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Mumbai Police file FIR against Oppn leader Pravin Darekar

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3 years ago

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In another jolt to the Bharatiya Janata Party, the Mumbai Police have registered an FIR against Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Council, Pravin Darekar, in connection with an alleged cheating case, officials said on Tuesday.

The police action followed a complaint filed on January 8 with the MRA Marg police station by Aam Aadmi Party state Secretary Dhananjay Shinde, accusing Darekar of allegedly cheating people, the Mumbai District Central Cooperative Bank, and the state Cooperative Department, said a party spokesperson.

Interestingly, nearly four months earlier in September 2021, Shiv Sena leader Kishore Tiwari had filed a similar criminal complaint with the Ghatkopar police station, claiming that Darekar was “a ‘crorepati’ labourer who had allegedly misdeclared his professional credentials in his election affidavits”.

“The Ghatkopar police had probed the matter and later submitted its report to the state government for suitable action. In the second case (Tuesday), Darekar faces various criminal sections. Union Minister for Cooperation, Amit Shah, and the BJP should now make their stand clear,” Tiwari said.

Darekar has been charged under IPC sections pertaining to cheating, criminal breach of trust, criminal conspiracy etc., the police said.

Tiwari’s earlier complaint had alleged that Darekar posed as a member of the Pratigya Mazur Sahakari Sanstha (PMSS), Ghatkopar, a labour cooperative society, on the basis of which he represented as a Director with the MDCCB, and worked as a fulltime Chairman from 2011-2021.

However, in his statutory affidavits submitted for two elections, Darekar stated on oath his profession – and that of his wife Sayli Darekar – as ‘independent business’, which was false and misleading, said Tiwari.

The issue was first highlighted by IANS — “Maha BJP LoP Pravin Darekar is a acrorepati labourer: Sena leader” — on September 25, 2021.

“On the basis of these untruths, he was elected to the Upper House on both occasions, looted the government through full salaries, allowances, honorarium, privileges, and as Leader of Opposition, enjoys a Cabinet minister rank plus the MDCCB perks,” Tiwari pointed out.

AAP’s Shinde said that Darekar’s claims were later found bogus and during his chairmanship, he indulged in various alleged financial irregularities at MDCCB, worth to the tune of over Rs 2,000 crore, for which he plans to move the Mumbai Police’s Economic Offences Wing.

The BJP, meanwhile, slammed the ruling Maha Vikas Aghadi government of Shiv Sena-Nationalist Congress Party-Congress, alleging the latest development is “a move to muzzle the Opposition”.

NCP state spokesperson Mahesh Tapase hit back, saying that the police FIR follows a complaint filed by the AAP and the BJP is unnecessarily tarnishing the MVA with falsehoods.

Not convinced by the arguments, the BJP raised slogans inside and outside both Houses of the Legislature, which were later adjourned for the day, while Darekar denied the allegations levelled against him.

Outside, senior leaders, including Leader of Opposition (Assembly) Devendra Fadnavis, attacked the MVA for acting against Darekar in ‘vendetta’ for the exposes carried out by the BJP, and countered it by asking the government to disclose how many legislators are associated with labour organisations.

“The complaint was probed and later closed. Yet, Darekar is being framed as he is a strong critic of the MVA government,” said BJP MLC Chandrashekhar Bawankule, condemning the police move.

“This is an attempt to silence the Opposition, which is cornering the MVA government on various wrongdoings and exposing its scams,” claimed MLC Bhai Girkar.

“As expected, the next target is Darekar. We had predicted this well before. The new Mumbai Police Commissioner, Sanjay Pandey, is acting according to his master’s wishes. But we are all with Darekar,” said MLA Nitesh Rane.

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Maharashtra

Mega Block Alert: Local Trains to be Rerouted & Delayed On Feb 23 For Maintenance Work, Check Details

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20 hours ago

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February 22, 2025

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Mumbai: Central Railway announced a major change in the UP and Down fast local trains in the Central route for February 23. Meanwhile, Western Railway also announced a major mega block on the line. The jumbo block is carried out for maintenance work on signals and tracks, which will lead to rerouting and delays in train schedules.

