Maharashtra: Amid rising political noise ahead of the civic body elections, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Monday firmly ruled out any differences between the BJP and the Shiv Sena. Speaking to the media, Shinde maintained that the alliance was united and committed to contesting the upcoming polls together.

His remarks came at a time when some Sena leaders have crossed over to the BJP, sparking speculation about stress within the ruling coalition. Shinde clarified that he had raised the issue directly with Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and received assurances that the situation would be corrected.

Shinde said the two partners must avoid actions that create mistrust or weaken the alliance. According to him, both sides agreed that leaders should not attempt to pull members from the other party.

“The Chief Minister agreed that this must stop. We have to contest the elections as an alliance, and there will be Lok Sabha elections after this. We must not do anything that causes misunderstandings. Each of us must follow the alliance dharma,” he said, adding that neither party would encourage corporators to switch sides.

He noted that Fadnavis had promised to speak to BJP leaders to prevent further defection attempts.

Even as top leaders attempt to restore calm, friction remains at the ground level. Elections in 246 municipal councils and 42 town panchayats were earlier scheduled for December 2. However, the State Election Commission has postponed polls in more than 20 councils due to procedural lapses and pending court matters.

In Sindhudurg, a stronghold for both the BJP and the Shinde faction, tensions escalated when the police registered a case against Nilesh Rane of the Shiv Sena. He allegedly entered the home of a BJP supporter, claiming he had discovered bags of cash meant for distribution to voters. The complaint triggered a fresh political flashpoint.

His brother, state minister Nitesh Rane of the BJP, rejected the allegations and defended local workers by saying they earn legitimate business income. He also criticised Sena workers who are supporting a rival faction candidate, stating it undermines Shinde’s previous justification for rebelling against the Uddhav Thackeray led government.

Reacting to the conflict, Fadnavis remarked that he supports people who conduct themselves properly. He admitted that the situation involving the Rane brothers was unfortunate and said the matter would be reviewed after the elections.

The political strain is not entirely new. Last month, ministers from the Shinde led Shiv Sena skipped a state cabinet meeting hours after the BJP inducted two leaders who had previously contested against Sena MLAs. The incident had raised eyebrows over the balance of power within the alliance.

New Delhi, Dec 1: Gross enrolment under the Atal Pension Yojana (APY), a bid to create a universal social security system for all, especially the poor, the under-privileged and the workers in the unorganised sector, has reached 8,34,13,738 (as on October 31), the Parliament was informed on Monday.

APY was launched in 2015 with the objective of creating a universal social security system for all Indians. It is open to all citizens of India between 18 and 40 years of age who have a savings account in a bank or post office.

As per the Scheme, the subscriber will receive pension benefits on attaining the age of 60 years.

“Hence, the pension benefit under APY is expected to start from 2035 onwards. However, the gross enrolment under Atal Pension Yojana as on 31.10.2025 is 8,34,13,738,” Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman told the Lok Sabha in a written reply to a question.

As on October 31, the female gross enrolment under APY is 4,04,41,135, which is 48 per cent of the total enrolment, she noted.

Further, in Bihar, the female gross enrolment under APY is 42,07,233, which is 57 per cent of the total enrolment in the state.

“As on 31.10.2025, a total of 7,153 Bank branches and 461 Post Office branches are enrolling people into APY in Bihar,” the Finance Minister stated.

The government and the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) have taken several steps to increase awareness and coverage of APY across the country, including rural and remote areas of Bihar.

These include periodic advertisements; APY Subscribers Information Brochure in 13 vernacular languages; and virtual capacity building programmes for Banking Correspondents (BCs) and field staff of Banks, Self Help Group (SHG) members, and bank-sakhis of State Rural Livelihoods Missions (SRLMs).

During the last five years, such programmes have been conducted across various districts of Bihar, including in Muzaffarpur, Patna, Bhojpur, and Nalanda.

Recently, financial inclusion campaigns for pension saturation were organised pan-India India including 8,093 such campaigns in Bihar, said Sitharaman.

Bhopal, Dec 1: The five-day Winter Session of the Madhya Pradesh Vidhan Sabha started with vociferous protests and a novel play by the Opposition members in and outside the House on Monday.

As the day’s business began, Congress legislators led by the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the state Assembly, Umang Singhar, braving the December cold, staged a symbolic protest that caught widespread media attention.

A group of Congress MLAs arrived holding posters highlighting the Coldrif cough syrup tragedy that killed over 25 children in Chhindwara and other adjoining districts a few months back.

The children, mostly under five years of age, suffered acute kidney failure and severe brain damage after consuming the contaminated syrup. Laboratory tests confirmed that the Coldrif syrup contained dangerously high levels of diethylene glycol (DEG), with one batch showing a concentration of nearly 48.6 per cent, significantly above the internationally accepted safe limit of 0.1 per cent.

The Opposition MLAs’ protest over the tragedy took a novel form as they performed a scripted play to highlight the Coldrif cough syrup tragedy. One woman Congress MLA played the role of demoness ‘Surpanakha’ and Singhar had a dialogue with her.

While this dramatic protest was going on, a group of Congress MLAs was standing in a circle with posters carrying slogans blaming the ruling BJP for the horrific incident.

“Corruption has peaked under the BJP government and the list of scams is growing. More than 25 innocent children have died due to the contaminated Coldrif cough syrup in Chhindwara,” Singhar told media persons.

He accused the BJP government of trying to suppress the Opposition’s voice and divert attention from public issues by curtailing the session’s length.

The five-day Vidhan Sabha session will have four sittings for discussion on key issues and at least three key Bills (Amendment) will be presented in the House.

For the ongoing Winter session, the Assembly Secretariat has received a total of 1,497 questions from the Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) of the state.

It has also received 194 notices for calling-attention motions, six adjournment motions, 14 private members’ resolutions, 52 zero-hour submissions, two notices under Rule 139 and 15 petitions.