Laws, regulations, government decisions, public policy
The U.S. Supreme Court has issued a ruling that changes how voting districts are drawn under the Voting Rights Act. Both parties are now reassessing their electoral maps in response. Redistricting fights across multiple states are likely to follow.
West Bengal's two-phase assembly polling has hit a combined turnout of nearly 93%, the highest since Independence, with phase two alone recording 92.6%. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee alleged BJP attempts to rig polling at her Bhabanipur seat. More phases remain, with all eyes on whether the turnout trend and
Exit polls project DMK+ ahead in Tamil Nadu, UDF leading in Kerala, and NDA winning Assam and Puducherry, with West Bengal too close to call. Axis My India flags a sharp rise for Vijay's TVK party in Tamil Nadu, signaling a possible new force in state politics. Actual vote counts will determine whether these
Axis My India's exit poll projects BJP winning over 100 seats in Assam's 126-seat assembly in the 2026 election. The Congress-led alliance is forecast at 24-36 seats, close to its 31-seat tally in 2021. Actual results will determine whether BJP's dominance in the Northeast holds firm.
Axis My India's exit poll projects TVK, the party floated by actor Vijay, winning around 120 seats in Tamil Nadu's 2026 assembly election. The ruling DMK is forecast to fall to 110 seats, below the 118-seat majority mark. Official counting will confirm whether TVK forms the state's next government.
The Supreme Court struck down Louisiana's congressional map as an illegal racial gerrymander, limiting the use of race in drawing voting districts. The ruling makes it harder for states to justify majority-minority districts under the Voting Rights Act. States with large minority populations now face tighter legal
Exit polls for the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections show BJP making significant inroads against Mamata Banerjee's TMC. Most surveys project a tighter race than 2021, when TMC swept 215 of 294 seats. Actual vote counting will confirm whether BJP can end TMC's 15-year hold on the state.
Kevin Warsh, Trump's nominee for Federal Reserve chair, has passed a Senate committee vote and now heads to a full Senate confirmation vote. The development matters because Warsh is expected to be more aligned with Trump's push for lower interest rates than current chair Jerome Powell. A confirmed Warsh could shift Fed
Exit poll projections for Tamil Nadu, Assam, Kerala, and Puducherry are due shortly after voting wrapped up across all four states. The results will offer the first read on whether TMC or BJP leads in Bengal and which side holds Assam. Tamil Nadu voted on April 23; the other three states polled on April 9.
Tamil Nadu recorded a historic 85.1% turnout in its 2026 Assembly election, while Puducherry led at 91.23% and Assam posted 85.91%. High turnout across these states signals strong voter participation ahead of exit poll projections. West Bengal's final phase is still in progress.
Phase 2 of West Bengal Assembly elections opens at 7 a.m., with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and over eight sitting ministers defending their seats. The results will directly shape the composition of the state government and Trinamool Congress's hold on power.
India's petroleum ministry has denied any proposal to raise petrol or diesel prices from May 1. The denial follows panic buying and long queues at fuel stations driven by post-election hike speculation. No revised timeline for a price change has been indicated.
The DOJ has indicted former FBI Director James Comey over a social media post showing seashells spelling "86 47," which prosecutors call a death threat against President Trump. This is the Trump administration's second attempt to prosecute Comey. The case turns on whether the post qualifies as a criminal threat under
India and New Zealand will sign a Free Trade Agreement on April 27, granting Indian exporters full duty-free access to the New Zealand market. The deal was negotiated in under nine months, from March to December 2025, making it one of India's fastest-ever trade agreements.
Rajinikanth, Kamal Haasan, Ajith Kumar, Vikram, Sivakarthikeyan, and Sasikumar were among Tamil Nadu film stars seen casting votes at polling booths across the state. High-profile celebrity participation in elections often draws public attention and encourages broader voter turnout. The Tamil Nadu assembly election is
India's Election Commission dropped about 9 million voters, 10% of the total, from electoral rolls weeks before the West Bengal state election. A cut this large, this close to polling, is unusual and could face legal challenges from parties or voters. No breakdown of who was removed has been published.
The RBI now requires authorized dealer banks to report offshore rupee OTC derivatives, including non-deliverable forwards, to boost oversight of rupee price discovery. The move targets offshore trades that can drive onshore exchange rate volatility beyond the RBI's direct control. Phased compliance begins July 2027.
The Trump administration fired all 22 National Science Board members via a two-sentence email on Friday, with no reason given. The board oversees the National Science Foundation and advises Congress and the President on science and engineering policy. No replacements have been named.
The RBI now requires banks to classify all loans of a borrower as NPA if any single loan goes bad, ending the practice of treating each loan in isolation. This will likely lift reported bad loan levels and force banks to set aside more capital. Lenders with large retail or MSME portfolios face the biggest immediate
The RBI has raised the retail loan exposure limit to Rs 10 crore and reduced risk weights, cutting the capital banks must hold against such loans. This frees up lending capacity across the retail segment, including individuals and small businesses. The rules follow draft norms issued in October 2025.