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Wednesday,11-November-2026
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Maha Legislature’s winter session from December 8 to 14

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Mumbai, Dec 3: Amid local body polls, the winter session of the Maharashtra Legislature will be held from December 8 to 14 in Nagpur.

The schedule was finalised on Wednesday at the meetings of the Business Advisory Committee (BAC) of the state Assembly and Council held at Vidhan Bhavan.

The winter session duration was earlier announced from December 8 to 19, when both Houses were prorogued after the conclusion of the monsoon session held in July.

However, the winter session duration has been curtailed as polling during the second phase of the Nagar Parishad and Nagar Panchayat elections is slated for December 20 and counting on December 21.

Speaker Rahul Narwekar chaired the BAC meeting of the state Assembly, while state council Chairman Ram Shinde presided over the BAC meeting of the upper house.

The opposition parties, including Shiv Sena (UBT), Congress and NCP(SP), during the BAC meetings strongly demanded that the duration of the winter session should be not less than three weeks.

They also demanded that the appointment of leaders of the opposition in the state council and Assembly, respectively, should be done without further delays.

Shiv Sena (UBT) legislator Anil Parab confirmed that he and Congress legislator Satej Patil met Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, demanding the appointment of leaders of the opposition.

“It is unconstitutional to hold winter session of the state legislature in the absence of the leaders of the opposition,” he said.

He added that the Chief Minister assured them they would “consider the matter positively.”

Shiv Sena (UBT) legislator Bhaskar Jadhav criticised the government’s “dilly-dallying” over the appointment of leaders of the opposition in the state Council and Assembly, saying that the government fears the opposition’s presence.

“They (ministers) are not brave enough to face the opposition’s barrage of questions,” he claimed. Jadhav slammed the state government for “curtailing” the winter session, demanding that its duration should have been three weeks.

Shiv Sena (UBT) legislator Anil Parab attributed the short duration of the winter session to the impending Municipal Corporation elections in Mumbai, Pune, Nashik, and other major cities, suggesting the government is reluctant to address issues comprehensively before the polls.

“A one-week session is not enough to raise all of Maharashtra’s issues. We only hope that at least Vidarbha’s core issues can be addressed since the session is in Nagpur,” he remarked.

Bhaskar Jadhav argued that the government is “not prepared to extend the session” because, despite having a large majority, “they do not have answers to the torrent of questions from the opposition”.

Bhaskar Jadhav launched a scathing attack on the State Election Commission (SEC) for its alleged inaction on pre-election financial schemes.

“The current State Election Commission seems to be blind, mute, and deaf and working for a political party. Previously, the SEC used to immediately stay financial schemes announced just before elections. But this commission is watching with open eyes while government money is being distributed to buy people’s votes,” he commented.

In a sharp counterattack, BJP legislator Ram Kadam dismissed the opposition’s criticism of the session duration.

“These are the same people who used to wrap up the session in two or three days when they were in power. They are now teaching us how long a session should be,” he retorted.

“These frustrated people need medical treatment,” he said.

Kadam affirmed that the Chief Minister and both Deputy Chief Ministers, Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar, were fully prepared to answer all the opposition’s questions and that the BJP does not work based on election schedules, as elections are a matter for the State Election Commission.

National News

Six coaches of Kolkata–Sairang Express derail in Assam; several injured

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Several passengers were injured after at least six coaches of the Kolkata–Sairang Express derailed near Digaru railway station on the outskirts of Guwahati early Wednesday, officials said.

The incident occurred at around 6.54 a.m. when the train, travelling from Sairang in Mizoram towards Kolkata, derailed along with its locomotive, railway officials said.

Senior officials of the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) rushed to the spot soon after receiving information about the derailment, and rescue and restoration operations were initiated.

Kapinjal Kishore Sharma, Chief Public Relations Officer of the Northeast Frontier Railway, said that there were no reports of casualties so far.

“Six coaches of the Kolkata–Sairang Express derailed at Digaru railway station at around 6.54 a.m. today. So far, no casualties have been reported. Our senior officials have rushed to the spot,” Sharma told media.

Several passengers, however, sustained injuries in the accident. The exact number of those injured, and the severity of their condition, were yet to be officially confirmed.

Railway and local authorities were assessing the situation and making arrangements for assistance to the affected passengers, officials said.

The derailment has also raised concerns over possible disruption of train movement on the route. Railway personnel were working at the site to clear the affected section and restore normal operations at the earliest.

The cause of the derailment was not immediately known.

Railway authorities are expected to conduct a detailed inquiry to ascertain the circumstances that led to the accident.

More details are awaited as rescue teams and senior railway officials continue operations at the site.

The Kolkata–Sairang Express provides an important rail link between Mizoram and eastern India, and the incident is likely to draw attention to railway safety and infrastructure in the strategically important Northeast region.

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Crime

Four arrested as Delhi Police busts gang targeting passengers outside railway stations, ISBTs

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The East District Police busted an organised robbery gang targeting unsuspecting passengers outside railway stations and Inter-State Bus Terminals (ISBTs) by luring them into shared taxi rides. Four alleged members of the gang have been arrested by the staff of Patparganj Industrial Area police station, leading to the detection of four robbery cases.

The police have recovered a car used in the robberies, a stolen mobile phone and Rs 3,800 in cash. The accused have also disclosed their involvement in more than a dozen other robbery incidents, which are being verified.

