Sonu Sood stopped from meeting migrants at Bandra Terminus
Mumbai: Actor Sonu Sood, who has been arranging transport for migrant workers stranded in Mumbai and has faced criticism from the Shiv Sena for "enacting a political script written by BJP", was stopped outside the Bandra Terminus here by police from meeting labourers.
A Mumbai Police official said the actor was stopped by the Railway Protection Force (RPF) when he reached the station on Monday night to meet some labourers, and added that they have not received any complaint so far in this connection.
The migrant labourers were supposed to take the Shramik Special train from Bandra Terminus to Uttar Pradesh.
Nirmal Nagar police station's senior inspector Shashikant Bhandare said, "The actor were stopped by the RPF, not by us. He wanted to meet labourers who were going to their native place. We have not received any complaint regarding this till now."
Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Sunday wondered whether the BJP propped up Sood to "offer help" to migrant workers from north India stranded in Maharashtra amidst the lockdown, with the political motive to show the Uddhav Thackeray government in poor light.
In his weekly column 'Rokhthok' in Sena mouthpiece 'Saamana', Raut questioned the sudden rise of "Mahatma" Sood on the social scene of Maharashtra during the lockdown.
Raut also referred to a "sting operation" against Sood ahead of the 2019 general elections, saying he had agreed to promote the BJP-led government at various platforms through his official social media accounts.
However, later that day Chief Minister and Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray lauded Sood's initiative to arrange buses for stranded migrant workers.
The actor met Thackeray at the latter's residence 'Matoshree' in suburban Bandra on Sunday night.
On Monday, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh backed Sood for his work for stranded migrant workers, and questioned the Maharashtra government's criticism of the actor.
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Ajit Pawar wins Baramati battle, defeats nephew Yugendra by more than 1 lakh votes
Baramati, Nov 23: Maharashtra deputy Chief Minister and NCP president Ajit Pawar on Saturday won from his traditional Baramati assembly constituency by defeating his nephew and NCP (SP) candidate Yugendra Pawar by more than one lakh votes.
Ajit, who parted ways with his uncle Sharad Pawar last year and was seeking an eighth term from this family bastion in Pune district, polled 1,81,132 votes while Yugendra Pawar polled 80,233 votes.
Ajit, thus, defeated his younger brother's son by 1,00,899 votes.
Five months ago, Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP) had triumphed in Baramati in the Lok Sabha elections, with incumbent MP and Sharad Pawar's daughter Supriya Sule defeating Ajit Pawar's wife Sunetra by a margin of 1.5 lakh votes.
Both the NCP factions did not leave a single stone unturned during the assembly campaign, and even Sharad Pawar's wife Pratibha Pawar and Sule's daughter Revati were seen campaigning for Yugendra, while Ajit Pawar brought his mother on stage during his concluding rally in Baramati.
While Sharad Pawar told the people of Baramati that they needed a new leadership, alluding to Yugendra Pawar whom he described as a highly-educated candidate, Ajit Pawar cautioned people not to fall prey to the "emotional pitch" by the senior Pawar.
After Saturday's results, Ajit Pawar, who along with several other NCP legislators sided with the BJP-Shiv Sena government in 2023, could claim to be the real political heir of his estranged uncle who founded the NCP in 1999.
Sunetra Pawar, now a Rajya Sabha member, thanked the people of Baramati for reposing their faith once again in `Dada' (elder brother in Marathi, as Ajit is fondly called).
