Red Fort blast: 8 dead, Delhi on high alert after explosion in car
At least eight people have died in an explosion that took place in a car near Delhi’s Red Fort on Monday evening. Several other vehicles also caught fire and sustained damage in the explosion. The Delhi Fire Services said the blast occurred near the Lal Qila Metro Station Gate No 1. The Delhi Fire Services received a call regarding the explosion, near the Lal Qila Metro Station Gate No. 1, around 7 pm. The area was cordoned off following the explosion. A local shopkeeper who was present near the site of the explosion, which took place near the Red Fort, said he had never heard “such a loud explosion” in his life. “I fell three times due to the explosion. It felt as if we were all going to die…” he told news agency. At least one person has died in the explosion which took place in a car near the Red Fort on Monday evening. Following the explosion, seven fire tenders were rushed to the spot, according to an official. The area was cordoned off following the explosion. The blast took place in a car near the Lal Qila Metro Station gate 1, also leading to a blaze in vehicles parked nearby. Seven fire tenders were rushed to the spot.
“Bihar CM Nitish Kumar a ‘necessity’ for state, is also case study in political longevity”: Chirag Paswan
Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) chief Chirag Paswan on Monday described Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar as a “necessity” for the state, calling him a case study in political longevity despite challenges. Paswan said, “As a Political Science student, I would say that Nitish ji is a necessity, and I am saying this in a positive way. When I say that I am a student of politics, this is another case study. It would be very useful for my future if I could understand how you have remained in power for two decades despite all the highs and lows. You know, anti-incumbency is not seen against him today.”The Union Minister asserted that there is no anti-incumbency wave against Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, attributing it to welfare schemes and public empathy towards the veteran leader’s health.”There is no anti-incumbency. I am saying this very honestly. I am saying this because, in 2020, I experienced that there were still complaints–this didn’t happen, that didn’t happen. But either because of welfare schemes or because of targeting Chief Minister Nitish Kumar ji personally… even the memes that were made. I mean, as far as his health is concerned, if you talk about the health of an elderly person, then we connect emotionally with them, just like when there is an elderly person in our family. In this way, the more people target him by saying he is in a state of unconsciousness, the more I see people connect with him. People say, look, he is fighting even then–and which is true also,” he added. Paswan further contrasted CM Nitish Kumar’s campaign energy with RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, questioning the latter’s fitness and alertness. “When Tejashwi did not even leave the house and completed the negotiations, I saw that Chief Minister Nitish was busy campaigning. So now you tell me who is more fit and more alert health-wise,” he said. Chirag Paswan expressed that his relations with Nitish Kumar are excellent, highlighting that Kumar visited his home on Chhath to partake in Kharna Prasad. Paswan emphasised that such a gesture signifies positive ties, stating that if the relationship were not good, Kumar wouldn’t have joined him for the occasion. “Our relations are very good. He came to my house on the day of Chhath to eat Kharna Prasad. If the relations were not good, then why would he come to eat Kharna Prasad? And if he comes, if he wants to give the message, then it means that the relations are good,” he said. Chirag said he and the Bihar CM made sincere efforts to act as a unifying force and held prolonged closed-door discussions. He described the CM as calm, composed, a man of few words but strong in expression, and one who clearly conveyed his points. “So I and the Chief Minister made an honest effort to become a cementing force. We gave each other some time. We had long discussions in a closed room. He is calm and composed. He is a man of few words, yet his words are very strong. He communicated his message very clearly. He is much older than me in age. And my values don’t say that I should give an answer or argue with them,” he said. In the second phase of the 2025 assembly polls, the NDA will face a major challenge in maintaining its dominance, particularly in its northern Bihar strongholds, including East Champaran, West Champaran, Sheohar, and Sitamarhi districts, where the ruling alliance currently holds sway over 30 assembly seats. The phase will also decide the fate of 12 ministers from Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s cabinet. Among them are JD(U) leaders Vijendra Yadav (contesting from Supaul assembly constituency), Lesi Singh (Dhamdaha), Jayant Kushwaha (Amarpur), Sumit Singh (Chakai), Mohammad Jama Khan (Chainpur), and Sheela Mandal (Phoolparas). Key ministers from the BJP in the fray include Prem Kumar (Gaya Town), Renu Devi (Bettiah), Vijay Kumar Mandal (Sikati), Nitish Mishra (Jhanjharpur), Neeraj Bablu (Chhatapur), and Krishnanandan Paswan (Harsiddhi).
Top BBC bosses resign after criticism of the broadcaster’s editing of a Trump speech
The head of the BBC and the British broadcaster’s top news executive both resigned Sunday after criticism of the way the organization edited a speech by U.S. President Donald Trump. The BBC said Director-General Tim Davie and news CEO Deborah Turness had both decided to leave the corporation. Britain’s publicly funded national broadcaster has been criticized for editing a speech Trump made on Jan. 6, 2021, before protesters attacked the Capitol in Washington. Critics said the way the speech was edited for a BBC documentary last year was misleading and cut out a section where Trump said he wanted supporters to demonstrate peacefully. A clip of the BBC “Panorama” episode shared by The Daily Telegraph appears to show different parts of Trump’s speech edited into one quote. In the episode, Trump is shown saying: “We’re going to walk down to the Capitol and I’ll be there with you. And we fight. We fight like hell.”According to video and a transcript from Trump’s comments that day, he said: “We’re going to walk down to the Capitol, and we’re going to cheer on our brave senators and congressmen and women, and we’re probably not going to be cheering so much for some of them.“Because you’ll never take back our country with weakness. You have to show strength and you have to be strong. We have come to demand that Congress do the right thing and only count the electors who have been lawfully slated, lawfully slated. “I know that everyone here will soon be marching over to the Capitol building to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard.” Nearly an hour later, Trump used the phrase “we fight like hell” toward the end of his speech, but without referencing the Capitol. “We fight like hell. And if you don’t fight like hell, you’re not going to have a country anymore,” Trump said then. In a letter to staff, Davie said quitting the job after five years “is entirely my decision.”
