Kalyan: Shiv Sena leader supporting Uddhav Thackeray attacked, blames ex-corporater favouring Eknath Shinde faction Uddhav Thackeray’s supporter and Kalyan city’s Shiv Sena vice-president Harshvardhan Palande was attacked by three to four unidentified people.
The incident took place around at 11pm on Santoshi Mata Road in Kalyan East on Tuesday.
Palande has suffered injuries on his two fingers and leg, and currently undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Kalyan
Assam police on Tuesday night seized 472 kg of cannabis (ganja) worth Rs 47 lakh from a truck in the state’s Karimganj district along the Assam-Tripura border.
The police also arrested the truck driver and registered a case against him.
According to the police, the officers received secret information based on which a team of police officers of the Churaibari watch post intercepted a truck, after a search around 472 kg of ganja was recovered.
Later the driver was booked under relevant sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.
“The truck was coming from the Tripura side. During checking, our team recovered 472 kg of ganja from the truck. We apprehend the truck driver identified as Sajala Debbarman.
We have registered a case under NDPS Act,” Niranjan Das, In-charge of the Churaibari police watch post said. The police officer also informed that the market value of the seized ganja is estimated at around Rs 47 lakh.
Indian Super League club Chennaiyin FC have roped in German midfielder Julius Duker to wrap up their foreign roster for the upcoming season.
The 26-year-old is Chennaiyin’s second foreign midfielder after Rafael Crivellaro, who has been part of the team since 2019.
Vafa Hakhamaneshi, Fallou Diagne, Petar Sliskovic and Kwame Karikari are the club’s other international signings this summer.
“Our final foreign signing Julius will be a great fit in this youthful and fresh-looking team we have put together. His versatility will be a good asset for the team,” said Chennaiyin FC co-owner Vita Dani in a statement.
The left-footed player has 35 goals and 23 assists to his name from 210 career appearances so far. Chennaiyin FC will be Duker’s first club outside Germany.
Expressing excitement ahead of his maiden stint in India, Duker said, “I’m proud to be part of this big club. First of all, I would like to thank the fans for all the messages and the warm welcome.”
“I’m just excited to finally be able to meet the team, the staff and our fans. Of course, I’m motivated to achieve the goals set by the club. I will work hard to create successful times for the club again. But first I want to get to know the team and get in shape,” he added.
Duker will join a midfield that already consists of experienced players such as Crivellaro, Anirudh Thapa and Mohammed Rafique.
With his versatility and experience, the Braunschweig-born dynamic footballer will also offer different combinations for Chennaiyin FC.
A product of VfL Wolfsburg’s youth academy, Duker has been playing at the senior professional level since 2014 and has featured for some popular German clubs, including Eintracht Braunschweig and SV Meppen.
The Maharashtra government told the Bombay High Court on Wednesday that it could not allow activist Gautam Navlakha to make phone calls from prison since he was facing charges of terrorism.
Navlakha is accused in the Elgar Parishad-Maoist links case. The state’s counsel Sangeeta Shinde placed before a bench led by Justice Nitin Jamdar a resolution that the Maharashtra government had issued on March 25 this year imposing such prohibition.
As per the resolution signed by the state Inspector General of Police, a coin box facility for inmates to make phone calls is available in prisons, including the Taloja prison in Navi Mumbai, where Navlakha and others accused in the case are lodged as undertrials.
However, the resolution lists 10 categories of undertrials and convicts that cannot be granted access to the coin box facility. The first of these 10 categories is of those undertrials who face charges of terrorism or conspiring against the nation-state and the government.
As per the National Investigation Agency’s (NIA) charge sheet filed in the Elgar Parishad case, Navlakha and his co-accused were part of a banned terrorist organisation or such outfits that acted as a “front” for banned organisations.
The charge sheet also claims that Navlakha and his co-accused conspired to “overthrow” the Union government. Shinde submitted the resolution in response to Navlakha’s appeal field through his counsel Yug Mohit Chaudhary, seeking that he be permitted to make phone and video calls while in prison.
He said in his plea that the video call (VC) facilities had been extended to all inmates during the last two years because of the Covid-19 pandemic protocol. But, now that physical meetings have resumed in prisons across the state, the VC facility has been withdrawn, he said.
Navlakha said his partner was a senior citizen and lived in Delhi and it was not possible for her to visit him often in the prison. Chaudhary also argued on Wednesday that denying phone call access to Navlakha was a breach of his fundamental right to life. But, Shinde argued that the state prison manual only prescribed making available “reasonable facilities” for communication to inmates.
“What is the hurry in this matter anyway?” Shinde asked. “He (Navlakha) has the option of writing letters and physical meetings are also allowed for all inmates,” she said.
The HC will hear the matter further on August 2. The case relates to alleged inflammatory speeches delivered at the ‘Elgar Parishad’ conclave, held at Shaniwarwada in Pune on December 31, 2017, which the police claimed triggered violence the next day near the Koregaon-Bhima war memorial located on the city’s outskirts.
The Pune police claimed the conclave was backed by Maoists. The NIA later took over probe into the case.
The Rajya Sabha on Wednesday was adjourned for the day as the Opposition continued to create a ruckus on increased GST on food items and rising inflation issues.
The Upper House will resume again at 11 am on Thursday. Earlier in the morning too, opposition parties disrupted the proceedings following which the Upper House was adjourned till 2 pm.
Shortly after Leader of Opposition in the Parliament Mallikarjun Kharge began addressing the issue amid chaos, Upper House Chairman Venkaiah Naidu adjourned the House till 2 pm.
