On 8th May, the Annual Sports Awards Function was organised, where several student athletes were honoured by the Vice Chancellor of Delhi University and Director of the Delhi University Sports Council for their remarkable athleticism and dedication.
The Annual Sports Awards Function 2026, conducted by the Delhi University Sports Council (DUSC), was held on 8th May 2026, from 11:30 am onwards at the Convention Hall, Vice Regal Lodge, University of Delhi. Prof. Yogesh Singh, the Vice Chancellor of the University of Delhi, was honoured as the Chief Guest. The event was organised to recognise the achievements of students across various colleges of the University of Delhi in the realm of sports and bestow upon them accolades for their remarkable contributions in the arena.
The event saw the presence of several dignitaries who graced the dais alongside Prof. Yogesh Singh, including Dr Anil Kumar Kalkal, Director DUSC, who facilitated the Vice Chancellor; Dr Vikas Gupta, Joint Registrar; Prof. Rajni Abbi, Director South Campus, and Prof. Payal Mago, Director, Campus of Open Learning.
The Delhi School of Journalism (DSJ) was designated as the media partner for the event, with the Officer on Special Duty (OSD) of DSJ being assigned the role of convener of the Media and Website alongside a role in the Central Coordination Committee. “We have put together a team of students for the task, and will be performing our duty as intended,” they said.
The event began with the presentation of the DUSC’s Annual Report, followed by a welcome address from the Director of the Delhi University Sports Council, after which the Vice Chancellor addressed the audience. In his speech, the VC urged that sports be seen as “core curricular” rather than “co-curricular,” citing the importance of movement and physical activity in people’s lives. He also asked the principals of various colleges present at the event to not only encourage students to partake in physical activities but also to make use of the sports infrastructure provided, citing the Rugby ground, gymnasium, and indoor sports facilities at the Multipurpose Hall of the University Sports Complex. Additionally, he also commemorated the students who had shown talent, determination, and dedication in their respective fields, in his speech.
Following the Vice Chancellor’s Address, the award distribution ceremony commenced. Notably, a large portion of the students honoured were women. Individual students as well as college teams were honoured, with Deshbandhu College’s Women’s Archery team and Kirori Mal College’s Women’s Basketball team, amongst others, winning the Intercollege Tournament. For the second year in a row, the Indira Gandhi Institute of Physical Education & Sports Sciences was awarded the Champions’ Trophy.
After the conclusion of the event, students were seen celebrating, trophies in hand and coaches by their side, clicking pictures in the afternoon sunshine.
A petition was filed before the High Court by a student frustrated with the lack of vegetarian-only food facilities. The issue has revived food-related debates among students.
A Delhi University student has filed a petition before the Delhi High Court asking for separate, vegetarian-only food facilities in hostel messes and college canteens across the university. The petition was filed on Wednesday and is likely to be up for hearing in the following days.
Vijeta, the petitioner, filed the plea through advocate Barun Kumar Sinha. She took the step after finding issues with her women’s hostel. In her petition, she stated that she was “directly and substantially” affected by the vegetarian and non-vegetarian food being prepared and served together in her hostel mess.
She went on to say that the lack of segregation had caused her “grave prejudice”, inconvenience, and violation of her rights. She also alleged that food safety regulations and hygiene standards are being broken regularly. According to Vijeta, no action was taken despite raising this issue multiple times with hostel staff and officials.
The petition seeks to direct authorities to set up separate vegetarian mess facilities at a reasonable distance from areas where non-vegetarian food is cooked and served. It also seeks proper segregation of veg and non-veg food in storage and serving areas across hostels and canteens, along with strict compliance with food safety and hygiene laws. The petitioner has further asked for a clear policy for students with strict vegetarian dietary requirements, an adjustment in mess charges for those using only vegetarian facilities, and a grievance redressal mechanism so students have a proper and timely way to raise complaints related to mess and canteen services.
