World
India’s Congress says $25m frozen by tax department ahead of election
The Indian National Congress party says its bank accounts with 2.1 billion rupees ($25.3m) in deposits have been frozen by the Income Tax Department months before the national election.
The main opposition party on Friday called the action “a deep assault on India’s democracy”, adding that an income tax tribunal has allowed it to partially operate its accounts until February 21 when it would hear the case.
Congress treasurer Ajay Maken told reporters the party has filed a complaint against the tax department after it told banks to freeze funds in its accounts.
“We got information two days back that cheques being issued by us were not being honoured by banks. … We don’t have money to pay electricity bills, to pay salaries to our employees,” Maken said.
The tax department’s action comes just weeks before dates for a general election, which has to be conducted by May, are to be announced.
It also came a day after the Supreme Court, in a landmark order, declared a secretive election funding system, called the electoral bonds, as illegal. The scheme was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government in 2017.
“When the principal opposition party’s accounts have been frozen just two weeks before the announcement of the national elections, do you think democracy is alive in our country?” Maken asked reporters.
“Don’t you think it is going towards a one-party system?”
Maken said the 2.1 billion rupees frozen by the tax department was collected by the party through crowd funding and membership drives, adding that the dispute with the tax department was in connection with an issue dating back to 2018-2019.
Maken conceded that the party had filed its returns late by up to 45 days but insisted it had done nothing to warrant such a penalty.
“Today is a sad day for Indian democracy,” he said, adding that the party was appealing the decision and would stage public protests.
The power of Congress, once India’s dominant party, has sunk to historic lows in parliament and in many states after Modi and his right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) swept to power in 2014.
Critics and human rights groups have accused Modi’s government of using law enforcement agencies to selectively target its political foes.
“Power drunk Modi Govt has frozen the accounts of the country’s largest Opposition party,” Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge posted on X. “We appeal to the Judiciary to save the multi-party system in this country and protect India’s Democracy.”
Virendra Sachdeva, president of the BJP’s Delhi branch, said Congress had only itself to blame for the freezing of its accounts.
“It is unfortunate that a big party like Congress is not following government rules,” he told the Press Trust of India news agency.
“If it is not following the rules, then it has to face the consequences.”
Agencies ‘behaving as BJP’s handmaidens’
Friday’s announcement follows numerous legal sanctions and active investigations against leading opponents of the BJP.
Congress party leader Rahul Gandhi, scion of the Gandhi-Nehru dynasty, which dominated Indian politics for decades, was convicted of criminal libel last year after a complaint by a BJP legislator.
Gandhi’s two-year prison sentence saw him disqualified from parliament for a time until the verdict was suspended by a higher court, but it raised concerns over democratic norms in the world’s most populous country.
Congress is a member of an opposition alliance hoping to challenge Modi at this year’s polls. Other leading figures in the bloc have also found themselves under investigation.
Arvind Kejriwal, leader of the Aam Aadmi Party and chief minister of the capital region Delhi, has repeatedly been summoned by investigators probing alleged corruption in the allocation of liquor licences.
This month, police arrested Hemant Soren, until then the chief minister of the eastern state of Jharkhand and another leading figure in the opposition alliance, for allegedly facilitating an illegal land sale.
India’s main financial investigation agency, the Enforcement Directorate, has ongoing probes against at least four other chief ministers or their families, all of whom belong to the BJP’s political opponents.
The recent record of government agencies showed they were “behaving as handmaidens of the ruling party to cow down the political opposition”, Hartosh Singh Bal of current affairs magazine The Caravan told the Agence France-Presse news agency.
Other investigations have been dropped against erstwhile BJP rivals who later switched their allegiance to the ruling party.
Surveys suggest the BJP is likely to win a third successive victory in this year’s election, in part because of Modi’s supremacist appeal to India’s Hindu majority.
The Congress is also forecast to slightly improve its position in the vote.
Published on
At least 58 states and territories are contaminated by anti-personnel mines, the UN rights chief said on Tuesday, with heavy civilian casualties in Myanmar, Syria, Afghanistan and Ukraine.
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“It is deeply troubling that almost 30 years since the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Treaty was adopted, these explosive weapons continue to kill and injure people, often decades after they were placed,” Volker Türk said in a statement.
“It is essential that all states recommit to putting an end to the production, use and transfer of these weapons and redouble their efforts to cooperate in clearing mines already placed.”
Türk produced a report on the situation, drawing on information from governments, NGOs, humanitarian organisations and civil society.
At least 945 people were killed and 4,325 injured by landmines and explosive remnants of war in 2024 alone, it said, citing the Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor.
“Among victims where the status as military or civilian was known, civilians made up approximately 90% of all recorded casualties in 2024,” the report said.
The states with the highest number of casualties in 2024 were Myanmar with 2,029, Syria with 1,015, then Afghanistan with 624, followed by Ukraine, Nigeria, Mali, Yemen and Burkina Faso, which each recorded more than 200 casualties.
