Home Blog Page 5198

Kandahar: 14 Taliban terrorists neutralised, Pakistan ID cards recovered from them

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Kandahar: 14 Taliban terrorists neutralised, Pakistan ID cards recovered from them

In a gunfight with the Afghan security forces Maruf and Arghistan districts in Kandahar in Afghanistan, 14 terrorists belonging to the Islamic terror outfit Taliban were neutralised. The security forces have recovered Pakistani ID cards from the terrorists. The dreaded terrorist organisation has reportedly carried out several attacks on Afghan forces in recent months, despite aiming to talk to Kabul.

Taliban to continue its Jihad

Earlier, the deputy leader of the Taliban Sirajuddin Haqqani has said that despite the peace negotiations to repeal the conflict in Afghanistan, the terrorist group will continue to move further on the path of jihad and will strengthen its military power. In a message to mark the completion of training of the suicide bombers of the Taliban at an unknown location, Haqqani clarified that peace talks do not mean that they will abandon the path of Jihad.

As per the report, in footage uploaded on the group’s social media page, it was seen that a group of militants wearing suicide vests are passing in a parade in front of the Taliban’s military commission. Haqqani said, “We believe that the talks are the solution, the politics of sharia (Islamic) law is one of the paths of our jihad and struggle, but no one should miscalculate our politics and willingness for talks — they shouldn’t expect (the Taliban) to abandon jihad and their military capabilities

NCP’s Majeed Memon miffed with alliance partner, says Uddhav Thackeray should not attend Ram Mandir Bhoomi Puja

OpIndia Staff
-
0
NCP’s Majeed Memon miffed with alliance partner, says Uddhav Thackeray should not attend Ram Mandir Bhoomi Puja

While the Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut has asserted that Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray will positively attend the Bhoomi pujan ceremony for the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, alliance partner NCP’s Majeed Memon has advised the Sena supremo to refrain from promoting any religious activity in his capacity as the chief minister of Maharashtra.

Memon took to Twitter to express his objection with the likelihood of Uddhav Thackeray attending the ceremony in Ayodhya. “Uddhav Thackeray is among invitees for Bhoomi pujan of Ram Temple. He may participate in respecting COVID 19 restrictions in his personal capacity. The head of a secular democracy should refrain from promoting a particular religious activity,” Memon tweeted.

Sanjay Raut claims Uddhav Thackeray will attend Ram Mandir bhoomi pujan

Though Memon demurred at the prospect of the leader of the Maha Vikas Aghadi, an alliance between the ideologically different parties of Shiv Sena, Congress and the NCP, would attend the ceremony for the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, Sanjay Raut, the outspoken spokesperson of Shiv Sena, said that Uddhav Thackeray will definitely attend the function as his party paved the way for the construction of the Ram Temple and removed roadblocks in the temple construction.

Refuting the existence of rifts between the Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance partners, Raut asserted that the three political parties in the alliance have varying ideologies but they work on a common minimum programme.

“This is a government of three parties, and nowhere in the MVA’s formation, it is written we have to have consensus on an issue. As a government, it has to be run with unanimity to implement the programmes for the people as per the common minimum programme,” Raut said.

On Sunday, NCP supremo Sharad Pawar had criticised the Central government over having misplaced priorities in the times of pandemic. “Eradication of Covid-19 is the priority of the Maharashtra government, but some people think constructing a temple will help in its mitigation,” Pawar said. With Pawar stressing that the Maharashtra government’s focus is on battling the spread of coronavirus, it remains to be seen if Uddhav Thackeray will defy Pawar and attend the groundbreaking ceremony of the Ram Temple.

Even Shiv Sena’s other alliance partner, Congress echoed Pawar’s concerns and claimed that the central government was diverting people’s attention from its bungling up of the coronavirus crisis.

PM Modi may likely attend the groundbreaking ceremony in Ayodhya

The ‘bhoomi pujan’ ceremony is scheduled to be held at Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh and PM Modi is likely to attend it on August 5. The ceremony will be graced by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath among several other invitees. However, the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) has not yet confirmed his visit.