Such issues are not new to the university. Food-related tensions have been faced commonly in the past few years. In January 2023, Hansraj College quietly stopped serving non-vegetarian food in its canteen and hostel after it resumed classes post-COVID. The decision came as a shock to many.
“Earlier, non-veg food used to be served, but suddenly non-veg food and eggs were stopped. The students who have come from the south face a lot of issues because they have the habit of eating non-veg.”
In mid-2025, a similar controversy broke out at JNU’s Mahi-Mandavi hostel, where a “veg-only” notice appeared in the mess. The JNU Students’ Union (JNUSU) reacted strongly, with president Nitesh Kumar calling it an attempt to divide students and a violation of hostel norms.
The current petition has also triggered mixed reactions on campus and on social media. Some students claim they feel genuinely uncomfortable when meat is cooked in shared kitchens. A student of Hansraj College had earlier told ANI, “People who want to eat non-veg can have it outside. Students are happy with vegetarian food.” The issue has also sparked significant online discourse. “If a student has raised it through the proper legal channel, the court should at least listen,” one DU student posted on Instagram.
The Delhi High Court is yet to take up the case for a formal hearing. No response has been given by Delhi University or the government so far. The petition is expected to come up before the court in the coming days.
A protest linked to NSUI disrupted a book launch at the University of Delhi over DD News editor Ashok Srivastava’s past remarks on Rahul Gandhi, leading security personnel to evacuate protesting students.
On Thursday, 7th May, students from the NSUI (National Student’s Union of India) allegedly staged a protest during an event. The event was scheduled as the launch of the book, ‘Decolonizing the Bharatiya Minds: From Colonial Roots to Cultural Marxism’, at the Shankar Lal Auditorium of the University of Delhi. The event was attended by keynote speaker Mr. Ramlal, Akhil Bharatiya Sampark Pramukh of the RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh); chief guest Mr. Ashok Srivastava, Consulting Editor at DD News; and the book’s author, Dr. Prashant Barthwal.
Poster via Gargi Care Foundation Instagram for the DU launch of Decolonizing the Bharatiya Minds.
The event was organized by INSIGHT and Gargi Care Foundation in collaboration with the University of Delhi. The protests were triggered by the past remarks of the DD News anchor, Ashok Srivastava, against Rahul Gandhi. As covered by PTI, the remarks included that Rahul Gandhi is “not even equal to the dust under Veer Savarkar’s slippers,” which is most likely linked to the protest. Ashok Srivastava was allegedly heard saying this during a TV debate.
This remark has already triggered protests outside the DD News office by Youth Congress and NSUI workers in April. The protest saw slogans of “Ashok Srivastava Haye Haye” (Ashok Srivastav Shame Shame!), “Ashok Srivastav Murdabad” (Down with Ashok Srivastav), and “Godi Media Go Back.” One of the protesters included Rahul Jhansla, the vice president of the Delhi University Student’s Union and an NSUI supporter. As the atmosphere grew charged, the security officers stepped in, and the protesting students were evacuated from the auditorium.
After many drafts and meetings the final date sheet was uploaded, changing the examination dates for Semester 6th and 8th students. This comes after the final date for filling the examination form with late fee passed on the 7th of May.
On 7th May, between 7:18PM and 7:25PM, the examination date sheet got updated by Delhi University, changing the exam dates for Semester 6 and 8 students. This change came a few hours before the last time students of regular, NCWEB (Non-Collegiate Women’s Education Board), and SOL (School of Open Learning) could fill up the examination form with late fees.
The final date sheet has preponed the exams for 6th and 8th semester. Exams will now take place earlier. As an example, previously DSE exams for semester 8 were to be conducted on 18th May, 15th, 17th and 18th of June respectively but now it will be conducted on the 18th and 20th May, and 7th and 14th June,2026. Similarly, many semester 6 exams are now pre-poned to end by the 4th of June.
