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Cong flop show in Delhi: Knocked out of top 3 slots in 3 constituencies

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New Delhi, Feb 8: As the counting for the Delhi Assembly elections nears its conclusion, the Congress party, once a dominant force in the national Capital, appears set for yet another electoral washout, failing to win even a single seat this term.

The Congress, which ruled Delhi for 15 consecutive years from 1998 to 2013, is now staring at its fourth straight defeat in Assembly elections, underscoring its sharp decline in influence across the city.

This time, the party’s struggle was particularly evident in three key Assembly seats — Mehrauli, Okhla, and Mustafabad.

In Mustafabad, BJP candidate Mohan Singh Bisht emerged victorious with a lead of over 17,000 votes. The AAP’s Adeel Ahmad Khan secured second place, while AIMIM candidate Tahir Hussain — former AAP Councillor and a key accused in the 2020 Delhi riots — finished third. Congress candidate Ali Mehdi was left trailing far behind.

In Mehrauli, the BJP’s Gajender Singh Yadav maintained a lead, with the AAP’s Mahender Chaudhary in second place.

An Independent candidate, Balyogi Baba Balaknath, was in third place, while Congress candidate Pushpa Singh lagged at fourth place, with only two rounds of counting left.

Mehrauli is part of the South Delhi Lok Sabha constituency, which comprises nine other Assembly segments, including Bijwasan, Sangam Vihar, Ambedkar Nagar, Chhatarpur, Deoli, Kalkaji, Tughlakabad, Palam, and Badarpur. The BJP is leading in six of these seats.

In Okhla, AAP’s Amanatullah Khan maintained a strong lead of over 30,000 votes. AIMIM candidate Shifa Ur Rehman Khan was in second place, followed by BJP’s Manish Chaudhary.

Congress candidate Ariba Khan trailed at fourth, with eight rounds of counting remaining.

Congress candidate Sandeep Dikshit, contesting from the New Delhi Assembly seat, admitted to the party’s poor performance, calling it “disappointing” and acknowledging that Congress had failed to reconnect with Delhi’s voters.

“We had hoped for 12-13 per cent of the vote share, but we fell short. We wanted to make a place for Congress in the hearts of the people but failed. It is disappointing,” Dikshit told media.

Asked about the reasons behind the Congress’ dismal showing, he said, “It is difficult to pinpoint right now. Maybe people wanted to vote for the Congress but were unsure if we could form a government, so they chose other parties instead.”

Dikshit was in a three-way battle in New Delhi against AAP National Convenor and former Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and the BJP’s Parvesh Verma, who won the seat.

As counting continues, early trends from the Election Commission of India (ECI) show the BJP crossing the halfway mark, leading in 48 of Delhi’s 70 Assembly seats, while the AAP is ahead in 22. The Congress, however, remains absent from the tally.

Exit Polls had predicted a significant loss for the AAP, with the BJP expected to win between 45-55 seats. The Congress was projected to win just one seat but has failed to achieve even that.

The party’s failure to open its account once again underscores its declining relevance in Delhi politics. Once a formidable force under former Chief Minister late Sheila Dikshit, the Congress has been struggling to regain lost ground since the AAP’s rise in 2013.

Early trends initially showed the Congress leading in Badli, but this advantage quickly dissipated. With no leads in any constituency, the party is poised for another electoral wipeout.

The poor performance comes despite a high-profile campaign led by Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, and Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi, who held multiple rallies in the run-up to the elections.

The Congress’ vote share has also been on a downward trajectory. The last time it won seats in Delhi was in 2013 when it secured eight constituencies. That election also marked the AAP’s debut, which disrupted the city’s political landscape.

In 2015, the Congress drew a blank, managing only a 9 per cent vote share, while AAP swept 67 out of 70 seats. The BJP won the remaining three.

The downward spiral continued in 2020, with Congress again failing to win a single seat and its vote share dropping below 5 per cent. AAP retained power with 62 seats, while the BJP managed just eight.

As the BJP celebrates its return to power in Delhi and AAP grapples with a significant setback, Congress’ continued decline raises serious questions about its future in the national Capital.

Business

Piyush Goyal to lead business delegation to Spain, Belgium and Finland to deepen trade, investment ties

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New Delhi, July 12: Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal will lead a high-level Indian business delegation on a five-day visit to Spain, Belgium and Finland from July 13 to 17, as India seeks to deepen its economic engagement with Europe through enhanced cooperation in trade, investment, technology, innovation and sustainability, it was announced on Sunday.

The delegation will include leading Indian companies from sectors such as advanced manufacturing, clean energy, digital technologies, gems and jewellery, food processing, healthcare and design. The visit is aimed at expanding business-to-business partnerships and exploring new opportunities for collaboration with European industries, the Ministry of Commerce & Industry said.

The visit will begin in Spain on July 13, where Goyal will participate in a business roundtable jointly organised by the Chamber of Commerce of Spain, CEOE and ICEX Spain Trade & Investment. The discussions are expected to focus on sectors including automotive, renewable energy, railways, artificial intelligence, semiconductors, food processing and tourism.

