Jadavpur University, long regarded as one of West Bengal’s strongest Left ideological bastions, is witnessing a significant political shift as the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), BJP’s student wing, rapidly expands its presence following the party’s victory in the Assembly elections in May.  Within weeks of the change in government, RSS held its routine activities on the campus, marking a visible departure from the university’s long-standing liberal and Left-dominated political environment. ABVP leaders said the organisation is focusing on removing what it calls the corruption associated with the Trinamool Chhatra Parishad (TMCP) while promoting nationalism on campuses. It has launched a state-wide membership drive targeting 10 lakh students by December 2026, including two lakhs in Kolkata. ABVP, which had around 75,000 members in the state until last year, now has units in nearly 100 colleges and universities and plans to expand to over 500 campuses. It has also renewed its demand for immediate student union elections, suspended in most institutions for years. ABVP had remained inactive because campuses were dominated first by Left student organisations and later by the TMCP. They said the political transition had created greater space for alternative political views. The expansion marks a strategic shift from ABVP’s traditional strongholds in north Bengal and districts such as Purulia and Bankura towards Kolkata’s premier educational institutions. ABVP national general secretary Virendra Singh Solanki said the BJP’s victory had created an opportunity to transform the education sector and deepen student engagement. Academics said the BJP’s campus expansion reflects its effort to build organisational influence beyond electoral success.  The real measure of ABVP’s growing support will emerge only when long-pending student union elections are finally held.

A private school in Hyderabad with mostly Muslim students had to terminate a teacher after she allegedly assigned religious homework to a Class 2 Hindu student, triggering a controversy and protests by the parents of the Hindu student. “Success, The School,” in Saidabad, Telangana issued a termination letter to teacher Shaik Aisha Parveen, stating that she was permanently disqualified from teaching in any of its schools. “The teacher acted in violation of the school’s policy and has been terminated. The parents are satisfied and no police complaint has been filed,” said a senior Hyderabad cop. The school apparently is a secular school run by Muslims. It is open to children of all faiths. For some bizarre reason Shaik Aiisha Parveen had asked the non-Muslim students to also work on Kalma and Surah Fatiha. The Kalma is the Islamic declaration of faith, while Surah Fatiha is the opening of the Holy Quran. Cops acknowledged that the teacher had violated school policy which was why she lost her job. Initially the school had said that the homework was only for Muslim students who opted for a subject about Islamic teachings. According to the cops the Muslim students outnumbered the Hindus. BJP Telangana President N Ramchandra Rao however felt since Success School came under Telangana’s Department of Education, the department must survey schools across the state for such insidious attempts to convert Hindus. Rao feels that the issue that has cropped up in-Success School — wherein two Hindu students were asked to write the Kalma may not be an isolated instance. The government should take action against the management. The management says that they have terminated the teacher. But terminating the teacher is not sufficient. We feel it is not an isolated case. It is a larger plan by some schools and some management to convert people…” feels Rao.

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.