Mumbai News Highlights: Narayan and Nitesh Rane granted anticipatory bail in Disha Salian case – The Indian Express

A special squad of the Mumbai Police raided an illegal Hookah parlour in suburban Kandivali and arrested seven people from the spot, an official said on Wednesday. When a team led by DCP, zone 12, Somnath Gharge reached the spot on Tuesday late night, they found some people smoking hookah filled with tobacco.

Police have seized the hookah and other material. A case was registered under various sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Cigarette and other Tobacco Products (prohibition of advertising and trade, commerce, production, supply and distribution regulation) Act. The accused were later released on bail, the official added. (PTI)

The Maharashtra unit of Congress on Wednesday passed a resolution expressing confidence in the leadership of party president Sonia Gandhi.

A meeting of state Congress ministers, legislators, All India Congress Committee secretaries and senior office-bearers was held here. Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole chaired the meeting, a statement said.

A resolution expressing confidence in the leadership of Sonia Gandhi and another congratulating energy minister Nitin Raut for the decision not to disconnect electricity supply of farmers were passed, it added. A section of Congress leaders is demanding organizational changes following the party’s debacle in elections in five states including Uttar Pradesh.  (PTI)

A special NIA court here on Wednesday allowed advocate Surendra Gadling, an accused in the Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case, to use computer available in the prison where he is lodged, for an hour two days a week. Gadling, arrested by the Pune police in June 2018, is currently lodged in the Taloja central prison in Navi Mumbai awaiting trial.

He had sought the court’s nod to use a laptop, saying he wants to prepare his defence. However, special judge DE Kothalikar, presiding over the NIA court, granted him permission to use the jail’s computer two days a week for an hour.

Meanwhile, the court allowed a plea of another accused, lawyer-activist Sudha Bharadwaj who is currently on bail, to reside in Mumbai’s suburb of Oshiwara. (PTI)

BJP MLA Ashish Shelar on Wednesday alleged in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly that various companies duped nationalized banks in the state to the tune of Rs 13,043 crore, but the Maha Vikas Aghadi coalition government has not allowed the CBI to investigate these matters.

After these banks approached the central agency, it sought permission from the state government to carry out probe, he said. “Why isn’t the government giving permission,” said Shelar, a former state minister.

Home Minister Dilip Walse-Patil, who was present in the House, said the Central Bureau of Investigation will be allowed to investigate these and similar pending cases. The BJP MLA said that various private firms had borrowed large sums from 12 major banks in the state and defrauded them. Bank of Baroda, Punjab National Bank, State Bank of India and Union Bank of India have lodged complaints with the CBI, he added.  (PTI)

Maharashtra on Wednesday reported 237 new coronavirus infections and two pandemic-related deaths, the state health department said. The caseload of the state rose to 78,71,803 and death toll reached 1,43,759, it added. The number of active coronavirus patients in the state dipped to 2,075.

A day before, Maharashtra had recorded 207 new infections and four fatalities. As many as 455 patients recovered during the day, taking the tally of recoveries to 77,21,965. (PTI)

Akola city in Maharashtra on Wednesday recorded the highest temperature for the day in the Vidarbha region at 42.9 degrees Celsius, an IMD official said. A temperature of 41.1 degrees Celsius was recorded in Akola on March 15, which was also the highest in the Vidarbha region of east Maharashtra.

A MeT official said the maximum temperature in the region is expected to rise to 42 to 43 degrees Celsius in the next two days due to hot winds coming from North India. “On Wednesday, Akola recorded the temperature of 42.9 degrees Celsius, which was the highest in the entire Vidarbha region,” Akola Meteorological Department’s junior scientist Ravi Kumar Meena told PTI. (PTI)

The Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana (SSS) is seriously contemplating breaking away from the ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance in Maharashtra, said party president Raju Shetti who added that a formal decision would be taken at the SSS state conclave on April 5 in Kolhapur.

Maharashtra Deputy Cheif Minister Ajit Pawar in the State Assembly on Wednesday said that the state government has decided to increase the MLA fund to Rs 5 Crores from the existing Rs 4 Crores, news agency ANI reported.

“Maharashtra Govt has decided to increase the MLA fund to Rs 5 Crores from the existing Rs 4 Crores,” says Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar in the State Assembly

(File pic) pic.twitter.com/IYBIggco9Y

— ANI (@ANI) March 16, 2022

The Bombay High Court recently cleared the way for the 220 KV transmission line project between Kalwa (Thane) and Salsette, which is an upgradation of the old 110 KV transmission line in Mumbai passing through a mangrove and its buffer zone, in view of “public interest”.

The Maharashtra government is monitoring the heatwave conditions in Mumbai and neighbouring areas and taking various steps to tackle it, like keeping hospital beds reserved for heat stroke patients and creating awareness among people about heatwave management, state Health Minister Rajesh Tope said on Wednesday.

He was speaking in the state Assembly after Shiv Sena MLA Sunil Prabhu raised the issue of a warning issued by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) about the heatwave in the state capital and adjoining districts. Prabhu sought to know what steps the administration was taking in this regard.

In response, Tope said beds have already been reserved in district hospitals for heat stroke patients. The information, education and communication (IEC) method has been adopted for creating awareness about heatwave management, he said. (PTI)

Newly-appointed Mumbai Police Commissioner Sanjay Pandey has said that hawkers should not do business within 100 meters of ‘No Hawking’ zones outside railway stations in the city.

