Addressing a public rally in Aurangabad late in the evening, in which he was termed as 'Hindu Jananayak', the MNS chief said if Uttar Pradesh government could remove the loudspeakers, what was stopping the Maharashtra government, led by his estranged cousin Uddhav Thackeray, from doing so.
Mumbai reported 529 new cases -- the lowest since February 16 -- and 19 deaths, taking the tally to 7,17,108 and the toll to 15,202, the department said.
Marathas, a politically influential community that constitutes around 30 per cent of the state's population, have been demanding 16 per cent reservation in government jobs and education.
A day after reporting 4,092 COVID-19 cases, highest single-day tally in more than a month, Maharashtra saw the daily count fall on Monday but it remained above 3,000 for the sixth straight day as the state government termed the situation as 'alarming' and warned of 'harsh decisions' after the recent spike.
The arrests followed searches in Amrut Nagar, Kausa, Moti Baug and Almas Colony areas in Thane's Mumbra township and in Aurangabad's Kaisar Colony, Rahat Colony and Damdi Mahal areas on Monday late night and Tuesday early morning.
The COVID-19 tally in Maharashtra till Wednesday night stood at 25,922 and the number of fatalities at 975, with Mumbai alone accounting for 15,747 cases and 596 deaths.
As many as 33,000 patients were discharged from hospitals during the day, pushing the number of recovered cases to 53,95,370, a statement from the health department said.
Thackeray wrote that the young generation is also getting infected by the virus, and to prevent the spread, people above 25 years be made eligible for vaccination.
The Maharashtra government on Friday added 2,213 deaths to overall COVID-19 death toll in the state, taking it to 1,06,367, after a 'scrutiny of laboratory reports for COVID-19 determination' and resultant updating of figures.
'Unlike Andhra Pradesh or Tamil Nadu, there is no opportunity for workers to earn a livelihood in Bihar.'
The BJP is focusing on 160 seats 'we have never won, seats where we have reasonable support, and those we lost narrowly.'
If the company manages to get a go-ahead from the regulator for this plant, it might result in resumption of supplies of several of their products, barred from the US last year.
Barring stray incidents of violence like stone pelting, the shutdown called by the MVA allies Shiv Sena, the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party was largely peaceful.
NITI Aayog Member (Health) Dr V K Paul said the pandemic situation in the country worsened with a sharp rise in cases and a large part of the population is still susceptible to the virus.
According to central and state officials, omicron cases have been detected in 11 states and union territories -- Maharashtra (54), Delhi (22), Rajasthan (17) and Karnataka (14), Telangana (20), Gujarat (9), Kerala (11), Andhra Pradesh (1), Chandigarh (1), Tamil Nadu (1) and West Bengal (1).
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast 'extremely heavy rains' at a few places in Marathwada, Mumbai and other parts of the coastal Konkan region of Maharashtra in the next 24 hours.
A salute to the youngest Param Vir Chakra Awardee, Subedar Major (Honorary Captain) Yogendra Singh Yadav who has retired from the Indian Army.
A Nashik police team is on its way to Raigad to arrest the Union minister.
Districts like Thane and Palghar bordering Mumbai also have similar forecast of "heavy to very heavy rains" at few place for Monday, he said, adding that intensity of rains would come down from Tuesday onwards.
While Delhi reported 19,486 Covid cases in the last 24 hours, Maharashtra logged 63,729 infections.
Eleven people died during a havan at Beleshwar Mahadev Jhulelal temple in Madhya Pradesh's Indore after they fell into a well as its cover caved-in under the weight of a huge crowd, while three others got fatally electrocuted during a Ram Navami procession in Rajasthan's Kota.
NITI Aayog member (Health) V K Paul said, "COVID-19 situation is turning from bad to worse. In last few weeks, especially in some states, it is a huge cause for worry. No state, no part of the country or district should be complacent."
Rain or thundershowers have also been predicted in south interior Karnataka and at a few places over Coastal Karnataka and North interior Karnataka.
Family members of Akshay Thakur, one of the four declared guilty in the December 16 gang rape and murder case, burst into tears after learning about the court's verdict and hoped God would be kind when punishment would be pronounced on Wednesday.
The government's focus is on urban areas, so rural areas are neglected and the COVID situation in Bihar's villages -- neither the positive cases nor the deaths -- are reported, notes M I Khan.
'There was a slight change of direction towards north-eastwards which meant the impact of the cyclone on Mumbai was less severe than originally expected,' the IMD said in a statement.
Here is the chronology of events in the Nirbhaya case.
'The Shiv Sena and the Ambedkarites are two powerful social forces in Maharashtra with a presence in the toiling classes. However, they were made to fight each other by the powers that be. Now, they are joining hands while overcoming this contentious past.'
"We have taken note of this anger. We should not take upper caste votes for granted believing that they will not vote for any other party as there is no option," a senior BJP leader said.
35 districts have been reporting high active COVID-19 caseload and fatality rate. These 35 districts comprise all 11 districts in Delhi, Kolkata, Howrah, North 24 Parganas and 24 South Parganas in West Bengal; Pune, Nagpur, Thane, Mumbai, Mumbai Suburban, Kolhapur, Sangli, Nashik, Ahmednagar, Raigad, Jalgaon, Solapur, Satara, Palghar, Aurangabad, Dhule and Nanded in Maharashtra; Surat in Gujarat; Pondicherry in Puducherry and East Singhbhum in Jharkhand.
The state government is closely monitoring the situation in areas outside the cities of Mumbai, Pune, Nashik, Nagpur, Aurangabad and Amravati, a senior state official said.
Aurangabad acting superintendent of police Pranav Kumar told PTI that the Delhi police team rigorously questioned the father and brother of the accused, who hails from Lahankarma village of the district and is about 125 km from Patna, before returning to the national capital.
'Nitish Kumar thinks the matter will keep Lalu in check and that he will remain in power without any challenge from the RJD.'
Chief Ministers of both states announced Rs 4 lakh ex gratia to the next kin of the deceased.
In the second drought fatality in a span of two days, an 11-year-old boy died while fetching water from a well in drought-hit Beed district of Marathwada on Thursday.
The administration and people in draught-hit Marathwada are pinning their hopes on monsoon as only one per cent water is left in the dams of the parched region.
Chief Minister Nitish Kumar -- who had visited the town on Tuesday and issued elaborate instructions to tackle the situation -- is scheduled to hold a high-level meeting in Gaya later in the day.
The Maharashtra government on Sunday extended till June 30 the lockdown in the entire state, and announced easing of restrictions and phase-wise resumption of activities under the "Mission Begin Again".
A mob hurled stones at shops during the bandh (shutdown) allegedly organised by local Bharatiya Janata Party workers in protest against the rallies organised by Muslim organisations the day before to condemn the recent violence in Tripura, police said.
The caseload in the state rose to 23,47,328 and death toll reached 52,996.
