Politics
Mamta government wants CM, not Governor, as Chancellor of state varsities

A fresh confrontation between West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar and the Mamta Banerejee government loomed after the state cabinet on Thursday decided to have Chief Minister as the Chancellor of all state universities instead of the Governor.
This is for the first time that the state government has taken such an initiative to break the protocol, persisting since Independence, of having the Governor as Chancellor of the state universities.
Following the state cabinet meeting at the state Secretariat, Nabanna, Education Minister Bratya Basu said that the state government will bring a bill in the Assembly proposing that the Chief Minister, not the Governor, will be the Chancellor of the state universities.
“Once the bill is passed in the Assembly, it will be sent to the Governor for his assent. In case the Governor refuses to clear the bill, the state government will bring an ordinance to implement this change of practice,” he said.
The development comes at a time when the state government and the ruling Trinamool Congress is already in a fix over the ongoing Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe on the West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) recruitment irregularities where two ministers of the state government have already been grilled by the central agency sleuths.
Till this report was filed there was no reaction from the Governor on this matter. However, the opposition parties have criticized the initiative.
BJP’s state spokesman, Shamik Bhattacharya said that this is a direct attempt to have a control over the autonomy of the state universities. “Since the beginning the Chief Minister had been trying to run the state as an independent entity and hence, she has taken such a decision which no state government has done before. This is against tradition and convention,” he said.
CPI-M Central Committee member and former leader of Left in the Assembly, Dr Sujan Chakraborty, contended that this initiative is aimed at having direct administrative and political control over the state universities.
“The decision has been taken at a time when roles of several state ministers and officers are in question because of rampant corruption in the education sector. This is complete politicisation of the functioning of the state agencies. On one hand, the Chief Minister is demanding complete autonomy for the central agencies, and on the other, she is trying to destroy the autonomous nature of the state universities,” he said.
Educationists seemed to be divided over this development.
Educationist, political analyst and former Principal of the then Presidency College, Dr Amal Kumar Mukhopadhyay said that the Chief Minister is the administrative head of the state and a political personality.
“So, the event of the Chief Minister being the Chancellor of the university means political interference in the independent functioning of the institutions. Traditionally and conventionally the Governors, by virtue of their chairs, had been the Chancellors of the state university. I do not find any reason to break away from that convention,” he said.
Renowned historian and Sanskrit scholar, Nrisingha Prasad Bhaduri, however, welcomed the decision.
“Current West Bengal Governor, Jagdeep Dhankhar had been creating many obstacles for the state government to function properly. The Governor is holding back many files including those relating to appointment Vice Chancellors of universities. So, the state government had no other option but to take this decision. I welcome this move,” he said.
Maharashtra
Maharashtra Dy CM Ajit Pawar Meets Muslim Leaders & Senior Police Officials Over Mosque Loudspeaker Controversy In Mumbai

Mumbai: Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and NCP leader Ajit Pawar on Wednesday chaired a crucial meeting at the Sahyadri Guest House to address growing concerns over the removal of loudspeakers from mosques in Mumbai. The meeting was attended by State Director General of Police Rashmi Shukla, Mumbai Police Commissioner Deven Bharti and several prominent Muslim leaders and MLAs, including Nawab Malik, Zeeshan Siddique, Abu Azmi, Waris Pathan, Sana Malik, Jallal Uddin and Siddharth Kamble.
The delegation expressed alarm over what they claim is police overreach in removing mosque loudspeakers, allegedly under pressure from a campaign launched by a former BJP MP. The leaders argued that the issue of Azaan is not new and has existed peacefully for generations. “Someone, some Somaiya, has created pressure in Mumbai. Because of one person, Muslims are being harassed,” said Samajwadi Party’s state president Abu Azmi after the meeting. “All sides were heard, and both the Commissioner and the DGP were present,” he said.
AIMIM leader Waris Pathan also echoed the sentiment, stating that the delegation included Muslim legislators, social workers, and community representatives. “We raised the issue of police forcibly removing loudspeakers from mosques and issuing notices without due process. This is creating unnecessary tension in the city,” Pathan said.
Muslim organisations from South Mumbai had earlier met with Pawar and submitted their concerns. They alleged that police were harassing mosque committees despite their compliance with High Court-decided permissible noise levels between 45 and 56 decibels. “There is no court order to remove loudspeakers outright,” the organisations pointed out. Action should be taken only if a violation is proven, such as issuing a notice or cancelling a licence. But instead, police are dismantling systems without proper verification, demanded the organisations.
The controversy is said to have intensified following visits by a BJP leader to areas like Govandi, where he reportedly pressured local police to act against mosques using loudspeakers. Muslim leaders have demanded a fair and transparent resolution to prevent communal disharmony and urged the government to issue clear directives to law enforcement based on legal parameters, not political pressure.
Maharashtra
Case filed against 4 people including Congress leader Vartak for cheating by posing as CBI officer

