Author: Tirthankar Mitra
Legendary Hollywood actress Eva Marie Saint, who won an Academy Award for her film debut opposite Marlon Brando in ‘On the Waterfront’ and dazzled as Cary Grant’s co-star in Hitchcock’s ‘North by Northwest’, has died at the age of 102. Renowned for prioritizing her family over studio contracts while delivering intense, critically acclaimed dramatic performances, Saint remained one of the final living bridges to cinema’s Golden Age.
Simmering resentment has surfaced within the West Bengal BJP following the nomination of former Trinamool Congress MP and actor Koel Mallick for the upcoming Rajya Sabha by-election. Accompanied by Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari and state president Samik Bhattacharya during her filing, Mallick’s swift induction has faced fierce pushback from party old-timers who label her a political opportunist, even as the state leadership justifies the choice on the grounds of legislative realpolitik and Upper House strength.
British author, former Conservative politician, and peer Jeffrey Archer has died at the age of 86. A master of personal reinvention whose real-life trajectory traversed parliamentary prominence, catastrophic bankruptcy, global bestseller fame, and a sensational perjury conviction, Archer penned international blockbusters including ‘Kane and Abel’ and sold over 300 million books worldwide before passing away on the eve of the publication of his final novel.
A major boardroom battle has surfaced at the Tata Group after the Tata Sons board approved a five-year extension for Executive Chairman N Chandrasekaran and initiated public listing steps over the objections of Tata Trusts Chairman Noel Tata. With the Trusts citing Article 121 to brand the reappointment a legal nullity and conflicting visions emerging over compliance with the RBI’s Core Investment Company framework, India’s largest conglomerate faces a delicate governance and ownership test at Bombay House.
Following its assembly victory in West Bengal, the BJP has rolled out a major youth engagement initiative titled ‘Yuba Bharat Sankalp’, led by party National President Nitin Nabin and Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari. Addressing 500 young professionals from law, management, and research in Kolkata, Nabin advocated for syllabus reforms emphasizing culture and sports while opening direct administrative dialogue channels to consolidate youth support.
The upcoming October 6 by-elections in Nandigram and Rejinagar have turned into a crucial referendum on Bengal’s political ground reality. While the BJP seeks to consolidate its hold, the contest between Mamata Banerjee’s loyalists and Ritabrata Banerjee’s dissident bloc will decide who commands actual public support as the state’s true opposition voice.
The Suvendu Adhikari-led BJP government is preparing to overhaul the nomenclature of Kolkata’s iconic thoroughfares, targeting Lenin Sarani, Karl Marx Sarani, and Ho Chi Minh Sarani. With a high-level committee set to table recommendations in the Assembly after Durga Puja, the initiative marks a significant ideological realignment across the city’s public landscape.
The Rajasthan urban civic poll results revealed a divided electorate on Monday as the BJP won 86 municipal bodies and the Congress secured 46, leaving 177 councils hung. While the BJP dominated Jaipur, Udaipur, and Kota, the Congress staged historic upsets in Ajmer and Jhalawar, significantly narrowing the electoral gap across urban centers.
The West Bengal Assembly’s passage of the University Administration Amendment Bill grants the state unchecked powers to transfer college and university staff. While pitched as a reform to aid newer institutions, the move strikes at the core of campus autonomy, raising fears that punitive transfers will be used to silence critical academic voices.
A hundred days into Suvendu Adhikari’s tenure as West Bengal Chief Minister, the BJP government displays an ambitious industrial agenda alongside worrying governance instincts. As cultural confrontations and early extortion charges surface, the administration faces a critical test of economic delivery ahead of crucial civic elections.