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Stalin to take up development issues of TN with PM Modi in New Delhi

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Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, during his four-day visit to New Delhi from March 30, will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and take up a host of issues related to the development of the state with him.

This will be his second meeting with the Prime Minister after he assumed office in May 2021 as the chief minister of Tamil Nadu.

In a statement, the Chief Minister’s office said that while the meeting with the Prime Minister on March 31 stands confirmed, that with Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari, and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh awaits comfirmation.

Stalin is expected to take up several issues concerning the state, including pending bills with the Governor and other infrastructure and development issues.

During his visit, the Chief Minister will inaugurate ‘Anna Kalaignar Arivalayam’, the DMK party office in New Delhi on April 2. DMK Parliamentary party leader and former Union Minister T.R. Baalu has met Congress president Sonia Gandhi, BJP president J.P. Nadda, and other senior leaders and extended the invitation of the DMK office inauguration.

Notably, the DMK is trying to catapult Stalin to the national stage as an alternative to the BJP during the 2024 polls and the Delhi office inauguration is considered a major meeting point with senior regional chieftains and to take up the coordination for an anti-NDA front at the national level.

While West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrashekhar Rao had travelled across the country and met senior opposition leaders for a joint front, Stalin is more acceptable as he maintains an excellent relationship with the Congress, CPM, and CPI which will be of use for a national anti-BJP front.

National News

Maharashtra: Major scam in twin tunnel and elevated road projects, allege Shiv Sena-UBT and Congress

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Mumbai, May 31: The opposition Shiv Sena-UBT and Congress in Maharashtra have claimed that there is a major scam in the Thane-Godbunder-Bhayander twin tunnel and elevated road projects estimated together at Rs 14,000 crore.

“Will Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde be removed from the government and an investigation conducted into this scam?” SS-UBT leader Aaditya Thackeray said at a press conference while criticising the state government after the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) told the Supreme Court during a hearing on a petition filed by the infrastructure major L&T that both the tenders would be scrapped, and a fresh tender process would be initiated only to safeguard larger public interest.

“I congratulate the court… I also congratulate the contractor L&T. No political interference is needed. I had brought this news to the fore last year also,” Aaditya Thackeray said on Saturday.

“The cost of the twin projects was expected to be Rs 14,000 crore and, on the other hand, the contract process was to be completed in 20 days. There is a short tender notice for landslides, broken walls. But how can there be a short notice for this big project? When they (L&T) went to court, MMRDA said that they are giving a contract period of 60 days instead of 20 days,” he claimed.

“It all started for a favourite contractor. At that time, I didn’t think it would be such a big scam. There was a settlement against the government for a contract. But today’s (court) case has given me confidence that ‘Satyamev Jayate’ will prevail. It was clear that this was a scam. Just because the contract was canceled later on the orders of the court doesn’t mean it wasn’t a scam.

“The ED and IT-D are being pushed aside. I ask the Chief Minister – are you going to investigate the ‘corrupt Nath’ Shinde? He must have taken bribes, given threats. Fadnavis says we need clean governance. Shinde holds the urban development department… he gives orders to commit scams. Will you investigate him? Are you going to expel him?” Aaditya Thackeray questioned.

He claimed that Fadnavis does not need Shinde as Ajit Pawar is with him. “So will the probe be conducted by keeping aside Shinde?” he wondered.

On the other hand, Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee president Harshwardhan Sapkal claimed that there was corruption of Rs 3,000 crore in the Thane-Godbunder-Bhayander twin tunnel and elevated road projects. He also accused CM Devendra Fadnavis and his deputy Eknath Shinde of taking bribes in these projects.

“The matter does not end with the cancellation of the tender by MMRDA as the issue is about corruption. Devendra Fadnavis and Eknath Shinde have created a corridor of corruption in the state and there is a circle of state undertakings including MMRDA, MHADA (Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority), CIDCO (City and Industrial Development Corporation) and SRA (Slum Rehabilitation Authority) for this purpose. This circle of corruption has been quite active since Eknath Shinde became the Chief Minister. For this, favourite officers are appointed and through this, the favourite contractor scheme is implemented,” alleged Sapkal.