Reportedly, an estimated 100-150 guests will be allowed at the said event. The foundation laying ceremony will mark the beginning of the construction of the grand temple that is expected to take about 3 years to complete. Kameshwar Chaupal who serves as a trustee of the Ram Temple Trust informed that they are expecting the Prime Minister’s arrival in the temple town of August 5. He added that all government standard operating procedures (SOPs) with respect to safety against coronavirus will be ensured during the Bhumi Pujan.

NIA tells Bombay HC ‘Urban Naxal’ Varavara Rao attempting to take undue advantage of Coronavirus to get bail

OpIndia Staff
-
0
NIA tells Bombay HC ‘Urban Naxal’ Varavara Rao attempting to take undue advantage of Coronavirus to get bail

The National Investigative Agency (NIA) has accused ‘Urban Naxal’ Varavara Rao of attempting to take undue advantage of the Coronavirus outbreak after the accused in the Elgar Parishad case applied for bail on grounds of health, LiveLaw has reported. He had earlier tested positive for Covid-19.

The NIA said in its 170-page reply to the plea for bail by Varavara Rao at the Bombay High Court, “The appellant accused Varavara Rao under the garb of the current situation on account of global pandemic Covid-19 and his old age, is trying to take an undue benefit in the aforesaid situation in seeking bail on the grounds mentioned in his application.”

The NIA stated further, “It is very clear that prison authorities responded timely and provided necessary medical aid to the appellant accused Varavara Rao. The medical record of the appellant accused and the report submitted by the Superintendent of JJ Hospital does not suggest that the appellant accused is suffering from any such ailment which necessitates to immediately obtain treatment from multi-speciality hospital from specific doctor. Thus it is clear that the pleading with regard to the medical condition of the petitioner is merely a ruse to obtain an order of interim relief which is not available to the petitioner otherwise on the merits of this case.”

Referring to the serious charges Varavara Rao and others in the Bhima Koregaon Elgar Parishad case are accused of, the investigative agency stated, “Mr Rao and other accused in the case have been charged with various offences under chapter IV and V of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) as well as Indian Penal Code wherein the prescribed punishment is more than seven years and may extend to imprisonment for life. Therefore even though the guidelines issued by the Maharashtra High Powered committee permits an under-trial prisoner above 60 years of age merely to apply for an interim bail, and not to be granted bail mechanically. As it is purely the discretion of the court adjudication the bail application as such the court ought to have exercised its discretion.”

Cases against ‘activist’ Rao

In July 2019, Karnataka police took Bhima Koregaon case accused Varavara Rao into custody in connection with a 2005 Maoist attack case registered at Tirumani and sent him to the Mumbai prison. He was already in judicial custody at Yerwada jail in relation to the Bhima Koregaon case.

In November 2018, Rao, and nine others were arrested in the Bhima Koregaon case, which was initially probed by the Pune police and later transferred to the National Investigation Agency in January. The case relates to alleged inflammatory speeches made at the Elgar Parishad conclave held in Pune on December 31, 2017, which triggered violence the next day near the Koregaon-Bhima war memorial located on the outskirts of the western Maharashtra city.

The police have also claimed the conclave was organised by people with alleged Maoist links.

Movie critic Rajeev Masand who wrote ‘blind items’ against Sushant Rajput called by Mumbai police for questioning

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Movie critic Rajeev Masand who wrote ‘blind items’ against Sushant Rajput called by Mumbai police for questioning

Mumbai police, investigating actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s death case, has now summoned film critic Rajeev Masand for questioning on Tuesday. The police, which is trying to ascertain what was the true reasons that pushed the talented Kai Po Che actor over the edge, has until now questioned many people associated with him and also celebrities from the film fraternity in connection with the case. Following summons, issued to him, Rajeev Masand appeared at the Bandra Police station for questioning.

This development came soon after, film actor Kangana Ranaut, in an interview with a news channel, while speaking of the “movie mafia” behind the systematic discrimination in the movie industry, named Rajeev Masand as one of the people who should be questioned concerning the investigation on Sushant Singh Rajput’s death.

Notably, Kangana Ranaut has been one of the most vocal supporters of Sushant Singh Rajput and has cast aspersions on many powerful and influential Bollywood personalities for perpetuating the culture of nepotism and professional harassment of ‘outsiders’ in the industry, resulting in the 34-year-old talented self-made actor committing suicide.

