COIMBATORE l tuesday l october 27, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 14 l LATE CITY EDITION Lula’s victory in Brazil bucks a regional shift to the right Brazil’s leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva was re-elected against all expectations on Sunday, beating his rival Flavio Bolsonaro a clear victory of democracy: eu chief serbia stunner: student movement wins Lula’s dramatic comeback meant Brazil had not followed Argentina, Chile, Colombia and Peru, all backed by US President Donald Trump, in swinging to the right. Official data showed he won 51.8 per cent of the votes against Flavio Bolsonaro’s 48.2 per cent, with Lula bagging 4.4 million more votes. EU chief Ursula von der Leyen hailed it as a ‘victory of democracy’ | P11 ■ ■ In a historic change of government, Serbia’s populist strongman Aleksandar Vucic (pic left) conceded defeat to a grassroots movement of univ students who led protests for almost two years Serbia’s popular student movement grew out of anger at Vucic since 16 people were killed in 2024 at a train station in Novi Sad 14-year long authoritarian reign of serbia’s vucic ended on sunday 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 All SIR decisions Digital publishers challenge privacy law in SC unanimous, says EC affidavit in SC S U C H I T R A K A LYA N M O H A N T Y @ New Delhi Poll commission reiterates Form 6 was not amended, declaration is separate document S U C H I T R A K A LYA N M O H A N T Y @ New Delhi Days ahead of the INDIA bloc’s rally against alleged poll irregularities, the Election Commission of India told the Supreme Court that all its orders on the controversial Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls were unanimous decisions of the full commission. In its counter affidavit, the ECI said the plea against the Chief Election Commissioner based on a single news report is not maintainable. It also told the bench that Form 6 had not been amended, adding unmapped voters need not attend hearings. The court is expected to hear the batch of pleas on Tuesday . The ECI asserted that all three SIR orders — issued in June 2025, October 2025 and May 2026 — were unanimous. “The notes, queries or suggestions recorded by the CEC or Election Commissioners while a file is under process do not constitute decisions of the Commission,” it said. The EC said files move from one Election Commissioner to the other and then to the CEC. In urgent cases, electronic approvals are obtained and later recorded on physical files, it said. The EC said a July 28 work allocation order was issued by an additional secretary on deputation and both poll commissioners wrote to the Cabinet Secretary about it the next day On their . joint direction on July 30, the order was not implemented. On the charge that Form 6 was altered without statutory approval, the EC claimed it was not amended as the declaration required under SIR was a separate document. While admitting the online display could be read as an amendment, the ECI said, from October 21, the online application would be split into Form 6 and separate declaration, mirroring the physical form. Unmapped voters need not attend hearings, the ECI said, stating that Booth Level Officers will collect documents from their homes, with hearings restricted to exceptional cases and preferably held online. On ECINet centralisation, it said no name can be added/deleted except by an order of the Electoral Registration Officer. Response to Goa case ECI said that of the 97 voters described by media as “left out” in Goa, 88 had already been enrolled, six were abroad, and three had Portuguese passports twenty-one digital news publishers—including NDTV and Network18— have knocked the doors of the Supreme Court to challenge the Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDP Act), arguing that the law would cripple investigative journalism and expose sources. The petitioner, Digital News Publishers Association (DNPA), has challenged sever- al provisions of the Act, citing their potential impact on journalism. The New Indian Express is a member of DNPA. A bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant will hear the matter on Tuesday, the cause list on the Supreme Court website showed. According to Reuters, the 698-page plea was filed on October 6. The DPDP Act, also known as the privacy law, was enacted in 2023 while the rules to implement it (DPDP Rules, 2025) DNPA seeks safeguards for journalists According to a Reuters report, media companies received assurances in an August meeting with the government that the law would protect press freedom; but not having a written carve-out for journalists like in the European Union, Singapore and the UK is alarming, the DNPA said in its petition were notified in November last year. The Act seeks to protect the digital personal data of users, raising compliance requirements for IT behemoths such as Meta and Google. The publishers argue the law will affect press freedom because media outlets are not explicitly exempt from the law. They point out that the legislation, which seeks to protect individuals’ digital personal information, does not provide specific exemptions for journalistic