BIDEN ALMOST THERE; TRUMP CRIES FOUL

Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden won Michigan and Wisconsin

Wednesday, putting him on the brink of taking the White House from President

Donald Trump, hours after the president's team opened legal fights to stop

vote counting in at least two states.

Meanwhile, Trump campaign manager Bill Stepien said that the President would

formally request a Wisconsin recount, citing "irregularities in several

Wisconsin counties." Trump claimed he had already won the elections and

further counting of votes was like committing a "fraud on the American

public". He didn't elaborate on the alleged fraud.

The Trump campaign said it also filed lawsuits in Pennsylvania and Michigan,

laying the groundwork for contesting the outcome in undecided battleground

states.

In the race to 270 electoral votes, Biden has 253, while Trump has 214.

Biden is likely to win Arizona (11) and Nevada (6) too, taking his count to

270.

The other states where clarity is yet to emerge but Trump is leading, are,

Alaska (3)

Georgia (16), North Carolina (15, Pennsylvania (20)

With millions of votes yet to be counted across several key states - there

is a reason that news organizations and other usually impatient actors were

waiting to declare victors. If Biden can hold Arizona and Nevada, the former

vice president could win the election even without Pennsylvania, which has

long been viewed as a must-have battleground state.

"We feel good about where we are," Mr. Biden told rattled supporters early

Wednesday morning. "I'm here to tell you tonight we believe we're on track

to win this election. I'm optimistic about this outcome."

One source of Biden's resilience lies in the nature of the votes still to be

counted. Many are mail-in ballots, which favor him because the Democratic

Party spent months promoting the message of submitting votes in advance,

while Trump encouraged his voters to turn out on Election Day. And in

Michigan and Pennsylvania many of the uncounted votes are from populous

urban and suburban areas that tend to vote heavily for Democrats.

Early Wednesday, Mr. Trump prematurely declared victory and said he would

petition the Supreme Court to demand a halt to the counting. Biden urged his

supporters - and by implication, Trump - to show patience and allow the

process to play out.

Republicans however grew increasingly confident on Wednesday that they could

maintain narrow control of the Senate and make a considerable dent in the

size of the Democrats' House majority.

ECONOMY RECOVERING FASTER THAN EXPECTED, SAYS CENTRE

India stands poised to recover at a fast pace and reach pre-Covid levels by

the end of the year, barring a second wave that may be triggered by the

fatigue with social distancing, says the Finance Ministry's report for

October.

It said the steady contraction of active Covid cases and a low case fatality

rate has instilled measured optimism that the worst is behind us. At the

same time, a second wave of the pandemic in advanced nations is a grim

reminder of how reality hits back when caution is compromised.

Citing several macroeconomic indicators such as increased demand of power

and higher GST collections, Union Minister Prakash Javadekar said on

Wednesday that economy was getting back on track "quicker than expected",

despite the Covid pandemic.

The sustained surge of activity levels in India is a reflection of a

relatively more manageable pandemic situation in the country as compared to

advanced nations.

The movement of high frequency indicators in October point towards

broad-based resurgence of economic activity, notably in healthy kharif

output, power consumption, rail freight, auto sales, vehicle registrations,

highway toll collections, e-way bills, rebound in GST collections and record

digital transactions.

Rural consumption has stayed strong, in part helped by sustained MSP

procurement of foodgrain, while the manufacturing purchasing managers' index

rose from 56.8 in Sept to 58.9 in Oct, pointing to the strongest improvement

in the health of the sector in over a decade.

Prospects of economic normalisation are evident in the external sector

indicators with consumption of petroleum products increasing in Sept and

exports rebounding with a year-on-year positive growth for the first time in

the past seven months.

October witnessed some moderation in exports growth, primarily driven by

weak oil exports. The expected current account surplus during the year is

likely to provide a cushion to increased spending in the economy, it said.

ARMY CHIEF ARRIVES IN NEPAL TO RESET TIES

Army chief Gen MM Naravane arrived in Nepal on Wednesday on a three-day

crucial visit that is largely aimed at resetting the bilateral ties that

came under severe strain following a bitter border row between the two

countries.

Gen Naravane is visiting Nepal at the official invitation of Nepal Army

chief Gen Purna Chandra Thapa.