The meeting will bring together industry leaders from both countries at a time when India and Spain are celebrating the Spain-India Dual Year 2026, marking 70 years of diplomatic relations. Several Spanish companies, including Iberdrola, Acciona, CAF, Talgo, Gestamp and Indra, have already established a strong presence in India, while Indian technology and engineering firms such as TCS, Infosys, Wipro, Tech Mahindra and Larsen & Toubro are expanding their operations in Spain to support digital transformation and Industry 4.0 initiatives.

In Belgium, where the delegation will travel on July 14 and 15, the minister will visit the Port of Antwerp to study Europe’s leading logistics hub and gain insights into multimodal connectivity, green logistics and resilient supply chains.

During the Belgium visit, Goyal will hold CEO-level meetings with senior executives of Thales Group and Silox Group.

The minister will also participate in the India-EU Business Roundtable and the Trade and Technology Council (TTC) Plenary, where discussions will cover foreign direct investment, trade facilitation, sustainable technologies and resilient supply chains.

The final leg of the tour will take the delegation to Finland on July 16 and 17. Goyal will participate in the India-Finland Business Roundtable, engaging with Finnish companies across digitalisation, clean energy, advanced manufacturing and the circular economy.

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Crime

Speeding Ferrari crashes into apartment building in Hyderabad Jubilee Hills

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Hyderabad, July 12: A speeding Ferrari car crashed into the gate of an apartment building in Hyderabad’s Jubilee Hills area in the early hours of Sunday. There were no casualties, said officials.

The incident occurred on Road Number 5 in the upscale Jubilee Hills under the Film Nagar Police Station limits.

The occupants abandoned the heavily damaged Ferrari Roma, said to be worth more than Rs 3.50 crore, and fled before police arrived at the scene.

The gate of Fort View Apartments was completely damaged in the collision. The front portion of the luxury car was badly mangled.

The man driving the vehicle escaped after the accident. Police suspect that the person at the wheel was under the influence of alcohol and driving the vehicle at a high speed and in a rash manner.

Police registered a case and launched an investigation into the person who was driving the vehicle at the time of the accident. Police were examining the CCTV footage to ascertain if there were other persons in the vehicle.

Police shifted the damaged Ferrari to the police station with the help of a towing vehicle.

This is the second such incident in Jubilee Hills in less than a week. An SUV had crashed into Tollywood actor Dharma’s residence on the night of July 9.

A man who was under the influence of alcohol had rammed the SUV into the residence of Dharma on Road Number 10. The compound wall of the actor’s house was damaged in the incident.

The accused was identified as Karthik Kumar, who drove the SUV in a rash and negligent manner before losing control and ramming into Dharma’s house. Luckily, there were no casualties.

The actor alerted the police, who rushed to the spot and arrested the accused. A breathalyser test confirmed that the accused was drunk while driving the SUV.

Police registered a criminal case against Kartik Kumar and launched further investigation.

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National News

4.5 magnitude earthquake in Bay of Bengal triggers tremors in Visakhapatnam

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Visakhapatnam, July 12: A 4.5 magnitude earthquake in the Bay of Bengal triggered tremors in parts of Visakhapatnam and adjoining districts of Andhra Pradesh on Sunday.

Some areas in the coastal city of Visakhapatnam were jolted by the tremors around 5.05 a.m.

The tremors were felt in Gajuwaka, Mangalapalem, Sagar Nagar, Pedda Waltair, Arilova, MVP colony, Appughar and other areas.

According to the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS), a mild earthquake measuring 4.5 on the Richter scale occurred in the Bay of Bengal early on Sunday, and mild tremors were felt in several parts of Visakhapatnam city.

National Center for Sesimology said the earthquake occurred at 5:05:46 a.m. IST at a depth of 10 km, with its epicentre located about 225 km off the Kakinada coast in the Bay of Bengal. The epicentre was located at latitude 16.805 degrees N and longitude 84.381 degrees E.

No casualties, property damage or any other loss have been reported due to the earthquake.

There are reports of tremors being felt in parts of Anakapalli, Vizianagaram, Kakinada and Konaseema districts.

Experts described it as a shallow earthquake. They said there was no need for people to be worried as the tremors were mild due to structural adjustments. They pointed out that the region is considered tectonically stable.

In November last year, Visakhapatnam and Alluri Sitharamaraju districts were jolted by a mild earthquake.

An earthquake of magnitude 3.7 had struck the Alluri district in north coastal Andhra on November 4, 2015. The tremors triggered panic among residents in some areas. People ran out of their houses on hearing a loud sound. However, there were no casualties or any other damage. According to the National Center of Seismology, the epicentre of the earthquake was at G. Madugula in Alluri Sitharamaraju district at a depth of 10 km. The epicentre was 110 km from the port city of Visakhapatnam.

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