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Tag: Uddhav Thackeray

  • Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray to write to PM Modi over NCB’s ‘harassment’ of celebrities

    Express News Service

    MUMBAI: Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray will write to Prime Minister Narendra Modi raising concerns about what he sees as the malafide actions of the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) and other central agencies against Bollywood celebrities as he believes these will have an adverse impact on Mumbai’s and the country’s economy.

    Maharashtra minister Nawab Malik met Thackeray and home minister Dilip Walse Patil demanding a Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe into the allegations of NCB’s malafide raid and extortion racket. Malik said that the chief minister also raised concerns over the the anti-drug agency’s malafide raids on Bollywood personalities on flimsy charges and the following harassment.

    ALSO READ| Mumbai Police record Prabhakar Sail’s statement over extortion allegation

    “The chief minister said that after Hollywood, Bollywood is the only major entertainment industry in the world which not only spreads our culture but generates jobs as well. The industry’s contribution is two to three per cent in they country’s GDP and if it is damaged, then not only Mumbai will suffer but the country’s economy will also,” Malik said

    The NCB has formed a five-member team to probe extortion charges against its Mumbai zonal director Sameer Wankhede.

    A five-member NCB team including deputy DG (North) Gyaneshwar Singh will leave Delhi for Mumbai on Wednesday to probe the charges against Wankhede of extortion, planting drugs and framing Bollywood celebrities along with politicians .

    NCP spokesperson Sanjay Tatkare alleged, “Gyaneshwar Singh is the same person, who not only defended the agency’s functioning but also protected Wankhede as well  after minsiter Nawab Malik’s big expose on the involvement of a private citizen (KP Gosavi) and BJP leader Manish Bhanushali in the cruise party raid case. So, how can we expect a fair probe against Wankhede,” Tatkare alleged.

    Prabhakar Sail, an independent witness in the cruise drugs case, had on Sunday revealed in an affidavit and a video message that Wankhede, his middle man Sam D’Souza and Gosavi had demanded Rs 25 crore from Bollywood star Shahrukh Khan to release his son from a drug case.

    ALSO READ| NCB Mumbai director Sameer Wankhede visits Delhi headquarters

    He had also alleged that Sameer Wankhede had forcibly taken his signature as a witness on ten blank pages in the cruise raid case.

    Meanwhile, Malik, who welcomed the NCB’s probe against Wankhede, also submitted another set of  allegations against Sameer Wankhede where it was alleged that Wankhede used to plant drugs in celebrities’ houses, frame them and extort money later.

    The ‘Special 26’ charges against Wankhede was anonymously shared by the NCB officer with Malik by post. The NCP leader submitted it to the NCB asking the charges are very serious in nature and it should should be included as part of their probe against Wankhede.

    Reacting to this anonymous letter, NCB’s deputy DG (South-West) Mutha Ashok Jain said that they have received the letter and decided to take cognizance of the same.

    Malik further alleged that Wankhede was illegally intercepting phones of some people with the help of two private citizens in Mumbai and Thane and also said that Wankhede is checking the call records of the minister’s daughters. “He is intruding into a citizen’s privacy by intercepting their mobiles phone and then trapping and framing them. This is a syndicated crime that has to be probed fairly,” Malik said.

    ALSO READ| Prabhakar Sail stands by allegation of extortion attempt in Aryan Khan drugs case

    He also asked the Wankhede family that if the birth certificate of Sameer Wankhede shared by him is fake then they should share his original certificate and added that a complaint will be filed in the alleged fake caste certificate case.

    “ManyDalit activists and organisations are in touch with me and soon they will be filing a complaint. Wankhede has snatched the right of an eligible SC student for becoming an IRS officer by using a false certificate,” the minister said.

    Meanwhile, senior lawyer and former attorney-general Mukul Rohatgi made a strong argument in the Bombay High Court during the hearing for the bail application of Aryan Khan. He said that though Aryan neither had possession of nor did he consume any drug, he was still sent to jail for 20 days.

    Justice NW Sambre of the Bombay HC adjourned the hearing on Wednesday where the bail plea of other accused Arbaz Merchant and Munmum Dhamecha will be also heard.

