BJP WINS VERY BIG IN GUJARAT, LOSES HIMACHAL

(Party / Seats / Vote %age)

GUJARAT (182 Seats)

BJP 156 (52.50%); Congress 17 (27.28%); AAP 5 (12.92%), Independent 3, Samajwadi Party 1

HIMACHAL PRADESH (68 Seats)

-Congress 40 (43.90%); BJP 25 (43.00%); AAP 0 (1.10%); Independents 3

Riding the popularity of Prime Minister Narendra Modi who spearheaded his party’s high-octane campaign in Gujarat, the BJP swept aside all opposition Thursday to return to power at the head of a record landslide in his home state where it has never lost an election since 1995.

Results of election to the 182-member Gujarat Assembly gave the BJP 156 seats, bettering the 1985 record of the Congress under Madhavsinh Solanki when it won 149 seats, and the BJP’s own best of 127 seats in 2002 when Modi was Chief Minister.

The Congress was a distant second with 17 seats, the AAP scored 5 on debut and Others accounted for the remaining 4 seats.

Addressing BJP workers, who had gathered at the party headquarters in New Delhi for the Gujarat victory celebrations, Modi said, “Gujarat ne toh kamaal kar diya (Gujarat has done wonders).”

India’s future, he said, lies in “bringing down the faultlines” not by “promoting the faultlines”. He attributed the win in Gujarat to the party’s focus on “development”.

“The BJP has got the mandate of the people at a time when India has entered the Amrit Kaal. It has the support of the poor, Dalit, Adivasi, the exploited. People have voted for BJP because it has the strength and ability to take big decisions, strong decisions… I congratulate Naddaji, all BJP workers and the people of Gujarat. I had told people to break Narendra’s record… all records have been broken. Gujarat’s people have scripted history. This is unprecedented. People rose above caste, community, all kinds of division to vote for the BJP,” he said.

Gujarat BJP president C R Paatil said Bhupendra Patel would continue as Chief Minister and the swearing-in ceremony would be held on December 12.

BJP lost Himachal Pradesh to the Congress and Chief Minister Jairam Thakur resigned after conceding defeat – the state has not returned any ruling party to power since 1985.

Even in defeat, the BJP managed to secure a vote share of 43 per cent, marginally lower than the 43.9 per cent of the Congress – a point underlined by Prime Minister Modi and BJP president JP Nadda who, while accepting the Himachal Pradesh mandate, said the difference was less than 1%.

In the 2017 Assembly elections, the BJP had won 44 seats with a vote share of 48.79 per cent, while Congress bagged 21 seats and the gap in vote share of the two parties was 7.11 per cent.

WITH 12.9% IN GUJARAT, AAP BECOMES A NATIONAL PARTY

In the run-up to the Gujarat elections, AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal held up a piece of paper on which he had purportedly noted down his poll forecast — and said the AAP will form the govt in the state. He even claimed that the Intelligence Bureau had predicted an AAP govt. The party’s final tally Thursday was sobering.

The glimmer for AAP, its leaders said, is the 12.9-per cent vote share, five seats in the House — and that it had emerged as a national party (six per cent vote share in at least four states: Delhi, Punjab, Goa and now Gujarat).

AAP state president Gopal Italia, who lost from Katargam, said, “After this small step of sending five MLAs to the Gujarat Assembly, we will work hard to take a big leap in the next elections and make our party stronger.”

Italia also thanked voters for becoming “a medium to make us a national political party”, and said that his party had got “over 40 lakh votes”. “Our candidates fought bravely against rivals who were backed by govt machinery and financially strong people,” he said.

Before AAP, there were 8 National Parties - Indian National Congress, BJP, CPI, CPI(M), NCP, TMC, BSP, National People’s Party

WILL CONTINUE TO BE ‘STEADFAST FRIEND’ OF SRI LANKA: INDIA

India on Thursday said it will continue to be a “steadfast friend” of Sri Lanka and is committed to strengthening the bilateral economic partnership for mutual benefit, as it thanked President Ranil Wickremesinghe for holding “successful” talks on debt restructuring.