Many final semester students had complained about the month-long gap between exams and wished for their exams to get concluded timely without huge gaps due to job opportunities and admission deadlines. Rahul Jhansla, Vice President of DUSU, had submitted a written application to the Dean of Student Welfare regarding the DU examination date sheet for the aforementioned reasons.
According to Rahul Jhansla, the DU administration had kept the initial gap in consideration for the UPSC prelims; however, they later stated that they would speak to the Controller of Examinations to reduce the gap in the later period.
The examination notice released on 4th May further announced that students currently in their 6th semester could opt for exiting in the SLC portal in June or July, instead of choosing to pursue the additional 4th Year added by the NEP 2020.
Students are advised to check their admit cards for the May-June 2026 examination, which is live on the SLC portal. Many students have also reported that their admit cards show ‘EXTCR” on the column ‘paper type’ causing further confusion. However, they have been informed by teachers that it will not be an issue if it continues to show even after the correction.
Even though the final date sheet has now been released, many students have expressed frustration at the constantly changing date sheet since it disrupts plans for studying and travelling back home. It also highlights poor planning and lack of communication on the University’s behalf as many students continue to question whether or not this shall be the final timetable, despite the official notice.
After the release of admit cards following the continued confusion regarding the timetable for the upcoming May-June semester examinations, DU students now experience discrepancies in their admit cards as well.
On Tuesday, 5th May, Delhi University officially started rolling out verified admit cards for the upcoming semester-end examinations in May and June, which can be downloaded from the Samarth portal as usual. However, there is no doubt that the pre-examination air at Delhi University (DU) is always full of chaos, confusion, and more often than not, uncertainty.
Amidst constantly shifting examination dates, the perpetual stress that accompanies upcoming exams, and the Delhi heat beating down upon them, it is a tough time to be a student at DU. Further, many students are even facing issues with the recent rollout of the examination admit cards by the University administration.
Students reported confusion after “EXTCR” appeared in place of usual paper categories
According to a post by DU Today, instead of the usual paper types (DSC, GE, AEC, SEC, VAC, etc.), many admit cards have the “EXTCR” category shown in the “Paper Type” column. For some, this is true for every course for which they will be giving the exam, and for others, this is true only partially. Students are unsure what this category truly implies and why the usual categories have been replaced in this manner. Some are concerned whether giving their final examinations will be affected in any manner due to such a change in their admit cards.
It is also highly probable that this occurrence is merely an administrative lapse or technical glitch and will soon be rectified. Students who are facing this discrepancy should consult their respective college administrative offices or faculty to understand the next steps to be taken, if any at all. Such technical glitches have been unfortunately common for quite some time now. Last year, some admit cards had allegedly shown “ER”, creating confusion and panic. Students had also faced other technical discrepancies, such as missing crucial information or unclear details mentioned on the card.
In addition to the above, many students’ admit cards have not yet been verified by their colleges despite there being an official statement stating that “all students can now download their admit cards.” Also, students enrolled in Delhi University’s School of Open Learning (SOL) have reportedly not received their hall tickets yet.
On 30th April, Hansraj College issued a notice terminating the suspensions of 29 out of 30 students; however, Parth Srivastava’s suspension remains in effect. He has approached the High Court of Delhi under Article 226 and has argued that the suspension violates Parth’s fundamental rights under Articles 14, 19(1)(a), and 21 of the Constitution.
Hansraj College terminated the suspension of 29 out of 30 students who were suspended due to alleged defamation, violence, indiscipline and misconduct, which had occurred after the college fest, Confluence 2026. However, one student, Parth Srivastava, the former president of the student union of Hansraj College, is still suspended, and the matter has reached the High Court of Delhi.
However, Parth Srivastava is still suspended and has filed a petition to the Delhi High Court challenging his suspension on multiple grounds, including “defaming the college through social media platforms” and using “derogatory language.”
