Devendra Fadnavis of BJP address a crowd at Nesco Complex in Goregaon on Sunday evening at the BJP rally in the northern suburb of Mumbai. (Express Photo by Amit Chakravarty)People travelling on the eastern suburbs are facing a massive traffic jam since last Saturday as the Jogeshwari Vikhroli link road (JVLR) flyover has been shut due to repair work, causing a jam on the JVLR road and Eastern Express Highway. The traffic police said the issue will continue till May 24 when the repair work is expected to end and the flyover will be thrown open to motorists again.
Meanwhile, asking Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray not to “undermine his political weight”, BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday said that he would not rest till the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government — which he compared with the Babri Masjid structure — was brought down from power.
In other news, Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut said that the sedition law has been abused widely in the last seven years of the PM Narendra Modi-led government rule as have the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) “to finish political opponents”.
Kalina Road dug up for extension of Santa Cruz Link Road (SCLR) to connect it with the Western Express Highway. (Express Photo: Amit Chakravarty)
A man was beaten to death and two others sustained injuries after a mob of over 20 people allegedly attacked them on suspicion of cattle theft in Maharashtra’s Raigad district near Mumbai earlier this month, the police said Monday.
The incident took place on the intervening night of May 6 and 7 at the Mhasewadi village under the Mangaon tehsil. The Mangaon police have registered a case of rioting and murder against over 13 villagers and have arrested six of them. The police said the mob of villagers also burnt down the victims’ car in which they had come to the village and were allegedly found with cattle. Read more
The Mumbai Police have assigned inspector-rank nodal officers to handle housing society-related issues in the city.
Mumbai Police commissioner Sanjay Pandey made the announcement during a Facebook live session Sunday. In the 30-minute video, which is available on Pandey’s Facebook page, he can be heard saying that many complaints from housing societies are not handled effectively. Read more
The Vasai police in Maharashtra arrested a 34-year-old man Sunday for allegedly kidnapping and raping a 11-year-old girl who had gone missing on Saturday, officers said. The accused was later produced in court. The girl had run away from home after a fight with her parents and was kidnapped by the man while she was on her way back home, they said.
According to the police, the girl’s parents approached them at 1.30 am on Sunday to register a missing complaint. They said she ran away on Saturday evening around 4 pm after being scolded. The girl reached the railway station and took a local train to Mumbai before deciding to return home, officers said. She took a local train back home from Dadar railway station and reached at 2 am on Sunday. Read more
The zoo has also received a pair of leopards from Nagpur. All three animals reached Mumbai a month ago and have finished their quarantine. “All three animals are aged around two and arrived from Gorewada Zoo. We have shifted them from their transportation unit and the acclimatisation process has started. The citizens can soon see them in their enclosures most likely by Wednesday,” said zoo director Sanjay Tripathi. Read more
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is planning to create dedicated feeding areas for stray dogs. The civic body has started to identify designated spaces in each ward, BMC sources said.
As per a census conducted by BMC health department in 2014, there are over 95,000 stray dogs in Mumbai. Read more
Motorists traveling in the eastern suburbs are facing a massive traffic jam since last week on Saturday as the Jogeshwari Vikhroli link road (JVLR) flyover has been shut due to repair work causing a jam on the JVLR road and eastern express highway.
The traffic police said the issue will continue till May 24 when the repair work being carried by MSRDC is expected to end and the flyover will be thrown open to motorists again. The work started on Friday night and a massive jam was also seen on Saturday.
Mumbai on Sunday reported 151 Covid-19 cases and one death, taking the tally here to 10,61,614 and the toll to 19,566, a civic official said. The recovery count increased by 122 to touch 10,41,163, leaving the metropolis with 885 cases, he added.
Union Minister of State for social justice Ramdas Athawale on Sunday demanded that a “Wife’s Day” be celebrated along the lines of Mother’s Day. Speaking at an event in Sangli in Maharashtra, Athawale said, “a mother gives birth while a wife stands by her husband in good and bad times”.
Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut said that the sedition law has been abused widely in the last seven years of the PM Narendra Modi-led government rule as have the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) “to finish political opponents”.
“The sedition law has been the most abused in the last seven years. The PMLA, sedition and UAPA laws were misused to finish the political opponents. When the governments of West Bengal and Maharashtra started using this law in a legal way, the Centre came to its senses….Of course, it is a good thing. Now the PMLA will go the same way,” said Raut in his weekly column Rokhthok in party mouthpiece Saamana.
Another FIR was registered against actor Ketaki Chitale, arrested on Saturday for posting derogatory comments allegedly aimed at Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar on social media, taking the count of total FIRs against her to five so far. On Sunday, a court in Thane sent her to police custody till May 18.
An officer said that based on the complaint received by them against Chitale, an FIR was registered at the Bhoiwada police station. The FIR is filed under Sections 153A (promoting enmity between different groups), 500 (defamation), 501 (printing or engraving defamatory matter) and 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of trust) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
NCP MP Supriya Sule on Sunday said a perverted mindset is not good for the society in view of Marathi actor Ketaki Chitale allegedly sharing an objectionable post about Sule's father and NCP chief Sharad Pawar.
