Maharashtra
Shiv Sena ‘completely finished’ in a month as 12 MPs also join Shinde camp
Exactly a month after a rebellion among 40 Shiv Sena MLAs on June 20, 12 party MPs on Tuesday switched over to Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s group, dealing another massive blow to embattled party President Uddhav Thackeray.
The MPs who joined the Shinde camp include Shrikant (Eknath) Shinde, Rahul Shewale, Bhavana Gawali, Hemant Godse, Rajendra Gavit, Sadashiv Lokhande, Hemant Patil, Sanjay Mandlik, Dhairyasheel Mane, Shrirang Barne, Krupal Tumane and Prataprao Jadhav.
Shinde made the announcement in Delhi on Tuesday that 12 Shiv Sena MPs have joined him in the interest of the people, and will work for the progress and development of Maharashtra.
He added that the 12 MPs met Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and submitted a letter to this effect as the Shiv Sena Parliamentary Party Group in the Lower House.
“While Rahul Shewale is the new Shiv Sena group leader, Bhavana Gawali is now the chief whip of the party in the Lok Sabha,” said Shinde.
The CM also made it clear that the whips issued by Gawali will now be applicable to all the 18 Shiv Sena MPs in the Lok Sabha.
The development came a month after June 20, when a Shinde-led revolt by around 40 Shiv Sena MLAs plus 10 Independents and others brought down the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government of Shiv Sena-Nationalist Congress Party-Congress headed by then CM Uddhav Thackeray on June 29.
On June 30, Shinde was sworn-in as the Chief Minister, while ally BJP’s Devendra Fadnavis took oath as the Deputy CM.
The latest turn of events is considered a massive setback for Thackeray, though the party’s chief spokesperson Sanjay Raut had repeatedly trashed the upcoming political churning within the party in the past two days.
After offering allegiance to Shinde, the 12 MPs called on Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and submitted a letter with various demands.
One of the MPs, Hemant Godse, told mediapersons that they have requested the Speaker to approve the name of Bhavana Gawali as the new chief whip in Lok Sabha and Rahul Shewale as the new party leader in place of current Shiv Sena party leader Vinayak Raut, who is still with Thackeray.
He added that they urged the Speaker to recognise them as a group and allot the Shiv Sena office in the Parliament House to them.
“The Speaker has assured us that after studying the matter, he will take the necessary steps in the matter,” Godse said.
Shinde lauded the 12 MPs for taking a principled stand and adhering to the ideals of Balasaheb Thackeray and Dharmaveer Anand Dighe.
“We fought the elections together (with BJP) in 2019. We have brought back the ‘natural alliance’ with the BJP and rectified the mistake (of MVA) committed two-and-a-half years ago. That’s why we are getting huge public support,” Shinde asserted.
Earlier on Tuesday, anticipating the political development, the Maharashtra Police and central forces tightened security at the homes and offices of all the 12 MPs who joined the Shinde group.
Maharashtra
Mumbai Accident: Elderly Woman Hit By Garbage Truck Near Shitladevi Metro Station In Mahim; Suffers Heavy Blood Loss

Mumbai: An elderly woman was seriously injured after being hit by a garbage dumper truck in Mahim on a busy stretch. Disturbing visuals showed the woman in glaring pain. The incident took place near the Mumbai Metro 3’s Shitladevi Mandir Metro Station in Mahim.
The victim was attempting to cross the road when the garbage dumper truck hit her. The dumper, reportedly moving at speed, struck her, leaving her with severe injuries and heavy blood loss. Visuals also showed locals rushing to help and taking her to the nearest hospital.
Currently, there is no update on her condition. Though visuals showed police and traffic police on the scene, it is yeh not known if any case was registered against the garbage dumper truck.
Meanwhile, in another recent accident case, three students of the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay were killed after their car met with an accident on the Mumbai–Pune Expressway near Lonavala on Thursday morning while returning from Khandala, where they had gone to watch the sunrise.
The deceased, identified as Omkumar Borse (23), a resident of Nashik; Lay (20), from Nagpur; and Shreyansh Sharma (22), from Jaipur, were travelling in a Volkswagen Polo when the accident occurred. Police officials said that the exact cause of the accident is yet to be determined, as there were no eyewitnesses at the scene.
Maharashtra
Mumbai Local: 395 Without Tickets Fined At Ghatkopar During Evening Peak Hours, Central Railways Collects Over ₹1 Lakh Fine