On 29th April, Justice Jasmeet Singh issued a notice which allowed Parth Srivastava to enter the campus to fill his examination form as the last date was on 30th April. The notice also stated that the petitioner will not cause any disruption in the college. But he wasn’t allowed to attend his farewell.
Parth Srivastava in conversation with DU Beat
He told DU Beat,
“The person who gave all of his four years to the college and its students was specifically not allowed to attend his own farewell through explicit instructions mentioned in the notice/poster. It was truly very disheartening and shattering for me.”
Filed under Article 226 of the Constitution, pleas that his suspension, which was declared on 20th April, be squashed. In a report by Newslaundry, “[t]he petition argues that the suspension violates Parth’s fundamental rights under Articles 14, 19(1)(a), and 21 of the Constitution–the rights to equality, free speech, and life and dignity.” It has also challenged the legitimacy of the Special Core Sub-Discipline Committee, which suspended him.
The petition also seeks to restore all the academic benefits throughout the suspension period and ensure the petitioner is permitted to attend all classes, participate in academic activities, and continue his education without interruption. This had all begun on February 9th, when a controversy arose because the principal of Hansraj College had used the campus for her son’s wedding, which caused a protest that raised questions about the use of public resources for private use.
Later, around February 12 and 16, another controversy sparked by allegations of NIRF data manipulation. Multiple RTIs were filed by Parth, who later received a disciplinary notice with no charges specified. Later, he filed a complaint with the Central Vigilance Commission on 31st March and then, on 20th April, received his suspension letter.
“After the irregularities highlighted by my RTI application and a CVC complaint were forwarded to the CVO, DU on 16th April, my suspension notice was issued just four days later. Further, suspension notices issued to others during the same period have been revoked, while action against me continues, raising concerns about selective targeting,”
Parth Srivastava mentioned in an interview with DU Beat.
On April 1st, the college had uploaded the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP), which prohibited the students from speaking to the media without prior permission, posting defamatory content on social media, and recording meetings or administrative discussions.
On the day of the college fest, many decisions by the college administration, like restrictions on external artists and forcibly concluding the fest early on day one, caused a 20-hour sit-in protest. Many misogynistic remarks were allegedly made to the female protesters by the principal. The college administration gave in, however, on Day 2 of the fest, but the poor crowd management led to physical violence, harassment, and uncontrolled chaos, which led to police intervention.
Parth admitted to posting videos that criticised the college over fee hikes and administration issues.
Parth’s lawyer, Shaurya Vikram, argued that the suspension order is illegal and driven by malice. According to him, the order was issued without any charges, evidence, or clarification of the committee’s authority, making it invalid. He also pointed out that Delhi University stated in 2023 that it cannot regulate staff social media activity, questioning why the same principle shouldn’t apply to students.
In an exclusive interview with the editorial team of DU Beat, he mentioned that:
“ I was targeted because I’m the only one who’s willing to raise a voice. I received emails from the Special Disciplinary Committee formed by the administration of Hansraj without any proof, show-cause notice or relevant information. People allegedly brought knives and guns to the fest, and their faces were all over the internet, yet no action was taken against them. When a civil crime like alleged “defamation” carries so much weight compared to serious crimes like that, it raises concerns about the priorities of our institutions and the environment they are creating. I have been part of the same administration during my tenure, and I know exactly what goes on there, so I am not one to back down from a fight. We trust the Hon’ble Delhi High Court and the student community that we will get justice. ”
Principal Rama Sharma defended the suspension, saying it was needed to maintain order. She criticised students for making false claims and defaming the college on social media. However, she added that most students come to Hansraj College to study, and their academics shouldn’t be disrupted, as it is a “very prestigious college.”
The next hearing for the court case is on 8th May, 2026.
The Met Gala 2026 positioned fashion as art, and inherently power, with Indian craftsmanship and cultural identity finding itself widely embodied, while simultaneously exposing tensions around elitism, Western dominance, and the limits of celebrating art within exclusive global spaces.
