Nilambur by-election: Aryadan Shoukath leads by Over 10,000 votes; M. Swaraj trails
Malappuram: United Democratic Front (UDF) candidate Aryadan Shoukath has taken a commanding lead in the Nilambur Assembly by-election, with a margin of over 10,000 votes as counting continues across several centres in the constituency.
His closest rival, M. Swaraj of the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF), is currently trailing. The early trends have also positioned Trinamool Congress-backed candidate P. V. Anvar in third place.
The outcome of the Nilambur bypoll is being closely watched, as it is considered a bellwether for the political climate ahead of the 2026 Kerala Assembly elections.
The by-elections, held on June 19, covered five constituencies across four states: Visavadar and Kadi in Gujarat; Kaliganj in West Bengal; Ludhiana West in Punjab; and Nilambur in Kerala.
Voter turnout varied significantly across the states. Kerala’s Nilambur recorded the highest turnout at 75.27%, followed by Kaliganj in West Bengal at 69.85%, Visavadar in Gujarat at 56.89%, Kadi at 57.90%, and Ludhiana West in Punjab at 51.33%.
The Nilambur seat fell vacant following the resignation of the sitting MLA. In this high-stakes contest, the LDF fielded M. Swaraj, while Aryadan Shoukath represented the Congress-led UDF. The BJP-led NDA nominated Mohan George, while P. V. Anvar contested independently with the backing of the Trinamool Congress. In total, ten candidates are in the fray.
In Gujarat’s Kadi seat, the BJP has fielded Rajendra Chavda against Congress’ Ramesh Chavda and AAP’s Jagdish Chavda. In Visavadar, BJP's Kirit Patel is facing off against AAP's Gopal Italia and Congress’ Nitin Ranpariya.
In West Bengal's Kaliganj, the key contenders include Congress candidate Kabil Uddin Sheikh (backed by the Left Front), Trinamool Congress’ Alifa Ahmed, and BJP’s Ashish Ghosh.
Punjab’s Ludhiana West constituency is witnessing a four-way contest between AAP's Sanjeev Arora, Congress’ Bharat Bhushan Ashu, BJP’s Jiwan Gupta, and Parupkar Singh Ghumman of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD). Arora, currently a Rajya Sabha MP from AAP, is at the centre of speculation that Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal might be nominated to the upper house if Arora wins, although AAP leaders have dismissed such reports. Counting in Ludhiana West is being conducted at Khalsa College for Women.
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Israel rejects UN allegations that its forces have sexually abused detained Palestinians
United Nations, Aug 12 (AP): The UN chief warned Israel that the United Nations has “credible information” of sexual violence and other violations by Israeli forces against detained Palestinians, which Israel's UN ambassador dismissed as “baseless accusations.”
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a letter to Ambassador Danny Danon that he is “gravely concerned” about reported violations against Palestinians by Israeli military and security forces in several prisons, a detention center and a military base.
Guterres said he was putting Israeli forces on notice that they could be listed as abusers in his next report on sexual violence in conflict “due to significant concerns of patterns of certain forms of sexual violence that have been consistently documented by the United Nations.”
Danon, who circulated the letter and his response Tuesday, said the allegations “are steeped in biased publications.”
“The UN must focus on the shocking war crimes and sexual violence of Hamas and the release of all hostages,” he said.
Danon was referring to the Hamas group's surprise attack in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, where some 1,200 people were killed and about 250 taken hostage. Israeli authorities said women were raped and sexually abused.
The Hamas attack triggered the ongoing war in Gaza, which has killed more than 61,400 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which does not say how many were fighters or civilians but that about half were women and children.
Danon stressed that “Israel will not shy away from protecting its citizens and will continue to act in accordance with international law.”
Because Israel has denied access to UN monitors, it has been “challenging to make a definitive determination” about patterns, trends and the systematic use of sexual violence by its forces, Guterres said in the letter.
He urged Israel's government “to take the necessary measures to ensure immediate cessation of all acts of sexual violence, and make and implement specific time-bound commitments.”
The secretary-general said these should include investigations of credible allegations, clear orders and codes of conduct for military and security forces that prohibit sexual violence, and unimpeded access for UN monitors.
In March, UN-backed human rights experts accused Israel of “the systematic use of sexual, reproductive and other gender-based violence.”
The Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory said it documented a range of violations perpetrated against Palestinian women, men, girls and boys and accused Israeli security forces of rape and sexual violence against Palestinian detainees.
At the time, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu lashed out at the UN Human Rights Council, which commissioned the team of independent experts, as an “anti-Israel circus” that “has long been exposed as an antisemitic, rotten, terrorist-supporting, and irrelevant body.” His statement did not address the findings themselves.
