CONGRESS SETS A NUMBER, TO FOCUS ON JUST 255 SEATS

Amid pulls and pressures from allies of the INDIA bloc, the Congress leadership Thursday told state units the party would focus on 255 seats in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, signalling perhaps its readiness to contest in a lesser number of seats than in the 2019 national elections.

It also announced that seat sharing talks with INDIA partners would begin immediately.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and senior leader Rahul Gandhi along with AICC general secretary (Organisation) K C Venugopal met members of the party’s five-member national alliance committee which had held extensive discussions with state units over the last few days. The committee submitted its report to the leadership and was given the go ahead to start talks with constituents of the INDIA bloc.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the party contested in 421 seats and won 52. It was part of alliances in a handful of states — with the RJD in Bihar, NCP in Maharashtra, JD(S) in Karnataka, JMM in Jharkhand, and the DMK in Tamil Nadu.

PM MODI SHARES PICS FROM LAKSHADWEEP; CONG REACTS WITH A JIBE

Prime Minister Narendra Modi went snorkelling to explore the undersea life during his recent visit to Lakshadweep, and posted pictures of his adventure calling it an “exhilarating experience” of the sojourn in the islands located in the Arabian Sea.

In multiple posts on X, Modi also shared pictures of his early morning walks on the pristine beaches of Lakshadweep and some moments of leisure, sitting on a chair by the beach.

Modi’s posts on his trip were quick to grab Congress’s criticism, which said “PM Modi is an expert in the art of running away from responsibilities.” Reacting on the pictures in a post on X, the party said: “The Prime Minister of India is having fun. Great photography is taking place on the seashore… Photos are being taken in different dresses. A wonderful pose is being given: Sometimes relaxing on the shore, sometimes playing with the waves of the sea.”

Raising questions on the PM’s trip, the Congress referred to the ethnic violence in Manipur, which broke out in May 2023. “Manipur has been burning for 8 months. People are still being murdered. Indian citizens are being killed, rendered homeless, and tortured. But… Where is India’s Prime Minister?”

Modi was in Lakshadweep on January 2 and 3 to inaugurate the Kochi-Lakshadweep Islands Submarine Optical Fiber Connection and lay foundation stone for the renovation of primary healthcare facility and five model Anganwadi centres. He also dedicated several projects to the nation.

“Recently, I had the opportunity to be among the people of Lakshadweep. I am still in awe of the stunning beauty of its islands and the incredible warmth of its people. I had the opportunity to interact with people in Agatti, Bangaram and Kavaratti. I thank the people of the islands for their hospitality. Here are some glimpses, including aerial glimpses from Lakshadweep,” Modi said on X.

MIZORAM CM SAYS ‘FENCING INDO-MYANMAR BORDER WILL REINFORCE BRITISH DIVISION’

Mizoram Chief Minister Lalduhoma met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on Thursday where the latter congratulated him over his victory and discussed different issues related to the international border with Myanmar.

The Mizoram CM shared details of the ongoing border situation with Myanmar and said it is still unacceptable to people on both sides of the border.

Lalduhoma expressed his stand that people on both sides of the India-Myanmar border wish to come under one administration. Lalduhoma also met External Affairs minister S Jaishankar and said any move to set up barbed wire fencing along the India-Myanmar border would be “unacceptable”.

Terming that the British colonials had historically separated the Mizos by carving Burma out of the then India, the CM said Mizos would not be able to accept the border and said the Mizo people have always dreamt of “becoming one nation under one administration”.

He added that if any border fence is set up along the India-Myanmar border, it would effectively reinforce the “British division of the Mizo people”.

The Mizoram CM’s visit and his recent comments come days after the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) officials told the media that it is contemplating to put up border fences on a stretch of 300 km of border between India and Myanmar.

CHINESE MEDIA PRAISES MODI’S FOREIGN POLICY

In rare praise for PM Narendra Modi, a Chinese government-controlled media outlet said India had become more strategically confident and proactive in creating and developing a “Bharat narrative”.