The relations between the two countries came under strain after Defence

Minister Rajnath Singh inaugurated an 80-km-long strategically crucial road

connecting the Lipulekh pass with Dharchula in Uttarakhand on May 8. Nepal

protested, claiming it passed through its territory. Days later, Kathmandu

came out with the new map showing Lipulekh, Kalapani and Limpiyadhura as its

territories.

THREE MORE RAFALE JETS ARRIVE IN INDIA AFTER FLYING NON-STOP FROM FRANCE

A second batch of three Rafale fighter jets arrived at Jamnagar airbase in

Gujarat on Wednesday evening after flying non-stop from France, in a further

boost to strike capability of the Indian Air Force.

With the arrival of the new batch, the number of Rafale aircraft has

increased to eight. The first batch of five Rafale jets arrived in India on

July 29, nearly four years after India signed an inter-governmental

agreement with France to procure 36 aircraft at a cost of Rs 59,000 crore.

Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria on October 5 said that

the induction of all 36 Rafale jets will be completed by 2023.

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

======================

TWITTER FLAGS POSTS BY TRUMP

For the sixth time in less than 24 hours, Twitter on Wednesday flagged

tweets by President Trump for violating its rules because they included

unsupported claims of widespread election fraud and premature declarations

of victory in key battleground states.

Twitter attached warnings to each of the president's tweets, but also to

others posted by his allies, including, among others, his official campaign

account, the White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany and the

president's son Eric Trump. All three had, like the president, claimed

victory for Mr. Trump in Pennsylvania, a race that no major news

organization has said is decided.

At least three of Mr. Trump's posts were hidden and one was partially

hidden, but each allowed Twitter users the option of viewing them. The

platform also restricted the ability of users to retweet or repost the posts

by the president that had violated the company's standards.

COVID-19 ORIGINATED IN CHINA, BUT EUROPE SPREAD IT AROUND WORLD, SAYS STUDY

China may have been the origin point of Covid-19 but it is Europe that

spread it around the world, a study has said.

Led by scientists from the UK's University of Huddersfield and Portugal's

University of Minho, the research is based on an analysis of the genetic

sequence of 27,000 SARS-CoV-2 genomes. The study was published in a special

edition of the peer-reviewed journal, Microorganisms, on 29 October.

"Whilst the source of Covid-19 was clearly in China, the spread of the

global pandemic during the first six months was largely fueled by the

expansion in Europe," state the authors in their paper, adding that travel

restrictions in the continent were "too little and too late". According to

the authors, although the European Union (EU) was closed to outsiders on 17

March, the borders between member countries remained open with varying

restrictions. The UK, the researchers pointed out, implemented strict travel

restrictions only in June 2020.

As the United States teeters on the edge of what some say is the start of a

dark winter with roughly 90,000 new Covid-19 cases per day, Europe is

already seeing an "astronomical" number of new cases and deaths, prompting

governments to roll out strict lockdown measures to slow the spread.

Like the U.S., pandemic fatigue has set in across Europe where residents say

pubs and bars in the U.K. and France have been packed ahead of the

lockdowns. It's led to a resurgence in the virus across Europe and America

where people miss human contact and have grown weary of working in isolation

for months on end.

The worsening outbreak in Europe is starting to strain hospital systems

there, which epidemiologists worry will happen in the U.S. in the coming

weeks.

THE REST

========

ARNAB ARREST: 'ATTACK ON PRESS FREEDOM', 'REMINDS US OF EMERGENCY'

Republic TV Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami was on Wednesday arrested for

allegedly abetting the suicide of a 53-year-old interior designer in 2018, a

police official said. He was remanded to judicial custody till November 18.

Goswami, who was seen being pushed into the police van, claimed before being

taken away that he was assaulted by police inside the house.

Soon after the vehicle carrying Goswami reached Alibaug, just over 90 km

from Mumbai, he was produced in a local court, which directed police to take

him to the civil hospital there for medical check-up, after his lawyer

alleged the senior journalist was assaulted by police.

Meanwhile, senior BJP leaders reacted strongly to the police action against

Goswami.

Terming the Goswami's arrest as a "blatant misuse of state power", Union

Home Minister Amit Shah said the "attack on free press must be and will be

opposed".

The home minister also slammed the opposition parties, saying Congress and

its allies have "shamed democracy" and that the incident "reminds us of

Emergency".

Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar described it as "an

attack on press freedom" in Maharashtra and said it reminded of the

"Emergency days".

Union minister Smriti Irani condemned Goswami's arrest, saying if those in

free press don't stand up in support of him then they are tactically in

support of fascism.

She tweeted: "You may not like him, you may not approve of him, you may

despise his very existence but if you stay silent you support suppression.

Who speaks if you are next?".

Several journalists' organisations appealed to the Maharashtra government to

not "misuse state power for vendetta" and follow "due process".

The self-regulatory body of television news channels, the News Broadcasters

Association, said that though the media is not above the law, due process

needs to be followed. It condemned "the manner" in which Goswami "was

arrested by the Raigarh Police". It stated that "according to the police,

Goswami was arrested in a 2018 abetment to suicide case". "NBA is dismayed

in the manner in which he was arrested. Even though NBA does not agree with

his type of journalism, we denounce retaliatory action, if any, by the

authorities against a media editor. Media is not above the law but due

process must be followed."

WHO WILL SEND ANYONE OUT OF COUNTRY: NITISH ATTACKS 'RUMOURS' ON CAA

Addressing rallies Wednesday in the Seemanchal region in the state's

northeast, which has a sizeable minority community, Chief Minister Nitish

Kumar reached out to Muslims, addressing fears over the Citizenship

(Amendment) Act and reminding the crowds that his government had increased

salaries for teachers in madrasas.

With the region seeing widespread protests against the CAA, Nitish said at

Kishanganj that his government had worked to "spread love, peace and

brotherhood", and "nobody had the strength to send anyone out of the

country".

Attacking those "spreading rumours on the CAA and NRC (National Register of

Citizens)", the JD(U) leader said, "Who keeps spreading misinformation,

keeps talking rubbish? Who will send anyone out of the country? Nobody has

the strength to do that to our people. Sab Hindustan ke hain, sab Bharat ke

hain. Kaun isko bahar karega (All belong to Hindustan, all belong to Bharat.

Who will throw anyone out)?"

With Asaduddin Owaisi's AIMIM expected to make gains in the region, Nitish

urged the crowd to think "carefully" about "how much work" his government

had done. "Earlier how many madrasas were recognised? How many more madrasas

did we recognise?"

Nitish also focused in his speeches on his government's work for

marginalised communities as well as women, considered his loyal

constituency.

Attacking the RJD over its government's record on law and order, the CM

said, "Did anyone dare go out earlier? Now you can see the peace in society.

There was so much crime, so many riots, so many kidnappings. We controlled

all this."

J&K: POLLS FOR NEWLY CREATED DIST COUNCILS FROM NOV 28

The first-ever elections to the newly conceived District Development

Councils (DDCs) in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir will be held

over eight phases beginning November 28. The setting-up of 14 territorial

constituencies or DDCs in each district was facilitated by an amendment to

the Jammu and Kashmir Panchayati Raj Act, 1989, by the Central government on

October 17.

The members of the DDCs will be elected directly by voters in the Union

Territory. Along with DDCs, bypolls for the vacant seats in existing urban

and local bodies have also been scheduled. Elections for DDCs and urban

local bodies will be held on party basis.

In the first set of elections to be held in J&K since the erstwhile state

was split into two UTs, anybody ordinarily residing in the Union Territory

of J&K for the past six months will be eligible to vote, even irrespective

of the person's domicile status.

KERALA REVOKES GENERAL CONSENT FOR CBI PROBES

The CPI (M)-led government in Kerala Wednesday decided to withdraw the

general consent given to the CBI to probe cases in the state and

investigations will now be handed over only with special permission of the

state.

Kerala has become the fifth state to withdraw general consent after

Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal and Chhattisgarh - all five are

non-BJP states.

What is said to have provoked the government is the CBI's decision to probe

into the alleged FCRA violations in an apartment project - part of the

state's Life Mission project - constructed with the funding of Emirates Red

Crescent. The project had run into allegations of corruption after Swapna

Suresh, a key accused in the gold smuggling case, reportedly told central

agencies that she pocketed Rs 4.25 crore as kickbacks from the Rs 20-crore

project.

ANTI-MACRON STIR: MLA, 6 OTHERS BOOKED FOR PROMOTING ENMITY

Police on Wednesday filed a separate FIR against Madhya Pradesh Congress MLA

Arif Masood and six others, charging them with promoting enmity between

groups after a protest here against French President Emmanuel Macron over a

cartoon row, an official said.

