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Thackeray faction a MLA and close aide of Uddhav Thackeray has joined the Shiv Sena (shinde). Ravindra Waikar the Jogeshwari MLA was welcomed on Sunday by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde at his official residence ‘Varsha’. The development was in the offing for a while with the UBT camp claiming earlier in February that its MLAs like Waikar were under pressure to switch sides to the Shinde camp due to the probes by the central agencies. Waikar’s entry into the Shiv Sena would hurt the UBT faction as he was not just close to Uddhav but also had business interests with the Thackeray family. Waikar had entered into buying several land parcels with the Thackerays which BJP leader Kirit Somaiya had been raising. Waikar was also being probed by the Enforcement Directorate for constructing a hotel on a plot of land that was reserved by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation for a garden. Significantly while Waikar’s entry into the Shiv Sena was being talked about for a while, the Jogeshwari MLA on Sunday surprised many as he was present to welcome Uddhav

tax administration, a brainstorming is underway to figure out ways to deal with the ‘retrospective’ character of the Black Money law — a disputed feature of the stern statute that was passed nearly a decade ago to overcome the limitations of the Income Tax Act and target wealth stashed abroad. In the past few years, hundreds of writ petitions have been filed in multiple high courts of the country, challenging the sweeping power of the Black Money (Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets) and Imposition of Tax Act (BMA) that empowers the taxman to go after foreign bank accounts and assets which were opened or acquired years ago but discovered only recently by the I-T department. The petitions before the court have questioned whether a law — that could put the offender behind bars for 7 years — can be used to punish someone for an offence that was committed when the specific law did not exist. Such a safeguard allowed under the Constitution has put the powerful BMA in a limbo, with some of the courts granting stay, the tax office unable to recover money in many cases, and several assessments coming to a halt.

Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on Tuesday a plea by six rebel Congress MLAs, who had cross-voted in the recent Rajya Sabha polls in Himachal Pradesh, against their disqualification. The Speaker of Himachal Pradesh Assembly, Kuldeep Singh Pathania, had disqualified the six on the Congress' plea for «defying» the party whip that required them to be present in the House and vote for the budget. A bench of justices Sanjiv Khanna, Dipankar Datta and Prashant Kumar Mishra will hear on March 12 the plea against the February 29 decision of the Speaker. The rebel lawmakers in their plea before the top court have made Pathania as well as state Parliamentary Affairs Minister Harsh Vardhan Chauhan a party.

₹1,453 crore for air tickets booked during the covid-19 pandemic from travel aggregators, including Yatra, MakeMyTrip, ClearTrip, EaseMyTrip, Ixigo and Thomas Cook, two persons aware of the matter said. Only ₹3 crore remains to be refunded after CCPA, a regulatory authority of the consumer affairs ministry, took up this issue of long delays in refunds to consumers by travel aggregators, the persons cited above said. The travel aggregators on their part have been blaming airlines, the first among the two persons cited above said.

Himachal Pradesh news: Amid an ongoing rebellion within the Himachal Pradesh unit of Congress, the party's high command has formed a six-member committee for better coordination between the government and Congress organisation in the hill state. The committee formation came two days after 11 MLAs from Himachal Pradesh including six from Congress and three independents reached BJP-ruled Uttarakhand and vowed to remain in the neighbouring state until Supreme Court hears their disqualification plea.

Saudi Press Agency reports, quoted by Hindustan Times, the Supreme Court has asked that anyone in the Kingdom, who sees the Ramadan crescent moon with their naked eyes or through binoculars, should notify the court nearest to their location and record their testimony there. ALSO READ: Ramadan 2024 moon sighting: When crescent moon is expected to be sighted in India, Saudi Arabia The report added that various observatories across the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will search for the crescent moon for the month of Ramadan 1445 AH on Sunday.

Ramadan 2024 moon sighting: The sighting of the crescent moon marks the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan. The exact timing of the moon sighting can vary depending on geographical location and local moon sighting traditions. The beginning of Ramadan 2024 is determined by the Islamic calendar which is based on the lunar cycle and is 29-30 days long.

Tamil Nadu Law Minister and DMK leader S Regupathy on Sunday asserted that his party has no links whatsoever with Jaffer Sadiq, the prime accused in an international drug trafficking case being investigated by the Narcotics Control Bureau. The DMK also warned of legal action against those who attempt to link Sadiq with either the party or its leaders. Speaking to reporters, Regupathy said the BJP regime has now deployed the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) to «besmirch» the DMK regime after «misusing» the Enforcement Directorate, the Income Tax department and the Central Bureau of Investigation for that purpose. After the DMK assumed office in 2021, the state government has taken swift action against drug peddling and this has been lauded by courts, he said. «Today, they (Centre) are thinking of intimidating the DMK through the NCB.» Sadiq had held the post of Chennai West-NRI Wing Deputy Organiser in the DMK until he was recently dismissed by the party after allegations connecting him to drug trafficking surfaced. Regupathy blamed NCB Deputy Director General Gyaneshwar Singh for holding a press conference about Sadiq's arrest — even before the probe is completed — based on «false calculations» to tarnish the DMK's image and «to let the BJP gain political mileage» out of it just before the Lok Sabha polls.

West Bengal's Basirhat on Sunday extended the CBI custody of Shajahan Sheikh, key accused in a mob attack on ED officials at Sandeshkhali, by another four days on a prayer by the central agency. The Central Bureau of Investigation got custody of Sheikh on March 6 along with transfer of investigation on an order of the Calcutta High Court. Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials were attacked when they went to raid the now-suspended Trinamool Congress leader's premises at Sandeshkhali. The judge of the Basirhat court in North 24 Parganas district granted extension of Sheikh's custody to CBI by four days on a prayer by the central agency.