“For example, when discussing the trade imbalance between China and India, Indian representatives earlier used to primarily focus on China’s measures to reduce the trade imbalance. But now they are placing more emphasis on India’s export potential,” the author said in a Global Times article.

“In the political and cultural spheres, India has moved from emphasising its democratic consensus with the West to highlighting the ‘Indian feature’ of democratic politics. Currently, there is even more emphasis on the Indian origins of democratic politics,” wrote Zhang Jiadong, Director of the Centre for South Asian Studies at Fudan University, Shanghai. This shift reflects India’s ambition to escape its historical colonial shadow and act as a “world mentor”, both politically and culturally, said the article while stating that “since PM Narendra Modi assumed power, he has advocated for a multi-alignment strategy, promoting India’s relations with the US, Japan, Russia and other countries and regional organisations”.

“India has always considered itself a world power. However, it has only been less than 10 years since India shifted from multi-balancing to multi-alignment, and now it is rapidly transforming towards a strategy of becoming a pole in the multipolar world. The speed of such changes is rarely seen in the history of international relations,” wrote Zhang.

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

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ISIS CLAIMS RESPONSIBILITY FOR IRAN TWIN BLASTS THAT KILLED OVER 100

Islamic State claimed responsibility Thursday for two explosions that led to the death of over 100 people and wounded several others at a ceremony in Iran. The group posted a statement on its affiliate Telegram channels.

People had gathered at a cemetery to mark the fourth death anniversary of senior military commander General Qassem Soleimani who was killed by a US drone in 2020. He was in charge of the Quds Force of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

In a statement, the militant Sunni Muslim group said two IS members had detonated their explosive belts in the crowd which had gathered at the cemetery in the southeastern Iranian city of Kerman on Wednesday for the anniversary of Soleimani’s death.

The attacks in Iran came a day after a top Hamas leader, Saleh al-Arouri, was believed to have been killed in an Israeli drone strike in Lebanon.

Earlier Thursday, India extended its solidarity towards Iran. Taking to X, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said: “We are shocked and saddened on the terrible bombings in the Kerman City of Iran. At this difficult time, we express our solidarity with the government and people of Iran.”

HOUTHIS IGNORE US' 'FINAL WARNING', DETONATE DRONE BOAT IN RED SEA

A Houthi drone boat packed with explosives detonated in the Red Sea on Thursday but failed to cause any damage or casualties, the U.S. Navy said, as the Yemen-based group continued its attacks in defiance of international calls to stop.

The latest attack came one day after 12 countries including the U.S, Britain and Japan issued a joint statement cautioning the Houthis of unspecified "consequences" unless it halts its attacks, in what one U.S. official on Wednesday suggested was a final warning.

The Iran-aligned Houthis, who control much of Yemen, have launched wave after wave of exploding drones and missiles at commercial vessels since Nov. 19, trying to inflict a cost in what they say is a protest against Israel's military operations in Gaza.

Vice Admiral Brad Cooper, who leads U.S. Naval forces in the Middle East, told reporters on Thursday that the Houthi exploding boat drove out about 50 miles into the Red Sea and then detonated in dense shipping lanes. "It came within a couple of miles of ships operating in the area - merchant ships and U.S. Navy ships - and we all watched as it exploded," Cooper told reporters, adding the target of the attack was not clear.

The United States and other countries last month launched Operation Prosperity Guardian to protect civilian vessels, which Cooper said now included contributions from 22 countries. So far, Cooper said U.S. warships and U.S. partners have shot down two cruise missiles, six anti-ship ballistic missiles and 11 drones.

On Sunday, U.S. warships sank three Houthi speed boats to protect a commercial vessel from being hijacked.

THE REST

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'WON'T BEG FOR SEATS', SAYS CONGRESS; TRINAMOOL HITS BACK

Fissures appear to have emerged in the INDIA alliance as its two key allies, the Congress and the Trinamool Congress, on Thursday clashed over seat sharing for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls in West Bengal.

State Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said, "The grand old party won't beg for seats from the TMC," drawing a response from the Mamata Banerjee-led party, which said, "Badmouthing alliance partners and seat sharing can't go hand in hand."

The war of words, brewing for the past few days, took an ugly turn on Thursday after Chowdhury slammed the TMC for not being serious about allying with the Congress in Bengal. "The TMC is not serious about strengthening or forging an alliance in Bengal. The TMC is busy pleasing and serving Prime Minister Narendra Modi to protect themselves from the clutches of the CBI and the ED," he told reporters in his constituency.

His remarks prompted a sharp reaction from the TMC, which criticised Chowdhury for making 'callous remarks' and cautioned the Congress high command to rein in their state president.

LORD RAM WAS A NON-VEGETARIAN: NCP LEADER SPARKS ROW

Jitendra Awhad, an MLA of the Sharad Pawar-led NCP and former Maharashtra minister, has kicked up a row by stating that Lord Ram was a "non-vegetarian" who hunted animals.

As the claim led to a Bharatiya Janata Party MLA as well as the rival faction of the Nationalist Congress Party led by Ajit Pawar to demand registration of a criminal case against him, Awhad said he had not said anything without studying the matter, yet he was expressing regret if he had hurt anybody's sentiments.

Speaking at a party conclave at Shirdi in western Maharashtra's Ahmednagar district on Wednesday, Awhad said Lord Ram belonged to "bahujans". The term 'bahujan' is traditionally used in Maharashtra to refer to the non-Brahmin sections of Hindu society, especially the marginalised communities.

"He (Lord Ram) used to hunt and eat. He is ours, of bahujans. You (an apparent reference to the BJP) are turning us into vegetarians, (but) we are following the example of Ram and consuming mutton," the NCP MLA said. "Ram was not a vegetarian, he was a non-vegetarian. Where would a person who lived in the forest for 14 years find vegetarian food?" Awhad said.

Workers of the Ajit Pawar-led NCP tried to stage a protest near Awhad's residence in Thane. Former MP Anand Paranjpe, who owes allegiance to the Ajit Pawar camp, demanded that an FIR be registered against him.

Awhad later said those who wanted to fight without any logic resort to such demands.

SC REFUSES TO QUASH CRIMINAL PROCEEDINGS AGAINST PAWAN KHERA

The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera’s appeal to quash criminal proceedings in connection with certain alleged objectionable remarks made against Prime Minister Narendra Modi in February 2023.

Khera had approached the apex court against the Allahabad High Court, which had refused to quash the criminal proceedings. The matter then came up before a bench of Justices B R Gavai and Sandeep Mehta.

“Wishing away an offence, is that possible?” asked Justice Mehta as the bench proceeded to dismiss it, and said “Sorry, we are not inclined”.

Khera, chairperson of Congress’s media and publicity wing, had made the alleged remarks during a press conference in Mumbai on February 20 last year. Based on several complaints, FIRs were registered against Khera in Assam and Uttar Pradesh, and he was arrested on February 23 last year. The Supreme Court, however, gave him an interim bail the same day. Later, it also clubbed the FIRs against Khera and transferred the investigation to a Lucknow police station.

EIGHT EX-NAVY PERSONNEL IN QATAR JAIL HAVE 60 DAYS TO FILE APPEAL: MEA

Days after the appellate court in Qatar commuted the death sentences of eight former Indian Navy personnel, handing them prison terms ranging from 3 years to 25 years, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Thursday that their legal team has been given 60 days to file an appeal in the Court of Cassation, the highest court there.

Underlining that the matter is pending in the Qatari court, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal. said he would not share the detailed judgment since it is a “sensitive” and “legal” issue. He said while the death penalty has been commuted for all, the eight men have been awarded “varying prison sentences”.

Media reports suggest that among the seven former Navy officers and one sailor who were on death row, one has been sentenced to 25 years imprisonment, four have been given 15 years each, two face 10 years each, and one has been sentenced to three years.