Chitale was arrested on Saturday from Navi Mumbai over the post she allegedly shared on her Facebook page. The post shared by Chitale was purportedly written by someone else. It contained phrases like "hell is waiting" and "you hate Brahmins", allegedly referring to the NCP president.
"I don't know her. This is the issue of culture. I am thankful to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, Leader of Opposition Devendra Fadnavis and MNS chief Raj Thackeray for speaking out against such a post," Sule told reporters in Nashik. Queried on whether she supports protests by NCP workers against Chitale, the Baramati MP said the issue is about culture when someone wishes death to your parents and someone you idolize in public life. (PTI)
The Bombay High Court on Friday adjourned the hearing on plea by Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (SEZ) Limited challenging disqualification of its bid for upgrade of the container terminal in Navi Mumbai after the Board of Trustees of Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority (JNPA) informed it that it has postponed the opening of bids to June 15. It said the matter can be heard by a regular bench on June 9.
In its affidavit, the JNPA sought dismissal of the plea stating that the court, which does not have expertise to examine “terms and conditions of present day economic activities of the state,” cannot intervene in the plea.
A vacation bench of Justice Anil K Menon and Justice Nitin R Borkar was hearing plea by the multi-location port developer and operator, which termed the disqualification of its bid as “illegal and in violation of fundamental and legal rights.” (Read more)
The International Indian Film Academy on Sunday announced that it has decided to reschedule the 22nd edition of the IIFA Awards to July as the UAE declared a 40-day mourning period following the demise of UAE President and ruler of Abu Dhabi Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
The 2022 IIFA Weekend & Awards were originally scheduled to be held in May, but will now take place from July 14 to 16 at Yas Island, Abu Dhabi. In a statement issued to the media, the International Indian Film Academy and the Indian film industry expressed their deepest condolences to the people of the UAE.
"In solidarity with the people and Government of the UAE and with the national mourning being observed, the 22nd edition of the IIFA Weekend & Awards to be held on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi from the 19th to 21st of May 2022 has been postponed. (PTI)
The body of a businessman from neighbouring Mumbai was found in a creek here in Maharashtra on Sunday morning, police said. Some passers-by spotted the body in the Vashi creek and alerted police.
The police later retrieved the body, identified as that of Prashant Tukaram Vichare (54), from Bhandup suburb in Mumbai, and sent it for postmortem, an official from Vashi police station said. More details about the deceased were not immediately available. As of now, the police have registered a case of accidental death and further investigation is on, the official said. (PTI)
The Bombay High Court has observed that kissing on lips and fondling are not unnatural offences under section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, and granted bail to a man accused of sexually assaulting a minor boy.
In a recent order, Justice Anuja Prabhudessai granted bail to the man, arrested last year following a police complaint filed by the 14-year-old boy’s father.
As per the FIR, the boy’s father found some money missing from their cupboard. The boy told him that he had given the money to the accused person. The minor said he used to visit the accused person’s shop at a suburb in Mumbai for recharging an online game, ‘Ola Party,’ which he used to play. (Read more)
Surrounded by palm trees, shrubbery, benches and a walking track, the triangular-shaped Professor B N Vaidya Garden is a tranquil space in bustling Dadar. It runs parallel to the Dadar central railway station and is located in the Hindu Colony close to BAPS Narayan Mandir, right opposite Dr BR Ambedkar’s former residence.
The well-maintained garden with its manicured lawns and neatly trimmed shrubs gets busy as early as 8 am, when usually senior citizens turn up for a quiet stroll or to engage with their peers. As the afternoon heat starts kicking in, the visitors slowly trickle out. (Read more)
Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray's attack on Opposition leader Devendra Fadnavis in the context of an “early morning secret government formation” has apparently irked NCP leader and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar. Addressing a public rally at BKC in Mumbai on Saturday, the chief minister had alluded to the short-lived alliance between the BJP and the NCP leader.
Commenting on Thackeray’s statement, Pawar said, "I will make a statement on the matter at an appropriate time. Is this the most important issue before Maharashtra?" before adding, "I have already given my statement in the past."
Marathi actress Ketaki Chitale was arrested by Thane police on Sunday for her post on NCP Chief Sharad Pawar and has been sent to police custody till May 18. Chitale had posted a Marathi poem on her Facebook profile, attributed to another person, that mentions only a surname (Pawar) and an age (80). But it also refers to the physical ailments the 81-year-old NCP leader suffers from.
A Marathi actor and a pharmaceutical student in Maharashtra were arrested Saturday for posting derogatory comments allegedly aimed at Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar on social media.
The actor, Ketaki Chitale, 29, had posted a Marathi poem on her Facebook profile, attributed to another person, that mentions only a surname (Pawar) and an age (80). But it also refers to the physical ailments the 81-year-old NCP leader suffers from. The 21-year-old student, Nikhil Bhamre, is a resident of Nashik district and a former Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh worker, said police.
The BJP on Sunday is set to organize a rally at Goregaon in Mumbai which will be led by Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly, Devendra Fadnavis. BJP rally is not being held Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray’s rally held at BKC on Saturday, a close aide to Fadnavis said. A former minister said Sunday’s rally is being held to “unmask” the Shiv Sena-led coalition government in Maharashtra.