Wickremesinghe during the inaugural session of the Sri Lanka Economic Summit 2022 on Monday said that it held “successful” talks with India on debt restructuring and will also begin discussions with China, as the island nation scrambles to get assurances from major bilateral creditors to close a crucial deal with the IMF.

Sri Lanka, which is trying to secure a USD 2.9 billion bridge loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), is also looking at financial assurances from its major creditors—China, Japan and India—which is the requisite for Colombo to get the bailout package.

Replying to Wickremesinghe’s tweet on holding the “successful” talks on debt restructuring, the Indian High Commission here tweeted, “Thank you H.E President @RW_UNP. #India will continue to be a steadfast friend of #SriLanka and stand by our brethren. We are committed to strengthening the bilateral economic partnership for mutual benefit.” Sri Lanka has large debt rollover volumes (Gross Financing Need) running up to 37 per cent of GDP in 2022, which the IMF wants to bring down.

COURT FINAL ARBITER OF LAW, SAYS SUPREME COURT, ASKS GOVT TO LIMIT CRITICISM

Undeterred by criticism of the Collegium system of appointing judges, the Supreme Court on Thursday asserted that it is the “final arbiter” of the law under the Constitutional scheme and as the law stands, the govt will “have to appoint” all names reiterated by its Collegium.

Without taking names, a three-judge bench presided by Justice S K Kaul also asked Attorney General R Venkataramani to advise Union ministers who are criticising the Collegium system to control themselves.

“You must advise them to exercise some control,” said Justice Vikram Nath, who was part of the bench hearing a plea by the Advocates Association Bengaluru, seeking contempt of court proceedings against the govt for not approving names reiterated by the SC Collegium within time-lines laid down by the court.

Responding to Supreme Court Bar Association president, senior advocate Vikas Singh’s comment that “persons in constitutional posts were saying SC does not have power to exercise judicial review”, Justice Kaul said that “tomorrow people will say basic structure is not part of the Constitution”.

The bench did not take names, but the remarks come close on the heels of statements by Vice President and Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankar’s criticism of the SC for its 2015 decision to strike down the law to set up a National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) to appoint judges.

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

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SAUDI & CHINA INK STRATEGIC DEALS, XI HERALDS ‘NEW ERA’

Saudi Arabia and China showcased deepening ties with a series of strategic deals on Thursday during a visit by President Xi Jinping. King Salman signed a “comprehensive strategic partnership agreement” with Xi, who received a lavish welcome. Xi’s car was escorted to the king’s palace by members of the Saudi Royal Guard riding Arabian horses and carrying Chinese and Saudi flags. The Chinese leader held talks with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The two stepped into a pavilion as a military band played the countries’ national anthems. Xi heralded “a new era” in Arab ties.

The display stood in stark contrast to the low-key welcome extended in July to US President Joe Biden. A memorandum with China’s Huawei Technologies, on cloud computing and building high-tech complexes in Saudi cities, was agreed despite US concerns with Gulf allies over a possible security risk in using the Chinese firm’s technology.

US BASKETBALL STAR FREED IN PRISONER SWAP WITH RUSSIA

US basketball star Brittney Griner was freed from prison in Russia and on her way home on Thursday, President Joe Biden said at the White House. The US agreed to release imprisoned Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, Biden said, in a swap of prisoners that ends nearly 10 months of detainment for Griner.

A two-time Olympic gold medalist and active WNBA player with the Phoenix Mercury, Griner was detained at an airport near Moscow on February 17. She admitted in a courtroom to bringing marijuana vape cartridges in her luggage, as prescribed by her doctor. Griner was convicted of criminal drug possession and sentenced to more than nine years in prison.

Last month, Russian officials informed Griner’s attorney she had been relocated to a penal colony, where forced labour shifts for prisoners commonly last between 12 and 14 hours per day. The deal to free Griner hadbeen negotiated for several months. The White House described the prisoner swap as “one for one”, Bout for Griner. Bout is a former Soviet army lieutenant who was sentenced in 2012 to 25 years for conspiring to sell tens of millions of dollars in arms that US officials said were used against Americans.