Mumbai: The Kasturba Marg police on Friday registered an FIR against four people, including Maharashtra Congress’s environment cell state president Sameer Vartak, who are accused of allegedly forcibly entering the Borivali residence of builder Anil Gupta on September 2, 2024 by posing as Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) officers and advising a ‘raid’.
The CBI has registered a case against four people, including a Congress worker, for conducting raids at the builder’s house. After the case was registered, the Congress has sacked Sameer Vartak from his post. Congress leader Harshvardhan Sapkal has resigned. The CBI has registered a case against four people, including a Congress worker, for conducting raids at the builder’s house. Vartak, who heads the environment cell of the Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee, is accused of raiding the builder’s house along with three unidentified people posing as CBI officers after receiving a complaint and trying to extort money from him.
Gupta, 51, who owns a Vasai-based construction firm and is active in the Vasai-Virar area, lives in Kushal Heritage Building in Borivali East. Recently, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had searched his premises in connection with a land grabbing case related to the construction of 41 unauthorised buildings in Aggarwal Nagar, Vasai East. In his police complaint, Gupta said that on September 2, 2024, two men went to his house and claimed to be CBI officers, saying they were investigating a complaint filed against him by Vartak. They asked him to come down for questioning. When Gupta refused and asked for a copy of the complaint, the men called Vartak, who was allegedly waiting outside the building. Soon after, Vartak and another man who claimed to be a CBI officer arrived there. Gupta alleged that the group of four men threatened to arrest him and demanded a financial “settlement” to settle the case.
Gupta refused, saying he would cooperate with any legal investigation. The men then left, warning him that he would be summoned to the CBI office. Gupta approached the CBI headquarters in Delhi to confirm the claim and was told that no such complaint had been filed by Vartak. On November 19, the CBI wrote a letter to the Maharashtra Director General of Police, requesting him to take action against those involved. Gupta then approached the Kasturba Marg police with a formal complaint and CCTV footage from his residence to identify the accused. The police have registered a case under sections 3(5) (common intention), 204 (cheating by impersonating a public servant), 205 (forgery of official symbols) and 351 (criminal intimidation) of the Bharatiya Naya Sangh (BNS).
Senior police inspector Jiraj Ranavare said, “We conducted a preliminary inquiry and confirmed that these people were not CBI officials. We are confirming the identity of the three people who were with Vartak.” Vartak has denied the allegations. I was called to the spot by some people who introduced themselves as CBI officers. I had filed a complaint against Gupta and was just cooperating. It seems this is part of political vendetta, I am ready to face any investigation.
Crime
Punjab Vigilance raids residence of Akali leader Majithia in drug case

Chandigarh, June 25: The Punjab Vigilance Bureau on Wednesday conducted a raid on the private residence of Shiromani Akali Dal’s former minister Bikram Singh Majithia in Amritsar in a drug case.
He has been facing charges under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act since December 2021, ahead of the Assembly elections.
A spokesperson for the government said the raid has been underway as part of the Bhagwant Mann government’s biggest ongoing action against drugs. A team of 30 Vigilance personnel, comprising senior officials, reached the residence when Majithia and his family were present there.
Former legislator Majithia, who is the brother-in-law of Shiromani Akali Dal President Sukhbir Badal, had moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court in 2022 after a Mohali trial court dismissed his anticipatory bail petition in a case under the NDPS Act registered on December 20, 2021.
In a 49-page FIR filed by the state police Crime Branch at the Mohali police station, the SAD leader has been booked under sections 25, 27A and 29 of the NDPS Act.
In his plea, Majithia had termed the case a result of “political vendetta” and argued that there was no credible and legally admissible material against him.
The court, however, had granted an interim bail but allowed the Special Investigation Team to interrogate Majithia.
The High Court had observed that there was no material placed on record showing possession, transportation, storage by or recovery of any contraband from Majithia.
“All recoveries in the concluded trials have been effected from specific individuals and the petitioner was not shown therein to have any role in that regard,” it had observed, referring to convictions of drug seizure cases of Jagdish Bola and others.
However, the High Court clarified in the 26-page judgment that the court’s opinion was tentative and was made only for deciding his bail application and should not be construed as an expression of a “final opinion”.
In March 2025, the Supreme Court had directed Majithia to appear before the Special Investigation Team (SIT) in Patiala after the state government reported that he was refusing to cooperate with the probe. However, in April, the apex court dismissed the petition filed by Punjab, challenging the bail granted to Majithia.
“The respondent (Majithia) was participating in the process of further investigation. In view of the said facts and also taking note that the liberty was granted on August 10, 2022, more than two-and-a-half years ago, at present, we are not inclined to interfere with the impugned order. Accordingly, the SLP stands dismissed,” observed a Bench comprising Justice J.K. Maheshwari and Justice Aravind Kumar, rejecting the state’s petition.
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