Mumbai Apr 26 PTI Maharashtra Home Minister Dilip Walse-Patil on Tuesday denied Independent MP Navneet Ranas accusation that she was ill-treated in police custody after her and her husbands arrest on SaturdayLok Sabha Speaker Om Birla has sought information about the accusations and it will be provided he addedIn a letter to the Lok Sabha Speaker Navneet Rana alleged that she was ill-treated on account of her caste and not given even water at the Khar police stationAfter police earlier in the day released a video showing her drinking tea at the police station her lawyer said the incident took place at Santacruz police station and not at Khar station I personally sought information about the accusations of Lok Sabha member Navneet Rana that she was ill-treated by police officials because she belongs to a lower caste Walse-Patil told reportersI did not find any evidence backing her allegations It is a fact that no such incident has taken place in the police station the minister added Action was taken against the Rana couple within the legal frame he said adding that he would not comment further as Nanveet Rana has approached Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla over the issueHe speaker has sought information from us and we will send it Walse-Patil addedOn the grant of permission for Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackerays rally in Aurangabad on May 1 the home minister said decision will be taken in the next couple of daysThe decision on whether to grant permission will be taken by the local police commissioner and not the state government he added Navneet Rana and her MLA husband Ravi Rana were arrested on Saturday after they announced that they would recite the Hanuman Chalisa outside Chief Minister and Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackerays private residence Matoshree in Mumbai The announcement triggered angry reaction by Sena workersThe couple later backed out citing Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to Mumbai the next dayThe lawmaker couple now booked for sedition besides other charges is currently in judicial custody PTI ND KRK KRK

Mumbai Apr 26 PTI Hours after Mumbai Police Commissioner Sanjay Pandey tweeted a video of MP Navneet Rana and her MLA husband Ravi Rana sipping tea while in police custody the parliamentarian on Tuesday issued a clarification through her lawyer claiming that ill-treatment was meted out to her in the lock-up of the Santacruz police station after her arrest last Saturday and not at the Khar police station Notably the Independent MP from Amravati had earlier written to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla claiming that she was meted with inhuman treatment in the Khar police station after her illegal arrest wherein she was denied water to drink and faced casteist slurs Advocate Rizwan Merchant representing Navneet Rana and her MLA husband Ravi Rana in courts said It appears that there is some tweet which is being floated around on social media through police commissioner Sanjay Pandey about the complaint made by Navneet Rana in regards to grievances of being subjected to ill-treatment while in police custody by not being provided basic facilities like water toilet etc I just want to clarify that the tweet of Sanjay Pandey sir is about the time spent by my client at the Khar police station after being arrested The officers did offer tea there is no doubt about it But they the Rana couple were at the Khar police station till 1 AM Approximately after 1 AM they the Rana couple were transferred to the lock-up of the Santacruz police station where they were detained for the rest of the night until they were produced before the court Merchant claimed He said the complaint of Navneet Rana being subjected to ill-treatment is not concerning the detention at the Khar police station but regarding the detention at the lock-up of the Santacruz police station In her letter to the LS Speaker Navneet Rana had also stated that she was being put up at the police station without due regard to the office held by her and was not given drinking water while in police custody Navneet also alleged that she was abused due to her caste I was taken to the Khar Police Station on 23042022 and I spent the night in the police station on 23042022I made several and repeated demands for drinking water throughout the night however no drinking water was provided to me throughout the night Navneet Rana had said in the letter She sought action against the Mumbai commissioner of police and other top officers over her illegal arrest The Lok Sabha Secretariat on Monday sought details from the Maharashtra government within 24 hours following the allegations made by Navneet Rana against the police after her arrest Earlier in the day the Mumbai police commissioner tweeted a 12-second video from his verified Twitter handle sanjayp1 at 2 pm with the caption Do we say anything more The video clip shows the Rana couple sitting on chairs and sipping tea in front of police officials at a police station Bottles of mineral water are also seen on the table in front of them Navneet Rana and Ravi Rana were arrested on Saturday after they gave a call for the chanting of the Hanuman Chalisa outside Chief Minister Uddhav Thackerays private residence Matoshree in Mumbai which had triggered angry protests by Shiv Sainiks The couple later withdrew their call citing Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to Mumbai for an event The lawmaker couple was booked for sedition besides other charges The video tweeted by the Mumbai police commissioner has been retweeted multiple times and evoked several likes from netizens The lawmaker couple is currently in judicial custody The sessions court in Mumbai has posted their bail application for hearing on April 29 Navneet Rana is lodged at Byculla jail in Mumbai and Ravi Rana at Taloja jail in Navi Mumbai PTI DC AVI NSK NSK

