Researched by: Aarthi Ramnath, Anannya Parekh & Aakriti Anand
What the F*** Happened in UP?
ICYMI: We now have a twice-weekly newsmagazine show—hosted by our editor Lakshmi Chaudhry. In the latest episode, we look at why BJP was jilted by its jewel in the heartland crown. The answer among BJP insiders—Sabotage! Also: UP voters prefer Rahul Gandhi to Narendra Modi as PM! Wtf is happening here, indeed!
FYI: The show is a great option when you don’t have time to read us every day. You get a video version of our best stories twice a week. Do check it out and—most importantly—share it with your friends, fam, colleagues, and more. It’s a great cost-free way to introduce someone to splainer—especially if they are text-averse.
Shots fired: RSS calls out the BJP
Adding insult to electoral injury, the BJP’s ‘guru’ organisation has delivered its own thappad. First, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat called out the arrogance of its leadership:
A true ‘sevak’ should maintain dignity while working… The one who maintains dignity does his work, but remains unattached. There is no arrogance that I did this. Only such a person has the right to be called a ‘sevak’.
Bhagwat’s remarks are mild in comparison to the op-ed in the RSS publication—Organiser. Senior member Ratan Sharda is far more direct:
Results of 2024 General Elections have come as a reality check for overconfident BJP karyakartas and many leaders… Targets are achieved by hard work on the field, not sharing posters and selfies on social media.
He also claims that the BJP failed to court the RSS’ support—and views its members as “village bumpkins” etc. You can read it in its entirety here.
Why this matters: According to The Telegraph, these are signs of a widening rift:
Modi’s claim that he was not biological. but a godsend also angered us,” one RSS leader said, stressing that the remarks combined with the shrill “Modi ki guarantee” and the over-confident “chaar sau paar” cry reeked of arrogance. “Modi ji has been an RSS pracharak and he should know that humility is the quintessential trait of a swayamsevak,” the RSS leader said.
It’s one reason why Nadda has been shunted into the cabinet—giving the RSS greater leeway to pick the next BJP president. (The Telegraph)
Moving on to other BJP allies: Or more accurately, frenemies—TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu will be taking oath as the chief minister of Andhra today. Naidu took the opportunity to make his position clear: “We will function democratically and secularly and no one’s self respect will be taken away. We will all work together for everyone.” Of course, it isn’t clear if that promise is limited to Andhra Pradesh—or extends to Delhi, as well. (Indian Express)
War on Gaza: Big push for a ceasefire
Washington is doing its best to push through its three-stage peace plan—which has now been endorsed by the Security Council. Hamas is asking for “amendments”—which are being “evaluated” by the US. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken insists that PM Netanyahu has endorsed the proposal—but Bibi himself has never said so.
This may be why Blinken met with Israeli opposition leaders—and spoke privately to hostages’ families on his Tel Aviv trip. Add that to the decision of Netanyahu’s main rival Benny Gantz to leave the war cabinet. All the signs point to a ‘regime change’ plan in play—which may be wise. Israel will likely never agree to a peace plan with Bibi in charge. (Reuters)
A new war crimes charge: IDF troops killed 274 Gazans during a raid on a refugee camp to rescue four Israeli hostages. The UN human rights office says war crimes may have been committed by both sides during the assault. While Hamas has been called out for holding hostages in residential areas, Israelis are accused of far graver crimes:
The manner in which the raid was conducted in such a densely populated area seriously calls into question whether the principles of distinction, proportionality and precaution — as set out under the laws of war — were respected by the Israeli forces.
Adding to the charges: A separate UN report on children in conflict zones found that more war crimes against Palestinian children than anywhere else. The stats are as follows:
In all, the UN verified “8,009 grave violations against 4,360 children” in Israel, Gaza and the West Bank — more than twice the figures for the DRC, the next worst place for violence against children. Of the total number of child victims verified, 4,247 were Palestinian, 113 were Israeli.
The Guardian has more dismal details of this report.
Companies behaving very poorly: Two stories of note
One: Researchers have found at least 170 links to photos and personal details of children in Brazil—which have been used to train AI systems without parental knowledge. Some of these AI-systems have generated “explicit and violent images” of children. According to Human Rights Watch:
The links to the photos were scraped from personal blogs and social media sites into a large data set called LAION-5B, which has been used to train popular image generators such as Stable Diffusion. The 170 photos of children is likely a “significant undercount,” HRW said, since the group only reviewed 0.0001 percent of the 5.8 billion images captured in LAION-5B.