THE REST

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IN HIMACHAL, TOO MANY CM ASPIRANTS

Having secured majority in Himachal Pradesh, the immediate challenge facing the Congress is picking its chief ministerial candidate with at least three leaders, including state party president Pratibha Singh, emerging as front runners. The other key contenders are former party chief Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu and outgoing CLP leader Mukesh Agnihotri.

Although they have claimed that the CM face will eventually be picked by the newly elected MLAs with the consent of party high command, the three leaders, separately, have staked claim to the top post, directly or indirectly.

Pratibha, the Lok Sabha MP from Mandi, did not contest the Assembly election but had on Wednesday indicated that “Holly Lodge” – her family’s ancestral home – remained interested in the CM’s post if the party won the assembly election. She carries the legacy of her husband late Virbhadra Singh, a six-time CM who remained the Congress’s undisputed leader in the hill state for long.

HUMBLY ACCEPT MANDATE OF PEOPLE OF GUJARAT: RAHUL

With the Congress suffering a crushing defeat in Gujarat, its former president Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said the party humbly accepts the mandate of the people and will continue to fight for their rights as well as the ideals of the country.

“We humbly accept the mandate of the people of Gujarat. We will reorganize, work hard and continue fighting for the ideals of the country as well as the rights of the people of the state,” Gandhi said in a tweet in Hindi.

UP BYELECTIONS: SP-RLD WIN MAINPURI, KHATAULI; BJP BAGS RAMPUR SADAR

In the recently held Uttar Pradesh byelections, whose results were announced on December 8, the Samajwadi Party-Rashtriya Lok Dal (SP-RLD) combine bagged two seats while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won one. Voting was held on December 5 for three seats: Mainpuri (Lok Sabha) and Rampur Sadar and Khatauli (Vidhan Sabha).

While the SP-RLD lost Rampur Sadar to the BJP, where Akash Saxena won with a margin of more than 30,000 votes, it wrested Khatauli in Muzaffarnagar district from the BJP.

Mainpuri fell vacant after SP founder Mulayam Singh Yadav passed away on October 10. In Khatauli, BJP MLA Vikram Singh Saini resigned after a trial court found him guilty in the Muzaffarnagar riots case. The conviction of SP MLA Azam Khan on October 28, in a hate speech case from 2019, prompted the need for the byelection in Rampur Sadar.

The BSP and the Congress did not field any candidates in the three seats.

ELECTION COMMISSION ACCEPTS NAME CHANGE OF TRS TO BHARAT RASHTRA SAMITHI

The Election Commission on Thursday informed TRS president and Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao that it has accepted the name change of his party from Telangana Rashtra Samithi to Bharat Rashtra Samithi.

In a letter to the TRS chief, the EC cited a request from the party to accept its name change and said, “I am directed to refer to your letter issued on 05-10-2022 on the subject cited and to say that the commission has accepted your request for change in the name of your party from Telangana Rashtra Samithi to Bharat Rashtra Samithi. The necessary notification in this regard will be issued in due course.” The EC’s letter was made known to the media by KCR’s office.

Telangana’s ruling TRS on October 5 changed its name to ‘BRS’, heralding the party’s foray into ‘national politics’. A resolution to this effect was passed at the party’s general body meeting here. Rao read out the resolution and announced that the party’s general body meet unanimously resolved to change the name from TRS to BRS.

SC DISMISSES PLEA CHALLENGING 2017 ORDER ON KASHMIR ‘GENOCIDE’ PROBE

The Supreme Court has dismissed the curative petition filed by an organisation of Kashmiri Pandits against the top court’s 2017 order that had turned down a plea for an investigation into the “mass murders and genocide of members of the community during 1989-90 and subsequent years” by Pakistan-backed terrorists and the “reasons for non-prosecution of FIRs” of the crimes.

“We have gone through the Curative Petition and the connected documents. In our opinion, no case is made out within the parameters indicated in the decision of this court in Rupa Ashok Hurra vs Ashok Hurra”, said a bench of Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud and Justices S K Kaul and S Abdul Nazeer, rejecting the plea by ‘Roots in Kashmir’.

The SC dismissed the main petition in July 2017 saying 27 years had passed since the events unfolded in the Kashmir Valley and evidence “is unlikely to be available”. In October 2017, the top court rejected the petition seeking review of its earlier order.

