NDA sitting pretty seats 243 Target 122 MADURAI l wednesday l november 12, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 14 l LATE CITY EDITION Polls suggest exit of Oppn aspirations PR E E T H A N AIR @ New Delhi AS the high-stakes Bihar assembly election came to a close on Tuesday, pollsters were unanimous in predicting the National Democratic Alliance’s return to power with a convincing majority If the predic. tions stand, it will be a huge setback for the Opposition’s Mahagathbandhan (grand alliance), which was trying to win the politically crucial state after a gap of 20 years. The poll of exit polls projected the NDA comprising Janata Trump says levy cut soon; India waits for US word Dal United JD (U), the BJP and the LJP(RV) , will cross the majority mark by securing 148 seats, giving the RJD-led grand alliance just 88 seats, less than the 110 seats it won in the 2020 election. The majority mark for the 243-seat assembly is 122. Election strategist Prashant Kishore’s Jan Suraaj Party which was hyped to play , a crucial role in this election, may end up with a poor showing, as per exit polls. The Bihar polls were conducted in two phases on November 6 and 11, and the results will be out on November 14. The results will also Source NDA Chanakya Strategies 130-138 A day after US President Donald Trump said that Washington is ‘pretty close’ to signing a trade deal with India, which would also pave the way for lowering tariffs on Indian goods, sources in Delhi said the trade talks have been so comprehensive that another round of negotiations may not be necessary . Commerce ministry officials said New Delhi is awaiting a response from Washington on the bilateral trade agreement talks. “They (US) h ave t o g e t back to us. India’s negotiations have been the most comprehensive and WTO-compliant as com pared to any US President Donald Trump other country. Ne gotiations have been done cautiously and carefully keeping the sensitive , sectors in mind.” The ministry’s update came a day after Trump said the deal would soon be sealed, which would enhance the bilateral relations, boost US energy exports and promote investments in key US sectors. According to US media reports, Trump also signalled that the tariffs on Indian goods would be lowered. “The tariffs on India are really high because of the Russian oil [imports], but they have now substantially reduced Russian oil [imports], so we will be bringing the tariffs down,” Trump was quoted as saying. Meanwhile, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said that while India wants a fair trade deal with the US, it won’t compromise on the interests of farmers and the dairy sector. 100-108 0-0  3-5 145-160 73-91 0-3  5-7 DV Research 137-152 83-98 2-4  1-8 JVC 135-150 88-103 0-1  3-6 Matrize 147-167 70-90 0-2  2-8 P-Marq 142-162 80-98 1-4  0-3 Peoples Insight 133-148 87-102 0-2  3-6 TIF Research 145-163 76-95 0  3-6 Peoples Pulse 133-159 75-101 0-5  2-8 148 90 1 5 Poll of Polls CHENNAI ■ MADURAI ■ VIJAYAWADA BENGALURU ■ KOCHI ■ HYDERABAD ■ VISAKHAPATNAM ■ COIMBATORE ■ KOZHIKODE ■ THIRUVANANTHAPURAM ■ BELAGAVI ■ BHUBANESWAR ■ SHIVAMOgGA ■ MANGALURU ■ TIRUPATI ■ TIRUCHY ■ TIRUNELVELI ■ SAMBALPUR ■ HUBBALLI ■ DHARMAPURI ■ KOTTAYAM ■ KANNUR ■ VILLUPURAM ■ KOLLAM ■ TADEPALLIGUDEM ■ NAGAPATTINAM ■ THRISSUR ■ KALABURAGI ■ ■ set the tone for the upcoming assembly elections in Kerala, West Bengal and Tamil Nadu next year as the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter rolls has already begun in these states. Bihar is the first state to go to polls after the SIR exercise. Exit poll projections are made by election survey agencies based on interviews of voters as they come out after casting their votes. These may vary widely from the actual results. Illustration: sourav roy l Intercepted letter from Nowgam proves key link l Suspects may be ‘linked’ to Faridabad terror module: l Jaish hand evident, say officials Blast probe handed over to NIA Umar Mohammad Nabi, Pulwama doctor in the photo: pti M u k e s h R a n j a n , F aya z W a n i & N a m i ta B a j pa i THE investigation into the deadly car blast near Delhi’s Red Fort on November 10 that killed 12 people was on Tuesday formally handed over