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By:

Quaid Najmi

4 January 2025 at 3:26:24 pm

MVA protests for third day:

Mumbai: The Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) allies continued their agitation for the third day in different parts of Maharashtra with an aggressive state Congress hitting the streets today to protest the detention of Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, his sister Priyanka Gandhi-Vadra and other Congress leaders yesterday, here on Wednesday. State and city Youth Congress again carried out vociferous protests near Mantralaya raising slogans, carrying banners and placards slamming the...

MVA protests for third day:

Mumbai: The Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) allies continued their agitation for the third day in different parts of Maharashtra with an aggressive state Congress hitting the streets today to protest the detention of Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, his sister Priyanka Gandhi-Vadra and other Congress leaders yesterday, here on Wednesday. State and city Youth Congress again carried out vociferous protests near Mantralaya raising slogans, carrying banners and placards slamming the state and central Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and when some attempted to enter inside, they were prevented by a strong posse of Mumbai Police deployed there since Monday. As tensions appeared to escalate, the police clamped down by detaining top state and city Youth Congress leaders including President Harshwardhan Sapkal, Vijay Wadettiwar, Bhai Jagtap, Hussain Dalwai, and many others. Thousands of students carried out a fresh demonstration at Dadar west Shivaji Park to vent their ire at the police action on Cockroach Janta Party (CJP)’s agitation in New Delhi on Monday. Several MVA leaders and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray visited or expressed solidarity with the protesting youth, comprising many women. Opposition’s Voice The Congress leaders alleged that Rahul Gandhi was targeted by the BJP-led government to muzzle democratic dissent, suppress the Opposition voices inside and outside Parliament and trampling upon the peoples' Constitutional Rights to protest peacefully. Defying pouring rains in the city on Wednesday, Congress workers along with activists of MVA allies, staged a noisy demonstration in Chembur and another group attempted to storm the BJP office in south Mumbai, condemning the assault on students in New Delhi and the detention of the Gandhi siblings. Senior Congress leader Hussain Dalwai flayed the government for “misusing the police” to gag democratic rights and the protests were intended to defend the Constitution and democracy against the BJP’s policy of intolerance of dissent in any form. “This is gross injustice. We are not allowed to protest against the government failures as they are misusing the police. The PM is scared of taking the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan as he could be the next. We want to highlight to the BJP to govern the country as per the Constitution,” Dalwai declared, interacting with the media at Nariman Point. As the BJP also threatened to launch counter-protests, the police cordoned off and deployed a precautionary security ring around Tilak Bhavan, the state Congress headquarters, as leaders from both sides exchanged political darts and looked aggressive enough for a confrontation. MVA ‘bandh’, ‘Tricolour’ march today The state is set for another two days of political turmoil as the MVA has announced a Maharashtra shutdown (‘bandh’) on Thursday followed by a non-partisan ‘Tricolour Peace March’ on Friday. MVA allies, Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) President Prakash Ambedkar and Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray, besides other leaders of the alliance, informed of the state and city level actions today. Ambedkar appealed to the masses and also the BJP youth to participate wholeheartedly in the bandh tomorrow and claimed that students’ bodies, parent-teachers associations, colleges, universities, other institutes of higher education, private coaching institutions, and other governmental departments could support the shutdown, as it has now become a national issue. Aaditya sought the peoples’ participation in the ‘Tricolour Peace March’ on the theme of “One Nation, One Emotion” planned on July 24 afternoon to Shivaji Park, in support of environmentalist Sonam Wangchuk, the Cockroach Janta Party, plus the youth and students protesting in New Delhi. Terming it as a national citizens’ movement rather than a political party, he called upon the people not to carry any party flags but unite under the National Tricolour to assert democratic rights and express resentment against the government’s high-handed policies. Meanwhile, Mumbai Police have already imposed prohibitory orders under Section 144 across the city from July 23-to- August 6, apprehending the possibility of law-and-order disturbances.

To avoid OBC backlash government forms new cabinet subcommittee

Mumbai: In order to avoid an OBC backlash in wake of the state government’s decisions regarding Maratha quota, a new cabinet subcommittee for the Other Backward Class (OBC) was formed on Wednesday.


There has been a widespread resentment among the OBC communities over the state government’s proactive decisions in in order to end the Maratha quota stir under Manoj Jarange-Patil in Mumbai. OBC leader Lakshman Hake, who had been opposing the demands of Maratha leaders to grant them blanket OBC status, tore off the copy of the GR that was read out at the Maratha agitation cite in Mumbai on Tuesday and then promulgate. A few other OBC leaders also expressed displeasure over the state government’s decision, while senior OBC leader in the state cabinet Chhagan Bhujbal today skipped the cabinet meeting. When asked about it, Bhujbal said he is studying the state government’s decisions regarding the demands raised by the Pro-Maratha Reservation groups. On this backdrop, the state cabinet under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, decided to form an empowered sub-committee of the state cabinet to decide on issues related to the OBC Community.


The proposal to form such a committee is old and was even presented before the state cabinet at least thrice before today. However, the cabinet approved the proposal to form such a committee today, said a senior CMO official.


According to the GR issued regarding formation of the committee, revenue minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule is the Chairman of the committee which has three members from the BJP viz. Ganesh Naik, Pankaja Munde and Atul Save, two from Shiv Sena, Gulabrao Patil and Sanjay Rathod and two from NCP viz. Chhagan Bhujbal and Dattatreya Bharne. When asked about Bhujbal skipping the cabinet meeting, water supply minister Gulabrao Patil said, if at all there is any resentment Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis will speak to the minister and clear the air.


The eight-members sub-committee has been formed in order to dedicatedly work on issues related to the OBC communities in the state, the minister said.


Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde too made it clear that there is no need for any of the communities to misinterpret the state government’s decisions and that any doubts in this regard will be done away with.


Chief Minister Fadnavis, meanwhile, stated that he would soon meet the OBC leaders at Nagpur and do away with any of their reservations and doubts pertaining to the state government decisions.


OBC leader Manoj Sasane said that the state government’s decision regarding implementation of Hyderabad Gazetteer in Marathwada will be challenged in the court.

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