Mumbai : After handing over the responsibility of state president to former Odisha minister Bhakt Charan Das, the Congress has decided the new chief of Maharashtra. The party has accepted the resignation given by Nana Patole after the disappointing performance in the assembly elections. If sources are to be believed, the party can announce the name of the new president in the next few days. Harshvardhan Sapkal, who comes from Buldhana, is considered to be the successor of Nana Patole. If Harshvardhan becomes the new state president of the party, then this post will remain with the leader of Vidarbha. Harshvardhan comes from the western Vidarbha region. He is considered close to Rahul Gandhi.

Harshvardhan Sapkal’s political career has started from the grassroots level, from Zila Parishad member to MLA. He was the Zila Parishad President from 1999 to 2002. At that time he was known as the youngest president of Maharashtra. He was also a Congress MLA between 2014 and 2019. Since the state presidents are being appointed in the backdrop of the upcoming local body elections, the new president will have a big challenge to win these elections. Harshvardhan Sapkal is currently the National President of the Rajiv Gandhi Panchayati Raj Organization of the Congress. He played an important role in the creation of Gram Swarajya based on the ideologies of Mahatma Gandhi and Vinoba Bhave. Sapkal has experience in organizing nation building youth camps based on Sarvodaya ideas, active participation in village cleanliness campaigns and Adarsh ​​Gram Movement.

He was an MLA from Buldhana between 2014 and 2019. During this period, he implemented a water conservation management project in the constituency. Vijay Wadettiwar’s name was also included in the race for the state president, but it is believed that the party high command has approved the name of Harshvardhan Sapkal, who is close to Rahul Gandhi. Sapkal’s name may be announced soon. Harsh- vardhan Sapkal is currently 57 years old. He has studied till graduation. After the state president of Maharashtra, Mumbai can also get a new president. Currently, Varsha Gaikwad is in charge there. She has become an MP from an MLA. On the other hand, his sister Jyoti Gaikwad has won from his MLA seat.

New Delhi: Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray on Thursday said that the future of the country is in doubt as the BJP’s dream is to break up and finish off every regional party in the country.

Addressing a press conference here today, Thackeray questioned the election process in the country citing the voter and EVM fraud.

“I met Rahul Gandhi last night. Today, I will be meeting Arvind Kejriwal. Today, the future of your country is in doubt. Today, we don’t know where our vote is going amid voter fraud and EVM fraud in the country. Are elections being held in a free and fair manner in our country today? We think we are living in a democracy, but it is no longer a democracy. What happened with us and Kejriwal ji and Congress, could happen with Nitish ji, RJD and Chandrababu ji Naidu in in future,”Thackeray told reporters.

“BJP’s dream is to break up and finish off every regional party just as they want to do for the democracy of the country,” he said.

Further, speaking on his meeting with INDIA Bloc leaders, Aditya Thackeray said efforts are being made to prepare the roadmap for the future.

“There are many senior leaders for INDIA Bloc who will prepare its roadmap. INDIA Bloc has joint leadership. There is no one leader. This is not a fight of egos or for one’s benefit but a fight for the future of the country,” Thackeray added.

With its poor performance in Haryana, Maharashtra and Delhi Assembly polls, the INDIA Bloc is facing challenging issues in its fight against the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA).

Earlier, Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi raised concerns over the surge in new voters, particularly between the 2024 Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha elections in Maharashtra, highlighting that 39 lakh new voters were added in just five months after the Lok Sabha polls.

He also questioned discrepancies in voter registration figures, claiming that the number of registered voters exceeded Maharashtra’s total adult population.

Mumbai: Following the BMC’s announcement of levying property tax on commercial units in slums, Samajwadi Party (SP) legislator Rais Shaikh has written to the BMC demanding that the civic body conduct the socio-economic impact assessment study by renowned institutions such as Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) to understand the far-reaching ramifications on the poorest of the poor in the city. The move will have a catastrophic impact on the informal sector, with over 3 lakh people losing their livelihoods and becoming unemployed, said Shaikh.

In his letter to BMC chief Bhushan Gagrani, Shaikh stated that the BMC Budget for 2025-26 proposes to levy property tax on commercial units in slums. “This move indicates the BMC’s impending financial crisis due to the mismanagement of its finances. It will have the potential significant impact of rendering over 3 lakh people unemployed, losing their livelihoods, with the poorest of the poor being hit hardest by this decision,” said Rais Shaikh, MLA.

Shaikh has demanded that the move will have an adverse impact on the sustainability of the MSMEs which provide employment to lakhs of people. “Levying property tax on commercial units in slums will render MSMEs unsustainable, as it imposes an additional financial burden. This move will have a significant impact on the informal sector, and lakhs of people will lose their livelihoods, leading to unemployment. It is completely unjustifiable to consider commercial units in slums on par with those in malls and commercial complexes for the purpose of levying property tax,” said Shaikh.

Shaikh further stated that the rise in unemployment may lead to social disharmony and a potential increase in crime in the city. “Therefore, I demand that an socio-economic impact assessment study of the BMC’s decision to levy property tax on commercial units in slums be conducted by renowned institutions such as TISS,” Shaikh demanded.

According to the BMC, there are around 2.5 lakh slums in Mumbai. A significant number of these slum areas (at least 20%, i.e., 50,000 slums) are being used for commercial purposes such as small and large industries, shops, godowns, hotels, etc. The BMC expects to generate revenue of Rs 350 crore by levying property tax on the commercial units in slums.