Latest news with #MaharashtraCongress
Time of India
6 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Sapkal: Rahul Unfazed By Hindutva Threats
Nagpur: Maharashtra Congress President Harshwardhan Sapkal on Wednesday strongly condemned threats directed at Congress leader and Lok Sabha Opposition Leader Rahul Gandhi over his remarks about Hindutva ideologue Vinayak Savarkar. He said such "hollow threats" will not intimidate Gandhi or Congress party . His response came after a Nashik-based leader of Shiv Sena, led by Uddhav Thackeray, threatened to blacken Gandhi's face over his derogatory remarks against the noted freedom fighter on the occasion of his birth anniversary on Wednesday, drawing strong remarks from the grand old party's leaders across the state. He even warned of pelting stones at Gandhi's convoy whenever he would be in Nashik. Addressing the media at Nanded, Sapkal stated, "Rahul Gandhi's grandmother and former Prime Ministers -- Indira and father Rajiv -- sacrificed their lives for the nation. Rahul, who belongs to a family of martyrs, does not fear these empty threats." He said that Gandhi's comments on Savarkar were not personal jabs but historical facts. Highlighting that similar views on Savarkar have been expressed by historians & even by BJP leader Arun Shourie, who served as a minister under Atal Bihari Vajpayee's NDA govt, Sapkal added, "If there's an issue with evaluating Savarkar's legacy, critics should also consider what experts like Shourie have written about him."
India Today
6 days ago
- Business
- India Today
Congress says Mumbai property tax up by 20%, slams civic body
The Maharashtra Congress on Wednesday lashed out at the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) for an increase in the property tax rates in the city. The party said that tax rates were increased without revising the Capital Value System (CVS), terming the move 'a shameless loot'.Terming the tax hike as a loot and betrayal of the trust of residents, Mumbai Congress president and MP Varsha Gaikwad said that the BMC has clearly violated the Supreme Court directives with the new tax revising the Capital Value rules — as ordered by the Supreme Court, and without reassessing taxpayers, the BMC has started processing new property tax bills, with an unjust 13–20 per cent hike for 2025–26," she wrote in a post on X. Gaikwad said that the Supreme Court had struck down some rules of the capital value-based system and directed the BMC to revise them, reassess taxable values from 2010/15 onwards, and refund overcharged amounts to citizens."Without doing any of this, the BMC has begun processing fresh bills with the steep, arbitrary hike — over and above the already inflated values. This is contempt of court," Gaikwad tax is one of the highest sources of revenue for the Mumbai civic body. The last property tax revision was expected in 2020 but was Congress Counsellor Asif Zakaria said the property tax rates in the BMC area have increased across the city by 13 to 40 per cent with the last revision being made in 2015-16. He also announced that he would file a contempt petition against BMC for the property rate hike.'As per the High Court order, the BMC has to refund inflated property tax collected from 2010-14. This correction would lead to a 40 per cent reduction in property tax bills from 2010 to 2025. Without finalising rules and refunds, BMC has arbitrarily increased the 40 per cent tax on already inflated bills. BMC has shown no intent to follow judicial directives. Hence, we will move contempt,' he 2024, the civic body decided not to implement new rates based on ready reckoner values, saying the following year would mark the completion of a full five-year cycle, making it more appropriate to apply the revised rates at that the last financial year, a property tax collection of Rs 6,198.05 crore was logged, the highest ever, falling just short of its target of Rs 6,200 crore. Additionally, Rs 178.39 crore has been collected as penalty InMust Watch
Indian Express
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Flooding in Pune: Congress, AAP target Ajit Pawar, call his planning negligent
As parts of Pune city and district including the Pawar family stronghold of Baramati, Daund and Indapur witnessed severe flooding, the Maharashtra Congress targeted Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, claiming he had been negligent in ensuring a proper plan was put in place. The Aam Aadmi Party also alleged that Ajit Pawar has been busy giving media bytes but has come a cropper on the planning front. 'Ajit Pawar has been the deputy chief minister and district guardian minister of Pune for years. Despite this, Pune city and district has suffered from severe flooding. This only shows that no proper planning has been put in place. Ajit Pawar has been negligent on this count. All this is due to the nexus with the builder lobby,' said Congress leader Nana Patole who is the former MPCC president. Patole said Ajit Pawar has nothing to do with the people. 'And that is exactly the reason the entire state is suffering today. There is flooding and sewage all over the state. On one hand, Maharashtra is suffering the flood nightmare and on the other hand the rulers are preparing to welcome Home Minister Amit Shah in Nanded,' he said. AAP State spokesperson Mukund Kirdat said,'The severe flooding in at least three talukas and even in parts of Pune shows that the administration was not prepared to handle the situation. A canal was burst, several houses were submerged, highways were flooded and traffic took a massive hit in the last two days. Everything went haywire just as the monsoon neared. This has clearly exposed that Mahayuti government and Ajit Pawar had not taken strong steps to anticipate such a situation. Ajit Pawar is found most of the time giving bytes to the media and playing to the gallery.' Kirdat said the current situation has shown that there was a pressing need to consider climate change. 'The warning was always there. We have been witnessing climate change for the past few years. It seems the administration and the government have not given thought about climate change while planning,' he said. MPCC chief Harshavardhan Sapkal said that with the very first heavy rain of the season, corruption in the state government and the Mumbai civic body was exposed as Mumbai's streets turned into drains. He also said the rain exposed the way things were planned in other parts of the state, including in Baramati, Daund and Indapur talukas. 