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An Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) displayed outside the office of the Election Commission of India
| Photo Credit: SHASHI SHEKHAR KASHYAP
Supreme Court says EVMs are accurate unless they are maligned by human bias
The Supreme Court on Tuesday disagreed with the idea of a return to paper ballots to restore the “little man’s” confidence in the electoral process, saying machines give “absolutely accurate results” unless human bias maligns them. “Human weaknesses, including bias, may lead to a problem. Machines without human intervention would give absolutely accurate results,” Justice Sanjiv Khanna, heading a two-judge Bench, observed.
Social media platform X (formerly Twitter), released a letter by the Election Commission of India (EC) ordering a takedown of four posts on the platform by political leaders in the YSR Congress Party, the Telugu Desam Party, the Aam Aadmi Party and the Bharatiya Janata Party. The company said that it disagrees with the takedown order issued by the EC, and that “freedom of expression should extend to these posts and political speech in general”. The company has taken the tweets down in India, but they are visible from non-Indian Internet connections.
Heavy floods hit Dubai, airport as Oman toll rises to 18
Torrential rain flooded roads, homes and malls and briefly halted operations at Dubai’s airport as storms lashed the Gulf on Tuesday, after leaving at least 18 dead in Oman. The airport began diverting all incoming flights.
The Indian Ambassador to Ireland Akhilesh Mishra has come into international attention after he wrote a letter to a prominent Irish newspaper defending Prime Minister Narendra Modi which also criticised the Congress era as a rule “by a single dynastic party”. The issue acquired prominence after the Embassy of India in Dublin on April 15 used the official handle of the mission on social media platform ‘X’ to put out a letter that Mr. Mishra had written to the editors of The Irish Times protesting against a recent editorial which took note of the arrest of the serving Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and said ‘an intolerant Hindu-first majoritarianism is the order of the day’ in India.
Centre says it does not maintain record of CAA applications
The Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has said the government does not have a provision to maintain the record of applications received under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA). In a Right to Information query, Ajay Bose, a resident of Amravati in Maharashtra, had sought information about the total number of persons who have applied for citizenship after CAA rules were notified on March 11.
Police in some States are recording mob lynching cases as brawls or accidents, Supreme Court told
The Supreme Court on Tuesday heard a petitioner’s contention that mob lynching incidents are recorded by the police in certain States as brawls or accidents. Appearing before a three-judge Bench headed by Justice B.R. Gavai, advocate Nizam Pasha, representing the petitioner, the National Federation of Women, claimed that this was a deliberate ploy by authorities to skirt their responsibility under the court’s Tehseen Poonawala judgment.
Germany’s Scholz seeks Chinese role in ‘just peace’ for Ukraine
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Tuesday he hoped Berlin and Beijing could help achieve a “just peace” in Ukraine, as he met President Xi Jinping in the Chinese capital. The Chancellor arrived in China on Sunday, accompanied by a large delegation of ministers and business executives on his second visit to the country since taking office. Meeting with Mr. Xi at Beijing’s Diaoyutai State Guesthouse on Tuesday, Mr. Scholz told the Chinese leader he hoped to discuss “how we can contribute more to a just peace in Ukraine”.
IPL-17: KKR vs RR | Buttler nails an improbable chase with a Royal ton
Jos Buttler played one of the greatest IPL knocks on Tuesday night. His sensational 107 not out (60b, 9×4, 6×6) gave Rajasthan Royals an unforgettable — and for much of the match — an unlikely last-ball win against Kolkata Knight Riders. The two-wicket victory has consolidated Royals’ position at the top of the table.
Champions League | Mbappe scores twice as PSG beats 10-man Barcelona to reach semifinals
Paris St Germain’s Kylian Mbappe scored twice in the second half to help guide his side to a 4-1 comeback win at 10-man Barcelona in their Champions League quarter-final, second leg to wrap up a 6-4 aggregate victory on Tuesday. PSG will play Borussia Dortmund, which beat Atletico Madrid in a thriller
ZEE withdraws from NCLT application to merge operations with Sony
ZEE Entertainment Enterprises Ltd on Tuesday said it has withdrawn its application, seeking implementation of the merger with Sony, filed before the National Company Law Tribunal Mumbai bench. The company filed an application with the NCLT on January 24, 2024, seeking directions on the implementation of a composite scheme of arrangement between ZEE Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) and Sony group firms Culver Max Entertainment Pvt Ltd and Bangla Entertainment Pvt Ltd.
