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Mumbai: Amid speculations of post-swap, CM Shinde, Amit Shah hold closed-door meet during his visit to city

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Mumbai: Torn asunder by the intense speculation in political circles over his fate, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde is believed to have confided in Union Home Minister Amit Shah, during the latter’s visit to the city on Sunday, according to reliable sources. Shah reportedly assured him about the stability of his government, sources said.

After participating in a public programme to listen to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s 100th ‘Mann Ki Baat’ episode at the M L Dahanukar College of Commerce, Vile Parle, CM Shinde and deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis had a closed-door meeting with Shah at the residence of local MLA Parag Alawani, nearby.

Shinde has been restive over the past few weeks because of the speculation on the possibility of a change of leadership in Maharashtra after the SC verdict on the disqualification of MLAs belonging to his camp.

He is reported to have raised the issue at the meeting and was assured that there was no threat to the stability of his government.

The political world awaits SC decision

There has been immense conjecturing on the political situation in the state after the SC verdict, which is expected to be delivered within a week. The possibility of the MLAs from the Shinde group getting disqualified and a group from the NCP, along with senior leader Ajit Pawar, joining hands with the BJP is being discussed. Further, it is being surmised that the BJP is unhappy with Shinde’s performance. Shah’s two visits to the state in as many weeks have only served to further stoke the theory. In this backdrop, the closed-door meeting at Alwani’s residence assumes importance.

Shah was in town on April 15, having long discussions with his party leaders as well as with Shinde and Fadnavis. It is widely believed that issues like the situation after the SC verdict and cabinet expansion etc. were discussed at the meeting. However, Shinde faced a lot of flak for the gross mismanagement of the death of 14 people by heatstroke at the Kharghar rally addressed by Shah. The opposition went ballistic, demanding the resignation of Shinde.

Shinde facing flak alone on both Kharghar tragedy and Barsu issue

The CM was particularly unhappy because he felt alienated through the entire episode, with the BJP maintaining a studied silence. The Kharghar episode was immediately followed by the agitation at Barsu village in Ratnagiri district against the proposed refinery. Once again, Shinde was under attack again and seemed to be fighting alone. He is learnt to have shared his apprehensions over the BJP’s role in both the episodes with the Shah at the meeting.

All said and done, though it is more than eight months since the government has come to power, Shinde doesn’t seem to have gained administrative traction. Though this could be primarily due to the pending cases in the SC, Shinde’s style of working too is being blamed for it. 

Maharashtra

FDA conducts major raid on cosmetics store in Jogeshwari, seizes unlabeled toilet soap

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Mumbai, July 16: A team of Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Greater Mumbai Division conducted a major raid at M/s JK Soap Bazaar, 10/11, Qadir Ismail Estate, Near Momin Colony, Patel Estate Road, Jogeshwari (West), Mumbai – 400102. During the operation conducted on July 14, 2026, it was observed that unlabeled toilet soap was being stored and offered for sale in the establishment. The seized soap lacked statutory information like batch/lot number, date of manufacture, ‘first use’ date, manufacturing license number, and name and address of the manufacturer. Selling cosmetics without such mandatory labelling is a violation of the law. During this operation, toilet soap worth about Rs 10,93,692 was seized, and two samples were collected for analysis as part of the ongoing investigation. The accused in this case is Nabiullah and necessary legal action is being initiated against him. “The Food and Drug Administration gives top priority to the protection of the health of citizens. Making any cosmetic product available for sale in the market without labelling as per the law is a very serious matter. It becomes difficult to verify the source, quality and safety of such products. Therefore, strict legal action will be taken against the violating manufacturers, distributors and sellers.” This warning was given by Takaram Mandhe, Commissioner, Food and Drug Administration, Maharashtra State.

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Maharashtra

AIMIM Govindi corporator’s husband Atiq Khan banished from city for a year, makes emotional appeal to public on social media and apologizes

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Mumbai: Maharashtra AIMIM leader and husband of a corporator from Govindpura, Atiq Khan, has been banned from the city for one year by the Mumbai Police. In an emotional message on social media, Atiq Khan said that he has been banned from Mumbai city and suburbs for one year, so he will be unable to do pending work or visit the area. If the public or students face educational difficulties due to his absence in the area for one year, he apologizes for it. The police had registered a case against Atiq Khan for violence and rioting, and accordingly, he has been banned, so a complete ban has been imposed on his entry into the area for one year. The ban on this ban will come into effect today. Therefore, Atiq Khan has made a very emotional video and apologized to the public on social media and has also expressed his passion for public service and said that he will continue to serve the public.

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Maharashtra

Major hurdle in completion of expansion project in Mumbai railway network, several projects are facing delays due to encroachment on railway lands, RTI reveals

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Mumbai: Encroachments on railway land are a major reason for delays in railway projects in Mumbai city. Due to delay in its acquisition, projects have been delayed and their estimates have also increased, this has been revealed in an RTI information filed by RTI activist Anil Gilgali. RTI has revealed that 1,574 encroachments have been identified for two major MRVC rail projects, occupying about 17,000 square meters of land. Information sought by RTI activist Anil Gilgali under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, 2005 has revealed that a total of 1,574 encroachments were identified during the acquisition of land for two major rail projects of the Mumbai Rail Development Corporation (MRDC). Out of these, 998 encroachments have been removed so far, while encroachments were found on about 17,068 square meters of land. According to information provided by MRVC to RTI activist Anil Gilgali on July 14, 2026, this information relates to the Kalyan-Badlapur 3rd and 4th rail line projects and the Airoli-Kola elevated corridor project.

Kalyan-Badlapur 3rd and 4th rail line project
According to MRVC, 706 encroachments were identified during the acquisition of land for the 3rd and 4th railway lines of the Central Railway between Kalyan and Badlapur. These include hutments and other structures located on railway land and newly acquired land. Out of these, 620 encroachments have been removed, while encroachments were found on about 9668 square meters of land. MRVC also said that each encroachment occurred in different years, hence it is not possible to identify a specific year. The encroachments identified for the project are located between Kalyan and Badlapur railway stations.
Airoli – Kalwa Elevated Corridor Project.

During land acquisition for the Airoli – Kalwa Elevated Corridor Project, 868 encroachments were identified. These included constructions on railway land and newly acquired land. So far, 378 encroachments have been removed while about 7400 sq m of land was found to be occupied. These encroachments are located between Digha village and Kalwa station. The MRVC also clarified that all the encroachments occurred in different years.

Information on re-encroachments not available
The RTI application also asked in how many areas encroachments were re-established after the encroachments were removed. The MRVC replied that the relevant information was not available.
Anil Gilgali raised important questions.

RTI activist Anil Gilgali said that encroachments have become a serious challenge in railway projects in Mumbai. Encroachments are a major reason for project delays, cost overruns and additional burden on public funds, he said. Mere removal of encroachments is not enough. Railways and MRVC should ensure that no encroachments are created again in the removed areas. Regular monitoring, safeguards and accountability are essential to achieve this.

Gilgali also demanded that information on land acquisition, encroachments, rehabilitation and progress in removal of encroachments for all rail projects be made available on a public portal from time to time, to enhance transparency and provide real-time information to citizens.

He said that availability of land is very important for Mumbai’s rapidly developing rail network. If encroachments are not effectively controlled, many public transport projects in the future may be affected. Therefore, the government, railways and local administration should come together to find a permanent solution.

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