Shirdi bandh to be withdrawn from Sunday midnight
Shirdi: Residents of Shirdi in Maharashtra will call off from Sunday midnight the day-long bandh, observed in the temple town amid a row over the birthplace of 19th century saint Saibaba.
Leaders representing the Shirdi residents said that the decision to call off the shutdown was taken at a 'gram sabha' on Sunday evening in view of the meeting called by Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray in Mumbai on Monday to discuss the issue.
They, however, warned that if the meeting with the CM fails to bring any satisfactory solution, an aggressive protest will be launched.
"The decision to end the bandh from Sunday midnight was taken in the evening 'gram sabha' (meeting) of local residents of Shirdi, representatives of the Shri Saibaba Sansthan Trust (SSST)," Shiv Sena MP from Shirdi, Sadashiv Lokhande, said.
He said that besides him, representatives from Pathri and Shirdi, BJP MLA Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, CEO of SSST, will attend the meeting called by the CM at 2 pm on Monday.
The bandh, which began after Saturday midnight, was observed to protest against Uddhav Thackeray's announcement of grant of Rs 100 crore for development of facilities at "Sai janmasthan" (birthplace) at Pathri in Parbhani district, nearly 273 kms away from Shirdi in Ahmednagar district.
Saibaba, a prominent spiritual figure of the 19th century, is equally revered by Hindus and Muslims.
Former trustee of the temple, Kailash Kote, said that if the outcome of the CM's meeting is not satisfactory, then the residents of Shirdi will protest aggressively.
About 500 locals were present at the gram sabha, he said. Another former trustee sachin Tambe Patilsaid that the bandh will be called off after Sunday midnight.
"Since the meeting is scheduled tomorrow at 2 pm, we decided to call off the bandh. If the outcome is not satisfactory for us, we will decide the future course of action," he said.
Apart from Shirdi, Sunday's bandh was also observed in at least 25 villages around the temple town. On Sunday morning, a rally was taken out by devotees of Saibaba and locals around the Shirdi temple.
However, the Saibaba temple remained open throughout the day with no report of devotees facing any inconvenience even as shops and eateries downed their shutters and vehicles remained off roads.
The devotees were allowed to offer prayers at the temple and residents of Shirdi provided food and water for the devotees visiting the shrine, officials of the temple trust and Ahmednagar district administration said.
There are many beliefs about the actual birth place of the mystique saint, who enjoys a massive following in India and among Indians abroad.
Residents of Pathri village often cite Saibaba's biography 'Sri Saisachharitra' to claim that he was born in their town.
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Ordinance issued to increase number of Supreme Court judges from 34 to 38
New Delhi (PTI): The government has promulgated an ordinance to increase the strength of the Supreme Court from the present 34 judges to 38, including the Chief Justice of India.
The law ministry notified the ordinance on Saturday, which amended the Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, 1956, to increase the sanctioned strength of the top court.
So far, the sanctioned strength of the top court was 34, including the Chief Justice of India (CJI). Now, the number of judges has been increased by four, taking the sanctioned strength to 38.
The top court will now have 37 judges, other than the CJI.
With the apex court having two vacancies at present, and the ordinance coming into force immediately, the Supreme Court Collegium will now have to recommend six names for appointment as judges in the top court.
A bill will be brought in the Monsoon Session of Parliament to convert the ordinance – an executive order – into a law passed by Parliament.
The Union Cabinet had cleared a draft bill on May 5 to increase the number of apex court judges.
The strength of the Supreme Court was last increased from 30 to 33 (excluding the CJI) in 2019.
The Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Act, as originally enacted in 1956, put the maximum number of judges (excluding the CJI) at 10.
This number was increased to 13 by the Supreme Court (Number of Judges), Amendment Act, 1960, and to 17 by another amendment to the law.
The Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Act, 1986, augmented the strength of judges from 17 to 25, excluding the CJI.
A fresh amendment in 2009 further increased the strength from 25 to 30.
Article 124(3) of the Constitution lists the qualifications required to become a Supreme Court judge.
An Indian citizen who has either served as a high court judge for at least five years, or as an advocate for 10 years, or is a distinguished jurist, can be appointed to the top court.
The strength of the Supreme Court is increased based on the recommendations of the CJI, who writes to the Union law minister. After consulting the finance ministry, the Department of Justice under the law ministry moves the Cabinet with a draft bill.
