Ahead of Monsoon Session of Parliament beginning on July 20, the Women’s Reservation Bill and the Delimitation Bill received unusual support from NDA ally, the Shiv Sena and its leader, Maharashtra deputy CM Eknath Shinde. Making a case for its passage, Shinde said that the population of many Lok Sabha constituencies has now reached between 2 million and 2.5 million, making it increasingly difficult to effectively undertake development works across such vast constituencies. He said ” that the delimitation of constituencies is therefore essential to ensure justice and equitable representation for the people.” He made a case for the Delimitation Bill while interacting with media persons at his son Dr Shrikant Shinde residence in Delhi. A number of party MPs were also present. It is significant that the Shiv Sena leader who has been tapping extra numbers and bolstering NDA strength in the Parliament came out publicly in support of the Delimitation Bill, after interacting with Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Shinde also made it clear that although there had been discussions for years about providing 50% reservation for women in Parliament, it was PM Narendra Modi who demonstrated the political will to introduce the legislation. He alleged that the Women’s Reservation Bill had failed to pass in the previous parliamentary session– April 2026– because of the opposition parties. According to him, the opposition paid a political price for this in the West Bengal elections. Interestingly, NCP (SP) leader Supriya Sule had also voiced her support for the Delimitation Bill provided it assured a gender quota. As for meeting with Shah, Shinde said they held positive discussions on a wide range of development-related issues, including irrigation projects in the constituencies of Shiv Sena MPs.

With Punjab set to go to polls in early 2027, PM Narendra Modi’s visit to state capital and Union Territory Chandigarh on July 17 to inaugurate healthcare projects, a renovated railway station in Jalandhar, and flag off a train from Chheharta (Amritsar) to Varanasi seems to have rankled the ruling Aam Aadmi Party government. Predictably, the AAP leaders are miffed that Modi is stoking poll fever a bit too early. As a counter strategy, the AAP government has begun to endorse the bizarre U.S. line in the gangster Lawrence Bishnoi case. It has gone so absurd as to accuse the Modi government of deliberately ignoring Punjab and “aid a gangster, lodged in Sabarmati Jail of Gujarat, to spread his drug business in the state.” Punjab Health Minister Balbir Singh is upset that PM Modi will inaugurate health projects in Punjab. “The Centre is not even allowing our flagship health insurance scheme to be implemented in PGI, Chandigarh—a project set up for Punjab several decades ago. If this is not discrimination, what else is?” he said. 80% of drugs being smuggled from across the International Border are being dumped in the state. That is why new drugs like ICE and cocaine are increasingly coming into Punjab,” said Balbir Singh, on the sidelines of a press conference called to speak about the initiatives being taken by the AAP government to tackle the drug menace in Punjab. Bragging about AAP government’s capabilities to stem the rot, Singh  claimed that if only the “person sitting in the Sabarmati jail of a state which has a double-engine government is now accused by an international agency like the FBI of running a global drug racket “were to be  sent by the Centre  to a Punjab jail, “we will not only treat him but also reform him.”

As Cabinet Secretary and senior IAS officer T V Somanathan’s tenure is scheduled to end on August 29, he pens a note on having brief meetings. Upon the conclusion of his term, the 1987-batch Tamil Nadu cadre officer will superannuate from the IAS. However, before his departure, he had decided to list some dos and don’ts. In a recent communication to all chief secretaries and the directors general of administrative training institutes, Somanathan has circulated a ‘Guide on Conducting Effective Meetings’. As a first rule, he has asked the babus to “avoid long meetings” and finish them in 30 to 60 minutes. Somanathan believes that meetings consume an inordinate part of a civil servant’s working day. Many officers themselves have told him that meetings often begin late, become overstretched and directionless, and end without any “tangible takeaways”. Somanathan’s objective, however, extends far beyond shortening meetings. The guide is, in effect, an attempt to change the culture of governance itself. Along with Somanthan’s departure, nearly 300 senior IAS officers, including some of the most powerful figures in the bureaucracy, are set to retire this year. This may trigger a massive reshuffle across the Centre and states, reshaping the top echelons of governance and opening the door for a new generation of officers. Several chief secretaries of major states and senior secretaries in crucial Union ministries are also on the retirement list, making the turnover far-reaching in both scale and impact. Uttar Pradesh alone is expected to see around 30 senior officers retire, while Punjab, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Tamil Nadu and the AGMUT cadre are also slated to lose a significant number of experienced administrators. States such as Delhi, Odisha, Haryana and Meghalaya will see their serving chief secretaries superannuate, necessitating a new succession line.

