Page 16 - Maharashtra

Somy Ali invites Bishnoi for Zoom call, asks him to share mobile number

Former model and actor Somy Ali has reached out to Lawrence Bishnoi via social media and requested an audience with the jailed gangster over a Zoom call, saying she has some details to share that would "benefit" him. Her post came days after the murder of NCP leader and former Maharashtra minister Baba Siddique, who police say may have been targeted by Bishnoi because of his proximity to superstar Salman Khan. Ali, who was believed to be in a relationship with Khan back in the 1990s, sent a "direct message" to Bishnoi on Wednesday through an Instagram post. "Namaste, Lawrence bhai, I've heard and seen that you are able to do Zoom calls despite being in jail. I want to speak to you. Please let me know whether we can arrange something. Rajasthan is my most favourite place in the world. I want to visit your temple there. "But if we would speak over a Zoom call before that... Trust me, this will benefit you. Share your mobile number, it would be a great favour. Thank you," she wrote ..

Akhilesh to visit Maha, seek more seats to contest polls with 'INDIA'

Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav on Thursday said he would visit Maharashtra on Friday and seek more seats to contest the upcoming Assembly elections there as part of the opposition INDIA bloc. The 288-member Maharashtra Assembly will got to the polls in a single phase on November 20, and the results will be out on November 23. In 2019, the Samajwadi Party contested seven seats in Maharashtra, winning two and losing its deposit in the remaining five, according to Election Commission figures. "I am going to Maharashtra tomorrow. Our effort is to ensure that the INDIA bloc wins. In Maharashtra, the INDIA bloc parties include the one led by Sharad Pawar Ji, the former CM's (Uddhav Thackeray) party (Shiv Sena-UBT), and others including Samajwadi Party," Yadav told reporters. "With two MLAs in Maharashtra, we have sought some seats to fight the polls alongside the INDIA bloc. We will continue to stand by the INDIA bloc with all our strength," the former Uttar Pradesh chief minis

Don't politicise issue, family needs justice, says Baba Siddique's MLA son

Congress MLA Zeeshan Siddique on Thursday said the killing of his father and NCP leader Baba Siddique should not be politicised and asserted his family needs justice. Baba Siddique (66) was shot at in Nirmal Nagar in Mumbai's Bandra area on October 12 by three persons. He succumbed to injuries at nearby Lilavati Hospital soon after. In a post on X, Zeeshan Siddique said his father lost his life protecting and saving the lives and homes of poor innocent people. "Today, my family is broken but his death must not be politicised and definitely not go in vain. I NEED JUSTICE, MY FAMILY NEEDS JUSTICE!" the Bandra East MLA said in his social media post. Baba Siddique, a former state minister, had joined the Ajit Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party from the Congress recently.

Maharashtra elections: Spotlight on top CM candidates from Mahayuti, MVA

Maharashtra Assembly elections: Maharashtra is set to vote in a single phase on November 20, with the counting of votes set for November 23

Coast Guard conducts 'Sagar Kavach' exercise along Maharashtra, Goa coast

The Indian Coast Guard in co-ordination with other agencies has undertaken an exercise along the coast of Goa and Maharashtra to protect the country's maritime interests and to test the agencies' collective response to security threats, officials said on Thursday. The two-day 'Sagar Kavach' coastal security drill began on Wednesday, the Coast Guard said in a release. The Coast Guard is conducting the exercise in co-ordination with the Indian Navy, Customs, Coastal Police, Central Industrial Security Force, Mormugao Port Authority and the Goa government's Fisheries and Captain of Ports departments, it said. "The comprehensive coastal security exercise aims at strengthening and enhancing the coastal and maritime security of our nation. The multi-agency exercise takes place along the entire coastline, engaging a range of maritime agencies and stakeholders," the Coast Guard said. "The exercise will simulate realistic scenarios to test and improve our collective response to maritime ...

Lawrence Bishnoi gang member who gave contract to kill Salman Khan arrested

The accused, Sukha alias Sukhbir Balbir Singh, along with gang members, had planned to execute Bollywood actor Salman Khan's assassination using weapons from Pakistan

Shiv Sena split, Maratha unrest: How will Maharashtra vote on November 20?

The Shiv Sena split and growing Maratha unrest over reservation demands have created an unpredictable electoral environment in the state

Maharashtra polls: Mahayuti alliance has its CM in place, says Fadnavis

Maharashtra Assembly polls: Maharashtra will conduct its voting in a single phase on November 20, with the counting of votes set for November 23

Remove GRs from govt website after enforcing poll code in Maharashtra: ECI

Various government departments in Maharashtra have removed orders published on the official website after the enforcement of the model code of conduct, following instructions from the office of the state chief electoral officer. The website saw a number of orders, or Government Resolutions (GRs), uploaded even after the model code of conduct came into effect on Tuesday following the announced of the state assembly polls schedule by the Election Commission of India. Asked about it, additional chief electoral officer Kiran Kulkarni said, "We have asked departments to remove the GRs uploaded on the government website after 3.30 pm on Tuesday. It was at this time that the chief election commissioner announced the schedule for the Maharashtra legislative assembly polls, and the model code of conduct came into effect immediately." The GRs, however, are not withdrawn (as only removed from the website) and their scrutiny will be done, the official said. "If the GRs are not violating the mo

