the negotiations be held in a “third country”.

In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi written on February 25, but kept secret so far, Thuingaleng Muivah, the general secretary of the group and chief Naga negotiator in the talks with the government, also spoke about the framework agreement (FA) signed in 2015 and its proposal that the state should be allowed to have a Constitution and national flag.

In the letter released to the media on Monday, the outfit said it was making public the letter for “lack of response” from the Prime Minister’s Office.

‘EXTRAORDINARY AND SHOCKING’: SC SEEKS UP RESPONSE ON WITNESS PROTECTION IN HATHRAS CASE

Calling the alleged rape and murder of a Dalit woman in Hathras “extraordinary and shocking”, the Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the Uttar Pradesh government to file an affidavit on how witnesses were being protected in the case. The matter has been adjourned for next week.

Hearing a petition seeking probe by the CBI or a Special Investigation Team (SIT) headed by a sitting or retired SC or High Court judge, Chief Justice of India SA Bobde said, “The incident is very extraordinary and shocking. We want it on affidavit on how Hathras case witnesses are protected. We want you (SG) to ascertain whether the victim’s family has chosen a lawyer.’

A petition by Satyama Dubey, a social activist, and advocates Vishal Thakre and Rudra Pratap Yadav wanted the trial to be shifted to Delhi and alleged that the UP government and the state authorities had “failed to take…actions against accused persons…”.

Earlier in the day, in its affidavit, the Uttar Pradesh government sought an investigation into the Hathras case by the CBI under the supervision of the apex court, saying it would ensure that no “vested interest is able to create a fake and false narrative with oblique motives”.

The government further said “extraordinary circumstances and sequence of unlawful incidents” forced the District Administration to take the extraordinary step of cremating the victim at night “in presence of the family members who agreed to attend to avoid further violence”.

The affidavit also mentioned that there was a video recording where the mother and daughter “clearly stated that she was not injured anywhere else other than the neck, that accused was only Sandeep and nothing else had happened”.

But the victim had provided the details of the alleged sexual assault after she regained consciousness at the AMU hospital on September 22, eight days after the assault. After her statement was recorded before a magistrate, police had added relevant sections of rape to the FIR.

STUBBLE BURNING: CAN A PORTION OF MSP BE WITHHELD?

The Supreme Court on Tuesday agreed to examine a suggestion that a portion of Minimum Support Price (MSP) should be withheld from farmers and released later only after a verification that they didn’t burn stubble.

However, a Bench headed by Chief Justice of India SA Bobde sought to know, “Who is going to supervise and verify if a farmer has indulged in stubble burning?”

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said, “Tinkering with the MSP may not be in the interest of farmers.”

The Bench posted the matter for further hearing to October 16 after Mehta said the Centre would file a reply on the issue.”

The court was dealing with a fresh application filed by Vikrant Tongad – a farmer and an environment conservationist—who demanded that “an alternative incentive mechanism be formulated for tweaking the amount of Rs 100 per quintal and its payment be deferred from within the MSP until it is verified that no stubble has been burnt…”

He submitted that “robust monitoring be done of stubble burning incidents via satellite-based geospatial technologies; and a proper verification system be established by the concerned authorities to identify those farmers who have or have or have not burnt stubble on their fields through a network of Krishi Mitras”.

ABU DHABI INVESTMENT AUTHORITY INVESTS RS 5,512.50 CR IN RELIANCE RETAIL

Reliance Industries (RIL) on Tuesday said that the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) would invest Rs 5,512.50 crore into subsidiary Reliance Retail Ventures (RRVL) for 1.2-per cent stake.

This is the eighth deal to be announced by the Mukesh Ambani-led firm in four weeks, stepping up its stake-sale process that has seen marquee investors back the firm so far. The valuation of the company, however, remains at Rs 4.2 trillion — a worrying sign, say sector experts.

Analysts were expecting the valuation of the firm to touch at least Rs 4.5 trillion, as the stake-sale process proceeded. It hasn’t happened so far.

So far, RRVL has raised Rs 37,710 crore, offloading 8.48 per cent stake to investors.

‘SIMI GAREWAL SEEMS TO HAVE CHANGED HER OPINION ON KANGANA RANAUT’S FIGHT FOR SUSHANT SINGH RAJPUT

Veteran actor Simi Garewal was among the few senior actors who had extended their support towards Kangana Ranaut in her fight for ‘justice’ for late actor Sushant Singh Rajput. However, she now appears to have changed her mind.