The Met Gala, with all its consistent A-listers’ attendance, best and worst dressed lists, and never-before-and-after-seen outfits, also functions as a charity event and fundraiser for The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute. It prides itself in being one of the biggest fundraisers for art in the world, raising unparalleled sums of 8 figures every year with an increment in collections every year. This year, it was co-chaired by Beyoncé, Nicole Kidman, Venus Williams, and Anna Wintour, with a theme of “Costume Art”.
The theme, like each passing year, becomes a focal point of discussion primarily as a test of whether the said attendees adhered to it or not, but also how far they were successful in elevating it. These themes ‘attempt’ to explore different niches of the fashion world, from last year’s “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style” to the iconic and fan favourite “Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination”. The dress code, ‘fashion is art’, is, like other themes, extremely open-ended and broad, which then results in showcasing the vibrancy of garments as the brainchild of plethora of designers at the red carpet.
what connects every curatorial department … is fashion, or the dressed body; even the nude is never naked. It’s always inscribed with cultural values and ideas.”
Amidst this exploration of culture and ideas, the presence of Indian celebrities at the Met, like always remains crucial; all hopeful eyeballs are on them, which means that they have the pressure to meet the high standards that not only fans but even an average Indian internet lurker has on them. This certain way is generally associated with a prideful representation of Indian culture. In recent years, we have become more vocal on how the fashion world of the West takes inspiration from Indian ornaments and designs and yet chooses to ignorantly not acknowledge or give credit to it and make it their own, what we often term as cultural appropriation.
With the advent of increasing acceptance we have come to recognise that fashion is not just clothes or accessories but represents power structures and thereby is equally political. The only way then is to make the world our stage and own and preserve our art.
This Met Gala saw the attendance of various Indian celebrities, with the likes of Karan Johar, Isha Ambani, Ananya Birla, Sudha Reddy, and Manish Malhotra, among others; it is appreciative that all of them chose to pay homage to the artisans of India: Karan Johar’s outfit was designed by Manish Malhotra and styled by Eka Lakhani; it carries Raja Ravi Varma’s imagery across a hand-painted ensemble, with zardozi borders, three-dimensional pillars, lotuses and swans, and a hand-painted jacket lining. Johar, while praising the artist, said, “Raja Ravi Varma gave India its most enduring images of itself.”
Karan Johar dons Ravi Verma’s painting in a Manish Malhotra ensemble
Isha Ambani, who has now become a global figure with her frequent presence in events like the Academy Awards and the Vogue Fashion Fund Awards coupled with the publicity of the Ambani family events, wore a custom-made sari which brings together historical references from ancient Indian frescoes, with the sari border featuring hand-painted Pichwai-inspired motifs. The blouse of her outfit was embedded with her mother’s jewellery inventory. Representing realism in art, she wore a mango sculpture created by an Indian artist, Subodh Gupta, 20 years ago.
Isha Ambani’s costume features steel, sari, and a showpiece mango
Gauravi Kumari, the princess of Jaipur, was also seen wearing her family heirloom, the chiffon sari of the then fashion icon and her great-grandmother Maharani Gayatri Devi. Emphasising the regionalistic sentiments, Kumari wore a pink sari to represent the colour of her city. The same was also carried by her brother Sawai Padmanabh Singh, who stated, “The idea was to bring Rajasthani craftsmanship to the forefront in a way that felt authentic to me.”
Gauravi Kumari and her brother Sawai Padmanabhan Singh at the Met Gala
Manish Malhotra, in a move that is getting wide appraisal, wore a garment representing Mumbai with a special ode to all his craftsmen. The outfit features renowned Mumbai locations, such as Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, Gateway of India, and so on. The garment features many forms of embroidery-zardozi, chikankari, and kasab to name a few, which were endered in white and ivory.
