Maharashtra
Maharashtra Assembly Elections 2024: Scramble For Seats In Both Alliances; All Partners Eyeing 100+ Seats

Mumbai: Preparations for the state assembly polls are going none too smoothly, neither for the ruling Mahayuti nor for the Maha Vikas Aghadi. In both cases, alliance partners are seeking to contest close to 100 seats or more.
On Thursday, the mood in the Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena was that the party should contest 110 seats. In a meeting at Shinde’s official residence Varsha, where ministers, MPs, MLAs and senior leaders were present, it was announced that party observers had been appointed for the purpose. According to sources, Shinde directed his party members to start preparations for 100 assembly seats. Along with observers, the party will also appoint an in-charge for every assembly seat it wants to contest.
This is in tune with a demand raised at the party’s anniversary day function, where former minister Ramdas Kadam demanded 100 seats in the presence of CM Shinde. The party’s resolve is likely to evoke strong reactions in the Mahayuti as the Ajit Pawar-led NCP is also keen on contesting 85 to 100 seats in the upcoming elections.
Ajit Camp To Contest On 100 Seats
Dharmarao Atram, a senior cabinet member, said the Ajit Pawar-led NCP was keen to contest 100 seats and had started working on it. When a similar demand had been raised by NCP minister Chhagan Bhujbal some time ago, it had raised hackles. With Shinde and Pawar both vying for such a big share, the situation appears grim as the BJP will have to reserve its right to contest the maximum number of seats, say Mahayuti sources.
Meanwhile, Shinde has directed his party leaders to spread the word about the state government’s schemes in every home. He has also directed the induction of new members in the party and their enrolment before the election.
Party leaders must also ensure that no clashes take place with any Mahayuti leader, warned Shinde, cautioning that there were likely to be a few seat exchanges among the alliance partners. This message caused unhappiness, as it evoked the runup to the recent Lok Sabha polls, where the party had to change faces in some constituencies.
Apart from this, Shinde said sitting MLAs would be given first preference for tickets. A coordination committee of the Mahayuti would be set up to resolve disputes were they to arise during the elections.
On the other hand, reports from the BJP said two central observers – Union Ministers Bhupender Yadav and Ashwini Vaishnaw – had a meeting with senior leaders to discuss poll-related issues.
Yadav, who is the Union Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, and Vaishnaw, who is the Union Railway Minister, are the in-charge and co-incharge of the party in Maharashtra, respectively. Members of the core committee of the state BJP, including Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, and the party’s state unit chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule, were present, party sources said.
The meeting assumes significance in view of a report that appeared in the RSSlinked publication ‘Vivek’ that blamed the BJP’s decision to forge an alliance with Ajit Pawar-led NCP for the party’s bad performance in the Lok Sabha elections.
100-Plus Race Within MVA Partners Too
MVA partners too firm on big share UBT Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, in a meeting with his party leaders, discussed contesting 100-plus seats, of which 25 would be in Mumbai. The city and suburban district has 36 assembly constituencies, of which 14 were won by the Shiv Sena last time. Only eight MLAs from Mumbai are currently with Thackeray, with the rest of them having crossed over to the Shinde-led Shiv Sena.
NCP Sharad Chandra Pawar too is keen to contest close to 100 seats. With a major chunk being demanded by state level players, it will be interesting to see how many seats the BJP and Congress – both national parties, are going to contest.
Maharashtra
Uddhav Thackeray Camp Mocks Mahayuti Infighting, Says Maharashtra Govt Suffering From Leadership Crisis

Mumbai: Shiv Sena(UBT) on Monday claimed that all is not well in the Mahayuti government as, despite a roaring majority, the alliance partners — BJP, Shiv Sena and NCP — are involved in proxy war and all the top leaders want to become the Chief Minister.
The editorial attacked the May 3 meeting held by the state government to mark the completion of 65 years of the formation of Maharashtra state, where all former CMs were invited, but none from the opposition camp attended. Former CM Eknath Shinde also stayed away and sent a representative.