  • We have case where complainant has gone missing: Uddhav Thackeray’s dig at Param Bir Singh

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: In an apparent dig at former Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Saturday said there is a case in the state where the complainant has gone missing.

    Thackeray made the statement at the inauguration of two wings of the annexe building at the Aurangabad bench of the Bombay High Court. Chief Justice of India N V Ramana, Union Law Minister Kiren Rijuju, Supreme Court judge Justice D Y Chandrachud and others were present on the occasion.

    “Justice D Y Chandrachud pointed out (during his address at the event) that a case is pending in Maharashtra since 1958 as the accused is absconding. But today we have a case where the complainant is missing,” Thackeray said.

    “He gave a complaint making serious allegations, but is now missing. We do not know where he is. This is something that also needs to be looked into,” he added.

    Although the chief minister did not name anyone, his remarks were apparently targeted at the senior IPS officer, who had levelled allegations of corruption against former Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh.

    A few days ago, during a hearing of a plea pertaining to Singh, the Maharashtra government had told the Bombay High Court that his whereabouts were not known.

    Days after he was shunted out as Mumbai police commissioner, Singh had claimed in a letter to the chief minister earlier this year that Deshmukh used to ask the police officers to collect money from restaurants and bars in Mumbai.

    Deshmukh, an NCP leader, resigned as a minister in April this year, although he has denied the allegations against him.

    The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) are probing the allegations made against Deshmukh by Singh.

    During his address, the chief minister added that the state government is now planning to launch a project wherein a new high court complex will be built in Mumbai.

    “I would like to extend my invitation to Chief Justice of India N V Ramana right now to come to the function as and when it happens. I will try to ensure that the foundation laying of the new building complex and its inauguration are both done by my government,” he said.

    His statement was apparently in response to minister Rijiju’s remark that the foundation for this building (Aurangabad bench) was laid by former Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, while Thackeray has come for its inauguration.

    Thackeray added that dispensing justice is a teamwork involving all the four pillars of democracy. “We all have to work as a team to ensure that none of the pillars collapses,” he added. Thackeray said that when Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar was framing the Constitution, he was asked about the rights of the central and the state governments, and he answered that the except for a few rights to the Centre, the state will be equally sovereign.

    “Dr Ambedkar had made it clear that the state is equally sovereign, except for a few powers to the central government. But are these rights of the states being exercised today? We should check,” he said.

    India has completed 75 years of Independence, he said, adding, “If we think that we should not lose our independence, I request that all the judges should guide the country about the meaning of independence.” Occupying a certain position doesn’t mean that your wish is your authority. Wishes and rights are two different things, someone should tell this, Thackeray said.

  • Granddad’s soft hindutva legacy works better for Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray

    Express News Service

    MUMBAI: Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray has decided to carry forward the legacy of his grandfather Prabodhankar Keshav Thackeray than the rabble-rousing legacy of his father, the late Balasaheb Thackeray.

    Balasaheb specialised in provocative speeches and stood for an extremist form of Hindutva. He was also seen as anti-minority. But his father known as Prabodhankar, which means reformer in Marathi, had a penchant for social reform and propagated the liberal views. It is believed that this stand taken by his grandson has helped the Maha Vikas Aghadi government survive two years.

    Releasing a book on his grandfather, Uddhav  said he does not believe in Shendi (long lock of hair) and Janava (sacred thread) Hindutva. He said his definition of Hindutva is broad and includes all sections of the society. “My grandfather was not atheist, but he was against the ill-thought traditions of society. He always stood by disadvantaged people and fought for them to get justice,” the CM said.

    Earlier, in his Dusshera rally also, Uddhav criticised the BJP’s narrow Hindutva ideology. He also said that due to BJP’s divide and rule policy, Hindutva is in danger. Social commentator Ranjeet Shinde said Uddhav has two legacies, of his father and grandfather. “In the three-party government, Thackeray mostly banks on his grandfather’s legacy and refers to his father’s books or writings to project himself as a liberal and inclusive Hindu, as  against the BJP’s staunch and extremist Hindutva. This inclusive Hindutva is also suitable for Congress and NCP. The Congress also follows the soft Hindutva during elections,” Shinde added.