Mumbai Apr 25 PTI Amid a row over the recitation of Hanuman Chalisa and loudspeakers atop mosques relaying daily prayers an NCP functionary has written to Union Home Minister Amit Shah seeking permission for the chanting of prayers of different faiths outside Prime Minister Narendra Modis residence In a letter dated April 23 Fahmida Khan the working president of the North Mumbai district stated that she wants to recite namaz Hanuman Chalisa Navkar Mantra Guru Granth Sahib stanzas and Novena outside the PMs residence in Delhi She stated that the date and time should be conveyed for the same Khan later said that she is keen on the recital if doing so resolves all the problems in the country The request is not a political stunt Khan stressed PTI PR NSK NSK

New Delhi Apr 25 PTI Union Power Minister R K Singh on Monday met Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw to discuss higher availability of rakes for the power sector for increasing coal supply to thermal plants amid rising electricity demand in the country Thermal power plants especially those far from coal mines are grappling with low coal stocks even as power demand has surged due to soaring temperatures The power ministry in a statement said that R K Singh and Vaishnaw held a meeting to discuss short-term and long-term strategies for dealing with increasing power demand The ministers also discussed increasing operational efficiency for loading and unloading of coal increasing percentage of rakes allotment for the power sector and other logistics issues the release said Power Secretary Alok Kumar Coal Secretary AK Jain and senior officials from the Ministry of Power Ministry of Coal and Ministry of Railways were also present during the meeting Singh urged the power generation companies to own freight rakes under the scheme of the Ministry of Railways to deal with logistic constraints in coal supply According to the Central Electricity Authority CEA coal stocks were 26 per cent of the normative levels at 155 non-pithead thermal power plants with a total generation capacity of about 163 GW from Monday April 18 to Thursday April 21 At the same time the demand has shot up by 30GW or over 17 per cent due to the early onset of summer According to the latest data of the national grid operator Power System Operation Corporation the peak power demand met or the highest supply in a day was around 197GW while the peak shortage of electricity was 6 GW on Friday April 22 2022 Several industry bodies have sought Prime Minister Narendra Modis intervention stating that industries are compelled to purchase power from exchanges at higher rates due to coal shortage to run their captive thermal plants Coal Secretary A K Jain has attributed the low coal stocks at power plants to several factors such as heightened power demand due to the boom in the economy post-COVID-19 early arrival of summer rise in the price of gas and imported coal and sharp fall in electricity generation by coastal thermal power plants PTI ABI MR MR

New Delhi Apr 25 PTI The Lok Sabha Secretariat on Monday sought details from the Maharashtra government within 24 hours following allegations made by independent MP Navneet Rana against the state police after her arrest sources said Navneet Rana and her MLA-husband Ravi Rana were arrested on Saturday after they gave a call for the chanting of the Hanuman Chalisa outside Chief Minister Uddhav Thackerays private residence Matoshree in Mumbai which had triggered angry protests by Shiv Sainiks The couple now in jail later withdrew their call citing Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to Mumbai for an event Charged with sedition Rana in a letter to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla said that her arrest by the Mumbai Police was illegal and alleged inhuman treatment in custody In her letter which was sent to the speaker on Sunday the Lok Sabha MP from Amravati claimed the action against her and her husband was taken on the directions of Maharashtra Chief Minister Thackeray She also demanded strict action against Mumbai Police Commissioner Sanjay Pandey In response to her letter the Lok Sabha Secretariat has written to the Maharashtra government seeking a detailed report within 24 hours on the arrest and allegations made by her against the state police the sources said The Independent legislator couple has been slapped with Indian Penal Code section 124A sedition The MP in her letter also mentioned about being put in a lock-up without due regards to the office held by her and not getting drinking water while in police custody She also alleged that she was abused on the basis of her caste PTI JTR KR JTR ANB ANB