According to the police, the gang members posed as taxi drivers and offered shared rides to passengers waiting outside railway stations and bus terminals. Once the passengers boarded their vehicle and it travelled some distance, the accused robbed them of their cash, mobile phones and other valuables. In some cases, they also forced victims to transfer money through UPI from their bank accounts.

The case came to light on November 2, when a passenger approached the police alleging that he had been robbed after accepting a shared taxi ride outside ISBT Anand Vihar. The complainant was offered a ride to Kapashera Border. However, shortly after boarding the vehicle, the driver and two other occupants allegedly robbed him of his belongings and forced him to transfer Rs 7,000 through UPI.

Following the complaint, an FIR was registered at Patparganj Industrial Area police station under Sections 307/3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), and an investigation was initiated.

Considering the increased movement of passengers during the festive season, the East District Police constituted a special team to identify and apprehend the suspects. The team, comprising SI Satender Yadav, SI Anshul Khokhar, ASI Ajit Kumar, ASI Arjun Singh, HC Kaushender, HC Sunil Kumar Sharma and HC Anil Kumar, worked under the leadership of the Station House Officer and the supervision of the ACP, Madhu Vihar.

During the investigation, police examined dozens of CCTV camera recordings and analysed the routes allegedly used by the gang. Another similar robbery was reported in the area on November 5, which further strengthened the suspicion that the same gang was involved.

Investigators subsequently identified one of the suspects as a resident of Khoda Colony in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh. Acting on specific Intelligence that the suspects would arrive in the locality in their taxi between 11 p.m. and midnight, the police laid a trap.

At around 11:45 p.m. on November 5, three suspects, identified as Veer Singh (35), Kishanpal (37) and Vijay alias Monu (40), were apprehended along with the Aura car used in the crimes. The fourth accused, Vikas alias Kalia (31), was subsequently arrested during further investigation.

The police said the accused withdrew money extorted through UPI transactions in cash from petrol pumps and CNG stations to facilitate its disposal.

The arrested accused have been identified as Veer Singh, a resident of Sambhal; Kishanpal, a resident of East Vinod Nagar, Delhi; Vijay alias Monu, a resident of Khoda Colony, Ghaziabad; and Vikas alias Kalia, a resident of Khora village, Ghaziabad. Vijay is previously involved in three criminal cases.

With their arrest, police have claimed to have worked out four cases registered on June 14, July 18, November 2 and November 6, 2026, at Patparganj Industrial Area police station.

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General

India condemns misleading content created by Chinese vloggers, deliberate distortion of geographical locations

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New Delhi : India on Tuesday severely condemned attempts being made by the Chinese vloggers to portray impoverished neighbourhoods in Bangladesh’s capital Dhaka as New Delhi through misleading content, saying such efforts to peddle false narratives undermine the credibility of those undertaking and backing them. Addressing a bi-weekly press briefing in New Delhi, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal urged the authorities concerned to take action against those involved.

“We have seen media reports in this regard. Such efforts to present a distorted picture of any country are unfortunate. Insofar as efforts to buy foreign elements to portray Dhaka as Delhi are concerned, the peddling of false narratives only undermines the credibility of those who are undertaking such actions and those who are behind them. And we would urge the authorities concerned to take action against such people,” he said.

The remarks came amid reports that over 150 Chinese nationals have been filming and livestreaming from economically disadvantaged neighbourhoods of Dhaka, falsely depicting them as parts of New Delhi.

While recording footage from these locations, they made disparaging comments about India’s living standards, sanitation, food habits, and poverty.

The misleading portrayal has sparked concerns over the deliberate distortion of geographical locations and the possible use of deceptive online content to create negative perceptions about India among international audiences.

The incident underscored the growing threat posed by misinformation and manipulated content on social media, where sensationalised posts can spread widely before their authenticity is established.

The activities have reportedly been taking place in Dhaka’s Tekpara and Uttara areas for several months, with streamers remaining active from early morning until late at night.

One Chinese woman identified as ‘Mianmian’, who claimed to be from China’s Sichuan province, livestreamed from beside a canal in Uttara Sector 12 of Dhaka on November 1. She reportedly presented the area to her online audience as New Delhi and described the residential buildings and surrounding areas as dirty, underdeveloped, and unhygienic.

“This is New Delhi. Their homes are extremely dirty. There isn’t even a fan inside the tin-roofed houses. This place is quite underdeveloped, dirty and unhygienic, and the law-and-order situation is poor,” leading Bangladeshi daily ‘Prothom Alo’ quoted her as saying.

In another instance, a Chinese national was seen live streaming from tea stalls in the Tekpara locality of Dhaka, making the offensive remarks that the tea consumed by locals was made using “cow urine”.

“Look, they are drinking tea. Do you know what kind of tea this is? This is cow urine tea. They drink cow urine tea,” Prothom Alo quoted him as saying.

The footage also contained derogatory comments on the residents’ lifestyles, with repeated references to poor hygiene, lack of sanitation, and substandard living conditions.

These are not isolated incidents, as reports of Chinese content creators recording videos in Dhaka’s underprivileged neighbourhoods have been emerging since May 2026.

The recurring pattern of Chinese content creators repeatedly filming in the same low-income neighbourhoods, along with allegations of geographical misrepresentation and intrusive filming, raises concerns about attempts to undermine India’s image internationally.

These recent developments point to a coordinated anti-India campaign. The issue is not merely the recording of impoverished neighbourhoods, but the calculated misrepresentation of locations in another country as parts of India, coupled with disparaging remarks intended to influence how international audiences perceive Indian society.

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