The Thackeray camp in the party mouthpiece Saamana editorial said that everyone in the grand alliance is testing each other. Ajit Pawar has launched a drive to bring in discipline in the finance department, while the Chief Minister has curbed the dominance of the contractors, which has made former Chief Minister Eknath Shinde uneasy, and his party ministers are feeling the pinch.
“Shiv Sena Minister Sanjay Shirsat called Ajit Pawar ‘Shakuni’ (cunning and manipulative villain) after the funds of the Social Justice department held by him were diverted to Ladki Bahin Yojana. As a result, the minister’s bungalow, car and two peons were left in the social justice department. The war in the state government has reached such a point that the concerned minister angrily demanded the closure of the social justice department. Now, the latest is that the former Chief Minister, Eknath Shinde, skipped the felicitation of former chief ministers organised by NCP on May 3 to mark the completion of 65 years of the formation of Maharashtra state,” the Saamana editorial said.
“The question is that those who call Ajit Pawar ‘Shakuni’ today will not hesitate to call Fadnavis ‘Duryodhana’ (Villain in the Mahabharata story; the eldest and greatest of the Kauravas) tomorrow. Prakash Ambedkar (the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi founder) says, the moment of ‘swallowing’ is approaching. “It’s just a matter of watching who will swallow whom (in the Mahayuti),” said the editorial.
Prakash Ambedkar has warned that ‘Shinde-Pawar should be careful. “You never know when the python will swallow you. Ambedkar likened Fadnavis to a python, but those who sacrificed 56 male buffaloes at the Kamakhya Devi temple will not hesitate to attack the python’s head,” claimed the editorial, indicating that former CM Eknath Shinde will not leave his chase for the CM’s post.
“The Maharashtra government has a majority, but is the government stable? The government is not stable and the government’s mental health is not good, as can be seen from the daily developments,” taunted the Thackeray camp.
“Devendra Fadnavis is currently the Chief Minister. At the same time, Ajit Pawar also wants to become the Chief Minister, and he has openly said so. Ajit Pawar has become the Deputy Chief Minister six times, which is a record, but he has not become the Chief Minister with such a strong hold yet. If he stays with the BJP, his desire to become the Chief Minister will never be fulfilled. Why would Amit Shah make a rival’s nephew the Chief Minister? This is a simple question,” said the editorial.
“For many years, I have also wanted to become the Chief Minister, but that combination has not come together anywhere,’ Ajit Pawar admitted again on Saturday. Even though Ajit Pawar said this, Fadnavis is not scared. The felicitation of former chief ministers was organised last week by the Amit Shah-led NCP, though Ajit Pawar looks after the party work in Maharashtra,” claimed the Thackeray camp in a stinging swipe.
“Ajit Pawar took the initiative to felicitate the former Chief Ministers of Maharashtra. Sharad Pawar, Sushilkumar Shinde, Prithviraj Chavan and Uddhav Thackeray did not turn up at the ‘felicitation ceremony’ for former Chief Ministers, but the ever-vivid former Chief Minister Eknath Shinde also boycotted the felicitation ceremony and sent his representative to the event. Shinde avoided attending the felicitation ceremony as a former Chief Minister. Because his mind is not ready to accept that he is no longer the state Chief Minister,” said the editorial.
“Even after the Assembly elections, his (Eknath Shinde) party chief, Amit Shah, had told him that he would be the Chief Minister, but Fadnavis snatched away the crown. Since then, this gentleman (Eknath Shinde) has been walking around with a knot in his beard while hinting that he will become the CM again,” said the editorial in a dig at Eknath Shinde and Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
“In fact, if Shinde is not ready to call himself ‘former’, then he should always call himself ‘future’ Chief Minister. Overall, there is confusion in the current government of Maharashtra. Maharashtra is suffering from this confusion. Two former Chief Ministers were present at the felicitation ceremony organised by Ajit Pawar’s group. One of them, Narayan Rane, was the Chief Minister in the Shiv Sena-BJP coalition government. Later, he changed many parties, but did not become the Chief Minister. This means that the Shiv Sena chief has turned many stones into gods. ”If it were not for the Shiv Sena, the police would have conducted our encounter. We survived because of the Shiv Sena,” Rane has admitted in the past,” said the editorial.
