Rebel Maharashtra Shiv Sena MLAs arrive at Guwahati, lodged in hotel amid tight security
Guwahati (PTI): A group of Maharashtra MLAs, led by dissident Shiv Sena leader Eknath Shinde, arrived here on Wednesday morning by a charter aircraft and were taken to a luxury hotel on the outskirts of the city amid tight security.
The MLAs were received at the airport by BJP MPs Pallab Lochan Das and Sushanta Borgohain Shinde, who initially refused to talk to mediapersons waiting outside the airport, later said he has 'the support of 40 MLAs'.
The exact number of rebel Shiv Sena MLAs travelling in the flight could not be confirmed but the flight had 89 passengers, including onboard crew, sources said.
The MLAs arrived here from Surat and were taken to the hotel in three buses of the Assam State Transport Corporation.
Earlier, Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut claimed 14 to 15 Sena MLAs, including some ministers, are with Shinde in Gujarat's Surat city.
However, another party leader said the number could be 23.
The Shiv Sena, which heads the MVA, has 55 MLAs, followed by allies NCP (53) and the Congress (44) in the 288-assembly where the current simple majority mark is 144.
Speculations are rife that Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma was likely to meet the MLAs during the day though the BJP party or his office are yet to confirm the meeting.
Tight security has been imposed with a huge posse of police personnel posted in and around the hotel.
The MLAs were taken to Surat from Mumbai on Tuesday and the decision to shift them to Guwahati was taken on security grounds, according to a BJP source.
This is perhaps for the first time that MLAs from a Western Indian state is being taken to a Northeastern state after their rebellion against the party leadership.
The Shiv Sena-led government in Maharashtra is facing a crisis following the revolt by a section of its MLA led by Shinde.
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.
NEET student hangs self in Rajasthan's Sikar
Jaipur (PTI): A student preparing for the NEET examination allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself in a rented room in Rajasthan's Sikar on Friday, police said.
According to the police, the student allegedly hanged himself from a ceiling fan using his sister's scarf while one sister was attending coaching classes and the other was in the bathroom.
He had appeared in the NEET UG exam 2026, which was cancelled due to paper leak, they said.
Udyog Nagar SHO Rajesh Kumar said that the deceased, identified as Pradeep Meghwal, was a resident of Kanika ki Dhani village in Jhunjhunu's Gudha Gaudji area.
He had been living in a rented room in Sikar's Jaldhari Nagar area with his two sisters while preparing for NEET over the last three years.
His elder sister later found him hanging and informed the landlord and police after bringing him down, officials said.
The SHO said the body was kept at SK Hospital mortuary, and a postmortem had not been conducted.
The student's father, Rajesh Kumar Meghwal, told police that Pradeep's NEET examination had gone well and the family was expecting him to score around 650 marks.
Former Rajasthan deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot expressed grief over the incident and linked it to anxiety among students after reports of irregularities and paper leaks in NEET 2026.
Pilot said repeated paper leak incidents and cancellation of examinations were affecting students' mental health and demanded a time-bound investigation and strict action against those responsible.
