☕ *Your Expresso is ready!* 📬 *Get this delivered straight to your inbox:* https://indianexpress.com/newsletters/ *Read this newsletter on a single page:* https://indianexpress.com/article/live-news/daily-briefing-top-news-today-10025459/ *Good morning,* Kerala’s poll bugle, a rapper’s uprising, and the Sangh’s outrage could benefit the Left Democratic Front (LDF). Vedan, a rapper in his 30s, has caught all eyes in the state with his music that speaks of the marginalised. His lyrics, denouncing right-wing politics, derive inspiration from his mother’s refugee identity and turbulent life. While Vedan’s songs have drawn ire from the Hindutva right-wing, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) was quick to rise in his support, with his associates saying, “His lyrics are about anger and dignity, not guns. But because he doesn’t fit any box – Left, Right, Dalit icon or Muslim sympathiser – they’re trying to corner him from all sides.” https://www.inexp.in/AP6DhA 🚨 *Big Story* A federal judge temporarily blocked the Donald Trump administration’s move to strip Harvard University, a prestigious Ivy League college in Massachusetts, of its ability to enrol international students; issuing a temporary restraining order, the court halted the government’s decision to revoke Harvard’s certification in the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP), which allows the university to host international students studying in the US on visas. This comes after the University filed a lawsuit a day earlier stating that revoking its right to admit foreign students violates the First Amendment of the US Constitution and will have an “immediate and devastating effect for Harvard and more than 7,000 visa holders”. https://www.inexp.in/LMdbp1 The tussle between the Trump administration and Harvard began after Harvard President Alan M Garber told the administration in April that the university would not accept demands to change its hiring and admissions practices and curriculum. The Department of Homeland Security, on May 22, then penned a letter accusing Harvard of perpetuating an “unsafe” campus environment for Jews, promoting “pro-Hamas sympathies”, and employing “racial” diversity, equity and inclusion policies. How did it all begin? Why is the US administration targeting Harvard? We explain. https://www.inexp.in/D0dx+X *Post-Covid decline:* Remittances by resident Indians under the Liberalised Remittances Scheme (LRS) of the Reserve Bank of India have declined by 6.84 per cent to $29.56 billion in FY2025, down from $31.74 billion in the previous year. This trend, which marks the first decline since the Covid pandemic disrupted the overseas travel and study plans of Indians, is likely linked to many countries tightening student visa norms. https://www.inexp.in/0ltpKf ⚡ *Only in Express* *‘Running, not running away’:* India’s four fastest men are at the starting blocks. Their goal: run the 100m sprint in under 10 seconds, considered the hallmark of a world-class sprinter. The Indian Express' Mihir Vasavda visits their training centre in Navi Mumbai, where Manikanta Hoblidhar, Amlan Borgohain, Gurindervir Singh and Animesh Kujur sprint with their eyes on the clock. https://www.inexp.in/OJuVuq 💡 *Express Explained* Fascinated by the recent boom of electric vehicles (EVs) and their USP of playing an essential role in fighting climate change? However, a new study by Indian researchers has found that EVs may be bad news for tackling air pollution. The study, published in Soft Matter, a journal of the Royal Society of Chemistry, has shown that EVs, on account of their greater weight, experience higher wear and tear in their tyres compared to conventional vehicles. They also release substantially larger numbers of small plastic particles in the atmosphere, which can have adverse implications for the health of humans and the environment. Here’s what the study reveals. https://www.inexp.in/+CZ0+p ✍️ *Express Opinion* In our Opinion section today, Arjun Subramaniam draws lessons from Operation Sindoor for future national security contingencies. He writes: "Building and spreading narratives in contemporary conflict are as important as the execution of politico-diplomatic-military operations. Even as the conflict raged, there was a visible attempt to be transparent and assertive by conducting regular briefings by an articulate Foreign Secretary, Vikram Misri, and two women officers from the Army and the Air Force. Occupying the moral high ground was as important as offering glimpses of the conflict." https://www.inexp.in/Z8h7IN 🍿 *Movie Review* Wondering what to watch this weekend? Well, we’ve got you covered! Rajkummar Rao and Wamiqa Gabbi-starrer _Bhool Chuk Maaf_ Friday hit the screens, with a plot slithering into India’s trademark ‘jugaad’ territory. Shalini Langer, in her review, writes: “It as easily sidles in, and skips out of, problematic issues such as dowry, for laughs, as you wonder more and more what Titli, with at least money and looks going for her, sees in Ranjan – who, she points out more than once, has little, if anything, going for him.” https://www.inexp.in/Ns6Vv+ _That’s all for today. Have a lovely weekend!_ _*Until next time,*_ _*Ariba*_