MUMBAI: Amid the BJP’s towering performance in the Maharashtra civic elections, the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) found a silver lining, registering notable gains, particularly in Muslim-dominated wards across the state. As per the latest trends, AIMIM is leading in 74 wards, outshining the Sharad Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), which has been squeezed to just 27 seats.The party received strong support in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Dhule, Amravati, Jalna, Malegaon, and Parbhani, reflecting its growing footprint in select urban pockets.In Mumbai, the Asaduddin Owaisi-led party achieved a historic milestone by securing its first-ever victory in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). AIMIM candidate Mehzabin Khan won from Ward No. 134, giving the party its maiden seat in the country’s richest municipal corporation.

In the BMC elections, AIMIM has so far won two seats, with official trends also showing the party leading in two wards as counting continues for the 227-member corporation.Earlier, AIMIM national spokesperson Waris Pathan expressed confidence ahead of the results, dismissing exit polls as unreliable. Speaking to ANI, Pathan said exit polls often fail to reflect the final outcome and asserted that the party would register strong gains once counting concludes.“We are confident that the people have blessed us with their votes. By tomorrow evening, the results will be clear, and AIMIM will achieve great success,” he said.Maharashtra went to the polls for 29 municipal corporations, including the prestigious Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), with stakes high for the Thackeray brothers as also BJP-Shiv Sena after the ruling Mahayuti alliance’s stupendous victory in the assembly polls last year.

MUMBAI: If the BJP ran like a Ferrari across Maharashtra’s urban landscape, it was made possible by a Lewis Hamilton–like performance from its undisputed leader, Devendra Fadnavis, who steered the party towards a near sweep in the civic elections.Riding high on a strong Fadnavis wave, the BJP delivered a stellar performance, reinforcing the view that there is no real challenger to the party in Maharashtra’s urban centres.Brushing aside allegations of vote theft and controversies over indelible ink, the BJP surged far ahead of its bitter rivals — the Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT), MNS, and NCP (SP) — especially in Pune, the traditional stronghold of the powerful Pawar family. Despite Sharad Pawar and his nephew Ajit Pawar joining hands to protect their base, the BJP outpaced the combined NCP and NCP (SP) alliance in both Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporations.The BJP also took the lead in civic bodies across western Maharashtra, including Kolhapur, Satara, Solapur, and Sangli. Its showing in Pune and PCMC indicates that the Fadnavis-led BJP has effectively blunted the challenge posed by the “united” NCP factions.The party had earlier ruled Pune and PCMC single-handedly from 2017 to 2022, after which administrators took charge due to delays caused by the Supreme Court’s stay over the OBC reservation issue.In these elections, the BJP contested independently against its Mahayuti partners — the NCP and Shiv Sena, led by Deputy Chief Ministers Ajit Pawar and Eknath Shinde — while the Congress and Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) were also in the fray.As per the latest trends, the BJP is leading in 43 of 165 wards in Pune, followed by the Congress in 7, the NCP in 5, and NCP (SP) in 3. In the 128-member Pimpri-Chinchwad civic body, the BJP is ahead in 70 wards, while the NCP is leading in 40.The campaign in Pune and PCMC was marked by sharp exchanges between Deputy CM Ajit Pawar and the BJP, with Pawar targeting the local BJP leadership over alleged irregularities in civic administration.In the 102-member Solapur Municipal Corporation, the BJP is leading in 60 wards. In Kolhapur’s 81-member civic body, Mahayuti partners — BJP, Shiv Sena, and NCP — are ahead in 25 seats, while the Maha Vikas Aghadi leads in 21.The BJP is also ahead in several civic bodies across the Vidarbha region. In Nagpur, home to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, the BJP is leading in 74 of 151 wards, with the Congress at 22 and Shiv Sena (UBT) at 2.In Akola, the BJP is leading in 35 of 80 seats, followed by Congress with 15. Shiv Sena (Shinde) is ahead in 8 wards, while Ajit Pawar’s NCP is leading in 7. NCP (SP) and Shiv Sena (UBT) are ahead in four and three wards, respectively.In Amravati, which has 87 wards, the BJP is leading in 13, followed by the NCP with seven and the Congress with five. The Yuva Swabhiman Party, led by MLA Ravi Rana, is ahead in two seats. Notably, the BJP had ended its alliance with Rana’s party just days before polling.In Chandrapur, early trends show Shiv Sena (UBT) leading in seven seats, the BJP in six, the Congress in two, and the NCP in one, in the 66-member civic body.(With agency inputs)