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National News

Re-tendering of Ghodbunder-Bhayandar projects: Voluntary move despite legal clearance, says MMRDA

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Mumbai, May 31: The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) on Saturday strongly defended its decision to scrap tenders for the Thane-Ghodbunder-Bhayandar twin tunnel and elevated road projects, valued at around Rs 14,000 crore.

The authority emphasized that the move was voluntary and aimed at upholding transparency, despite having received legal vindication from the courts.

In a submission before the Supreme Court on Friday, MMRDA said that it would scrap both tenders and initiate a fresh bidding process in alignment with its institutional commitment to transparency and to safeguard the larger public interest.

“The decision to re-tender the Ghodbunder-Bhayandar infrastructure projects underscores MMRDA’s commitment to public value, ethical governance, and transparency,” the authority said in a statement.

“This voluntary step comes despite the Supreme Court declining to interfere with the Bombay High Court’s rulings, which had upheld the legality and procedural soundness of the tender process for the Gaimukh-Bhayandar project,” it added.

MMRDA also said it was actively considering a downward revision of the project’s base cost by around Rs 3,000 crore, based on price quotations revealed during court proceedings, to ensure optimal utilization of public funds.

Infrastructure major Larsen & Toubro (L&T) had twice challenged the tendering process in the Bombay High Court, which on both occasions upheld MMRDA’s procedures, affirming that all rules, technical criteria, and eligibility norms had been followed.

In its Special Leave Petition (SLP) before the Supreme Court, L&T had sought both interim and final reliefs, including a stay on the High Court’s order, a freeze on the opening of financial bids, a bar on disclosure of submitted bids, and a halt on issuing any Letter of Award.

However, the apex court declined to grant any of these interim requests.

“The Court did not stay the High Court’s order, nor did it restrain MMRDA from opening financial bids, disclosing them, or issuing Letters of Award,” the MMRDA statement said.

“During final hearings, Chief Justice B.R. Gavai expressly refused to interfere with the Bombay High Court’s rulings, thus reinforcing the legality of MMRDA’s tendering process.”

According to MMRDA, L&T was disqualified for failing to meet a key eligibility condition that required bidders to declare that no bridge or barrage constructed by them had collapsed within two years of completion.

Based on L&T’s own disclosure, the company was rendered ineligible, and its financial bid was never opened.

“MMRDA’s approach in this matter goes beyond a legal win. It reflects leadership — where legal compliance is a baseline, and ethical decision-making in public interest is the standard,” the statement said.

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Crime

Delhi Police bust interstate auto theft syndicate, recover eight high end cars

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New Delhi, May 30: The Delhi Police Crime Branch has busted an interstate syndicate involved in the theft and resale of high-end vehicles, a statement said on Friday.

The gang used a sophisticated modus operandi to sell stolen cars through online platforms by forging documents, opening bank accounts with fake identities, and tampering with engine and chassis numbers.

In a series of coordinated operations, the police arrested a key member of the gang and recovered eight luxury vehicles.

According to Delhi Police, the breakthrough came with the arrest of Rakesh Patel alias Pappu (38), a core operative of the syndicate, near Sahibabad Railway Station in Ghaziabad on April 21, 2025.

Acting on a tip-off, police apprehended him while he was attempting to sell a stolen Maruti Wagon-R via an online platform.

Patel, a resident of Sahibabad, Ghaziabad (UP), and originally from Mohiuddin Nagar, Samastipur (Bihar), played a central role in managing theft operations and delivering stolen vehicles across states.

His associates arranged vehicles, counterfeit documents, and fake number plates.

The gang’s method was notably elaborate. After stealing a car, they searched online car-selling portals for vehicles of the same make, model, and colour.

Using open-source information, they identified details of genuine owners and forged documents in the owner’s name — featuring the photograph of one of the accused. They also opened bank accounts using these fake identities.

To avoid detection, the syndicate would tamper with the stolen car’s engine and chassis numbers to match those of the legitimate vehicle. Fake Registration Certificates (RCs) were then prepared, making the stolen car appear genuine. Once the vehicle was thus ‘cloned,’ it was listed for sale on online platforms.

The syndicate targeted high-demand vehicles, often choosing cars parked in low-surveillance or roadside areas. The police noted the gang’s use of advanced technological tools to support their operations.

A team led by Inspector Arun Sindhu of the Crime Branch spearheaded the investigation, which led to the arrest and recovery of the stolen vehicles.

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