Overview

• Priyanka Gandhi said Rahul Gandhi will not back down on the SIR issue and challenged the Commission and BJP to answer specific questions on voter-list changes.
• Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar has called the accusations unfounded and asked for sworn evidence or an apology.
• Lokniti-CSDS co-director Sanjay Kumar deleted incorrect Maharashtra voter-growth figures and issued a public apology for the error.
• The Quint’s fact-check traced a Varanasi list showing dozens with the same father’s name to ashram guru-naming practices, a context the UP Chief Electoral Officer had earlier noted.
• NDA leaders set CP Radhakrishnan’s Vice-President nomination for August 20 at 11 a.m. with PM Modi and MPs present, as parallel actions included I-T raids linked to G. Ranjith Reddy’s associates and NHAI’s fine and arrests after a Meerut toll-plaza assault on an army jawan.