FirstUp: Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs to be sentenced and other big headlines of the day

What’s expected from the world of news today? There are several events lined up for October 3, making it a busy, busy day in the world of news.
American hip-hop mogul Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs will be sentenced by a federal judge following his conviction on two prostitution counts. Also, Taylor Swift will release her album The Life of a Showgirl.

The other big events lined up for the day are — the Czech Republic’s parliamentary elections as well as German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron attending German Unity Day.

Here’s what is in store for us today.

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs to be sentenced

American music mogul Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs will learn of his fate today as the court will hand down his sentence on charges related to sex trafficking and racketeering in New York.

Prosecutors have recommended that he should be sentenced to 11 years in prison and fined $500,000. Combs was found guilty in July of forcing male sex workers to travel to his homes and hotels, to sleep with his girlfriends while he watched and recorded the scene.

Meanwhile, his defence team has asked that he be sentenced to no more than 14 months in prison, including the more than a year Combs has already served since his September 2024 arrest. If granted, Combs could be freed before the end of the year.

Parliamentary elections in Czech Republic

The Czech Republic will hold parliamentary election on October 3 and 4, with the opposition ANO party of former Prime Minister Andrej Babis leading opinion polls ahead of the main centre-right ruling parties.

Polls will open today at 2 pm (1200 GMT) to 10 pm on October 3 and 8 am to 2 pm on October 4. Results will start trickling in after polls close. Nearly complete results are expected later in the afternoon of October 4.

These elections are high stake. An ANO-led government would probably clash with the European Union on climate policies and migration, tone down support for Ukraine, and ally more often with Hungary’s government led by Viktor Orban.

Congress to launch signature campaign against ‘vote chori’

The Gujarat unit of Congress will launch a signature campaign to expose the alleged ‘vote chori’ before the people of Gujarat and to prevent the same. The campaign will be carried out from October 3 to 10.

Gujarat Congress President Amit Chavda alleged that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has exposed ‘vote chori’ by the Election Commission in collusion with the ruling BJP. He also reiterated the claim that the Gujarat Congress too checked around 2.40 lakh voters of Choryasi assembly constituency and found around 30,000 of them as ‘suspicious’, ‘duplicate’ or ‘fake’.

Luxembourg’s grand duke will abdicate

Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg will abdicate the throne today after 25 years as head of state in favour of his eldest son, Guillaume. Henri has filled the largely ceremonial role of grand duke alongside his Cuban-born wife, Grand Duchess Maria Teresa, as the government steered the country through troubles like the 2008 financial crisis, the greatest shock to Luxembourg’s economy since the 1970s.

One of the European Union’s smallest nations and its richest per capita, Luxembourg is a financial powerhouse that hosts important EU institutions like the European Court of Justice and the European Investment Bank. The grand duchy is home to many of the banks in the eurozone, reinsurance companies, and managers of hedge funds and money markets.

ODI Women’s World Cup: England v South Africa

South Africa will open their Women’s ODI World Cup campaign against traditional powerhouses England. The Proteas have reached the semi-finals in the last two editions of the ODI World Cup and finished runners-up in consecutive T20 World Cups.

They now enter this tournament brimming with confidence after victories over England, Australia, Sri Lanka, West Indies, and Pakistan.

With inputs from agencies