Scott Adams, the creator of the Dilbert comic strip, has passed away

Scott Adams, the creator of the Dilbert comic strip, passed away a few days ago at 68 after battling cancer. For most people, he was the man who made cubicle life funny, who turned the pointy-haired boss into a universal symbol of corporate absurdity. But for me, discovering–and first writing about–Adams in 2013 was a revelation of an entirely different kind.That year, while researching something else entirely, I stumbled upon what Adams called his “book” on financial planning, titled “Everything You Need to Know About Financial Planning”. The book was 87 words long. That’s words, not pages. Here it is: Make a will. Pay off your credit cards. Get term life insurance if you have a family to support. Fund your retirement accounts to the maximum. Buy a house if you want to live in one and can afford it. Put six months’ expenses in a money market fund. Take whatever money is left over and invest 70 per cent in a stock index fund and 30 per cent in a bond fund through any discount broker and never touch it until retirement.

That was it. The entire book. And yet, in those 87 words, Adams had captured everything that matters about personal finance. I remember being both surprised and elated. Here was someone I had thought of as merely a witty cartoonist who had somehow arrived at the same conclusions about money that I had spent years trying to communicate to readers. It was validation of a powerful kind: that if you simply think things through clearly, without the noise of the financial services industry clouding your judgment, you arrive at remarkably simple answers.Adams had the credentials, of course. His bachelor’s degree was in economics, he had an MBA, and he’d worked in a bank for years. But as he explained, when he started to write a proper book on personal finance, the more he thought through the contents and simplified them to their logical end, the less remained. What survived was just these few sentences.This is the essence of good financial thinking. The investment industry thrives on complexity because complexity justifies fees, commissions, and the existence of entire armies of advisors. Adams cut through all of it with the clarity that comes from having no commercial interest in complicating things.His Dilbert strips often satirised this very tendency. In one memorable strip, the evil Dogbert explains his plan to launch a mutual fund: “We’ll start ten mutual funds, each with randomly-chosen stocks. Later, we’ll build our advertisements around whichever one does the best purely by chance. My goal is to be the premier provider of imaginary expertise.” I’m certain that some mutual fund executives, reading that strip over their morning tea, must have experienced an uncomfortable moment of self-recognition.After Adams’ death, I came across a quote of his that I hadn’t seen before: “I have poor art skills, mediocre business skills, good but not great writing talent, and an early knowledge of the Internet. And I have a good but not great sense of humour. I’m like one big mediocre soup. None of my skills are world-class, but when my mediocre skills are combined, they become a powerful market force.”This insight applies beautifully to investing as well. You don’t need world-class analytical skills, insider information, or the ability to predict markets. What you need is a combination of ordinary capabilities: the discipline to save regularly, the patience to stay invested, the common sense to avoid complexity, and the humility to acknowledge that you don’t need to be clever. Combined, these mediocre skills create a powerful wealth-building force.Adams showed that the most useful insights often come from people who aren’t trying to sell you anything. His 87 words remain the best investment advice I have ever read, not despite their brevity, but because of it. In a world drowning in financial content, he proved that what matters can fit on a postcard.(Dhirendra Kumar is Founder and CEO of Value Research)(Disclaimer: Recommendations and views on the stock market, other asset classes or personal finance management tips given by experts are their own. These opinions do not represent the views of The Times of India)

MUMBAI: The Mahayuti alliance, led by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena, is storming ahead in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections, according to trends. With leads in over 110 wards across the city, the alliance appears on course to end the three-decade reign of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena.Meanwhile, the Shiv Sena (UBT) alliance struggles to cross 68, with MNS leading in just 9 seats, UBT Sena in 58, and the NCP (SP) barely holding one. Congress, too, faces a grim outlook, with leads in only 10 wards.

High-profile battles are drawing attention. UBT’s Foram Parmar trails in Ward 1, while Gita Bhandari of the same faction is ahead in Ward 32. Shinde Sena’s Varsha Tembelkar is leading in Ward 51, and BJP candidates Deepak Tavde, Ujjwal Veti, and Neil Somaiya are showing strong leads. In Dharavi, Congress’ Asha Deepak Kale clinched Ward 183, offering a rare bright spot for the party.The political earthquake is not limited to Mumbai. In the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), BJP has displaced the Pawars, leading in 50 of 165 seats, while the two NCP factions trail with just 5 leads and the Congress-UBT alliance in 7. Official figures confirm BJP’s dominance with 47 leads, compared to 8 for NCP and 5 for Congress.Most exit polls had predicted a BJP-Shinde Sena wave, and preliminary trends suggest that the prediction is unfolding. If sustained, this result would mark the end of the 30-year incumbency of the Uddhav Thackeray-led outfit in India’s richest civic body.In majority of rallies, MNS chief Raj Thackeray called for Marathi unity, warning that the state’s language, land, and identity are under threat. He described the BMC elections as “decisive” for the Marathi community and urged voters to unite and remain vigilant to prevent malpractice.

