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‘Desperate attempt, won’t affect Mahayuti’: BJP mocks Thackeray brothers’ alliance

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Mumbai, Dec 24: Maharashtra BJP MLA Ram Kadam has taken a sharp dig at the newly announced alliance between the Thackeray cousins ahead of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections, asserting that the tie-up will have no impact on the BJP-led Mahayuti and claiming that its flag will continue to fly across Mumbai after the polls.

Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) chief Uddhav Thackeray and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena founder Raj Thackeray on Wednesday formally announced an alliance for the upcoming BMC and Nashik Municipal Corporation elections.

The move is being seen as a significant political realignment aimed at consolidating the Marathi vote bank and mounting a challenge to the BJP-led Mahayuti.

Reacting to the development, Kadam recalled past differences between the two leaders and questioned the credibility of their reunion.

Speaking to Media, he said, “Twenty years ago, on September 27, 2005, Uddhav Thackeray treated Raj Thackeray so badly that he was forced to leave the party. Today, the same Uddhav is standing at his door with a begging bowl, asking for support. This is what destiny means.”

Kadam further dismissed the electoral impact of the alliance, claiming that public rallies and emotional appeals would not convert into votes.

“There will be crowds during their campaigns, but it will not translate into votes. There will be emotional appeals to divide Mumbaikars. However, every citizen of Mumbai knows that during Covid-19, Uddhav Thackeray and his government looted the city,” he alleged.

The BJP leader also credited the current pace of development in Mumbai to the leadership of Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.

“All the development you see in Mumbai today has taken place under the leadership of Devendra Fadnavis. Uddhav Thackeray and his government only played the ’20 per cent commission’ game. Because of his arbitrary actions, we could not hold our heads high in Mumbai,” Kadam said.

The alliance between Uddhav Thackeray and Raj Thackeray is being widely viewed as a strategic attempt to counter the BJP-led Mahayuti, especially in Mumbai, where the Marathi vote base has remained divided since the 2022 split in the Shiv Sena.

By projecting a “unified Thackeray family”, the two leaders are seeking to reclaim the traditional Shiv Sainik support base in the civic body elections.

However, Kadam remained confident about the Mahayuti’s prospects and reiterated his dismissal of the alliance.

“Despite both brothers coming together for the BMC polls, only Mahayuti’s flag will fly across Mumbai, as well as the entire state,” he said.

Questioning the political relevance of the Thackeray name, the BJP MLA remarked, “The Thackeray brand no longer exists. Thackeray was a brand only during the time of Balasaheb Thackeray; now, it’s only a surname. If there were a ‘Thackeray brand’ in reality today, they would not have lost the municipal elections. There is no point in making headlines now.”

BJP leader Navneet Rana also called out the alliance and said that it was formed out of “self-interest” and not for the family.

“I want to point out that the way Uddhav Thackeray and Raj Thackeray are coming together today as a family may look good on the surface, like two brothers uniting, but it is driven by self-interest, not love or familial affection. This alliance is purely for political gain and to revive their influence. Uddhav Thackeray’s party, which once had the strength to form the Chief Minister, now ranks last in municipal and local body elections, with very few chairpersons elected,” she told Media.

Meanwhile, political observers describe the tie-up as a “make-or-break” move for both parties. The electoral strategy seeks to combine Raj Thackeray’s influence among core Marathi voters — estimated at around 26 per cent of Mumbai’s electorate — with Uddhav Thackeray’s expanded support base, including Muslim-majority pockets, following his more inclusive positioning during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

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Professor Dr. Qazi Rashid Anwar Appointed AYUSH Advisor for Unani Medicine, Anjuman-e-Islam Congratulates

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In a major development in the field of medicine and the promotion of Unani system of treatment, the Government of Maharashtra has nominated Prof. (Dr.) Qazi Rashid Anwar, Principal of Dr. Muhammad Ishaq Gymkhana Wala Tabiya Unani Medical College and Haji A. R. Kalsekar Tabiya Hospital (Versova, Mumbai) under Anjuman-e-Islam, to the prestigious post of Advisor on Unani Medicine (Advisor, Unani Expert) in Directorate of AYUSH, Government of Maharashtra. The appointment was formally approved by the Hon’ble Minister for Medical Education, Hon’ble Hasan Musharraf and Director of AYUSH, Dr. (Vidya) Raman Ghongralikar, felicitating Prof. Dr. Rashid Qazi on the issuance of the official order.

On this important honor, the President of Anjuman-e-Islam, a leading educational institution of the subcontinent, Padma Shri Dr. Zaheer I. Qazi, Vice President Mr. Mushtaq Antola, General Secretary Mr. Aqeel Hafeez and other members of the association as well as the Chairman of this college Imran Furniture Wala have congratulated Professor Dr. Rashid Qazi and expressed their best wishes for his new responsibility. The Arbab-e-Anjuman said that this appointment is not only a source of pride and joy for the institution but also augurs a bright future for Unani medicine in the state.