    BJP has criticised the chief minister of Maharashtra a number of times for leaving the Hindutva ideology and teaming up with Congress and the NCP. Former chief minister Devendra Fadnavis said that Shiv Sena is no more Balasaheb Thackeray’s Sena, it is more of Congress and the NCP’s Sena. Fadnavis said that people had given the mandate in the previous state Assembly elections in favour of BJP and the Shiv Sena, but Uddhav, the Shiv Sena president, cheated them and forged an unexpected alliance with Congress and the NCP. 

  • I insisted that Uddhav become CM of Maharashtra when MVA was formed: Pawar’s snipe at Fadnavis

    Sharad Pawar reiterated his allegations that the Centre was misusing various agencies to destabilise the tripartite government of Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress in Maharashtra.

  • I feel like common man, not CM: Uddhav Thackeray takes a dig at Devendra Fadnavis

    Express News Service

    MUMBAI: Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray was at his sarcastic best as he mounted a scathing attack at former ally BJP and took potshots at his predecessor Devendra Fadnavis for his comment that he still felt like the CM. 

    “I pray to God that I should never feel I am the chief minister. I want to be known as your brother and family member. We have seen people who arrogantly said that they will again come as chief minister,” Thackeray said at his party Shiv Sena’s annual Dussehra rally in Mumbai. On Tuesday, Fadnavis had said that because of the people’s love, he did not feel he had ceased to be the CM.

    ALSO READ | Congrats: Sharad Pawar’s dig at Devendra Fadnavis over his ‘I still feel CM’ remarks

    Targeting the BJP, Thackeray said hunger for power was like ‘drug addiction’ and dared it to topple his government. “I was not interested in the chief ministerial post but I had given the word to Balasaheb Thackeray that one day, I will make a Shiv Sainik the chief minister of Maharashtra,” Thackeray said, adding that had fulfilled the promise.

    In his no-holds-barred attack, the Sena supremo said that Hindutva faced threat today not from outsiders from “neo-Hindus” who climbed the ladder of power using the ideology. Accusing the BJP of dividing people on the lines of caste and religion, he said, “They have adopted the British policy of divide and rule… so that they can get power and remain in power. Power is like a drug for them.”

    Referring to the NCB raids and arrests in Mumbai in Thackeray hit out at the “selective outrage” and alleged that “when it comes to Maharashtra, every small issue is blown out of proportion”. “They call Mumbai police mafia. What will you call UP Police then?” He asserted that the BJP had made no contribution to the freedom struggle and had no right to speak about Mahatma Gandhi or Veer Savarkar.

  • BJP hasn’t understood either Savarkar or Gandhi: Uddhav Thackeray on Rajnath’s comment

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Friday slammed his former ally, the BJP, over several issues including the controversy over Defense Minister Rajnath Singh’s comment on freedom fighter Vinayak Damodar Savarkar.

    The BJP has not understood either Savarkar or Mahatma Gandhi, Thackeray said, speaking at his party Shiv Sena’s annual Dussehra rally at Shanmukhanand Hall here.

    Singh had recently triggered a row by claiming that Gandhi had advised Savarkar, who was incarcerated at Andaman’s Cellular Jail, to write mercy petitions to the British.

    Thackeray, in his speech also mocked the BJP for fielding a former Sena MLA in coming Deglur assembly by-election in Maharashtra.

    “World’s largest political party” has to import candidates even for assembly bypoll, he said.

    He also slammed the BJP for calling the Sena corrupt after the two parties’ alliance ended in 2019, and dared it to topple his Sena-NCP-Congress coalition government which will complete two years next month.

  • Hindutva in danger due to BJP’s British style divide and rule policy, says Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray

    Express News Service

    MUMBAI: Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray in his Dusshera rally on Friday said that the BJP has neither understood Veer Savarkar nor Mahatma Gandhi but only dividing the Hindus on caste and community line to rule and remain in power.

