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How many times did Parliament discuss conduct of Speaker, SC asks Uddhav faction

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4 years ago

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 The Supreme Court on Tuesday shot a volley of questions at the Uddhav Thackeray faction, asking how many times did the Parliament discuss a review of the conduct of the Speaker, why is that question raised before the court, and also, why should the court change rules just because one or two Speakers went astray.

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing the Uddhav Thackeray faction, submitted before a five-judge constitution bench, headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud, that “your lordships have great confidence in the constitutional office of the Speaker but do they discharge this confidence?”

At this, the Chief Justice replied: “You also have that confidence when you say that the Speaker has to decide the disqualification petitions… that is not dependent on who is the Speaker, Mr Sibal”. He added that the constitutional authority of the Speaker to decide is not based on who the Speaker is.

Sibal said the a Speaker who appoints the whip and Leader of the Opposition without reference to the political party, “you think he can decide in my favour, there is no way!”

The Chief Justice said: “The first Speaker in defiance of legislative rules gave two days’ notice… this is the way everybody is behaving. There are two options: either you debunk the authority of the Speaker or.. in a democracy you value the office of the institution… denigrating constitutional offices including the office of the Speaker.”

When Sibal said they are denigrating themselves, the bench — also comprising Justices M.R. Shah, Krishna Murari, Hima Kohli and P.S. Narasimha — said: “It is a race to the bottom then.”

Justice Narasimha told Sibal: “Legislators, parliamentarians…. decided upon the Speaker to be the tribunal.. it is parliamentarians’ decision, the Tenth Schedule. Therefore, the court is only interpreting that…”

Sibal referred to the decision of the apex court on 27 June last year, where the court granted interim relief to Shinde faction by extending the time to file responses to the disqualification notices. It later, on June 29, gave the go-ahead to a floor test called by the Governor.

Justice Narasimha orally observed: “On one hand if the Speaker is with you, you would say it is a constitutional authority. What is wrong with it… if you have some difficulty, you mean, not you. Look at the way Speakers have behaved. For us, as long as the constitution bench judgment is there, we will go by the fact that the Speaker is the tribunal.”

The bench further added that the Speaker is the presiding officer as per Tenth Schedule and “we will not go back on the decision, that is the final decision, as far as we are concerned”.

Sibal replied by that logic, the June 27 order could not have been passed, and that is what led to what way we are today.

Justice Kohli said that if one or two Speakers have gone astray, would the court be inclined to debunk the whole procedure as laid down and the Tenth Schedule?

To this, Sibal said: My intention is not that, I have been telling what is happening.” Justice Kohli said then it is a conundrum. Sibal said: “Yes, it is a conundrum, a constitutional conundrum and somebody has to sort it out.”

At this juncture, justice Narasimha said: “Another question, every time this question is raised before the court. I would want to ask you how many times did the parliamentarians raise this question in the Parliament saying let us actually amend the Constitution.”

“How many times did the discussion take place in the Parliament to review the conduct of the Speaker. Why is that question raised before the court, which is not a forum for consideration. how many times parties have sat down together and decided this is not working?” he asked.

“Once Kihoto Hollohan was rendered then,” Sibal said referring to the apex court verdict in the 1992 case, upholding the sweeping discretion available to the Speaker in deciding cases of disqualification of MLAs.

Justice Narasimha replied: “Why, it only upheld the Tenth Schedule. It is your making, the Tenth Schedule. This will take us nowhere, Mr Sibal. Frankly, unless there is an amendment to the Constitution, there is a reference, a direct challenge…”

The top court made these observations while dealing with Maharashtra political crisis triggered due to rebellion in the Shiv Sena. It will continue to hear the matter on Wednesday.

On February 17, the apex court had declined to make immediate reference to a seven-judge bench the reconsideration of its 2016 Nabam Rebia judgment, which restricted the power of the Speaker to examine disqualification petitions against MLAs if a resolution for his removal is pending.

A five-judge bench headed by Chief Justice of India said the issue of reference will be decided only with the merits of the case and fixed the matter for hearing on merits on February 21.

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Maharashtra

Kasturba Marg Police recover 100 stolen mobile phones, return them to their original owners

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October 3, 2026

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Acting on complaints regarding stolen and lost mobile phones within the jurisdiction of the Kasturba Marg Police Station in Mumbai, police analyzed data from the CEIR portal and conducted technical investigations. By verifying device details, IMEI numbers, and user information, officers from the Kasturba Marg Police Station tracked down and recovered a total of 100 mobile phones from locations across Mumbai and other parts of Maharashtra.