On Tuesday, Simi retweeted a news article about the Mumbai Police taking action against those who tried to malign the force’s name and created fake accounts to defame the police. Simi added, “Good move @MumbaiPolice. What about exposing those that milked, spread fake news & exploited #SSR death for selfish gains? Action shud be taken against them too,” she wrote.

Then, a fan reminded how she, too, was supportive of Kangana and had called her brave. “I‘m sorry mam but I remember even you falling prey to the propaganda and believing that SSR was murdered. Plus your constant appreciation for a bigoted individual like Kangana who only milked his death for personal vendetta,” wrote the fan.

Responding to here tweet, Simi wrote, “Sarah in the beginning we were all shocked & grasping for any clues & news. But when the abject motives emerged & continued ad nauseam, I’m disgusted!! They’ve been feasting on Sushant’s death!!”

FRENCH OPEN: RAFAEL NADAL TO MEET DIEGO SCHWARTZMAN IN SEMI FINAL

The 12-time champion at Roland Garros, Rafael Nadal, withstood an early challenge from 19-year-old Jannik Sinner and pulled away to win their quarterfinal 7-6 (4), 6-4, 6-1.

Before Nadal’s win, the No. 12 seed Diego Schwartzman's scored a five-hour, five-set victory over No. 3 Dominic Thiem. He beat Thiem 7-6, 5-7, 6-7, 7-6, 6-2

Schwartzman has this going for him: He won their most recent matchup, beating Nadal last month on clay at a tune up in Rome. "I'm not sure if I'm going to have a lot of confidence," Schwartzman said, "but, yeah, I know ... that I can beat him. That's important."

Nadal is trying to win a 13th French Open title and 20th Grand Slam trophy overall, which would equal Roger Federer's mark for men.

Among the many statistics that stand out about Nadal's track record in Paris: He is 98-2, which includes 24-0 in semifinals and finals.

For the 75th-ranked Sinner, this was his first Grand Slam quarterfinal.

IPL: MUMBAI INDIANS BEAT RAJASTHAN ROYALS BY 57 RUNS

Suryakumar Yadav smashed his highest score in the tournament as Mumbai Indians put up a clinical performance against a pedestrian Rajasthan Royals outfit for their third successive win, on Tuesday.

Yadav hammered an unbeaten 79 off 47 balls to fire Mumbai Indians to an imposing 193 for four after Rohit Sharma opted to bat at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium. In response, Royals were down and out at 12 for three before Jos Buttler gave them a glimmer of hope with a 44-ball 70.

However, he did not get support from the other batsmen and Royals ended up well short at 136 in 18.1 overs for a 57-run loss, their third in a row.

Mumbai's pace trio was exceptional once again with Jasprit Bumrah being the pick of them, returning with figures of four for 20, the best of the tournament so far. Trent Boult struck twice in the powerplay while James Pattinson removed Buttler in the 14th over.

With another resounding win, Mumbai look the team to beat alongside Delhi Capitals. It is still early days in the tournament but it seems they have already figured out their best eleven on the park.

Mumbai now have 4 wins from their 6 matches so far while R’than Royal have 2 wins from their 5.

INDICATORS

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GBP 0.77 /US$, Euro 0.84 /US$, Jap.Yen 105.63 /US$, Aus$ 1.39 /US$, Sing 1.36 /US$, Bang Taka 83.14 /US$, Can$ 1.32 /US$, Mal Ring 4.14 /US$,

Pak Re 163.65 /US$, Phil Peso 48.41 /US$, Russian Rouble 78.16 /US$, NZ$ 1.50 /US$, Thai Baht 31.18 /US$, Ukraine Hryvnia 28.09 /US$, Norway NOK 9.24 /US$

Bitcoin - USD 10,596

Dollar Index 93.90 Brent Crude 41.91 BDI 2,071

Gold world Spot Price USD/aoz 1,882 India (Rs. per gm 24k/22k) 5,042 / 4,942 Silver (Rs. Per KG) 62,000

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe. - Anatole France

OFF TRACK

On her way back home, a blonde on a visit to Agra was asked by an airport security personal if she had any change in her pockets.

"Gee," the blonde says, turning towards her husband, I told you we shouldn’t have come here.....everyone here expects to be tipped."