Aaditya to Amit: New Thackeray in Maharashtra politics!

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January 21, 2020

The day when Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray will launch his son Amit into mainstream politics on January 23, happens to be the late Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray’s birth anniversary. Though Amit has been accompanying his father Raj at almost all party events, he has never addressed party workers. On this auspicious day, he is likely to make his maiden address during the party event.

When AV spoke to MNS leader Sandeep Deshpande about Amit Thackeray’s entry into active politics he said, “Raj Thackeray has still not decided whether Amit Thackeray will enter politics. However, the party workers think that Amit Thackeray should be given some important responsibility. But the final decision will be taken by Raj saheb as he is the only person who can take a call. And if he wishes to enter politics, we will welcome Amit with open hearts. Since it’s not possible for Raj saheb to reach everywhere always, the induction of Amit could be beneficial for the party.”

The MNS has organised its Maha-Adhiveshan in Mumbai on January 23. The speculations indicate that the MNS may adopt staunch Hindutva ideology expanding its ideology of Marathi Manoos and son of soil. Furthermore, the party will possibly announce an alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Since Uddhav Thackeray formed an alliance with secular parties and somewhere compromised on Hindutva politics, this opportunity has inspired Raj Thackeray to hold Balasaheb’s roots of philosophy.

BJP spokesperson Shaina NC said, “Any person who wants to enter politics is welcome as they are here to serve the society and it’s not important what surname he/ she has. Because gone are the days of dynastic politics as people want to see his/her performance. If your performance is good then you stay in it and if it’s not, the same people will chuck you out.”

Talking on the subject, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray clarified by saying, “I might go to any laundry but my basic colour would be saffron. I would never shy away from this colour as it is my existence.” People should stop playing politics on colours.

Meanwhile there is no official announcement of Amit Thackeray entering politics through the MNS. But the party has changed its party flag which has a stamp (Raj Mudra) used during Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s rule and the flag is saffron in colour giving it a Hindutva attitude and tone. However, no official announcement regarding the change of the party’s flag has come from the MNS end. Few weeks ago, BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis had met Raj Thackeray in a Mumbai hotel. After the meeting, the assumptions were that the Raj Thackeray-led MNS would likely forge an alliance with the BJP and announce a major shift in its policy.

If Amit is pushed into mainstream politics, MNS will get a youth leader and a ‘fresh’ face in the public which can be beneficial for the regional party. In 2014, Raj Thackeray had stated that he will induct Amit into politics at the right time. In the 2019 Maharashtra assembly elections, MNS witnessed a huge setback and was completely washed off from power. Only one MNS candidate Raju Patil managed to win from the Kalyan assembly constituency. Therefore, the change in MNS’ policy on Hindutva and building a relationship with BJP, especially on the electoral front, seems like a strong possibility. The alliance with BJP on the Hindutva issue will only benefit the regional party electorally.

On the other hand, BJP may try to monopolise on the issue of the “sons of the soil” if it allies with Raj Thackeray-led MNS which can spell trouble for Shiv Sena. Besides, if MNS turns completely saffron (or towards Hindutva), with the support of BJP, it can affect Sena’s vote bank in the upcoming civic elections. Recently, MNS chief Raj Thackeray and Prime Minister Narendra Modi were seen together in a banner put up for the Zilla Parishad elections in Palghar which were held on January 7. After the 2019 Maharashtra assembly election results, BJP was left hanging after its 35-year-old ally Shiv Sena formed a government with the Congress and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP).

Woman gang-raped at Lokmanya Tilak Terminus, 4 arrested

By

Hema Singh

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January 21, 2020

A 32-year-old woman was allegedly raped by four persons near a railway track in suburban Kurla on Monday. All four accused have been arrested by the police. According to the police the incident took place around 11 pm near the Harbour Line rail track in Sable Nagar locality late on Monday night when the victim, a resident of Worli, was finding a way to reach the Lokmanya Tilak Terminus (LTT) in Kurla area.

