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Maharashtra

Maha Story: Shinde ‘most popular’, DyCM Fadnavis next; Shinde-Modi a ‘dream-team’

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Springing a surprise, the ruling Shiv Sena on Tuesday claimed that Chief Minister Eknath Shinde was voted as the “most popular” leader in Maharashtra, several notches higher than the ally Bharatiya Janata Party’s Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis.

Going a step further, Shinde has been catapulted above Fadnavis and below Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with the legend: “Modi in rashtra; Shinde in Maharashtra” (Modi in India, Shinde in Maharashtra), rattling the state BJP.

These are touted as the findings of an undated, purported Voters Survey in which the startling results have emerged.

The Shiv Sena proclaimed that as far the popular choice for the post of CM was concerned, Shinde had bagged 26.1 per cent of the voters’ nod, piping Fadnavis – by a margin of 2.9 per cent – to play the second fiddle by securing 23.2 per cent.

The shocks for the BJP continued. The ad contends that Modi and Shinde are getting huge affection from the people in the survey, virtually making them a “dream-team”.

“The partnership of Modi-Shinde that has resulted in many public welfare projects has got the top position in a recent survey,” said the ad, rattling BJP circles.

“Accordingly, 49.3 per cent of the people in Maharashtra have selected the partnership of Shinde-Fadnavis. We thank the masses for their support,” said the Shiv Sena, patting itself.

As many as 30.2 per cent of the voters rooted for BJP and 16.2 per cent preferred the Shiv Sena – or a total of 46.4 per cent – in the survey, details of which are not disclosed.

The survey results come with a large photo of Modi looking and grinning at Shinde who reciprocates, but the anticipated usual picture of Fadnavis conspicuously missing from the ads.

Though the Shiv Sena’s name symbol of Bow-and-Arrow figures at the top right, there is no reference to the party’s founder the late Balasaheb Thackeray, (the father of former CM Uddhav Thackeray) to whom Shinde and his supporters regularly pay lip-service.

The ad has created more than mere ripples in political circles, with many speculating whether Shinde is flexing his muscles vis-A-vis the aggressive Fadnavis and showing him his place.

It may be recalled that in the 2014 and 2019 Assembly elections, the BJP had fought the polls on the plank of “Narendra (Modi) in India, Devendra (Fadnavis) in Maharashtra”.

However, now Shinde has ejected Fadnavis from that slot as per the survey results, and he has perched himself there with the brand new slogan of ‘Modi in rashtra, Shinde in Maharashtra’.

The full-paper ad figures in many leading Marathi papers and comes days after a row was kicked up over the CM’s son and Thane MP, Dr Shrikant Shinde’s threat to quit, and the bickering over the much-delayed cabinet expansion plans.

The ad comes barely a fortnight ahead of the first anniversary of swearing-in of Shinde-Fadnavis regime on June 30, 2022, after the Maha Vikas Aghadi government of Shiv Sena (UBT)-Congress-Nationalist Congress Party led by Thackeray was toppled.

Maharashtra

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

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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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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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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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