Mumbai: Samajwadi Party MLA from Bhiwandi East Rais Shaikh on Thursday wrote a letter to the Assembly Secretariat demanding that two private bills on love jihad and forced conversions introduced by BJP MLAs be rejected. MLA Shaikh alleged that the government’s intention to bring a law on the issue of Love Jihad was clear, but the ruling MLA had to bring a private bill because there was doubt over the government’s intention.

In a letter to the Assembly Secretariat, MLA Shaikh said that the government had constituted a 7-member committee headed by the state Director General of Police in February, which will study the legal provisions and draft a law to prevent conversion through force or fraud. The committee includes senior officials from key departments including Women and Child Welfare, Minority Affairs, Law and Justice, Social Justice and Special Assistance, and Home.

Although the government has set up a committee to study the legal framework, last week two MLAs from the ruling BJP introduced private bills on the issue of forced conversions. MLA Rais Shaikh said, “It seems that these bills have been brought to politicise the alleged issue of love jihad and create animosity between the two communities.”

Sheikh said that when a committee is constituted to study such a sensitive issue, members of the Assembly are expected to present their concerns and suggestions before the committee. “However, the two main objectives behind the private bills introduced by the BJP MLAs are only to distort and gain publicity,” alleged MLA Rais Shaikh. While the government has already announced its intention to enact a law against forced religious conversion, the introduction of private bills by ruling party MLAs shows a lack of confidence in the intentions of their own government. MLA Rais Shaikh wrote a letter to the Legislative Secretariat requesting the rejection of both the private bills.

Mumbai: Responding to opposition questions in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly in Mumbai, Deputy Chief Minister and Finance Minister Ajit Pawar said that efforts are being made to overwhelm me with speeches. I am poor, that’s why I am sitting here.

Ajit Pawar said in a sarcastic tone that now you have to decide whether Maharashtra has developed or lagged behind in the last five years. We also say that in the last five years the state is moving towards development, there has been more development in the last two years. People have given love and trust to the Mahayuti government. Even if Brahmadev comes, the government will not fall for five years. He said that Nana Patole had proposed to both the deputy ministers that if they join the Maha Vikas Aghadi, he would make them the Chief Minister.

He said that you were also in power for the last five years, but the state did not develop. It is my nature to say good things, good things. He said that Vijay Varditiwar was also with me, but now he has become the leader of the opposition. Where did your promise go? Many members have asked in their speeches. He said that I am unable to do things like making statues and insulting the general public, so I express my views through poetry. I do not make promises that I cannot fulfill. I do not talk more than my status. I yearn to touch the sky. But he has no intention of demeaning others.

Ajit Pawar said in his speech that in this budget session, the media has talked about closing many schemes of last year. He said that some schemes are started according to the circumstances and a limit is set for every scheme and after that it has to be closed. Mahayoti will not stop important government and popular schemes at any cost. He said that many schemes were started during Corona, but now it is necessary to close them after Corona is over.

Many times schemes are started by the central government in the interest of the state government. Should the state government’s schemes be stopped due to this? This is not done because it does not affect the state treasury. That is why we do not stop any scheme even after the central government’s schemes. Therefore, I request with folded hands that no false information should be spread. Ajit Pawar said that the Ladli Behan scheme will not be stopped.

Mumbai: Shivaji Jayanti is an occasion to remember the legacy of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, who shaped Indian history with his valour and vision. However, in a fiery editorial, Shiv Sena UBT mouthpiece Saamana criticised certain fringe groups advocating for the destruction of Aurangzeb’s tomb, comparing it to the Babri Masjid demolition. The editorial argues that such demands distort history, insult Maharashtra’s warrior tradition and attempt to turn Hindutva into extremism.

According to report, those calling for the tomb’s destruction are enemies of Maharashtra’s proud legacy. “They wish to poison the state’s atmosphere and present themselves as Hindu Taliban,” the editorial states, adding that such actions misrepresent Hindutva and disrespect the ideals of Shivaji Maharaj’s Hindavi Swarajya.

The editorial revisits history, stressing that Shivaji Maharaj and the Marathas fought against oppression for 25 years, ultimately ensuring that Aurangzeb met his end in Maharashtra, exhausted and defeated. The presence of Aurangzeb’s tomb in Maharashtra, it argues, is not a mark of Mughal dominance but a symbol of the Marathas’ resilience.

Historical Context & Legacy of Aurangzeb’s Tomb

Aurangzeb waged a long campaign to conquer the Deccan, arriving in Maharashtra in 1681 with an army of eight lakh. His ambition was to establish a ‘second Delhi’ in the region and crush the Marathas. He stayed in Maharashtra for 24 years, struggling to subdue the Marathas.

Despite his vast military resources, he failed. The editorial cites historical records describing his grand procession into Maharashtra, complete with European artillerymen, hill warriors and war elephants, only to be relentlessly resisted by Maratha forces.

Aurangzeb died in 1707 in what is now known as Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar (Aurangabad), a broken man who could not achieve his goal of crushing the Maratha Empire. Saamana states that his tomb stands as a testament to his failure and the Marathas’ ultimate victory.

Calls For Political Action

The editorial strongly urges Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to put an end to what it calls ‘shameful attempts’ to use Shivaji Maharaj’s name for divisive politics. It warns against those trying to erase historical monuments for their own agendas. Instead of destruction, it advocates for understanding and preserving history.

The piece also recalls a historical anecdote involving PM Lad, a senior official in the Union Ministry of Information & Broadcasting during the Samyukta Maharashtra movement. When confronted by leaders questioning Maharashtra’s importance, he would tell them to visit Aurangzeb’s tomb in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar. The tomb, he believed, symbolised Maratha courage and the Mughal Empire’s downfall.

A Call For True Hindutva

While Saamana acknowledges Aurangzeb’s brutality, it argues that true Hindutva, as exemplified by Shivaji Maharaj, is about honour, tolerance and wisdom, not blind destruction. It calls for Maharashtra’s youth to learn real history instead of engaging in provocative acts that undermine the state’s glorious past.

The editorial concludes by stating that Aurangzeb’s tomb is not a sign of Mughal victory but a reminder of how Maharashtra outlasted and defeated one of the most powerful rulers in history. In a scathing attack against the Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis, the editorial ends with, “Chief Minister Fadnavis should shut down this shameful business running in the name of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj!”