Chandigarh, Oct 15: A day after a confrontation between Chandigarh Police and Punjab Police over the custody, Janata Party president Navneet Chaturvedi, who allegedly forged the signature of legislators on nomination papers for the lone Rajya Sabha seat, on Wednesday moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court, seeking protection from arrest in the criminal case registered against him.

In the petition, Chaturvedi sought protection from arrest for 10 days and directions to the Punjab Police to produce the first information report (FIR) registered against him before the court. He also alleged attempts to abduct him by the Punjab Police on Tuesday.

Punjab Police have also moved a petition in the high court seeking his custody. After the FIR was registered in Ropar, a Punjab Police team went to Chandigarh to arrest him, but the Chandigarh Police took him into their custody.

Punjab Police on Monday reportedly registered multiple FIRs after several Aam Aadmi Party MLAs alleged that their signatures were forged on nomination papers submitted by Chaturvedi, who claims to be the national president of the Janata Party for the Rajya Sabha bypoll.

Advocate General Maninderjit Singh Bedi and Additional Advocate General Chanchal Singla sought transfer of custody of the accused to the Punjab Police, and initiation of contempt and departmental action against the officials responsible for defiance of court orders.

The Punjab Police have initiated legal action following receipt of complaints from sitting Members of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha (MLAs) regarding the alleged forgery of their signatures on nomination papers submitted by Chaturvedi.

A spokesperson for Punjab Police on Monday said the complainant MLAs have stated that they received messages and social media posts indicating that their names had been mentioned as proposers in the nomination papers filed by Chaturvedi before the Secretary of the Vidhan Sabha. Chaturvedi has filed two nominations, one on October 6 and another on October 13.

In their complaint, MLAs stated that it was found that a handwritten list of proposers, purportedly bearing the signatures of these MLAs, had been attached to the nomination papers, and the same was being circulated on digital platforms.

The MLAs have categorically denied having signed or supported the said nomination, and have alleged that their names and signatures were forged and fraudulently used without consent.

The forged documents, submitted before a constitutional authority, constitute a serious offence involving forgery, cheating, and criminal conspiracy. Based on these complaints, FIRs have been registered at different police stations in the constituencies of the complainant MLAs against said Chaturvedi.

Mumbai: Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) leaders, along with MNS chief Raj Thackeray, visited the Maharashtra Election Commission office in Mumbai on Wednesday for a meeting with the Chief Election Officer (CEO).

Shiv Sena UBT chief Uddhav Thackeray, UBT leader Aaditya Thackeray and Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar were also present in the election meeting.

Speaking to reporters, Uddhav Thackeray stated that they have demanded that the poll panel rectify the voter list and conduct elections after rectification.

The Shiv Sena (UBT) chief said, “Before the assembly elections of 2024, MVA had written a letter to the EC that the BJP is adding people to the voter list because it wanted to bring to your notice. We had clearly stated that until these flaws are rectified, elections should not be conducted. Also, another important point raised is that those till 31st July who have turned 18 years will only be allowed to vote. The cutoff of July 31st is unacceptable.” “Our first focus is to rectify the voter list and then prevent vote theft… We have an objection to EVM. Now, they don’t want to use VVPAT. Is it because they want to destroy the proofs? It is against democracy. When all party delegations met the Election Commission, we also called the BJP leaders, but they did not attend the meeting…” he added.

Meanwhile, in a post on X, Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar said that they met the Election Commission officials to discuss the need to ensure that the upcoming local body elections in the state are completely transparent, fair and uphold democratic values.

The post reads, “A multi-party delegation met with the Chief Election Officer and the State Election Commissioner today to discuss ensuring that the upcoming local self-government institution elections in the state are conducted in a completely transparent, impartial manner, upholding democratic values. The foundation of democracy is trust and transparency; to sustain this trust, it is essential that every election process is flawless. This demand was made on this occasion.”

Mumbai: Responding to widespread passenger complaints over poor mobile network connectivity in the underground Metro Line-3 corridor, the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation (MMRC) has announced the rollout of free Wi-Fi across all stations on the Aqua Line. The initiative aims to make digital ticket booking easier through the MetroConnect3 mobile app and improve overall commuter convenience.

According to MMRC, the free Wi-Fi facility is now available at the concourse (ticketing) level of all stations. MMRC aims at easing ticket booking and travel seamless for passengers by simply logging into the MetroConnect3 app before entering the station.

Download and sign in to the MetroConnect3 app before arriving at the station.

Open your device’s Wi-Fi settings and select MetroConnect3.

Open the app, go to Profile, and tap Connect to Wi-Fi to access free internet (available for ticket booking only).

The MMRC said over 1.6 lakh passengers used the Aqua Line on Monday, but many struggled to book tickets due to poor network reception inside the underground tunnels. The new Wi-Fi facility, the agency added, is free, secure, and reliable for all commuters.

Meanwhile, ACES India recently partnered with Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) to install advanced 4G and 5G In-Building Solutions (IBS) across the 33.5-km-long Aqua Line. This system will ensure high-speed mobile coverage in all 27 underground stations and interconnected tunnels, benefiting millions of daily passengers once fully operational.