Central Railway Rerouting Details

On the Thane to Kalyan route, Down Fast and Semi-Fast local trains departing from Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) Mumbai will be diverted to the Down Slow line between Thane and Kalyan stations. These trains will have additional halts at Kalva, Mumbra, and Diva stations, which will result in a delay of approximately 10 minutes in reaching their destinations.

Similarly, Up Fast and Semi-Fast trains departing from Kalyan towards CSMT will be rerouted onto the Up Slow line between Kalyan and Thane stations. They will also halt at Diva, Mumbra, and Kalva before merging onto the Up Fast line at Mulund station, causing a delay of around 10 minutes.

Western Railway’s Five-Hour Jumbo Block

On the Western line, a significant five-hour Jumbo Block has been scheduled on February 23, between Santacruz and Goregaon stations. From 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM, both Up and Down Fast lines due to maintenance work of tracks, signalling systems, and overhead equipment.

Trans-Harbour Line

According to railway officials, there will be no block on the Uran and Harbour routes.

However, services on the Trans-Harbour line will be temporarily suspended. Up Trans-Harbour services from Panvel, Nerul, and Vashi towards Thane starting with the 10:25 AM departure from Vashi and the 4:09 PM departure from Nerul will remain non-operational. Likewise, Down Trans-Harbour services from Thane to Vashi, Nerul, and Panvel, running from 10:35 AM to 4:07 PM, will also be suspended during this period.

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Maharashtra

Maha minority panel to seek shorter working hours for Muslim staff during Ramzan

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20 hours ago

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February 22, 2025

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Mumbai, Feb 22: After Telangana and Andhra Pradesh permitted Muslim government employees to leave offices early during the fasting month of Ramzan, similar demands are now being raised in Maharashtra and other states.

Maharashtra Minority Commission Chairman Pyare Khan confirmed that the commission has received multiple applications requesting the state government to allow Muslim employees to leave work an hour early during Ramzan.

“We have received several requests from people asking for permission to leave offices an hour early during Ramzan. India is a great example of ‘Ganga Jamuna Tehzeeb,’ where people from different communities live together in harmony,” Khan told media.

He added that he plans to present this demand to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis through an official letter.

The demand follows orders issued by the Telangana and Andhra Pradesh governments, allowing Muslim employees, including teachers and contract workers, to leave work at 4 p.m. instead of the usual 5 p.m. from March 2 to March 30 to perform religious rituals.

“The government hereby permits all the employees who profess Islam, including teachers and persons hired on contract, out-sourcing basis, and Village/Ward Secretaries, to leave their offices/schools early by an hour before closing time on all working days during the Holy month of ‘Ramzan’ to perform necessary rituals,” read the Andhra Pradesh government order.

Similarly, the Telangana government order stated: “Government hereby permits all Muslim government employees/teachers/contract/out-sourcing/boards/corporations and public sector employees working in the state to leave their offices/schools at 4 p.m. during the holy month of Ramzan, i.e., from March 2 to 31, to offer necessary prayers, except when their presence is required due to exigencies of services.”

The demand is also gaining traction in Karnataka, where Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) Vice Presidents M.R.M. Hussain and Syed Ahmad recently wrote to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, urging the state government to grant Muslim employees a one-hour exemption from duty to facilitate prayers and iftar.

However, the Karnataka government has yet to make a decision on the request.

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disaster

Massive Fire Breaks Out At Residential Building In Mumbai’s Marine Lines

Published

22 hours ago

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February 22, 2025

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Mumbai: A massive fire broke out in Mumbai’s Marine Lines on Saturday. The blaze rupted on the top floor of a residential building, Marine Chambers. The building is located near Gol Masjid.

The fire broke out at around 12.30 pm on Saturday. After receiving information, several fire tenders reached the spot. Senior officials also rushed to the place where the blaze erupted.

Visuals of the fire also surfaced online. In the video, an envelope of black smoke could seen billowing out of the building. This led to panic among the locals.

A firefighting operation is currently underway.

The reason for the blaze is not yet known. There are no reports of any injuries.

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