Kangna Ranaut at Chandigarh airport on Wednesday. (Express photo by Jasbir Malhi)Kangana Ranaut Live News Updates: The Bombay High Court on Wednesday stayed the demolition of alleged unauthorised structures at an office of actor Kangana Ranaut, hours after the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) had started the exercise. “We cannot help but mention here that if the MCGM (Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai) would act with similar swiftness qua the numerous unauthorized constructions, the City would be a completely different place to live in,” the court said.
The BMC team had arrived at Ranaut’s office in Bandra West around 10.30 am, and claimed to have demolished almost 75 per cent of the “unauthorised” additions and extensions by the time the court stay came after noon. The rest would be razed after the High Court stay is vacated, officials said.
In a video message posted on Twitter in Hindi, Ranaut attacked Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and said she would make a movie on Kashmiri Pandits as she now understood their “situation and pain”.
Meanwhile, Nationalist Congress President Sharad Pawar Tuesday broke ranks with ally Sena to question the BMC’s action. “I don’t know if there was anything illegal (about the office)…It won’t be appropriate to comment on this without having proper information. Illegal construction isn’t a new thing in Mumbai. In view of the prevalent situation, the BMC’s actions give space to raise doubt in people’s minds. However, BMC has its own rules and officers may have found it appropriate to take the action,” Pawar said.
Bulldozer outside Kangana Ranaut's Mumbai office
Mumbai police have made security arrangements outside Ranaut's residence in suburban Khar and her bungalow-cum-office in Bandra, an official said on Thursday. Ranaut returned to Mumbai from her home state Himachal Pradesh on Wednesday, hours after the BMC demolished "illegal alterations" at her Bandra bungalow. "A police van with officials has been deployed outside her residence in Khar to tackle with any untoward incident. Women constables are also a part of the team," the official was quoted as saying by PTI. "Besides, outside her Pali Hill bungalow, which was partially demolished by the civic body yesterday, similar security arrangements have been made," he said. According to sources, the actress likely to visit her her Pali Hill property on Thursday.
While BMC on Wednesday demolished unauthorised constructions at Kangana Ranaut’s office premises in Bandra’s Pali Hill within 24 hours of issuing a stop work notice to the actor, it had taken action in only 10.47 per cent of the complaints of illegal constructions it had received from 2016 to 2019. According to data received under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, between January 2016 to July 2019, BMC has received over 94,000 complaints regarding illegal constructions. However, it has taken action in only over 5,400 cases. Activist Shakeel Shaikh had filed an RTI appeal in 2019 seeking information on complaints received by BMC regarding illegal construction and what action had been taken on them. The RTI reply shows that between January 2016 and July 2019, RETMS had received 94,851 complaints on illegal construction. Among them, 42,697 complaints were related to similar cases. Of the remaining 52,124 complaints received, BMC took action on 5,462 – in only 10.47 per cent cases, demolition work was undertaken.
The party mouthpiece further said though the Shiv Sena has taken a “different route”, it would never tolerate “disrespect” towards Narendra Modi as Prime Minister. “(Narendra) Modi is not just a person but an institution in the form of prime minister. The same is for the states CMs and regional identities,” it added. It also said comparing Mumbai to Pakistan Occupied Kashmir and insulting the Mumbai Police by calling it mafia are signs of a “disturbed” mindset. “But when the nationalist (Narendra) Modi government’s home ministry provides security cover to such people, then our 106 martyrs (who had died in the movement of Samyukta Maharashtra with Mumbai) must be shedding tears in heaven,” the editorial stated.
