Mumbai: Normal life in Mumbai has been paralysed due to heavy rains in the city and suburbs since last night. Passengers have faced a lot of problems due to delays in train services, while a red alert has been issued for Thane, Palghar and Mumbai for three hours. The Meteorological Department and BMC have predicted rain for 24 hours. Normal life in Mumbai has been affected due to rain. Due to water accumulation in low-lying areas and the Andheri Milan subway, it has been completely closed for traffic. The intensity of rain in the city and suburbs is not showing any sign of stopping. The water level of the lakes supplying water has also increased due to the rain. During the rains in Mumbai, 31 complaints of short circuits and tree fall have been received at 30 places in the city and suburbs. Along with this, a child died due to a tree falling on a bus of Chembur Universal School yesterday, while 12 injured are undergoing treatment. Santosh Bhaskar, 51, an employee working at a petrol pump, was seriously injured after a portion of the balcony of the third floor of a G Plus 3 building in Gaudevi, Babulnath collapsed. Five out of six families living here were rescued safely due to a rock slide on SG Barve Marg in Kurla. An elderly man from one of the families was rescued by the NDRF team. No casualties were reported. Trains are still running in Mumbai city during the rains, but the Central Lines are running with a delay of half an hour to an hour, while the Western Line is running with a delay of 10 minutes. There is flooding in the sea due to the rain, and the BMC and the police are also on alert.

Mumbai, July 1: Launching a scathing attack on party legislator and deputy leader Sachin Ahir for his switch, Shiv Sen (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Wednesday said that Ahir left them in the dark, dropping a stone on their heads while they were asleep.

“Even if you call this your political journey, history will remember it as a tainted one. If you choose to leave even after being given everything, it means political greed is destroying you. Try poaching workers who desire absolutely nothing. A kind of decay and degradation is underway in the state,” Raut said.

He further observed that loyal party workers who stand by the organisation through thick and thin have become a rarity.

The remarks by Raut came a day after Ahir jumped the ship to join the Shinde camp and filed his nomination for the post of Maharashtra Legislative Council Deputy Chairperson.

Recalling Ahir’s political trajectory, Raut told reporters that Ahir’s career had hit a roadblock after his defeat by Sunil Shinde. However, Aaditya Thackeray revived his political future by making him an MLC, appointing him as a deputy leader, making him the working president of the Bhartiya Kamgar Sena, and handing over the entire responsibility of Pune district to him.

“Sachin Ahir was an extremely close associate of Aaditya Thackeray. He cannot claim that no one was meeting him or listening to him, because Aaditya Thackeray and Uddhav Saheb met him daily,” Raut asserted.

When asked if Sachin Ahir’s defection would increase difficulties for Aaditya Thackeray in the Worli Assembly constituency, Raut remarked that contentment is crucial for any human being.

Raut made a candid statement raising questions about the party’s current predicament and admitted, “For our political future, all of us need to engage in introspection.”

Ahir had sent a message to his colleagues stating, “Leaving the party is my compulsion. I am doing this for my future journey and prospects.”

Reacting to this, Raut questioned, “If this is the case, then for whom should the common grassroots worker toil?”

Raut further noted that Ahir had previously abandoned NCP chief Sharad Pawar in a similar manner for his career.

“Pawar Saheb lifted him from the dust to the skies, made him the MHADA chief, a minister for several years, and the Mumbai NCP President. Yet, he suddenly left Sharad Pawar and his family blindsided to join the Shiv Sena. If he couldn’t remain loyal to Sharad Pawar, how could he be loyal to us? These are not original Shiv Sainiks. A party is always built by its core, original Shiv Sainiks. The rest are just fair-weather passengers who come and go. What Sunil Shinde said is correct — we all need to introspect now,” he stated.

Showing Ahir a mirror, Raut described his political journey as “blemished.”

“Sachin Ahir caught Sharad Pawar off guard when he joined the Shiv Sena back then. Making Ahir a minister in those days was a massive gamble. The Thackeray family and the Shiv Sena showered him with love. Yet, keeping them in the dark, he left like someone dropping a stone on your head while you sleep,” Raut lambasted the leader.

“Sachin Ahir values no loyalty. Where has he gone now, and what more will they give him? Perhaps a candidature from somewhere. But his political road map is riddled with potholes. It feels bad that he left, but he shouldn’t have done this after receiving respect, status, and positions,” commented Raut.

Taking a swipe at Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, Raut added, “When someone defects despite being given everything, Eknath Shinde breaks into a wicked laugh, resembling Ravana.”

Referring to the wider rift, Raut concluded by pointing out that out of the six MPs who split from the party, five were originally from the Congress.

Mumbai, July 1: Singer Reetu Sharma, who had performed at a function of Ketan Agarwal’s family on May 7, said that she is “constantly reminded” of his warm nature and words from that day as she demanded strict punishment for the accused.

An old video of Ketan Agarwal dancing with his and his fiancee – and murder accused — Siya Goyal’s parents at a family function in Pune was posted on Instagram by the singer on Tuesday night.

Among the two videos posted on social media, the first shows Ketan’s father, Vishal Agarwal, and Siya’s parents – Pravin Goyal and Pooja Goyal – standing close to each other along with other relatives, while Vishal Agarwal is seen grooving with singer Sharma.

Seconds later, Ketan is seen dancing with Siya’s father, Pravin, to a popular Bollywood song.

Speaking to media, Sharma noted that she was contacted by the Agarwal family through an event management company and has already performed in three to four functions of the family.

The singer further said that she got to know about the alleged murder of Ketan from the social media status of a member of the Agarwal family.

“This function was held on May 7 in Nashik. The occasion was the wedding ritual of Ketan’s cousin (paternal aunt’s daughter) which the Goyal family also attended,” she said.

Denying any sense of enmity between the families, she said: “Both families were happy and very much involved. In fact, both Ketan and Siya’s parents were dancing together and, as seen in the videos, Ketan’s father was even singing with me.”

Noting that the incident deeply impacted her, Sharma said: “I was constantly recalling Ketan’s face and his words from the function on that day. I cannot forget the style in which he told me ‘Maa’m, you are superb; amazing, and please take your lunch’, after the function. Because after such functions we are usually tired, but the way he kept on persuading me till I had my lunch keeps coming back to me.”

Meanwhile, sharing the video, the singer wrote: “On 7th May, we did a program in their family. Where you all can see they are all happily enjoying the program. How happy both the families were. We saw Ketan from our own eyes. Such an innocent child. Who knew this will happen to this beautiful soul (sic).”

Sharma called for strict punishment for Siya, saying: “Just because she did not like him doesn’t mean she can take someone’s life. She did think about her parents that if she ran with her boyfriend, society would blame her and her parents. But what about Ketan’s parents? She did not think what they will go through??”

“Why saying NO is more difficult than taking someone’s life? We want justice for Ketan! She should be pushed from that fort where she pushed Ketan and killed him,” she added.