In U-turn, Dy CM Fadnavis promises rethink over OPS

These (Rs50 crore) slogans have travelled across the country. But in the process, Maharashtra has been defamed as well as the Shiv Sena. There is no need to mourn for those who have left, because the real Sainiks will light the ‘mashaal’ (party symbol of Thackeray’s faction).

—Uddhav Thackeray, President, Shiv Sena -UBT

First India Bureau Mumbai: A month after he dismissed the possibility of the old pension scheme’s revival, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has now promised a rethink over it. He had told the state Assembly during the Winter Session that bringing back OPS was impossible as it would cripple the state’s economy with a burden of about ₹1.10 lakh crore.

PEOPLE PROTEST ON STAGE SET UP FOR R-DAY EVENTS

Yavatmal: Protesting locals occupied a stage and forced authorities to cancel Republic Day programmes to press for their demand for a road in their village in Yavatmal on Thursday. Several residents of Takli village began a hunger strike in front of the sub-divisional office in Umarkhed demanding road connectivity in their area. The locals have alleged work on an 8-km road being built was stopped midway.

RAINS LIKELY IN MARATHWADA, TEMP IN SOME DISTRICTS MAY DIP BY 2-3 DEGREES

Aurangabad: Some districts of Marathwada region might get showers over the next 48 hours and see a dip in winter temperatures by two to three degrees. The change in weather is due to easterlies and westerlies, Vasantrao Naik Marathwada University meteorologist KK Dakhore said. “Rainfall is likely in Aurangabad on Saturday, and in Jalna and Nanded on Sunday. The minimum temperatures in Marathwada region might dip by two to three degrees ,” he said. Aurangabad and nearby districts have seen drizzles in the past two days.

ing to take care of the “political health of Thanekars”. “I am satisfied that despite the present foul situation, the Shiv Sena has not moved away from its goal. I am proud of it. The Shiv Sena supremo (Bal Thackeray) has taught us that 80% is social work and only 20% is political work. The real Sainiks are with us,” he said. Those who left preferred to sell themselves, Thackeray said, with the crowd shouting “Rs50 crore” when he asked them if they knew what the sale price was.

He added that the slogans centered around Rs50 crore (taunting BSS leaders) were being heard in the ongoing Bharat Jodo Yatra led by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in Jammu & Kashmir as well.

Thane Lok Sabha MP Rajan Vichare and Nationalist Congress Party MLA Jitendra Awhad accompanied Thackeray during the visit.

Responding to a media query on Thackeray’s visit to Thane, Shinde, who represents the Kopri-Pachpakhadi Assembly constituency in the district, said: “In a democracy, everyone has the right to carry out the propaganda of one’s party and work for its expansion.”

TDS refund: ED attaches 32 properties worth ` 70 crore

New Delhi: The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) has attached 32 properties, both movable and immovable, in Maharashtra and Karnataka totalling Rs70 crore, under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA).

The attachment of assets was related to a case of fraudulent issuance of TDS refund of about Rs263 crore from the Income Tax Department by Senior Tax Assistant Tanaji Mandal Adhikari and others, the ED said on Friday.

The attached assets include land, flats, and luxury cars held in the name of Bhushan Anant Patil, Rajesh Shetty, Sarika Shetty, Kriti Verma, and others.

“Earlier freezing orders under PMLA in respect of 33 bank accounts of various entities and seized cash of Rs2.85 lakh was also issued in the matter,” the agency said. The ED launched an investiga-

Parading Nationalistic Fervour

Case pertains to fraudulent issuance of Rs263 crore TDS refund from I-T Dept tion under the PMLA on an FIR registered by CBI AC-I, Delhi on the basis of a written complaint by the additional director general (Vigilance)-4 CBDT about bogus issuance of refunds for assessment years 2007-08 and 2008-09.

“Tanaji Mandal Adhikari, while working as a senior tax assistant, had access to RSA Tokens and login credentials of his supervisory authorities. He orchestrated the fraud in connivance with others, fraudulently generating TDS refunds in total exceeding Rs263 crore and transferred it in various bank accounts.” said the ED.

The CBI has filed a charge sheet against Tanaji Mandal Adhikari, Bhushan Anant Patil, Rajesh Shantaram Shetty and others,” added the central probe agency.

On Wednesday, Fadnavis said discussion on OPS will be conducted with the state Finance Department and representatives of the government. This came days after Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said his government will consider relaunching the scheme.

Speaking at a rally for the council polls, Fadnavis said he was never against the OPS. “I spoke about the financial burden on the state exchequer in my speech at the assembly last month. I never said I was averse to it. We can think of implementing OPS by taking the burden on the

Ajit Pawar’s son meets Desai, raises eyebrows

First India Bureau Mumbai: Political clouds in the state do not seem to leave any stone unturned when it comes to speculations and rumours. In a fresh development that has raised eyebrows in Maharashtra, Parth Pawar, son of National Congress Party (NCP) leader Ajit Pawar, has met state minister and Balasahebanchi Shiv Sena (BSS) leader Shambhuraj Desai. Although the January 19 meeting in Mumbai was described as a personal visit, has caught the eye due to Parth Pawar’s previous moves, which left his party embarrassed.

BJP MLC Gopichand Padalkar, who is a critic of the Pawar family, claimed Parth Pawar may have met Desai, who holds the Excise portfolio, as he was “upset”. “He must be looking for political stability,” he speculated.

His remarks come a month after he termed its revival ‘impossible’ in the state Assembly kitty,” he said.

The issue of OPS has been raised ahead of the elections to the teachers’ constituencies of the Maharashtra Legislative Council. Associations representing teachers have been seeking the resumption of OPS.

Incidentally, Congress-ruled states of

Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh have announced reverting to the old way of providing pensions, decades after it was discontinued during the previous Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 2004.

Claiming that only their government can do it (re-launch OPS), Fadnavis said, “The Congress-NCP (Nationalist Congress Party) governments were in power after the OPS was discontinued, but they did nothing to restart it. Now they have been demanding it after we took over. They are politicizing the issue.”