'Roads and railway tracks were flooded, and office-goers in Mumbai faced immense hardships. The BMC spends crores of rupees annually on pre-monsoon works and drain-cleaning, yet every year tells the same story. It is because contractors and those in power are looting public money and lining their own pockets that Mumbaikars are suffering,' alleged Sapkal. Sapkal said, be it Mumbai or other parts of the state, 'In a place like Baramati where the Pawar's have ruled, a canal burst. In neighbouring Daund, several houses were submerged, and highways went out of bounds…It has exposed the functioning of the Mahayuti government. One bout of rain has exposed the corrupt governance of the BJP, Shinde Sena, and Ajit Pawar's alliance. Their 'efficiency' is such that they might need boats to go door-to-door asking for votes in the upcoming elections. Every year, the BMC spends crores on pre-monsoon work, yet the question arises: Where does the money really go? These conditions are the result of a corrupt alliance between Mantralaya, BMC administration and contractors…The situation elsewhere in the state is no different,' he said. Manoj More has been working with the Indian Express since 1992. For the first 16 years, he worked on the desk, edited stories, made pages, wrote special stories and handled The Indian Express edition. In 31 years of his career, he has regularly written stories on a range of topics, primarily on civic issues like state of roads, choked drains, garbage problems, inadequate transport facilities and the like. He has also written aggressively on local gondaism. He has primarily written civic stories from Pimpri-Chinchwad, Khadki, Maval and some parts of Pune. He has also covered stories from Kolhapur, Satara, Solapur, Sangli, Ahmednagar and Latur. He has had maximum impact stories from Pimpri-Chinchwad industrial city which he has covered extensively for the last three decades. Manoj More has written over 20,000 stories. 10,000 of which are byline stories. Most of the stories pertain to civic issues and political ones. The biggest achievement of his career is getting a nearly two kilometre road done on Pune-Mumbai highway in Khadki in 2006. He wrote stories on the state of roads since 1997. In 10 years, nearly 200 two-wheeler riders had died in accidents due to the pathetic state of the road. The local cantonment board could not get the road redone as it lacked funds. The then PMC commissioner Pravin Pardeshi took the initiative, went out of his way and made the Khadki road by spending Rs 23 crore from JNNURM Funds. In the next 10 years after the road was made by the PMC, less than 10 citizens had died, effectively saving more than 100 lives. Manoj More's campaign against tree cutting on Pune-Mumbai highway in 1999 and Pune-Nashik highway in 2004 saved 2000 trees. During Covid, over 50 doctors were asked to pay Rs 30 lakh each for getting a job with PCMC. The PCMC administration alerted Manoj More who did a story on the subject, asking then corporators how much money they story worked as doctors got the job without paying a single paisa. Manoj More has also covered the "Latur drought" situation in 2015 when a "Latur water train" created quite a buzz in Maharashtra. He also covered the Malin tragedy where over 150 villagers had died. Manoj More is on Facebook with 4.9k followers (Manoj More), on twitter manojmore91982 ... Read More
The Print
21-05-2025
- Politics
- The Print
Why use missiles worth Rs 15 lakh each to intercept Pak drones costing much less? Cong leader
Nagpur, May 21 (PTI) Maharashtra Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar on Wednesday questioned the rationale behind what he called using missiles costing Rs 15 lakh each to intercept Pakistan-fired Chinese drones costing Rs 15,000 a piece during 'Operation Sindoor'. Talking to reporters in Nagpur, the former state minister sought to know if it was wrong to ask the government about losses suffered in a conflict.
Time of India
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Congress Asks: ‘Who Is Donald Trump to Declare Ceasefire?' Demands PM's Explanation in Amravati Rally
Nagpur: Maharashtra Congress chief Harshwardhan Sapkal on Wednesday launched a fierce attack on the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led BJP govt, questioning the legitimacy of US President Donald Trump's purported role in declaring a ceasefire following India's cross-border military action during ' Operation Sindoor '. Leading a massive tractor rally and Tiranga Yatra in Amravati, Sapkal demanded an explanation directly from the PM. "Who authorised Donald Trump to announce a ceasefire on India's behalf? What is the Centre hiding from the nation? The PM must speak up," he said, addressing thousands of Congress workers and farmers gathered under the banner of 'Zara Yaad Karo Qurbani'. Sapkal, who heads the Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC), struck a dual tone of patriotic pride and political challenge. "While every Indian salutes the courage of our soldiers, the govt's silence on the abrupt halt in military operations is unacceptable," he said. "Our jawans shed blood, but this govt won't answer basic questions on national interest." He also tore into the Centre and the Maharashtra govt over the deepening agrarian crisis. "Tur has plummeted from Rs 12,000 to Rs 6,000 per quintal due to ill-timed imports. Soybean remains stuck below Rs 4,000. Farmers can't get crop loans and are turning to moneylenders. This is a govt of betrayal," he said, accusing former minister Dhananjay Munde of disrespecting farmers. "If the govt does not waive farm loans and guarantee MSP, this movement will escalate. We will not stop. The govt will be responsible for whatever happens next," Sapkal warned. The rally drew participation from AICC secretary Kunal Choudhary, former state minister Yashomati Thakur, Amravati MP Balwant Wankhade, former MLA Virendra Jagtap, and local Congress leaders including Bablu Deshmukh and Bablu Shekhawat. Across Maharashtra, Congress units organised similar Tiranga Yatras in all districts and talukas as part of a state-wide campaign to honour soldiers and demand justice for farmers. The campaign, invoking slogans like "Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan", seeks to unite patriotism with rural discontent ahead of the upcoming elections.