Mumbai Apr 24 PTI The Mumbai police have added the charge of use of criminal force to deter a public servant from discharge of duty in the FIR registered against independent MP Navneet Rana and her husband MLA Ravi Rana an official said on Sunday The city police have also registered an FIR against several Shiv Sena workers for protesting outside the residence of Ranas in Mumbai on Saturday he said The police had on Saturday evening arrested the Ranas for allegedly creating enmity between different groups after the couple cancelled their plan to recite the Hanuman Chalisa outside Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackerays private residence Matoshree here According to an official from Khar police station the couple was shifted to Santacruz police lock-up in the night Earlier Ranas were booked under Indian Penal Code IPC Section 153 A promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion race place of birth residence language and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony and section 135 of the Mumbai Police Act violation of prohibitory orders of police The police later also added IPC section 353 assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty in the FIR registered against Ranas the official said Meanwhile based on a written application submitted by Ranas the Khar police also registered an FIR against Shiv Sena workers under relevant Indian Penal Code IPC sections including rioting and unlawful assembly for protesting outside the couples residence here the official said Navneet Rana who is MP from Amravati in Maharashtra and Ravi Rana MLA from Badnera in Amravati district had submitted a complaint at the Khar police station against Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut and Sena leader and state Transport Minister Anil Parab accusing them of instigating people to kill the couple Earlier this month Ravi Rana had demanded that Thackeray who heads the Shiv Sena recite the Hanuman Chalisa at his residence on Hanuman Jayanti and announced that if the CM did not do so he would go to Matoshree and recite it On Friday Ravi Rana had said he would visit Matoshree on Saturday But as his announcement drew a strong reaction from Shiv Sena cadres on Saturday morning he announced that he and his wife were cancelling their plan so as not to create any law and order situation ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to Mumbai on Sunday But despite their backtracking Sena cadres on Saturday laid a siege to the building in suburban Khar where the couple was staying and said the Ranas would not be allowed to leave until they apologised for insulting Matoshree their temple The Sena workers had also tried to break through barricades and enter the building but were stopped by police PTI ZA GK GK

Jammu April 24 PTI An explosion took place in an agriculture field on the outskirts of Jammu on Sunday with police suspecting that it was caused by a lightning strike or a meteorite The blast was reported in Lalian village in Bishnan belt they said We suspect it to be a meteorite might be lightning a senior police officer told PTI Investigations are on Security has been stepped in the region ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to inaugurate and lay foundation stone of development projects worth over Rs 20000 crore in Jammu and Kashmir including the opening of the Banihal-Qazigund road tunnel to establish all-weather connectivity between the two regions of the union territory PTI AB RCJ

Mumbai Apr 23 PTI Shiv Sena workers hurled footwear and water bottles at the SUV of former BJP MP Kirit Somaiya when he was leaving Khar police station in Mumbai on Saturday night Somaiya had gone to the police station to meet arrested independent MP Navneet Rana and her MLA husband Ravi Rana whose earlier call for chanting Hanuman Chalisa outside Maharashtra Chief Minister and Sena president Uddhav Thackerays residence Matoshree had angered the Sena cadres The BJP leader tweeted that he was injured in the attack by Shiv Sena goons and was going to the Bandra police station to file a complaint Somaiya reached the Khar police station late evening in support of Amravati MP Navneet Rana and her husband MLA Ravi Rana who were arrested earlier in the day on the charge of creating enmity between different groups The BJP leader enjoys a categorised security cover provided by the Centre Shiv Sena supporters who had gathered outside the police station protested against Somaiyas visit and shouted slogans While he was leaving the police station in the SUV a group of protesters hurled footwear and water bottles at his vehicle Somaiya then travelled to the Bandra police station to file a complaint against Sena supporters Speaking to reporters Somaiya said police officials present at the spot should be suspended and Shiv Sena supporters booked on the charge of the attempt to murder The BJP leader also said he would not step out of his SUV unless the Mumbai police commissioner visits the spot On the other hand Sena supporters claimed that Somaiyas driver tried to knock them down after leaving the Khar police station Former Mumbai mayor Vishwanath Mahadeshwar who was protesting outside the police station along with Sena workers said that Somaiyas visit shows that the Rana couple enjoys the support of the BJP They are trying to disrupt the law and order situation in the city and Maharashtra he alleged Somaiya tweeted Heavy stone-throwing at Khar Police Station by Shiv Sena Gundas my car window glass broken I am injured Rushing to the police station Tension started building up between Shiv Sena workers and the Rana couple after the latter declared that they will travel to Mumbai on Saturday morning to chant Hanuman Chalisa outside Uddhav Thackerays private residence Matoshree in Bandra Sena workers including a large number of women virtually laid a siege to the Rana couples residence in the Khar area demanding an apology from them The Ranas later withdrew their plan to recite Hanuman Chalisa saying that they dont want any law and order issues ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit for a function in Mumbai on Sunday PTI DC NSK NSK

