CWC Meet Row, 2024 Lok Sabha Polls Rigging Charge and BJP Rebuttal

The Business Today Show reviews volatile market activity as benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty rebounded from intraday lows following a severe sell-off. Key corporate developments, including declines in Tata Group shares following merger proposals and crude oil supply concerns, impacted market sentiment. The Supreme Court questioned excessive pricing of essential medicines at corporate hospitals, noting huge markups between retailer prices and bills presented to patients, seeking a uniform sixteen percent cap. Meanwhile, India explores alternative Westbound flight paths involving China and Bhutan to circumvent Pakistan's airspace ban. ONGC Videsh prepares to resume operations in Venezuela's San Cristobal field, subject to gazette notification. Market analysts Sharad Bassi and Dinshaw Irani provided perspectives on market valuations, crude movements, and investment strategies ahead of the festive season.

In villages of Shravasti’s Jamunaha block, Anganwadi centres are becoming spaces where early learning, nutrition and childcare come together. At Kori Purwa, the day begins at 8 am, with children learning letters, calendar concepts, seasonal information and basic hygiene through songs, activities and play. Assistant worker Sarla Devi said the centre now has basic facilities, including chairs, books and learning kits. At Khalifatpur, Anganwadi worker Gauri Devi said 56 children attend the centre, where colours and games are used to make learning easier. “From 8 am to 12 noon, we have to teach the children. From 12 to 1, we maintain the registers,” she said. For workers, the job continues after the children leave. Shalini Arya said afternoons are spent on home visits, registers and entries on the Poshan Tracker app, including face-based verification during supplementary nutrition distribution. Workers say improved facilities, painting and higher honorariums have also brought visible changes to the centres.

Trouble emerges for the Congress and the unity of the INDIA bloc as the DMK is set to skip the opposition alliance meeting scheduled for tomorrow. The Congress had invited the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam to the meeting to seek the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. However, the DMK has reiterated that it is no longer part of the alliance after the Congress backed the TVK in Tamil Nadu following the elections, turning down the invitation to participate in the gathering.

The Bharatiya Janata Party mounted a counterattack against Rahul Gandhi and the Congress over their repeated allegations of vote chori. The BJP labelled the narrative a planned conspiracy aimed at deflecting attention from the opposition party's repeated electoral defeats. Following discussions after a Congress Working Committee meeting, Congress and key opposition parties, including the Trinamool Congress and Samajwadi Party, raised concerns over the Special Intensive Revision process, alleging that voter deletions were being conducted disproportionately across states. The opposition highlighted issues such as demolished homes in Delhi where voter registrations were reportedly excluded. Countering the charges, the BJP pointed out past instances, such as the 2018 claims in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, arguing that the Congress routinely questions the Election Commission and Electronic Voting Machines upon losing elections, while ignoring the same processes whenever victorious.