Social media influencer Faizan Ansari has filed a Rs 100 crore defamation case against actress Khushi Mukherjee on January 13, following her remarks about Indian T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav. The legal action comes after Mukherjee had appeared in an interview and claimed that Suryakumar “used to message me a lot.”Ansari, who is based in Mumbai, has lodged a complaint at the Ghazipur police station, stating that Mukherjee’s claims are false and damaging. He travelled from Mumbai to Ghazipur to pursue the filing of an FIR in the matter.

‘False and defamatory statements’

According to Ansari, Mukherjee deliberately made defamatory statements about Suryakumar Yadav as a publicity stunt, which, he alleged, could harm the reputation of a national-level cricketer. He has also demanded strict action against the actress, calling for a jail term of at least seven years over the alleged claims.Speaking to reporters, Ansari said, “We want an FIR to be registered immediately against Khushi Mukherjee. I have mentioned this in my written complaint as well and requested strict action. At the very least, serious charges should be applied. More than two million people follow me on Instagram, and crores of people watch my videos. It is my responsibility to take this issue to every corner of the world. I am not afraid of anyone. I only want justice.”Ansari further added, “I demand that an FIR be lodged immediately against Khushi Mukherjee, no matter how many difficulties arise. Until I get justice, I will stay in Ghazipur city.”

Rs 100 crore defamation suit and legal warning

Explaining his decision to pursue legal action, Ansari said, “That is why I am filing a defamation case worth Rs 100 crore in this matter. Everything has been clearly mentioned. Earlier, we had also filed a Rs 100 crore defamation case against Poonam Pandey. Our legal team is very strong.”Ansari also stated that if Mukherjee is able to prove her allegations, he would publicly accept his mistake. “But until then, every city and every citizen should come forward in support of Suryakumar Yadav. This is a conspiracy to damage his reputation, and we will not allow this to happen,” he said.

What had Khushi Mukherjee said?

A few days ago, Khushi Mukherjee claimed that Suryakumar Yadav “used to message her a lot,” while also stating that several cricketers were allegedly after her. However, she clarified at the time that there was never any romantic relationship between her and the Indian batter.

Actress issues clarification amid backlash

As the controversy escalated, Mukherjee clarified her statement in an interview with NDTV, insisting that she never had a romantic relationship with Suryakumar Yadav and that her remarks were taken out of context. She said her words were exaggerated, leading to widespread misunderstanding, and also claimed that her Instagram account had been hacked.Mukherjee further explained that she had spoken to Suryakumar only as a friend in the past and that they are no longer in touch. She added that she has not communicated with him even after the controversy surfaced. The actress also extended her best wishes to Team India and captain Suryakumar Yadav for the upcoming World Cup, stating that their earlier conversations had taken place in a friendly context following a match defeat.

How the controversy began

The issue first erupted after Mukherjee made a controversial remark at a recent event when asked about dating cricketers. She said, “I don’t want to date any cricketer. Many cricketers are after me. Suryakumar used to message me a lot. We don’t talk much now. I don’t even want my name linked with him. I don’t like news about my link-ups.”The remarks quickly went viral, triggering strong reactions online and eventually leading to the legal action now initiated by Faizan Ansari.

As the SA20 2025-26 season reaches its critical business end, the Mother city prepares for a blockbuster clash at Newlands. Today’s match sees the high-flying Sunrisers Eastern Cape (SEC) taking on a desperate MI Cape Town (MICT) in a repeat of last season’s final.

While Sunrisers have already secured their playoff berth and sit comfortably at the top, MI Cape Town is fighting for survival, needing a win to keep their outside hopes of qualification alive.

The defending champions have had a season to forget, currently languishing at the bottom of the table. Despite having the tournament’s leading run-scorer in Ryan Rickelton, they have struggled to find collective consistency. Their recent defeat to Pretoria Capitals highlighted a fragile middle order that has failed to capitalize on strong starts.

The two-time champions have been the team to beat. Led by Tristan Stubbs, they are coming off a dominant 61-run victory over Joburg Super Kings. With Quinton de Kock in beast mode and Anrich Nortje firing thunderbolts, they look like a complete unit heading into the playoffs.

