Lebanon pager blasts, U.S. Fed rate cut, Sri Lanka presidential elections, and more: The week in 5 charts

Here are five charts that will help you understand some of the key stories from last week

(Left) Man holds a walkie talkie device after hundreds of paging devices exploded in a deadly wave across Lebanon. (Centre) Sri Lanka President elect Anura Kumara Dissanayake. (Right) Delhi Chief Minister Atishi after taking charge.

(1) Centre approves simultaneous polls

The Union Cabinet approved simultaneous polls as envisioned in the committee headed by former President Ram Nath Kovind. The panel structured the road to simultaneous polls in two phases. The first would synchronise Lok Sabha elections with Assembly elections of all States. The second would synchronise municipal and panchayat polls within 100 days of the general election in the next phase.

The panel recommended beginning simultaneous polls from 2029. With how things stand today, each State’s Assembly tenure would be cut to different extents. Only four States hold Assembly elections along with General elections currently.

Arguments for and against the proposal have come up. The main argument for the proposal is cost-cutting. Elections are held several times in a year for different State assemblies. Holding them simultaneously would cut costs, according to the proposal’s supporters.

Besides this, they say reducing the frequency of elections would make parties focus less on campaigning and more on governance.

However, critics point out that even in the existing system, several States need to hold multi-phase elections.

In case an Assembly holds an election before the end of the Lok Sabha’s tenure, it will hold elections again along with the next general elections. Critics consider this anti-federal. In simultaneous polls, regional issues might be overshadowed.

(2) Sri Lanka elects Anura Kumara Dissanayake as new President

Anura Kumara Dissanayake emerged victorious in Sri Lanka’s presidential race on September 22, 2024, obtaining a mandate that signals a clean break from the island nation’s political establishment and ushers in unprecedented change.

Mr. Dissanayake was officially declared President-elect by the Election Commission of Sri Lanka after it completed a second count of votes to add preference votes, an exercise undertaken for the first time in the country’s election history.

Mr. Dissanayake secured 42.31% of the votes. Mr. Premadasa was in the second spot with 32.76%, while incumbent Ranil Wickremesinghe came third with under 20% of the vote share. The three candidates dominated the election, which was the first to be held after the economic crisis of 2022, the worst seen in the country since its Independence.

Mr. Wickremesingh congratulated Mr. Dissanayake on the win and said he was “confident” the politician would “steer Sri Lanka on a path of continued growth and stability”. 

(3) Pagers explode in Lebanon, widening Middle East conflict

On Sunday (September 15, 2024), several pagers exploded in Lebanon near simultaneously, killing 12 and injuring 2,800 in a move that targeted Hezbollah members who were using the pagers. Thousands of explosions were recorded in the country, some of them in Hezbollah strongholds like Beirut and its southern suburbs.

Lebanon pointed to Israel’s Mossad spy agency orchestrating the attacks. The explosions have escalated Middle East tensions that began with the Hamas’ October attack in Israel last year. Since then, the war between Israel and Hamas has involved other regional powers and their proxies. The graphic below maps this out, with details of some major attacks.

The table below lays out alliances and proxies involved in the war.

With the conflict threatening to spill over further, an immediate ceasefire becomes more crucial. Ceasefire talks have not progressed significantly since July when Israel and Hamas added new conditions to hostage and prisoner release. Another bone of contention is a narrow stretch of land known as the Philadelphi corridor on Gaza’s border with Egypt, according to Reuters. As Biden’s term nears its end, a ceasefire before the elections seems uncertain.

(4) U.S. Federal Reserve cuts interest rate

The U.S. Federal Reserve cut its lending rate by half a percentage point, making it cheaper to borrow. The Federal Reserve’s interest rate determines the rate at which banks commercial banks lend. The cut has come after four years of no reduction.

The Federal Reserve changes its lending rate keeping in mind other economic factors such as inflation and the labour market. With higher interest rates, borrowing becomes costlier, leading to a decrease in inflation. With lower Fed rates, borrowing becomes cheaper and encourages more spending. Similarly, in the case of a tight labour market with low unemployment, higher wages and spending capacity, the Fed might increase its interest rate to control inflation.

(5) Atishi takes over as Delhi Chief Minister

Atishi Singh took over as Delhi’s eighth Chief Minister and third female Chief Minister on Saturday (September 21, 2024) after Arvind Kejriwal stepped down. She is set to occupy the post for four months before the assembly elections. A fierce Kejriwal loyalist, she rose through the party ranks beginning 2013, when she joined the newly formed AAP.

Kejriwal stepped down following a long, thorny entanglement in a money-laundering case. He was accused of accepting kickbacks from liquor barons and others to frame a favourable liquor excise policy. While the Supreme Court has given him bail, he decided to step down until the people of Delhi give him a “certificate of honesty” in the upcoming elections.

Kejriwal needed someone loyal who would keep the Chief Minister’s chair within reach, but also someone who would not try to take it for themselves. Atishi became that person.

Such placeholding arrangements have not always been successful. Bihar and Jharkhand are examples.

Published - September 23, 2024 05:50 pm IST