No intention of joining hands with Shiv Sena: Devendra Fadnavis
Mumbai: Former Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Sunday asserted that the BJP has no intention of joining hands with the Shiv Sena or to bring down the Uddhav Thackeray-led state government.
Talking to reporters here, Fadnavis claimed people of the state are "unhappy" with the performance of the Shiv Sena-led Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government and it "would collapse due to its own inactions".
The senior BJP leader also said his meeting with Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Saturday, which prompted speculation in political circles, was regarding an interview for the Sena mouthpiece 'Saamana'.
The Shiv Sena snapped ties with the BJP last year after the Maharashtra Assembly polls over the issue of sharing the chief ministerial post.
The Uddhav Thackeray-led party then joined hands with the NCP and the Congress to form MVA government in the state.
"We have no intention of joining hands with the Shiv Sena or to bring down the government. When it falls on its own, we will see," said Fadnavis, who is the leader of opposition in the state Assembly.
"My meeting with Raut had no political connotations.
He asked me for an interview to 'Saamana', to which I agreed.
But, I had put my conditions- like the interview should be unedited and I should get to put my own camera during the interview. So we met to discuss its nitty-gritties," he said.
Meanwhile, Raut, who also spoke to reporters here separately, said he and Fadnavis are not enemies and Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray was aware of the meeting which was pre-planned to discuss the interview schedule.
However, Congress leader Sanjay Nirupam criticised Raut, alleging that he was in a hurry to grab headlines.
"When that happens, political careers end. This is not my ill-wish for Raut, but a reality," the former Mumbai Congress chief told PTI.
Nirupam, who has been sulking since his removal from the post of Mumbai Congress chief ahead of the Lok Sabha polls last year, said if the party is serious about opposing the new farm bills passed by Parliament,it should first ask the ruling Shiv Sena in Maharashtra to spell out its stand.
The Congress and the NCP say they will not allow implementation of the new laws in Maharashtra, while Chief Minister Thackeray hasn't uttered a word on it, he said.
"The Shiv Sena supported the farm bills in the Lok Sabha,while it staged a walkout from the RajyaSabha when other opposition parties were demanding a vote on it," Nirupam said, adding that farmers in Maharashtra are confused (over the state government's stand).
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MediaOne TV Facebook page restored after block linked to ‘government request’
Kochi: The official Facebook page of Malayalam news channel MediaOne TV has been restored after being blocked without prior notice, the broadcaster said on Wednesday.
The channel was quoted by Maktoob as saying that the restriction was lifted automatically, with Meta Platforms informing it that the action had been taken following a “government request” which has now expired or been reversed.
The development came shortly after the channel approached the Kerala High Court challenging the blocking of its page, terming it arbitrary and in violation of legal provisions and judicial precedents. The High Court had issued notice to Meta via email hours before the restriction was withdrawn.
In its petition, the channel said access to its Facebook page had been restricted for users in India without citing any specific content or alleged violation. It contended that while individual posts may be taken down under applicable a rule, blocking an entire page goes beyond the scope of such measures.
The incident followed an earlier action taken against the channel in 2022, when the Ministry of Information and transmitting prohibited it from transmitting. It cited national security concerns regarding the Ministry of Home Affairs' refusal of security clearance.
The Supreme Court of India in April 2023 set aside the ban, observing that national security claims cannot be made without substantive basis and that criticism of government policies does not render a media outlet anti-national.
