West Bengal's goondaism shifts to 'old Marxist' home - Kerala ::: ED team attacked in Kerala, car windows smashed after raids on Pinarayi Vijayan

 ED team attacked in Kerala, car windows smashed after raids on Pinarayi Vijayan

CPI(M) workers blocked and vandalised an ED vehicle during statewide protests over raids at premises linked to Pinarayi Vijayan and his daughter in an alleged pay-off case.  

CPI(M) workers on Wednesday attacked a vehicle carrying Enforcement Directorate officials in Thiruvananthapuram during protests over raids on residences of former Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and his daughter in an alleged pay-off case.

The party workers blocked the ED team’s vehicle, which also had women officials on board, when they were trying to leave after the raids and damaged its windscreen using bricks and rods while raising slogans against the central agency. 

One of the drivers of the vehicles involved in the incident was injured and has been hospitalised.  Raids are being conducted at a total of 10 premises across Kerala, including Vijayan’s rented residence in Thiruvananthapuram, armed central security personnel stood guard outside the two-storey house at Bakery junction.

He had shifted to this house after vacating the Cliff House following the assembly election.

Raids are also taking place at Riyas' residence in Kozhikode.

Searches are also underway at the residences of senior CMRL officials simultaneously, reports said.

As the news of the raid emerged, party workers and leaders began assembling outside the house gate, which was guarded by central armed police forces.

The CPM members led by state secretary M V Govindan sat outside the residence in protest against the ED action denouncing it as politically-motivated move by the central government.

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah set to resign on May 28 ::: Will D K Shivakumar finally get what he has been waiting since 2018-19 ??

 Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to resign on May 28, Thursday 

Siddaramaiah has sought an appointment with Karnataka Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot.  

With Shivakumar, a Vokkaliga strongman from Old Mysore, likely to occupy the Chief Minister’s chair, the Congress may look at appointing a fresh face as the second in command in the State Cabinet.

The Congress leadership in a crucial meeting in Delhi yesterday (May 26th) said that the party now needed him in Delhi as one of its most prominent OBC faces, particularly at a time when Rahul Gandhi has aggressively sharpened the Congress’s social justice and caste census pitch across the country. 

The AICC president Malikarjun Kharge is the Dalit face - also from Karnataka.  

Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar is the frontrunner to replace him and he is waiting for long. Assembly elections in Karnataka are due by April-May 2028.  

In another significant development, Siddaramaiah is also expected to host a breakfast meeting for the entire Karnataka cabinet at his Bengaluru residence on Thursday morning. The move has intensified political buzz over an imminent leadership change in the Congress-ruled state.

Congress general secretary and Karnataka in-charge Randeep Surjewala is also scheduled to arrive in Bengaluru on Thursday amid the rapidly evolving political developments.

Sources said Surjewala is likely to hold consultations with senior Congress leaders in Karnataka as the party leadership works to manage the transition and prevent factional tensions from escalating.  

As KPCC chief, Shivakumar played a central role in rebuilding the Congress after its 2019 collapse, spearheading the Bharat Jodo Yatra in Karnataka and leading the party’s successful 2023 Assembly campaign. 

The organisational position will now become important. 

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Big booster for CEC Gyanesh Kumar ::: Supreme Court upholds EC's power to conduct SIR, says exercise necessary for free and fair polls

 The Supreme Court on Wednesday said that the special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls advances the constitutional imperative of free and fair elections but also held that being struck off the electoral rolls does not mean termination of citizenship.

".... we hold that the electoral SIR advances the constitutional imperative of free and fair elections". 

Deciding on petitions filed against the SIR exercise carried out by the Election Commission in Bihar held in 2025 ahead of the Assembly polls there, a bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi ruled it cannot be said that the poll panel acted outside statutory powers in carrying out the exercise.

“The competent authority shall take necessary steps in accordance with law and conclude the process before the next Vidhan Sabha or local body elections, whichever is earlier, after giving notice and affording an opportunity of hearing to the concerned individuals. 

In the event the competent authority holds that such deleted individuals are citizens, their names shall be restored to the electoral rolls.”

The bench held that the commission has the power to conduct the SIR under Article 324 of the Constitution, along with the Representation of People Act, 1950 and the rules framed under the Act.

