??Far-Right left far behind in French polls | ? Another hit-and-run, BMW driver and son of influential politician absconds after killing one

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Market Watch

• Sensex fell 0.05% to 79,960.38 points, and Nifty dipped 0.01% to 24,320.55 points.
• Sectorally, Nifty FMCG gained 1.6%, and Oil & Gas rose 0.8%. PSU Bank was the biggest loser, down 1.6%, followed by Consumer Durables and Nifty Metal. Nifty Auto, Realty, and Nifty Bank each declined 0.5%.

Far-Right left far behind in French polls

France’s election results are being read as ‘France rejects fascism’ but here’s what it means.

• The left-wing coalition, the New Popular Front (NFP), won most of the seats after the current President Emmanuel Macron took a gamble and called for snap elections after the Far-right dominated European Parliamentary elections.
• No party has secured an outright majority, leading to a hung parliament and potential political deadlock.

Far-Right’s Début: The Far-right which had an anti-immigration stance led the first round of polls. Until last week, the Far-right was leading the celebrations and there were high expectations for the far-right to form the government.

The Left Recoups: The left-wing and centrist parties strategically withdrew candidates in many districts to consolidate votes against the far-right, which played a crucial role in preventing the RN from securing a majority.

Coup de grace (A final blow): The NFP, a coalition of left-wing parties, emerged as the largest bloc in the National Assembly, surpassing both President Emmanuel Macron's centrist alliance and Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally (RN), winning over 180 seats.

• President Macron's centrist alliance came in second with more than 160 seats, ahead of Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally, which secured over 140 seats. (Reportedly Poland’s Democratic Opposition also used the same strategy to defeat the Law and Justice Party)

Le futur (The future): No single bloc achieved the 289 seats required for a majority in the 577-seat National Assembly. The hung parliament leaves France in an unknown territory with no single bloc controlling the National Assembly.

• Prime Minister Gabriel Attal plans to offer his resignation, adding to the political instability.
• Forming a coalition government will require extensive negotiations, and there is no tradition of cross-party collaboration in modern French politics.

Economic impact: The election results have caused French shares to fall, the risk premium on French bonds to rise, and the euro to dip, as investors are concerned about the potential for legislative gridlock and the impact on economic policies.

• French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire has warned that the political instability could lead to a financial crisis, especially if the left-wing alliances implement their proposed economic policies which include raising the minimum wage, lowering the retirement age, reinstating the wealth tax, increasing public spending, and price controls on essential goods which could exacerbate France's already significant public debt.
• France's borrowing costs have increased, with the spread between French and German bonds widening. Credit rating agencies like S&P Global have downgraded France's credit rating, citing fiscal challenges.

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Kenza Layli from Morocco was crowned the World’s First Miss AI

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Another hit-and-run, BMW driver and son of an influential politician absconds after killing one

A tragic hit-and-run incident in Mumbai’s Worli saw a woman die after being hit by a speeding BMW. 24-year-old Mihir Shah, who was driving the car has been absconding for over 48 hours now and the police have issued a look-out notice against him.

• The driver Mihir Shah is the son of Shiv Sena leader Rajesh Shah. He fled the scene but was later detained by police. Mihir Shah was allegedly hiding at his girlfriend's place before absconding.

• The impact caused the couple to be thrown onto the car's bonnet; the husband managed to jump off, but the wife was crushed, noted News18.
• The police are investigating the incident and have seized the BMW involved.

Mihir Shah remains at large: Police arrested Mihir Shah’s father Rajesh Shah and driver Rajrishi Bidawat for non-cooperation.

• A Lookout Circular (LoC) has been issued to prevent Mihir from fleeing the country.
• Legal charges filed include culpable homicide, rash driving, and destruction of evidence under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

Hit-and-Run cases: This comes after the Pune hit-and-run case where an influential family of a 17-year-old driver accused of killing 2 people in a speeding Porsche, tried to use every loophole to save him from the law. More outrageous was the 17-year-old being granted bail with one of the conditions asking him to write a ‘300-word essay’.

• The current Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita under Section 106(2) stipulates up to 10 years imprisonment and a fine for fleeing an accident scene without reporting it. And unlike the Pune case, Mihir Shah is a not a juvenile and will face strict action.

ICYMI

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• ????Supreme Court raps the West Bengal state government in the Sandeshkhali case, asking ‘Why is the State interested in protecting an individual’.
• ??Army vehicle attacked by terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua.
• ????♀?Despite warnings of heavy rainfall from the IMD, tourists and trekkers who visited the Raigad Fort struggled to get out of the place.