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By:

Quaid Najmi

4 January 2025 at 3:26:24 pm

Plea in HC for fresh polls, new body

Dr. Rumi F. Beramji Mumbai : A senior medical practitioner has knocked on the doors of the Bombay High Court, alleging serious irregularities in the functioning of the Maharashtra Council of Acupuncture (MCA) and challenging the continuation of its current Administrator.   In a petition filed through Advocate Sharad V. Natu, Dr. Laxman Bhimrao Sawant has termed the appointment and prolonged tenure of former MCA Chairman as “illegal and arbitrary,”  and detrimental to the cause of Acupuncture....

Plea in HC for fresh polls, new body

Dr. Rumi F. Beramji Mumbai : A senior medical practitioner has knocked on the doors of the Bombay High Court, alleging serious irregularities in the functioning of the Maharashtra Council of Acupuncture (MCA) and challenging the continuation of its current Administrator.   In a petition filed through Advocate Sharad V. Natu, Dr. Laxman Bhimrao Sawant has termed the appointment and prolonged tenure of former MCA Chairman as “illegal and arbitrary,”  and detrimental to the cause of Acupuncture.   Dr. Beramji, who headed the five-member statutory body 's inaugural term (from May 2018 to May 2023), was subsequently appointed as its Administrator after the council’s term expired.   According to Dr. Sawant’s plea, the Administrator’s appointment was initially meant to be a stop-gap arrangement for one year, and it was ‘extended’ later. However, nearly three years later, the position continues without fresh elections being conducted, raising questions over adherence to statutory norms and principles of governance.   Dr. Sawant has further contended that while Dr. Beramji was installed as Administrator, the remaining members of the council were effectively superseded, leaving the regulatory body without its mandated collective structure, and over 6500-members directionless.   The petition claims that the delay in conducting elections was justified on the grounds of an incomplete voter list, but this reason was flimsy considering the extended time lapse.   The petition, likely to come up for hearing on Tuesday (April 21), also levelled serious allegations regarding the manner in which the MCA has been run under the Administrator. It claims decisions have been taken unilaterally, whimsically and without transparency or institutional accountability.   Besides, Dr. Sawant has made allegations of selective targeting of certain members who have attempted to raise valid issues, including the globally-renowned noted acupuncture expert Dr. P. B. Lohiya of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar.   Adding to the controversy, a former MCA office-bearer has claimed that over the past three years, approvals were granted to more than a dozen acupuncture colleges in undue haste, purportedly in violation of prescribed norms and alleged shady deals.   These institutions, it is claimed, either exist only on paper or lack essential infrastructure, faculty, and facilities. In addition, around two dozen Continuous Acupuncture Education (CAE) centres were also cleared during this period.   In his multiple prayers to the high court, Dr. Sawant has sought quashing Dr. Beramji’s appointment as MCA Administrator and setting aside all policy decisions taken during his tenure in that capacity in the last three years.   The petition also urged the court to direct the state government to conduct elections to elect and reconstitute a new five-member MCA within two months.   Pending this, the plea seeks an order restraining the Administrator from continuing in office or interfering in the functioning of the MCA or the CAEs in the interest of free and fair elections or the cause of Acupuncture.   Sources within the MCA have described the situation as “deeply concerning,” alleging that individuals of international standing, such as Dr. Lohiya - who has treated prominent personalities like Sachin Tendulkar, the late Manoj Kumar, state and central ministers and other public figures - are being unfairly hounded.   The petition has called for a comprehensive review of all decisions taken during the Administrator’s tenure, a financial audit of the MCA’s financial affairs, and an independent probe by the Medical Education & Drugs Department (MEDD) into the approvals granted to the institutions in recent years.   Despite repeated attempts by  ‘ The Perfect Voice’ , top MCA officials like the Administrator or the Registrar Narayan Nawale, were not available for their comments.

Pawar's coded message to Shinde

Updated: Feb 14, 2025

Pawar

Mumbai: NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar heaped praise on Eknath Shinde, a move that caught the entire Maharashtra political brass by surprise. If some were shocked, in other parties, feathers were ruffled. An irate Shiv Sena (Uddhav Thackeray) criticised Pawar for heaping praise on Shinde for his “decisive leadership”.


The sudden friendship isn’t just a chance remark. Political watchers say that the move is nothing but payback time and an attempt to take a jab at Thackeray who has been seen cozying up to Devendra Fadnavis. Leaving aside the bitterness and caustic remarks and accusations traded by both sides over the past five years, Thackeray and Fadnavis are seen to be enjoying each other’s company. If Uddhav met him a few months ago after the new government was sworn in, Aditya met the Chief Minister again in the recent past. A few hours after Fadnavis sent out a political message by visiting Raj Thackeray’s Shivaji Park home, senior Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders paid the BJP leader a courtesy visit. “Your enemy’s enemy should be your friend is what’s being played out in Maharashtra,” says a senior BJP leader from Maharashtra.


It's no secret that the relationship between Fadnavis and Shinde is at an all-time low. Miffed with losing the chief minister’s chair, Shinde sulked for days. It is said that as the chief minister, he left no stone unturned to make it difficult for BJP ministers. Even now, Shinde goes into hiding at his native place each time things don’t go his way. “For Fadnavis, a good way to unsettle Shinde is to hobnob with Thackeray. But, this is unlikely to translate into a political reunion or reconciliation,” says the BJP politician.


The sudden camaraderie between Fadnavis and Thackeray is reason enough for Pawar to take a shot at his ally in the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi, a party that’s always seen as an unnatural ally. And what better way to do that than to praise the very man who shattered Thackeray’s dream run as the chief minister?


Apart from revenge, there’s more in the political pot. A BJP minister says that such remarks are an attempt to create a rift in the MVA such that Pawar can break away from it and join hands with his nephew to be on the treasury benches. For, there’s trouble brewing in the senior Pawar’s party as well. There’s talk of senior party leaders, including a member of his family, waiting to cross over to the BJP. To stem the leak, Pawar may consider reuniting with Ajit. “His recent statement could well lay the grounds for a split in the MVA. Sanjay Raut has already publicly expressed his displeasure which also seems like a ploy to find Pawar an exit from the MVA,” says the BJP leader.

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