Sunetra Pawar, who is not a member of either house of the Maharashtra legislature, will be elected as leader of the legislature wing of the Nationalist Congress Party at a meeting in Mumbai on Saturday, after which she is likely to take oath as deputy CM.
Shiv Sena leader Shahajibapu Patil accuses the BJP of undermining him politically by supporting his rival in Sangola during the Maharashtra assembly elections. He claims the BJP helped PWP candidate Babasaheb Deshmukh despite his support for the BJP in the Lok Sabha election.
In a post on X, Thackeray also claimed that those who attended Bhagwat's programme in Mumbai on February 7-8 to mark the RSS centenary did not come out of love for him but due to the fear of Narendra Modi's government.
Maharashtra Social Justice Minister Sanjay Shirsat of the Shiv Sena has taken an exception to his junior minister Madhuri Misal belonging to the Bharatiya Janata Party holding a meeting with department officials 'without informing' him, with the latter responded saying it was very much within her powers.
Maharashtra's political leaders, led by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, paid tribute to the late Deputy CM Ajit Pawar during the state legislature's budget session, remembering him as a capable leader and administrator.
The previous Congress-NCP government had issued an ordinance to grant a 16 per cent quota to Marathas and five per cent to Muslims.
The Opposition in Maharashtra boycotted the government's customary tea party on the eve of the Winter session, citing its failure to appoint leaders of the opposition (LoPs) in both houses of the state legislature.
The BJP protesters, carrying placards and raising slogans, slammed the Congress and its leader, Rahul Gandhi, calling them "traitors" for allegedly tarnishing the nation's image.
'If all of us (all the 57 Shiv Sena MLAs) stand together we can change the dynamic. We are not afraid of anyone.'
NCP Maharashtra president Sunil Tatkare reaffirms the party's commitment to the BJP-led NDA, dismissing merger speculations and emphasizing the ideology of the late Ajit Pawar.
Stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra appeared before the Maharashtra legislative council's privileges committee regarding alleged remarks against Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. The hearing was rescheduled to March 10 due to the absence of the main complainant.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis criticized Uddhav and Raj Thackeray, stating the Mumbai civic body election is a fight for their political survival. He also defended development projects and economic growth under the current government.
'If the BJP had contested all 227 seats, I believe they would have managed to secure a majority on their own.'
Former India cricketer Kedar Jadhav joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Maharashtra on Tuesday.
With Ajit Pawar's passing, the 40 MLAs who remain will now have to decide whether they want to continue in Mahayuti in the company of the BJP and Shiv Sena -- or return to the Sharad Pawar fold.
Popularly known as 'Ajit Dada', he was known to say things as they were, without couching it in any soft padding.
This comes after Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee hinted at foul play behind the plane crash and demanded the Supreme Court's probe into the incident.
The BJP has accused the Congress party, particularly Rahul Gandhi, of using social media accounts based in foreign countries to create an anti-India narrative. The BJP alleges that accounts originating from Pakistan, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Singapore, and the US are being used to target the BJP, RSS, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The death of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar has created a leadership crisis within the NCP, raising questions about the party's future and potential reunification with the Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP).
Most Shiv Sena ministers in Maharashtra's BJP-led government were absent from a cabinet meeting, signaling tensions over defections between the parties. Only Deputy CM Eknath Shinde attended. Sena ministers later met with the Chief Minister to express their displeasure.
Ajit Pawar became a ray of hope for Muslims, the only man in power who could resolve their grievances.
The talks about the reunification had already started when Ajit Pawar was alive. In fact, the two parties even contested the civic polls in Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad together.
Maharashtra legislative council's privileges committee has summoned comedian Kunal Kamra and Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sushma Andhare for a hearing over alleged insulting remarks against Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. The hearing has been rescheduled to February 17 after both expressed their inability to attend the initial date.
'Nitish Kumar previously held tight control over key ministries, but this concession (giving the home portfolio to the BJP) reflects either his weakened political position or a pragmatic acknowledgment of the BJP's growing dominance.'
On reports of the BJP opposing the NCP merger, Fadnavis asserted that his party hasn't opposed anyone.
State BJP president Ravindra Chavan issued the directive after Choudhary's induction into the saffron party at an event in Palghar, invited criticism from various quarters.
Shinde also emphasised that Mumbai will have a Mahayuti mayor, dismissing reports of new political equations after the results of the civic polls were declared last week.
The Shiv Sena-UBT is openly questioning the Congress party's leadership within the INDIA bloc.
'Deeply shocked and terribly heartbroken to learn that we have lost Ajit Dada in a tragic accident.'
The BJP-led government's decision to grant Kunbi status to individuals from the Maratha community has opened a Pandora's box.
Ajit Pawar and four others were killed when the chartered plane carrying them crashed in Baramati in Pune district on Wednesday.
Despite forging an alliance with the faction led by his uncle, Nationalist Congress Party chief and Maharashtra deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Friday failed to protect the party's traditional bastions of Pune and neighbouring Pimpri-Chinchwad, as the Bharatiya Janata Party decimated both the NCPs in the municipal corporation elections.
The Karnataka Legislative Council passed a bill to curb hate speech, facing strong opposition from BJP and JD(S), who criticized it as 'draconian' and a threat to free speech. The bill proposes jail terms and fines for hate crimes and repeated offenses.
Sunetra Pawar, wife of the late Ajit Pawar, has been appointed as the first woman Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra, marking a new chapter for the NCP and presenting her with the challenge of leading the party.
Large hoardings praising Fadnavis' leadership appeared across the city, reflecting a celebratory mood within the BJP camp following its strong performance in the country's richest civic body.
With the Congress coming third overall and having done much better than Shiv Sena-UBT and NCP-SP, its allies in Maha Vikas Aghadi, political analysts said it will force a rethink as far as coordination, seat-sharing and leadership are concerned ahead of the 2029 assembly polls.
'Marathi-speaking people of Mumbai have now emerged as a consolidated vote bank standing firmly behind the Thackerays.'
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said the next Mayor of Mumbai will be from the ruling alliance and will be 'both Hindu and Marathi,' as political campaigning heats up for the city's top civic post.
'When a grassroots worker has laboured day and night for the organisation, does the party not have a responsibility to recognise and uplift such workers?'
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday accused the Congress of handing over Assam's land to infiltrators for votes during its rule in the northeastern state.