to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), following high-level security meetings chaired by home minister Amit Shah. Security agencies, working in coordination with state police across J&K, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh, launched extensive search operations on Tuesday and found multiple leads linked to the banned Pakistanbased Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) terror outfit. Preliminary investigations revealed incriminating JeM internal communications that suggest ‘revenge’ as the motive for internal disloyalty. An intercepted letter recovered in J&K’s Nowgam, believed to have originated from the Pakistan-based outfit, threatens punishment for ‘betrayals’ within JeM, exhibiting rhetoric consistent with earlier internal directives. Senior intelligence officials suggest that factional pressure and infighting within JeM could have precipitated the Delhi blast, following counter-insurgency activity in Kashmir. Umar Mohammad Nabi Car track Charred remains of vehicles on Tuesday, following the deadly blast near Red Fort Metro Station the previous night that killed 12 people in New Delhi; and a forensic official collects samples from the site a day after the explosion | Shekhar yadav The police registered a case headlined ‘bomb blast’ invoking sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and the Explosive Substances Act, after forensics teams began analysing specimens from the site and vehicle to match those from the deceased. Investigators are scrutinising CCTV footage and digital devices and matching DNA samples to ascertain the identity of the car’s occupants. Early findings indicate the use of ammonium nitrate and fuel oil as the explosive material, and a possible operational link to the Faridabad module, from which Booker Prize to Hungarian-British author David Szalay Szalay’s novel Flesh won the prize (£50,000 and a trophy), beating Indian author Kiran Desai’s The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Chennai 350 kg of explosives and a cache of weapons were seized. Several individuals associated with the accused doctors from Kashmir, notably Dr Umar Nabi and Dr Muzammil Ganaie and Dr Adeel Ahmed, have been detained for questioning in coordinated raids in Pulwama, Srinagar, Faridabad, and parts of western Uttar Pradesh. In UP ATS teams car, ried out raids in Saharanpur, Lucknow and Muzaffarnagar, detaining individuals connected to the JeM module. In Srinagar, at least eight persons including father, mother and two brothers of Dr Umar Nabi, who is suspected of driving the car that exploded,were detained. Security has been ramped up at sensitive locations, including Ayodhya. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, currently in Thimpu on an official visit, said: “The conspirators will not be spared.” India hit out at Pakistan for attempting to link New Delhi to the terrorist attack in Islamabad on Tuesday, calling the charge “baseless, unfounded, and a predictable tactic.” Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif alleged India’s role in a suicide bombing that killed 12 people in Islamabad. Two guards at TN temple murdered, hundi cash looted H a r i n i M @ Virudhunagar Two security guards of an ancient temple managed by the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) Department at Devadhanam near Rajapalayam were murdered by an unknown gang in the intervening night of Monday and Tuesday to loot cash from the shrine’s hundial, police said. Police sources said only a few thousands of rupees could have been stolen from the Nachadai Thavirtharuliya Swami Temple as the HR&CE had cleared the hundial collection during a recent festival. Eight CCTV cameras were installed in and around the temple, but the assailants had taken away the Digital Video Recorder (DVR) connected to them. Gold ornaments used for adorning the deities were not stored at the temple, police said. The deceased were identified as security guards R Pechi Muthu (50) and S Sankara Pandian (65), both local residents. P5 e x pr e s s r e a d Members of the DMK and its allies stage protest on Sivananda Salai, Chennai, demanding the ECI to stop the hasty SIR exercise in Tamil Nadu | P Ravikumar SC seeks EC’s reply on DMK plea New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday sought separate responses from the EC on pleas filed by DMK, CPM, West Bengal Congress and Trinamool Congress leaders challenging the SIR of the electoral rolls in TN and West Bengal respectively A bench of Justices . Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi asked the poll panel to middle of the ‘car bomb’ N i t i n R a w at @ New Delhi DMK & allies hit street against SIR, CM says it takes away right to vote Chief Minister MK Stalin on Tuesday said preventing the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls being carried out by Election Commission of India (ECI) is a huge responsibility as it takes away “the right to vote, which is a basic feature of democracy”. The DMK chief, in a social media post, said the party is fighting a legal battle against the exercise, and has simultaneously set up “war room and helpline” to prevent goof-ups during its implementation. On Tuesday members of the , Secular Progressive Alliance led by the ruling DMK staged protests across TN, urging the ECI to halt the exercise. Pointing to the huge turnout in the protests, Stalin said, “Let us continue to work and protect our people’s right to vote.” Senior leaders, including T R Baalu (DMK), K Selvaperunthagai (Congress), P Shanmugam (CPI-M) Vaiko (MDMK), and Thol Thirumavalavan (VCK) took part in the demonstrations held at various places.  P5 JSP OTH Dainik Bhaskar @ New Delhi/Srinagar/Lucknow P U S H PI TA D E Y @ New Delhi MGB respond to the petitions in two weeks. The court also asked the Madras and Calcutta HCs to keep in abeyance any proceedings on petitions challenging the SIR exercise in TN and West Bengal. It also allowed the listing of an intervention application filed by the AIADMK in support of the SIR in Tamil Nadu. P5 80 LPG cylinders explode as truck overturns on NH in Ariyalur Ariyalur: About 80 LPG cylinders exploded on Tuesday after a truck carrying them overturned on Attur-Thanjavur NH after the driver lost control. The driver suffered injuries, but no casualty was reported | P4 Submit SOP for holding political events by Nov 20: HC to TN govt Chennai: Madras HC on Tuesday directed the state to submit SOP for holding public events by parties by November 20. The SOP’s aim is to prevent incidents like Karur tragedy, and not restrict political events, HC said | P4 Umar’s i20 first spotted outside Asian hospital in Faridabad around 7.30 am on Monday Car entered Delhi after crossing the Badarpur toll plaza at 8.13 am Seen near a petrol pump in the Okhla Industrial Area at 8.20 am At 3.19 pm, car entered parking lot near the Red Fort complex, stayed there for 3 hrs Exited at 6.22 pm, drove toward Red Fort; blast at 6.52 pm A day after the Red Fort blast, which killed 12 people and injured more than 20, investigators are focusing on Umar Mohammad Nabi, a Pulwama-born medical professional suspected to have been behind the wheel of the white Hyundai i20 that exploded near Gate No. 1 of the Lal Qila Metro Station. According to officials familiar with the probe, Umar is suspected to have links with the radicalised white-collar module busted in Faridabad, in a joint operation by the J&K Police and Haryana’s Special Task Force. The operation led to the arrest of eight individuals, including three doctors, and the seizure of 2,900 kg of explosive-making material from multiple locations in Haryana. Umar, a resident of Koil village in Pulwama, was allegedly in touch with members of the same Faridabad module, according to sources. CCTV footage shows a man with a mask at the wheel of the car before the blast. Tracing the ownership of the i20 provided the breakthrough that led investigators to the Faridabad module. The car was initially registered in the name of Salman. He sold it to Devender, who later sold it to Taariq, based in Pulwama. While tracking Taariq, investigators found the white i20 was with Nabi. The police said specialised teams, including crime units, are collecting forensic evidence from the site. Raids have been carried out across the National Capital Region, with security checks in Daryaganj, Paharganj, railway stations, airports, and bus terminals. Investigators said the Pulwama-Faridabad connection is the key line of inquiry .