Navi Mumbai: A 21-year-old woman was found murdered inside a lodge in Lonere village of Mangaon taluka in Raigad district, triggering widespread outrage and protests, with local groups demanding police to arrest the accused within 24 hours or face intensified agitation.

The deceased has been identified as Pallavi More (21), who worked as an accountant at a builder’s office and was reportedly in a relationship with the alleged accused. According to police, the crime occurred between 11:15 pm on April 19 and the early hours of April 20. Preliminary investigation indicates that the accused, who was a frequent visitor of the lodge, first checked into the lodge following which the victim arrived later.

Police said the accused allegedly established physical relations with the victim, tied her hands with a rope, and attacked her with a sickle, inflicting fatal injuries to her head and wrists. Her mobile phone is currently missing, adding another, said police.

“The accused has been identified and is not a local resident. Multiple teams have been formed to nab him,” Mahad DySP Shankar Kale said, adding, “The accused has been identified and teams have been deployed to trace and arrest him at the earliest. The investigation is progressing on priority.”

Following the incident, anger has escalated sharply across Raigad district, particularly in Lonere and Goregaon, where people from all communities have come together to strongly condemn the crime and demand immediate arrest of the accused.

A massive ‘Aakrosh Morcha’ has been announced for April 25, with demonstrators planning to march to the police station if action is not taken within the stipulated time.

The case has been registered at Goregaon Police Station under relevant sections of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, along with Sections 3(2) and 3, and Sections 103(1) (murder) and 64 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

Mumbai: Eight per cent voter turnout was recorded in Baramati and six per cent in Rahuri in the first two hours of voting on Thursday as polling was underway for bypolls to the two assembly constituencies in Maharashtra, election officials said.

Voting began at 7 am and will conclude at 6 pm, they said.

The Baramati bypoll was necessitated by the death of then Deputy Chief Minister and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) head Ajit Pawar in an air crash on January 28. His wife, Deputy CM and NCP chief Sunetra Pawar, and 22 other candidates are in the fray.

The Rahuri seat became vacant after BJP MLA Shivaji Kardile’s death in October last year. His son Akshay Kardile is in the fray in Rahuri, pitted against NCP (SP) candidate Govind Mokate and Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi’s Santosh Chalke.

Riding a sympathy wave, Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar has urged voters in Baramati to support her as a tribute to her late husband Ajit Pawar.

The total number of registered voters in the constituency is 3.84 lakh.

Sunetra Pawar, Ajit Pawar’s younger brother Srinivas Pawar and his wife Sharmila cast their votes at the Katewadi polling booth in Baramati early in the morning.

There is no candidate in the fray from the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) against Sunetra Pawar.

The rival NCP (SP) led by Sharad Pawar decided not to field a candidate against her. While ally Congress gave candidature to Akash More, the party later decided to withdraw his name.

Election officials in Baramati said elaborate arrangements have been made to facilitate the smooth conduct of the polling.

“To ensure that the scorching heat does not dampen the spirit of voters, we have installed mandaps (sheds) outside polling booths, and water coolers have been placed to ensure access to cold drinking water,” an official said.

Ajit Pawar had won the Baramati assembly seat, a bastion of the extended Pawar family, for the last several decades. In the 2024 assembly polls, he defeated his nephew Yugendra Pawar of the NCP (SP).

In the 288-member Maharashtra assembly, the ruling Mahayuti alliance has 235 seats (BJP-132, Shiv Sena-57, NCP-41, allies-5), while the Opposition MVA combine has 50 seats (Shiv Sena UBT-20, Congress-16, NCP SP-10, others-4).

Mumbai, April 23: The Indian equity markets posted sharp losses early on Thursday tracking cautious global cues and sustained foreign institutional selling, after the recent rally.

As of 9.25 am, Sensex lost 671 points, or 0.85 per cent, to reach 77,845 and Nifty dipped 179 points, or 0.74 per cent, to reach 24,198.

Main broad-cap indices showed divergence with the benchmark indices, as the Nifty Midcap 100 dipped 0.34 per cent, and the Nifty Smallcap 100 lost 0.16 per cent.

All sectoral indices traded in red except pharma as well as oil and gas up 0.71 per cent and 0.02 per cent. Nifty auto and consumer durables were the top losers down 1.03 per cent and 1.61 per cent respectively.

The immediate support zone of Nifty is placed at near 24,100–24,000, while resistance is observed in the 24,400–24,500 range.

In the previous session, benchmark indices on a weaker note after failing to sustain higher levels. Selling pressure was visible in banking and financial stocks following their recent outperformance.

IT stocks also remained weak, tracking subdued global cues and uncertainty in overseas markets. FMCG, Energy and other defensive sectors showed relative resilience.

The US markets gained after President Donald Trump extended a ceasefire with Iran, saying it was warranted due to Tehran’s “seriously fractured” government.

President Trump said the ceasefire will be in place until Iran submits a proposal or concludes talks, even as the US military continues its blockade of Iranian ports.

On the fundamental side, earnings remain a strong tailwind, with Q1 earnings growth tracking and forward EPS estimates seeing upward revision, market participants said.

In Asian markets, China’s Shanghai index lost 0.74 per cent, and Shenzhen dipped 1.48 per cent, Japan’s Nikkei lost 1.06 per cent, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index declined 1.2 per cent. South Korea’s Kospi lost 0.91 per cent.

The US markets ended in green overnight as Nasdaq gained 1.64 per cent. The S&P 500 advanced 1.05 per cent, and the Dow Jones added 0.69 per cent.

On April 22, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) net sold equities worth Rs 2,078 crore in India, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) were also net sellers of equities worth Rs 1,078 crore.