Regional

Jalna (Maharashtra), March 16 (IANS) Just ahead of the announcement of the Lok Sabha election schedule, Shivba Sanghatana leader, Manoj Jarange-Patil on Saturday warned that the Maharashtra government would face the wrath of the Marathas in the parliamentary polls.

Speaking to the media in Jalna, he said if justice was not given to the Marathas in the name of the Model Code of Conduct that would come into force soon after the poll dates are announced then the Maharashtra government would face the long-term repercussions of its actions.

“The government has still not fulfilled its promises of withdrawing cases against the Maratha men and women… The draft on ‘Sage-Soyare’ (family bloodline) has not yet been notified. If you don’t decide now, then the Marathas will take the decision,” he said in a grim warning.

He said that the previous rulers had concern for the cause of the Marathas, but the present regime is not bothered about the community and it is being blatantly ignored.

“If Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis do not want to face the wave of displeasure of the community, then they must immediately implement all the promises made to the Marathas,” demanded Jarange-Patil.

He reminded the government that the Marathas had been protesting for over seven months since August and cautioned against humiliating them more “or they can turn the tide against you.”

Meanwhile, following a call by Jarange-Patil for candidates from five villages to file their nominations, members of the Maratha community are likely to contest the Lok Sabha elections in large numbers.

This could upset the political calculations of the two major contending alliances – the ruling Mahayuti of the Shiv Sena-BJP-NCP(AP) and the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi of Congress-Shiv Sena (UBT)-NCP(SP) and their Maratha candidates.

--IANS

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Chennai, March 16 (IANS) Protests are being carried out in Puducherry and Tamil Nadu on Saturday over arrest of fishermen by the Sri Lankan Navy.

At least 12 fishermen from Puducherry and three from Tamil Nadu were arrested by the Sri Lankan Navy personnel along with their costly mechanised boats on Friday.

Antony John and R. Selvam, leaders of the Fishermen association of Tamil Nadu, told IANS that the fishers were protesting at Myladuthurai and Nagapattinam in Tamil Nadu.

Another group of fishermen is protesting at Puducherry, the association's leaders said.

Of the three fishermen arrested from Tamil Nadu, two are from Nagapattinam and one from Myladuthurai.

The fishermen are blocking the road at Nagaattinam while a demonstration is being carried out at Myladuthurai against the arrests.

Fishermen are shouting slogans at Puducherry main road against the arrests and impounding of boats.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, M. K. Stalin has written to External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar seeking his intervention for release of the fishermen.

In 2024 itself, Sri Lankan Navy has arrested 125 fishermen from Tamil Nadu and Puducherry on charges of crossing International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) and poaching in Sri Lankan waters.

Six costly mechanised boats were impounded by the Lankan Navy.

While some of the arrested fishermen were released, their mechanised boats are still in custody of Sri Lankan authorities.

--IANS

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Jammu, March 16 (IANS) The Army, on Friday, arrested one suspicious person near the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir’s Rajouri district.

“The person was nabbed in Nowshera sector of the LoC, late Friday night,” officials said.

“He is shifted to a nearby army camp where questioning is going on,” he added.

There was no official word on whether any weapon was recovered from the possession of the nabbed person.

--IANS

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Kolkata, March 16 (IANS) Sheikh Alamgir, the younger brother of the suspended Trinamool Congress leader Sheikh Shahjahan, the accused mastermind behind the January 5 attack on ED and CAPF personnel at Sandeshkhali in North 24 Parganas District, is being grilled by the CBI.

Sheikh Alamgir arrived at the Nizam Palace office of the CBI in central Kolkata on Saturday morning along with a few other associates of the suspended leader, to face interrogation by the central agency sleuths in the matter.

On March 13, the CBI issued a notice to Sheikh Alamgir asking him to be present at its Nizam Palace office on March 14, but he did not turn up on that date.

However, ending speculation on whether he would appear to face the CBI’s interrogation, he reached the Nizam Palace office at around 11.45 am on Saturday.

He was accompanied by some other close associates of Sheikh Shahjahan, who had also been summoned by the CBI for interrogation in connection with the attack on ED and CAPF sleuths.

Meanwhile, the ED on Saturday issued a notice to Sheikh Alamgir for interrogation in connection with the multi-crore ration distribution case in West Bengal.

The ED sleuths have also issued a similar notice to Sheikh Siraz, another brother of Sheikh Shahjahan, who is currently in the custody of the CBI.

Both Alamgir and Siraz have been asked to be present at the ED’s office at the Central Government Office (CGO) complex at Salt Lake.

