NEWS

The Bombay High Court on Wednesday reserved its order on the accused's plea in the 2018 Elgar Parishad case.

The plea challenged the Pune Sessions Judge's decision to take cognisance of the charge sheet against them and quash the criminal proceedings.

The accused- Sudhir Dhawale, Rona Wilson, Surendra Gadling, Shoma Sen, Mahesh Raut, Vernon Gonsalves, and Arun Ferreira, had sought bail on the grounds that Pune Sessions Judge RM Pande lacked jurisdiction to take cognisance of the charge sheet as original jurisdiction in the case belonged to the Magistrate.

The Congress leadership in Delhi has given its nod for the expansion of the Rajasthan cabinet, and former rebel leader Sachin Pilot is most likely to emerge a winner, sources in Delhi told media.

At least four MLAs from the Pilot faction are likely to be inducted as Cabinet Ministers in the Ashok Gehlot led cabinet soon, they added.

Parleys have been on in Rajasthan with the top brass making a beeline to the state in a bid to placate ruffled feathers in both Gehlot and Pilot camps. Earlier this month, Haryana Congress chief Kumari Selja and Karnataka Congress president D K Shivakumar had met the Rajasthan chief minister in the run-up to an expected reshuffle of the state Cabinet. The back-to-back visits were a clear indication that there were hiccups in the plan to expand the Gehlot Cabinet, in which MLAs loyal to the former deputy chief minister want a bigger representation.

The effect of the second wave of coronavirus in the country is receding. However, after a brief respite, the threat of a third wave continues to loom. Experts have said that the impact of the third wave will be more on children. The figures confirm this. Meanwhile, there is news that about 40 children have been found coronavirus positive in a week in Mumbai.

Some time ago, COVID-19 restrictions in the city were relaxed after the COVID-19 caseload declined. People who have taken both doses of vaccine were allowed to travel in local trains or visit public places. However, a few weeks later, Mumbai's civic agency BMC has warned that cases are again on the rise. "COVID-19 positivity rate in Mumbai is close to 1%. Figures are rising from 300 to 400-450 cases. We’ve increased testing. Many areas have been opened. Only fully vaccinated people and essential service workers are allowed on local trains,” Suresh Kakani, Additional Commissioner, BMC, was quoted by a news agency as saying.

Setting political circles abuzz in poll-poised Uttar Pradesh, BJP state chief Swatantra Dev Singh called on Samajwadi Party patron Mulayam Singh Yadav Monday. The BJP leader’s visit comes when the party is hard-pressed to explain its diffidence on a caste census, and is pushing its OBC outreach.

At a condolence meeting held for the late BJP leader Kalyan Singh in Lucknow Tuesday, Swatantra Dev said he had gone to invite Mulayam Singh for the same. The BJP had earlier criticised SP chief Akhilesh Yadav for not visiting to offer his condolences to Kalyan Singh, even as BSP chief Mayawati did so. At the condolence meeting held Tuesday, BSP national general secretary Satish Chandra Mishra was present and seated next to Swatantra Dev.

The SP, for its part, claimed that Swatantra Dev was unhappy within the BJP and Mulayam Singh had invited him to join the party.