Maharashtra
Govt ‘having fun’ selling national assets built by Nehru: Shiv Sena

In a sharp attack on the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party at the Centre, the Shiv Sena on Sunday said that the ‘long-term vision’ of the late Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru saved the country from the current economic disaster it is reeling under and the present government is now enjoying selling the national assets he created.”The BJP government may have differences with Sonia Gandhi, Rahul or Priyanka, but why this hatred for Nehru? The institutions created by Nehru are being sold by the present government to give a fillip to the economy,” said Sena MP and Chief Spokesperson Sanjay Raut.His comments came over the dropping of photos of India’s first Prime Minister Nehru and the country’s first Education Minister Maulana Abul Kalam Azad from a promotional released by the Union Education Ministry’s Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR) on the 75th year celebrations of India’s Independence, sparking a row recently.Dwelling on Nehru’s nation-building legacy, Raut asserted that “the government is now having fun selling off the national assets created by him, otherwise the country would be starving, people would be jobless and there would have anarchy”.”You should be forever indebted to Nehru but instead, you have wiped out his very role in the Freedom Movement. Why so much animosity towards Nehru. You must reply to the country,” Raut said.Slamming the Central government for the act in his weekly column ‘Rokthok’ in the party newspaper ‘Saamna’ Group, Raut said without the contributions of Nehru and Azad, the history of Indian Freedom Movement “will never be complete”.”Only those who cannot make history consider it a bravado to erase the history of others. Those who kept far away from and never participated in the Freedom Struggle are now trying to keep out one of the heroes of the Independence Movement. This is not proper,” he said.”You may have political differences with Nehru’s party (Congress), or his politics or his domestic and foreign policies. But to remove his contributions to the country’s freedom struggle in this manner is an insult to each freedom-fighter,” Raut added without mincing words.He said that in the same vindictive vein, the government renamed the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award, but the contributions of Nehru and Indira Gandhi to the Indian Independence are “immortal”, and asked what the country hopes to gain by this.In this context, he lauded the political magnanimity displayed recently by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin as an “exemplary act of love, sympathy and respect for political opponents”.Raut said that when he took over as CM, Stalin was confronted with the issue of 6.5 million schoolbags to be distributed free to students, but had the photos of the former CMs the late J. Jayalalitha and E. Palaniswamy who was voted out in May 2021.”When asked by his officials what to do with the bags, CM Stalin categorically said the scheme should not stop because of the photos (Jayalalitha and Palaniswamy), and must be immediately disbursed to the children. He said the state would save Rs 15-crore which can be used in the war against Coronavirus,” Raut pointed out.This is the same CM whose father (the late CM M. Karuranidhi) was dragged out of his home by Jalalalitha’s policemen at the dead of the night and arrested, but Stalin showed a cultured and mature behaviour to forget the old hatred in the state’s interest, and Raut urged “all political parties to take a lesson from this”.
Maharashtra
Ajit Pawar Plays Safe On Nawab Malik; Says ‘Will Present My Point After He Makes His Position Official

After Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis wrote to NCP rival faction chief and fellow Deputy CM Ajit Pawar, opposing Nawab Malik’s induction into the ruling alliance in the state, Ajit Pawar responded saying he would present his point after Nawab Malik made his stand official.
“I received Fadnavis’ letter. First, I will present my point after coming to know what is the official stand of Nawab Malik, I do not decide who sits where in the Assembly, the speaker makes that decision” said Ajit Pawar.
The controversy over Nawab Malik allegedly aligning with Ajit Pawar continues to be a sore point between the alliance partners in Maharashtra.
NCP-Ajit Pawar Faction leader Amol Mitkari said that Nawab Malik has been the party’s spokesperson and a senior leader and the senior leaders of the party will clear their stance on it.
“The sitting arrangement is made by the government. If the legislative assembly Speaker has made the sitting arrangement, then I believe that he must know more about it. Nawab Malik has been the party’s spokesperson and a senior leader now. Our State President of NCP Sunil Tatkare made the stance clear yesterday. I met Ajit Pawar just before this, he or the senior leaders of the party will clear their stance on it” said NCP-Ajit Pawar Faction leader Amol Mitkari.
Sunil Tatkare Says No Formal Discussion On Malik Joining Ajit Pawar-led NCP
Ajit Pawar faction leader Sunil Tatkare on Thursday had said that Nawab Malik was only an old political associate and no formal discussions on joining the faction had been held with him.
“Nawab Malik is our senior colleague for many years. After he was granted bail on the issue of illness, we met as old colleagues to inquire about his health. We have not had any political discussion with them. After coming to the assembly today, it is only natural that he interacts and meets with old colleagues ” Tatkare had said.
UBT Sena leader Sanjay Raut however said that the devlopments were just a pretence and that other Ajit faction leaders also faced strong allegations.
“The Deputy Chief Minister of the state wrote a letter to the second Deputy Chief Minister. In Nagpur, both of them are sitting together in the House and are writing letters and corresponding. There are such allegations against Nawab Malik, this is a farce, if they want they can stand up and tell Nawab Malik, all this is a pretence. BJP is indulging in this farce time and again. There is an allegation of Rs 70 thousand crores against Ajit Pawar ji, Praful Patel’s property has been confiscated, in the same manner as the allegation made against Nawab Malik” Sanjay Raut said.
Speaking on Devendra Fadanvis’ letter, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut said, “Fadnavis should be asked his opinion on Praful Patel and Hasan Mushrif or Ajit Pawar all of whom face allegations of corruption. Many mebers of the Ajit Pawar group like Pratap Sarnaiik and Bhavana gawli also face allegation, how are they part of the BJP alliance. If it was an issue of morality you would not have formed the government with them. Why attack only Nawab Malik?”
Sena (UBT) Slams Dy CM Fadnavis Over Letter
Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi termed CM Devendra Fadnavis’s letter as ‘hypocrisy”.
“This is hypocrisy. There is a vast difference between their words and actions…This hypocrisy is because they are drunk on power. The public can see the compromises that the BJP did in Maharashtra for power. The public can see the betrayal that Eknath Shinde did to his party. The public can see all that Ajit Pawar did to give himself a clean chit. So, this letter is hypocrisy” Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi said.
Meanwhile, Jayant Patil of the Sharad Pawar faction claimed the letter by the Deputy CM Fadnavis was only a way to inform the people that Nawab Malik had become part of the alliance.
“He (Nawab Malik) came to Vidhan Sabha and was sitting on the ruling party’s side. So, the BJP wrote this letter as a way of offering an explanation to the people (for the split in the NCP). Instead of sending a letter to Ajit Pawar, he (Fadnavis) could have just called and informed him. I think this letter was the government’s way of giving an explanation of Malik’s induction to the ruling alliance to the people of Maharashtra,” Patil told reporters in Nagpur.
About Fadnavis’ Letter To Ajit Pawar
Fadnavis on Thursday wrote to his cabinet colleague and NCP leader Ajit Pawar, expressing opposition to the induction of Malik in the ruling ‘Maha Yuti’ or grand alliance in the state.
“Given that he is an accused (in a money laundering case), we are of the opinion that it would not be proper to induct him into the ruling alliance. Power comes and goes but the country is paramount,” Fadnavis had said.
“We agree that it is your prerogative (to decide) who should be inducted in your party. But every constituent (in the Maha Yuti) has to think as to whether it would harm the alliance,” Fadnavis said, adding, “Hence, we are opposed to this”.
Malik is currently out on medical bail after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested him in February 2022 in a money-laundering probe linked to the activities of fugitive gangster Dawood Ibrahim and his aides.
Malik was a cabinet minister in the Uddhav Thackeray-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government at the time of his arrest. Malik attended the Winter Session of the Maharashtra Assembly here for the first time since his bail on Thursday.
He sat on the last bench in the assembly, next to the MLAs of the Ajit Pawar-led faction of the Nationalist Congress Party.
Maharashtra
‘Need To Put In Extra Hours For Disqualification Pleas,’ Says Maha Assembly Speaker In Nagpur

Maharashtra assembly speaker Rahul Narwekar on Thursday said that he would need to put in extra hours to conduct hearings on disqualification petitions while ensuring smooth functioning of the House.
Speaking to reporters in Nagpur, Narwekar said, “I need to ensure the smooth functioning of the legislative assembly as well as complete the disqualification hearings pending before me. It looks like I will be working from 9 am to 10 pm in this period to give justice to both responsibilities.”
Rahul Narwekar is hearing cross-petitions filed by the rival Shiv Sena factions seeking disqualification of each other’s MLAs following a split in the party last year. Narwekar said he would hear the petitions on Thursday for two and a half hours at the Vidhan Bhavan in Nagpur.
Speaker Speaks On Work Being A Challenging Task
The speaker said it would be a challenging task for him to pay attention to both – hearings as well as smooth functioning of the House. The Shiv Sena (UBT) is seeking disqualification of Shinde-led 40 rebel MLAs who revolted against Thackeray, which not only led to the collapse of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government in June 2022, but also caused a split in the 57-year-old party.
The Shinde camp has alleged that the documents based on which the Thackeray-led group has been seeking disqualification of their rival MLAs are “fake”. In September, the Supreme Court had rebuked Narwekar for delaying the adjudication. The court had directed the Speaker to announce within a week the date for the ruling on the disqualification petitions filed by the Sena factions.
Last week, the Uddhav Thackeray-led faction of Shiv Sena wrote to Narwekar urging him to summon the concerned official of the Election Commission (EC) during the disqualification hearing.
Crime
Navi Mumbai: Female College Student Hospitalised After Being Attacked By Beggar With Glass Bottle In Nerul; Accused Held

Navi Mumbai: Police have arrested a beggar for allegedly hitting a female college student on her head with a glass bottle and stabbing her with its broken piece without any provocation at Nerul in Navi Mumbai, in which she was injured, an official said on Thursday.
The incident occurred on December 4, following which the accused, 26-year-old Imam Hassan Shamshuddin, was arrested. The victim, who is 21 years old, is undergoing treatment at a hospital, he said.
The woman, who is from Airoli in Navi Mumbai, had come to a college at Nerul along with a friend. While she was standing at a bus stop in the area around 1.30 pm, the beggar came to the spot and attacked her with an empty glass bottle without any provocation, senior inspector Tanaji Bhagat of Nerul police station said.
Accused stabbed woman with broken glass pieces
The accused hit the woman on her head with the bottle and later stabbed her in the abdomen with its broken piece, in which she was seriously injured. He then fled from the scene, the official said.
People standing nearby took the victim to a hospital, where she is currently undergoing treatment, he added.
A case of attempt to murder was registered and a probe was launched. The police examined the CCTV footage and collected information from its sources, which led to the arrest of the accused, he said.
The motive behind the attack is being probed, the official said.
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