Mumbai, June 27: The Shiv Sena Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray on Saturday accused the ruling political leadership and Hindutva outfit ‘Sakal Hindu Samaj’ of maintaining a hypocritical silence over the alleged theft and financial irregularities at the Ayodhya Ram Mandir and the NEET paper leak scandal.

It has questioned why organisations that frequently take to the streets over issues like ‘Love Jihad,’ religious conversions, and cow slaughter have remained completely passive when major irregularities involve individuals within their own ideological fold.

The Thackeray camp in the scathing editorial of party mouthpiece Saamana claimed that The Sakal Hindu Samaj is sleeping like Kumbhakarna.” It taunted, “while a restless Lord Ram and his family have, once again, departed for exile.”

The editorial highlighted recent revelations concerning the “loot” of donations, collection boxes, and silver items at the Ayodhya Ram Mandir. It pointed out that while a Special Investigation Team (SIT) was formed and cases were registered against eight individuals, the main suspects, including Champat Rai and other trustees, were allegedly shielded by the government.

“In Ayodhya, individuals linked to the temple and the BJP bought lands at throwaway prices and later sold them back to the Ram Mandir Trust at inflated rates. AAP MP Sanjay Singh provided evidence to the SIT, but it wasn’t investigated. Now, minor figures like Tinnu Yadav and Anukalp Mishra have been arrested by the UP government,” said the editorial.

Taking a sarcastic swipe at the political ecosystem, the editorial suggested that the ‘Sakal Hindu Samaj’ and top BJP leaders only raise a “loud voice for Hindutva” if a Muslim name is involved.

“Should someone spread a rumour that Tinnu and Mishra are actually Muslims operating under fake Hindu names just to wake up the Sakal Hindu Samaj?” the editorial asked sharply, adding that because the accused are Hindu, these organisations have “closed their eyes and mouths.”

The Thackeray camp expanded its criticism beyond Ayodhya, linking the silence of these pro-Hindutva groups to the massive NEET-UG examination paper leak scandal.

The editorial said that Maharashtra emerged as a major hub for the paper leak, with eight to ten individuals and a coaching class owner arrested. It underscored that these accused individuals possess strong Hindutva and BJP connections, saying that the scam has devastated the lives of thousands of Hindu children, driving some to suicide, yet the ‘Sakal Hindu Samaj’ has failed to hit the streets to protect the interests of these youths.

The editorial further highlighted instances of political compromise and corruption that went unprotested. It claimed that BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari stated that cows older than 14 years could be slaughtered, yet no Hindutva outfits organised protest marches in West Bengal against this stance. It alleged financial mismanagement and “loot” at the holy Mahakal Temple in Ujjain under the BJP-led state government, noting that leaders have remained quiet.

The Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena argued that the Ram Mandir awakened Hindutva and served as the political launchpad for the current leadership, yet the deity’s own temple is now being plundered.

Virar, June 27: A shocking case of alleged gang-rape involving a 40-year-old woman has come to light in the Dongarpada area of Virar West. Acting on the victim’s complaint, the police have registered a case against two named individuals and one unidentified person and have initiated an investigation.

According to the First Information Report (FIR), the incident occurred between 2:46 A.M. and 4:30 A.M. on June 24. The complainant alleged that Tejas, Deepak, and an unidentified accomplice acted in collusion. They allegedly took her to a secluded lane in Dongarpada and forcibly gang-raped her.

Based on the victim’s complaint, an FIR was initially registered against the three accused at the Virar Police Station under Section 70(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). As the incident falls within the jurisdiction of the Bolinj Police Station, the case has been transferred there for further investigation. Police officials are currently conducting a detailed probe into the matter.

In a separate incident reported earlier in September 2025, a 17-year-old girl from Kalyan in Maharashtra’s Thane district was allegedly raped by seven men in their twenties over a period of five months. Officials stated that the abuse began after one of the men befriended her on social media.

The crime surfaced when the victim’s family discovered objectionable videos of her circulating online. All seven accused were arrested and produced before a local court, which remanded them in police custody.