After Sushant Singh Rajput’s untimely death, more and more people from the film fraternity started coming forward to express their fury against Bollywood ‘biggies’ like Mahesh Bhatt, Karan Johar, Yashraj Films and several other prominent individuals of the Bollywood industry, alleging that the culture fostered by them had pushed the young actor to take away his life.

Rajeev Masand tried to tarnish Sushant’s reputation with his vicious blind items

Such reprehension on Bollywood’s ‘powerful and influentials’ got many movie critics and gossip columnists to pen down baseless gossips, allegations and accusations on the actor. One of them being movie critic Rajeev Masand, who tried to defame Sushant by his ‘vicious and cowardly blind items’ written against him. Through his vile attempts, spread across years, Masand has tried to character assassinate the talented actor by attributing terms like ‘skirt-chaser’, ‘overpaid outsider’, an actor with ‘questionable veracity’ and ‘temper tantrums’, to Sushant Singh Rajput.

In fact, Bollywood actor Manoj Bajpayee and filmmaker Apurva Asrani had taken to Twitter to share the terrible things Masand wrote and called out the efforts of the film critic to tarnish Sushant Singh Rajput’s image.

The 34-year-old Sushant Singh Rajput was found dead in his Bandra apartment on June 14. The postmortem report said that the actor died due to asphyxia caused because of hanging. However, many believed that the actor ended his life due to the discrimination in the industry and the prevailing nepotism in Bollywood.

The Indian Newsroom: Book by former NDTV employee exposes the strange nexus between NDTV and Congress

OpIndia Staff
-
0
The Indian Newsroom: Book by former NDTV employee exposes the strange nexus between NDTV and Congress

‘The Indian Newsroom‘—a book written by a former NDTV employee makes for a fascinating read about the unscrupulous nexus between the Congress party and the scam-tainted media channel. Written by journalist Sandeep Bhushan, who had a brief stint with the news channel, the book provides a telling account of the sacrosanct closeness between the Congress party and the NDTV media house. It chronicles incidents that crystallise readers’ suspicions about the channel not only being pro-Congress but also having a big say in the party’s inner politics.

Rashtrapati Bhavan altering protocol to accommodate Sonia Gandhi

The author, Sandeep Bhushan, on page number 110 of his book–The Indian Newsroom, has levelled serious allegations against the NDTV media organisation and its employees for allowing coverage of only those news items which were favourable to the Congress party. During the tenure of UPA-1, when Manmohan Singh was the Prime Minister of India and Sonia Gandhi was the head of the Congress party, one of Bhushan’s former colleagues had covered an ‘exclusive’ report on Rashtrapati Bhavan modifying the protocol to allow Sonia Gandhi to sit among the front rows along with the PM during an official ceremony at Ashok Hall. However, his report was unceremoniously binned by the NDTV media channel, following which the reporter tendered his resignation from the organisation. Bhushan has claimed in the book that his editors did not give him any reason for junking his ‘exclusive’ story.

Bhushan has also alleged that the senior NDTV reporters were so deeply-embedded with the Congress party that they would spend months exclusively tracking the Gandhis during their election campaign trail and whose hagiographic accounts of the Congress politicians would eventually find their way on the political party’s official website.

NDTV ran a co-ordinated campaign to oust Natwar Singh from cabinet

In yet another vignette exposing the symbiotic relationship between the Congress party and NDTV, Bhushan claims in his book’s page 117 that his organisation’s campaign to get Natwar Singh deposed from his office following the explosive Volcker Report brought home the fact that NDTV not only favoured the Congress party but it also played a crucial role in party’s inner politics. Bhushan states that a special team was created by NDTV under the leadership of Sonia Singh and Barkha Dutt in 2005 to run a media campaign aimed at ousting Natwar Singh out of the cabinet and the Congress party for his alleged involvement in the illegal selling of Iraqi oil under the UN-mandated Oil-for-Food programme.

According to Bhushan, a reporter with a marginal knowledge about understanding accounts and ledgers was burrowed from NDTV India, and many of the other reporters were deployed to chase the story on a daily basis. He has mentioned in his book that daily editorial meetings were called to discuss the campaign and strategies to drive Singh out of the cabinet and the Congress party. While Singh was eventually expelled from the government, despite its success, the NDTV’s campaign found no mention in the organisation’s ‘untold stories’.

