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By:

Quaid Najmi

4 January 2025 at 3:26:24 pm

YouTuber challenges FIR, LoC in HC

Mumbai : The Bombay High Court issued notice to the state government on a petition filed by UK-based medico and YouTuber, Dr. Sangram Patil, seeking to quash a Mumbai Police FIR and revoking a Look Out Circular in a criminal case lodged against him, on Thursday.   Justice Ashwin D. Bhobe, who heard the matter with preliminary submissions from both sides, sought a response from the state government and posted the matter for Feb. 4.   Maharashtra Advocate-General Milind Sathe informed the court...

YouTuber challenges FIR, LoC in HC

Mumbai : The Bombay High Court issued notice to the state government on a petition filed by UK-based medico and YouTuber, Dr. Sangram Patil, seeking to quash a Mumbai Police FIR and revoking a Look Out Circular in a criminal case lodged against him, on Thursday.   Justice Ashwin D. Bhobe, who heard the matter with preliminary submissions from both sides, sought a response from the state government and posted the matter for Feb. 4.   Maharashtra Advocate-General Milind Sathe informed the court that the state would file its reply within a week in the matter.   Indian-origin Dr. Patil, hailing from Jalgaon, is facing a criminal case here for posting allegedly objectionable content involving Bharatiya Janata Party leaders on social media.   After his posts on a FB page, ‘Shehar Vikas Aghadi’, a Mumbai BJP media cell functionary lodged a criminal complaint following which the NM Joshi Marg Police registered a FIR (Dec. 18, 2025) and subsequently issued a LoC against Dr. Patil, restricting his travels.   The complainant Nikhil Bhamre filed the complaint in December 2025, contending that Dr. Patil on Dec. 14 posted offensive content intended to spread ‘disinformation and falsehoods’ about the BJP and its leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi.   Among others, the police invoked BNSS Sec. 353(2) that attracts a 3-year jail term for publishing or circulating statements or rumours through electronic media with intent to promote enmity or hatred between communities.   Based on the FIR, Dr. Patil was detained and questioned for 15 hours when he arrived with his wife from London at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (Jan. 10), and again prevented from returning to Manchester, UK on Jan. 19 in view of the ongoing investigations.   On Wednesday (Jan. 21) Dr. Patil recorded his statement before the Mumbai Police and now he has moved the high court. Besides seeking quashing of the FIR and the LoC, he has sought removal of his name from the database imposing restrictions on his international travels.   Through his Senior Advocate Sudeep Pasbola, the medico has sought interim relief in the form of a stay on further probe by Crime Branch-III and coercive action, restraint on filing any charge-sheet during the pendency of the petition and permission to go back to the UK.   Pasbola submitted to the court that Dr. Patil had voluntarily travelled from the UK to India and was unaware of the FIR when he landed here. Sathe argued that Patil had appeared in connection with other posts and was not fully cooperating with the investigators.

The wounded fighter

Updated: Jan 6, 2025

Eknath Shinde is waiting for the right opportunity to strike back

Eknath Shinde

Mumbai: A month after being sworn-in as a Deputy Chief Minister, ruling Mahayuti ally Eknath Shinde seems to have emerged from his sullen mood and is seen all smiles, despite the perceived ‘demotion’ from the top post, where Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis extracted his sweet revenge.

 

As the Mahayuti settles down to govern for the next 59 months, the SS appears gung-ho, having bagged quite a few critical ministries.

 

Shinde, who had to compromise on the coveted Home Ministry, is apparently at home with a bouquet comprising Urban Development, Housing, Water, Public Health, School Education, Industry, plus other key departments for his party after tough bargaining with the Big Brother, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

 

Party sources said that though he could not return as CM, he bounced back as the No. 2 in the Cabinet and is now going all-out to prove his utility – and probably trump the other ally, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP)’s Deputy CM Ajit Pawar.

 

The first battle won, Shinde has trained guns on securing other influential positions at various levels – like state corporations, SEOs, and other posts – to keep his men in good stead in the coming years.

 

Not known to brag on his achievements, the SS chief and his team are quietly handling his portfolios which give them full control over the entire state’s urban set-up, housing sector, health, education, etc., which concern and are directly linked to the masses.

 

In turn, this is expected to reap rich dividends in the upcoming civic bodies elections where the Shinde-led party hopes to overtake or even edge out the Opposition Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) allies, particularly the Shiv Sena (UBT) headed by ex-CM Uddhav Thackeray.

 

On the MVA soothsayers predicting that the BJP would deploy old tricks to undermine or decimate regional allies, SS leaders claim that on the contrary, the alliance with the BJP has proved to be mutually beneficial for the Mahayuti partners.

 

However, the rumour-mills got a boost with the ongoing overtures by the SS (UBT) vis-à-vis Fadnavis – first Thackeray dropping in to meet the CM in Nagpur, then a sobered Sanjay Raut penning a fawning edit, several leaders lavishing praises, that was not lost on the MVA.

 

Raising doubts in various quarters whether the SS (UBT) was being prepared as a potential Team B to help out in any eventuality at the Centre, in case of a mood-swing by the mercurial NDA ally, Janata Dal (U) President and Bihar CM Nitish Kumar.

 

However, a reluctant Shiv Sena chief spokesperson Krishna Hegde dismissed all Opposition conjectures on his party, the Mahayuti and the JD(U), reiterating that all are firmly united behind the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

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