After reaching there, she asked a passerby for directions to LTT and followed him on the Harbour Line route. Later the woman mid-way went to relieve herself in the bushes at that time, two men who were consuming drugs in the bushes allegedly attacked the victim and raped her.

A police officer said, later two other men, who were passing by on a two-wheeler, stopped at the spot and also allegedly raped and also robbed the victim of Rs 3,000 and snatched her ‘mangalsutra’ worth around Rs 25,000 before letting her go.

The victim somehow managed to walk some distance where she met a woman who helped to approached Nehru Nagar police. Based on the victim’s statement the police arrested all the four accused within hours of the crime.

The arrested accused persons have been identified as Shrikant Bhogle, Sonu Tiwari, Nilesh Baraskar and Siddharth Wagh. From the four accused, three of the accused were arrested from Kurla, whereas Wagh was caught from Vikhroli.

Police have booked all the accused under Indian Penal Code (IPC) Sections 376 (rape), 377 (unnatural sex), 354 (assault).

Don’t tinker with five day test format – Part I

By

C K Subramaniam

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January 21, 2020

Test Match, test cricket match, india test match, australia cricket match, opinion cricket, cricket opinion, live test match, C K Subramaniam, diary, wankhede stadium, test cricket matches — India vs England (Reuters image)

The cricketing fraternity appears to be divided on four-day Tests. While a section of former players have given the new proposal a thumbs up, most of them are against the idea. As an ex-cricketer, I belong to the old school and I believe that in five-day cricket, the first day belongs to the medium-pacers. Test cricket itself is a test of character for a cricketer. It’s a test for every individual and you are taking that away. The tricky final day wicket is ticklish to handle and the bowlers have the upper hand and the batsmen will have to struggle to keep their wickets in tact or go for the runs to help the side win. It is really tough fight between ball and bat.

Recent reports suggested that the ICC’s cricket committee plans to recommend trimming Test matches to four days and all the possibilities are being worked out. Present day test wickets are under prepared and did not last long for five days. Most of the matches end in three days and hence the question of 4 day test matches came to fore. When India played Australia at Wankhede Stadium the match was over on the third day even after first day’s play was almost washed out for two sessions. But at a time when Test cricket is struggling to attract spectators and the stands are empty excitement is to be brought through new innovation of 90 overs four innings games for four days.

Excitement is there in every season. How you look at it is important, but it should not be boring and the matches should not end in a tame draw. Apart from cricketers from other countries Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Ajinkya Rahane, Sunil Gavaskar and Kapil Dev have opposed to four day tests. Now it is up to ICC to decide upon the duration of matches in future. However, the ICC wants to try out the four-day Tests during the next FTP cycle between 2023-2031 to get more free days for the commercially lucrative shorter formats.

The spinners in test match cricket mature with age and they wait for the pitch to deteriorate to make the ball talk on day five. But if four day test matches come into play then the survival of star spinners will tested. The ICC, is set to reflect on the idea of making test matches four day affairs to free up a crammed international calendar and reduce player workload.

(The latter part of the article will continue tomorrow)

(The views expressed by the author in the article are his/her own.)

Letters to the Editor: 21 January, 2020

By

Web Team

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January 21, 2020

1Raut grabbing headlines for wrong reasons

Shiv Sena leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut has kicked up a controversy by making a statement that Indira Gandhi used to meet Don Karim Lala and this caused a political stir in India. There is no point in feeling so offended or proving Raut wrong, criminalisation of politics has long been a concern especially in Maharashtra where the flourishing underworld has been part of its functioning from olden days. Karim Lala was one of the three top underworld dons of Mumbai for over two decades, from the sixties to the early eighties and the other two being Mastan Mirza alias Haji Mastan and Varadarajan Mudaliar. So in the name of mouth piece, Raut is causing rot in the Sena cadre.