activities. Govt green light to pure Ex-min held in `100-cr school scam ethanol flex-fuel cars hrs after HC rejects anticipatory bail a n b il ma h es h i n d o ck Par v e z S ultan @ New Delhi EX P R E S S N EW S S E R V I C E @ Chennai Notes, queries or suggestions recorded by the CEC or Election Commissioners while file is under process do not constitute ECI’s decisions EC’s affidavit On Bengal appeals In West Bengal, appeals against inclusion of voters were filed by officers under the CEO based on earlier SC orders and weren’t brought to ECI’s notice, it claimed Prominent DMK leader and former School Education Minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi was arrested by the Greater Chennai Police (GCP) on Monday hours after , the Madras High Court dismissed his anticipatory bail petition in the alleged `100 crore scam in issuing recognition and other statutory clearances for private schools in the state. Calling the arrest an attempt to divert public attention from the deteriorating law and order situation and administrative failures, DMK president MK Stalin accused the TVK government of political vendetta. The Central Crime Branch (CCB) of the GCP secured Anbil Mahesh as he was leaving his advocate’s office in Aminjikarai. He was taken to the Chennai Police Commissioner’s office in Vepery for an inquiry that lasted nearly three hours. Tension prevailed outside the commissioner’s office Police escorting Anbil Mahesh to Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital for medical checkup on Monday | P Jawahar as Anbil Mahesh’s supporters and a few lawyers argued with the police, demanding entry for the lawyers to meet him, and threatened to stage a road blockade. “All the points presented by the government against my anticipatory bail plea were just stories. I’m sure they cannot prove it. We will deal with everything le g ally,” the former minister told reporters as the police escorted him to the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital for a medical checkup before send- ing him for remand. Anbil Mahesh said that he had consistently offered cooperation to the police. “I appeared for an inquiry on September 18 that went on for nearly eight hours. On Monday, as soon as the anticipatory bail was rejected, the police arrested me in a hurry,” he said. In a post online, Stalin said Anbil Mahesh would legally fight the charges and asserted that the government’s attempt to quell public anger through such arrests would fail.  P7 The ministry of road transport and highway on Monday notified amendments to the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, allowing flex-fuel vehicles that can run on up to E100 — nearly 100% ethanol. According to the ministry officials, fuel beyond E20 (20% ethanol-blended petrol) and up to E100 is intended only for vehicles designed and certified to use and will not be applicable for other vehicles. Vehicles that use E20 or normal fuel can’t use E85 or E100 fuel. The ministry also changed certain vehicle classification thresholds, fuel specifications, and technical references used in emission-related tables and testing provisions. Additionally, it raised the vehicle weight limit to 3,500 kg from the previous threshold of 3,000 kg for light petrol and diesel vehicles affected by these changes. E100 usually contains around 93-95% ethanol, 5-7% petrol, and additives. “A vehicle’s compatibility with E10 or E20 alone does not establish suitability for E85. This notification does not require owners of existing vehicles to switch to E85 or modify their vehicles either at Builders violating contracts cannot be sued after 3 yrs: Tribunal in RERA case E x pr e ss N e w s S e r v ic e @ Chennai centre clears defence buy worth `2.12 lakh cr India on Monday cleared procurement of a range of military platforms and weapon systems including light multi-role helicopters, long-range Kamikaze drones and radars | P9 In a verdict that can have a significant impact on the interests of homebuyers, the Tamil Nadu Real Estate Appellate Tribunal (TNREAT) has held that homebuyers pursuing compensation claims before TNRERA from builders for violation of contractual obligations cannot file complaints beyond the limitation period of three years from the date of proposed completion of projects even if the actual handing over of the projects gets delayed beyond the agreed date. Limitation covers RERA Ruling that the Limitation Act, 1963, applies to TNRERA, the tribunal held that homebuyers should file claims for compensation for breach of contractual promises by builders within the statutory limitation period of three years. Dismissing an appeal filed by two homebuyers against Tata Value Homes Limited over alleged deficiencies in their apartment at a project in Kuthambakkam, the tribunal upheld an earlier Tamil Nadu Real Estate Regulatory Author- ity (TNRERA) order dated December 24, 2025, which had dismissed their complaint. The tribunal observed that TNRERA and the appellate tribunal are judicial forums vested with the powers of a civil court and Section 3 of the Limitation Act mandates dismissal of proceedings instituted after the prescribed period, even when limitation has not been raised as a defence. The tribunal rejected the appellants’ contention that the delay in handover of possession constituted a continuing cause of action that could extend the limitation period.  