Politics
BJP, Congress in MP take credit as Supreme Court allows OBC reservation in civic polls
As the Supreme Court on Wednesday allowed an OBC quota in the local body elections in Madhya Pradesh, the ruling BJP and the opposition Congress started taking the credit for it. Both the parties also traded barbs over the issue.
Senior leaders of the BJP and the Congress in Madhya Pradesh welcomed the SC’s decision saying, “justice prevailed”, claiming that the initiative for providing reservation for OBCs was taken by their parties and accused each other of being anti-OBC.
Soon after a bench headed by Justice A.M. Khanwilkar pronounced the order granting permission to conduct local body polls with OBC reservation and directed the Madhya Pradesh State Election Commission (MP-SEC) to notify the elections in one week, the state BJP headquarters celebrated the decision calling it a win for the party.
Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan was greeted by state home minister Narottam Mishra and urban development minister Bhupendra Singh. The trio had visited New Delhi last week to file a review petition for seeking modification in the SC’s order of May 10, in which the court had directed the state election body to conduct elections without OBC reservation.
Expressing happiness over the SC’s decision, Chouhan said, “We had made our intentions clear on this issue. We wanted the local body elections to be held with OBC reservation and all preparations were made for this purpose. The election dates were announced, but the Congress went to the court and the process was stayed. The Congress committed a sin for political gains, but today justice prevailed and the truth won.”
Chouhan said that his government made all possible efforts to provide reservation to the OBCs. “An OBC commission was set up and a survey was conducted across the state to collect facts regarding the same. When the SC demanded more clarity on reports, we submitted the second report and the court trusted the commission’s report. Subsequently the decision to allow elections with OBC quota was pronounced,” Chouhan added.
He alleged that the Congress was in celebration mode after the SC’s order of May 10. He said that the Congress was not interested in the OBC reservation issue but was attacking the BJP for political gains.
On the other hand, the Congress maintained that it wanted local body elections with OBC reservation and for that the party fought strongly. “We were saying from day one that elections to Panchayat and urban bodies should not be held in Madhya Pradesh without OBC reservation. We had also fought regarding OBC reservation and after that the resolution was passed unanimously in the House,” said Kamal Nath, former chief minister and Madhya Pradesh Congress chief.
Nath said that the Supreme Court has given a decision to provide relief in the matter of OBC reservation. He claimed, “The OBC category will still not get the full benefit of OBC reservation increased from 14 per cent to 27 per cent by our government because the SC’s decision mentioned that the reservation should not be more than 50 per cent.”
He said that if the state government had followed the entire procedure of the triple test on time, then this unpleasant situation would never have happened but the Shivraj government woke up after snatching the rights of the OBC class.
Maharashtra
Mumbai: Stone-pelting case registered against police during Bandra mosque demolition, situation peaceful but tension remains, demolition process underway

Mumbai: The situation became tense after the demolition of a mosque in Mumbai’s Bandra Garib Nagar. After a clash between the police and protesters during the protest against the demolition of the mosque, the police resorted to light lathicharge here, after which the situation came under control, but the tension still persists. The police have detained about 7 to 10 protesters for stone-pelting, while now the situation here is certainly peaceful, but the tension persists. Demolition operations are underway in Bandra under heavy police arrangements. So far, more than 500 huts have been demolished and the settlement has been razed to the ground. The public protested against the BMC bulldozer and the road was blocked. The police closed the road in this area. The situation is now under control. The police said that a case has been registered after the incident of stone-pelting on the police. The police have now also started investigating the matter of stone-pelting and disturbing the situation in public places. The BMC’s action is ongoing. The situation had deteriorated after the demolition of the mosque, but the police have controlled it, which is also causing tension. Liaquat, a worshipper of the mosque, says that the police and BMC have suddenly carried out a demolition operation, while the mosque was not part of the demolition operation, yet it was targeted. Muslims are bound to be angry because the mosque was targeted, but the police started lathicharge on them, while the mosque is old and we used to offer prayers here, so this has deeply shocked us.
Maharashtra
BMC Conducts Anti-Encroachment Drive At Mumbai’s Iconic Mohammad Ali Road; Disrupts Traffic

