Political parties in Maharashtra will have to gear up for the biennial Rajya Sabha and legislative council polls soon after next month's local bodies elections in the state, with Union Ministers Vilasrao Deshmukh and Rajiv Shukla among those seeking re-election.
In the midst of the stand-off between the Congress and its ally Nationalist Congtress Party at the Centre, the urban development department headed by Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan on Friday came in for criticism by his Deputy Ajit Pawar over its alleged failure to spend funds allocated to it.
Vidhan Sabha Principal Secretary and Returning Officer R P Pandey declared Mayawati and Maurya elected unopposed after the expiry of the time for withdrawal of nominations on Thursday.
A delegation of Congress leaders from Karnataka on Saturday met Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh demanding immediate appropriate action on Governor H R Bhardwaj's report to the Centre recommending dismissal of the B S Yeddyurappa government in the state.
Terming as "inappropriate" the transfer of Central Bureau of Investigation Joint Director Rishi Raj Singh who headed the probe in the Adarsh scam, a senior Maharashtra Bharatiya Janata Party leader has requested the Centre to put it on hold.
According to sources, Kavitha was to be made to sit face-to-face with Hyderabad-based businessman Arun Ramchandra Pillai, who was arrested in connection with the liquor policy case on Monday night.
The situation is currently under control, Beed Superintendent of Police Nandkumar Thakur told PTI.
The 26-member Cabinet, including the Chief Minister, has three women members; two from the Scheduled Castes and one from the Scheduled Tribes.
The move prompted a strong reaction from the Congress, with its state unit chief Ajay Kumar Lallu equating it with the 1919 Rowlatt Act or Black Act and saying that the party will explore legal options to challenge it.
It seems as if Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's war against corruption is a mere slogan for his members of Legislative Council. Recent audit has revealed that they submitted fake bills to claim travel allowance of lakhs of rupees from 2006 to 2011, officials on Wednesday said.