SC QUESTIONS CALCUTTA HC JUDGMENT ON ADVICE TO ADOLESCENT GIRLS TO CONTROL SEXUAL URGES

The Supreme Court on Thursday questioned the Calcutta High Court "problematic" judgment, which advised adolescent girls to “control sexual urges” and young men to train themselves to respect women.

Taking up a Suo Motu matter registered as 'Right to Privacy of Adolescents' after the HC's verdict, a bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan also took exceptions to acquittal of the accused under the POCSO Act after his marriage with the 14-year-old victim.

“It is not only about observations. See the kind of findings. From where these concepts come, we don’t know. But we want to deal with each and everything which is said,” the bench said.

The bench orally said writing such judgments is absolutely wrong. "What kind of principles the judges have invoked," the bench wondered.

On December 8, the Supreme Court had said judges are not expected to "preach and express personal views" in dealing with cases.

The apex court had found the Calcutta High Court's suggestions that every female adolescent should "control sexual urge/urges" and "protect her right to integrity of her body", as prima facie "highly objectionable, completely unwarranted and in violation of Article 21 of the Constitution". The apex court had said there was absolutely no reasoning given by the high court, in its order acquitting the accused, and scheduled the matter.

GEN NARAVANE’S MEMOIR: ARMY REVIEWS FORMER CHIEF’S BOOK

The Indian Army is reviewing the memoir of its former chief General M M Naravane that discloses details of a conversation he had with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on the night of August 31, 2020, following the movement of Chinese PLA tanks and troops in Rechin La on the Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh.

Excerpts from the memoir, Four Stars of Destiny, were published by news agency Press Trust of India on December 18. Publisher Penguin Random House has been asked not to share

The memoir provides insight into the military standoff with China in eastern Ladakh in 2020, including the Galwan Valley clashes, and the Agnipath scheme. The book was earlier scheduled to hit the stands this month.

Reached for comment by The Indian Express, General Naravane did not respond to specific questions on whether official clearance had been obtained before handing over the manuscript to the publishers or if the book release had been delayed on account of the review undertaken by the Army. “I have done what I had to do and submitted the manuscript to the publishers many months ago. It is up to the publishers to tell whether there is a delay or not. They are the ones in touch and are not expected to tell me everything,” he said.

INDIA ROUT SOUTH AFRICA BY 7 WICKETS; LEVEL SERIES 1-1

Jasprit Bumrah produced a hostile spell to guide India to a series-levelling seven-wicket victory against South Africa in the shortest game ever played in Test history.

Bumrah (6/61 in 13.5 overs) knocked the stuffing out of South Africa's middle-order in a menacing morning spell though Aiden Markram (106 off 103 balls) fought like a lone ranger on a burning deck to take South Africa to 176 in 36.5 overs at stroke of lunch on day two.

A target of 79 even on the toughest of tracks wasn't exactly a tall order and young Yashasvi Jaiswal (28) threw his bat around before skipper Rohit Sharma (16 not out) completed the formalities in the company of Shreyas Iyer (4 not out off 6) in just 12 overs.

This was India's first victory at Newlands in seven attempts. However, South Africa remains an unconquered territory for India, who have not been able to win a Test series in the country.

It was the shortest Test match ever in terms of overs bowled, bettering the previous best that involved Australia and South Africa at the MCG way back in 1932. A total of 106.2 overs were bowled in this match while 109.2 overs were bowled in that 1932-match which Australia won. Eerily, South Africa's first innings had lasted for 23.2 overs, just like this game.

Scores: South Africa 55 & 176; India 153 & 80/3

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THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Most of the things worth doing in the world had been declared impossible before they were done. - Louis D. Brandeis

OFF TRACK

"I ran afoul of one of those awkward questions women ask. Now I'm in deep trouble at home," says a guy to his buddy.

"What kind of question?" asked the buddy.

"My wife asked me if I would still love her when she gets old, fat and wrinkly."

"That's easy," says the buddy. "You just say 'Of course I will'".

"Yeah," says the guy, "That's what I did, except I said 'Of course I DO...'"