Criticising the Centre’s decision to provide Y-plus security to actor Kangana Ranaut, the Shiv Sena, in an editorial in party mouthpiece Saamana, alleged there was a conspiracy “to separate Mumbai from Maharashtra” by defaming and damaging Mumbai and weakening its economy. The editorial also urged the state to unite against those using “disrespectful” language about the Maharashtra chief minister. “While Maharashtra is angry (about this), the BJP has directly supported people who have insulted Mumbai and Maharashtra’s CM,” the editorial stated. “There is a danger to Mumbai from those, in Delhi and the state legislature, who love Mumbai being insulted. It is clear that steps are going in (the) direction of conspiring to separate Mumbai from Maharashtra by defaming and damaging Mumbai and weakening its economy. The Centre and BJP in Maharashtra do not miss a single opportunity to attack the powers and independence of the democratic government in Maharashtra,” the editorial further stated.
Former Mumbai Congress president Sanjay Nirupam did not mince words. “Sitting in Government you cannot do such things. It is sending a very wrong message. She (Ranaut) may be in contact with the BJP, she may be doing all this at the instance of the BJP, but why are you, a political party and that, too, a ruling party falling into such a trap? I cannot remain silent. It looks cheap.” “Appalled as a Mumbaikar with the state of affairs in the economic capital of India. Maharashtra is Covid-19’s ground zero. Instead of focusing on governance, we’re busy settling political scores. Time for all parties to come together and set our priorities right,” tweeted Milind Deora, another former Mumbai Congress president.
Late in the evening, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, Pawar and Raut had a meeting. Sources said they discussed the government’s strategy on the Maratha reservation issue after the apex court stayed its implementation but, clearly, Pawar’s disquiet found an echo in a section of the Congress, too.
The Shiv Sena-controlled Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s demolition drive at Kangana Ranaut’s Mumbai office may have been put on hold by the High Court but it brought to the fore cracks in ruling coalition again. Nationalist Congress President Sharad Pawar Tuesday broke ranks with ally Sena to question the BMC’s action. “I don’t know if there was anything illegal (about the office)…It won’t be appropriate to comment on this without having proper information. Illegal construction isn’t a new thing in Mumbai. In view of the prevalent situation, the BMC’s actions give space to raise doubt in people’s minds. However, BMC has its own rules and officers may have found it appropriate to take the action,” Pawar said. “She (Ranaut) should have been ignored…(this is) unnecessarily giving her a handle,” a senior Congress minister in the Thackeray government told The Indian Express. Another senior leader said: “It’s a self-goal.”
CRITICISING THE Centre's decision to provide Y-plus security to actor Kangana Ranaut, the Shiv Sena, in an editorial in party mouthpiece Saamana, alleged there was a conspiracy "to separate Mumbai from Maharashtra" by defaming and damaging Mumbai and weakening its economy. The editorial also urged the state to unite against those using "disrespectful" language about the Maharashtra chief minister.
"While Maharashtra is angry (about this), the BJP has directly supported people who have insulted Mumbai and Maharashtra’s CM," the editorial stated.
In an alleged reference to actor Kangana Ranaut's remark comparing Mumbai to PoK, Maharashtra NCP president and Irrigation Minister Jayant Patil Wednesday tweeted that some 'people' comparing "this great city and our police force to that of Pakistan is outlandish" and it is just to "gain publicity and limelight".
"It is painful to come across people who are not grateful to what Mumbai and Maharashtra has to offer - in terms of the opportunities, women safety and tolerance," he said.
"Mumbai is the mother that does not discriminate. Let us all be respectful to the spirit of Mumbai and the dignity of the elected offices of the state," he added.
Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur condemned the demolition of a portion of Kangana Ranaut's Mumbai bungalow by the civic body Wednesday, saying she 'is a daughter' of the state and she should get a 'proper atmosphere' to work in her field.
Speaking in State Assembly, Thakur said his government has provided security at Ranaut's Manali residence and 11 CRPF commandos would accompany her wherever she would go in the country as part of the Y-plus security provided by the Centre. Himachal Pradesh will do its best to ensure her security, he added.