The total estimated value of the 100 recovered mobile phones is ₹2,270,658. Of these, 18 phones have already been returned to their respective owners/complainants, including: 1) Rajendra Puri, 2) Khush Saw, 3) Kripa Lodhiya, 4) Shreya Satam, 5) Atul Sathe, 6) Priyanka Mistri, 7) Banu Tarang, 8) Prem Gupta, 9) Adya Shaikh, 10) Shweta Shah, 11) Sandhya Pandit, 12) Deepak Sawdekar, 13) Saurabh Jhangar, 14) Ketan Shete, 15) Onkar Raut, 16) Jayalal Yadav, 17) Lakshmi Appa Kripagiri, and 18) Praveen Dubey. The process of returning the remaining phones to their owners is currently underway.

This operation was carried out under the supervision of the DCP (North, Zone 3), Mumbai, by the team at Kasturba Marg Police Station, led by Balasaheb Bunkar.

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Crime

CBI books Mumbai firm, officials in Rs 93.44 crore loan fraud case

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1 day ago

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October 3, 2026

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Mumbai, Oct 3: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) conducted searches at multiple premises in Mumbai and registered a Rs 93.44 crore bank fraud case against officials of Hanjer Biotech Energies on the complaint of Punjab National Bank, an official said on Saturday.

The CBI conducted searches on Friday at multiple premises linked to the directors of Hanjer Biotech Energies in Mumbai, the CBI said in a statement.

The CBI registered the instant case on September 30, 2026, on the complaint of Punjab National Bank, SAM Branch, Mumbai, against Hanjer Biotech Energies, its directors and guarantors, unknown public servants and unknown private persons.

The accused were booked for offences of criminal conspiracy for cheating and offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act, resulting in alleged wrongful loss of approximately Rs 93.44 Crore to the bank.

It was alleged that the accused entered into a criminal conspiracy, obtained term loan of Rs 135 crore on the invoices of its related party and diverted/siphoned off the funds for other purposes for which it was not sanctioned, causing loss to the bank, the CBI said.

During the searches on Friday, incriminating bank documents and property documents relevant to the investigation were recovered and seized.

Investigation is continuing to ascertain the full extent of the conspiracy, identify the role of all involved persons, including public servants and private individuals, and trace the end-use of the loan funds, the CBI said.

In a separate case on Friday, the CBI arrested an Executive Engineer of the Central Public Works Department (CPWD), Mumbai, his relative and three officials of a Mumbai-based real estate group, in a Rs 50 lakh bribery case related to the issuance of a No-Objection Certificate (NOC) for a land parcel.

Vikrant Verma, Executive Engineer, CPWD Mumbai; Saurav Gupta, Verma’s relative based in Pune; and Arvind Semwal, Vice President, Baya Company, were among those named in the FIR by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Thursday, an official said.

The arrested accused were produced before the Special CBI Judge in Mumbai on Friday, the official said in a statement.

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Maharashtra

Monsoon Withdraws Further from Maharashtra; Hot and Humid Weather Alert Issued for Konkan Region

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1 day ago

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October 3, 2026

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MUMBAI PRESS — The India Meteorological Department (IMD) announced on Saturday, October 3, 2026, that the Southwest Monsoon has withdrawn from parts of Maharashtra, as well as the remaining regions of North India, Gujarat, and Madhya Pradesh.

The current withdrawal line of the Southwest Monsoon passes through Harnai, Baramati, Parbhani, and Brahmapuri in Maharashtra, extending northeastward through Raipur, Ranchi, and Supaul. Weather officials stated that conditions are favorable for further retreat from most parts of Marathwada, Vidarbha, and additional areas of Madhya Maharashtra over the next 2 to 3 days.

Hot and Humid Stretch for Coastal Maharashtra
Residents in the coastal belt should prepare for elevated discomfort over the weekend. The IMD has issued a hot and humid weather warning for Konkan & Goa prevailing from October 3 through October 5.
Following this dry and muggy stretch, mild weather activity is expected to return to the region. Isolated to scattered rainfall is forecast across Konkan & Goa and Madhya Maharashtra between October 6 and October 9.

Southern and Northeastern Forecast
While monsoon forces retreat from central and northern parts of India, southern states are bracing for heavy downpours. Isolated heavy rainfall is predicted over Kerala, Mahe, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, and Karaikal from October 4 to October 6, with South Interior Karnataka expected to receive heavy spells on October 5 and 6.

In the northeast, isolated heavy rainfall is expected to continue over Assam, Meghalaya, and Arunachal Pradesh through October 3.

Advisory for Fishermen
Due to lower-tropospheric cyclonic circulations over the Arabian Sea, the IMD has urged fishermen not to venture into the sea along and off the Kerala coast, Lakshadweep, Maldives, and the Comorin area on October 3. Farmers in heavy rainfall zones have also been advised to ensure proper field drainage and move harvested crops to covered storage to prevent crop damage.

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