More than 21 million voters will cast their ballots in India's Punjab state on Sunday in polls that are regarded as a barometer of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his party's popularity before general elections in 2024.
Pitched against Mr Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is the incumbent Congress Party and the regional Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which is seeking to consolidate its political dominance through the election.
The AAP was formed in 2013 to eliminate corruption and has ruled the capital territory of Delhi for two consecutive terms.
On a recent afternoon, Harbhajan Singh, one of the party's candidates from the Jandiala constituency, sat on top of a car during door-to-door campaigning.
A band of young men followed him on motorbikes waving flags brandishing the party symbol – a broom to sweep out corruption.
Mr Singh stopped near a public park and talked to his supporters about chipping away at the entrenched political system.
The BJP implemented controversial farm laws in September 2020 using its executive powers and without any consultation in Parliament. The legislation was met with some of the fiercest protests in India in recent years.
Mr Modi's administration billed them as necessary reforms, but farmers feared the laws signalled the government was moving away from a system in which they sold their harvest only in government-sanctioned marketplaces.
They worried this would leave them poorer and at the mercy of private corporations.
The laws triggered a year of protests as angry farmers – most of them Sikhs from Punjab state – camped on the outskirts of New Delhi through a harsh winter and coronavirus pandemic.
In a major reversal, Mr Modi withdrew the laws a year later, three months before the crucial polls in Punjab and four other states.
BJP has a small presence in Punjab but hopes to form a government there with a regional ally and strengthen its voter base among farmers, one of the largest blocs in India.
Punjab, where people are deeply proud of their state's cultural and religious tapestry, also represents a test for Mr Modi's party's Hindu nationalist reach, which has flourished in most of northern India since 2014.
The BJP is running its campaign by trying to portray the Congress government as corrupt.
It is also making grand promises to create more jobs, provide farm subsidies and free electricity for farmers, and eradicate the drug problem that has afflicted the state for years.
Analysts said the moves are intended to placate the farmers, and that the elections were a major reason behind Mr Modi's sudden decision to withdraw the laws.
Bitterness after protest crackdown
That anger, however, runs deep.
More than 700 farmers died during the protests as they weathered harsh cold, record rainfall and sweltering heat, according to Samyukt Kisan Morcha, or the United Farmers Front, the umbrella group of farm unions that organised the agitation. Dozens also died by suicide.
But in December last year, Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar told Parliament that his government had no record of the farmers' deaths.
This caused widespread anger among the families of the deceased, many of whom are small or landless farmers who constitute the lowest rung of India's farming community.
"Where did those 700 to 750 people go then? The Modi government is responsible for that," said Amarjeet Singh, choking back tears in his family home in Kaler Ghuman village, about 40 kilometres from Amritsar, the state's capital.
Mr Singh's father, Sudagar Singh, died on a hot September afternoon from a sudden heart attack, according to his death certificate.
At the time of his death, he was accompanied by his friend Charan Singh, the village head, who said the 72-year-old collapsed while returning home after spending weeks at the protests.
Scarred by the death, Sudagar Singh's younger brother fell into depression, the family said. He stopped eating and working on his farm. Three months later, he died.
Another farmer, Kulwant Singh, died in an accident during the farmers' protest.
"I could never imagine this," said Balwinder Kaur, Kulwant Singh's wife.
In some cases, the Punjab government has announced jobs and funds for the families of the deceased, but farmers said the elections are an opportunity to turn their anger into meaningful change.
At its peak, the protest drew support from Punjab's rural and urban populations.
Now, those protests find very little resonance among city voters who say the farmers' issues should take a back seat since the laws have been withdrawn.
The election results will be announced on March 10.
RESULTS
Bantamweight: Jalal Al Daaja (JOR) beat Hamza Bougamza (MAR)
Catchweight 67kg: Mohamed El Mesbahi (MAR) beat Fouad Mesdari (ALG)
Lightweight: Abdullah Mohammed Ali (UAE) beat Abdelhak Amhidra (MAR)
Catchweight 73kg: Mosatafa Ibrahim Radi (PAL) beat Yazid Chouchane (ALG)
Middleweight: Yousri Belgaroui (TUN) beat Badreddine Diani (MAR)
Catchweight 78KG: Rashed Dawood (UAE) beat Adnan Bushashy (ALG)
Middleweight: Sallah-Eddine Dekhissi (MAR) beat Abdel Enam (EGY)
Catchweight 65kg: Yanis Ghemmouri (ALG) beat Rachid Hazoume (MAR)
Lightweight: Mohammed Yahya (UAE) beat Azouz Anwar (EGY)
Catchweight 79kg: Souhil Tahiri (ALG) beat Omar Hussein (PAL)
Middleweight: Tarek Suleiman (SYR) beat Laid Zerhouni (ALG)
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Desert Warrior
Starring: Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart, Ben Kingsley
Director: Rupert Wyatt
Rating: 3/5
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
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Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
Bangladesh tour of Pakistan
January 24 – First T20, Lahore
January 25 – Second T20, Lahore
January 27 – Third T20, Lahore
February 7-11 – First Test, Rawalpindi
April 3 – One-off ODI, Karachi
April 5-9 – Second Test, Karachi
GROUPS
Group Gustavo Kuerten
Novak Djokovic (x1)
Alexander Zverev (x3)
Marin Cilic (x5)
John Isner (x8)
Group Lleyton Hewitt
Roger Federer (x2)
Kevin Anderson (x4)
Dominic Thiem (x6)
Kei Nishikori (x7)
What are the GCSE grade equivalents?
- Grade 9 = above an A*
- Grade 8 = between grades A* and A
- Grade 7 = grade A
- Grade 6 = just above a grade B
- Grade 5 = between grades B and C
- Grade 4 = grade C
- Grade 3 = between grades D and E
- Grade 2 = between grades E and F
- Grade 1 = between grades F and G
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