National News
SC declines to entertain Andhra govt’s plea challenging stay against order prohibiting rallies
The Supreme Court on Friday declined to entertain a plea by the Andhra Pradesh government against the recent order of the high court suspending the government’s order, which prohibited conduct of public meetings and rallies on roads, including national highways.
Senior advocate C.S. Vaidyanathan, representing the Andhra Pradesh government, submitted before a bench headed by Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud that there were procedural infirmities in the high court taking up the matter.
Vaidyanathan submitted there was an egregious assumption of jurisdiction by a vacation bench, and cited a circular, which said no policy and administrative matters would be taken up during winter break.
The bench said, “We are not inquiring into the merits of the matter.”
Vaidyanathan added that the writ petition was mentioned and heard on the same date, and the government order was stayed by the high court on the same day.
Senior advocates Kapil Sibal and Raju Ramachandran, representing the respondents, contended that the Advocate General of the state was heard before passing of the order by the division bench.
The bench, also comprising Justice P.S. Narasimha, asked the chief justice of the high court to ensure the hearing of the plea by a division bench headed by him.
“We will request the chief justice of the high court to ensure hearing of the matter by a division bench of the high court presided over by him on January 23,” said the bench. After hearing brief arguments, the top court sent it back to the Andhra Pradesh High Court.
Lawyer Mahfooz Ahsan Nazki also appeared on behalf of the Andhra Pradesh government.
The Andhra Pradesh High Court, earlier this month, suspended till January 23 operation of the Government Order (GO) that prohibited conduct of public meetings and rallies on roads, including national highways.
The state government, in its plea in the apex court, said recently on December 28, 2022, eight people died during a stampede in a political roadshow held in Kandakuru, Nellore District. “The state was thus prompted to issue the Impugned GO, wherein it clarified/emphasized the considerations to be taken by the police while regulating public meetings / demonstrations under Section 30 of the Indian Police Act, 1861,” said the plea.
The Andhra Pradesh Police Department was advised to refrain from granting permissions for such public meetings unless adequate and exceptional reasons were provided by the person seeking permission to conduct such a meeting, it added.
The interim order was passed by the high court on a plea challenging the GO. It scheduled the matter for further hearing on January 20 and sought the state government’s response. It was argued before the high court that the order was passed to stifle the opposition voices against the government.
On January 2, the Andhra Pradesh government issued the order against the backdrop of a stampede at a rally held by the main opposition Telugu Desam Party at Kandukuru on December 28.
Mumbai Press Exclusive News
Nigerian arrested with cocaine in Mumbai

Mumbai: Police has claimed to have arrested a Nigerian with cocaine in the limits of Maloney police station and 180 grams of cocaine have been seized from his possession. Police searched Manuchi Agwa alias Oliver Agwa, 27, during a patrol and recovered cocaine from his possession. Along with the cocaine, a total of Rs 72 lakhs has been seized from the possession of the Nigerian. The police have registered a case under the NDPS Act and started investigation.
Business
Rs 7,253 crore spent so far in 2025-26 on sprucing up railway stations in India: Vaishnaw

New Delhi, Dec 5: The government has spent Rs 7,253 crore so far (up to October), of the total budgetary allocation of Rs 12,118 crore for 2025–26, on the redevelopment of railway stations across the country under the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw informed Parliament on Friday.
The minister stated in a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha that work is in progress at a good pace for the development of stations such as Tirupati, Yesvantpur, Rameswaram, and Safdarjung station in Delhi..
So far, 1,337 stations have been identified for development under this scheme since it was launched, of which 155 stations have been completed till now.
Vaishnaw said that the station development projects under the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme are primarily conceptualised with budgetary support. However, 15 stations have been identified to be explored for development under the Public Private Partnership (PPP) mode also and based on the experience gained from the same, further evolution of the scheme is envisaged.
He further stated that the ownership of stations and operations-related activity will be with the Indian Railways. However, for some identified major stations, specific activities or groups of activities may be entrusted to outside sources for specified tenures depending upon the type of activity, requirements of the station, demand, etc. The terms of the contract are decided on a case-by-case basis.
He said that the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme for the redevelopment of stations has been launched with a long-term approach.
The scheme involves the preparation of master plans and their implementation in phases to improve the stations. The master planning includes improvement of access to the station and circulating areas, integration of the station with both sides of the city, improvement of the station building and improvement of waiting halls, toilets, sitting arrangement, and water booths.
The redevelopment plans also include provision of wider foot over bridge or air concourse commensurate with passenger traffic, provision of lifts, escalators and ramps, improvement of platform surface and cover over platforms and provision of kiosks for local products through schemes like ‘One Station One Product’.
Besides, the construction of parking areas, multimodal integration, amenities for Divyangjans, better passenger information systems, provision of executive lounges, nominated spaces for business meetings and landscaping is being taken up, keeping in view the necessity at each station, Vaishnaw said.
The scheme also envisages sustainable and environment-friendly solutions, provision of ballastless tracks, etc., as per necessity, phasing and feasibility and creation of a city centre at the station in the long term, the minister added.
National News
Palghar Illegal Building Collapse: Civic Official Arrested For Failing To Act On Unsafe Structure

Palghar: In a major development nearly three months after the collapse of an illegal residential building that claimed 17 lives, Assistant Commissioner Gilson Gonsalves has been arrested for allegedly failing to take timely action against the dangerous structure.
According to police, Gonsalves, who headed Ward-C of the Vasai-Virar City Municipal Corporation (VVCMC), did not initiate mandatory action against the unauthorised and unsafe Ramabai Apartment, nor did he file a case under the MRTP Act within the stipulated period. His inaction, officials say, contributed to the scale of the tragedy.
The four-storey Ramabai Apartment, located in Vijay Nagar, Virar (East), collapsed on 26 August 2025 during the Ganesh festival, triggering shock and panic across the city. The incident killed 17 residents and left nine others injured. The building, which contained 50 flats, had deteriorated severely in just a few years.
Investigators revealed that the developer had misled residents into believing the structure was authorised, leading them to continue paying municipal taxes. Following the collapse, police registered a case against builder Nital Sane, the landowner, and three others. Five individuals, including the builder, were arrested, although four have since been granted bail.
Police Commissioner Niket Kaushik had handed the investigation over to Crime Branch Unit-3, which continued to probe municipal lapses. During the inquiry, it emerged that despite the building being declared dangerous, Gonsalves did not ensure the evacuation of residents or pursue legal action against the developer.
As a result, Crime Branch officials registered a case against him and arrested him at around 1:30 a.m. on Thursday night. Although Gonsalves had applied for anticipatory bail in the Vasai court, his plea was rejected.
The arrest marks a significant step in the ongoing probe, as authorities face increasing pressure from residents and activists to hold both builders and civic officials accountable for the region’s growing number of unsafe and unauthorised structures.
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