'Kangana is a daughter of Himachal Pradesh and she has brought laurels not only to the state but to the entire country,' he said in the assembly, adding she should get proper atmosphere to work in her field. (PTI)
Kangana Ranaut's lawyer Rizwan Siddiqui on Wednesday alleged that the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), which demolished part of her Bandra bungalow earlier in the day, was lying about illegal construction there.
Siddiqui said, "The BMC is lying. It's lying on record (about illegal construction at the bungalow). They said they have given stop-work notice. But such notice is given when the construction process is underway."
"There is no construction going on at the place. It was over about one-and-a-half years ago," he added.
Siddiqui said that even as the BMC officials were told that they have moved the Bombay High Court against the demolition, the civic authorities did not stop the process. "They rejected our reply at 10.19 am. Immediately, we moved the court (HC) and served the copies (of the plea) to BMC office as well the official present on the spot," the lawyer said.
"I also told them that the matter is in the court. Despite that they didn't stop the demolition. The work stopped only after the HC gave a stay on it," he added. (PTI)
Launching a fresh salvo against Maharashtra government, Bollywood actor Kangana Ranaut Wednesday warned Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray that his "ego will be destroyed" just as he broke her house. In a video message posted on her Twitter handle, Ranaut said now she understood how Kashmiri Pandits would have felt and she would make a film on them as well.
Bollywood actor Kangana Ranau landed here from her home state Himachal Pradesh on Wednesday amid protests by Shiv Sena workers at the airport over he remarks on Mumbai police. Kangana, who flew from Chandigarh by a scheduled commercial flight, landed at Mumbai around 2.30 pm.
Sena workers with black flags were seen outside the airport, shouting slogans against her.
Workers of the RPI (A) and Karni Sena had also gathered in support of the actor. RPI (A) leader and Union minister Ramdas Athawale had declared that his party worker will protect Kangana while she is in Mumbai.
Undue importance is being attached to the statements made by Bollywood actress Kangana Ranaut, NCP chief Sharad Pawar said on Wednesday without naming her, PTI reported.
"We are giving undue importance to those making such statements. We will have to see what influence such statements have on the people at large," Pawar said. "In my opinion, people do not take seriously (such statements)," he added.
Pawar said the people of Maharashtra and Mumbai have "years of experience" of how the state and city's police work.
Bollywood actor Kangana Ranaut has been accorded Y-plus category of CRPF security by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in the wake of her spat with Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut, and after she said she feared for her life. Eleven commandos have been tasked with protecting Ranaut. Two of the commandos will provide her with mobile security, while one will guard her residence at all times across the country. So anyone who is threatened, and who expresses a threat to their life, will get central government protection?
In yet another tweet, Kangana wrote, "There is no illegal construction in my house, also government has banned any demolitions in Covid till September 30, Bullywood watch now this is what Fascism looks like."
The Bombay High Court on Wednesday stayed the demolition process initiated by the BMC for illegal construction at actor Kangana Ranaut's bungalow here and sought to know why did the city civic body enter the property when the owner was not present. Justice S J Kathawalla was hearing a petition filed by Ranaut challenging the notice issued by the BMC for illegal construction at her bungalow. The petition also sought a stay on the demolition process. The court sought to know from BMC how it entered the premises and directed it to file an affidavit in response to the plea. The court has posted the matter for hearing on Thursday.
A BMC team reached the bungalow at Pali Hill in Bandra with bulldozer and excavators and demolished alterations made sans the civic body's approval.
A BMC team reached the bungalow at Pali Hill in Bandra with bulldozer and excavators and demolished alterations made sans the civic body's approval.
"As I am all set for Mumbai Darshan on my way to the (Chandigarh) airport, Maha government and their goons are at my property all set to illegally break it down, go on! I promised to give blood for Maharashtra pride. This is nothing, take everything but my spirit will only rise higher and higher," Ranaut tweeted shortly before she was to catch an afternoon flight from the Chandigarh international airport. Ranaut, whose comments led to a spat with Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut, had said she felt unsafe in Mumbai after the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput and also spoke of drug use in a section of the film industry.