MPCC today demanded Finance minister Sudhir Mungantiwar and Medical Education minister Vinod Tawde be sacked following Nagpur Bench of Bombay High Court’s strong observation against state government on the issue of sexual harassment of a resident doctor at Government medical College and Hospital (GMCH), Nagpur.

Addressing a press conference, Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) spokesperson Sachin Sawant said by transferring Abhimanyu Niswade, Dean of GMCH (Nagpur), he was penalised because he took action into the sexual harassment allegations against Makrand Vyawahare, brother-in-law of Mungantiwar.

Former vice dean GMCH, Vyawahare, faced allegation of threatening a first year postgraduate student of forensic department, who allegedly tried to commit suicide on November 17. Later, a female student levelled allegation of sexual harassment against Vyawahare, following which he was dismissed from the vice dean’s post.

As per the PIL filed in the case, an inhouse committee set up by Niswade found allegations against Vyawahare, true.

However, Charudutt Shinde, OSD (Officer on Special Duty) of Tawde asked Niswade to disband the committee.

Sawant said the Court has said ministers and senior officers in government are expected to use powers for public good. They cannot be permitted to exercises powers to take revenge against someone, since he has not obliged them in hushing up the matter against one of their nearer and dearer one.

The court also said that if the allegations in the PIL are proved true, it will depict a sorry picture as to how, at the instance of ministers, efficient officers of the institution are made scapegoat and penalised only to protect relative of one of ministers, he said.

A division bench, comprising Justice Bhushan Gavai and Justice Pradeep Deshmukh on December 1, stayed the transfer of Niswade and asked him to resume duty with immediate effect.

The HC also stayed the transfer of secretary, Maharashtra State Medical Teachers Association (MSMTA) from GMCH, Dr Sameer Golawar.

The PIL was filed by a social worker Trisharan Sahare through senior counsel Sunil Manohar and Akshay Naik.

While passing strictures against the senior Cabinet ministers, the Judges remarked that Niswade’s shunting was done with “malafide intention” by the authorities.

A local court has rejected the anticipatory bail application of five persons booked by police for the alleged multi-crore theft of software of ‘Naaptol’ home shopping company and selling it to a rival firm.

Thane Additional Sessions Judge A S Jadhav on Thursday rejected the anticipatory bail of Suraj Singh, ex-assistant vice president of Naaptol, Shankar Srivastav, Gaurag Garg, Sandeep Wankhede and Amol Zambre, all former employees of the company, while observing that prima facie a case was made out against them.

The judge also agreed with the prosecution’s submission that further probe needs to be carried out into the alleged nexus between the ex-employees who were involved in the Rs 100 crore loss to the company on account of the theft of its software and its sale to another firm.

“We have to find out as to how much money has changed hands in the deal and who all are involved in the racket and the role of each and every one in the crime. Hence, the custody of the accused is necessary,” Additional Public Prosecutor Prakash Pujari submitted before the court.

The police needs to examine laptops, PCs, pen drives and hard disks from where the firm’s software had been allegedly stolen and transferred to the other company. The source code and data had been stolen from Naaptol by the 12 accused, the court was told.

However, the court allowed the anticipatory applications of three other accused, including two women ex-employees of the company, while noting that their role was not that important to reject the pre-arrest bail.

Inspector Pratibha Shendge of the Navi Mumbai police Cyber Crime branch is investigating the alleged offence.

All the accused had resigned en masse from Naaptol and joined the new company after the offence.

Kamal Kumar Sabu, 33, who then worked as one of the directors of Naaptol, had access to the data and source code of the software being used in the company.

It is alleged that between January and July this year, he along with the other accused stole the data and source code and sold it to the other company.

Subsequently, he resigned from the services of Naaptol and joined the other company as a director.

Following an offence registered based on the complaint by Naaptol, under sections 420, 406, 120-B of the IPC and under sections 43(B), 43(J) and 66 of the IT Act, the MIDC Rabale police had last month arrested Sabu and another senior ex-employee Vikrant Yadav. Both were in custody for some days and later released on bail by a Thane court.

However, Yadav was killed in a road accident when his two-wheeler collided with a jeep of MIDC Rabale Police Station a few days back.

A Vada Pav seller here has donated Rs 20,000 to the Chief Ministers Relief Fund for drought-hit farmers in Maharashtra.

CM Devendra Fadnavis praised the gesture of Mangesh Ahiwale.

“In a great gesture of humanity, a Vada Pav seller Mangesh met me and contributed Rs. 20,000 for the CM Relief Fund,” the CM tweeted.

“On 11th October, he announced he will donate all earnings from the day to relief measures for drought-hit farmers…he sold Vada Pav for Rs. 5 instead of Rs. 12 that day…,” he said.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said it was a misconception that the smart cities were meant only for the rich.

This misconception should be removed from people’s minds, he said, while launching the Navi Mumbai (South) Smart City which is being developed by the state-owned planning body CIDCO with an investment of around Rs. 53,000 crore.