A few days ago, Masood and 49 others were arrested in a separate case

related to the protest held here last week against the French President over

the cartoon row in the European country in violation of COVID-19-related

curbs. They were later freed on bail.

The Congress MLA also warned the Central government and its ministers for

supporting France over the cartoon controversy.

PUNJAB FARMERS TO VACATE STATION PREMISES, BUT STILL WON'T ALLOW PASSENGER

TRAINS

Farmer organisations agitating against the Centre's farm laws on Wednesday

agreed to leave the railway station premises where protests are currently

on.

Refusing to concede to the appeal of the Punjab Cabinet Ministers' committee

to allow passenger trains to operate, farmer leaders said they will allow

only goods trains to operate in the state. "We have agreed to leave the

platforms. But we will not lift our dharnas. We will agitate at a distance

from the stations. The relaxation has been given only for goods trains. We

will not allow passenger trains," farmer leader Jagmohan Singh said after a

meeting of all the farmer organisations at Kisan Bhawan in Chandigarh.

SUPREME COURT LAYS DOWN NORMS ON ALIMONY, ENSURES UNIFORMITY

The right to claim maintenance under all enactments, including those under

Section 125 of the CrPC, must date back to filing of the application, the

Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday.

"Financial constraints of a dependent spouse hamper their capacity to be

effectively represented before the court. In order to prevent a dependant

from being reduced to destitution, it is necessary that maintenance is

awarded from the date on which the application for maintenance is led before

the court concerned," a Bench headed by Justice Indu Malhotra said.

As courts adopt different judicial yardstick to grant interim maintenance

and permanent alimony in matrimonial cases, the SC also laid down guidelines

to ensure uniformity in judicial practice in such matters.

VIDEOCON-ICICI CASE: ED CHARGESHEETS CHANDA KOCHHAR, OTHERS

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) filed a chargesheet, along with "five

trunks" of supporting documents, before a special court in Mumbai on Tuesday

in the case of alleged money laundering against the former managing director

and CEO of ICICI Bank, Chanda Kochhar, her husband Deepak Kochhar, and

Videocon Group chief Venugopal Dhoot, among others.

The ED's case against the Kochhar family pertains to the alleged illegal

sanctioning of loans of Rs 1,875 crore by ICICI Bank, during the tenure of

Chanda Kochhar, to Videocon Group.

Deepak Kochhar, who was arrested by the ED in September 2019 in connection

with the case, is currently in judicial custody.

INDICATORS

Sensex 40,616 (+355), Nifty 11,908 (+95), Trading Value NSE ,(Rs.crores)

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US$-Rs. 74.44 GBP-Rs. 96.71, Euro-Rs. 87.05, UAE Dhm-Rs.20.26, Can$-Rs.

56.47, Aus$- Rs. 53.15

GBP 0.76 /US$, Euro 0.85 /US$, Jap.Yen 104.64 /US$, Aus$ 1.40 /US$, Sing

1.36 /US$, Bang Taka 83.36 /US$, Can$ 1.31 /US$, Mal Ring 4.16 /US$,

Pak Re 159.81 /US$, Phil Peso 48.32 /US$, Russian Rouble 78.52 /US$, NZ$

1.49 /US$, Thai Baht 31.02 /US$, Ukraine Hryvnia 28.28 /US$, Norway NOK 9.39

/US$

Bitcoin - USD 14,274

Dollar Index 93.40 Brent Crude 40.41 BDI 1,263

Gold world Spot Price USD/aoz 1,908 India (Rs. per gm 24k/22k) 5,090 / 4,990

Silver (Rs. Per KG) 61,200

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

Destroying is a necessary function in life. Everything has its season, and

all things eventually lose their effectiveness and die. - Margaret J.

Wheatley

OFF TRACK

Some letters to Agony Aunts:

I was married to Bill for three months and I didn't know he drank until he

came home sober yesterday.

I am a twenty-three-year-old liberated woman who has been on the pill for

two years. It's getting expensive and I think my boyfriend should share half

the cost, but I don't know him well enough to discuss money with him.

I have a man I never could trust. He cheats so much I'm not even sure this

baby I'm carrying is his.