Jammu Apr 23 PTI NIA chief Kuldiep Singh on Saturday visited Jammus Sunjwan area where two suicide bombers of banned Jaish-e-Mohammed JeM were killed in a fierce gunfight with security forces ahead of the prime ministers visit officials saidThe National Investigation Agency NIA chief who reached Jammu on Friday evening was accompanied by Inspector General of CRPF Jammu sector P S RanpiseSingh who is also the director general of the Central Reserve Police Force was briefed about the gun battle by CRPF officers including Commandant of 38th Battalion Dhirendra Verma the officials saidThe NIA director general also visited the venue of Prime Minister Narendra Modis public rally at Palli panchayat in Samba district and reviewed the security situation they saidBesides the two terrorists a Central Industrial Security Force CISF officer died in the gunfight that took place near an Army camp in Sunjwan on Friday Nine security personnel were also injured as forces engaged the terrorists after they attacked a bus carrying CISF personnelYes a major attack was thwarted by security forces Singh said after receiving the briefing about the encounterAsked whether the NIA will take over the case he said It will depend we will see nothing can be said at the moment On the security arrangements for the prime ministers visit he said all the necessary arrangements will be madeLater the officials said Singh visited Palli panchayat and was briefed by senior officers about the security arrangements thereSpecial teams of the NIA and the State Investigation Agency SIA had visited the encounter site on Friday eveningDirector General of Jammu and Kashmir Police Dilbag Singh had said the two slain terrorists were part of a suicide squad of Pakistan-based JeM and their infiltration could be a big conspiracy to sabotage the prime ministers visit to Jammu and KashmirThe prime minister will visit Palli village 17 km from here on National Panchayati Raj Day on April 24 He is also scheduled to address a gathering thereAccording to officials a multi-tier security setup has been put in place for Modis visitAn alert has been sounded along the border and a high degree of vigilance is being maintained at vital installations in Jammu and Kashmir in view of the visit officials said on Friday PTI TAS DIV DIV

Jammu Apr 23 PTI NIA chief Kuldiep Singh on Saturday visited Jammus Sunjwan area where two suicide bombers of banned Jaish-e-Mohammed JeM were killed in a fierce gunfight with security forces ahead of the prime ministers visit officials saidThe National Investigation Agency NIA chief was accompanied by Inspector General of CRPF Jammu sector P S Ranpise Singh who is also the director general of the Central Reserve Police Force was briefed about the gun battle by CRPF officers the officials saidA team of the NIA had visited the encounter site on Friday evening and the federal agency is likely to take over the case for a thorough investigation they saidBesides the two terrorists a Central Industrial Security Force CISF officer died in the gunfight that took place near an Army camp in Sunjwan on Friday Nine security personnel were also injured as forces engaged the terrorists after they attacked a bus carrying CISF personnelDirector General of Jammu and Kashmir Police Dilbag Singh had said the two terrorists were part of a suicide squad of Pakistan-based JeM and their infiltration could be a big conspiracy to sabotage the prime ministers visit to Jammu and KashmirThe PM is scheduled to visit Samba districts Palli village 17 km from here on National Panchayati Raj Day on April 24 He is also scheduled to address a gathering thereAccording to officials a multi-tier security setup has been put in place for Prime Minister Narendra Modis visitAn alert has been sounded along the border and a high degree of vigilance is being maintained at vital installations in Jammu and Kashmir in view of the visit officials said on Friday PTI TAS DIV DIV