World’s biggest sporting carnival gets underway MEXICO CITY: Mexican midfielder Obed Vargas (C) takes part in a training session with teammates at Centro de Alto Rendimiento (CAR) in Mexico City on the eve of the FIFA World Cup 2026 opening game against South Africa | AFP Today's matches (IST) Group A: Mexico vs South Africa (June 12, 12.30 am) Group A: South Korea vs Czechia (June 12, 7.30 am) villupuram l Thursday l June 11, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l city EDITION 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 TMC suffers fresh blow in RS; more exits in LS likely NDA, Cabinet hail Modi for crossing Videograb of Prime Minister Narendra Modi with his NDA colleagues at a felicitation event in New Delhi on Wednesday | PTI P r ee t h a N a i r @ New Delhi The exodus in Trinamool Congress (TMC) continued with Rajya Sabha MP Sushmita Dev resigning from the Upper House on Wednesday dealing another blow , to the embattled party Dev is the . second TMC Member of Parliament to step down within a week, following the resignation of Sukhendu Sekhar Roy a close aide , of party chief Mamata Banerjee. Dev’s resignation has been accepted by Rajya Sabha Chairman C P Radhakrishnan. Adding to the uncertainty, names of Mamata’s loyalists including Saayoni Ghosh, Mala Roy, Mitali Bag, Yusuf Pathan and Shatrughan Sinha are being linked to the rebel bloc. Sources said Dev, who earlier quit the Congress 2021 to join the TMC, is likely to join the BJP as she met Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma after tendering her resignation. Dev joined the TMC in 2021 after leaving the Congress. A former Lok Sabha MP from Assam’s Silchar constituency, she quit the Congress following her defeat in the 2019 general elections. The TMC later appointed her as its national spokesperson and subsequently nominated her to the Rajya Sabha. While she declined to comment on Mamata or her future political plans, Dev said, “It’s my individ- Swapan Dasgupta gets finance portfolio West Bengal minister Swapan Dasgupta was on Wednesday handed the finance portfolio. Chief Minister Subhendu Adhikari retained home along with law and judicial affairs, land, power, information and cultural affairs, personnel and administrative reforms, and hill affairs. While Jagannath Chattopadhyay was assigned higher education, Dipak Barman got charge of school education department | P8 ual decision, what kind of politics I want to do and who should be my leader. I have my reasons and that’s why I have made my decision.” On reports of her joining the BJP, she said, “When I take a decision I will let you know.” The daughter of former Union Cabinet minister Santosh Mohan Dev, Sushmita previously served as president of the All India Mahila Congress. Mamata’s meeting with Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Abhishek Banerjee’s meeting with Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday also , sparked chatter over the future course of the diminished Mamata-led TMC faction. However, Congress has dismissed reports of merger of the two parties. longest-serving elected PM milestone RA J E SH K U M AR THA K U R @ New Delhi The Union Cabinet passed a special resolution hailing Narendra Modi for becoming India’s longest-serving elected prime minister on Wednesday Titled ‘ b. A hinandan Prastav’, the resolution described June 10 as a historic day in the country’s democratic journey. It was adopted hours before the ruling NDA met to celebrate 12 years of the government under Modi’s leadership. The Cabinet meeting began with a standing ovation to the prime minister for having completed 4,399 consecutive days in office, surpassing the record of Jawaharlal Nehru, who served continuously for 4,398 days between 1952 and 1964. The resolution described the occasion as “a symbol of India’s democratic consciousness, public trust, and the power of public participation”. It said the milestone reflected the strong support of the people to a leader who is always guided by the ‘Nation First’ principle. The resolution pointed to another approaching milestone — Modi’s 25 years of continuous service as the head of government, adding his leadership has been marked by sensitivity, re- straint, deter mination and decisiveness. At the NDA meeting, the alliance resolved to continue working towards the goal of a Viksit Bharat under Modi’s leadership. A resolution was moved by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and seconded by Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio, congratulated Modi on reaching the milestone and describing his leadership as the epitome of delivery accountabil, ity and integrity Naidu remarked . that history’s most enduring leaders are those who confront the challenges of their era and convert them into opportunities for national resurgence. e x p r e ss r e a d Vijay calls on President and V-P, meets Sonia and Rahul amid INDIA bloc realignment buzz Chennai: Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay, who flew to Delhi to take part in the NITI Aayog Governing Council meeting to be held on Thursday, called on President Droupadi Murmu and Vice President CP Radhakrishnan in the capital on Wednesday. Later, Vijay also met Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi. The TVK chief’s meeting with the Gandhis comes amid speculations that the ruling party may join the INDIA bloc, following DMK’s formal exit from the alliance | P4 Bharathiraja, master of rural realism, passes away at 83 E x p r e s s N e w s Se r v i c e @ Chennai Tamil Nadu on Wednesday bid farewell to legendary filmmaker Bharathiraja, whose groundbreaking work transformed the visual language of Tamil cinema by moving it from indoor studios to the state’s hinterland. He was 83 and passed away at his Chen- nai residence following age-related ailments. Widely hailed as Iyakkunar Imayam (The Everest among directors), Bharathiraja redefined Tamil cinema with his debut film 16 Vayathinile (1977). In a career spanning five decades, he directed over 40 films, and launched the careers of several actors and filmmakers. The Padma Shri-awardee was also a six-time National Award winner. Governor RV Arlekar and CM C Joseph Vijay paid rich tributes and hailed his role in bringing the culture, and realities of rural Tamil Nadu to the screen. DMK chief MK Stalin and top stars, including Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan, visited his house to pay their respects. Bharathiraja is survived by his wife, Chandraleela, and daughter, Janani. His last rites would be held with full state honours in Theni on Thursday .  FULL COVERAGE: P2