SC to hear Uddhav Thackeray's plea against EC order allotting party name, symbol to Shinde faction
New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear on July 31, Uddhav Thackeray's plea against the Election Commission's order allotting party name "Shiv Sena" and symbol "Bow and Arrow" to the Eknath Shinde led faction.
A bench of Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justice PS Narasimha said the matter is listed for hearing after advocate Amit Anand Tiwari sought urgent listing of the plea.
"It is listed on July 31, we will hear it on that day", the bench said and allowed Tiwari to file rejoinder on the reply filed by Shinde faction.
The top court had sought response of Shinde on February 22.
In his application, Thackeray had said the matter requires an urgent hearing as the impugned order is completely illegal in view of the recent Constitution bench judgment of the top court pronounced on May 11.
"Further, elections are imminent, and respondent No. 1 (Shinde) is illegally using the party name and symbol", the application seeking urgent listing of the matter said.
It pointed out that on February 22, while issuing notice in the matter, the top court had directed it to be listed after three weeks. However, it did not get listed.
On February 17, the Election Commission allotted the name "Shiv Sena" and its poll symbol "bow and arrow" to the group led by now Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath 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.
Doctor, his teenage daughter test positive for Zika virus infection in Pune
Pune, Jun 26: A 46-year-old doctor and his teenage daughter have tested positive for Zika virus infection in Pune city of Maharashtra, but their health condition is stable, an official said on Wednesday.
The man recently developed symptoms like fever and rashes, following which he was admitted to a private hospital. The medical facility sent his blood samples to the city-based National Institute of Virology (NIV) for analysis. On June 21, his reports confirmed that he tested positive for Zika virus infection, a health official of the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) said.
The doctor is a resident of Erandwane area of the city, he said.
"After he tested positive, the blood samples of his five family members were collected and sent for analysis, and it was found that his 15-year-old daughter was also positive for the infection," the official added.
The Zika virus disease is transmitted through the bite of an infected Aedes mosquito, which is also known to transmit infections like dengue and chikungunya. The virus was first identified in Uganda in 1947.
After these two cases were reported in the city, the PMC's health department has started conducting surveillance, the official said.
Although no other suspected cases have been found in the area, the authorities have started taking precautionary steps like fogging and fumigation to curb the breeding of mosquitoes, he said.
"The mosquito samples have been collected by the state health department. We have started the general public awareness in the area and given instructions to monitor the health of pregnant women in the area. Zika does not lead to serious complications in general, but in case a pregnant woman gets infected, it may cause microcephaly in the foetus," he said.
