Resumption of war will not change Iran’s stance: Araghchi Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Sunday that a resumption of war with the US and Israel would not change his country’s position Comes after Don Hints at renewed attacks kottayam l monday l October 26, 2026 l `10.00 l PAGES 12 l city EDITION His statement came after President Donald Trump indicated that he could resume attacks on Iran after the midterm elections in the US. Speaking at a televised event in Tehran, Araghchi said, “They have already done so twice and have seen the results. If they want to try again, they know they will achieve no different outcome” Trump said on Friday the US “may do another little Epic Fury,” referring to the military campaign that began in February. The US recently moved additional troops to the region. 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 EC hiding software info to bury manipulation: Cong Kharge demands annulment of assembly polls held in the past 2 yrs BJP meets to mull how to ‘expose’ stir Mukesh Ranjan & Rama s h a n k a r @ New Delhi / Patna THE Congress on Sunday escalated its campaign against the Election Commission, accusing the poll body of suppressing crucial information about the ECINET software, while party chief Mallikarjun Kharge demanded that the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) be halted immediately, assembly polls held in the past two years annulled, and future elections be held through ballot papers. The opposition party cited media reports about the poll body refusing to disclose the technical details of the ECINET software sought through RTI and alleged it was done to hide the alleged manipulation of electoral rolls. “The ECI is repeatedly refusing to provide this information because it will reveal the reality of the massive, centralised manipulation that has taken place,” said Congress general secretary in-charge of communications Jairam Ramesh, adding the poll panel must clarify whether it is using artificial intelligence. Meanwhile, speaking at an event in Patna on Sunday, Kharge called for return to ballot papers to preserve the sanctity of election process and demanded the assembly polls held in the past two years should be annulled. Interestingly he named only the BJP-ruled West Bengal, Haryana, Bihar and R AJESH KU M A R T HAKU R @New Delhi Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge speaks in Patna on Sunday| PTI Maharashtra; Congress won in Kerala and is sharing power with the TVK in Tamil Nadu, where elections were held in 2026. Launching a fierce attack on Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, the Congress chief alleged there were largescale irregularities during the SIR process that influenced election results, accusing the CEC of enabling ‘vote theft’ under the garb of SIR. Kharge described the antiSIR stir as a “second war of independence” and urged people to participate in INDIA bloc’s November 1 protest rally in Delhi’s Ramlila Maidan. “The protest by Opposition INDIA bloc in New Delhi is aimed at ousting of CEC Gyanesh Kumar,” the Congress president added, while speaking at an event to mark the 139th birth anniversary of Bihar’s first chief minister Shri Krishna Singh. Strategies to counter the Opposition’s protests against the Chief Election Commissioner and its November 1 rally were discussed at a top-level BJP meeting on Sunday as the , party strategised on “exposing” the Congress-backed efforts in its national ‘Save Democracy, Remove Anarchy’ campaign. The meeting, chaired by party chief Nitin Nabin and attended by senior leaders, including Union Home Minister Amit Shah, discussed how the party could push back on Opposition’s charges against the SIR, sources said. Plans for the BJP’s poll campaign in 2027 Assembly elections in UP, Punjab and three other states were also on the agenda. Sources said the leaders discussed a series of nationwide activities aimed at questioning the Opposition’s role in upholding democracy . “The meeting may have discussed spreading how the Congress and its allies want the inclusion of dead and fake voters in voters’ lists under the pretext of protesting and demoralising a constitutional body like the EC,” claimed a source. Luxury car driven by judge’s minor son kills 55-year-old E x pr e s s N e w s S e r v i c e @Kochi A 55-year-old man was killed after a luxury car allegedly driven by a 17-year-old rammed his two-wheeler at Cheranalloor in the early hours of Sunday The incident . comes just two weeks after a similar tragedy near Nedumbassery killed three youths and triggered outrage. Jayabalakrishnan, a native of Manjali who ran an eatery near Sree Krishnaswamy temple in Chittoor, died in the accident that took place around 2.20am on Container Road. As per the FIR, he was heading home when the car rear-ended his vehicle. He suffered serious injuries and died shortly after. The driver, the son of an additional district judge, was taken into custody by Cheranalloor police. Within hours, he was released on station bail. A class XII student, he told police that he had taken the car, registered in his father’s name, out on a drive without his parents’ knowledge. As per the preliminary report, he The luxury car involved in the accident on Container Road near Cheranalloor Speeding car kills 11-yr-old in Wayanad Kalpetta: An 11-year-old schoolgirl was killed and her seven-year-old brother injured after a speeding car, allegedly on the wrong side of the road, rammed into them in Wayanad on Saturday | P5 was not found intoxicated and was the only person in the car at the time, officers said. The police initially registered a case under Sections 281 and 106(1) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) (rash driving and causing death by rash or negligent act not amounting to culpable homicide). However, following massive public outcry, the home minister’s office intervened and directed the state police chief to reexamine the police action. Following this, the police added Section 105 of BNS ( c u l p abl e h o m i c i d e n o t amounting to murder) against the teen. The police said further calls, including whether to register a case against his father would be taken based on evidence found during the probe. The police are learnt to have gathered proof that the car was being driven at high speed when it hit the scooter. Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala said stringent action will be taken against the culprit. “The investigation will not yield to influence or power,” he told reporters. Relatives of the deceased questioned the police’s response, alleging that no immediate case was registered against the judge, the vehicle owner. Later in the day, they protested in front of the Cheranalloor police station.  P5 EXPRESS READ Remove PSC chief, Arlekar urged Prez T’Puram: Days before stepping down as Keralam governor, Rajendra Arlekar had recommended to President Droupadi Murmu the removal of PSC chairman M R Baiju and all members citing complaints against appointments made by the body. A copy of the complaint from Yuva Morcha, the PSC internal vigilance report and a letter by Arlekar himself were the documents he sent to Murmu on October 15, a week before he was relieved as governor, in what is a first-ofits-kind move in the state’s history | P4 Busted: Int’l drug cartel and `100 cr hawala trail m u k e s h r a n j a n @ New Delhi COORDINATED raids by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) and state police forces helped dismantle a trans-national narcotics cartel operating across India, Myanmar and Bangladesh, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on Sun- day He said raids were carried . out at 38 places in Assam, Mizoram and Manipur leading to 18 arrests, freezing of 1,424 bank accounts and uncovering of hawala deals worth `100 crore. The operation, conducted on October 23 and codenamed ‘Operation Trident’, resulted in attachment of properties worth `17.82 crore, seizure of 500 detonators and the recovery of `12 lakh in cash. Shah said on X, “Central agencies and police forces in three northeastern states carried out simultaneous operations to dismantle the international drug trafficking network and expose its financial links.” The cartel allegedly used the corridor connecting India, Myanmar and Bangladesh to move narcotics across borders, which Shah described as ‘Death Triangle Corridor’. The crackdown aligns with the government’s Vision Document on Narcotics Control for 2026-2029.