National News
Drama in Himachal as Congress Legislature Party meeting rescheduled for third time
High drama continued ahead of the crucial meeting of newly- elected 40 Congress legislators of Himachal Pradesh to nominate the legislature party leader as it was delayed till Friday night, for the third time in a row.
Party observers — Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, former Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Hooda and AICC in-charge for state Rajiv Shukla — earlier in the day met Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar to hand over list of MLAs showing the strength to form the government.
The meeting, which is now slated for the night, was postponed with Member of Parliament and state unit chief Pratibha Singh’s supporters raised slogans in her favour, demanding her appointment as the Chief Minister.
The wife of former Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, she is believed to be the frontrunner for the top job.
A day after getting majority in the 68-member Assembly, 40 Congress lawmakers were to meet in the state capital in the presence of party’s observers to nominate the legislative party leader.
Besides Pratibha Singh, former party chief Sukhwinder Sukhu and Mukesh Agnihotri are considered key frontrunners for the Chief Minister’s post.
At the meeting, a decision will be taken to authorise Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge to finalise the name of the legislative party leader.
The Congress on Thursday got an absolute majority in the Assembly elections, winning 40 seats – six more than the half-way mark of 34, while the outgoing BJP was reduced to 25.
While outgoing Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur won, many of his ministers, including Suresh Bhardwaj, Ram Lal Markanda, Sarveen Chaudhary, Rakesh Pathania, Govind Thakur, Virender Kanwar, and Rajiv Saizal lost the election.
Three Independents, comprising two BJP rebels and one Congress, emerged victorious.
Himachal Pradesh has not voted any incumbent government back to power since 1985.
Considering the family legacy and contribution, Pratibha Singh had sought votes in the Assembly polls on development carried out by her husband Virbhadra Singh during his six terms as the Chief Minister.
Pratibha Singh, who had not contested the Assembly polls, missed no opportunity to remind the electorate that the victory in Assembly election “will be a tribute to him (Virbhadra Singh)”.
“Not only the Congress supporters but also from other parties voted for us as a tribute for Virbhadra Singh,” said Pratibha Singh, who won the Mandi seat in the 2021 Lok Sabha bypoll and was appointed state chief well-ahead of the Assembly polls
She had spearheaded the poll campaign on the legacy of Virbhadra Singh, and banked on the party’s promise to bring back the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) that will benefit 225,000 employees, a crucial vote bank.
Bollywood
Saif Ali Khan attack case: Mumbai Police find pictures of two suspects on Shehzad’s mobile phone
Mumbai, Jan 20: The Bangladeshi national, Mohammad Shariful Islam Shehzad, arrested on charges of stabbing actor Saif Ali Khan after breaking into his house, was keeping a very close watch on the police investigation through news and had kept screenshots of the suspects, being shown by the media, in his mobile phone.
The Mumbai Police said the photographs of the suspects were seized from the mobile phone of Shehzad. The suspects were those men who were interrogated by the police while on the lookout for the main culprit.
The media was continuously giving updates on the case and showing the photographs of suspects being picked up by the police.
Shehzad had saved the photographs of the two suspects on his mobile phone. Screenshots of the suspects being shown on news channels were found in the phone’s memory.
The Mumbai Police had picked up two suspects earlier and had questioned them. Both these had a resemblance to the main accused.
The accused was keeping a very close watch on the activities of the police and was getting information about the activities of the police through the news, said officials.
Meanwhile, sources in the Mumbai Police said they will likely recreate the crime scene at the Bandra home of Saif Ali Khan, where the crime incident took place.
The accused, Shehzad, a 30-year-old Bangladeshi man, was arrested on Sunday morning from Thane city.
A court remanded the accused in police custody for five days. According to the official, police will likely take Shehzad to Khan’s home in the ‘Satguru Sharan’ building during these five days to recreate the crime scene as part of the investigation.
The accused has reportedly confessed to the crime, saying “haan, maine hi kiya hai (yes, I did it)”.
