The counting of votes for the Rajya Sabha elections was delayed on Friday in Maharashtra and Haryana over alleged violation of rules, officials said.
The four-day-old government, however, collapsed on Tuesday, after Ajit Pawar resigned citing 'personal reasons'.
In a major setback to Maharashtra's ruling alliance of Shiv Sena, Nationalist Congress Party and Congress, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday won three of the six Rajya Sabha seats, while the ruling combine questioned the eight-hour delay in counting of votes.
Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari has asked the Maharashtra Legislature Secretary to hold a floor test of Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government at 11 am on Thursday.
Congress legislators in Maharashtra disrupted Governor Vidyasagar Rao's address to the joint session of the state legislature, protesting the manner in which the 13-day-old BJP government won the trust vote on Wednesday.
Punjab Governor Banwarilal Purohit on Wednesday thwarted the Aam Aadmi Party government's plan to summon a special assembly session to bring in a confidence motion.
Thackeray said an "atmosphere of fear" was being created with such actions.
Maharashtra Speaker Nana Patole on Tuesday said he has asked the state legislature to frame a law to give voters the option of using ballot papers besides electronic voting machines (EVMs) in the local governing bodies' and state assembly polls.
'The Speaker has to act in an impartial way and in accordance with what the Supreme Court has laid out in its judgment.'
'Our numbers were less (than BJP's) but PM Narendra Modi blessed us. Modi Saheb told me before the swearing-in that he will extend all possible help to me. Amit Shah Saheb said he will stand behind us like a rock,' Shinde said. 'But the biggest kalakar (artist) is this one,' Shinde said, pointing to Fadnavis sitting to his right on the treasury benches.
Members of the Opposition bloc MVA latched on the HC ruling and staged demonstrations in the legislature complex in Nagpur against the state government.
Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari on Thursday left the Vidhan Bhavan premises without completing his address to the joint session of the state legislature amid slogan-shouting by legislators.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Monday said the state should stand firmly behind people in the Marathi-speaking areas of neighbouring Karnataka and appealed to political parties not to behave in a way that would hurt them.
The Bharatiya Janata Party-backed Samajwadi Party rebel candidate Nitin Agarwal was elected deputy speaker of the Uttar Pradesh assembly on Monday, defeating Narendra Verma, the official candidate of Akhilesh Yadav's party, by 244 votes.
The Shiv Sena on Monday said it was not surprising to see the Bharatiya Janata Party winning the Maharashtra Assembly Speaker's election as the Sena was broken and 'someone from the party' was pitted against it.
'The Maharashtra government is not being very clear; they are keeping quiet.'
Mumbai Police has stepped up vigil after an anonymous letter sent to the Maharashtra secretariat 'Mantralaya' threatened to bomb important government installations in Mumbai and Nagpur.
Additional sessions judge R B Rote also held that the custodial interrogation of Nitesh Rane, the son of Union minister Narayan Rane, was necessary as police probe into the matter was 'incomplete.'
The Nationalist Congress Party leader Sharad Pawar on met Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan and his Cabinet colleagues and took stock of the situation in the wake of the devastating fire at the state secretariat.
Moving ahead with the process of forming a government, newly-elected Bharatiya Janata Party legislators in Maharashtra will meet here today to elect their leader amid Shiv Sena's expression of desire for a coalition government of the two saffron parties.
The MLAs, who are seemingly unhappy with their leadership, arrived in Surat on Monday night and are camping at the Le Meridian Hotel, they said.
In a letter to the states and union territories, Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan advised implementing strategic interventions for containment like imposition of night curfew, strict regulation of large gatherings, curtailing numbers in marriages and funerals besides increasing testing and surveillance.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday said he has directed the police to arrest within 48 hours the culprits who hurled stones at a catholic church in Navi Mumbai on Saturday.
The sketches have been prepared based on information gathered from people residing near the area where the incident took place.
Congress party sources claimed the three, "...are scheduled to join the party on Friday."
May Prabhu Ram give strength to his family in the hour of sadness to bear the loss. May Prabhu Ram give consolation to people in the country who believe in his values, ideals, culture and traditions," Prime Minister Narendra Modi said wile praying tribute to Kalyan Singh.
Parliamentarians and legislators across the country voted on Monday to elect India's 15th president, choosing between opposition pick Yashwant Sinha and National Democratic Alliance nominee Droupadi Murmu who is favoured to win the battle to the Rashtrapati Bhavan.
The CLP will meet at 11 am at Vidhan Bhavan, party spokesman Anant Gadgil said.
Describing Fadnavis as a friend, Thackeray also said he does not view him as opposition leader.
Opposition political parties hit out at the UP government, questioning its seriousness in curbing crimes against women.
Among the 23 MLAs whose disqualification has been sought include Ramdas Kadam, Subhash Desai and Datta Nalawade.\n
The 36 new ministers included 10 cabinet and four ministers of state (MoS) of the NCP, eight Cabinet and four MoS of the Sena, and eight Cabinet and two MoS of the Congress.
He said the government would provide meal at Rs 10 to common citizens and build a super-speciality hospital in every district of the state.
The BJP has nominated Union Power Minister Piyush Goyal as its candidate from Maharashtra for Rajya Sabha election.
India's greatest contemporary architects Charles Correa died on Tuesday night at the age of 84. He was best known for his "open-to-sky" designs, which were reflected in some of his famous projects. Rediff.com takes a look at some popular buildings that got the Correa touch.
The march, which commenced from Nashik on March 6, will culminate in Mumbai on Monday and protestors plan to gherao the Vidhan Bhavan where the Budget session of the state legislature is underway, said organisers.
Khadse was sulking since he was made to resign as minister in 2016 in the then Fadnavis-led BJP govt over corruption charges.
A coordination panel comprising senior leaders of the ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance in Maharashtra will look into various aspects of the National Population Register (NPR), Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray said in Mumbai on Tuesday. Addressing the media in Vidhan Bhavan in south Mumbai, where the budget session of the state legislature is underway, Thackeray said, "Responsible leaders of the three parties will be part of it (coordination committee on NPR)." "I won't let anyone snatch the rights of any citizens of Maharashtra. I am very clear on this," he said, when asked about differences in the ruling alliance over the implementation of NPR in the state.
'If the BJP doesn't want to accept the will of the people, then we will show them what a majority means.'
With this allocation of portfolios, the Sharad Pawar-led NCP has got most of the 'plum' ministries.
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