Overview
- Uddhav Thackeray and Raj Thackeray formally joined forces for the BMC and Nashik contests, pledging a Marathi mayor and signaling a united Marathi-front challenge as Congress says it will run alone and Mahayuti negotiates seat-sharing.
- Election timelines were set with nominations open and voting on January 15 followed by counting on January 16, underscoring a compressed calendar for alliances to finalize candidates.
- In Bangladesh, Global TV news head Nazneen Munni reported threats from men claiming ties to the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement to sack her or face an arson attack, echoing earlier fires at Prothom Alo and The Daily Star.
- A separate overnight arson in Chattogram burned a Hindu family’s home, with a banner warning local Hindus that homes, shops and property would be targeted and that no help would come.
- Indian officials maintain that May’s Operation Sindoor killed IC‑814-linked JeM figures Abdul Rauf Azhar and Mohammad Yusuf Azhar, a claim Pakistan denies, while Odisha police arrested a suspect in a 10-year-old’s rape-murder and the CM announced Rs 10 lakh in relief.