Maharashtra polls: BJP reviews candidates, list expected within week

BJP leader and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said that the party's national president JP Nadda chaired the meeting

To boost bilateral ties with India, Taiwan opens new office in Mumbai

The new mission would provide 'visa services, document authentication, and emergency assistance to business people, tourists, and Taiwanese nationals' in western India

Maha's pre-Budget welfare schemes unlikely to dent state finances: ICRA

The spate of welfare schemes and guarantees announced by the Eknath Shinde-led Maharashtra government is unlikely to dent the state's financial position, a domestic rating agency said. Icra Ratings' chief economist Aditi Nayar also expects that there will not be a "runaway increase" in spending even though the "rhetoric may be very high". She explained that Maharashtra fares well on the state debt front, and the leverage levels are among the lowest in the country. Concerns have been raised in the recent past over schemes like the Rs 46,000-crore Ladki Bahin Yojana of providing cash handouts to women or the decision to discontinue tolls for cars while entering or exiting the financial capital. The rating agency's assistant vice president Neetika Shridhar said Maharashtra has a sizeable amount of fiscal space because it has not been doing a lot of welfare spending in the last few years, which can limit the sacrifices that it may have to make to accommodate the financial pressure comi

CM Shinde needs to make sacrifices like us: Maha BJP prez on seat-sharing

Maharashtra BJP president Chandrashekhar Bawankule on Wednesday said Chief Minister Eknath Shinde should be willing to make "sacrifices", in terms of seat-sharing for the assembly polls, like the BJP has done to keep the alliance intact. The comments come a day after the Election Commission announced the schedule for polls to 288 seats in the state assembly. Voting is scheduled on November 20 and the counting will take place on November 23. "Chief Minister Eknath Shinde must remain open-minded and be willing to make sacrifices. We, too, have made sacrifices to uphold the alliance. It is evident that the BJP aims to contest the seats we previously held," Bawankule told ABP Majha news channel in Nagpur. As the dominant party in the alliance, it is only natural for the BJP to seek more seats, he said. Asked if Union Home Minister Amit Shah reportedly stated that the BJP "sacrificed" the CM's post while forging an alliance with Shinde-led Shiv Sena, Bawankule said, "I do not know what

Maharashtra elections: Coastal belt's 75 seats crucial for power shift

The serene coastal belt of Maharashtra, including Mumbai, offers an interesting backdrop for a showdown between Mahayuti and MVA alliances in the next month's assembly elections, especially between two rival Shiv Senas. The most urbanised and industrial region, including the Mumbai metropolitan area, sends 75 MLAs to the assembly and 12 members to Lok Sabha. The coastal Konkan division in Maharashtra, spread from Sindhudurg to Mumbai, also covers Palghar, Thane, Raigad and Ratnagiri districts. Voting will be held on all 288 assembly constituencies in Maharashtra on November 20 and results will be declared on November 23. In the recent Lok Sabha polls, the Mahayuti alliance of Shiv Sena, BJP, and NCP, bagged seven seats. The BJP triumphed in Palghar, Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg, and Mumbai North, while the NCP, led by Ajit Pawar, had a face-saver in Raigad where its leader Sunil Tatkare retained his seat. In the upcoming polls, former Union Minister Narayan Rane, who won the ...

State govts' pre-poll measures top Rs 1 trn in Maharashtra, Jharkhand

Jharkhand govt waived loans of 176,977 farmers worth Rs 400.7 crore

46.6 mn women voters in Maharashtra, 1.2 mn first-timers in Jharkhand

In the 2019 Assembly polls in Maharashtra, 62 of 64 urban seats polled below the state average of 60.56 per cent

Jharkhand, Maharashtra polls, India-Canada relations, Hyundai Motor India IPO & more

Maharashtra Assembly polls: Gehlot, Baghel among Congress' poll observers

Maharashtra elections: The Congress has named former Union Minister Mukul Wasnik and AICC General Secretary Avinash Pande as state election senior coordinators

Maharashtra elections: Voting in single phase on Nov 20, results on Nov 23

Maharashtra Assembly elections: Out of 288, 234 seats in Maharashtra are general category, 25 seats are reserved for Scheduled Tribes (STs) and 29 seats are reserved for Scheduled Castes (SCs)

Baba Siddique murder case: Another suspect held for funding shooters

The Mumbai police have arrested one more person in connection with the killing of NCP leader and former Maharashtra minister Baba Siddique, officials said on Tuesday. The accused, identified as Harishkumar Balakram (23), hailing from Bahraich in Uttar Pradesh, was involved in providing money and other logistical support to the shooters, an official said. Balakram worked as a scrap dealer in Warje area of Maharashtra's Pune, he said. A crime branch team apprehended him from Bahraich in UP on Monday and brought him to Mumbai on Tuesday morning, the official said. With this, four persons have so far been arrested in connection with Siddique's killing. Police had earlier arrested Haryana resident Gurmail Baljit Singh (23), Uttar Pradesh native Dharmaraj Rajesh Kashyap (19), both alleged shooters, and "co-conspirator" Pravin Lonkar from Pune. Another suspected shooter Shivkumar Gautam, who hails from Bahraich, is on the run. Balakram was part of the conspiracy to kill three-time MLA