“We are unable to conclude that the impugned exercise is a process resorted solely for administrative convenience. On the contrary, we hold that the electoral SIR advances the constitutional imperative of free and fair elections,” the bench said, as reported by legal news websites in their live coverage of the verdict.

Arguing that the SIR was a “National Registry of Citizens (NRC) like process”, The petitioners including the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) had challenged the SIR claiming that the commission did not have the powers to conduct the exercise as the right to verify citizenship was vested with the government.

In the judgment, CJI Kant said: “When the statute itself authorises a special revision at any time, for reasons to be recorded and in such manner as the Election Commission may deem fit, the impugned exercise cannot be invalidated merely because it does not conform in every respect to the ordinary modalities contemplated for routine revision.”

The CJI said: “In our considered opinion, the impugned SIR does not supplant the Representation of the People Act and the Rules. Rather, it breathes life into the constitutional mandate under Article 324 within the precise statutory contours provided by Section 21 (3). There it cannot be said that the commission has acted in excess of its statutory powers.”

The SIR notification, which was first issued in Bihar, had stated that the voters who were not included in the electoral rolls for the year 2002 or 2003 had to show linkage with parents if present in the rolls. After the completion of the SIR exercise names of around 63 lakh voters were excluded from the draft rolls.

The Election Commission had argued before the top court that Aadhaar and voters identity cards issued by the Election Commission cannot be treated as conclusive evidence of citizenship.

“We accordingly issue a further direction regarding persons whose names have been deleted from the 2003 electoral rolls on the ground that the Commission formed the opinion that they are not citizens. 

The Commission is directed to refer such cases within four weeks to the competent authority under the Citizenship Act, 1955 for determination of their citizenship claims,” the bench said.

Fast forward... 2052 !! If this is London ... what would be New Delhi ..... and other cow-belt cities in India ????

"If you think the temperature uncomfortable today, let me take you to the last day of July 2052, the rays of the climbing sun reveal a city still sweltering in the residual heat of the day before. From the air, London resembles a colossal refugee camp. Streets, gardens and parks are teeming with tents and cobbled-together shelters...," - goes a write up in 'The Guardian'. 

It talks about London and just pause ... apply your handkerchief to remove the saline water on your nose or forehead .... and imagine what would be India !!  -- 

"People sleep outside because their houses are too hot to inhabit, water is scarce and supermarkets are for the wealthy" -- runs the piece penned by Bill McGuire.  

He draws quite a bleak picture !! 

Half-hearted attempts to upgrade insulation across the country’s housing stock ran out of steam and cash decades earlier, and most homes still have few barriers to the infiltrating heat. 

Almost all the country’s electricity is now from renewables, which has brought the cost down, but the relentless onslaught of extreme weather has driven an ever-deepening economic depression across the world. Many now have air conditioning, but can’t afford to run it.

Sunbathers and swimmers cool down at a beach in Bournemouth (BBC snap) 

In 2025; BBC carried a write up with a declaration:  "A yellow heat alert, less serious than amber, has also been issued for Yorkshire and Humber as well as the West Midlands. It denotes "significant impacts" for the health and social care services." 

The Guardian article of 2026 - also predicts a 2052 ---  

"Growing crowds cluster around state-run grocery stores that provide the basics at affordable prices. 

Failed harvests at home in the previous two years, and massively reduced food imports, as other nations stricken by extreme weather hold on to what they have, has meant the rationing of bread and other staples. 

Supermarkets still exist, but they are struggling to keep prices down, and so cater almost entirely to the wealthy."

The power is out again, as it has been intermittently since the start of the heatwave. The problem isn’t generation but transmission; the extreme temperatures making cables sag and break and causing transformers to overheat. The doors of houses are open to let in the relatively cool air of the night, although the temperature hasn’t fallen. 

(How to end ... 'unhappy reading' !! ) 

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Amit Shah says infiltration poses threat to national security ::::: Centre forms panel to study demographic changes linked to illegal immigration

 Home Minister Amit Shah said infiltration poses threat to national security, social balance and tribal communities; committee to examine 'abnormal population shifts' across religious and social groups. 

“Infiltration and other reasons causing Unnatural Demographic Change pose a very significant challenge to the present and future of any nation,” he noted.

