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By:

Quaid Najmi

4 January 2025 at 8:56:24 pm

Aaditya bats for ‘truth’

Mumbai: Two days after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) registered a FIR in the Disha Salian case, Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA and ex-Minister Aaditya Thackeray broke his silence – to proclaim that he would “fight for truth and against injustice”, here on Wednesday. “For the sake of truth, against injustice, our fight will continue,” vowed Aditya, daring his opponents that all attempts to silence him through ‘politically motivated character assassination’ will not succeed. Thackeray Jr’s...

Aaditya bats for ‘truth’

Mumbai: Two days after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) registered a FIR in the Disha Salian case, Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA and ex-Minister Aaditya Thackeray broke his silence – to proclaim that he would “fight for truth and against injustice”, here on Wednesday. “For the sake of truth, against injustice, our fight will continue,” vowed Aditya, daring his opponents that all attempts to silence him through ‘politically motivated character assassination’ will not succeed. Thackeray Jr’s assertion came after the CBI recorded the statement of Disha Salian’s father Satish Salian as per the September 2 directives of the Bombay High Court handing over the case probe to the central agency. Taking to X today, Aaditya said: “To stop the dust of rumors once again, I'm stating only and only the facts! Let’s cut through the noise and talk facts, once again. I have never met Disha Salian, nor did I have any acquaintance with her, or have known her." Nevertheless, Aaditya said that for the past six years, due to political motives arising out of personal enmity and with the intent of character assassination, “some people have been deliberately trying to link my name to this unfortunate incident repeatedly, despite there being no evidence or connection whatsoever”. With an apparent tinge of regret, the SS (UBT) MLA said that the false discussions on television channels and media trials carried out through empty bluster cannot alter the truth. “Loud TV debates and media trials do not change the facts. Let the official re-investigation proceed without malicious distractions and relentless smear campaigns run by vested interests without a single shred of evidence and truth is highly unfortunate,” Aaditya said. The controversy dates back to June 2020, when Disha Salian, 28, a celebrity manager who had worked with the late actor Sushant Singh Rajput, died after falling from a high-rise building in Malad. The Mumbai Police initially investigated the death as an accidental-death matter and subsequently concluded there was no foul play. Later however, her father Satish Salian challenged the handling of the case and sought a fresh investigation. Allowing his plea, the high court ordered the CBI to register an FIR and conduct a substantive investigation with an open mind into the circumstances surrounding her death. Crucially, the court also stated that it was not making findings against any individual and directed that no person be treated as an accused unless material emerged during investigations.

Dependable Cong face Chavan’s loss sends shock waive

Correspondent
Nov 25, 2024
3 min read
Prithviraj Chavan

Mumbai: The defeat of Congress veteran and former chief minister Prithviraj Chavan in the Assembly polls in his home district Karad has come as a shock and big setback for him in his decades long political career.


One of the most educated lawmakers in the state, Chavan's career saw him becoming the chief minister of the state and also a Union minister.


Known for his clean and non-controversial image, Chavan, 78, took over as the state's chief minister when the Congress was battling allegations of corruption 2010.


When Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis recently campaigned in Karad South assembly seat, he quipped that Chavan was a politician of international standard and a misfit in the state Vidhan Sabha.


To the shock and surprise of even Chavan's critics, the senior leader lost the seat to BJP's Atul Bhosale by nearly 40,000 votes in the state poll results announced on Saturday.


The defeat is a new low for Chavan personally as well as the Congress, which suffered the worst ever-defeat bagging only 16 seats in the 288-member state assembly.


A graduate in mechanical engineering from BITS Pilani and doing his masters from the University of California, Berkeley, Chavan worked in the US aerospace industry as a research engineer for four year before taking up politics full time in 1991.


In India, he founded a company to develop defence electronic equipment and special purpose computers for air defence, missile control, ASW (anti-submarine warfare), aircraft testing equipment and made significant contributions to research in the field of Indian language computing.


His father and Congress leader Dajisaheb Chavan had served in the cabinets of Jawaharlal Nehru, Lal Bahadur Shastri and Indira Gandhi.


His mother Premla Chavan, popularly known as Premla kaki (aunt), was a three-term Congress MP before her death in 1991.


Prithviraj Chavan started his career in 1991 winning the then Karad seat, which had been held by his parents. He later also won the seat in 1996 and 1998 but lost in 1999.


In 2010, the Congress moved him to Mumbai to replace Ashok Chavan, who had to quit as the CM following a controversy over the Adarsh housing scam.

Prithviraj Chavan became an MLC after taking over as the CM and since 2014, he was MLA from the Karad South seat.


The Coastal Road in Mumbai and the Navi Mumbai international airport were conceptualised by him as chief minister.


An honorary visiting professor at BITS Pilani and a member of the council of the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), Prithviraj Chavan was elected to the Rajya Sabha in 2002 and again in 2008.

 

In 2004, Prithviraj Chavan served as minister of state in the PMO.


He was member of the Atomic Energy Commission and Space Commission from 2004 to 2010. In 2008, he was given additional charge of  the ministry of personnel, public grievances and pensions, and the ministry of parliamentary affairs.


In 2009, he was elevated to the rank of MoS with independent charge of the ministry of science and technology, and the ministry of earth sciences in addition to his earlier responsibilities.


Cong's performance shocking: Chavan

Prithviraj Chavan on Sunday said his party's defeat was "shocking" and dubbed it as the "worst-ever" loss in the state assembly polls.


Talking to PTI, Chavan said the Mahayuti government's Ladki Bahin Yojana, for providing financial assistance to women, clicked with voters in rural areas while polarisation hit the opposition MVA’s prospects in urban parts of the state.


"It is difficult to say whether there was a wave or tampering," said Chavan, who lost from his Karad South seat.


Chavan said he had spoken to All India Congress Committee in-charge for Maharashtra Ramesh Chennithala, who has left for Delhi to discuss the state results with the Congress leadership.

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