Akhilesh Krishnan

2Honour Bapu Nadkarni with a postal stamp

Bapu Nadkarni better known as maiden-over machine and being the most accurate bowler of the world having bowled record 21 successive maiden overs (131 continuous balls without giving any run) in a test-match against England in Madras (now Chennai) in the year 1963-64 with bowling-figure 32-27-5-0, breathed his last on January 17, 2020 at the age of 86 years. He had similar economical bowling averages like 32-24-23-0 at Kanpur followed by 34-24-24-1 in Delhi against Pakistan in the year 1960-61. He had a career economy rate of less than two runs per over. He took voluntary retirement from first-class cricket in the year 1967 after playing against New Zealand even though he had career-best figure of taking 6 wickets for just 43 runs in that match.

Department of Posts should honour such a fine cricketer of yesteryears by issuing a postage-stamp in memory of Bapu Nadkarni, the finest all-rounder of those times whose performance as maiden-over machine could not be repeated. Unfortunately cricketers of present era playing in money and fame are honoured so frequently including one with greatest honour of Bharat Ratna, real cricket-heroes of yesteryears are forgotten. Even a series of postage-stamps on cricketers of yesteryears can be considered to be issued.

Subhash Chandra Agrawal

3Another step taken by railways to enhance passenger amenities

The much awaited IRCTC’s premium train Tejas Express inaugural run between Ahmedabad and Mumbai Central is welcome. The move comes at a time when the Indian Railways is experimenting with the concept of privately run trains on its route network. The first such successful private run between New Delhi and Lucknow is also getting good response and it is welcome to know that the carrier is planning more such initiatives with new routes across India.

The concept of privately run trains with operations like catering and housekeeping being undertaken by a private carrier onboard Tejas Express is worth a risk. Privately run trains under luxury segment will definitely be a success and will help the railways to place itself in a better perspective. Indian Railways should now experiment such a concept not only with premier trains but also superfast/mail express trains that are crying for attention w.r.t. superior passenger amenities. Privatizing train’s maintenance and other aspects related to passenger amenities will only help railways inch closer to achieve its goal of customer satisfaction whilst providing high passenger comfort.

Varun Dambal

(The views expressed by the author in the article are his/her own.)

After several reminders, Maha govt. fails to pay salary of over 40,000 home guards

By

Hema Singh

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January 21, 2020

The Directorial General of Home Guard office has failed to give salary to more than 40,000 thousand jawans since September 2019. This is the very force that gives a helping hand to policemen on several occasions like heavy rainfall, floods, elections and festivals.

According to an official, these home guards are now forced to take a loan or borrow money from other people to run their houses. After serving several reminders from the DG home guard’s office to the state government, the latter is yet to take any action on it.

Every year, the state government issues Rs 100 crore to pay honorarium to the home guards. Here it may be noted that the government had increased the wages on August 2019. Hence, this year the honorarium was raised from Rs 300 to Rs 670 per day. An official said that the state government which already owes Rs 137.83 crore to the home guards and at the end of the financial year 2019-2020 the government will have to pay another Rs 140.55 crore.

Elaborating on the same, an official stated, “The proposal to raise the honorarium was sent to the state government by DG Sanjay Pandey. And after the government’s approval, the honorarium of our force was increased from July 2019. But, unfortunately the government has failed to provide the raised honorarium.”

Next step of CAA is a promise of holding a nationwide NRC

By

Vaidehi Taman

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January 20, 2020

A bandh has been called by Prakash Ambedkar to protest against CAA and NRC in Maharashtra. We don’t know how much this bandh is going to be supported, but ever since the passage of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), 2019, one is witnessing protests across the length and breadth of the country. And post the events at Jamia Millia, the agitation has only intensified and has come to involve the student community in large numbers. How does one explain this spurt in the protest?