An ode to Mumbai by Manish Malhotra
This representation is targeted at getting much-needed discourse on authentic Indian craftsmanship. This pride is newfound because we as Indians carry with us a deeply entrenched colonial baggage and have been at the receiving end of the ‘West is Best’ narrative. India has in the recent past seen vast westernisation of its elite, possibly beginning from the creation of the bhadralok identity, where the upper-class upper-caste elite exclusively associated themselves with European and later on American brands, as they were seen as the epitome of artistry during its time as a colony but was unable to overcome it even after independence.
One association that puts a question mark on the event’s genuineness of promoting “art” is Jeff Bezos, along with his wife Lauren Sanchez, being the primary sponsors of the event with around 10 million dollars in donations. This collaboration is questionable because it lays a doubt on whether they are unfeigned patrons of art or doing this just because they have the means to do so, in order to gain social capital in the world of art and fashion, which tends to be gatekept, especially given the worldwide protests surrounding exploitation of workers and increasing wealth inequality. At the centre of this conversation is situated the costume embodied by Lauren Sanchez, which critics have likened to an “average American prom dress”.
Sanchez-Bezos dons as Schiaparelli (as never seen before)
However, in between this elitism and “fashion for the rich” are ongoing efforts to challenge this elitism and exclusionism, particularly by the Mayor of New York City, Zohran Mamdani who chose not to attend the event highlighting the question of “affordability”—why there is an us v. them attitude of the privileged in terms of access to fashion.
Whenever I, through my computer screen, examine the looks of the Met Gala by channelling my inner Miranda Priestly. I always ask, do we really need a Met Gala once every year to take pride in our art and then forget about it? Why can’t we have our own? Shouldn’t this celebration not be restricted to only those artisans that manage to reach the clientele of celebrities but also those local uncles and bhaiyas that we see at our local bazaars? Is being cool and endearing restricted to only a few billionaires and celebrities?
The DCAC portal was reportedly compromised through an SEO poisoning attack with malicious links still visible on search engines and no official statement issued by the college.
The official website of Delhi College of Arts and Commerce (DCAC) affiliated with Delhi University, was allegedly targeted in a cyberattack on 3 May 2026. The attack reportedly involved “SEO poisoning”, leading users accessing the site via search engines to encounter misleading metadata and redirections linked to an Indonesian gambling platform “MAHJONG333”. At the time of reporting, the effects of the attack remained visible, with compromised search results still appearing online.
While the primary website link had briefly appeared to be restored for direct access, the portal was allegedly compromised again on 6 May 2026. During the second instance, users reported that the website had become inaccessible once more, while Google search results displayed gambling-related metadata and titles associated with another betting platform, “JUDOLBET88”.
Screenshot of the DCAC webpage results on 6th May
Students reported that the website had earlier displayed a 404 error when attempting to access the ERP portal to check internal marks, which is speculated to be connected to the broader compromise. Users also stated that browsers, including Chrome, flagged the website as unsafe and warned against visiting the page.
Later, students were provided with an alternate official link to access services such as attendance records and timetables. The alternate portal was functioning normally at the time of reporting. According to accounts, the link was shared only after students approached the administration for clarification, suggesting that the college had not initially issued an immediate public advisory or clarification.
The continued visibility of compromised search results has raised concerns regarding user safety, as individuals relying on search engines may still encounter misleading or potentially harmful links despite the main portal becoming inaccessible again.
A student of the college, expressing concern regarding the incident, stated,
This is a very serious concern. It’s worrying that a college website could be compromised like this, and the administration should take strict action to strengthen security and prevent such incidents in the future.”
Parallel instances of alleged website compromise have previously been reported in other Delhi University colleges, including Ramjas College, where a website named “TOTO Slot”, another Indonesian gambling platform had allegedly taken over the institution’s homepage, along with reported incidents involving Keshav Mahavidyalaya and Deen Dayal Upadhyay College.
The situation continues to develop with residual effects of the alleged cyberattack still visible online as of 6 May 2026.
India’s 2026 Election verdict signals generational change, ideological fatigue, and the rise of new political alternatives.
Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Assam and Kerala in 2026 were no ordinary poll-bound states. These assembly elections jolted pollsters, unsettled analysts, and challenged some of the most entrenched assumptions of Indian politics. While several states broadly conformed to expectations, the outcomes in the West Bengal and Tamil Nadu election marked something closer to a tectonic shift. The meteoric rise of TVK in Tamil Nadu resembled a political “first-day, first-show” blockbuster, while what was projected as a close contest between TMC and BJP in West Bengal culminated instead in a decisively one-sided verdict.
As Prannoy Roy once observed, elections in India are fought as much in the mind as on the ground. Any post-poll analysis, therefore, must grapple with multiple and often competing interpretations. Even so, certain patterns offer valuable insight into a rapidly evolving political landscape stretching from the North-East to the South. These, however, must be approached with caution: there is no singular “Indian voter,” and no single explanatory framework can fully capture the complexity of these outcomes.
One of the clearest signals from this election is the quiet but decisive consolidation of the youth vote. In West Bengal, this was not visible in rallies or rhetoric, but in mood. As a voter from Asansol and student of Delhi University noted, “the shift from Durga Pujo to polling day was stark”—deserted TMC offices, guarded conversations, and a single refrain cutting across communities: “Poriborton toh chai chai.”
The silence was strategic. Beneath it lay accumulated grievances—stalled government recruitment, corruption, concerns over women’s safety, and the political aftershocks of cases like RG Kar. When it finally spoke, the student vote did so not in fragments, but as a bloc.
Tamil Nadu reflected a very different, yet equally generational churn. The rise of TVK is less a conventional political story and more a cultural mobilisation. For a Gen-Z electorate raised on cinema and immediacy, TVK offered disruption without ideological baggage. It broke the fatigue of the DMK–AIADMK binary not through policy depth, but through identification and momentum. In the Kerala election, the shift was sharper in ideological terms—sections of young voters appear to have turned away from the Left, driven by a growing discomfort with centralised authority. As one student put it rather bluntly, “the authoritarian CM had to lose; his Left was not right.”
Alongside this generational shift is a quieter rejection of political inheritance. Across states, familiar surnames no longer guaranteed electoral comfort. The message is not the end of dynasties, but the erosion of their immunity. Voters are no longer willing to underwrite legacy without performance. The disruption in Tamil Nadu’s entrenched bipolarity only reinforces this trend—new entrants are no longer fringe experiments; they are viable vessels of aspiration.
For the Congress, the picture is deceptively flat. On paper, there is little immediate gain—Kerala’s victory comes in a space where the BJP is not a primary contender. But politics rarely moves in straight lines. The party’s position today resembles the early, incremental phases once seen in states like West Bengal—small footholds preceding larger relevance. With limited downside, Congress has room to manoeuvre: deepen its Kerala base, negotiate more assertively within a potential TVK alignment in Tamil Nadu, and cautiously expand in Bengal where the search for alternatives is clearly underway. The opportunity is narrow, but real.
What ties these strands together is not a uniform swing, but a pattern of voter impatience—with stagnation, with entitlement, and with unpredictability. Indian elections, as Yogendra Yadav reminds us, have a way of defying both political calculation and analytical certainty: “Indian voters are wiser than the politicians who seek to manipulate them—and often wiser than the analysts who try to predict them.”
Where does the future of press lie? Does it even lie, or is it just another petrified reality waiting to become a manufactured myth?
A free press is said to be the fourth pillar of a democratic nation, or at least that was the norm. It is regarded widely as a highly potent part of a larger system of checks and balances that keep the nation tied together through politics, economics, justice and beyond. And it is the association of “free” with press that preserves it as a critical component especially at a turning moment in time like today where news is filtered for profitability and truth itself is accustomed to be molded like clay.