    Thackeray said that Hindutva is in danger today but those at the peak of the power are using Hindutva by dividing the people on the lines of caste and religion. “They adopted the Britisher’s divide and rule policy. They are dividing our people so that they can get power and remain in power. Power is like a drug for them,” he said.

    He alleged that the Centre has been interfering in the governance of the state government.

     “When the constitution was drafted, fear was raised that the Centre may encroach over the rights of the respective states. At that time, drafting committee chairman Dr BR Ambedkar clearly said that there was no big brother and small brother in centre and state relationship. Both are equally important and equal rights. Only the specific sectors like defence, foreign affairs etc will be dealt with by the centre while other rights of the states will remain intact,” Thackeray said asking constitutional experts to do the discussion and debate over this important issue.

    Uddhav Thackeray also dared the BJP to topple his government. He said if the BJP has really guts then they should pull down his government.

     “I was not interested in the chief ministerial post but I had given the word to Balasaheb Thackeray that one day, he will make Shiv Sainik the chief minister of Maharashtra. Therefore, he took the responsibility to fulfil his father’s wish. But other Shiv Sainiks will also work hard to become the chief minister of Maharashtra,” Thackeray added.

    He said the BJP is the world largest political party but they have to import the candidate for the state bypolls in Maharashtra.

    “Why there is selective outrage in media. The 3000-tonne drugs were detected at Mudra port in Gujarat but no one is talking about it. Even the court has asked to probe this issue. But there is studied silence by the central government. When it comes to Maharashtra, then every small issue is blown out of proportion. Maharashtra and Mumbai police image has been tarnished by raising fake issues,” Thackeray retorted.   

    He said that the Mumbai police’s Narcotic department has seized more quantity of drugs than the central narcotic agency, but who hogs the limelight?  “We should give credit to our police for working hard and keeping us safe.”

    He slammed that most of the CSR and central government funds are diverted towards Gujarat. “Why they are not diverting this fund to Maharashtra or any other state. Why there is step-motherly treatment to Maharashtra,” he asked.

    People should feel I am their brother: Thackeray’s response to Fadnavis’ comment

    Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray took the potshot at former CM Devendra Fadnavis’s earlier statement of, “I still feel chief minister of Maharashtra.”

    Thackeray said that he should never feel like a chief minister of Maharashtra.

    “People should feel I am their brother or relative or someone else from their family,” Thackeray said.

  • Uddhav Thackeray, Narayan Rane trade barbs at Sindhudurg airport inauguration

    By PTI

    CHIPI: Arch-political enemies Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and Union minister Narayan Rane on Saturday shared the dais at the inauguration of an airport at Chipi in the Sindhudurg district, and took swipes at each other.

    This was probably for the first time the two came together on stage after Rane parted ways with the Shiv Sena — now headed by Thackeray — on a bitter note sixteen years ago.

    The occasion also had a backdrop of Rane’s arrest in August this year for a remark against the chief minister.

    Rane, who hails from Sindhudurg, in his speech listed the work done by him since he was elected as MLA from this picturesque region of coastal Maharashtra for the first time in 1990.

    He was given the charge of the district on the instructions of Shiv Sena founder (and Uddhav Thackeray’s father) late Bal Thackeray, and there were no proper roads, water or education facilities in the region then, he said.

    After the Shiv Sena-BJP combine came to power in the state in 1995, he requested then chief minister Manohar Joshi to declare Sindhudurg as a “tourism district”, Rane claimed.

    “After that the work for basic amenities like roads, power, education, water, and healthcare was carried out. The existing infrastructure is because of Narayan Rane. Nobody can match it,” he said.

    “People know who works. Uddhav-ji, I learnt everything from Saheb (Bal Thackeray),” Rane added.

    The BJP leader also said even today there is no water or electricity infrastructure near Chipi, nor is there a proper road to the airport.

    In a barely veiled attack on the chief minister, Rane said the late Bal Thackeray disliked lying, and did not care for those who lie.

    In his speech, chief minister Thackeray hit back, saying, “Balasaheb did not like lying. Hence, many times such people (who lied) were kicked out of the Shiv Sena. (Bal Thackeray would say) Even if the truth is bitter, please speak it.”

