Union Minister Ramdas Athawale meets Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar
The Hindu
Union Minister of State for Social Justice Ramdas Athawale met Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar at the latter’s residence in Mumbai on July 6 and said Mr. Pawar’s support to the NDA will “further weaken” the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi.
Union Minister of State for Social Justice Ramdas Athawale met Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar at the latter's residence in Mumbai on July 6 and said Mr. Pawar's support to the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) will "further weaken" the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA).
Mr. Athawale, who heads the Republican Party of India (A), said it was a courtesy visit after Mr. Pawar became the Deputy CM of the State.
Ajit Pawar on Sunday led a vertical split in the Nationalist Congress Party (Nationalist Congress Party) to become Deputy Chief Minister in the Shiv Sena-BJP government.
Eight other NCP MLAs, including Chhagan Bhujbal and Hasan Mushrif, were sworn in as Ministers in the Eknath Shinde cabinet.
Speaking to reporters after meeting the Deputy CM, Mr. Athawale said, “Ajit Pawar's support to the NDA has increased the strength (of the ruling side) in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly to more than 200. His support will result in the MVA getting weakened further.” The MVA comprises the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT), Sharad Pawar-led NCP faction and the Congress.
In June last year, the MVA government of Mr. Thackeray collapsed after a revolt led by Eknath Shinde against the Shiv Sena leadership. The revolt also led to a split in the Shiv Sena.
“We are judges and therefore, cannot act like Mughals of a bygone era ... the writ courts in the guise of doing justice cannot transcend the barriers of law,” the High Court of Karnataka observed while setting aside an order of a single judge, who in 2016 had extended the lease of a public premises allotted to a physically challenged person to 20 years contrary to 12-year period stipulated in the law.
The High Court of Karnataka on Monday declined to interfere, at present, in the investigation against a Bharatiya Janata Party worker, who is among the accused persons facing charges of circulating obscene clips, related to “morphed” images and videos clips related to Prajwal Revanna, former Hassan MP, in public domain through pen drives and other modes.