The Nagpur violence may have been prevented had the police considered the dangerous potential of the VHP/Bajrang Dal's demonstration; had they immediately stopped the burning of the chaddar and arrested the demonstrators; and had they fanned out to counter the rumours that spread among Muslims, observes Jyoti Punwani.
Ajit Pawar also said he was "not interested" in contesting elections anymore.
The 61-year-old MLA from Islampur seat of Maharashtra was issued the first summons for appearance on May 12 but he had sought deferment for about 10 days citing some personal and official engagements.
According to a police official, they have come across a viral post on social media in the name of an alleged member of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang claiming responsibility for Baba Siddique's murder.
The Sena (UBT) chief and his MLA son Aaditya Thackeray on Tuesday met with Fadnavis and assembly speaker Rahul Narwekar at Vidhan Bhavan premises in Nagpur. Aaditya said they extended good wishes to the two and talked about taking a step towards showing political maturity and working together in the interest of the people.
The situation is currently under control, Beed Superintendent of Police Nandkumar Thakur told PTI.
Bhujbal stridently opposed Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange's demand for Maratha quota from the Other Backward Classes (OBCs) share.
The Nationalist Congress Party on Thursday demanded an inquiry into Maharashtra minister Deepak Kesarkar's claim that Chief Minister Eknath Shinde would have shot himself if his revolt against the Shiv Sena leadership had failed last year.
Both Lawrence and Anmol Bishnoi have been named as wanted accused in the April 14 firing incident outside the Bollywood actor Salman Khan's Galaxy Apartment in Mumbai's Bandra area.
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.
Senior Congress leader and Maharashtra assembly poll candidate Balasaheb Thorat has asserted that the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) will win a clear majority and also indicated his chief ministerial aspirations. Thorat, who is among the senior leaders in the MVA after NCP (SP) head Sharad Pawar, said he enjoys cordial relations with leaders of the alliance. He also criticized the ruling Mahayuti coalition, accusing it of corruption and communal politics.
'We pressurised him (to accept the deputy chief ministership).' 'Being out of power would have made him weaker.'
'They are attacking my wife; they are attacking our 13-month-old daughter. They are saying that I do drugs.' 'I'm giving an open challenge to Mr Nawab Malik and Ms Sana Malik let's go to the labs and let's do the medical test of our family and your family.'
Eknath Shinde, a former auto-rickshaw driver, has emerged as a key leader in Maharashtra, culminating in his appointment as Deputy Chief Minister. His journey from a Shiv Sena rebel to a dominant figure in the state's politics is a testament to his resilience and political acumen. He gained popularity for his pro-people stance and his contributions to infrastructure projects and social welfare schemes, solidifying his position as a powerful player in the Mahayuti alliance.
The ruling Mahayuti alliance in Maharashtra is heavily banking upon a six to 10 per cent shift in voters -- mostly women -- in its favour to return to power with anywhere between 160 and 170 assembly seats, say four MLAs belonging to Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena.
The development comes a day after a government resolution (GR) was issued, in which the state administration ordered disbursal of Rs 10 crore funds for strengthening the state Waqf Board.
Hours after asserting that there was no split in the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar is its leader, party chief Sharad Pawar on Friday claimed that he did not make any such statement.
Shinde had retained most of the sitting MLAs, who chose to be with him when he led the rebellion two years ago. They delivered for him on Saturday when votes for the state polls were counted.
'If you are going to make undeserving MLAs as ministers, then why should sincere and hard-working people like us continue?'
The Mumbai Crime Branch and the Uttar Pradesh police Special Task Force arrested Gautam along with Anurag Kashyap, Gyan Prakash Tripathi, Akash Srivastava and Akhilendra Pratap Singh on Sunday in Uttar Pradesh's Nanpara area, near the Nepal border.
The newly expanded Maharashtra council of ministers has several leaders from political families.
Police have launched a probe into the killing of former Maharashtra minister Baba Siddique from different angles, including a possible contract killing, business rivalry or threat over a slum rehabilitation project, officials said on Sunday.
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) president Sharad Pawar on Thursday said his decision to step down from the post was taken for the future of the party and to create a new leadership.
Minister Jayant Patil said the Shiv Sena-Congress-NCP government favoured granting relief to those who were falsely implicated.
Candidates from the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) opposition alliance in Maharashtra have decided to seek verification of the EVM-Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trails (VVPATs) units in their segments, following their defeat in the recent assembly polls. The move comes after several losing candidates, including those from the Shiv Sena (UBT), alleged that the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) might have been tampered with. The MVA, comprising the Shiv Sena (UBT), Congress, and NCP, lost to the Mahayuti coalition, which includes the Shiv Sena, BJP, and NCP. The MVA candidates are seeking verification based on a Supreme Court ruling that allows for checking the burnt memory/microcontroller in 5% of EVMs after the announcement of results.
Three Bharatiya Janata Party leaders have threatened to contest as Independents from Jalna in the upcoming Maharashtra assembly polls after the seat went to Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena as part of the Mahayuti's seat-sharing arrangement.
Both the teenager's father, realtor Vishal Agarwal, and Dr Taware have been arrested in related cases following the accident of May 19 where two IT professionals were killed when the car allegedly driven by the drunk 17-year-old crashed into their motorbike.
The Congress on Sunday demanded a thorough probe into Siddique's murder and said Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and his deputy Devendra Fadnavis, who holds home portfolio, should take moral responsibility for law and order "failure" and resign.
Owaisi said 324 farmers have died by suicide in "Aurangabad (Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar) division", but no one is talking about it.
Nine of his supporters were also arrested, said a police official.
Kumar also hinted that the Maharashtra elections could be held after Diwali.
'Ajit Pawar is trying to sideline us; he is trying to be in the BJP's good books at our cost.'
Activist Manoj Jarange on Monday said he will set out on a tour of Maharashtra after the Diwali festival to meet Marathas and make them aware about the issue of reservation for the community.
The Leader of Opposition in the assembly also told an interviewer that he will "100 per cent" like to be chief minister of Maharashtra.
'This is what you get when you decide to be someone's slaves'
The total number of arrests in the sensational case now stands at nine, while three key persons are on the run.
NCP leader Fahmida Hasan Khan wants HM Amit Shah's nod to read scriptures of all faith outside PM house.
This is the first time that Nagaland is witnessing the victory of so many political parties in the state assembly elections. LJP (Ram Vilas) and RPI (Athawale) are newbies in the state politics.
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar on Monday said there was a need to fight the forces creating communal divide in Maharashtra and the country.
Malik used to criticise the BJP-led Central government and the then opposition leader in Maharashtra, Devendra Fadnavis, when he was a cabinet minister in the erstwhile MVA government led by Uddhav Thackeray.
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