Five factors need to be budgeted into any analysis of recent developments. The protests have resulted in thousands of arrests and 27 deaths as of 27 December 2019. Two 17-year old minors were among those reported to have been killed due to police firing live ammunition on protesters in Assam. On 19 December, the police issued a complete ban on protests in several parts of India. As a result of defying the ban, thousands of protesters were detained. So far, at least eight states have announced that they will not implement the Act or the National Register of Citizens (NRC). While one state and two union territories have refused to implement the CAA, three other states have only declined the implementation of the NRC. However, the Union Home Ministry said that states lack the legal power to stop the implementation of Citizenship Amendment Act.

The Citizenship Amendment Act protests are a series of ongoing protests in India which was enacted into law on 12 December 2019 and against proposals to enact a nationwide National Register of Citizens (NRC). The protests that began in Assam slowly spread to Delhi, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh and Tripura on 4 December 2019. In a few days, the protests spread across India though the concerns of the protesters vary. The Amendment benefits Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Buddhist, Christian and Parsi refugees from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh who sought refuge in India before 2015; the Amendment leaves out Muslims and others from these countries as well as refugee Sri Lankan Tamils in India, Rohingyas from Myanmar and Buddhist refugees from Tibet. The proposed National Register of Citizens (NRC) will be an official record of all legal citizens of India where individuals would have to provide a prescribed set of documents issued before a specified cutoff date for inclusion in the register. The exercise of the NRC has already been carried out in the state of Assam. Those who fail to qualify for the NRC will be able to avail the benefits of the CAA if they claim to be religious minorities fleeing persecution from the listed countries.

Protesters throughout India see the new law as discriminating against Muslims and as unconstitutional. They are demanding the amendment to be scrapped and the NRC to be not implemented nationwide. They are concerned about Muslim citizens of India that they will be rendered stateless and put into detention camps by the proposed nationwide NRC in combination with the CAA. They are also concerned that all citizens will be affected by the bureaucratic exercise of the NRC where they will have to prove their citizenship for inclusion in the registry. The protesters have raised voices against authoritarianism, the police crackdown in other universities and suppression of protests.

The CAA and the National Register of Citizens (NRC) have evoked much stronger reactions than the decision on revoking Article 370 or the Supreme Court verdict on the Ram temple-Babri Masjid dispute. The CAA and NRC touch a much wider segment of society. While in many parts of the country, the debate is on whether the basis of citizenship is religion, in the North-East it is being looked at from the insider-outsider lens. In the North-East, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) faces challenges from both its allies and among segments from within the party. Meanwhile, when the Citizenship Bill was being debated in the two Houses, the Prime Minister was not present. It was left to the home minister to defend the stand of the government in both Houses. The equating of partition with religion could well have been a tactical error. The debate in the two Houses heightened tensions and could have well caused the unrest. The involvement of the youth in the agitations got heightened after the developments in Jamia Millia University. Police action always invites a reaction. Finally, from the protests one notices on the street may not necessarily be led or inspired only by the parties opposed to the ruling coalition. Those who have been bitter critics of the Congress and the Left have been part of the agitation especially in the North-East and in premier state-funded research institutions. One would be underestimating the intensity of the protests by laying it at the door of select political forces.

NRC (National Register of Citizens) was an exercise solely for Assam to identify indigenous people and those who would have proof of entry into the state/country latest by midnight of 24th of March, 1971. The state of Assam decided to increase the ambit of relevance to people who for all intents and purposes were believed to be localized enough if they had voted in an election or two or could prove positively a direct descendant connection with somebody who had passed the 1951 NRC test. CAB and NRC prove to be disasters like Demonetisation, this time, the supporters can dump all the blame on rulers of India. This government blamed Nehru for failing to integrate Kashmir with the rest of India – now the supporters of Nehru can blame this government for doing exactly the same with the North Eastern states of India with the Inner Line Permits. At the end of the day, all of this friction is happening just to grab political power in the state of West Bengal. Where most saw a defeat of all purposes, a few special ones saw an opportunity. Thus was brought in the Citizen Amendment Bill 2019, an old tool, with a renewed purpose primarily to ensure that all the Hindus identified as Aliens by the process of NRC in Assam get Indian Citizenship. Now you know the actual reason why CAB welcomes Hindus, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis, Sikhs, Christians into the Indian fold but does not mention the Muslims. The next move on this political chess board is the ‘promise’ of holding a nationwide NRC. Please do not get excited, it won’t be executed in real – it is just a long carrot to stir the political pot in West Bengal.

