National News
ED grills Jharkhand CM for over 9 hrs in ‘illegal’ mining case
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) questioned Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren for over nine hours on Thursday in connection with an alleged illegal stone mining case.
On ED’s summons, the Chief Minister had reached the ED’s zonal office in Ranchi at 12:05 p.m., from where he left at 9.35 p.m.
His wife Kalpana Soren reached the ED office to pick him up after the questioning.
According to sources, a team of three ED officials asked him about 100 questions on Thursday, and the Chief Minister can be again called for further questioning.
Hemant Soren’s chequebooks, which had two signed cheques, were found in a raid at the house of his special representative Pankaj Mishra, already arrested in the case.
Hemant Soren, during the questioning, was asked why he had given the chequebooks to Mishra.
According to sources, the Chief Minister told the officials that while being in politics, many times needy people are required to be helped financially. The chequebook was with his representative for the same purpose.
He was also asked whether he was aware of an alleged illegal mining racket running under the “patronage” of Mishra. The Central agency sought the Chief Minister’s response to “whether any complaint about this (racket) reached to him or not and if it did, did he take any action or not”.
Hemant Soren was also questioned about his relationship with power broker Prem Prakash and businessman Amit Agarwal, arrested in Rs 1,000 crore money laundering case linked with the alleged mining scam.
On the basis of the evidence collected by the ED during its raids, several details were sought from the Chief Minister.
Sources said that Hemant Soren did not respond to several of the ED’s questions.
Earlier in the day, while addressing a press conference ahead of appearing before the ED, Hemant Soren claimed that the allegations levelled against him are baseless.
He also questioned the ED’s statement on a scam of Rs 1,000 crore taking place in one district (of the state), saying that the “entire state does not earn this amount of money from stone chips in a whole year”.
He attacked Governor Ramesh Bais, accusing the latter of protecting the parties engaged in conspiratorial politics and showed his disapproval about Bais’ statement regarding his pending decision on the political crisis in the state.
Soren claimed that the ED summon and raids by the Income Tax department and other Central agencies on the premises of the ruling party’s MLAs started soon after Bais’ statement.
Crime
Samrat Choudhary takes charge as Bihar Home Minister; warns criminals

Patna, Nov 22: After becoming Bihar’s Home Minister, Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary has taken a tough stance on maintaining law and order in the state.
On Saturday, soon after assuming office, he issued a stern warning to criminals, declaring that no offender would be spared and that the police had been given full freedom to act.
Deputy CM Choudhary said that the police are no longer bound and now have complete authority to take action openly.
He reaffirmed that criminals have no place in Bihar and asserted that the Home Ministry will work under the guidance of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
Good governance, he said, existed earlier and would continue even more firmly in the future.
He added that the ‘jungle raj’ that had been eliminated would not be allowed to return.
Responding to a query about his earlier controversial remark — saying that criminals in Bihar would be cremated in Gaya — the State Home Minister said the police were doing their job.
This marks the first time Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has handed over the Home Department to the BJP since 2005.
In the new Cabinet, along with Nitish Kumar, 26 Ministers were sworn-in.
Samrat Choudhary has been appointed both the Deputy Chief Minister and Home Minister, while Vijay Kumar Sinha has also been appointed the Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar.
He is holding the charge of Revenue, Land Reforms and Mining departments in the Nitish Kumar-led Bihar government.
Ministers from all NDA constituents have found a place in the Bihar Cabinet.
The BJP has the highest representation in the state Cabinet with 14 Ministers, followed by Janata Dal-United with eight, Lok Janshakti Party-Ram Vilas with two, Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) with one, and Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM) with one.
Despite having two Deputy CMs and 14 Ministers, the BJP’s share of the allocated departmental budget is lower compared to JD-U.
The BJP controls 29.22 per cent of the total budget, LJP-RV Ministers 0.91 per cent, HAM 0.58 per cent, and RLM 3.56 per cent.
The remaining departments, accounting for around 65 per cent of the total budget, remain with the JD-U.
Crime
Palghar Crime: 3 Arrested For Attempted Murder And ₹10 Lakh Robbery In Vasai; Police Bust Interstate 6-Member Gang