Odisha chief minister Mohan Charan Majhi has reasons to be worried. Despite a record-breaking state budget allocation of Rs 3.10 lakh crore, Odisha government has made a poor show so far. This is because Odisha’s inability to spend allocated funds.  Odisha state has spent only 8.8% of its fund so far, thereby exposing the state government’s weakness and slow-paced administration,” say government sources. Reasons for these lapses are many – such as bureaucratic delays, prolonged bidding and tendering processes, lack of trained personnel, need for multiple clearance level and slow speed of action to settle lingering issues. Reportedly, Odisha’s 16 key departments are lagging in spending target. The new rumour is 10 out of 44 departments are not in a position to utilise 60% of their allocated funds so far. Odisha Chief Secretary Anu Garg has however urged key stakeholders to accelerate government projects. All these shows the BJP-run state government in bad light. Majhi needs to set up a war room to keenly monitor all government projects.

In a stunning case of reel life turning eerily prophetic, the Delhi High Court’s July 10, 2026 verdict upholding Rajpal Yadav’s conviction in a Rs 5 crore cheque-bounce scandal has thrown a harsh spotlight on how his 2012 directorial debut Ata Pata Laapata uncannily predicted his own downfall. Convicted in seven cases but with jail reduced to three months, the actor now faces massive compensation orders; a real-world echo of the film’s satirical chaos. In the film, Yadav’s protagonist sees his house mysteriously vanish and turns to the law for justice, only to become the prime suspect in a web of bureaucracy, corruption, and twisted justice. The bold satire mercilessly lampoons a system that punishes the victim. It was Yadav’s passionate directorial debut, conceived in 2005 amid industry recession and strikes, produced by his wife Radha under their family banner with a massive ensemble cast and heavy personal investment. Yadav secured bank loans for the Rs 20 crore project. In 2010, businessman Madhav Gopal invested Rs 5 crore with repayment agreements in place. However, after a heated argument following the 2011 music launch, Gopal allegedly obtained a pre-release stay order, publicly accused Yadav of fraud, and sabotaged the November 2, 2012 release. Despite over 1,000 screens booked, the film vanished from theatres within days; mirroring the protagonist’s missing house and flopped commercially. Post-dated cheques bounced amid the chaos, dragging Yadav into the very legal ordeal he had mocked on screen. While reducing the latest sentence, the court criticised his conduct, noting the law cannot be “rewritten at the will of an actor.” Yadav claims the investor’s rage destroyed not just his dream but endangered artistes and massive finances. As he eyes an appeal, this prophetic saga blurs fiction and harsh Bollywood reality in the most scandalous way.

The first poster of Dada: The Sourav Ganguly Story, unveiled on Ganguly’s 54th birthday, recreates his iconic 2002 shirt-waving moment at Lord’s with Rajkummar Rao topless and jersey in hand. Directed by Vikramaditya Motwane for a May 14, 2027 release, the image evokes nostalgia but appears static and restrained, lacking the high-energy drama needed for a mass-appeal cricket biopic. Rajkummar Rao’s recent filmography underscores the risk. While Stree 2 delivered an all-time blockbuster, several projects faltered: Bheed was a major disaster with netting just Rs 2 crore; Mr & Mrs Mahi managed modest numbers around Rs 7 crore; Srikanth crossed Rs 60 crore worldwide but remained a middling performer relative to budget and expectations. Other efforts like Vicky Vidya Ka Woh Wala Video were below average, highlighting inconsistent solo draws despite critical acclaim. Motwane’s own track record adds caution. Films like Bhavesh Joshi Superhero and Lootera earned praise but struggled commercially, while even acclaimed works such as Udaan and Trapped relied more on niche appeal than broad box-office success. Cricket biopics have a dismal history. Azhar flopped commercially, and 83 with Ranveer Singh as Kapil Dev, underperformed domestically due to costs and timing. Ganguly’s tale of aggressive leadership and controversies holds promise, yet biopics frequently face challenges with pacing, dramatization, and audience fatigue. Early signals for Dada suggest a dignified but visually subdued start that may not spark immediate excitement. With Luv Films producing, the team has time for strong marketing, but history indicates star power and nostalgia rarely suffice to overcome the sub-genres curse. Execution will be decisive.