Citing the rumours, Bhushan has mentioned that NDTV’s campaign against Natwar Singh probably stemmed from the grievances harboured by a senior editor involved in the investigations following the alleged suicide of a friend–Natwar Singh’s daughter-in-law, Natasha. Bhushan insinuates that the campaign to expel Singh out of the Congress party and the government could have been a way to get back at the minister and his son, Jagat, or because of the nexus with the Congress party. It is pertinent to note that Natwar Singh, in his autobiography–’One Life is not Enough’, has blamed ‘the powers that be’ responsible for his undoing. He says in the book, “The media had already decided that I was guilty. The line was fed to them by a group of senior cabinet ministers.”

Rajdeep Sardesai ordered Bhushan to change a report that highlighted violations by Congress loyalist

Levelling serious allegations against another high-profile former NDTV journalist Rajdeep Sardesai, Bhushan asserted that the journalist did not provide enough room for the reporters to cover Congress in a fair and impartial manner. He cited an anecdote from 2005 when Rajdeep Sardesai had asked him to change a report that showed a Congress party loyalist and then Jharkhand governor, Syed Sibtey Razi, in a bad light for his brazen constitutional violations.

“In 2005, I recall, while doing a live show from Sonia Gandhi’s residence, he wanted me to change a report that showed up blatant constitutional violations by party loyalist and then Jharkhand governor, Syed Sibtey Razi. Sardesai stood before me and ensured that I followed the editorial line spelled out by him,” Bhushan has mentioned in his book.

Chetan Bhagat accuses Vidhu Vinod Chopra of bullying him to an extent where he contemplated suicide

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Chetan Bhagat accuses Vidhu Vinod Chopra of bullying him to an extent where he contemplated suicide

Chetan Bhagat, writer, and Anupama Chopra, film critic got into an ugly spat on Tuesday on Twitter where Bhagat alleged that Chopra’s husband, filmmaker Vidhu Vinod Chopra bullied him so much that he contemplated suicide.

It started with Bhagat’s tweet where he said that Sushant Singh Rajput’s last movie “Dil Bechara” is going to release next week. He urged critics not to “try” their “dirty” tricks and write sensibly. He said, “I want to tell the snob and elitist critics right now, write sensibly. Don’t act oversmart. Don’t write rubbish. Be fair and sensible. Don’t try your dirty tricks. You have ruined enough lives. Now stop. We’ll be watching.”

Quoting Bhagat, Anupama Chopra, who herself is a movie critic and wife of Vidhu Vinod Chopra said, “Each time you think the discourse can’t get lower, it does!” Her reply irked Bhagat, and he pointed out how her husband publicly bullied him. He said that Chopra shamelessly collected all the awards for the film based on his story. He further alleged that Chopra denied to give him any credit for “3 Idiots” which is based on his book “Five Points Something.” He added, “[He] drove me close to suicide, and you just watched, where was your discourse?”

The “3 Idiots” controversy

Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s “3 Idiots” was based on “Five points Something” written by Chetan Bhagat. Thought the script was not exactly based on the book, it was confirmed at some point that the main idea was taken from Bhagat’s book. When the movie was about to release, a reported asked Chopra about Bhagat’s claims that he is not getting the credits he deserves. Chopra threatened a reporter and asked him to shut up. He said that “How can you say all this when you haven’t seen the movie?”

In an interview, Chopra said, “Chetan gave me this book to read, and I wanted to make a film on it. But I knew right from the start that I could not make a film completely on the book, as it was very anecdotal and a film needs a plot. So I had decided to rewrite it in a screenplay format. You’ll see that the film is very different from the book. After I wrote the script, I called Chetan and narrated it to him. I told him that if he did not like the script, I would stop the project. But he was okay with it.”

On the contrary, in a blog post, which is now deleted, Chetan Bhagat said, “The case is as simple as the makers claiming the story as their own, and clearly it is not. Pre-release, the makers made press statements like the movie is only ‘very loosely’, ‘2%-5% inspired by the book’.  After release, those who have read the book and seen the movie (and frankly, I think those are the only people who have the right to comment) find the film to be an adaptation of Five Point Someone.” The then-controversy once raised the never-ending question of artists, writers and musicians not getting the credit they deserve in the film industry. The deleted blog post can be read here.

Ahead of release of the film, Bhagat had taken to Twitter to say how Chopra negated his contribution to the film by not even naming him as the author of the book.