The victim, a college student, first met the primary accused on Instagram in April 2025. Their friendship soon developed into a relationship. He secretly recorded their sexual encounters without her consent and shared the objectionable footage with six of his friends, according to an official from the Mahatma Phule police station.

These six friends belonged to affluent families in the Murbad and Bhiwandi areas of the district. The group started blackmailing the minor, demanding sexual favors and threatening to post the videos on social media platforms if she did not give in to their demands.

Pune, June 27: The investigation into the murder of Pune realtor Ketan Agarwal took a fresh turn after police questioned Sahil Goyal, brother of prime accused Siya Goyal, for nearly 10 hours. During the interrogation, Sahil reportedly told investigators that the family would have cancelled the marriage had Siya expressed any unwillingness to marry Ketan.

According to police officials, Sahil appeared before investigators on Friday morning and was allowed to leave only late in the evening after being extensively questioned. Officers sought details about Siya’s relationship with co-accused Chetan Chaudhary and verified several aspects of the case.

“If Siya had said she didn’t like Ketan, we would have stopped the wedding,” Sahil reportedly told the police.

An official from the Lonavala Rural Police Station confirmed the questioning, saying Sahil had been summoned in the morning and released after several hours of interrogation.

Police allege that Ketan Agarwal was murdered on June 18 at Lohagad Fort after being pushed off a cliff by his fiancée, Siya Goyal, 20, and her alleged lover, Chetan Chaudhary, 22. Investigators suspect the duo had conspired to eliminate Ketan because Siya allegedly no longer wanted to go ahead with their marriage, which was scheduled for November.

Ketan, who served as Director and Chief Marketing Officer of his family’s real estate firm, Success Group, initially appeared to have died in a trekking accident. However, investigators later concluded that the death was the result of a planned conspiracy.

The case was first registered as an accidental death after Siya claimed Ketan had slipped while trekking. The investigation took a different direction after police examined CCTV footage from the ticket counter at Lohagad Fort. The footage allegedly showed a man wearing a hoodie and shorts walking a short distance behind the couple despite the day’s temperature being around 33 degrees Celsius.

In one clip, Siya was allegedly seen looking back while the hooded man suddenly sat down. Police later identified the individual as Chetan Chaudhary.

Investigators further claim that Siya had repeatedly persuaded Ketan to visit Lohagad Fort in the weeks leading up to the incident. The couple reportedly visited the fort on May 31, and she again suggested another trip on June 4, which was reportedly prevented by Ketan’s mother. Police also allege that on June 14, Siya attempted to push Ketan from the cliff, but he managed to save himself by grabbing a bush. When questioned, she allegedly claimed there had been a snake nearby.

Meanwhile, Siya’s mother has maintained that her daughter was not keen to visit Lohagad Fort on the day of the incident. She claimed that during a video call on the evening of June 17, Ketan and his mother persuaded Siya to accompany him despite her saying she had a family function the next day and wanted to rest.

Siya’s father also rejected reports suggesting an extravagant wedding budget. He confirmed that the wedding was scheduled to take place in Udaipur in November and said the family had reserved 70 rooms at a hotel where the tariff was very high. According to him, the overall wedding expenditure was expected to remain below Rs 3 crore.

On the other hand, Ketan Agarwal’s father, Vishal Agarwal, dismissed speculation that his son’s use of a toupee could have played any role in the alleged crime.

“Ketan had a small patch of hair loss due to medical reasons, but this was clearly communicated well before the marriage was finalised,” he said.

“If she had any issues, she could have just said ‘no’. It would have been very easy for Siya to simply call off the wedding if that was an issue for her,” he added.

The case has attracted significant attention across Maharashtra as Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis recently met Ketan’s father in Pune and assured the family of full support during the legal proceedings.

Responding to the family’s request, the Maharashtra government has agreed to conduct the trial in a fast-track court and has appointed senior advocate Ujjwal Nikam as the special public prosecutor in the case.

Describing the incident as deeply disturbing, Fadnavis said it highlighted a larger social concern.

“It is an extremely shocking and incomprehensible incident. As a society, we need to reflect on why educated young men and women from good families develop such criminal intent and a desire for revenge. This is not merely a criminal issue; it also has a social angle,” he said.