Mumbai: A special ‘fortress’ ticket-checking drive by Central Railway at Ghatkopar station during peak evening hours caught hundreds of ticketless passengers, with authorities collecting a whopping fine of over Rs 1 lakh in a day.
According to the update shared by DRM Central Railway, the drive was held on Tuesday, March 18, during the evening peak hours. During the intensive checking operation, “395 ticketless passengers were caught, and a Rs 1,02,260/- penalty was imposed.”
Notably, Ghatkopar railway station sees heavy passenger footfall as commuters from both Central and Western lines connect here due to its direct Metro Line 1 link between Ghatkopar and Andheri, making it a major boarding hub.
Meanwhile, on the same day, a special drive was also held at Mulund station, where the authorities caught 315 ticketless passengers, and a fine of Rs 74,860 was collected in a day.
There has been a rise in ticketless travel cases across Mumbai, with special checking drives being conducted at multiple railway stations. Hundreds of passengers are being caught every day during these operations.
On March 16 and 17, special ticket-checking drives were carried out at Asangaon, Titvala, Ambernath and Badlapur stations. At Asangaon, 312 ticketless passengers were caught and fined, and Rs 78,290 was collected, while 305 passengers at Titvala were penalised, collecting Rs 75,345 in fine.
On March 16, a separate drive at Ambernath and Badlapur during evening peak hours caught 763 ticketless travellers, with a total fine of Rs 1,88,620 collected. Last week, a similar drive was held at Vashi railway station, resulting in action against 393 passengers, with authorities collecting Rs 1,02,260 in fines in a single day.
Maharashtra
Bomb threat to blow up Mumbai Bandra BKC Passport Office; no suspicious objects or explosives found during search; alert issued in area

Mumbai: Bandra BKC has been rocked by a bomb threat. A panic has erupted in the area after an email was received stating that 19 cyanide bombs have been planted in the passport office in Mumbai’s BKC. The police immediately received the information about this email and the bomb disposal and bomb disposal teams reached the spot. A panic has erupted after a bomb threat was received at the passport office in Mumbai’s Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC). The threat was given through an email. A threat was made to plant 19 bombs filled with cyanide in the passport office and toilets. There was panic after the email was received. The threatening email said that the bombs would explode at 1.30 pm today. As soon as the information about this threatening email was received, the police and the bomb disposal squad reached the spot. The entire area has been evacuated and the bomb squad searched but nothing was found. Therefore, the police are taking details of the email through which the threat was sent. Mumbai Police is investigating the entire matter in depth.
Threatening mails on three email IDs
On Wednesday, the passport office in BKC received three threatening emails. In which 19 cyanide bombs kept in the passport office and toilets were threatened to explode at 1.30 pm. The threatening mails were received on the email addresses Sourav_biswas21@hotmail.com, rpo.mumbai@mea.gov.in and rpo.mumbai@cpo.gov.in. After this, the security agencies and the Mumbai Police were immediately informed. On receiving the information, the security agencies started immediate action. Senior officers of the BKC police station, an ATS team and officers of Unit 8 immediately reached the spot. They took control of the entire area and started investigation.
Citizens urged to be vigilant
The bomb disposal and bomb disposal team conducted a thorough inspection of the lobby of the passport office, the main entrance, the entrance and exit routes, the trees and bushes in the area and all the surrounding areas as a precautionary measure. Fortunately, they did not find anything suspicious or objectionable in this inspection. Still, the police, taking the matter seriously, have appealed to the citizens to be vigilant. They have also been asked to immediately inform the police if they see anything suspicious anywhere.
Fake threatening emails are also often sent. Such fake emails create an atmosphere of fear. To prevent this, the cyber police have started collecting more information about email IDs. The security personnel of the passport office have also been instructed to be vigilant and follow security standards.
-
Crime4 years agoClass 10 student jumps to death in Jaipur
-
Maharashtra1 year agoMumbai Local Train Update: Central Railway’s New Timetable Comes Into Effect; Check Full List Of Revised Timings & Stations
-
Maharashtra1 year agoMumbai To Go Toll-Free Tonight! Maharashtra Govt Announces Complete Toll Waiver For Light Motor Vehicles At All 5 Entry Points Of City
-
Maharashtra1 year agoFalse photo of Imtiaz Jaleel’s rally, exposing the fooling conspiracy
-
National News1 year agoMinistry of Railways rolls out Special Drive 4.0 with focus on digitisation, cleanliness, inclusiveness and grievance redressal
-
Maharashtra1 year agoMaharashtra Elections 2024: Mumbai Metro & BEST Services Extended Till Midnight On Voting Day
-
National News1 year agoJ&K: 4 Jawans Killed, 28 Injured After Bus Carrying BSF Personnel For Poll Duty Falls Into Gorge In Budgam; Terrifying Visuals Surface
-
Crime1 year agoBaba Siddique Murder: Mumbai Police Unable To Get Lawrence Bishnoi Custody Due To Home Ministry Order, Says Report