In a separate statement, the International Campaign to Ban Landmines said mines and explosive remnants of war, including cluster munitions, killed or injured more than 5,000 people in 2025, again with the vast majority being civilians.
Türk’s office noted that children make up more than 40% of all civilian casualties of anti-personnel mines recorded since 1999.
Besides killing and maiming, anti-personnel mines turn areas into no-go zones, Türk’s office said, hampering rights, prolonging displacement and stopping land from being used for agriculture.
While the Ottawa mine ban convention has 162 states parties, Türk noted that other countries with considerable stockpiles are not yet members.
Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland recently withdrew and Ukraine is suspending its implementation.
“States that have not yet ratified the treaty should promptly do so and those that have withdrawn should quickly rejoin,” said Türk.
He hailed Lebanon’s recent decision to join the Ottawa convention, despite the war between Israel and Hezbollah.
Türk’s report said that in the seven years to 2025, contributions to the UN Voluntary Trust Fund for Assistance in Mine Action sharply decreased from $125 million to $46 million (€107 million to €39 million).
Additional sources • AFP
World
Studiocanal Reveals Sales on Multiple Cannes Market Titles, Including ‘The Midnight Library,’ ‘Words of Love,’ ‘Another Day’
Studiocanal has revealed that it has closed sales on multiple films that either premiered at the Cannes Film Festival or are on its development and production slate, including “The Midnight Library.” The company also said it is negotiating presales on the new Paddington animated film.
“The Midnight Library,” starring and produced by Academy Award nominee Florence Pugh, emerged as one of the hottest titles at this year’s Cannes Film Market. After a competitive bidding war between studios, the film sold to Paramount Pictures for North America and numerous foreign territories.
Beyond Paramount’s territories, “The Midnight Library” will be distributed by Scanbox in Scandinavia, Sun Africa Group/MultiChoice in South Africa, and Filmcoopi in Switzerland. Studiocanal will release the film across its territory footprint, including the U.K., France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Benelux, Australia and New Zealand.
Studiocanal also closed deals for Rudi Rosenberg’s Un Certain Regard film “Words of Love,” Volker Schlöndorff’s “Visitation,” Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s “Violette,” Jeanne Herry’s Cannes competition selection “Another Day,” Simon Stone’s “Elsinore,” Jonathan Schey’s “Everybody Wants to F*ck Me,” Danny Boyle’s “Ink” and Fred Cavayé’s “Les Misérables.” Studiocanal will release the films in its territories.
Sales for the films are as follows:
“Elsinore”
Anuvu for airlines, MCF for Ex-Yugoslavia and Bulgaria, Spentzos for Greece, ADS for Hungary, Lev for Israel, Lusomundo for Portugal, Scanbox for Scandinavia, Sun Africa Group/MultiChoice for South Africa, Filmcoopi for Switzerland, and Bir Film for Turkey. It will be released in the U.S. in 2027 by LD Entertainment.
“Everybody Wants to F*Ck Me”
ACME for the Baltics, Prorom for Eastern Europe, Blitz for Ex-Yugoslavia, Myndform for Iceland, Lionsgate for India, Lev for Israel, Imagem for Latin America, Mongol Films for Mongolia, Lusomundo for Portugal, Scanbox for Scandinavia, Sun Africa Group/MultiChoice for South Africa, KTH for South Korea, Filmcoopi for Switzerland, Catchplay for Taiwan, and Svoe Kino for Ukraine.
“Ink”
Echolake for airlines, Cinelibri for Bulgaria, VVS for Canada, AQS for Czech Republic and Slovakia, Karantanja for Ex-Yugoslavia, Spentzos for Greece, Cinetel for Hungary, Myndform for Iceland, MVP for India, Shoval for Israel, Mongol Films for Mongolia, Lusomundo for Portugal, Independenta for Romania, Scanbox for Scandinavia, Sun Africa Group/MultiChoice for South Africa, NK Content for South Korea, Wanda for Spain, Ascot Elite for Switzerland, Fabula Films for Turkey, and UFD for Ukraine.
“Les Miserables”
Skeye for airlines, ACME for the Baltics, Cinelibri for Bulgaria, TVA for Canada, AQS for Czech Republic and Slovakia, Karantanja for Ex-Yugoslavia, Pathé Touch for French-speaking Africa, Spentzos for Greece, ADS for Hungary, Synapse for Latin America, GSC for Malaysia, Italia for the Middle East, Lusomundo for Portugal, Independenta for Romania, Shaw for Singapore, Scene & Sound for South Korea, Beta Fiction for Spain, DCM for Switzerland, Bir Film for Turkey, and Ad Astra for Ukraine.
