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By:

Quaid Najmi

4 January 2025 at 3:26:24 pm

Mumbai local train murder stuns commuters

Mumbai: A routine commute to home on a dark rain-soaked night in a Mumbai local turned into a nightmare when a 22-year-old commuter was allegedly stabbed to death inside a first-class compartment following a heated argument over shutting the train door, late on Tuesday. The victim, identified as Mayank Lohar, 22, worked as a salesman with a private company in Andheri and lived in Virar, nearly 60 km from Churchgate. According to Western Railway (WR) and Government Railway Police (GRP)...

Mumbai local train murder stuns commuters

Mumbai: A routine commute to home on a dark rain-soaked night in a Mumbai local turned into a nightmare when a 22-year-old commuter was allegedly stabbed to death inside a first-class compartment following a heated argument over shutting the train door, late on Tuesday. The victim, identified as Mayank Lohar, 22, worked as a salesman with a private company in Andheri and lived in Virar, nearly 60 km from Churchgate. According to Western Railway (WR) and Government Railway Police (GRP) officials, the shocking incident took place aboard the Churchgate-Nalasopara Fast Local (Train No. 90663), which left Churchgate at 10.05 pm and reached Andheri at 10.42 pm. As the train pulled out of Andheri, heavy rains started lashing the city. Lohar reportedly requested a fellow commuter standing near the doorway to shut the door, as rainwater was blowing into the compartment and inconveniencing those seated inside. The other commuter, wearing a dark shirt and trousers, allegedly refused and it started a heated verbal exchange which quickly escalated into a raging argument as the train raced through Goregaon and Malad. Then, in a horrifying burst of violence, the suspect allegedly pulled out a knife and repeatedly stabbed Lohar in the abdomen and chest as the train zoomed past Kandivali. Stunned Silence The other terrified commuters watched in stunned silence as the attack unfolded and ended within a matter of minutes claiming the young boy. Writhing in pain and bleeding profusely, Lohar collapsed onto the compartment floor as panic gripped the passengers and they scrambled away from the attacker, who reportedly continued to pace about menacingly. Eyewitnesses later said that as the train slowed while entering Borivali station’s Platform No. 6, the suspect calmly jumped off, ran up the staircase and vanished into the wet darkness. When the train halted at Borivali at 11.04 pm, the other commuters immediately alerted railway authorities. WR, GRP and medical personnel rushed to the platform within minutes with emergency equipment, medicos, porters and a stretcher. Lohar was first rushed to the station’s Emergency Medical Room, where a doctor examined him and declared him dead. His body was later shifted to Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Shatabdi Hospital in Kandivali for post-mortem and other legal formalities. Special Teams The brutal killing sent shockwaves across Mumbai’s suburban rail network. In the morning, Borivali GRP Senior Police Inspector Datta Khuperkar said seven special teams were formed and nearly 400 CCTV camera feeds were scrutinised to trace the suspect. The attacker was captured on multiple surveillance cameras, cool and casual, without a hint of remorse, walking out of Borivali station after the attack. Following an intensive 14-hour manhunt, he was tracked down and arrested at Panvel in Raigad. The Borivali GRP has registered a murder case and launched a detailed investigation. As news of the shocking crime spread amid Wednesday’s torrential rains, commuters expressed outrage and disbelief that a trivial dispute over closing a train door could culminate in such a savage killing. Pall of gloom in Virar Early Wednesday morning, the Lohar family of Virar was devastated on learning about the horrifying killing of their favourite child, Mayank in a train altercation. His parents, three brothers and a sister could barely speak, with his wailing mother demanding “he must be hanged”. Consoling each other, one sister lamented how he was a quiet boy, rarely stepped out of the house without any reason and had his entire life before him that was snuffed out. Venting their ire, they asked “where was the police, why the other commuters didn’t help him” and warned that today it was their son, “next it can be anybody’s son”. The massive dragnet Barely hours after the brutal killing of Mayank Lohar, the Borivali GRP launched one of the biggest manhunts to track and apprehend the suspected killer from Panvel in Raigad district. He was later identified as one Roshan Suvarna, 30, of Mira Road, running a barcode business, informed Borivali GRP Senior Police Inspector Datta Khuperkar. “We formed seven teams with around 10 police personnel supervised by 15 officers. They scanned footage from over 400 CCTVs to trace the regular movements of the accused. The GRP stations of Borivali, Andheri, Mira Road and Nalasopara were involved in the search. We deployed tech-intel to scour his mobile and with help of our network of informers, finally caught him in Panvel,” a weary but victorious Khuperkar told ‘The Perfect Voice’. He added that after completing the legal and medical formalities, he will be produced before a Borivali Court for remand.