“Demographic Change is a serious issue linked not only to our sovereignty but also to national security, law and order, profound changes in social structure, and the preservation of tribal society.”

Bangladeshi nationals near the Hakimpur check post in North 24-Parganas on Tuesday morning (Snap - The Telegraph)  

The Centre has constituted a high-level committee to study demographic challenges linked to “illegal immigration and other unnatural causes”.

The committee will be chaired by retired Justice Prakash Prabhakar Naolekar.

Meanwhile, reports say hundreds of undocumented Bangladeshi nationals — mostly Muslims — gathered near the Hakimpur check post along the India-Bangladesh border on Tuesday, desperate to cross back into Bangladesh before the new BJP government in Bengal intensifies its crackdown on illegal immigration.

The rush to the border, 75km from Calcutta in North 24-Parganas' Basirhat subdivision, came after the Bengal government announced plans to establish “holding centres” in every district to detain undocumented foreign nationals — a visible early signal that the BJP intends to aggressively pursue its long-promised “3D policy” of Detect, Delete and Deport.  

Union Home Minister Shah is scheduled to visit West Bengal to take stock of security measures alongside the Bangladesh frontier.

The Minister's  statement that infiltration could have far-reaching consequences for national security, social balance, law and order, and the protection of tribal communities, apart from impacting the country’s sovereignty is seen as a significant one.  

The panel would also include the census commissioner along with former IAS officer Durga Shankar Mishra, former IPS officer Shri Balaji Srivastava, and Dr. Shamika Ravi.

The joint secretary (foreigners-I) in the ministry of home affairs will serve as the member secretary within the committee. Shah said that infiltration and other factors causing “unnatural demographic change” pose a serious challenge to the country’s present and future.

The committee has been tasked to conduct a comprehensive study of demographic changes across various parts of the nation due to illegal immigration and “unnatural causes”.

The committee has been tasked with analysing and deciphering “patterns of abnormal population shifts at the levels of religious and social communities” and presenting the Centre with a planned and “timely solution” in handling the ‘ghuspaithiyes.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced such a committee would be formed during his Independence Day address last year.

“Today I want to alert the country about a concern, a challenge. 

Under a well-thought out conspiracy, the demography of the country is being changed. Seeds of a new crisis are being sown. These 'ghuspaithiye' (infiltrators) are snatching the livelihood of the youth of my country, these 'ghuspaithiye' are targeting the sisters and daughters of my country, this will not be tolerated," Modi had said, addressing the nation.

This comes amid several BJP-ruled states already setting up ‘holding centres’, with Bengal emerging as the latest to join the list. Two holding centres have been set up in Malda(English Bazaar) and Murshidabad (Lalgola). Chief minister Suvendu Adhikari said that his government would follow the policy of ‘detect, delete and deport’ while handling illegal aliens.

In the Malda holding centre, nine suspected Bangladeshi citizens have been housed, among whom three are women, and six are minors.

Since late Monday night, men, women and children arrived at the Hakimpur border point with bags, blankets and trolleys, hoping the Border Security Force (BSF) would push them back across before arrests began.

“The government has changed in Bengal,” said one of them who had been living in Durganagar with his family for around five years without valid documents. “Before facing harassment or detention, we decided to return to Bangladesh and begin a fresh struggle for survival.”

Bangladesh steps up border vigilance over suspected forced crossings from India

 The BJP has prioritised tackling undocumented migration in border states. 

Dhaka says repatriation must follow formal bilateral procedures. 

"We have started miking in border villages to raise awareness among residents and ask them to stay vigilant against any illegal crossings or push-in attempts," Lieutenant Colonel S. M. Shariful Islam, commander of the battalion, told Reuters.

Bangladesh’s border guards have intensified patrols and launched public awareness campaigns along parts of the frontier with India because of concerns India has illegally forced people into Bangladesh, officials said. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which governs the border states of Tripura, Bengal and Assam, has said it would tackle undocumented migration as a priority.

Earlier this month, India's foreign ministry told reporters that India has asked Bangladesh to verify the nationality of more than 2,860 people suspected of being Bangladeshis and of living illegally in the country. India's foreign ministry did not respond to a request for comment on Tuesday.

