Maharashtra hotel politics: Ashok Chavan accuses BJP of poaching attempts
Mumbai: With the supreme court likely to take a call on crucial floor test in Maharashtra on Monday, which will decide the fate of the nascent BJP-led government, senior Congress leader Ashok Chavan on Sunday alleged that BJP leaders had booked rooms in hotels where his party MLAs are put up and were contacting some of them.
Speculation was rife that the task of getting MLAs into the BJP's fold has been entrusted to senior leader Radhkrishna Vikhe Patil, who had crossed over from the Congress to the BJP ahead of the October Assembly polls, Sainik-turned-Congressman-turned BJP Rajya Sabha MP Narayan Rane, NCP-turned-BJP MLA Ganesh Naik and Babanrao Pachpute.
When asked about the speculation, Vikhe Patil gave a cryptic and open-to-interpretation reply, stating "I have good relations with all MLAs".
Chavan told reporters that some Congress MLAs had told him about the move by the BJP. "Our MLAs are united and will not be poached," Chavan said.
MLAs of the Congress, NCP and Sena are sequestered in different hotels in the metropolis, to stall any attempts by the BJP to poach them ahead of the floor test in the Assembly.
Incidentally, BJP leader Ravindra Chavan was seen entering Hotel Renaissance in suburban Powai where NCP MLAs have been staying since Saturday evening.
Sources said these NCP MLAs are now being moved to another location nearby.
The Congress legislators were earlier supposed to leave for Jaipur, but were later put up in Mumbai in view of the fast-paced political developments, according to sources.
While the Congress MLAs are staying in J W Marriott hotel in Juhu, the MLAs of the Sena are staying at The Lalit hotel located near the Mumbai international airport.
The BJP made a return to power in a dramatic way early Saturday morning after NCP leader Ajit Pawar joined hands, leading to Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari swearing in Devendra Fadnavis as chief minister and Pawar as his deputy.
Given the political scenario in the state, the role of MLAs has become far more crucial during the floor test in the 288-member House where the halfway mark is 145.
In the assembly polls held in October, the BJP had won 105 seats, the Shiv Sena 56, the NCP 54 and the Congress 44.
According to sources, Independent and other MLAs could tilt the scales in favour of either the BJP-led government of Fadnavis backed by Ajit Pawar or the Sena-Congress-NCP combine during the floor test.
Earlier in the day, the supreme court said the issue of floor test, as demanded by the Congress-NCP-Sena combine, would be dealt with on Monday only after perusing the two letters- of Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari inviting Fadnavis and of the BJP leader staking his claim to form the government- it has demanded.
For their parts, the BJP and the opposition combine have claimed that they have the requisite numbers and would win the floor test comfortably.
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Thane court sentences man to life imprisonment for bludgeoning wife to death
Thane (PTI): A court in Maharashtra's Thane district sentenced a man to life imprisonment for the brutal murder of his wife, whom he attacked 22 times with a hammer in front of his children, based on the testimony of his 13-year-old daughter.
Principal district and sessions judge S B Agrawal found the accused, Vijay Mishra alias Samir Shaikh, guilty under sections 302 (murder) and 324 (voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
The court sentenced him to life imprisonment and a three-year term to be served concurrently. It also imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh for the murder charge and an additional Rs 10,000 for injuring his minor daughter and mother-in-law, who had tried to intervene during the fatal attack.
Additional public prosecutor Rashmi Kshirsagar informed that 11 prosecution witnesses, including the accused's daughter, were examined during the trial.
According to the prosecution, the victim, Zarin Israr Ansari, had been living with her mother, along with her daughter and a six-year-old son, for two years following prolonged domestic violence and disputes.
The accused, who had converted to Islam to marry Zarin 14 years prior, harboured deep resentment over her living separately and suspected her character.
On the afternoon of September 28, 2023, the accused stormed into his mother-in-law's residence in Mumbra with a hammer concealed in a bag, cornered his wife on the mezzanine floor, dragged her down, locked the main door, and repeatedly bludgeoned her.
The court defended the testimony of the victim's 13-year-old daughter, who was an eyewitness and had sustained injuries herself, noting that minor inconsistencies do not degrade the core truth of an innocent child's account:
"...they are not of any significant consequence since it is not expected from such a witness of 10 years of age to have a total photographic memory to be reproduced before the court. But as far as the incident is concerned, evidence of this witness is totally free from any reasonable doubt."
The prosecution had also stated that the accused had locked his family inside and threatened a neighbour by brandishing a "bomb-like thing" and declaring he would blow up the building if anyone intervened.
The victim's brother eventually broke down the latched door, disarmed the accused, and pinned him down until the police arrived.
The post-mortem report revealed that the victim had suffered 22 brutal injuries and had died due to severe head wounds.
