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Maharashtra

Maha ATS lawyers to track Malegaon-2008 blast case hearing

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Alarmed by witnesses turning hostile in the Malegaon-2008 blasts case, the Maharashtra government lawyers shall now remain in the Special NIA Court where the trial is being conducted on a daily basis, Home Minister Dilip Walse-Patil said here on Saturday.

He told the media persons that the National Investigation Agency (NIA) had taken over the case (from the state ATS), but the state government is perturbed at the manner in which several critical witnesses have become hostile in the Special Court.

The significant development came two days after the ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) ally Congress had raised the issue and drawn the attention of the Home Ministry and the ATS.

Congress state Working President M. Arif Naseem Khan had submitted a memorandum to the Additional Director-General of Police and ATS chief Vineet Agrawal urging necessary measures to monitor the case closely.

“We are thankful to Home Minister Walse-Patil for accepting our demand for a team to keep a track on the court proceedings. The presence of the ATS lawyers will help in a free and fair trial,” Khan said in a statement.

An ex-minister, Khan reiterated that the NIA is allegedly ‘weakening’ the Malegaon-2008 case and not pursuing it with ‘honesty and sincerity’.

In his memorandum to the ATS Chief Agrawal, Khan contended that the witnesses turning hostile are invoking the names of Bharatiya Janata Party-RSS leaders to “malign the Maharashtra government and ATS” for gaining political mileage in the upcoming Uttar Pradesh elections.

The September 29, 2008 (Malegaon 2008) bomb blast was allegedly engineered in this minority-dominated Nashik town by Hindu fundamentalists, killing 6 and injuring over 100 others, during the Ramadan month when Muslims were breaking their fast.

The Maharashtra Police and then the ATS probed the case till 2011 when it was taken over by the NIA, and the trial is going on daily before the Special NIA Court in Mumbai.

Of the 223 witnesses examined, 16 have turned hostile, claiming that the ATS tortured them to give evidence against the accused, said Khan, urging the need for the presence of the ATS in the court to protect the image of the Maharashtra government.

Among the accused in the sensational Malegaon 2008 case are BJP MP Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur, Swami Amritananda Dev Teerth, Dayanand Pandey, Lt. Col. Prasad S. Purohit, and others.

Khan said that the ATS was being sought to be tarnished as an ‘anti-Hindu’ agency with the witnesses, allegedly influenced by the accused, deliberately naming BJP-RSS people ahead of the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls for political gains.

“The NIA is not prosecuting all the accused with honesty and sincerity. Out of 223 witnesses who deposed so far, 16 important ones have turned hostile and over a 100 more are still left to be examined. These witnesses are crucial and need to be protected. The NIA has not challenged any orders passed in favour of the accused which shows their intentions clearly,” Khan said.

Some of the witnesses in Malegaon 2008 case even went beyond their recorded statement mentioning names like Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, but the NIA’s Special Public Prosecutor took no objection, and another witness claimed he was tortured and threatened by the ATS to take names of Yogi and 4 RSS leaders.

Maharashtra

Mumbai: Rickshaw driver beaten up in Vikhroli on suspicion of child theft, burqa-clad driver did this to collect fare, police claim

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Mumbai: Vikhroli Park Site, after the rumor of a child theft, chaos broke out and an auto rickshaw driver was attacked by a mob when he went to the street of Vikhroli Madina Masjid dressed in a burqa to collect his fare. During this, people suspected that the child had come to steal, after which the mob beat him up, but the police reached the spot and then took him into their custody. During interrogation, it was found that the child had not come wearing a burqa to steal but to collect the fare. He was dressed in a burqa so that no one would recognize him and he could easily collect his fare and go back, but unfortunately, the people caught him and the police took him out of the mob’s possession and safely took him to the police station. After that, the police confirmed that the child had not come to steal. Further investigation is underway in this matter. The police said that along with the investigation, it is also being found out whether he really came to collect the fare or not. He is a thief. Initial investigation has revealed that the child is not a thief. The police have confirmed that the rickshaw driver is not a thief.

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Maharashtra

Municipal Corporation in Mumbai is committed to conducting administration and election process in a fearless, free and transparent environment: Bhushan Gagrani

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Mumbai: Municipal Corporation Administration and Election System Mumbai Municipal Corporation is committed to conducting the election process for the general elections 2025-26 in a completely fearless, free, transparent and disciplined environment. In this regard, the Mumbai Municipal Corporation Administration has made all and extensive preparations and all necessary measures are being implemented effectively. The role of political parties is very important in the election process. In order to promote democratic values ​​and make the election process fair, transparent and credible, all political parties, their office bearers and workers should strictly follow the code of conduct framed by the State Election Commission and cooperate with the Municipal Corporation Administration. A positive and exemplary example should be set in the electoral process, this appeal was made by Municipal Commissioner and District Election Officer Bhushan Gagrani. A meeting was held with representatives of political parties at the Municipal Corporation headquarters today in connection with the Mumbai Municipal Corporation general elections 2025-26. On this occasion, Gagrani presented detailed information about various administrative, technical and legal aspects of the elections.