MICT vs SEC, SA20 2025-26: Match details

• Date and Time: January 16 (Friday); 9:00 pm IST / 03:30 pm GMT / 5:30 pm Local
• Venue: Newlands, Cape Town

MICT vs SEC, Head-to-Head Record in SA20:

Matches played: 7 | MI Cape Town won: 3 | Sunrisers Eastern Cape won: 4 | No result/Tied: 0

Newlands Pitch Report

Newlands in Cape Town is set to offer a batter-friendly surface for the SA20 showdown. Known for its consistent bounce and steady pace, the pitch allows top-order batters to settle quickly and play their strokes with confidence. The rapid outfield further boosts scoring, with teams regularly posting 170–180-plus totals in night games. Fast bowlers can find a hint of movement with the new ball, while spinners may come into play during the middle overs as the wicket slows slightly. Dew is likely to assist the side batting second, making bowling first a tempting choice for captains. All signs point to a high-scoring contest.

Also WATCH: 6,6,6,6,6,6: Dewald Brevis and Sherfane Rutherford unleash a flurry of sixes on MI Cape Town bowlers in SA20 2025-26

Squads

MI Cape Town: Ryan Rickelton (wk), Rassie van der Dussen, Nicholas Pooran, Jason Smith, Jacques Snyman, Tom Moores, George Linde, Rashid Khan (c), Kagiso Rabada, Trent Boult, Dane Piedt, Karim Janat, Thomas Kaber, Tiaan van Vuuren, Tristan Luus, Daniel Lategan, Reeza Hendricks, Dwaine Pretorius, Corbin Bosch

Sunrisers Eastern Cape: Jonny Bairstow, Quinton de Kock (wk), Tristan Stubbs (c), Lewis Gregory, Matthew Breetzke, Marco Jansen, Patrick Kruger, Senuran Muthusamy, Adam Milne, Anrich Nortje, Chris Wood, Allah Ghazanfar, JP King, Christopher King, Jordan Hermann, Mitchell Van Buuren, Tharindu Rathnayake, James Coles, Beyers Swanepoel, Lutho Sipamla

MICT vs SEC, SA20 2025-26: Today’s Match Prediction

Case 1:

• MI Cape Town wins the toss and bats first
• MI Cape Town’s powerplay score: 50-60 (6 overs)
• MI Cape Town’s total score: 190-200

Case 2:

• Sunrisers Eastern Cape wins the toss and bats first
• Sunrisers Eastern Cape’s powerplay score: 45-55 (6 overs)
• Sunrisers Eastern Cape’s total score: 180-190

Match result: Team batting first to win the contest

Also READ: Faf du Plessis recalls MS Dhoni’s iconic act after Donovan Ferreira’s stunning run-out for Joburg Super Kings in SA20 2025-26

Businessman and Karisma Kapoor‘s ex-husband Sunjay Kapur passed away in June 2025 but soon after his demise, there have been legal proceedings with regards to his Rs 30,000 estate. Sunjay had two children with Karisma, Samaira and Kiaan and they filed a plea in the Delhi High Court alleging that his widowed wife Priya Sachdev Kapur has forged his will. Now this dispute has reportedly reached the Supreme Court, further making the matter more complex. According to the latest reports, Priya Kapur has moved the apex court seeking access to confidential documents from Sunjay Kapur’s 2016 divorce proceedings with actor Karisma Kapoor.As reported by ANI, Sunjay’s third wife Priya Kapur has filed a plea requesting certified copies of all records related to the divorce case. The matter will be heard by a bench headed by Justice A S Chandurkar, which will decide whether these sensitive documents can be shared.

ANI stated, “Priya Kapur, the third-wife of late businessman Sunjay Kapur, has approached the Supreme Court seeking certified copies of all documents related to the divorce proceedings between Karisma Kapoor and Sunjay, which took place in 2016. A bench of Justice A. S. Chandurkar will consider whether these confidential documents should be provided to her. Priya has sought access to the said divorce records to ascertain the financial and child custody arrangements made by her late former husband.“For those not in the know, Karisma got married to Sunjay in 2003 and their divorce was finalised in 2016. Meanwhile, the battle over Sunjay Kapur’s estate continues to intensify. His children with Karisma Kapoor, Samaira and Kiaan, have reportedly raised fresh objections regarding electronic evidence submitted in court. According to reports, they have questioned digital location data filed by Priya Kapur before the Delhi High Court.The siblings allege that while Priya claimed in an affidavit to be in Gurugram on March 21, 2025, the day the disputed will was allegedly signed, electronic records show her phone was located in New Delhi. Their submission also states that both Sunjay and Priya Kapur were in Delhi that day, not Gurugram. The filing further claims that Karisma was in touch with Sunjay via WhatsApp on the same day regarding their children’s Portuguese citizenship.

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