The 60th Battalion of Border Guard Bangladesh began campaigns on Sunday in border areas of the Brahmanbaria district, using loud speakers to warn residents and urging them to remain alert to attempts to push people across the border.  

"Our patrols and surveillance have been strengthened across the border areas. Intelligence operations are also continuing to prevent illegal push-ins, human trafficking, and the smuggling of drugs and other goods,” he said.

One of the longest land borders

Bangladesh and India share a border that stretches over more than 4,000 kilometres (2,485 miles), one of the longest land frontiers in the world.

West Bengal alone shares an international land border of approximately 2,216.7 kilometers with Bangladesh, which is the longest boundary any Indian state shares with a neighboring country.

Blogger : Along Bangladesh border, Tripura 

Three sub-districts in Brahmanbaria district in eastern Bangladesh account for around 73 kilometres of the border with Tripura. Assam which shares its border with Bangladesh has, since May 2025, pushed back hundreds of people into Bangladesh out of the 30,000 people tribunals have declared to be foreigners. 

Several human rights groups have said the authorities have arbitrarily thrown people out of the country.

Dhaka has repeatedly said any repatriation must follow formal bilateral procedures and has warned against unilateral push-ins across the border.  

The Meghalaya-Bangladesh border is a 443-km-long international frontier that stretches across southern and southwestern Meghalaya.  

Mizoram shares a 318-kilometer international border with Bangladesh to its west.

"Uniform Civil Code in Assam will guarantee women Right to live with dignity and exercise rights over property," says CM Himanta

Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the UCC would, for the first time, allow many women from minority communities to exercise their voting rights independently and freely. 

"The Uniform Civil Code will guarantee women the right to live with dignity and exercise their rights over property. It will help prevent child marriage and polygamy," Sarma said.

He described the legislation as a landmark social reform that would usher in a "new life" for minority women.

A day after the Assam government tabled the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in the state Assembly, the Chief Minister on Tuesday, May 26, mounted a strong defence of the proposed legislation. Replying to the motion of thanks to the Governor's address in the Assembly, Sarma moved quickly to address concerns that the legislation is politically motivated or targeted at minorities.

"We do not want anyone to feel that we ignore minority communities because we receive fewer votes from them. 

The Uniform Civil Code is being brought to secure the rights of women from minority communities," he said.

The Chief Minister laid out the specific objectives driving the proposed law - ensuring women's right to property, curbing child marriage and polygamy, and expanding women's democratic participation.  

"This is a reform for the empowerment of women and I believe people across communities will eventually support it," he added.

The bill, however, has not gone unchallenged, drawing criticism from political parties from as far as Telangana. The All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) resident and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi launched a pointed attack on the legislation, accusing the Assam government of using the UCC as a vehicle to impose Hindu personal law on Muslims.

Owaisi alleged that Hindu principles were being quietly embedded into rules governing succession, inheritance and divorce - areas where Muslim personal law currently applies. He also highlighted what he called a glaring internal contradiction - the bill exempts tribal communities from its purview entirely, while making it binding on Muslims.

"Only Hindu culture is being protected, while Muslims have to comply with these so-called uniform rules. Every community has the right to protect its culture under Article 29, but why is only the tribals' autonomy being protected?" he wrote on social media.

The AIMIM chief went further, arguing that the legislation runs against the original intent of India's founding fathers.

The UCC Bill is expected to be passed in the Assembly with the BJP-led NDA holding a 2/3 majority in the House.  

Uttarakhand and Gujarat are the first two states in post-independent India to pass and implement a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) to establish a unified legal framework for personal laws. Both states follow highly similar frameworks aimed at gender equality, equal inheritance, and mandatory registration for marriages and live-in relationships.  

UCC proposals and legislation in Gujarat and Uttarakhand mandate 

marriage registration, 

equalizes inheritance rights for men and women across religions, 

outlaws bigamy, 

and requires court decrees for divorce. 

It also formalizes the registration process for living relationships and recognizes children and maintenance rights from such unions.Exemptions: Similar to Uttarakhand, the Gujarat code exempts Scheduled Tribes and certain communities whose customary rights are constitutionally protected.  The implementation of UCC has been the third major election promise of the BJP since 1990s. 

The two other being - abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir and setting up of a grand Ram temple at Ayodhya.  

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