In the latest raids at multiple locations at Sandeshkhali the ED had secured crucial clues linking two aspects of the PDS case to Alamgir. They are, the investment of the scam proceeds in the fish export business owned by his brother Shahjahan, and the subsequent diversion of the funds abroad using the hawala route.

According to sources, since Alamgir played an important role in day-to-day operations of the fish export business, his interrogation has become imperative.

--IANS

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Chennai, Mar 16 (IANS) With the Election Commission of India set to announce the 2024 poll dates today, political parties will soon announce the list of candidates from Tamil Nadu.

However, regarding the Thoothukudi seat, the INDIA bloc, headed by DMK, is to retain its representative Kanimozhi Karunanidhi, daughter of iconic DMK leader and former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Late M. Karunanidhi, and sister of present Chief Minister M. K. Stalin.

Kanimozhi is well accepted across the constituency and has the advantage DMK enjoys in the state.

The port city of Thoothukudi, however, elected both AIADMK and DMK from this constituency.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Kanimozhi had won the Thoothukudi seat with a margin of 3,47,209 votes, defeating her nearest opponent, Tamilisai Soundararajan of NDA. While Kanimozhi polled, 5,63,143 votes, Tamilisai could garner only 2, 5,934 votes.

The Thoothukudi Lok Sabha constituency comprises Vilathikulam, Thoothukudi, Tiruchendur, Srivaikuntam, Ottapidaram and Kovilpatti assembly segments.

Of these six assembly constituencies, five are with INDIA bloc and one seat, Kovilpatti, is won by AIADMK's Kadambur S.Raju. This shows that the DMK-led INDIA bloc is strong in Thoothukudi Lok Sabha constituency.

In 2019, Kanimozhi had defeated Tamilisai of BJP who contested as a joint NDA candidate supported by AIADMK, BJP and PMK. However, with NDA now split with AIADMK and BJP not seeing eye to eye, and PMK undecided on the alliance, Kanimozhi seems to be in a pivotal position in this high profile constituency without a significant opposition.

--IANS

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Mumbai, March 16 (IANS) Actress Deepika Singh has shared that even after her busy schedule, she continues to pursue her passion for dance, honing her skills, and spending time with her child, which helps her find balance and stay true to herself.

Deepika is currently playing Mangal in the show 'Mangal Lakshmi', which is a story of two sisters striving to uphold each other's dignity in their relationships.

In the current storyline, Mangal is juggling between portraying a loving mother, a supportive wife, and an ideal daughter-in-law.

Similarly, in her real life, Deepika, who is best known for her work in 'Diya Aur Baati Hum', is juggling between her motherhood days, acting, and professional dance.

Talking about the same, Deepika shared: "Balancing motherhood, acting, and dance is certainly a challenge, but it's also incredibly rewarding for me. Each role brings its own set of joys and responsibilities, and I'm grateful for the opportunity to pursue my passion while being there for my child. I believe hard work is the key to success."

The actress said the love she receives from her family is the key strength that helps her to balance these diverse roles and manage everything at the same time.

"When I go home after a late shift and hug my child, it’s the best feeling for me. My child enjoys co curriculars and hence he has willingly asked to join classes which keep him busy. Being a mother and an artist at the same time has helped me grow both personally and professionally," she added.

In the current episodes, Lakshmi almost catches Adit (Naman Shaw) at Saumya's (Jia Mustafa) house, but he narrowly escapes. However, Mangal sustains an injury due to Adit's actions and is rushed to the hospital by Lakshmi (Sanika Amit) and Kartik (Shubham Dipta).

Meanwhile, Mangal, is preparing for her new house Griha Pravesh in full swing. Later, Adit invites his colleagues to the house for the Griha Pravesh puja.

'Mangal Lakshmi' airs on Colors.

--IANS

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Mumbai, March 16 (IANS) Director-choreographer Farah Khan recently hosted a bash for the British singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran ahead of his concert in Mumbai.

The party was attended by many A-listers along with Farah’s kids, who she said missed the earlier party that she hosted for the ‘Perfect’ singer back in 2017.

On Saturday, the ‘Main Hoon Na’ director took to her Instagram, and shared then and now pictures of Ed Sheeran with her kids, who now seem all grown up.

The first picture is of the singer meeting her kids last night, and the second picture is from 2017 when the kids weren’t allowed to attend the bash given that it was for the grown ups.

However, Farah shared with her followers that Ed Sheeran put up the sweetest gesture for her kids as he went to their room and clicked a picture with them back in 2017 as the party was out of bounds for the young ones.