The Upper House was adjourned without any business as the Opposition raised issues for an immediate discussion. The Lok Sabha also witnessed ruckus and sloganeering by Opposition parties following which it was adjourned till 2 pm.
Both the Houses of Parliament are witnessing repeated adjournments following the ruckus by the Opposition leaders since the commencement of the Monsoon session on July 18.
On the repeated adjournments of both the Houses of the Parliament by the Opposition, Union Minister Smriti Irani on Wednesday took a dig at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, saying that Wayanad MP who has been politically unproductive is now hell-bent on ensuring to bring down the productivity of Lok Sabha.
Irani specifically attacked Rahul Gandhi, saying, “A gentleman who has made his political collogue to ensure that productive debate does not take place in Parliament had a chequered Parliamentary history. As the Amethi MP, he never posed any questions in Parliament once he abandoned Amethi and went to Wayanad his attendance in the Winter Session of Parliament in 2019 was merely 40 per cent.”
The BJP MP remark came ahead of the third day’s proceedings in the Monsoon Session, the BJP hit out at the Opposition, accusing it of “disrespecting Parliament, bringing down its productivity”.
On Tuesday, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar tabled a bill in the Rajya Sabha to amend the Weapons of Mass Destruction and their Delivery Systems (Prohibition of Unlawful Activities) Act of 2005 to provide against the financing of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their delivery systems so as to fulfil India’s international obligations.
Speaking on the bill amid interruptions by Opposition members who wanted to raise the issue of price rise, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said the Act prohibits unlawful activities in respect of biological, chemical and nuclear weapons and their delivery systems. He said the bill will strengthen India’s credentials and global image.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday said the petitions filed by the Shiv Sena and its rebel MLAs raise many constitutional questions which require consideration by a larger bench.
A bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana directed the parties to formulate issues that require examination by a larger bench by July 27.
“After hearing the counsels it has been agreed that some issues may, if necessary, be referred to a larger bench also. Keeping in mind the same, to enable the parties to frame the issues, let them file the same preferably by next Wednesday,” the bench also comprising Justices Krishna Murari and Hima Kohli said.
The matter will now be heard on August 1. The bench also comprising justices Krishna Murari and Hima Kohli was hearing five pending pleas about the recent political crisis in Maharashtra that led to the fall of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government in the state.
The Supreme Court granted to Alt News co-founder Mohammed Zubair in all cases against him and ordered that he be released from custody immediately. “We find no reason and justification. We direct the petitioner be released on the bail immediately under article 32 in all cases,” the bench led by Justice DY Chandrachud pronounced.
One case each has been filed against Zubair in the districts of Sitapur, Lakhimpur Kheri, Muzaffarnagar and Ghaziabad and two in Hathras.
They are related to satirical comments about television news anchors, allegedly hurting religious sentiments of the Hindu community and posting alleged inflammatory content about deities.
The Alt News co-founder has already been granted bail in the seventh case filed in New Delhi.
In response to complaints about tremors in two buildings on Marine Drive, the BMC has said it will conduct an assessment to find the cause of the problem.
To allay residents’ fears, officials have directed contractors in charge of the Coastal Road project to reinstate the tetrapods that were removed to facilitate construction work.
The large, concrete tetrapods that lie along Marine Drive protect the coastline from tides and waves, and residents have blamed their removal for the tremors.
The reinstatement of the tetrapods will be finished over two or three days, civic officials said.
Representatives of the project contractor and management consultants, along with civic officials, visited the site and met the affected residents on Monday.
Officials suggest that the tremors that were specifically felt on Friday by the residents could have been due to high tide, very high waves, and extreme wind speeds.
Instruments monitoring vibrations at the Coastal Road project site near the buildings had normal readings on Sunday and Monday, an official said.
Shiv Sena MLA and former Maharashtra minister Aaditya Thackeray will visit Thane, Nashik, and Aurangabad districts over the next three days and address rallies at some places, a party leader said on Wednesday.
After a split in the Shiv Sena legislature party last month, the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena on Tuesday suffered a fresh jolt with 12 of its 19 Lok Sabha members shifting allegiance to Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.
Five out of the six Sena MLAs from the Aurangabad district have joined the Shinde camp.
Aaditya Thackeray will be touring Bhiwandi, Shahapur (in Thane), Igatpuri, and Nashik on Thursday, Shiv Sena MLC and Aurangabad party unit president Ambadas Danve said in a release.
The Mumbai-based Sena legislator will address a rally at Manmad in Nashik.
He will reach Aurangabad on Friday afternoon and address a rally at Sant Eknath Rang Mandir auditorium, Danve said. On Saturday, he will go to Paithan in Aurangabad and then to Newasa in Ahmednagar district where he will hold a rally, he said.
He will also visit Shirdi in Ahmednagar the same day and then head back to Mumbai, another party official said.
Former Mumbai police commissioner Sanjay Pandey appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in Delhi on Tuesday for questioning in a money laundering case linked to the alleged illegal phone tapping of NSE employees, officials said.
This is the second consecutive day that the retired Indian Police Service (IPS) officer is being questioned by the federal probe agency in this case.
Like Monday, the officer will continue to reply to questions on the business and operations of a firm floated by him for a security audit of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) and his statement will be recorded under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, they said.
Pandey, a 1986-batch officer, retired from service on June 30. Before his four-month stint as Mumbai’s commissioner of police, he served as the acting Maharashtra director general of police.