Pandey held a meeting with police officials, officials of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), members of NGOs and representatives of the Federation for Retail Traders Welfare Association, among others, on Tuesday. Hawkers should follow the directions of the Supreme Court and High Court, he said in the meeting, official sources said.

The police commissioner observed that the presence of hawkers near railway stations, hospitals, on overbridges and under the bridges causes traffic congestion. In many places, hawkers also occupy both sides of roads, Pandey said, adding that action should be taken against licensed shop owners who rent out, illegally, the place in front of a shop to hawkers. (PTI)

Maharashtra Minister Varsha Gaikwad on Wednesday said the state government will suspend the registration of schools if they are found to be involved in leaking question papers of Class 10 exams. The school education minister was responding to a query by some members of the state legislative Council.

“If a school is found involved in Class 10 exam paper leak, then it will lose its registration. If a school allows students to copy answers during examinations, the department will not grant an exam centre there next time,” Gaikwad said. The minister also informed the House that a school in Ahmednagar, which had allowed students to copy answers, will lose its registration. An official order will be released soon.

The school education department has already requested the home department to provide additional security, as every school now has an exam centre, the minister added. (PTI)

THE PERMISSION for election to the post of Maharashtra Assembly Speaker has been denied by Governor Bhagat Singh Koshiyari, saying the matter is sub-judice. As the issue looks set to further accentuate the conflict between the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government and the Governor, here is how it came about: (Read the full article by  Omkar Gokhale) 

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) are planning to extend the existing Eastern Freeway till south Mumbai and further connect it to the west coast of the city in order to ease out traffic woes.

Tuesday, Guardian Minister Aaditya Thackeray held a meeting with MMRDA chief SVR Shrinivas and municipal commissioner I S Chahal on exploring the possibility of extending the freeway. Currently, the eastern freeway starts from the Mankhurd-Ghatkopar Link Road and ends at P D Mello Road near Carnac Bunder in South Mumbai. The road has eased out issues of south Mumbai’s connectivity towards the eastern part of the city. (Read more)

Alleging that the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government was harassing the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders in Maharashtra, Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment Ramdas Athavale said that he would meet Home Minister Amit Shah to demand the imposition of President’s rule in the state. “The only alternative is to enforce the President’s rule in Maharashtra,” said Athavale.

A Naxal couple carrying a reward of up to Rs 20 lakh on their heads have surrendered before the Gadchiroli police in Maharashtra, police said on Wednesday.

Dipak alias Munshi Ramsu Ishtam (34), a resident of Gaderi in Etapalli tehsil here, and his wife Shambatti Nevaru Alam (25), a native of Hidwada in neighbouring Chhattisgarh, surrendered before Gadchiroli Superintendent of Police Ankit Goyal recently, an official said. The couple together carried a reward of up to Rs 20 lakh on their heads, he said. Dipak was operating as a divisional committee member and commander of Platoon No. 21, while Shambatti was a member of his platoon, the official said.

According to the police, Dipak was involved in three murders, eight encounters and two arsons. He had also conducted six ambushes, in which 31 police personnel were killed in various parts of Chhattisgarh. Similarly, Shambatti was involved in two encounters with the security forces, it was stated. The government had announced a reward of Rs 16 lakh on Dipak and Rs 4 lakh on Shambatti, the official said. (PTI)

Maharashtra | A Naxal couple carrying a bounty of Rs 18 lakhs on their heads surrendered before the police

Two Naxalites named Deepak Ishtam & Shambatti Alam have surrendered. Both had a total reward of Rs 18 lakh: Ankit Goyal, SP Gadchiroli pic.twitter.com/aeiy9xh4jM

— ANI (@ANI) March 16, 2022

Rashmi Shukla, a 1988-batch IPS officer, is one of the seniormost IPS officers in Maharashtra police. Maha Vikas Aghadi government transferred her from her post as State Intelligence Commissioner (SID) to Civil Defence. Fadnavis had stated that Shukla was involved in phone tapping when she was SID commissioner. 

Moments after a special court in Dindoshi granted anticipatory bail to Union Minister Narayan Rane and BJP MLA Nitesh Rane in the case filed against the duo for allegedly making derogatory statements and spreading misinformation after the death of Disha Salian, the latter Wednesday told the media that he will continue to raise his voice against “injustice” and expose the wrongdoings of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government.

The anticipatory bail, ordered against a surety of Rs 15,000 each, was also granted against a condition that the duo will not tamper with the evidence and witnesses or put a spanner in the investigation. The case against the duo was registered at Malwani police station.

Earlier, Rane senior had raised questions over a shoddy investigation into the Disha Salian suicide case. He alleged there were attempts to cover up and conceal facts and demanded proper investigation to bring to light those responsible for her death. Read more

Number of people who have received the first does are 8,75,56,985. Whereas; 6,86,22,647 people are administered with their second dose.

A SPECIAL court in Dindoshi has allowed the anticipatory bail applications of union minister Narayan Rane and his son, BJP MLA Nitesh Rane, in connection with a case filed against them for allegedly making defamatory statements and spreading misinformation about the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s former manager, Disha Salian.

The two had moved court following an FIR filed at Malwani police station under Sections 211 (false charge of offence made with intent to injure), 500 (defamation), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace), 509 (word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman) and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code along with section 67 of the Information Technology (I-T) Act.

The FIR was filed following a complaint by Salian’s mother, who had said that baseless allegations were made about her daughter’s death by the Ranes which was causing them harassment and bringing disrepute to their deceased daughter. The complaint said that Salian had died by suicide on June 9, 2020, as she had suffered financial losses at work. Read more