The director-choreographer wrote in the caption: “Last time I had a party for Ed Shereen, the kids were not allowed up on their own terrace, as they were too small for a grown up party... so @teddysphotos very sweetly went to their bedroom to click pics with them. This party I threw... guess who were the 1st ones there! Time FLIESSSSSS (sic).”

Farah is married to film editor Shirish Kunder, who worked with her on ‘Main Hoon Na’.

Earlier, actress Huma Qureshi also shared the pictures from last night’s party on her Instagram.

The actress said that Ed Sheeran told her that he absolutely loves the 2012 gangster-drama film ‘Gangs of Wasseypur’.

Meanwhile, Ed Sheeran’s +-=÷x Tour, organised by BookMyShow Live, will be held at the Mahalaxmi Racecourse in Mumbai on March 16.

--IANS

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Srinagar, March 16 (IANS) Central government on Saturday declared the Yasin Malik-led Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) as an unlawful association for a further period of 5 years.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah said in an X-post said that: “The Modi government has declared the 'Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (Mohd. Yasin Malik faction)' as an 'Unlawful Association' for a further period of five years.”

He said: “The banned outfit continues to engage in activities that foment terror and secessionism in Jammu and Kashmir. Anyone found challenging the security, sovereignty and integrity of the nation will face harsh legal consequences.”

The Central government has so far declared all anti-national and secessionist armed or political organisations and trusts as unlawful associations.

This is part of the government’s larger policy to target the ecosystem of terror that sustained and supported various terrorist groups and individuals so violence started in J&K in late 1989.

--IANS

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Kolkata, March 16 (IANS) As the Election Commission is all set to announce dates for polling and counting for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls in West Bengal on Saturday, Governor C.V. Ananda Bose has issued a strong warning against the recurrence of poll-related violence for which the state has become infamous over the years.

The Governor also said that besides violence, he will also not tolerate corrupt practices adopted by the political parties during the polling process.

"I want violence and corruption to end in elections. These are my top priorities. The tradition of political 'Holi' with human blood cannot be tolerated anymore. These things should end now in the state," he added while speaking to mediapersons on Saturday.

"I will hit the streets at 6 a.m. I will be available to the people. The political 'holi' with human blood that happened in the panchayat elections last year should not be allowed anymore," Governor Bose said.

The Governor's comments are in line with the observations made by Election Commission.

During the recent visit of Election Commission to West Bengal, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar gave a strong message to the state administrative machinery to ensure peaceful polls at any cost.

"Under any circumstance the voting should be conducted in a festive mood. The higher administrative and police functionaries have been directed to spread the message to all levels of their subordinates so that all necessary steps are being taken to ensure violence-free polls. If the state administration and police fail to do that, we will make them do it," he said during the interaction with mediapersons after meeting senior bureaucrats and police officials of the state.

--IANS

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Mumbai, March 16 (IANS) The Shiv Sena (UBT) is rattled as its senior functionary and Leader of Opposition (Council) Ambadas E. Danve is reportedly peeved at being ignored for a Lok Sabha nomination from the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar constituency, here on Saturday.

He admitted that he had been yearning for a LS nomination since 2014, then 2019, but was allegedly denied the opportunity owing to the local strongman and five-time MP, Chandrakant Khaire.

A Member of Legislative Council Danve accused Chandrakant Khaire of constantly trying to politically browbeat him, but categorically stated he (Danve) would continue working under the leadership of SS-UBT President and ex-CM Uddhav Thackeray.

He also assured that he is not planning to join hands with Chief Minister Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena, while shrugging that nobody can predict what would happen in future.

Chandrakant Khaire, who lost the prestigious Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar seat to the All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen's Syed Imtiaz Jaleel in 2019, is likely to be renominated from there as a Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) candidate, creating heartburns for Danve and his supporters.

The statements by Ambadas Danve have created ripples in the MVA as just a couple of days back, Shiv Sena spokesperson Sanjay Shirsat set the cat among the pigeons by claiming that "a big leader from the MVA" would switch over by Monday.

The Leader of Opposition in the Upper House also urged that new faces must be given a chance for the Lok Sabha and said he had apprised the party leadership of his keen desire to contest it.

"I am a loyal Shiv Sainik and struggles are nothing new for me... But it is not possible to forecast what can happen in the coming times," said Ambadas Danve, dropping broad hints.

Meanwhile, efforts are on to mollify Ambadas Danve by Thackeray and party MP Sanjay Raut and deploy his oratorical skills for the campaign of the Lok Sabha elections, the schedule of which will be announced this afternoon.

--IANS

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