P7 Won’t interfere in post-poll politics, says SC @ New Delhi The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a plea seeking disqualification of six AIADMK MLAs who had voted against the party whip and then voluntarily resigned to join the ruling Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK). “Somebody resigns and becomes minister; it’s part of the political process. Sorry We are . not passing any order on the plea,” said a bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana, who rejected the petition filed by M Srinivasan. The petitioner sought directions to the CBI to register an FIR against TVK general secretary N Anand and former AIADMK legislators K Maragatham Kumaravel, S Jayakumar, P Sathyabama, and Esakki Subaya, for allegedly indulging in horse trading to prove a majority in the TN Assembly . The petitioner argued that ‘Switching party is a political process’ When the petitioner argued MLAs resigned to circumvent anti-defection law, the court said resignation ends House membership, and joining another party is a political decision in a democracy. this was a calculated move to circumvent the anti-defection law and that the Speaker should not have accepted their resignations but should have pro- ceeded with the disqualification. It sought a direction to declare their action illegal and to disqualify them from contesting future elections. The bench, however, held that since the MLAs resigned voluntarily and did not continue as members after violating the whip, the rigours of the Tenth Schedule would not apply in the same manner. It noted that resignation ends membership of the House, and the subsequent joining of another party is a political decision in a democracy  . P7 Maruti first off the block In June, Maruti Suzuki India launched Wagon R Flex Fuel capable of running on ethanolpetrol blends from E20 to E100. Others, including Toyota Motor, Tata Motors, and Hyundai Motor, are also developing flex-fuel vehicles for the Indian market present or in the future. Motorists should check the fuel compatibility sticker on their vehicle and follow the manufacturer’s guidance in the owner’s manual while opting for the fuel choice at the fuel station,” said ministry officials. In Brazil, vehicles are optimised to run on any blend from E20–E25 up to E100. Nearly all new light vehicles and several bikes there have flex-fuel engines. Other countries with flex-fuel vehicles are the US, Canada and some in Europe. Rahul acquitted in defamation case related to Amit Shah namita ba j pai @ Lucknow A I A D M K M L as case S U C H I T R A K A LYA N M O H A N T Y A big concern for publishers is the need to obtain consent from those whose data will be part of a story. According to the petitioners, ​ ocial media s outlets can seek ​ onsent from c users when they sign up, but requiring a journalist to notify the subject of an investigation and seek consent “would allow that subject to destroy evidence, intimidate witnesses”. The law also lets people withdraw consent and demand that their data be erased. This could force publishers to withdraw news reports. capital conundrum Morning walkers navigate a blanket of haze and smog at Vijay Chowk in New Delhi on Monday. The city is beginning to record a dip in air quality | Sayantan ghosh E x p ress R ea d CB-CID takes over Class 11 student suicide case Coimbatore: The six-day protest demanding the arrest of teachers in connection with the suicide of Class 11 student A Akilan due to alleged caste discrimination ended on Monday, after the case was transferred to the CB-CID for probe from the Coimbatore city police | P6 ‘Tired of this’: SC on TN govt’s delay in riot aid case New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday criticised the Tamil Nadu government for dragging its feet on paying compensation for property and business losses suffered during a communal riot in 1996 in Thoothukudi. “So tired of this matter, I think I will carry this through my demitting the office,” Justice Bhatti remarked | P7 A special MP/MLA court in UP’s Sultanpur on Monday acquitted Congress MP and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi of all charges in a criminal defamation case of 2018 related to his alleged remarks against Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Rahul appeared in person before the court of Additional C iv i l Ju d g e Shubham Verma for the pron oun c em en t of the verdict. Defence counsel Kashi Prasad Shukla confirmed the acquittal. The case dates back to May 8, 2018, when Rahul allegedly made objectionable remarks against Shah at a political rally in Bengaluru during the Karnataka Assembly elections. He allegedly referred to Shah as a “murder accused”. Vijay Mishra, then BJP district vice-president and exchairman of Sultanpur District Cooperative Bank, filed the defamation complaint against Rahul on August 4, 2018. Rahul, who secured bail in 2023, said his intention was not to defame anyone. Mishra said he will study the order and file an appeal against it.