“The other former Chief Minister who was present was Ashok Chavan, who lost his Chief Ministership in the Adarsh scam of the Defence Department. Now he has joined the BJP. Such a (former) Chief Minister was felicitated by the Ajit Pawar group. It is not clear whether Fadnavis was felicitated as ‘former’ or ‘present’, but the ‘recent’ former Chief Minister did not come, which made Ajit Pawar’s ceremony dull,” said the Thackeray camp in its sarcastic comments.
“They say that the meetings between Sharad Pawar and Ajit Pawar have increased, but Sharad Pawar did not attend Ajit Pawar’s political ‘Gaurav’ programme (felicitation ceremony). It would have been better if all the former Chief Ministers had come to the glorious Maharashtra festival, Fadnavis said. Let alone all the other former Chief Ministers, tell us why even the recent former Chief Minister in the government did not come,” said the editorial.
Maharashtra
Ajaz Khan’s Troubles Increase – Rape Case Filed for Deceiving Model with False Promise of Marriage

House Arrest Show Had Also Invited the Model
Mumbai: A rape case has been registered against film actor Ajaz Khan at the Charkop Police Station in Mumbai. Ajaz Khan allegedly developed a relationship with a 30-year-old model-actress under the pretense of getting her roles in films and TV serials, and then sexually exploited her. Following this, the victim filed a complaint against him with the police.
Ajaz Khan allegedly had non-consensual sexual relations with the victim on April 4. The police have registered the case under relevant sections of the BNS (Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita), including Sections 69, 74, 64, and 64(2)(M).
Ajaz Khan first met the victim during the “House Arrest” show, which he was hosting. However, the victim later declined to work in the show. Around that time, Ajaz took her phone number and began communicating with her. On March 24, he called her and later initiated video calls, during which he spoke of his belief in God and even tempted her with a promise of marriage.
The victim stated that when she mentioned her sister was still unmarried, Ajaz Khan proceeded to establish a physical relationship with her at Bhoomi Park in Kandivali, against her will. Later, on April 4, he called her to SV Road and sexually exploited her again.
Maharashtra
The process of removing loudspeakers from Mumbai mosques has begun, BJP leader Kirit Somaiya has issued notices to mosques due to police pressure.

Mumbai: The process of removing loudspeakers from mosques in Mumbai has now begun. BJP leader Kirit Somaiya, through the Loudspeaker Mukt Mumbai campaign, has now started removing loudspeakers from mosques in the city and suburbs, which is causing resentment among Muslims. Kirit Somaiya today visited Andheri and Kurla VB Nagar police stations and, citing the orders of the state government and the High Court, demanded action against the loudspeakers of mosques. Meanwhile, the police have assured that the loudspeakers of both the constituencies will be removed in the next 10 days. Similarly, action has also been started in Ghatkopar and Vikhroli, a northern suburb of Mumbai. Here, the police have given a notice to Hill No. 4 Madrasa Anjuman Risalat Haq in Ghatkopar, which said It has been ordered that the loudspeaker be removed from here. Citing the violation of noise pollution norms, instructions have been given to remove the loudspeaker and along with this, instructions have been given to install two box-shaped speakers. If the loudspeaker is not removed, legal action will be taken and the loudspeaker will be confiscated.
The process of removing loudspeakers from mosques in Mumbai city and suburbs has now started. Kirit Somaiya has intensified her campaign. Today, while visiting VB Nagar and Andheri police stations, she has also instructed the police to remove the loudspeakers. Mumbai Police has now started sending notices to remove loudspeakers from mosques, which has created a problem of law and order. Despite this, Kirit Somaiya is adamant about removing loudspeakers from mosques. In such a situation, it is also a big challenge for the newly elected Police Commissioner Deven Bharti to maintain law and order. Earlier, to control Kirit Somaiya’s mischief, the police had banned Kirit Somaiya from visiting the Muslim-majority area of Bhandup, but despite this, Kirit Somaiya visited here. Now the atmosphere of hatred has increased so much that this campaign has also created a threat of communal tension.
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