The ‘3 Idiots’ team called him a liar for these allegations.

Bhagat’s tweet on Tuesday not only rattled Anupama Chopra but other members of the fraternity as well. Bhagat while replying to them one by one wrote, “One tweet and the whole eco-system gets rattled.”

Ukraine: Armed man seizes a bus, takes 20 people hostage claiming fight against ‘system’

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Ukraine: Armed man seizes a bus, takes 20 people hostage claiming fight against ‘system’

On Tuesday, an armed man reportedly took 20 people hostage after seizing a bus at 9:25 am (local time) in Lutsk, Ukraine. As per the report, the man is in possession of weapons and explosives. The city of Lutsk is 400 km away from the Ukrainian capital Kyiv.

Reportedly, the Ukrainian police have now sealed off the centre of the city. The police officers have been able to establish his identity and are now trying to contact him. As per reports, the man had been disenchanted by the ‘Ukraine’s system’, and he expressed his frustration about the same on social media.

However, the attacker has claimed that he has also seized another bus and taken people hostage. The armed man has also threatened to blow up the bus. “Gunshots have been heard, the bus is damaged”, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy was quoted as saying. As per reports, it has not been clear whether any of the hostages are injured. Zelenskiy added that they are trying to solve the crisis with any fatalities.

‘Do not trust the system’, says Ukraine attacker

In a video that has now surfaced online, the attacker has reportedly urged people to not trust the ‘system’ of the country. He goes by the Twitter account Maxim Plohoy and his bio reads, “Author of the book Philosophy of Criminal.” According to his anarchist-like manifesto, he believes that today is ‘anti-system’ day and his death will not prevent the ‘truth’.

Several armoured vehicles have been deployed at the crime scene. Besides, snipers have been positioned at key locations on rofftops.

Ranvir Shorey’s tweet on ‘independent film crusaders turning mainstream Bollywood flunkies’ triggers Anurag Kashyap’s elaborate meltdown

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Ranvir Shorey’s tweet on ‘independent film crusaders turning mainstream Bollywood flunkies’ triggers Anurag Kashyap’s elaborate meltdown

It seems like Kangana Ranaut’s recent interview with Arnab Goswami on Republic TV is not going to fade away anytime soon. It is creating a massive gap between people in the Hindi film industry. On Tuesday, Ranvir Shorey posted a tweet in which he pointed out that “independent film crusaders” has turned into “mainstream Bollywood flunkies.” Anurag Kashyap, who has been having periodic meltdowns, took the offence on himself and initiated an argument with Ranvir that caught a lot of eyes on social media.

Ranvir, in his tweet on Tuesday, wrote, “So many independent-film-crusaders have turned mainstream-Bollywood-flunkies now. These are the same people who used to rant 24/7 about the “system” for attention before they were given entry into the pearly gates of mainstream Bollywood. #Hypocrisy much?”

Anurag Kashyap, who attacked Kangana in a series of Tweet hinting that she is being “used”, thought the sly reference of independent film crusaders turning mainstream Bollywood flunkies was on him and threw a fit. He threw an elaborated meltdown and confronted Shorey quoting his tweet. He asked Shorey to tell whom he is referring to. Shorey, who did not take any names in his tweet, asked Anurag ‘try not to be his shrink’ as Kashyap asked him not to mix pain of his past relationship in the debate.

Shorey mentioned that he had worked even more alone than the director that irked him even further. Anurag responded to him and said, “I operate alone and have always done. I am seeing an old friend disintegrating and getting used and I am talking about that.” He added that he is not defending anyone and no one is paying him.

Taking nepotism in the context, Kashyap said that he is one of those artists who had worked with the outsiders the most. He said, “I can see what’s wrong with all that is going on and I see the game being played and people being used. Trust me I am not gutted by what you said, no one could gut me in 27 years.”

Ranvir pointed out Kashyap’s mistake of assuming himself at the centre of “independent film crusader”. He added, “Let me remind you, independent cinema has been and always will be more than you. So you be you, and let others be themselves. Don’t belittle others when they’re crying out.”

Anurag sarcastically replied that he is sorry to take the tweet on himself and he had misread Ranvir. He said, “Oh so you weren’t talking about me? That’s incredible. Totally my fault that I misread you. Which means my replies were totally unnecessary and unwarranted.” Anurag further cornered Ranvir on his allegation that Kashyap was belittling people and asked him to prove it.

