Periscope: New US Prez to be elected this week

The US will vote to decide who will be the next President on Tuesday. The results are expected to be in by Wednesday morning. Either Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump will officially be made the next President on January 20, 2017, at the inauguration. 

Hillary Clinton was riding high in the opinion polls last week, with some estimates giving her a near-double digit lead over rival Donald Trump. However, the race has tightened once again after James Comey, director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, said FBI was investigating a new cache of emails potentially connected to Clinton. 

With some polls separating the two candidates by less than a percentage point in key battleground states, turnout will be the most important factor in Tuesday’s election. 

Statistics for the 25 million or so Americans who have already cast their ballots through early voting gives a ‘mixed’ picture for the Clinton campaign. India, both officially and unofficially, has said it will welcome either outcome. 

Najeeb's mother, sister released 

Najeeb Ahmed’s mother and sister of JNU student, who is missing since 23 days, were on Sunday detained when they along with scores of agitating students tried to take out a protest march to India Gate demanding intensified efforts from police in tracing him. Fatima Nafees, Najeeb’s mother, was virtually dragged into a bus by police along with other students when they were on their way to India Gate, triggering criticism from Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal who decided to visit the police station. Fatima and her daughter Sadaf, were later released.

Earlier in the day, Kejriwal met President Pranab Mukherjee, and said he has been assured that the President will seek a report from the Home Ministry and the JNU administration on the issue.

Modi to visit Japan

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Japan on November 11-12, during which he will have an audience with the Emperor of Japan. Modi will hold the annual summit meeting with his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe that could see a civil nuclear cooperation pact being inked. 

Announcing the visit, the external affairs ministry said the meeting would be an occasion for the two leaders to have “in-depth exchanges on bilateral, regional and global issues of mutual interest to further deepen the broad-based and action-oriented partnership between India and Japan”. 

Apart from the thrust on enhancing cooperation in the civil nuclear sector, the two sides will also explore the ways to boost ties in trade, including in high technology area, security and infrastructure.

Others greet Mamata’s anti-BJP call

With TMC Chief Mamata Banerjee indicating that she is ready to play a bigger role in national politics, several parties have welcomed the suggestion, saying there is a need to fight unitedly against BJP and its "communal politics".

That she is willing to play a bigger role in national politics by forming an alliance against BJP ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha polls was reflected in her recent statement. "I am appealing to all political parties. I have to tell all my friends to come together and sit together. Let us fight together," she has said.

Congress, JD(U), Samajwadi Party and AAP welcomed her comments which came in the backdrop of a series of incidents that rocked national politics last week.