sambalpur l tuesday l october 27, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 14 l 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’ | P9 ■ ■ 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 Odisha readies 1.7K cyclone shelters as Arnab nears unanimous, says EC affidavit in SC E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Bhubaneswar Poll commission reiterates Form 6 was not amended, declaration is separate document S U CHI T RA K A LYA N M O HA 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 With Cyclone Arnab expected to make landfall along the Andhra Pradesh coast on October 28, the Odisha government has put its disaster management machinery on high alert and decided on a plan of need-based evacuation from vulnerable pockets. Official sources said that the focus is on low-lying and landslide-prone areas, particularly in the southern districts of Ganjam, Gajapati, Rayagada, Koraput and Malkangiri, which are likely to bear the brunt of heavy rain and gusty winds. The state government has not released an official figure on the total number of people who have been identified to be shifted to cyclone shelters. Evacuation will be carried out in a targeted manner as per local vulnerability assessment and the situation will be reviewed continuously as the system approaches the coast, sources added. However, more than 3,000 pregnant women have been identified and are likely to be shifted to safer locations ahead of the cyclone to ensure their safety and access to medical care. Schools and colleges in the five vulnerable districts have been closed on October 28–29. Special relief commissioner Rajesh Prabhakar Patil said the state has readied over 1,700 cyclone shelters, including 135 permanent shelters and around 1,600 temporary shelters in schools, commu- nity halls and other safe buildings. Rescue teams comprising ODRAF, NDRF and Fire Services personnel have been prepositioned in the southern districts. Control rooms at the state and district level are functioning round-the-clock and in constant touch with the IMD and the SRC’s office. The SRC has asked district collectors to ensure zero casualty and give priority to pregnant women, elderly persons, children and persons with disabilities during evacuation. Fishermen have been advised not to venture into the sea till the cyclone passes. The Centre also reviewed Odisha’s preparedness to deal with the cyclone. During the meeting of the National Crisis Management Committee (NCMC) presided over by the cabinet secretary TV Somanathan, chief secretary Anu Garg informed that senior officers have been deployed in the southern districts to oversee preparedness and coordinate response measures. Digital publishers challenge Govt green light to pure privacy law in Supreme Court ethanol flex-fuel cars S U CHI T RA K A LYA N M O HA N T Y @ New Delhi 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 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 several 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. 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 T he DPDP Act, also known as the privacy law, was enacted in 2023 while the rules to implement it (DPDP Rules, 2025) 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. 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. Pa r v e z Sulta n @ New Delhi 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 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. Odisha files contempt plea in SC against AP’s Kotia poll move, govt’s panel to meet today E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Bhubaneswar 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 | P7 After filing a contempt petition in the Supreme Court against Andhra Pradesh government for notifying polls in the Kotia gram panchayat, the Odisha government is set to convene a meeting of its 16-member Kotia committee on Tuesday to review the developments in the region and decide its future course of action. The meeting to be presided over by Revenue and Disaster Management minister Suresh Pujari will also discuss the progress of development works and what new initiatives can be introduced for the people of Kotia gram panchayat. Speaking to mediapersons on Monday Pujari said the state , government has filed a contempt petition against the Andhra Pradesh gover nment. “Holding panchayat election is a violation of the status quo order of the Supreme Court in a case filed by the Odisha government in 1968,” he said. The minister said the Odisha government has also raised a constitutional matter in its petition. The petition has questioned whether one gram panchayat can have two sarpanches and panchayat samiti members each, he said. Pujari said the Kotia GP has a sarpanch and a panchayat samiti member who were elected in the 2022 panchayat election of Odisha. “Now if Andhra Pradesh government holds panchayat election, the same gram panchayat will have another sarpanch and panchayat samiti member,” he pointed out. Advocate general Pitambar Acharya told this paper that the Andhra Pradesh government had conducted panchayat election in Kotia in 202021 following which the then Odisha government had also filed a contempt petition CONTINUED ON P5 against it. In a grim reminder of poor road connectivity and healthcare in remote tribal pockets of Odisha, a 35-year-old pregnant woman was carried for nearly 5 km in a sling to an ambulance in Kashipur block of Rayagada district. She later delivered a stillborn baby at the district headquarters hospital (DHH) in Rayagada. The incident took place on Sunday in Malipadar village under Sunger gram panchayat in the Sijimali area. Suku The woman being carried on a sling to the ambulance | Express as no doctor was available there, she was taken to the community health centre at Kashipur. As her condition was critical, she was shifted to the DHH in Rayag ada, where she delivered a stillborn baby. “Suku is under treatment at the DHH and is stable,” said Rayagada chief district medical officer Dr Biswambar Behera. He said an order has been issued for an inquiry into the car rying of the woman. This is the second such incident in a week. On October 21, a pregnant woman of Kashipur block had to be carried on a stretcher for nearly a kil- Maruti Suzuki India has launched Wagon R Flex Fuel capable of running on ethanol-petrol blends from E20 to E100. Others, including Toyota Motor, Tata Motors, and Hyundai Motor, are also developing flex-fuel vehicles “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 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. Other countries are the US, Canada and some in Europe. n a m i ta b a j pa i @ Lucknow 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 Pregnant woman carried for 5 km in sling in Rayagada, child stillborn Majhi, wife of Arjun Majhi, developed labour pain, after wh i c h a n A S H A wo rke r (health activist) called an ambulance. However, with no motorable road to Malipadar, the ambulance could only reach a point near Aliguna village. Her family members then carried her in a cloth sling across the hilly terrain to reach the ambulance. Ambulance driver Deepak Gopal assisted in shifting the woman, who was initially taken to the nearby Sunger primary health centre. However, Maruti first off the block Rahul acquitted in defamation case related to Amit Shah farthest mile S i s i r Pa n i g r a h y @ Berhampur Cyclone Arnab is expected to trigger heavy to very heavy rainfall and strong winds in Odisha in the next three days. Heavy to very heavy rains are likely to occur in Rayagada, Koraput, Malkangiri, Gajapati, Ganjam and Puri districts on Tuesday, the IMD said. The rainfall intensity is expected to be at its peak on Wednesday and extremely heavy showers 204.5 mm or more may occur at isolated places in Rayagada, Koraput, Malkangiri, Gajapati and Ganjam districts. Strong wind speeds reaching 50 kmph to 60 kmph and gusting up to 70 kmph are also likely to prevail in the above five districts. The system is also likely to trigger widespread light to moderate rains in the state in the next four days till Friday . ometre over rugged terrain after an ambulance failed to reach her village due to the lack of motorable roads. The incident was reported from Goudasahi in Sarambai village under the Shunger panchayat. Bimala Gouda, wife of Sunadhar Gouda, experienced labour pain on Tuesday, prompting her family to dial the 108 emergency ambulance service. However, the ambulance could not reach her. Before the emergency medical technicians could reach the vil- lage with a stretcher on foot, Bimala delivered a baby at home. Following the delivery, both the mother and the newborn required urgent medical attention. Displaying immense grit, the ambulance personnel, alongside family members, placed the mother and child on a stretcher and navigated the hazardous, unpaved kachha path to reach the waiting vehicle. The mother and newborn were admitted to hospital Kashipur and later discharged. 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.