    In another dig at Rane, he said, “As per my knowledge, the Sindhudurg fort was built by (Shivaji) Maharaj. Otherwise someone might say ‘I built it.’”

    He also said it must be pondered why it took so long for this airport to be built.

    “Some people said Konkan will be transformed into California, but why has it not happened yet,” Thackeray added.

    Then he took a dig at Rane’s portfolio at the Centre, namely, Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME).

    “You (Rane) are a minister. So what if it is ‘micro and small’, it is still an important department and (we are sure) you will use it for the benefit of Maharashtra,” the CM said.

    There should also be a heliport at Chipi which can be used for tourism, he said.

    The chief minister also said he never mixed politics and work, and when Rane called him up for the grant of approval for a medical college in the Sindhudurg district, he immediately cleared the proposal.

    Since his exit from the Sena in 2005, for which he blamed Uddhav Thackeray, Rane has often targeted the latter.

    Soon after he was inducted into the Union cabinet, Rane was arrested by the Maharashtra police in August over his comments against Thackeray.

    He was granted bail by the court the same day.

    Meanwhile, Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said on this occasion that thanks to the new airport, the distance of 530 km between Mumbai and Chipi can now be covered in 50 minutes.

    There are also plans to connect Chipi with Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata and other major cities and 20-25 flights to Chipi will be started in the next five years, he said.

    Maharashtra now has 14 airports, Scindia noted.

    Tourism minister Aaditya Thackeray, who also handles the environment portfolio, said all efforts will be made to promote tourism in Konkan while conserving its ecology.

    The Sindhudurg Airport, also known as Chipi Airport, is spread over 275 hectares.

    The length of its runway is 2,500 metres, and it can accommodate narrow-body aircraft like Airbus A-320 and Boeing B-737.

    The airport terminal building has the capacity to handle 200 departing and 200 arriving passengers during peak hours.

    Union minister Ramdas Athawale and Maharashtra deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar were also among those present on the occasion.

  • Budgetary allocation to be made for preservation of biodiversity: Maharashtra CM

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: Budgetary allocation will be made towards the preservation of biodiversity and its research, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray said on Monday.

    He was speaking at the release of a report of the Maharashtra Gene Bank (MGB).

    The CM said the Maharashtra Gene Bank is the first such institution in the country and giving a direction in the field of conservation, management and revival of bio-resources.

    “Separate budgetary allocation is being made for this initiative so that work under it can be done by researchers freely,” a statement quoted Thackeray as saying.

    The chief minister suggested that planning should be done on what goals are to be achieved under this initiative.

    He said Norway has a bank that preserves seeds of rare species, while Britain has a museum of such seeds where students and researchers visit.

    “We, too, should make efforts to preserve the seeds (of rare species). This is crucial in the backdrop of climate change,” Thackeray said.

    He told government officials attending the program that under the New Education Policy, aspects related to biodiversity should be incorporated in the syllabus.

    Senior scientist and former chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission Anil Kakodkar and senior officials of the state government were present at the event.

  • Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray’s civic body move upsets Congress

    By Express News Service

    MUMBAI:  The decision of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government to bring back the multi-member system for civic bodies has upset alliance partner Congress, which fears losses in local body polls due to the new system.

    Earlier, both Congress and NCP had demanded for single or twin member civic wards for municipal corporations. However, paying no heed to this, Shiv Sena went ahead for multi-member civic wards, which is unlikely to benefit the Congress.  Maharashtra Congress president Nana Patole was vocal for single or a maximum of two members in the municipal corporation wards barring the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). 

    The MVA has now reversed its own earlier decision for single-member wards in 2019. Erstwhile chief minister Devendra Fadnavis had also brought in the multi-member system, which helped the BJP win as many as corporation seats.

    According to a senior Congress leader, in the multi-member system, the votes of minorities and reserved classes get divided and this benefits BJP mostly. “In the single-member wards, the minority and reserved category electorates vote in a block and that benefits the Congress and the NCP.”  However, Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar brushed aside, saying that in an alliance government once a decision was taken, there was no point in nagging about it.