Race for lone MVA seat intensifies

BJP finalises strategy with four seats

Mumbai: The upcoming Maharashtra Legislative Council elections have exposed clear fault lines within the opposition Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi. Based on its current numerical strength in the state assembly, the opposition alliance is likely to secure only one seat. This bleak reality has triggered a fierce tussle between the Shiv Sena (UBT) and the Congress over the single nomination.


The Shiv Sena (UBT) is staking a firm claim on the seat as one of the members who are scheduled to retire on May 13 includes party chief Uddhav Thackeray. The party also argues that it possesses the highest number of legislators within the alliance and hence the seat is rightfully theirs. However, the Congress is aggressively pushing its own aspirants. Congress leaders are heavily citing their recent political sacrifices. They argue that the party compromised during the recent Rajya Sabha elections and deserves immediate compensation.


This internal rivalry grew more complicated following a crucial meeting on Thursday. State Congress President Harshawardhan Sapkal, who called on Uddhav Thackeray to discuss the political math, later informed the media that the Congress would fully support Thackeray if he chose to contest the election himself. However, he attached a significant rider to this offer. Sapkal declared that if Thackeray opts out of the race, the coveted seat must be surrendered to the Congress. This conditional support has left the MVA leadership in a difficult position.


Meanwhile, NCP (SP) too has mounted pressure for Uddhav Thackeray’s candidature at the legislative Council election. “Uddhavji is a senior and experienced leader in the state. We are all confident that his experience will consistently benefit both the state and the legislative House. It is our humble request that Uddhavji considers this proposal positively,” she said in her post on micro blogging site X while advocating party’s stance.


Interestingly, senior Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar too advocated Uddhav Thackeray’s candidature. “If former Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray decides to contest for this seat, he will be welcomed. However, if he is not going to contest, there will have to be a discussion regarding who the MVA candidate will be,” Wadettiwar wrote on X.


Probable Candidates

While the opposition struggles over a single seat, the ruling Mahayuti alliance is moving forward confidently. The BJP plans to contest four of the nine biennial seats. They will also field a candidate for a separate bypoll. This bypoll was necessitated after Congress leader Pradnya Satav resigned and joined the BJP. The state BJP core committee, chaired by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, met on Wednesday night to finalise this strategy. The committee discussed probable candidates and will soon send a shortlist to the central leadership for approval.


Nine members of the Legislative Council are scheduled to retire on May 13. Prominent figures among the retiring legislators include Uddhav Thackeray and Deputy Chairperson Neelam Gorhe. Members of the Legislative Assembly form the electoral college for these polls. Given the current assembly arithmetic, the ruling alliance of the BJP, Shiv Sena, and NCP is comfortably positioned. They are expected to sweep up to nine of the ten total seats available across the biennial and bypoll elections.


Quota of 29

Winning a regular biennial seat will require a strict quota of 29 votes. The single bypoll seat demands a much higher threshold of 144 votes. This bypoll quota could potentially rise to 145 if newly elected MLAs from the April 23 Baramati and Rahuri assembly bypolls become eligible to vote.


The Election Commission of India has set a tight schedule for the process. The official notification will be issued on April 23. Candidates must file their nominations by April 30. Scrutiny of the applications will take place on May 2. The deadline for withdrawal of candidature is May 4. Polling is scheduled for May 12. Votes will be counted on the same day at 5 pm, ensuring the entire process concludes just before the May 13 retirements.


Tenure of nine MLAs in the legislative council ending. They are
Uddhav Thackeray - Shiv Sena (UBT)
Neelam Gorhe - Shiv Sena
Shashikant Shinde - NCP (SP)
Amol Mitkari - NCP
Gopichand Padalkar - BJP
Ranjitsinh Mohite-Patil - BJP
Rajesh Rathod - Congress
Pravin Datke - BJP
Ramesh Karad - BJP
Pradnya Satav - Congress (Resigned)

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