Delhi High Court has issued a show-cause notice to the resolution professional of crisis-hit 'Go First' airline, asking why contempt proceedings should not be initiated against him for prima facie willfully disobeying judicial orders on allowing inspection and maintenance of lessors' aircraft. The high court said the RP (Resolution Professional) cannot plead difficulties in the implementation of the October 12, 2023, judgment after contempt proceedings have been filed by a lessor seeking to enforce court orders. «Prima facie, the orders of this court have been wilfully disobeyed by the respondent/ RP. Issue notice to show cause as to why proceedings of contempt be not initiated...,» Justice Tara Vitasta Ganju said. The counsel for the RP submitted that he was willing to revert to the position regarding the maintenance of the aircraft.

Delhi's Dwarka district on March 12th. Gangster Sandeep alias Kala Jathedi, currently lodged in Tihar jail, will tie the knot with Anuradha Choudhary alias Madam Minz, another alleged criminal, in a ceremony guarded by over 200 police personnel. Fortress Wedding Venue The venue, Santosh Garden in Dwarka Sector-3, will resemble a fortress for the occasion. Sandeep's lawyer booked the banquet for Rs 51,000. The Delhi Police will deploy a significant force, including 250 police officers, SWAT commandos equipped with advanced weaponry, special cell and crime branch teams, and officers from Haryana's CIA (Crime Investigation Agency), according to news agency PTI.

Shahjahan Sheikh, appeared before the Basirhat court on Sunday. The court is set to deliver a verdict on his custody, marking the end of his 10-day police remand. Earlier in the day, Sheikh Shahjahan was brought out of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) office at Nizam Palace in Kolkata on Sunday.

Brigade Ground. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee is likely to announce the names. The rally is being led by party's national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee.

India typically begins upon the sighting of the crescent moon marking the start of Ramadan. In Saudi Arabia, if the Ramadan crescent moon is sighted on Sunday evening, fasting will commence on Monday, March 11.

Arun Goel ahead of the Lok Sabha elections drew criticism about the Modi-led government and has raised questions about the transparency of 'free and fair' elections. His tenure was till December 5, 2027, and he would have become Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) after incumbent Rajiv Kumar retired in February next year. Also Read: Lok Sabha Elections 2024 LIVE Updates According to a report by NDTV citing sources, the announcement of Lok Sabha election dates, expected next week, is uncertain due to Goel's resignation.

Lok Sabha elections, Election Commissioner Arun Goel has suddenly resigned, leaving the poll body with only Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar at the helm, unless the Centre appoints two new election commissioners this week. Goel's resignation that has come three years before his term was to complete in 2027, is a significant development that also puts the poll panel's internal dynamics in the spotlight ahead of yet another general election, just like in 2019. More so, given that Goel was actively participating in all the poll-related meetings right until Saturday, touring states and holding briefings with ECI officials. Goel was also present at the March 8 high-level discussion held with the home ministry on deployment of forces for polls. He was also scheduled to visit J&K along with the CEC on March 12.

A group of investors who sought to sue cryptocurrency exchange  Binance , its former CEO Changpeng Zhao, and other executives have been given a fresh chance to pursue their case. 

Arun Goel, a retired 1985-batch Indian Administrative Service officer from the Punjab cadre, was appointed as Election Commissioner on November 19, 2022, in a move that sparked controversy and raised questions about the appointment process. Goel's appointment came under scrutiny when it was revealed that he had taken voluntary retirement on November 18, 2022, and was appointed to the Election Commission just a day later. This swift appointment process led to criticism, with the Supreme Court questioning the government's haste in appointing him. The court asked why there was a «tearing hurry» to appoint Goel to the poll panel, noting that the file recommending his appointment was moved quickly, with even the Prime Minister recommending his name on the same day. Despite the controversy surrounding his appointment, a two-judge bench later dismissed a petition challenging his appointment, citing a previous decision by a Constitution Bench.

Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and owner of X (formerly Twitter), has experienced a significant decrease in his wealth this year. According to the Bloomberg Billionaire's Index, Musk's fortune has plummeted by almost 40 billion dollars since the beginning of 2024, bringing his net worth to $189 billion. This decline has pushed him down to the third spot on the list of the world's richest individuals, behind Bernard Arnault of Louis Vuitton and Jeff Bezos of Amazon. Bezos briefly overtook Musk but was later replaced by Arnault. The primary reason for Musk's financial setback is attributed to the decline in Tesla's share price, which has dropped by nearly 29% this year. Additionally, a Delaware court rejected a $55 billion compensation package for Musk, further contributing to his wealth reduction.

Congress MLAs who voted against party nominee Abhishek Manu Singhvi in the Rajya Sabha elections, along with three Independent lawmakers, have shifted to a hotel in BJP-ruled Uttarakhand amid an ongoing rebellion against Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu. Two BJP MLAs Vikram Thakur and Trilok Jamwal from Himachal Pradesh were accompanying the legislators, who arrived in Rishikesh from Haryana's Panchkula by a chartered flight late on Friday and checked into Hotel Taj. Congress MLAs Sudhir Sharma, Rajinder Rana, Inder Dutt Lakhanpal, Devinder Kumar Bhuttu, Ravindra Thakur and Chaitanya Sharma have since been disqualified for defying the party whip on the state budget. They have approached the Supreme Court for relief in the matter.

By Daniel Wiessner