Mumbai: A video has surfaced from Mohammad Ali Road showing the demolition of an allegedly illegal structure alongside one of Mumbai’s well-known localities, with civic authorities carrying out action as part of an anti-encroachment drive in the area.
According to a post shared by dahisarkar, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) undertook an anti-encroachment operation in the Mohammad Ali Road locality on Wednesday. Visuals circulating online show a JCB machine being used during the demolition process as civic teams carried out the action on the ground.
The post also mentions that a heavy police deployment was also seen in the area to maintain law and order and prevent any untoward incidents during the drive. Traffic movement in parts of the locality was reportedly affected as authorities conducted the operation.
As per local administration sources, the action was undertaken to remove encroachments from public spaces and ensure smoother movement on roads for citizens. The drives are aimed at keeping roads clear and reducing inconvenience caused due to illegal structures or obstructions occupying public areas.
Mohammad Ali Road, one of Mumbai’s prominent and densely populated areas, often witnesses heavy vehicular movement and pedestrian traffic, making road accessibility and public space management a key civic concern.
The civic body has been carrying out anti-encroachment and clearance drives across multiple parts of Mumbai as part of efforts to improve public infrastructure access and maintain civic order. However, authorities have not yet issued any detailed official statement regarding the specific structure demolished during the latest operation near Mohammad Ali Road.
Tension gripped Bandra’s Garib Nagar area on the second day of the ongoing demolition drive after a mosque structure was razed during Western Railway’s anti-encroachment operation. Residents expressed strong outrage and emotional reactions during the demolition of the mosque structure. As the drive was underway in Garib Nagar, angry residents staged protests at the site.
Locals allegedly also threw water and buckets at Mumbai Police personnel during the agitation. Following the chaos, Mumbai Police resorted to a lathi charge to control the situation. Another visual showed the situation escalating as a major scuffle was seen between the police and locals. Visuals from the site also showed some women personnel dragging someone.
Furthermore, some anti-social elements tried to obstruct the work by throwing stones on the the demolition squad. Mumbai Police used appropriate force to disperse them off and FIRs are being lodged against the vandals.
The drive came after the Bombay HC, in its May 5 order, permitted WR to continue the demolition drive. However, it also said that the rights of slum dwellers who were found eligible in the 2021 surveys must be protected.
Maharashtra
Citizens’ complaints are like eyes and ears for the administration, take serious notice and prioritize timely solutions: Municipal Commissioner

Complaints made by Mumbai citizens regarding various civic amenities or issues are like eyes and ears for this administration. The administration gets a response (ready feedback) from it. Therefore, the complaints of the citizens should be taken seriously and timely resolution should be prioritized. Also, the ‘MARG’ (Complaint Management) application launched by the Municipal Corporation for complaints received through various channels should be used effectively. Arrangements should be made for pesticide control at construction sites. The Municipal Commissioner said that steps should be taken to dispose of food waste generated in roadside shops and food stalls. Ashwini Bhide visited the Pesticide Control Post on 74-Minute Road in Fort area this morning (May 20, 2026). This is Mumbai’s first and almost 100-year-old Pesticide Control Post. After this, he visited the A-2 Road Repair and Storage Post and Sewerage Post in ‘A’ Sector. Road repair and storage post in S.K. Patil Udayan, student study at Kamalabai Kanya School Road in ‘C’ sector; She visited the Nana Chowk area in ‘D’ sector, the pesticide post at Worli in ‘G’ South sector and the Love Grove Rainwater Harvesting Centre. She was speaking at the time.
Municipal Commissioner Ashwini Bhide said that special efforts should be made for pesticide control. Food waste is generated in large quantities in shops and food stalls on the roadside. Due to which the problem of rats, cats and mosquitoes also increases. Steps should be taken to dispose of the food waste generated at these places. Restaurants and food selling establishments should be encouraged to fill food waste in bags and hand it over to municipal waste collectors instead of throwing it elsewhere. Apart from this, the concerned construction professionals or developers should be advised to develop a system and deploy employees at the construction site to prevent the breeding of mosquitoes, Bhide also gave instructions on the occasion. Bhide further said that complaints and feedback regarding various civic amenities or issues are received from public representatives and citizens through helpline numbers, social media etc. These complaints or feedback are like eyes and ears for the administration. This gives the administration a real response (ready feedback). These complaints or feedback should be taken seriously and resolved immediately. In addition, the Municipal Corporation has launched a unified and dedicated application called ‘MARG’ (Complaint Management and Redressal) for complaints received through various channels like helpline numbers, social media etc. All the concerned officers and employees should use it effectively. In addition, they should try to perform better by showing their activity in their daily work. Meanwhile, the system of Udanchan Kendra should be kept ready before the monsoon season. Bhide also directed that pumping stations should be kept functional where rainwater collects.
During this, Bhide saw various equipment used for pest control and their demonstration and obtained information from the concerned employees. Apart from this, he obtained detailed information about various measures taken for rat control, overall work at the post etc. and verified the attendance records of the employees and other matters. On this occasion, Deputy Commissioner (Zone 1) Chanda Jadhav, Deputy Commissioner (Zone 2) Prashant Sapkale, Deputy Commissioner (Municipal Commissioner Office) Prashant Gaikwad, Assistant Commissioner (C Division) Alka Sasane, Assistant Commissioner (A Division) Gajanan Belle, Assistant Commissioner (D Division) Gajanan Belle, Assistant Commissioner (D Division), Mr. Salun’s officers, concerned officers etc. were present.
During this, Bhide interacted with the employees and workers of the departments of pesticides, sanitation, security etc. and found out their problems. S. Ka Patil also interacted with the citizens visiting the park and the students in the workshop. He also praised the employees and workers working at the pesticide post in D Division who won prizes in various competitions for performing their duties.
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