Rahul terms EVM as 'Modi Voting Machine';says NDA has no chance in Bihar
Madhepura/Araria (Bihar): Congress leader Rahul Gandhi Wednesday described Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) as "Modi Voting Machine" (MVM), and asserted the youth of Bihar is "angry" this time and will vote out the NDA government "whether its EVM or MVM".
Wrapping up his campaign for the ongoing election in Bihar, he addressed two rallies during the day, and slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar over the migrant issue, handling of the coronavirus crisis, unemployment, and the new agricultural laws.
In his first rally at Madhepuras Bihariganj, from where veteran socialist leader Sharad Yadav's daughter Subhashini Yadav is contesting the poll on a Congress seat, Gandhi said the chief minister had promised he would provide jobs to the youth and "change" Bihar, but he "could not deliver".
"When youths today ask Kumar during his public meetings about the jobs he had promised, he threatens them, chases them away and gets them thrashed," Gandhi alleged.
"He (Nitish) tells them he doesn't need their votes.
Fine then. The youth of Bihar will not vote for you," he said.
Raking up the EVM issue for the first time in this election, he said, "The name is not EVM (Electronic Voting Machine. The name is MVM i.e Modi Voting Machine. E is written just like that.
"But there is anger among the youth of Bihar this time around. So whether it's EVM or MVM, the mahagathbandhan (Grand Alliance) is going to win," he said.
He said he was not scared "whether its MVM or Modiji ka Media (Modi ji's media)".
"Truth is truth, justice is justice. I am fighting a war of ideology against this man. We are fighting against their thoughts. We will defeat their thoughts," he said.
"I won't budge an inch until I defeat Narendra Modi," he said.
He also raised the issue of Minimum Support Price for maize and paddy and said the money that the farmers should be getting is actually going to the middleman.
He alleged that the PM, through the three recently passed agricultural laws, has "cleared the way for new middlemen. Not the smaller ones but the bigger ones -- Ambani and Adani".
"You would never have seen the Prime Minister holding the hand of a poor farmer, but must have seen him embracing Ambani and Adani," he alleged.
He also alleged that Prime Minister Modi and Chief Minister Kumar did not help poor labourers and workers during the coronavirus lockdown, rather they got them "lathi-charged", and are asking for their votes now.
He said the prices of vegetable and other edible items are shooting up because of these new agricultural laws.
"Three laws have been brought by Modi ji which have destroyed the Mandi system, the MSP regime and the procurement system. Therefore, the prices of vegetables are increasing rapidly," he said.
"Modi Ji says, we have liberated the farmer. Now the farmer can sell his paddy and maize anywhere. But Modi Ji should tell me one thing, how will he sell? He needs a road (to travel to sell the produce), but where is the road in Bihar?" he asked.
He alleged, "The whole country is watching that you have given the freedom to the biggest billionaires of India and enslaved the farmers and labourers."
Attacking the chief minister, he asked the crowd, "You gave him a vote. What did he give you? Unemployment."
"Modi Ji & Nitish Ji run the government only for a few businessmen, not for the poor or labourers. I am here to tell you that when the Mahagathbandan government comes to power, it will be a government for every farmer, labourer, caste, religion and class," he said.
At his Madhepura rally, he praised Sharad Yadav, saying the veteran leader taught him a lot and was in a way a "guru" to him.
The two districts are going to the polls in the last phase on November 7.
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Accused gunman at correspondents' dinner was believed to be targeting top officials, Blanche says
Washington (AP): The accused gunman who tried to storm the ballroom at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner with guns and knives travelled across the country before the event and is believed to have been targeting members of the Trump administration, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said Sunday.
Blanche also said officials believe the suspect traveled by train from California to Chicago and then on to Washington, where in recent days he checked in as a guest to the hotel where one of Washington's glitziest events was being held Saturday night.
Investigators have not publicly named the suspect, but two law enforcement officials familiar with the matter have identified him to The Associated Press as 31-year-old Cole Tomas Allen of Torrance, California.
Law enforcement officials who have examined the gunman's electronic devices and his writings preliminarily believe he intended to target administration members in attendance at the dinner. He attempted to charge into the cavernous ballroom at the Washington Hilton but was tackled to the ground in a chaotic scene that resulted in shots being fired, President Donald Trump being hurried off the stage and guests ducking for cover beneath their tables.
“It does appear that he did in fact set out to target folks who work in the administration, likely including the president,” Blanche told NBC's “Meet the Press.”
The suspect is believed to have purchased the firearms he carried within the last couple of years, Blanche said. He is not being cooperative and is expected to face multiple charges on Monday.
Video posted by Trump showed the suspect running past security barricades as Secret Service agents ran toward him. One officer was shot in a bullet-resistant vest but was recovering, officials said. The gunman was taken into custody and was not injured, but was being evaluated at a hospital, police said.
“He failed,” Blanche said on CBS's “Face the Nation.” “Law enforcement did their jobs.”
Social media posts that appear to match the suspect show he is a highly educated tutor and amateur video game developer.
A May 2025 profile photo of Allen appears to match the appearance of the man in a photo of the alleged attacker being taken into custody that was posted Saturday night by Trump. The photo, posted to the social networking site LinkedIn, shows him in a cap and gown after graduating with a master's degree in computer science from California State University, Dominguez Hills.
Allen earned a bachelor's degree in 2017 in mechanical engineering from the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. He listed his involvement there in a Christian student fellowship and a campus group that battled with Nerf guns.
The shooting at the security barricades happened minutes after the event got underway.
The Secret Service and other authorities swarmed the room as guests ducked under tables by the hundreds. Gasps echoed through the ballroom as guests realized something was happening. Hundreds of journalists immediately got on phones to call in information.
“Out of the way, sir!” someone yelled. Others yelled to duck. From one corner, a “God Bless America” chant began as the president was escorted offstage. Outside the hotel, members of the National Guard and other authorities flooded the area as helicopters circled overhead.
After an initial attempt to resume the event, it was scrapped for the night and will be rescheduled.
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