Subsequently, Roots in Kashmir filed the Curative Petition contending that the SC was “not justified in dismissing the writ petition at the admission stage merely on presumption” of evidence being unavailable due to passage of time, and said “this amounts to failure of justice or gross miscarriage of justice…in view of the fact that…” the Court has entertained and passed necessary direction for trial in cases where the incident pertains to even more than 30-32 years.

Cyclonic storm Mandous to cross coast between north Tamil Nadu and south Andhra Pradesh

Severe cyclonic storm Mandous will cross the coast between north Tamil Nadu and south Andhra Pradesh around Friday night and early next day, the regional weather office said this morning.

Parts of Tamil Nadu witnessed rains under the influence of the system in the Bay of Bengal.

A Twitter update from the IMD said Mandous lay over 270 km east south east of Karaikal. It is expected to cross the coast near Mamallapuram, an IMD official said. It lay centred around 270 km off Chennai. It will weaken into a cyclonic storm in the next few hours, the IMD official added.

Educational institutions in several districts in Tamil Nadu and in neighbouring Puducherry, declared holiday on Friday and Saturday after the cyclone warning.

GM MUSTARD SAFE FOR FOOD, FEED USE AND CULTIVATION, SAYS GOVT

The govt on Thursday said extensive studies carried out on toxicity, allergenicity, compositional analyses, field trials, and environmental safety of GM mustard lines versus their non-transgenic comparators had provided evidence that DMH-11 was safe for cultivation, food, and feed use.

It also said farming technologies like genetically modified (GM) crops was important to ensure food security and cut a reliance on imports and it has found evidence of any decline in honey production in the country due to GM cotton that has been cultivated since the last 10 years.

The environment ministry in October granted environmental clearance for indigenously developed GM mustard seeds, potentially paving the way for a commercial release of the country's first food crop in about two years. Cotton is the only GM crop currently allowed for cultivation in India.

APPLE SUPPLIER FOXCONN INVESTS $500 MN IN INDIA AMID DISRUPTIONS: REPORT

Amid supply chain disruptions at its key China iPhone plant, Apple supplier Foxconn is investing another $500 million in India, the media reported on Thursday.

TechCrunch first reported, quoting a company stock exchange filing in Taiwan, that Foxconn's Singapore subsidiary is $500 million in Hon Hai Technology India Mega Development Pvt Ltd.

The move comes as Apple is fast forwarding its manufacturing plans for both iPhones and iPads in India and Vietnam in the wake of China unrest over zero-Covid policy which has severely disrupted its supply chain, leading to an acute shortage of new iPhone 14 Pro models.

Apple aims to ship 40-45 per cent of iPhones from India compared with a single-digit percentage currently, according to famed analyst Ming-chi Kuo.

'TEAM INDIA NEED TO SHAKE UP, WAKE UP'

Former players Virender Sehwag and Venkatesh Prasad has slammed India's 'outdated' approach following their ODI series loss in Bangladesh.

In his usual quirky style, Sehwag took to Twitter to describe his anguish, "Cryptos se bhi tez gir rahi hai apni performance yaar. (Our performance is falling faster than cryptos). Need to shake up - wake up."

That India have not won a major ICC title since their Champions Trophy triumph in 2013 was once again highlighted by Prasad. "India is innovating in so many fields across the world. But when it comes to playing Limited overs cricket, our approach is a decade old," Prasad wrote in a series of tweets.

"England after the 2015 WC first round exit took tough calls and turned around to become such an exciting team, India need to take tough calls..." "And change approach drastically. We haven't won a T20 WC since the IPL started & last 5 years have been poor in ODI's apart from winning inconsequential bilateral."

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THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Much ingenuity with a little money is vastly more profitable and amusing than much money without ingenuity. - Arnold Bennett

OFF TRACK

"Right now, I am trying to make friends outside of Facebook while applying the same principles.

So every day, I walk in the street and tell people what I ate, how I feel, what I did the day before, what I am doing, what I will do next...

I also listen to the conversations of others and tell them "I like!".

And it works!

Result: I already have 3 people who are following me: two policemen and one psychiatrist."