Sanjay Dutt remark stirs Maharashtra politics; MPSC protest, SIR plea in Bombay HC among top stories
Actor Sanjay Dutt's remark on peace, an MPSC aspirants' protest, a councillor's arrest in Akola and a Bombay High Court hearing on SIR were among the day's major developments in Maharashtra.
Maharashtra politics is heated over actor Sanjay Dutt's statement that he no longer feels peace in India. Congress leaders Nana Patole and Vijay Wadettiwar have backed the actor and reacted sharply against the BJP governments at the Centre and in the state.
Indian pilot Captain Smit Machhar, who saved the lives of 174 passengers on a flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv, is being hailed as a hero across the world. Tina Goswami, who has worked with him, said her first question on hearing of the incident was whether everyone was safe. She said it was not a normal situation but a very serious and abnormal one.
In Akola, police arrested Sagar Bharuka, a councillor of Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena, late at night. He is accused of threatening the owner of a hotel in the bus stand area and an employee, and demanding Rs 15 lakh in extortion. The arrest has sent shockwaves through the politics of the Akola Municipal Corporation.
The agitation by candidates preparing for the MPSC entered its fifth day on Monday. Rohit Pawar has given the state government a 48-hour ultimatum. He warned that if the government took no step, more than 1,00,000 students would take to the streets of Pune. The protesters will either enforce a Pune bandh or march in large numbers to Mantralaya in Mumbai. According to the report, Rahul Gandhi may also join.
There is good news from Mumbai's housing market. According to a report released on Monday, 72,804 homes were sold between January and September. This is the highest sales since 2018 and a 1 per cent rise over last year.
Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) chief Uddhav Thackeray and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray held a joint rally in Mumbai on Sunday, demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and over the SIR process. BJP leader and minister Nitesh Rane reacted sharply to the rally.
With very little rain this year, Wardha district faces the prospect of a serious water crisis. The district administration has begun preparations. The rural water supply department of the Zilla Parishad has asked all 519 gram panchayats across the eight panchayat samitis to report on the water situation in their areas.
In Nagpur district, water schemes are under way under the Jal Jeevan Mission, with crores of rupees being spent on them. Even so, it has emerged, shockingly, that fluoride-contaminated water is being supplied to 85 villages in the district. Ramtek and Kuhi are the worst affected, and a Rs 26 crore purification plan has been drawn up.
Shiv Sena leader Shaina NC reacted sharply to statements by Congress leaders Mani Shankar Aiyar, Digvijaya Singh and Rahul Gandhi. She targeted the Congress over India's foreign policy, donations linked to the Ram Mandir and alleged irregularities in the MPSC examination. She also backed Suvendu Adhikari's statement on implementing the Uniform Civil Code in West Bengal.
The Bombay High Court heard a petition on the SIR of the electoral rolls in Maharashtra. The bench of Chief Justice Mahesh Chandra Tripathi and Justice Advait Sethna made clear that the court will not order the ECI not to delete names from the electoral rolls in Maharashtra. Citing judicial propriety, the High Court adjourned the hearing for three weeks.
