Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray on Wednesday asked what was the need to "impose" Hindi on students and appealed to schools in Maharashtra to foil the government's "hidden agenda to deliberately create a language divide".
'It is inappropriate to level allegations against your own colleagues after they leave you'
Ajit Pawar, who heads the Nationalist Congress Party, which is in an alliance with pro-Hindutva BJP and the Shiv Sena, noted Chief Ministers Mamata Banerjee (West Bengal), Chandrababu Naidu (Andhra Pradesh) and Nitish Kumar (Bihar) -- all secular politicians -- aligned with the BJP for the sake of development of their respective states.
'The question for the TMC is not whether it can hold its bastions, but whether it can expand effectively into regions where the BJP already possesses a good ecosystem.'
Estranged cousins Uddhav and Raj Thackeray will unite for the cause of the Marathi language, as their parties will stage a joint protest against the 'imposition' Hindi and the state government's three-language formula for Classes 1-5.
The Jain community, for whom feeding pigeons is a sacred tradition, have fiercely opposed the closure, with demonstrations in Mumbai highlighting the cultural significance and the distress of pigeons dying on streets.
The MNS, which has one MLA, had backed the Bharatiya Janata Party in the last month's elections to the Rajya Sabha as well as state Legislative Council seats.
A close aide of the former chief minister said he was busy holding meetings at his residence ahead of the two-day special session of the Maharashtra legislature from July 3.
An amended government order issued on Tuesday said Hindi will "generally" be the third language, instead of being mandatory, but gave an option to opt out if 20 students per grade in a school express the desire to study any Indian language other than Hindi.
Chief Justice of India B R Gavai has said the 'trivial issue' of the protocol lapse during his visit to Mumbai on May 18 should not be blown out of proportion and the matter should be given 'quietus'.
Devendra Fadnavis, BJP legislature party leader, will be sworn-in as the new chief minister of Maharashtra on Thursday evening at a grand ceremony in Mumbai. NCP head Ajit Pawar and Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde are also expected to take oath as deputy chief ministers. This is for the third time that Fadnavis will be sworn-in as the CM of Maharashtra. The swearing-in ceremony will be held at the Azad Maidan in south Mumbai, where elaborate security arrangements have been made. The formation of the government under Fadnavis comes after two weeks of intense negotiations following the November 20 state assembly polls. Fadnavis, joined by Shinde and Pawar, met with state Governor CP Radhakrishnan to formally stake claim to form the government. Following this meeting, the governor extended an invitation for Fadnavis to lead the new government. The swearing-in ceremony will be a grand affair with nearly 42,000 attendees, including PM Modi, several Union ministers, and chief ministers and deputy CMs of various states.
A video showing an auto-rickshaw driver being beaten up allegedly by Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray workers in Maharashtra's Palghar district for 'anti-Marathi' remarks has gone viral on social media, further fuelling controversy over the language issue in the state.
Most of the 40 MLAs in the Shinde camp don't have enough legislative experience to conduct business in the House and so the first ministry expansion needed induction of veterans.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday asked the Congress to tell the nation who prevented India's military response after the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks linked to Pakistan, and accused the party of weakening the fight against terrorism when in power.
On Tuesday, May 30, 2023, the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation finished the excavation work for the second and final undersea tunnel being built as part of the Mumbai Coastal Road Project from Swarajya Bhoomi (Girgaon Chowpatty) to Priyadarshini Park.
Bharatiya Janata Party leader and forest minister Ganesh Naik on Monday held a janta darbar in Thane, the home turf of Deputy CM Eknath Shinde, rejecting speculation of one-upmanship in the Mahayuti alliance.
BJP legislator Pravin Darekar filed a breach of privilege notice against stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra and Shiv Sena (UBT) spokesperson Sushma Andhare in the Maharashtra Legislative Council. Darekar accused Kamra of performing a song with insulting references to Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Andhare of supporting the performance with objectionable language. He claimed their actions constituted contempt of the House. Shiv Sena MLA Ramesh Bornare also submitted a breach of privilege notice against Andhare for allegedly mocking Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. The Speaker will decide on the notices.
NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar has thrown his weight behind villagers in Solapur, Maharashtra, who are demanding a repoll using ballot papers after raising doubts about the accuracy of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs). Pawar met with villagers in Markadwadi, where a police case was filed against over 200 people for attempting to conduct an unauthorized re-election. He expressed support for their concerns, claiming that the villagers were "the ones who thought of conducting polls using ballot papers." Pawar criticized the police action, calling it a restriction on the villagers' right to assemble and vowing to raise the issue with the Chief Minister, the state Chief Electoral Officer, the Prime Minister, and the Election Commission of India.