(Any suggestions, comments or dispute with regards to this article send us on feedback@www.afternoonvoice.com)

Prakash Ambedkar calls for ‘Bandh’: Protesting against CAA and NRC

By

Afternoon Voice

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January 20, 2020

Amid unrest in various parts of India protesting against Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) and National Register of Citizens (NRC), now Prakash Ambedkar’s Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) has called for a ‘bandh’ in Maharashtra on January 24. The opposition is keeping no stone unturned while opposing CAA-NRC. The BJP leaders are breaking rules and inviting law and order situations. Section 144 has been imposed in Madhya Pradesh but by BJP workers led by Dilbar Singh Yadav, district unit President who took out a march anyway.

In Mumbai this ‘bandh’ has been called keeping in mind the current economic crisis and to register opposition against the CAA and NRC. Ambedkar further informed that along with the issue of CAA and NRC, the issues related to the economy should be put up as well. Earlier, Ambedkar had said that the CAA and NRC will be harmful to the Scheduled Castes (SC) and Adivasis. After the passage of Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB), the protests against the act erupted on a large scale and is still undergoing. The constitutionalists say that the new Citizenship Act is discriminatory against the Muslim community.

In Madhya Pradesh, violence broke out at a pro-citizenship law rally in which the local police clashed with the supporters of Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) who were trying to take out a march for which permission had been denied. In a widely-circulated video, District Collector Nidhi Nivedita is seen slapping a BJP worker after protesters manhandled two of her junior colleagues – Priya Verma and Shruti Agrawal – and a few police officers. At least three people were injured as police resorted to a lathi-charge to control the situation.

In Delhi, people have been protesting at Shaheen Bagh which has become the epicenter of the anti-CAA agitation in the national capital for over 30 days. Hundreds, including women and children took out a massive anti-CAA march from the gates of Jamia Millia Islamia University to Shaheen Bagh on Sunday evening as the chorus to demand repealing of the amended Citizenship Act grew louder in Delhi. The march was high on symbolism with some locals dressed up as Mahatma Gandhi and Babasaheb Ambedkar. Three men assumed the identity of martyred revolutionaries Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev, one of them in prison clothes and tied in chains.

Those who are protesting against CAA-NRC and those who have assembled in favour of the same bill, both have created unrest in the nation. Taking the advantage of the situation, Prakash Ambedkar has called for a Bandh too.

Bihar man held by Mumbai police for duping people with fake UltraTech Cement website

By

Web Team

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January 20, 2020

Mumbai police arrested a 20-year-old man from Bihar for allegedly creating a fake website of UltraTech Cement Limited and duping people, police said on Monday.

According to the police, the accused Rohit Kumar Balram Prasad was arrested on Wednesday from Nalanda in Bihar by a team of MIDC police station after an official of UltraTech Cement filed a complaint.

An official said, “Prasad had made a website that resembled the official one of cement firm UltraTech. He would take orders from customers who thought they were dealing with the company. After the customers paid up, he would stop communication.”

“The accused was using the company trademark as well. We are likely to arrest more people in the case. Prasad was brought to Mumbai on transit remand from Bihar,” said Zone X Deputy Commissioner Ankit Goyal.

Police have booked the accused under sections 482 (using false property mark), 483 (counterfeiting a property mark used by another), 419 (cheating by personation) among others of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Information Technology Act.

Soon selling goods in Western Railway AC local train to be legal

By

Hema Singh

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January 20, 2020

As there is news that Western Railway is planning an onboard shopping service inside AC local train on the lines of in-flight shopping in planes, soon Mumbaikars will be able to shop inside a Churchgate-Virar AC local.

