Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Modi's party predicted to win key Indian state

Modi's party predicted to win key Indian state

Indian prime minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist party was set for a resounding victory but a reduced majority at elections in the country's most populous state Uttar Pradesh, exit polls forecast Monday.

Exit polls are not always reliable in India, but an average of four indicated that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), led in the state by firebrand monk Yogi Adityanath, would win 240 seats -- more than enough for a majority in the 403-seat assembly.


The official results for the bellwether state, which is home to more than 200 million people, will be announced on Thursday.

Voting took place over several weeks in different rounds, the last of which was on Monday.

The BJP won by a landslide in the previous state election in 2017, sweeping 312 seats in the state, which sends more lawmakers to the national parliament than any other.

The BJP's main rival Samajwadi (Socialist) Party, which has been seeking to tap into discontent over job losses and rising prices, was predicted to finish second with 150 seats.

Experts say the result in Uttar Pradesh will be viewed as a referendum on Modi, who was re-elected in 2019 and could seek a third term in 2024.

Results are also due in four other states that have voted.

Monday's exit polls also projected a landmark win for the upstart Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Punjab, on the border with Pakistan and home to the Sikh community.

The anti-corruption AAP was predicted to take the state from the Gandhi dynasty's Congress party, which it is looking to displace as the main opposition to the BJP.

It would be the first victory for the AAP outside the capital Delhi, where it has been in power since 2015.

In the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand a close fight was anticipated between the incumbent BJP and Congress.

More For You

Parliament backs assisted dying in historic law shift

Supporters of the assisted dying law for terminally ill people hold a banner, on the day British lawmakers are preparing to vote on the bill, in London, Britain, June 20, 2025. REUTERS/Isabel Infantes

Parliament backs assisted dying in historic law shift

PARLIAMENT voted on Friday (20) in favour of a bill to legalise assisted dying, paving the way for the country's biggest social change in a generation.

314 lawmakers voted in favour with 291 against the bill, clearing its biggest parliamentary hurdle.

Keep ReadingShow less
Air India

An Air India Airbus A320-200 aircraft takes off from the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport in Ahmedabad, India, July 7, 2017. Picture taken July 7, 2017.

Regulator warns Air India over delayed emergency equipment checks: Report

INDIA’s aviation regulator has warned Air India for violating safety rules after three of its Airbus aircraft operated flights without undergoing mandatory checks on emergency escape slides, according to official documents reviewed by Reuters.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) issued warning notices and a detailed investigation report highlighting the breach. These documents were sent days before the recent crash of an Air India Boeing 787-8, in which all but one of the 242 people onboard were killed. The Airbus incidents are unrelated to that crash.

Keep ReadingShow less
assisted dying bill

Pro and anti-assisted dying campaigners protest ahead of a parliamentary decision later today, on June 20, 2025 in London.

Getty Images

MPs to vote on assisted dying bill amid divided views

UK MPs are set to hold a key vote on assisted dying on Friday, which could either advance or halt a proposed law that would allow terminally ill adults to end their lives under strict conditions.

The vote follows several hours of debate in the House of Commons and will decide whether the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill moves to the House of Lords for further scrutiny or is dropped altogether.

Keep ReadingShow less
Zhenhao Zou

Zhenhao Zou, 28, was jailed on Thursday after being found guilty of multiple offences. (Photo: Reuters)

Reuters

Chinese student jailed for life for raping women in UK and China

A CHINESE postgraduate student convicted of drugging and raping 10 women in the UK and China has been sentenced to life imprisonment by a London court.

Zhenhao Zou, 28, was jailed on Thursday after being found guilty of multiple offences. Police say there is evidence he may have targeted more than 50 other women.

Keep ReadingShow less
Air India cuts international flights after deadly crash

Mother (C) of First Officer Clive Kunder, co-pilot of the Air India plane that crashed in Ahmedabad last week, mourns after his mortal remains were brought to his residence, in Mumbai. (PTI Photo)

Air India cuts international flights after deadly crash

AIR INDIA said on Wednesday (18) it will cut international operations on its widebody aircraft by 15 per cent for the next few weeks, citing ongoing safety inspections and operational disruptions following last week's deadly crash of one of its Boeing 787 Dreamliners.

Authorities continue to investigate the crash of flight AI171, which killed 241 people and marked the world's deadliest aviation disaster in a decade.

Keep ReadingShow less