Maharashtra: Opposition demands discussion on falling onion prices, Council adjourned for the day
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra Legislative Council was on Tuesday adjourned for the day after Leader of Opposition Ambadas Danve demanded a discussion on falling onion prices.
The adjournment also meant that the Council could not immediately take a call on Chief Minister Eknath Shinde's letter to the deputy chairperson seeking that Viplov Gopikishan Bajoria be made the Shiv Sena's chief whip in the Upper House.
Currently, Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) MLC Anil Parab is the party's chief whip in the House.
Danve, who belongs to the Thackeray faction, demanded that the upper house discuss issues related to onion prices, but it was denied by deputy chairperson Neelam Gorhe, leading to legislators of the ruling and opposition parties arguing and levelling charges against each other.
The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party-Shinde bloc in the state currently does not have a majority in the Upper House.
Gorhe, who too is from the Thackeray camp, first adjourned the upper house twice but the ruckus continued. She then adjourned the house proceedings for the rest of the day.
The move by Shinde came days after the Election Commission recognised his camp as the real Shiv Sena and allotted to it the party's bow-and-arrow' poll symbol.
Speaking to reporters on the Vidhan Bhavan premises after the adjournment, Danve said, "The state government is trying to silence the voice of the Opposition. All we wanted was a detailed discussion on issues of crashing onion prices and farmers' woes."
The price per kilogram of onion came down to Rs 2 to Rs 4 on Monday at Maharashtra's Lasalgaon Agriculture Produce Market Committee (APMC), Asia's biggest onion market, prompting angry farmers to stop the auction of the key kitchen staple.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Badlapur accused Akshay Shinde shot dead: Lawyer of minor girls calls it 'killing of justice'
Mumbai (PTI): The gunning down of Badlapur case accused Akshay Shinde on Monday was the "killing of justice", said Asim Sarode, lawyer for the two minor girls he allegedly sexually assaulted.
Shinde was killed near Mumbra Bypass around 6:15pm when he allegedly snatched the gun of a policeman while he was being ferried in a police vehicle as part of a probe into a case registered on the complaint of his former wife.
After he shot and injured an API, another personnel from the escort team fired at him, and he was declared dead by doctors at a nearby hospital.
"While representing the two minor girls, I noticed it was becoming uncomfortable for the local politics of the Thane district and even for the educational institution where Akshay Shinde was working. Shinde's death in such a manner is killing of justice," Sarode told a regional news channel.
"Now, the case of sexual assault of the two minor girls will get sidelined. The case of these two minor girls was becoming difficult for the educational institute, as it is affiliated with a certain political family. Such a practice would lower the confidence of people in police and the judiciary," he claimed.
Sarode said he will be filing a plea before the Bombay High Court demanding thorough inquiry into the firing incident.
"Shinde's case could have brought up certain aspects that would have been negative politically for the government. I wonder how Shinde could access the gun and how he could unlock it when his hands were tied. This is political murder and is absolutely wrong," he said.