He was “extremely elated” to launch “the country’s first ever Smart City CIDCO Navi Mumbai (South)”, he later tweeted.

“It is important to understand that Smart Cities will cater to the needs of the common man and not only the rich,” he further tweeted.

In his speech at the launch function, he said development of urban and rural sectors was interdependent and both should have an equitable development.

Talking about the Navi Mumbai airport, Fadnavis said the project was moving in the right direction, and work orders were likely to be issued in three or four months.

Bollywood actor Salman Khan may be the king of box office numbers, but he is yet to ward off all the legal troubles. In the infamous 2002 hit-and-run case, a petition was filed to cancel Salman’s bail order.

The Supreme Court has rejected the plea to cancel Salman’s bail in 2002 Hit-and-run case. Constable Ravinder Patil’s mother had filed the petition to cancel Salman bail.

Meanwhile, the prosecution on Thursday tied up its case by reiterating that the actor was drunk and driving the Toyota Land Cruiser which rammed into a bakery in Bandra killing one and injuring four others.

Bombay High Court Justice A. R. Joshi, who is hearing Salman’s appeal against his conviction and a five-year jail term by the sessions court awarded last May, is likely to start dictating his order soon.

In May this year, Salman was convicted for culpable homicide not amounting to murder, besides several other offences, and sentenced to five years jail, against which he filed the present appeal in the high court.

The Central Railway (CR) will run 11 special trains from Nagpur and Solapur to Mumbai to clear the extra rush of passengers travelling here on the death anniversary of Dr B R Ambedkar, commemorated as ‘Mahaparinirvan Diwas’ on December 6.

A large number of Ambedkar’s followers will throng the Chaitya Bhoomi at Dadar here to pay homage to the Bharat Ratna.

“For the convenience of out station passengers, it has been decided to run 11 unreserved special trains between Mumbai/Dadar-Nagpur/Ajni/Sevagram and Mumbai-Solapur. As many as 12 suburban special trains on Dadar-Kalyan and Kurla-Panvel sections will also be run,” a senior CR official said today.

Arrangements are being made to make the announcements of the special trains in Marathi and Hindi languages through newspapers, public address system and display of train timetable on notice boards at stations, he said.

Additional booking counters will be opened to issue unreserved tickets at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, Dadar, Lokmanya Tilak Terminus, Thane and Kalyan from December 6 to 9.

To avoid any kind of untoward incidence, foolproof security arrangements have been put in place at all stations, including use of dog squad, CCTV cameras and metal detectors, the official said.

Adequate number of RPF/GRP personnel will be deployed on trains at all train originating stations and intermediate large stations for security, he said.

The official added that arrangements for drinking water, proper lighting and adequate catering facility will be made available at halts of special trains.

CR, in a statement issued here, has appealed to passengers to cooperate with Railway administration by keeping the trains and stations clean and travelling with valid ticket to avoid any inconvenience during the journey.

Describing the results of Gujarat local body polls as a “win for Congress despite losing”, NDA ally Shiv Sena on Friday said it indicates that people of Gujarat do not stand behind the Prime Minister completely and the BJP needs to evaluate why “alarm bells” have started ringing on Narendra Modi’s home pitch.

The Sena also said that it needs to be studied why the BJP lost in rural areas if the state is claimed to be ‘number one’ in terms of development.

Sena said the results indicate that the people of Gujarat do not stand behind the Prime Minister completely and that the BJP needs to evaluate why “alarm bells” have started ringing on Narendra Modi’s home pitch.

Out of power for 20 years, the Congress made a stunning comeback in the rural areas of Gujarat where it won 21 of the 31 district panchayats and around 110 of the 230 taluka panchayats, while the BJP retained its hold over urban pockets clinching all six municipal corporations and 40 of 56 municipalities.

After its battering in Bihar, the loss in rural local bodies in Gujarat comes more than a year after Narendra Modi, who ruled the state for 12 years, shifted to Delhi.

“The results of the civic body polls only indicate that the people of Gujarat do not stand behind Prime Minister Narendra Modi completely. Though the BJP has won all six municipal corporations, one cannot say that the Congress got defeated,” an editorial in Sena mouthpiece ‘Saamana’ said.

“The municipal corporations will be ruled by the BJP and the Zilla Parishads by the Congress. In short, the Congress has won the election despite losing it. The BJP now needs to evaluate why alarm bells have started ringing on Narendra Modi’s home pitch,” it said.

The ruling alliance partner also said that the Congress getting a new lease of life in the Bihar Assembly elections is fine, but the party doing well in Modi’s home state is a matter of grave concern.

“A study needs to be conducted on why people went against the BJP in rural areas if the picture of Gujarat being portrayed as the number one state in terms of development was true,” it said.

“In a democracy, the electorate is supreme which has shown its place to the biggest of politicians. The PM had given a call of a Congress-free India, but after Bihar, the Congress has now risen in Gujarat as well,” the Sena said, adding “the results have given an opportunity for Congress to rejoice.”