Mumbai News Highlights: ‘No discussion on local body polls when INDIA bloc was formed,’ says Sharad Pawar; MVA to take ‘proper decision’ in coming days

The Bombay High Court on Monday said the trial in the last year's Badlapur school sexual assault case should be fast-tracked and conducted expeditiously as the victim girls are very young.

In August last year, a male attendant sexually assaulted the two girls - aged four and five - inside the toilet of their school located in Badlapur area of Maharashtra's Thane district.

He was arrested and later killed in a shootout with police when he was being taken from jail for questioning. The Special Investigation (SIT), set up by the Maharashtra government to conduct a probe into the case, has filed its chargesheet.

The chargesheet was filed against the attendant, the school's headmaster and two members of its management for "failing to report" the sexual assault, as required under provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

The high court took suo motu (on its own) cognisance of the incident after it came to light that the local Badlapur police had not taken prompt action to lodge an FIR in the case. On Monday, public prosecutor Hiten Venegaonkar informed the bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Neela Gokhale that the probe into the case was over, chargesheet filed and now trial would be held.

The court then emphasised the need to keep the trial fast-tracked. "The case will have to be fast-tracked and conducted expeditiously as the victim girls are of a very young age," the court said. - PTI

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday condoled the loss of lives in a road accident in Nashik district and announced an assistance of Rs 5 lakh to the kin of each of the deceased.

Eight persons were killed and several others injured on Sunday evening after a tempo and a truck collided at Dwarka Circle in Nashik, according to police.

There were 16 passengers in the tempo, which was on its way to CIDCO area in Nashik. They were returning from a religious event in Niphad, the police said.

Fadnavis, in a post on X, expressed condolences to the bereaved families.

He announced an assistance of Rs 5 lakh to the kin of each of the deceased and said the medical expenses of the injured would be borne by the state government. - PTI

Dhananjay Deshmukh, the brother of slain sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh, has threatened to jump to death from a water tank in Maharashtra's Beed, demanding an action against the main accused and booking Walmik Karad in a murder case and under MCOCA.

Dhananjay along with a few others have climbed on the water tank.

Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange Patil has reached the village in support of Deshmukh family.

Reiterating the demand for stringent action against the accused, Dhananjay Deshmukh on Sunday had said he feared the evidence might be destroyed and he and his family might meet the same fate as his brother if the accused in the murder and a related extortion case are set free.

The Deshmukh family is demanding that Walmik Karad who is close aide of minister Dhananjay Munde should be booked in a murder case and also be charged under MCOCA.

Currently Karad has been booked and arrested only in a case of attempting to extort Rs 2 crore from Avada green energy company.

A series of court orders here recently directing for the release of accused citing "illegal arrest" have come as a setback for probe agencies, with prosecution lawyers calling for a balanced approach while defence counsels insist on following norms.

In most of these cases, the arrests were without "application of mind," a defence counsel claimed, while the prosecution lawyers batted for victims' rights.

In December 2024, the Central Bureau of Investigation arrested six persons, including two IRS officers, in a bribery case, but a special court here denied the CBI custody of the accused after finding their arrest as "illegal" and ordered their immediate release.

Over the last six months, several remand pleas of probe agencies, such as CBI, Enforcement Directorate (ED) and local police, in courts here have met the same fate.

In most cases, the defence's submission was centred around the probe agencies not following the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita provisions, like not maintaining case diary properly, not providing the ground of arrest to the accused immediately or not producing him in court within 24 hours of the arrest.

Speaking to PTI, advocate Rahul Agarwal, who has appeared for a few accused persons, claimed, "They (investigation agencies) are not following provisions laid down in the law and guidelines set by the apex court and high courts in letter and spirit."

"The Supreme Court's guidelines clearly state that there needs to be a physical ground of arrest given to the accused or the arrest will be declared illegal," he said.

In the bribery matter against IRS officers, the special CBI court noted the case diary had loose sheets of papers, which amounts to contravention of the provisions of law, as per a ruling of the Bombay High Court ruling.

The court said it is necessary for the investigation officer to ensure all case papers are maintained properly.

In another jolt to the CBI, the court refused it the transit remand of ED officer Vishal Deep arrested in a bribery case, noting "the prosecution's failure to produce the case diary shakes its case".

The court held it as a "serious lapse" while rendering the arrest illegal.

The ED was also left embarrassed last year when a special PMLA court set free businessman Purushottam Mandhana, accused in a money laundering case, for not providing the ground of arrest and copy of "reasons to believe" that he is guilty of the offence.

Local police have also faced rejection of their remand pleas by courts on accounts of arrest not being proper.

A magistrate court here recently ordered the release of a man booked for allegedly posting online a manipulated video of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis's recent speech on Naxalism.

In a solace for police, a sessions court last month came down heavily on a magistrate for taking a "hyper technical view" while declaring the arrest of rape accused film producer Gunwant Jain as "illegal", as the police were late by just four minutes in communicating the ground of arrest to the accused.

The sessions court ordered the accused to surrender before police.

Senior advocate Satish Maneshinde said in most of these cases the arrests were "mechanical" without "application of mind".