The century-old Chennai-based Kothari Industrial Corporation Ltd (KICL), a listed company, is making waves in the footwear sector. Ever since the Chairman Dr J Rafiq Ahmed entered the scene, KICL has heavily diversified beyond its traditional agriculture and fertilizer roots into drones, geospatial services and footwear. KICL’s transformation is becoming most visible in the footwear space. Recently, KICL’s associate, Phoenix Kothari Footwear, tied-up with Taiwan’s Evervan Group, one of the world’s largest contract footwear makers, to manufacture Adidas shoes in Karur, Tamil Nadu. The Karur plant, second phase, is being set up at a cost of Rs 1,700 crore and expected to generate 13,500 jobs. It is learnt that over five years the JV is expected to invest $1 billion across the country to produce 100 million pairs of Adidas shoes and generate 50,000 jobs. Interestingly, the second phase of Karur plant’s ground breaking ceremony was done by Tamil Nadu chief minister C Joseph Vijay. It may be mentioned that KICL is not content with being only a contract manufacturer. Some time back, it secured a 30-year license to market the iconic French footwear brand Kickers across India and several neighbouring markets. The company, it is learnt, is now negotiating to acquire the brand’s intellectual property, which would allow production to shift from China to India and give KICL ownership of an established international footwear label. The Indian footwear market is estimated at around Rs 1.2 lakh crore and is growing at roughly 7-8% annually. Premium footwear is expanding even faster, at 12-18%, driven by young consumers and rising disposable incomes.

After two years of keeping low profile, Odisha’s most powerful ex-bureaucrat and Biju Janata Dal leader V K Pandian is making waves beyond Indian shores. Reportedly, Venezuela’s interim President Delcy Rodriguez who just experienced two devastating earthquake asked Pandian to fly to Venezula to seek his expertise on how to handle natural disasters. Venezuela President had two objectives to learn from Odisha’s playbook: One, how Pandian — one of the architects of Odisha’s disaster management — handled the cyclone and disaster response protocols had zero casualty and lessons for her country from Odisha.  Sources say, Pandian used this visit to raise his personal profile. Pandian’s supporters are looking at this development as a “proud moment of knowledge sharing for India on the global stage.” The net takeaway from Odisha is that people are comparing Naveen Patnaik’s governance style with that of the current chief minister Mohan Charan Majhi.    

BJP general secretary Vinod Tawde’s sudden stay in Maharashtra and his meetings with some influential Opposition leaders have heightened the already thick suspense in the state’s politics. Once again, veteran Sharad Pawar continues to be the focus of the intrigue while a couple of senior BJP leaders from Maharashtra are reported to be spending sleepless nights, not knowing what turn their fate is going to take. Tawde self-invited him to the residence of his former mentor Eknath Khadse, who is now with the NCP led by Pawar. Incidentally, Khadse’s daughter-in-law Raksha is Union minister of state while the other daughter-in-law is with Pawar’s party. Tawde’s ‘courtesy’ call on Khadse holds potential to shake north Maharashtra scenario. Tawde also called on Pawar’s trusted lieutenant Jayant Patil, who is tipped to be joining the NDA fold, albeit with Pawar’s tacit blessings. Patil’s name is being mentioned for the post of Maharashtra finance minister. It was earlier held by the late deputy CM Ajit Pawar. One of Pawar’s close associates is learnt to have been entrusted with the task of liaising with the party legislators and parliament members. The NCP’s onslaught against the BJP is somewhat softer over the past few days. Thus, if the pieces fall in place, Pawar’s 10 Lok Sabha members will be a great gift for the BJP. Moreover, it will be a demoralising blow for the Congress in particular and the INDIA Bloc in general.

It seems there is no respite for Shiv Sena leader Uddhav Thackeray from the continuous shocks administered by the ruling Mahayuti since whispers about another split taking place in his ramshackle party are only growing. Thackeray’s bete noire Eknath Shinde is said to be behind such moves since chief minister Devendra Fadnavis has declared in unequivocal terms that the doors of the BJP are closed for newcomers. True that it is a political announcement and can be used the way the leaders wish, Shinde has been going ahead unobstructed. The latest entrant into the game is former chief minister Prithviraj Chavan, who has publicly stated that half a dozen Lok Sabha members of Sharad Pawar’s party are feeling ‘uneasy’ in the present situation. This means that they can desert the NCP(SP) any time to join the NDA. All these developments are going to weaken the Opposition in Maharashtra even if such defections do not happen forthwith. The casualty will be the Shiv Sena of Uddhav since he was projected as the main Opposition leader and face of the INDIA Bloc after its fabulous victory in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Sadly for him, the graph of his party is only sliding. Not content with eyeing Uddhav’s legislative win, Shinde is said to be exploring the potential of poaching the Sena’s civic wing. As over 60 corporators under Uddhav were elected to the Mumbai municipal corporation, the hopes of his followers were rekindled. However, the contrary is happening. As a result, Uddhav is an embattled leader right now, with no immediate prospect seen to revive his prospects.