Ranvir posted a screenshot of his tweet and asked him why he is trying to control people’s narrative. By doing such, he is belittling people. He said, “Everyone has the right to talk about their pain, just like you! And yes, your replies to me were unnecessary. I’m not here to make a spectacle.”

Anurag further tried to poke Ranvir to take names and said that he ‘agree to disagree’ with him as it seems he took Kangana’s outbursts as ‘pain’. Ranvir again pointed out that he is not making any names and he will keep defending everyone’s right to speak their own truth. He said, “Who is to say who is in real pain and who’s an attention seeker? I’m just defending everyone’s right to speak their own truth. Just like you do. You can agree or disagree with.”

Ranvir posted the tweet hours after Kashyap posted a thread on Twitter alleging Kangana is being used and no one is trying to control her. Anurag said in his thread that Kangana was once his good friend, but her recent outrage is senseless. Kangana in her reply lashed out at him saying the way Urban Naxals protect terrorists, they now protect movie mafia.

Sharjeel Imam tests coronavirus positive, may delay police’s exercise to bring him back to Delhi

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Sharjeel Imam tests coronavirus positive, may delay police’s exercise to bring him back to Delhi

Sharjeel Imam, who was arrested for his seditious statements in the Jamia violence case, has tested positive for Chinese coronavirus reports New18. A Special Cell team of Delhi Police is in Assam where Sharjeel has been kept in jail. The Special Cell team got his coronavirus test as they wanted to bring him back to Delhi. As per the report published in Hari Bhoomi, he has been tested positive, which may delay the process to bring him back for a while.

Delhi Police booked Imam under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. The Delhi Police recently filed an application in the Saket court for additional time to complete the investigation. The court previously asked the Police to complete the investigation in 90 days. The court granted additional time which was opposed by Sharjeel in the High Court while applying for bail. The High Court categorically denied Imam’s bail application.

Who is Sharjeel Imam

Former student of Jawaharlal University and The Wire columnist, Sharjeel Imam is one of the accused charged for his anti-India speeches during anti-CAA protests that lead to anti-Hindu riots in Delhi. In one of his speeches, he urged his followers to cut northeast states’ connection with the rest of India. He gave controversial statements at Jamia Islamia University and in other parts of the country. According to the police, his speech led to arson in Aligarh.

Maharashtra: Thackeray govt approves Rs 50,000 annually to each Bombay HC judge as ‘spectacle allowances’

OpIndia Staff
-
0
Maharashtra: Thackeray govt approves Rs 50,000 annually to each Bombay HC judge as ‘spectacle allowances’

In an unprecedented move, the Uddhav Thackeray led government in Maharashtra has, in a resolution, approved of giving Rs 50,000 per year to every Bombay High Court judge for buying spectacles. As per the resolution, even the dependant family members of the judges like spouse and children are covered under the scheme. Which means even they are eligible to use this fund on the purchase or maintenance of their spectacles.

Uddhav Thackeray government to spend Rs 33.5 lakh from the state’s exchequers funds annually on spectacles

There are currently 67 sitting judges in the Bombay High Court. Which means that with this decision, the Maharashtra government is set to spend Rs 33.5 lakh from the state’s exchequers funds annually on the judges’ ‘spectacle allowance’.

Elucidating on the high amount allotted by the state government for mere spectacles, Legal Advisor and Joint Secretary, Yogesh Ameta stated that the amount is said to include the recurring expense as well.

The government resolution, signed by Legal Advisor and Joint Secretary Yogesh Ameta was passed on July 10, 2020. According to reports, the proposal was first discussed five to six months ago between the then chief justice and the then chief secretary Ajoy Mehta. After negotiations, the amount of Rs 50,000 was agreed between the parties.

Ajoy Mehta, now an advisor to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and the Legal Advisor and Joint Secretary Yogesh Ameta were unavailable for comments on Tuesday.

At the time when the state of Maharashtra is plagued by the coronavirus outbreak, continuing to account for both the highest fatalities and caseload in the country, this outlandish decision by the Uddhav Thackeray government is sure to raise quite a few eyebrows.

1...5,1975,1985,199...7,647Page 5,198 of 7,647