Additional Municipal Commissioner (City) Dr. Ashwini Joshi, Special Duty Officer (Election) Vijay Balmwar, Joint Commissioner (Tax Assessment and Collection) Vishwas Shankarwar, Assistant Commissioner (Taxation and Collection) Gajanan Belle, UP Election Officer Vijay Kumar Suryavanshi and other office bearers and representatives of various political parties were present in the meeting. Political parties were provided detailed information about the offices of 23 Election Decision Officers and their scope of work for the smooth conduct of the elections. Along with this, guidance was also given on the process of filing nomination papers, scrutiny of applications, registration of objections and how to contact these offices for day-to-day work in the election process. Municipal Commissioner Shri said that all necessary arrangements have been completed at the level of the Election Decision Officer so that the candidates do not face any technical problems.

Additional Municipal Commissioner (City) Dr. Ashwani Joshi said that all guidelines have been given so that the candidates do not make any mistakes while filing nomination papers (candidate applications) for the elections. The concerned persons should submit all the information in the prescribed format. Candidates should take special care that no application is rejected due to technical difficulties. It is mandatory for the candidates to fill all the information correctly and clearly in the affidavit submitted with their application. He said that if any column is left blank in the affidavit or if incorrect information is found, the nomination of the candidate, along with all other matters, can be cancelled.

Joint Commissioner (Tax Assessment and Collection) Vishwas Shankarwar said that the main objective of the administration is to increase the voting percentage to strengthen democracy. For this, political parties should create awareness among the voters. Public awareness is being created among the voters under the ‘SVEEP’ program by the Municipal Corporation. Also, it is mandatory to follow the guidelines of the esteemed State Election Commission regarding election expenses. Candidates should keep a record of every expense incurred during the election campaign and submit the account of election expenses within the stipulated time. Various doubts raised by the representatives of political parties on various issues were cleared including caste verification certificate, toilet usage certificate, Appendix 1 and Appendix 2, appointment of representatives of election candidates.

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Maharashtra

Mira Road: Bundles Of Blank PVC Aadhar Card Found On Roadside Near Kashimira Ahead Of Municipal Corporations Polls 2026

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Mira Road: showing bundles of blank PVC Aadhaar cards lying on the roadside in the Kashimira area of Mira Road has gone viral on social media. The incident has sparked questions, especially as the Mira Bhayandar Municipal Corporation elections are scheduled to be held on January 15, 2026.

The video was shared on Instagram by a local page, Mirabhayanderkar. In the post, the user questioned how blank Aadhaar PVC cards were found in public and whether their presence was legal, hinting at possible misuse ahead of the civic polls. The post captioned, “Blank PVC AADHAR CARD found on ROADS in #Kashimira. Is it legal or something fishy going on, when #MBMCelection are coming????”

One user wrote, “Kisi xerox wale ka hoga ya printing wale ka.” Some other user clarified, saying that these blank PVC cards are not used for original cards. “These are stationery-shop PVC cards, not original Aadhaar cards. After the government changed the official Aadhaar printing format, these pre-printed PVC cards can no longer be used as valid Aadhaar copies.”

Some other user highlighted, “Bhayander east BP road pe 300 rs Mai nakli PAN Card Aadhar card bantae hai. Sirf aapna photo de do aur 4-6 din Mai card hath Mai, bahut saare Bangladeshi aur pata nhi kaha kaha ke log hai Jo kaafi time se aise yaha pe rahete hai.”

The Mira Bhayandar Municipal Corporation has a total of 24 wards. The civic body has 8,89,151 total number of registered voters. Of these, 4,33,553 are male voters, while 3,86,788 are female voters. The report also stated that the process of removing duplicate names from the voter list is still ongoing, and a final report on repeat voters will be submitted to the Election Commission before December 27.

With the upcoming metro connectivity, Mira Bhayandar’s link to Mumbai city is expected to improve significantly. For residents of Mira Bhayandar, transportation has long been the biggest concern.

Traffic congestion and poor road conditions have been persistent problems for Mira Bhayandar. Moreover, as several parts of Mumbai have recently witnessed debates over the Marathi and Hindi language issue, Bhayandar faces a different social challenge. The area, which has a large population of Marwadis, Jains, and Brahmins, often sees disputes related to vegetarian vs non-vegetarian food practices.

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