According to a report, the Western Railway would appoint salespersons who will go from seat to seat carrying the trolleys on board the AC local and request passengers if they would intend to buy any of the wares they are selling. The main point is that they will not scream or influence passengers to buy any product. The trolleys that will be 3 feet tall and a foot wide will have four salesmen carrying two trolleys each inside the train. Also, these salespersons will be given uniforms and ID cards. The vendors will be allowed to sell cosmetics, health-related products, laptop and mobile accessories, small toys and stationery on MRP.

Apart from this, the WR will also provide various kinds of payment modes for the travelers- like the passengers can buy goods using any mode of payment like debit cards or UPI payment applications like- Google Pay and Paytm.

As per the current scenario, the vendors and hawkers who sell wares and goods right from food items, jewellery inside local trains is illegal. However, this will be the first time that suburban local trains will generate non-fare revenue. Currently, the WR operates only one AC train. Reportedly, four more trains are expected to be brought into service soon.

Let us not hurt the feelings of Sai devotees

By

Vinod Dixit

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January 20, 2020

Revered by thousands of Hindu, Muslim, Christian, and Zoroastrian devotees, Shirdi Sai Baba was known to be an Indian saint, Satguru, fakir (vowed to poverty and devoted to God), and spiritual master. Recently residents of Maharashtra’s Shirdi, believed to be the birthplace of Sai Baba and had observed a bandh in response to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray’s acknowledgement that Pathri in Parbhani was where the 19th century spiritual leader was born. Thackeray had announced a grant of Rs 100 crore for the development of Pathri. Thackeray’s move to develop Pathri as a pilgrimage destination has also caused a political row, with the BJP questioning the timing of the announcement.

Sai Baba is unfathomable and beyond conception and above caste creed religion and races Sathguru belongs to entire universe and mankind. The Shirdi temple is the third largest temple in the country in terms of both devotees and financial donations. While Sai Baba’s birth year was not recorded, it is assumed he was born near the year 1838. He took samadhi in 1918. Baba often lived in a Mosque, and his physical body was cremated in a temple. He came to village Shirdi in Maharastra at age of 16 for the first time and spent about three years there. After this, for a period of one year Baba left Shirdi and very little was known about him during that period. In the year of 1858, Baba returned to Shirdi permanently. For about five years of time Baba took his accommodation under the neem tree and very often he used to wander in the jungle near Shirdi.

It is said that Sai Baba is believed to have arrived in Shirdi as a nameless entity. His head was tied in a turban and he sported a beard. He wore long, loose robes. He looked like the quintessential faqir. Baba stayed in the forest on the outskirts of a village and spent most of his time meditating. Liking the simple but saintly figure, the villagers provided the Baba with food for sustenance. Baba was most likely born to Brahmin parents within a few hundred miles of Shirdi. Some have reported that he came from the village of Pathri. When he arrived in Shirdi, at the age of 16, where he led an ascetic life, Baba began meditating under a neem tree and teaching local villagers.

Sai Baba’s teachings say one God to govern all. He was occasionally heard chanting, “Allah Malik” or God is King. He taught about love and forgiveness, charity, selfless service, inner peace, and how to maintain an un-shattered devotion to God. Shirdi, the obscure village in Maharashtra has become a pilgrimage destination much as Bethlehem, Jerusalem or Varanasi. With over 25,000 pilgrims thronging in here each day the number of pilgrims climb to over a hundred thousand on holidays and festival days. Would it be justifiable for pilgrimage to spent 100 crores in development of Pathri with thousands of devotees arriving in Shirdi everyday? Does it make any sense in creating controversy over the birthplace of Sai Baba, the 19th century spiritual figure and when the Shirdi temple attracts lakhs of devotees from all over India every year? Let us not hurt the feelings of Sai devotees.

(The views expressed by the author in the article are his/her own.)