Palghar, Maharashtra, Nov 22: The Crime Detection Unit (Unit 2) of the Mira-Bhayander, Vasai-Virar Police has arrested three men involved in an attempted murder and armed robbery at a residence in Vasai, recovering gold jewellery and cash worth ₹10 lakh.
The incident took place on November 18 when three unidentified men forcibly entered the home of 37-year-old Geeta Raut in Reliable Glory Building at Sativali, Vasai West.
The intruders threatened Raut and her son Santosh at knifepoint, demanding information about the location of their gold. When Raut said she did not know, one of the assailants attempted to stab her.
She managed to evade the blow but sustained an injury to her left arm. The attackers then broke open a cupboard and escaped with 12 tolas of gold ornaments and a mobile phone.
Following the registration of the case at Waliv Police Station, officials conducted a detailed investigation at the crime scene and surrounding areas.
Through technical analysis and intelligence from informers, the police identified the suspects and learned that they were residing in Nandagaon, Karnataka.
A team was immediately dispatched, and on November 20, three accused were detained along with 8 tolas of stolen gold, cash, and a mobile phone, collectively valued at ₹10 lakh. During interrogation, it was revealed that they were part of a six-member gang involved in the crime.
The arrested accused have been identified as Ashok alias Babu Raju Shinde, a resident of Shantinagar Dongripada in Vasai East originally from Nandagaon in Karnataka; Abdul Rauf Hashmi, a resident of Richard Compound in Manocha Pada, Vasai East originally from Jaunpur in Uttar Pradesh; and Ritik Ravi Belangi, also living in Richard Compound and originally from Nandagaon in Karnataka.
Police have also named three absconding accomplices: Nur Hasan Khan from Patil Wadi in Nalasopara East, Suraj Kishor Jadhav from Shantinagar in Nalasopara East, and Kalu Prabhakar Sahu from Kendrapara in Odisha.
The detained suspects have been handed over to Waliv Police for further action under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Further investigation is underway.
National News
Mega Block On Sunday, 23-11-2025: Mumbai Local Train Services To Be Affected On CR’s Main Line, No Block On Harbour & Trans-Harbour Line; Check Details

Mumbai, Nov 22: Central Railway, Mumbai Division will operate Mega Block on its main line suburban sections to carry out various engineering and maintenance works on Sunday, 23th November.
UP and DOWN FAST Lines between Thane and Kalyan stations from 10.40 am to 3.40 pm
Down Fast/Semi-Fast local services departing CSMT Mumbai from 09.34 am to 15
3.03 pm will be diverted on Down Slow line between Thane and Kalyan stations halting at Kalva, Mumbra and Diva stations in addition to their respective scheduled halts and will arrive destination 10 minutes later than their scheduled arrival.
Up Fast/Semi-fast services departing Kalyan from 10.28 am to 3.40 pm will be diverted on Up Slow line between Kalyan and Thane stations halting at Diva, Mumbra and Kalva stations in addition to their respective scheduled halts and further re-diverted on Up Fast line at Mulund station and will arrive destination 10 minutes later than their scheduled arrival.
Down Mail/Express trains departing CSMT/Dadar will be diverted on 5th line between Thane and Kalyan stations.
Up Mail/Express trains arriving CSMT/Dadar will be diverted on 6th line between Kalyan and Thane/ Vikhroli stations.
There will be no Mega block on Harbour line & Trans-Harbour line-Only special traffic block between Belapur & Panvel.
According to Railway, these maintenance mega blocks are essential for infrastructure upkeep and safety. Passengers are requested to bear with the Railway Administration for the inconvenience caused.
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