"The police officers do not have enough knowledge or they don't apply their mind, so with those non-compliances, the prosecution was violating the principle of natural justice and fundamental rights," he added.

However, batting for a balanced approach, lawyers representing the state are of the opinion that victims' rights are equally important.

Why should a victim suffer if the investigation agencies have made a mistake? they asked.

Senior special prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam, who has represented the state in various high profile cases including the 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts case, vouched for a balanced approach and said probe agencies should also get an opportunity for custodial interrogation of the accused.

"No doubt it is mandatory that the grounds of arrest be informed to the accused and their family too, so that the personal liberty of the accused is not jeopardised," Nikam said.

It's time for some amendment in the said provision because some hard nuts (accused) are very difficult to crack and their custodial interrogation is necessary, which does not mean ill-treatment, but asking constant questions, he added.

Special Public Prosecutor Shishir Hire batted for victims' rights.

" If an accused is absconding, he is aware that police are running behind him and he knows the reason for his arrest also, so you cannot apply these routine parameters to the absconding accused," he said.

"There is also the concept of victimology...the police make a mistake...you will give its benefits to the accused, what about the victim? We need to be concerned about the victim...victimology is a new brand that is emerging and that is more important than the accused," he added.

Advocate Jitendra Sharma, who has represented the CBI in several cases, said if such cases are decided by the judiciary, then how will an investigation agency proceed with the probe in matters of "collusive corruption", where private and public servants are "hand-in-glove".

"Arrest is illegal or legal, it is the prerogative of the judiciary. Simultaneously, the probe agency also has to conduct the investigation in a fair manner and that chance should be provided by it, otherwise it will create a bottleneck in the investigation," he added. - PTI

The Maharashtra BJP's convention in Shirdi on Sunday, to be attended by Union minister Amit Shah, is expected to fine-tune its strategies for the local body polls, building on its impressive show in the 2024 state assembly polls.

The state-level convention is the BJP's first major gathering since its win in the November 2024 assembly polls and formation of government under its leader Devendra Fadnavis.

Senior BJP leader Shah is expected to address the party workers during the event, at the Shirdi temple town in Ahilyanagar district, which is likely to see the participation of nearly 15,000 delegates.

The BJP has now shifted focus on the local body polls, including in Mumbai, and the convention is aimed at formulating strategies for them, a party functionary said.

The convention will focus on strengthening the party's position in 27 municipal corporations by discussing strategies, addressing ground-level challenges, and planning organisational changes, he said.

Speaking to reporters on Saturday evening, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said, "This convention is about expressing our gratitude towards the party functionaries and workers. We will also get a new task for our party workers." Fadnavis is set to meet district party leaders, state office-bearers, newly elected legislators and ministers to discuss strategies and plans for the elections.

Maharashtra BJP president Chandrashekhar Bawankule will open the event proceedings and Fadnavis will propose a resolution thanking the people of the state for their support in the assembly elections, a party functionary said.

Amit Shah will also address the event.

A youth-focused campaign, inspired by the philosophy of Swami Vivekananda, will be launched to coincide with the National Youth Day, celebrated on January 12 every year in commemoration of the spiritual leader, sources said. - PTI

Union ministers Amit Shah and Nitin Gadkari along with Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis will address thousands of delegates who are set to attend the state BJP executive meeting at Shirdi on Sunday. This is the first state executive meet after the BJP’s landslide victory in the Maharashtra Assembly elections in November last year. The state executive meet will have 15,000 delegates from across Maharashtra including all elected BJP MPs, MLAs, office bearers, district chiefs and karyakartas, BJP minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule said on Saturday.

The BJP chose January 12 as it marks the birthday of Swami Vivekananda. “The party’s objective is to connect with youths and entrust them a greater role in the organisation,” Bawankule said.

On Saturday, Fadnavis will convene a meeting with party leaders and office bearers at Shirdi. The party is likely to adopt a resolution to felicitate Fadnavis at the meeting.

Apart from celebrating the BJP’s performance in the Assembly elections, the party leadership will reflect on the challenges ahead, both at the organisational as well government levels. Greater coordination between the party and the organisation will be discussed and certain directives will also be given to the party cadre as elections to local bodies, including the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, are likely to be held soon, sources said.

Shah, who held meetings region-wise to boost the morale of the party cadre ahead of the Assembly elections, will address the delegates along with Gadkari. The day-long session will also see Fadnavis outlining the detailed roadmap for the party.

Nearly 250 residents were evacuated after a fire broke out in a five-storey building in Maharashtra's Thane city on Sunday morning, civic officials said.

No one was injured in the blaze which erupted at around 5 am in a laundry shop on the ground floor of the building located at Srinagar in Wagle Estate area, Thane Municipal Corporation's disaster management cell chief Yasin Tadvi said.

After being alerted, local fire personnel and the regional disaster management cell team members rushed to the spot to carry out the fire extinguishing operations and evacuated the building occupants, he said.

The blaze was put out in about an hour following which the people were allowed to return to their apartments, the official said.

The cause of fire was under investigation, he added. - PTI