Mumbai: Samajwadi Party leader and MLA Abu Asim Azmi met Maharashtra Chief Electoral Officer S Chokkalingam and submitted a formal memorandum. In it, he urged for extension of the last date for the Special Summary Revision (SIR) of the electoral roll to August 31, 2026. In his memorandum, Azmi highlighted various practical and technical difficulties faced during the voter verification process in various constituencies. The key issues raised include inconvenience to citizens due to heavy rains and additional pressure on staff on election duty. Many Booth Level Officers (BLOs), a large number of whom are teachers, are juggling this dual responsibility along with their regular school duties, which is leading to severe exhaustion. Furthermore, Azmi drew attention to the logistical challenges. He noted that many BLOs live in remote areas such as Raigad, Thane and Borivali, which makes it difficult for them to reach their designated areas. Given the high population of migrants and people from other states in these regions, the process of document and online verification takes time, making it impossible for BLOs to complete the work within the stipulated time. Azami feared that thousands of eligible voters could remain out of the voter list as a result of administrative and technical delays. He has therefore appealed to the Election Commission to intervene immediately and extend the last date, ensuring that all eligible citizens can be enrolled in the voter list.

Mumbai, Aug 4: International Movement to Unite Nations (IIMUN) founder Rishabh Shah on Tuesday announced that Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) Sarsanghchalak Mohan Bhagwat will participate in one of the world’s largest youth-led conferences on August 6, where he is scheduled to interact with members of Gen Z and Gen Alpha on leadership, nation-building and India’s role in uniting the world.

The inaugural session of the conference will revolve around ‘The Role of Youth in Uniting the World, the Indian Way’. The annual gathering will bring together students aged 15 to 19 years with participants representing schools and colleges from different parts of the country.

The event comes at a time when young people across India are becoming increasingly active in discussions on democracy, leadership, governance and nation-building.

Bhagwat is expected to engage with more than 2,000 students from over 100 cities at the event in Mumbai on August 6, which is being described as one of the world’s largest youth-led conferences.

The interaction with the RSS chief will be held at the Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre (NMACC) during the inaugural ceremony of the annual championship conference of IIMUN, which is marking its 15th anniversary this year.

Speaking to media about the initiative, IIMUN founder Rishabh Shah said the organisation has consistently focused on helping young people understand India’s values while preparing them for leadership roles.

“Our main endeavour is to help youth aged 11 to 19 understand what ‘Bharat’ is and what ‘uniting the world the Bharatiya way’ means. We try to mould the next generation into good leaders. We have been doing this for the past 15 years through various programs. In a year, we aim to organise thousands of programs, which are managed by youth aged 15 to 24. Beyond the age of 24, these individuals move on to different fields — some join politics, others enter films, business, or various other sectors,” Shah told media.

Highlighting the scale of the organisation’s outreach, Shah said nearly 30,000 students have been associated with IIMUN and have actively worked with the platform over the years.

“The number of people who have been impacted is around 7 to 7.5 crore. These are the estimates. As for how many people were actually impacted, you would have to ask them directly,” he added.

Shah also noted that this would be the third occasion on which Mohan Bhagwat would be attending an IIMUN event to interact with the younger generation.

“I believe that organisations like RSS and Indian National Congress, along with other prominent institutions, should be studied by the younger generations. These organisations have different ideologies, and hence, the new generation should learn about them,” he said.

Besides Bhagwat, several prominent personalities, including actor Shabana Azmi, actor Boman Irani and former Chief Justice of India (CJI) D.Y. Chandrachud, are also expected to attend the conference.

Emphasising the need to expose young people to diverse streams of thought, Shah said, “No matter what the ideology is, at the end of the day, when we think about Bharat, everyone needs to come together, engage to build leaders of the young Indians as we need all — Savarkar, Sardar Patel, Swami Vivekanand and Mahatma Gandhi — especially this generation.”

Commenting on the recent Cockroach Janata Party (CJP)-led protests over repeated paper leaks and alleged examination irregularities, Shah said the concerns raised by the students deserved attention irrespective of political affiliations.

“The issues that were raised during the protest were of utmost importance. Neither CJP nor BJP; we need to talk about education. I do believe if the country needs to strengthen, then the education system should also,” he said.

While supporting the need to raise concerns over education, Shah also stressed that public protests should maintain decorum in language and expression.

“The vocabulary used by a few people during the protest, no matter for whom — be it the Prime Minister or the LoP — we should avoid. The protest should be within limits. This generation is frustrated, and now it’s coming out,” he said, attributing part of that frustration to what he described as the influence of vulgar content in sections of the film industry and on social media.

He further argued that the prevailing social and political environment also contributes to the frustration being witnessed among young people.

“This is not entirely the fault of Gen Z but also of the generations before them for the environment that has been created… If a rapist is acquitted, a murderer becomes a parliamentarian, it would obviously affect children because they are aware of these developments. Don’t create the hate. It is being created across party lines and the film industry,” he added.

Mumbai, Aug 4: A letter issued by the Election Commission of India (ECI) has presented a crucial organisational test for the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) under the leadership of party president and Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar. ​The communication, dated July 27, raises concerns regarding internal organisational procedures, compliance with party protocols, and unanswered challenges to the party’s internal structure.

The regulatory review comes at a sensitive juncture, as the broader legal battle between rival factions — the NCP under Sunetra Pawar and the opposition faction led by Sharad Pawar — remains pending before the Supreme Court.

​The central focus of the ECI’s directive involves significant modifications made to key sections of the NCP constitution — specifically Articles 6, 7, 12, 18, 32, and 36. These provisions govern essential party operations, including membership rules and cadre enrollment procedures, ​structural organisation of state executive committees, disciplinary and suspension powers vested in leadership and management and utilisation of official party funds. ​

While official records from the party’s national convention on February 26 — during which Sunetra Pawar was elected national president following the passing of Ajit Pawar — reflect an amendment to Article 18(1), the ECI noted that formal resolutions and supporting documentation backing changes to the remaining articles were either missing or incomplete. ​

The regulatory review follows a formal challenge submitted to the poll panel by NCP National Secretary Sachidanand Singh, who raised objections regarding the election procedures and the validity of the constitutional amendments. ​

Although the ECI previously recognised the Ajit Pawar-led faction as the official NCP and allotted it the traditional ‘Clock’ symbol based on legislative majority, legal experts warn that procedural lapses could carry wider consequences. Any flaw in formalising the party presidency or validating its constitution could provide opposition factions and internal dissenters critical leverage in ongoing judicial proceedings before the Supreme Court. ​

“Failing to validate constitutional modifications through ratified resolutions could expose fundamental party decisions — such as candidate nominations, committee appointments, and financial allocations — to severe legal challenges,” said political observers. ​

In a video statement addressing the development, NCP chief spokesperson Umesh Patil downplayed the ECI’s communication, describing it as standard procedure between the electoral body and registered political parties. Patil asserted that the letter is a routine compliance check and that the party is preparing a detailed response. He dismissed reports of factional rift or internal friction, maintaining that the party hierarchy remains fully united.

​Political analysts view the ECI’s letter as an organisational discipline test for the NCP.

To safeguard its legal standing and secure Sunetra Pawar’s leadership framework, party insiders indicate the leadership is preparing a three-pronged strategy. This includes compiling and submitting a comprehensive resolution package covering every amended clause (Articles 6, 7, 12, 32, and 36) to satisfy the ECI’s regulatory checklist, engaging with dissenting office-bearers to resolve procedural grievances internally before they escalate into formal litigation and ensuring all internal governance records and transition protocols are legally airtight so as not to weaken the party’s standing in sub judice matters.