“Words of Love”
Cineart for Benelux, Beta for Bulgaria, Immina for Canada, Pandora for Germany and Austria, Danaos for Greece, New Cinema for Israel, Teodora for Italy, Angel Films for Scandinavia, Atalante for Spain, Frenetic for Switzerland, and Mars for Turkey.
“Visitation”
Moving Story for Australia and New Zealand, Artifilm for Benelux, Beta for Bulgaria, Karantanija for Ex-Yugoslavia, Spentzos for Greece, Lev for Israel, Cetera for Japan, Alambique for Portugal, Scanbox for Scandinavia, A Contracorriente for Spain, and Filmcoopi for Switzerland.
“Violette”
Skeye for airlines, ACME for the Baltics, Cinelibri for Bulgaria, VVS for Canada, Blue Media for China, MCF for Ex-Yugoslavia, Spentzos for Greece, Vertigo for Hungary, Lev for Israel, Lucky Red for Italy, Lusomundo for Portugal, Bad Unicorn for Romania, Scanbox for Scandinavia, Shaw for Singapore, Beta Fiction for Spain, Frenetic for Switzerland, Bir for Turkey, and Arthouse for Ukraine.
“Another Day”
MCF for Ex-Yugoslavia and Bulgaria, Spentzos for Greece, Europictures for Italy, Scanbox for Scandinavia, Shaw for Singapore, Frenetic for Switzerland, Lusomundo for Portugal, and Mars for Turkey.
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Three men face potential charges after a 21-year-old woman died when rope-jumping instructors allegedly launched her from a bridge without attaching the safety ropes meant to stop her fall, authorities said.
Maria Eduarda Rodrigues de Freitas, a 21-year-old student, died Saturday during a rope-jumping event at an abandoned bridge about 90 miles northwest of São Paulo, Brazil.
Police investigator Andrea Levy told reporters Monday that the three instructors involved in the jump acknowledged that Rodrigues de Freitas was not connected to any safety equipment before she was launched from the bridge.
“They do not remember whether they forgot to attach [the ropes], or who was supposed to do it, or who failed to check. But the fact is the ropes were not attached to her,” Levy said.
COLORADO JURY AWARDS FAMILY $205M AFTER 6-YEAR-OLD FALLS TO DEATH FROM THEME PARK RIDE
The Ponte do Esqueleto, or “Skeleton Bridge,” is located in São Paulo, Brazil. (Google Maps)
The three instructors were arrested following the incident and could face criminal charges, The Associated Press reported.
Brazilian authorities said the three instructors were arrested on suspicion of homicide with “eventual intent,” a legal concept under Brazilian law that generally applies when a person is deemed to have accepted the risk that a death could occur. According to Brazilian outlet G1, citing investigators, the instructors were booked on the charge at the scene.
Investigators said Rodrigues de Freitas requested to be launched from the bridge “airplane style,” with two instructors lifting her above their shoulders while she stretched out her arms.
CARNIVAL RIDE PASSENGERS LEFT DANGLING IN CARRIAGE AFTER MALFUNCTION AT HIGH SCHOOL EVENT: VIDEO
Video shared online appears to show two helmeted men tossing the young woman from the abandoned bridge moments before the fatal fall. The instructors appear to be wearing harnesses connected to safety lines.
Authorities said Rodrigues de Freitas fell approximately 130 feet.
Bungee jumping elastic is pictured here. (Giovanni Mereghetti/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
Brazilian media reported that Rodrigues de Freitas had purchased a guided hiking excursion that included the rope jump from the abandoned bridge.
ORLANDO RIDE MAINTENANCE TECH ALLEGES SAFETY ISSUES WERE IGNORED BEFORE TEEN FELL TO HIS DEATH IN 2022: SUIT
Rope jumping is an extreme sport that differs from traditional bungee jumping. Instead of elastic cords that create a vertical bounce, rope jumping uses low-stretch climbing ropes designed to transform a fall into a pendulum-like swing.
The City of Limeira identified Rodrigues de Freitas as a resident of Jandira and issued a statement expressing condolences to her family.
“At this moment of pain, the City of Limeira stands in solidarity with the young woman’s family, friends and loved ones,” municipal officials said in a statement Saturday.
MOST DISASTROUS FREAK ACCIDENTS OF 2024: 7 TIMES EVERYDAY FUN TURNED FATAL
The city said it would cooperate with authorities investigating the incident.
Rodrigues de Freitas was buried Sunday.
Local police are investigating the incident as a homicide. (Facebook/@Comsoc Limeira)
Levy told Brazilian television program “Jornal Nacional” that investigators were examining whether the group conducting the jump was authorized to operate at the site. According to G1, Levy said investigators believe a failure to verify the placement of the safety rope contributed to the fatality.
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In a statement cited by G1, attorneys for the three instructors said their clients had experience conducting the activity and that the incident was the first fatality during their years of operation.
Authorities continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the apparent safety failure, including who was responsible for ensuring participants were properly secured before jumping.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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