Mumbai: The Indian National Congress on Sunday announced Akash Vijayrao More as its candidate for the upcoming Baramati Assembly by-election, setting up a direct contest against Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar.

More, currently serving as secretary of the Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee, has a political lineage. His father, Vijayrao More, was a former Member of the Maharashtra Legislative Council. A lawyer by profession, More had previously contested the Assembly elections in 2014 and is known for his alignment with Congress ideology. His candidature has been approved by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge.

According to reports, More is expected to file his nomination on Monday. His selection is being viewed as a calculated move by the Congress, particularly with an eye on mobilising support from the Dhangar community in the constituency.

The Baramati seat, located in Pune district, is widely regarded as a stronghold of the Pawar family. The by-election was initially expected to be uncontested, with senior NCP leader Sunil Tatkare indicating that efforts were underway to reach out to Congress leadership, including Rahul Gandhi, to avoid a direct contest.

However, the political dynamics appear to have shifted. Shiv Sena UBT MP Sanjay Raut earlier dismissed reports of confusion within the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance over seat-sharing for the bypolls. He maintained that Baramati traditionally belongs to Sharad Pawar and stated that elections are a matter of political self-respect.

Raut also noted that the final call on Shiv Sena UBT’s participation would be taken by party chief Uddhav Thackeray. Meanwhile, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), in alliance with the BJP, fielded Sunetra Pawar for the Baramati contest.

The by-election was necessitated following the sudden demise of former Maharashtra Deputy CM and Baramati’s sitting MLA Ajit Pawar. As per the schedule announced by the Election Commission of India, polling will be held on April 23, 2026, with counting slated for May 4. The Baramati bypoll is expected to witness a keen contest, marking a key political battle in one of Maharashtra’s most high-profile constituencies.

Mumbai: Three employees of ISKCON New Vrindavan East Trust (Madhuban Ashram) have been booked for allegedly embezzling the trust’s donation funds. The Khar police have registered a cheating case based on a complaint filed by the trust. The accused have been identified as Prem Prakash Rana, Harsh Kumar Kaushal, and an unidentified individual.

According to the FIR, the trust’s head office is located in Khar West. The trust manages temples and ashrams in Gurgaon (Haryana), Kurukshetra (Haryana), and Rishikesh (Dehradun), along with Madhuban Ashram. At these premises, the trust provides accommodation and meals to devotees at affordable prices. The administration of Madhuban Ashram is operated from the trust’s Khar office. The ashram has a 25-room guest house for devotees.

On January 12, a devotee, Satyavrat Gaud, approached the trust’s Khar office and filed a complaint. He stated that when he visited Madhuban Ashram in December 2025, he had a meal at the ashram’s restaurant. Initially, the cashier asked for cash, which he refused, and then he paid the bill online. Although he received a receipt, it carried the GST number 05ABRPA4645H1ZP, which does not belong to the trust and is not authorised for its use.

In another incident, a devotee, Shreya Torane, visited Madhuban Ashram in January 2026. She was also asked to pay in cash while booking a room. When she refused, the cashier provided a staff member’s mobile number for payment via Google Pay, which she used.

Further, on January 20, another devotee, Rahul Patil, filed a complaint via email stating that the ashram did not accept online donations and insisted on cash payments. After he donated ₹5,000, the staff issued him two receipts of ₹2,000 each and one receipt of ₹1,000.

Following these complaints, the trust initiated an internal inquiry. It revealed that Prem Prakash Rana alias Paramanand Das (50), who worked as a cashier at the Madhuban Ashram guest house, along with another employee, Harsh Kaushal, and their associates, had created a separate entity with a similar name, “Nav Madhuban Ashram Trust”. The accused allegedly used this entity to cheat devotees by issuing fake receipts. Devotees believed they were dealing with the original trust.

The accused allegedly collected donation money in a personal account opened in the name of “Nav Madhuban Ashram Trust”. They also distributed pamphlets during Krishna Janmashtami (August 2025), printing their own UPI IDs to collect donations. The inquiry further revealed that the accused had been defrauding devotees from 2022 to 2026.

Hirishkesh Mafatlal, 71, founder trustee, subsequently filed a formal complaint. Based on this, the police registered a case on March 29 under Section 318(4) (cheating) and other relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

Meanwhile, a similar case had been registered against the accused in Uttarakhand in 2019. However, in 2025, a district court in Tehri Garhwal acquitted them due to a lack of evidence.

Mumbai: Residents of Navpada in Bandra East, who have battled annual waterlogging for years, are set to get relief this monsoon. Western Railway (WR) completed a long-pending drainage upgrade during a 36-hour mega block that began on Saturday, replacing a 36-year-old pipeline that had virtually stopped draining water during heavy rains.

The work involved replacing choked 600mm RCC hume pipes laid in 1991–92 under Culvert No. 22 on the Bandra–Bandra Terminus line with four new 1,200mm diameter pipes using the open-and-cover method. Tracks were temporarily lifted to carry out the work. Around 500 metres of accumulated debris and silt was also cleared, increasing the drain’s discharge capacity by an estimated 200 per cent. The project was jointly planned by the BMC and Western Railway.

The same block was also used to overhaul Level Crossing Gate No. 18, a busy crossing linking Ghasbazar and Kherwadi, and to complete 28 Temporary Speed Restriction (TSR) works. Nearly 70 workers operated round the clock, supported by heavy machinery including poclain, JCB, hydra, and hiyova trucks.