According to police sources, Shehzad was arrested near Hiranandani Estate in Kasarvadavali in Thane, about 35 km from Khan’s house in Mumbai’s Bandra area on Sunday. The breakthrough came after over 70 hours of an intense manhunt that was launched following the attack during a failed burglary bid in the early hours of Thursday.
The police traced Shehzad to a labour camp in a forested area in Thane. As soon as Shehzad got a whiff that policemen were looking for him in Thane, the accused hid himself in the bushes, a source said. “He was arrested after a search operation that lasted for seven hours in the city,” the source added.
On Sunday, DCP Dixit Gedam told the media that Shehzad is a Bangladeshi national. “He does not have any Indian documents. Some things found in his possession show that he is a Bangladeshi national,” Gedam said. Police also said the accused had been living in Mumbai for the past four months and had changed his name to Bijoy Das.
National News
Confusion over NCP’s strategy for municipal elections: Contradictory statements by Walse Patil and Praful Patel
Mumbai: Before the start of the two-day Chintan Shivir of the Ajit Pawar faction of the NCP (Nationalist Congress Party) in Shirdi, senior party leaders Dilip Walse Patil and Praful Patel made contradictory statements regarding the municipal elections. These statements have raised questions on the party’s strategy.
Speaking to the media, Dilip Walse Patil said, “If there is an alliance, it is fine, otherwise NCP is fully prepared to contest the elections alone.” His statement made it clear that the party is not completely dependent on the alliance.
On the other hand, Praful Patel, showing inclination towards the alliance, said, “Wherever possible, we are ready to contest the elections as a grand alliance.” Patel’s statement has created confusion about the party’s election strategy.
These contradictory statements indicate differences in the Ajit Pawar faction of the NCP regarding the election strategy. This has created an atmosphere of confusion among the workers.
The idea of a grand alliance for the municipal elections has not taken a concrete shape yet. It will be interesting to see whether the NCP goes with the alliance in the upcoming elections or on its own strength. Discussions have intensified in political circles on this stance of the party.
National News
Bhaskar Jadhav’s shock to Thackeray’s faction? Speculations intensify about joining Shinde faction
Mumbai: Speculation has intensified that Bhaskar Jadhav, the aggressive leader of the Shiv Sena Thackeray faction and the only MLA from Konkan, will leave the Shiv Sena Thackeray faction and join the Shinde faction. After the failure of the Mahavikas Aghadi in the assembly elections, Bhaskar Jadhav indirectly expressed his displeasure over the leadership of the Thackeray faction.
Recently, Jadhav had said, “Shiv Sena Thackeray faction has now almost become Congress,” and through this statement he had given a sharp message to Uddhav Thackeray. After his statement, discontent within the Thackeray faction has emerged further. There is a discussion in political circles that the Thackeray faction in the Konkan region may suffer a major setback due to Bhaskar Jadhav.
Shinde faction claims: Big entry will happen soon
Shinde faction leader and minister Uday Samant gave a big statement in this context and said, “There will be a big entry from the Thackeray faction to the Shinde faction in the next 8 days.” Samant also said, “The political equations will change by January 24. The position of the Thackeray faction in Ratnagiri has become as weak as that of the Congress, and now their leaders are joining the Shinde faction.”
Will Bhaskar Jadhav join the Shinde faction?
When asked about Bhaskar Jadhav, Uday Samant said, “Jadhav himself described the Thackeray faction as similar to the Congress. If he joins the Shinde faction, it will strengthen the legacy of Bala Saheb Thackeray’s ideas. His guidance will be very beneficial for us.” This statement of Samant has brought Bhaskar Jadhav’s political activities into further discussion.
Discussion intensifies in political circles
Bhaskar Jadhav’s recent activities indicate that he is dissatisfied with the Thackeray faction. Dissatisfaction with the leadership is also being seen among other leaders of the Shiv Sena Thackeray faction. If Jadhav joins the Shinde faction, it can have a big impact on the politics of the Konkan region and the organizational structure of the Shiv Sena Thackeray faction.
Bhaskar Jadhav’s next move can create new equations in Maharashtra politics, and the whole state is keeping an eye on it.
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