It should be noted that at present, a total of seven Unani medical colleges, including 3 government-aided (aided) colleges, are providing education and treatment services in Maharashtra, but despite this wider network, there was no expert or regular officer of Unani medicine in the Directorate of AYUSH, Government of Maharashtra, due to which a long-standing gap was being felt in policy making and technical guidance. In addition, the Maharashtra government has recently approved the establishment of the first government Unani Medical College with 100 seats and a 100-bed hospital in Savar village, Mahsala taluka (Raigad district), for which the guidance of a qualified expert was indispensable for its educational and technical formation. In this context, this step of the Maharashtra government is being viewed with great appreciation and hope in the medical community.

The President and members of Anjuman-e-Islam have expressed the hope that the vast teaching and administrative experiences of Professor Rashid Qazi, including the project of the new government college, will give a new prestige and a new dimension to Unani medicine across the state.

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Saini narrates his rise from computer operator to Haryana CM

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In 1996, while operating a computer at the BJP office in Panchkula, Nayab Singh Saini had never imagined that he would one day become the Chief Minister of Haryana.

Years later came an electoral defeat in 2009 but a decisive victory in 2014 and eventually opportunities to serve as a minister, a Member of Parliament, the state BJP President and now the Chief Minister.

Sharing his journey with young entrepreneurs at the ‘Gen-H Yuva Udyami Chaupal’ in Gurugram University in Gurugram on Friday, CM Saini said there were no shortcuts in his journey, only the steady climb of hard work.

Referring to the young participants as Gen-H, the Chief Minister gave the expression a wider meaning. “You call it Gen-H for Haryana; I would call it Gen-HB — Haryana-Bharat. Gen-HB is the heartbeat of India,” he said.

In a candid interaction, young entrepreneurs asked the Chief Minister direct questions about advancing in politics without a legacy, recovering from failure, technology, sports, employment, the challenge of drug abuse, startups, the pace of government functioning and family.

The programme was watched live across more than 4,000 institutions. Drawing from his own experiences, the Chief Minister urged young people not to allow failure to become their identity, but to let their work define them.

Rather than chasing quick success, he asked them to make consistency, credibility and patience their strengths. Asked how he had reached this far in politics despite having no one behind him, CM Saini said his journey had no lift, only stairs, and there were times when even the next step was not visible.

After entering politics, he recalled his first electoral responsibility was not to contest an election himself but to help someone else fight one.

During that election, he worked until 2 a.m. When he was asked to contest in 2009 he did not have the money, but people came forward and helped him fight the election. He lost in 2009, but decided that defeat would not become his identity; instead, he would learn from it.

The very next day, he was back among the people. There was no position in hand and no assurance of another ticket, but he had made the decision to continue working. It was this approach, he said, that led to his victory by a significant margin in 2014.

The Chief Minister also recalled 1996 when Narendra Modi was the BJP in-charge for Haryana and had sent a computer to the party office in Panchkula. CM Saini said while operating that computer at the party office he had never imagined that he would one day become Chief Minister.

Referring to the period before 2014, the Chief Minister said there was a time when the youth were used for politics, but if a young person sought to move ahead in politics, that aspiration was suppressed.

Asked what the 2009 electoral defeat had taught him, the Chief Minister said he rose again the very same day with twice the enthusiasm. For him, a position had never been important; the spirit of ‘Nation First’ had always remained paramount.

The Chief Minister said his desire to help people led to the support he received in 2014. People elected him and the party entrusted him with ministerial responsibility.

The opportunities that followed, to serve as Member of Parliament, state BJP President and the Chief Minister, were the outcome of people’s affection, his sense of responsibility towards them and the opportunities given to him by the party.

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Punjab BJP criticises Congress leaders for remarks on Sajjan Kumar’s demise

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Punjab BJP President, Kewal Singh Dhillon, on Friday condemned remarks by Congress leaders describing former MP Sajjan Kumar, an accused in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, as a “role model.” He said that this statement once again exposed the party’s anti-Sikh mindset.Dhillon said even after 42 years of the horrific and painful 1984 riots, the wounds of the victim families remain unhealed.

At such a sensitive time, describing a key accused in the massacre as a “role model” is a condemnable attempt to rub salt into the wounds of the victim families and reopen their painful memories, he said.He further said no amount of condemnation “is enough for Congress’ anti-Sikh mindset. The Congress has repeatedly acted in a manner that has hurt the sentiments of the Sikh community”.

Dhillon asked the party to unconditionally apologise to the families of the victims and the entire Sikh community for such irresponsible and shameful statements made by its leaders.Kumar, who was serving life imprisonment in connection with the riots, died on Thursday at a Delhi hospital at the age of 80.Kumar, who was lodged in Tihar Jail, was taken to Safdarjung Hospital after his health deteriorated. Doctors declared him brought dead on arrival.

The former Congress leader had been convicted for his role in the violence in Delhi’s Palam Colony on November 1 and 2, 1984, following the assassination of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by her two Sikh bodyguards.On December 17, 2018, the Delhi High Court overturned a trial court’s 2013 verdict acquitting Kumar in the case. He was subsequently convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment.

The case related to the murder of five Sikh men in Raj Nagar Part I, Palam Colony, as well as the burning of a gurdwara during the widespread violence.the High Court held Kumar guilty of criminal conspiracy and abetment and directed that he remain in prison for the remainder of his natural life. In its judgment, the court had described the 1984 anti-Sikh violence as “crimes against humanity”.

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