
Swapnil Joglekar
293 posts

Swapnil Joglekar
@SwapnilJogleka1
Music, nature gazing, and all the other things I should be doing. Waise, I do a 'host' of things at The Indian Express. Views personal🐶 (he/him)


Sukla Hazra got married in 1993. Her Election Commission voter ID says she was born in 1994. Because of that one error — made by the EC itself — she cannot vote in Bengal's upcoming elections, despite submitting her passport, both voter IDs, the 2002 electoral roll, and her own wedding invitation card. She is one of 27 lakh people deleted from West Bengal's voter rolls. The EC calls it a "logical discrepancy." Former Chief Election Commissioners are calling it illogical and unprecedented. The algorithm removes you if you have more than 6 siblings, if your name is spelled differently across documents, or if you changed your name after marriage or conversion. Bengal votes in the first phase of elections on April 23 and many of these voters have run out of time. This is an Indian Express investigation. 💾 Share this with others. Script & anchor: @SwapnilJogleka1 Shoot & Edit: Kapil Joshi Based on reporting by Damini Nath, Ravik Bhattacharya, and Atri Mitra #WestBengalElections #BengalPolls2026 #SIR #VoterDeletion #ElectionCommission


India's burden of cancer cases is mounting. It has the third highest number of cases globally. At the same time, the promise of health is forcing people to shell out as much as Rs 1.5 lakh for a single shot. But what if the medicine inside the vial is fake. That's precisely what Cancer Calculus, an investigation by The Indian Express in association with The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), has uncovered. A nexus of pharmacists and fixers is using authentic batch numbers and used vials to enlarge a black market for cancer drugs such as Merck & Co's Keytruda. What's left in its wake is hospital-level breaches, distraught families and dead patients. Script and anchor: @SwapnilJogleka1 Shoot & Edit: Kapil Joshi

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who maintained an iron grip over the military and sway as a religious leader over more than three decades, was killed in US and Israeli strikes. It has happened only twice in the past, but a new Supreme Leader will be chosen in the days to come. Who steps into the role once held by Khamenei is crucial as that person will have to navigate a reality of marked with increasing hostility. US President Donald Trump has warned Tehran against retaliation and Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed more strikes in the days to come. But how is the topmost leader chosen in a theocratic state like Iran? We explain. Script and anchor: @SwapnilJogleka1 Edit: Kapil Joshi


The calm in Uttarakhand's Pauri Garhwal broke when Bajrang Dal members heckled and threatened a 70-year-old Muslim shopkeeper over using ‘Baba’ in his shop's name. A man stood up to the mob, and when asked his name, replied: "Mera naam Mohammad Deepak" (My name is Mohammad Deepak). While his act won many hearts online, he is facing brickbats back home. Indian Express spoke to the man about what made him stand up to the crowd, and does he regret anything.

Are you richer or poorer after the Budget? Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman made history on Sunday after delivering her ninth consecutive Budget. She allocated money to bolster the sectors battered by Trump's tariffs, announced schemes to add jobs, and proposed high-speed train corridors. Then she turned to the second part of her Budget speech, which relates to taxation. Where did the tax announcements on taxation leave you? We explain Script and anchor: @SwapnilJogleka1 Shoot and Edit: Kapil Joshi

Budget is about numbers. But the Budget speech is much more than that. It is the government’s chance to explain its thinking and convince millions listening closely to every word of the Finance Minister. Nirmala Sitharaman has since her first Budget speech on July 5, 2019, consistently leaned on literature and classical texts to make her point. Rabindranath Tagore offered comfort during the Covid-19 crisis. An Urdu poet underlined the power of resolve. Kalidasa and Thiruvalluvar found mention while explaining taxation ideas. Even the Mahabharata has made its way into her speeches. What literary references might the Budget 2026–27 speech hold? Script and anchor: @SwapnilJogleka1


GN Saibaba, a former DU professor, spent nearly a decade behind bars before the Bombay High Court acquitted him of charges. A few months later, he passed away. When some students of Tata Institute of Social Sciences observed a memorial meet on his first death anniversary on October 12, 2025, they were booked for alleged sloganeering. They went to court recently, seeking protection against arrest, when a Mumbai Sessions Court judge admonished them, telling them: ‘Your career is ruined’. The court warned that the students now had a criminal record, which police could access across India. "You know that you have made a blunder so early before your career starts. Your career is ruined," Additional Sessions Judge Manoj B Oza said. The judge asked how many students were from outside Maharashtra and whether their "fathers" knew about the case. The judge went on to say that a Master’s in Social Work programme, which the students are pursuing, won't help them land a job. "You think you are scientists or engineers. Even engineers don't have jobs,” he said. Script and anchor: Swapnil Joglekar Based on news reporting by Sadaf Modak


@MCD_Delhi a very painful experience happened with my wife at MCD toll plaza in Ghazipur. She booked a taxi for station. The cab was stopped because the driver had pending dues. She was all alone in the NE 3 with her luggage. There needs to be serious action @gupta_rekha

Sonam Wangchuk is being treated like a "security threat". He's detained under the stringent National Security Act and some 1,500 kilometres away from his hometown of Ladakh. But, it wasn't always like this. People remember him as a tech innovator and climate activist. But, even for the Central government, which has soured on him, Wangchuk was an all-weather expert. For nearly three decades, he advised the government on water conservation, clean energy, tourism and even pashmina. Here's the story of what went wrong. Script & Anchor: @SwapnilJogleka1 (With inputs from Bashaarat Masood, Jay Mazoomdaar)

I’m Niraj Kumar. From govt school → Jamia → IIMC, I’ve chased one dream: to study filmmaking I cleared SRFTI Kolkata but need ₹2L by Oct 7 to secure my seat Need your help for this UPI: 8130538467@ybl #SupportEducation #Filmmaking You can also support on Ketto. Link below


Uttarakhand is in the news again -- this time for protests from Haldwani to Dehradun against alleged large-scale paper leaks. Within hours of the Uttarakhand Subordinate Service Selection Commission exam on Sunday (September 21), a few pages of the question paper were found online. Things have moved fast since then. There have been two arrests in the case, the state government has set up an SIT, and CM Pushkar Singh Dhami has courted controversy by terming the incident a case of nakal (cheating) jihad. But, the topic of jobs is a sensitive one for the people of Uttarakhand where 20,000 people applied for 24 posts of home guard instructors last year and past protests against paper leaks remain fresh in the memory of the people @SwapnilJogleka1 #Uttarakhand #PaperLeak #UKSSSC #UKSSSCPaperLeak


Reading life with Jagjit Singh: The book of zindagi in a ghazal ✍️@SwapnilJogleka1 indianexpress.com/article/books-…




From tragedy at Lord’s to triumph at The Oval, Mohammed Siraj's journey reminds us that heartbreak is the cost of being human and self-belief a prerequisite. @SwapnilJogleka1 writes indianexpress.com/article/opinio…