Members of Poland's opposition Law and Justice (PiS) party, unhappy with the new coalition government's efforts to depoliticize public media, have taken over the headquarters of the state TV company, TVP. About 100 PiS MPs chose a sit-in protest at TVP instead of participating in a parliamentary resolution on Tuesday night advocating for independence, objectivity, and pluralism in public TV. PiS leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski joined the protest, pledging its continuation with teams of MPs operating in shifts. The new culture minister responded by dismissing the current heads of TVP, Polish Radio, and the state news agency PAP, appointing new management boards.
The Indian Parliament witnessed intense protests as an additional 49 opposition Members of Parliament (MPs) were suspended, bringing the total number of barred lawmakers to 141. These MPs were protesting against a security breach in parliament that occurred last week. The opposition, on Monday, accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government of undermining democracy as a record 78 MPs were suspended in a single day. The majority of the suspended lawmakers face exclusion for the remainder of the winter session, concluding on Friday, while approximately two dozen may face extended suspensions pending the parliament's privileges committee decision.
Alexei Navalny, the imprisoned Russian opposition leader, has been relocated from the penal colony where he was serving his sentence, and his current whereabouts are unknown, according to his spokeswoman, Kira Yarmysh. Officials at the Melekhovo colony stated that Navalny is no longer registered there. Concerns have been raised about his disappearance, especially as his aides expected him to be transferred to a stricter regime jail after an extension of his prison sentence. The move is believed to be connected to recent announcements about elections in Russia.
A growing division within the Republican Party regarding continued U.S. aid to Ukraine is jeopardizing the passage of additional funding to help the country defend itself against a potential Russian incursion.