The HRW report is here. (Wired)
Two: The Italian unit of LVMH that makes Dior bags is allegedly outsourcing work to Chinese-owned firms that mistreat workers. To be clear, these are factories located in Italy:
Of the egregious practices, the ruling found that employees slept at their workplace just to ensure they were “available 24 hours a day.” Safety devices on machines were also removed so operations could be faster, thus curbing production costs down to as little as €53 ($57) for a handbag that’s otherwise sold at €2,600 ($2,794).
This isn’t the first such allegation. Italy is home to thousands of small manufacturers—who account for 50% of the world’s manufacturing of luxury products. (Fortune via Yahoo News)
Big move on uni admissions
Indian universities will soon start admitting students twice a year—like foreign universities. The two cycles will be in July-August and January-February. The aim is to align ourselves with global universities—and help students who missed college admission due to delayed board results, health issues, or other personal reasons. But, but, but: It won’t be mandatory. (The Hindu)
The longest heatwave ever
According to the head of the Indian Meteorological Department, we are witnessing the “longest heatwave spell”—which has stretched over the past 24 days. It was the worst in the south and east during April. Now, northwest and central India are suffering—especially Rajasthan and Odisha. (Indian Express)
Say my elephant name!
A new study shows that elephants have individual sounds they use to call out to each other—just as we humans use names:
The research “not only shows that elephants use specific vocalisations for each individual, but that they recognise and react to a call addressed to them while ignoring those addressed to others”, the lead study author, Michael Pardo, said.
Other interesting nuggets: Adults were prone to name-calling than the kids—and this phenomenon typically occurred over long distances—possibly to help them locate each other. You can see a video of an elephant perking up its ears when she hears a recording of her name. (New York Times, paywall, CNN)
Indian documentaries win big
Two documentaries won Peabody Awards—which honour the best stories on television, podcast/radio, and streaming media. ‘All That Breathes’ is about two brothers who save injured birds in Old Delhi. It was also an Oscar nominee in 2023. And ‘POV: While We Watched’—which was also released in 2022—is centred on TV anchor Ravish Kumar—and shows the NDTV newsroom in crisis in the face of fake news, falling ratings, and funding cutbacks. The Oscar-nominated Indian-Canadian film ‘To Kill A Tiger’ by Nisha Pahuja was also among the list of nominees.
But, but, but: Indians are least likely to watch these festival winners—which are rarely in theatres here. One reason:
[U]nlike the 1970s and 80s, when ticket prices in single screen cinemas were nominal and movies were still watched by all demographics, the current business model is geared towards multiplexes, where the ticket prices are way higher.
Movies these days also need huge marketing budgets—which are impossible for small films. The most disheartening bit: Even streaming platforms have stopped carrying independent films—in a bid to increase viewers. Mint has a very good long paywalled read. (MoneyControl)
Very much related: This Anurag Kashyap rant on why India should not claim any credit for festival winners like Payal Kapadia’s ‘All We Imagine as Light’.
Four things to see
One: President Joe Biden’s son Hunter was found guilty of three separate charges—all related to buying a handgun while being a user of crack cocaine. He could face up to 25 years in jail—though that would be rare for a first-time offender. His father has already said that he will not offer a presidential pardon. But he did rush to Delaware—which resulted in this moment of parental love. (ABC News)
Two: Poor Charles can’t get a break. Many panned his first official portrait—when he unveiled the bit-too-red work of art. Now, it has been defaced by animal rights activists—who pasted a picture of Wallace (as in Wallace & Gromit) over his face. Plus a speech bubble that reads: "No cheese Gromit. Look at all this cruelty on RSPCA farms.” (Sky News)
Three: Kevin Spacey is broke. He wept in an interview with Piers Morgan—revealing that he owes “millons in legal fees” chalked up in sexual harassment suits. Spacey has been cleared of charges in two separate cases—but had to pay damages for “certain conduct” toward crew members on the set of ‘House of Cards’. (The Hill)
Four: Here’s the teaser for the third season of the very popular ‘Mirzapur’—which drops on July 5 on Prime Video.
Takshashila: A doorway to public policy
Editor’s note: We are delighted to unveil our partnership with Takshashila Institution. It is one of India’s foremost think-tanks on public policy. They also run valuable courses that teach students how to tackle complex policy challenges—bringing together academic experts and policy practitioners from across the world. We will be showcasing their courses and community in splainer. Please note: This is not paid content.
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