As a student journalist working for about a year now, in the limited time that I’ve found myself associated with this field, I’ve learned beyond the good-to-knows, that is, the way to stir up a headline or chase a story—the past months have pushed me to a larger realisation of what it truly means to listen, who gets to be heard, and what are the costs of speaking up.
India is a country of too many people from too many regions and too many diversities—here, too is to be regarded as liberating, as is the term “overpopulating” in overflowing our landscape with stories far more than the news channels or filmmakers can ever fully capture. ‘Untold stories’ in India thus becomes more than a buzzword but experiences lived and unheard, but yet a reality that finds itself limited again to the mainstream. In the ‘unhearing’ of such stories, what renders invisible is the people for whom it is not a story: those who are too marginal, too inconvenient, or worse, too disruptive to even be considered for Page 4, let alone front headlines.
Before I had the vocabulary for it, I had already felt patriarchy shape my world. Before I understood class, I had already encountered the sharp divide between those who have and those who do not. Yet, as an urban upper-caste individual, there also remains parts of my inherited identity that are silent; I just had the privilege to never notice or question them because they were stories I did not hear because I did not have to ever live through them. Journalism, at its best, breaks that silence.
I would like to believe that I have come of age at a time when the institution of journalism itself feels increasingly fragile by the passing day. This decline of the freedom of the press is not relatively new, but perhaps more visible to the eye of the common layman who continue to persist beyond the scholars, writers, journalists, and critics that have lived and died warning us about censorship, the corrosion of independent media, and the damage this does to the very ecology of democracy that journalism is meant to sustain. These warnings are not breaking news (pun intended), but the familiarity of such a warning may be part of the problem.
In conversations, I have found myself realising the unsettling reality that the risks of pursuing journalism often seem to outweigh the rewards: the best-paying positions frequently exist within systems that are deeply entangled with power and the ABCs of journalism are negotiated on the daily, unfortunately resulting in the death of the fourth pillar and a failure of what it truly stands to support. Yet in between the fading light, student journalism presents itself as something radically different: as something not yet entangled in the futile war between politics and spectacle.
I remember an ideation meeting we had for the DU Beat Print edition; I mentioned, almost apologetically, the opening of a new café on campus as the news tip of the week. It didn’t feel like “real news” to me, given what “real” had been ingrained into me, and it wasn’t until my editor responded with something that I realised that journalism, especially student journalism, is not only about documenting crises but also to function as an archival. It preserves the textures of everyday life, the clothes people wore, the food they ate, the spaces they gathered in, and the conversations they had. Journalism becomes a record of that very existence that tells future readers what happened, alongside how it felt to live through it.
In the brief and privileged opportunities that I’ve had to step into larger mainstream newsrooms, I’ve come to notice the behind the scenes of press production that positions itself as neutral, but is rarely unbiased. Behind every headline and breaking news, is a thorough process of filtration and of calculation: the economy of news, who funds it, who controls it, and most importantly who benefits from it. It is perhaps as ‘1984’ as it gets.
As we encounter days of what is meant to be a celebration such as International Press Freedom day, I instead find myself lingering in thoughts of the words edited out and the stories that are censored before the screens can ever house them. It is perhaps uncomfortable to think of how easily we scrutinise dissent and how quickly a protest is delegitimised, especially in student-led spaces where frequently power speaks louder than truth. But it is within such thoughts, and the questioning of such realities that possibility emerges: student journalism, independent media houses, and smaller platforms continue to carve out within the controlled mainstream such spaces of resistance even without the reach of resources. What they rely on though is by far the most important tool of journalism: the willingness to ask difficult questions and seek it answers.
Perhaps in reimagining the future of freedom, of truth, and of journalism in a landscape that silences, the Big 4 hides behind the smaller newsrooms, campus publications, independent newsletters, local reporting and spaces where journalism is still driven by curiosity instead of control. Question what you read and what is shown to you: interrogate and listen in between what is left unsaid. The strength of the fourth pillar does not only depend on those who build it but equally so on those who engage with it.
