Left, Right & Centre

As Prime Minister Narendra Modi gears up for his power-packed visit to France where he will not only be the Chief Guest at the Bastille Day parade, but also sign some key defence deals, here is a look ahead on what to expect from his visit.

In a major shock to the gaming industry, the GST council has decided to levy a 28% indirect tax on online gaming, casinos and horse racing. The All India Gaming Federation, which represents companies like Nazara, GamesKraft, Zupee and Winzo, has called the council's move as irrational, and egregious - leading to the question, has the fledgling gaming industry in India been dealt a fatal blow?

As North India reels from the aftermath of the monsoon fury that wreaked havoc across many states, there seems to be some respite for Himachal Pradesh, which was worst-hit by the rain, but now, dark clouds are hovering over Uttarakhand, for which the next 48 hours are critical. On Left, Right & Centre, we assess the damage done by this freak weather, and the human cost paid by the residents of the worst-hit areas.

 

Heavy rain has put life on hold in several parts of North India today. National highways are blocked due to landslides in Himachal and J&K, roads are waterlogged in Delhi-NCR, Mohali, Chandigarh. This once again has put the focus back on the crumbling infrastructure and lack of planning.

PM Modi is set to visit Fance next week as India and France mark 25 years of their Strategic Partnership. The two countries entered Strategic Partnership in 1998 reflecting a convergence of views on international issues apart from a close and growing bilateral relationship. The areas of cooperation have largely been defence, space, civil nuclear cooperation and coming together on climate agenda.

The NCP national executive meet held by Sharad Pawar has drawn a sharp response from the Ajit Pawar faction. The rebel camp said the meeting had "no legal sanctity". Sharad Pawar has also written to the election body, objecting to Ajit Pawar's claim to the party symbol. Who will win the battle in the Election Commission's court?

Meta has launched Threads, an app designed as a direct rival to Twitter, ramping the rivalry between billionaires Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk. On Threads, people can post text and links and reply to or repost messages from others. It is the biggest challenger yet to Elon Musk-owned Twitter. Can it kill the blue bird?

It now turns out that the rebel faction of the Nationalist Congress Party removed Sharad Pawar from the top post of the party he founded and led for over two decades, just two days before their mutiny. Ajit Pawar was elected the party chief by around 40 MLAs, MLCs and MPs -- a step calculated to negate any legal hurdle -- the Election Commission has been informed. Has Sharad Pawar been outplayed by his nephew Ajit?

 

In India, there are countless citizens who will not live as long as they normally would because of the impact of air pollution. Is there finally some hope?  The good news is that, yes, there is.

Ajit Pawar has claimed the support of 40 of the 53 MLAs of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) after splitting from his uncle Sharad Pawar and joining the Maharashtra government, but two days after he was sworn in with eight MLAs, it is not clear which faction is bigger. But amid this muddle, what will happen to an already fractured opposition unity ahead of 2024?