Hanuman Chalisa row: Setback for MP Navneet Rana, MLA Ravi Rana from Bombay High Court

The Ranas have moved a fresh bail plea before sessions court of Mumbai as the 124 A section that has been added by the Mumbai police is a sessions triable case and cannot be heard by a magistrate.

The Ranas have moved a fresh bail plea before sessions court of Mumbai as the 124 A section that has been added by the Mumbai police is a sessions triable case and cannot be heard by a magistrate

Bombay HC also stated, "Since second FIR is registered against petitioners in the case, the state government is desirous of initiating any action pursuant to the second FIR. The officers of state govt shall issue 72 hours notice to petitioners before taking such action."

The Bombay High Court has dismissed the petition of MP and MLA Ravi Rana and Navneet Rana for quashing the FIR registered against them for allegedly resisting arrest over the row to recite Hanuman chalisa outside the Maharashtra CM's residence.

Arrested MP Navneet Rana has alleged that the 'casteist' slur was used against her inside the jail by the police. In a letter addressed to Speaker Om Birla, the Amravati MP on Monday said that she was denied access to drinking water and not allowed to use the washroom on account of her belonging to the Scheduled Caste. FULL STORY

Navneet, 36, is an actress popularly known as Navneet Kaur. She has done multiple films in Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu and Kannada. She started off in the showbiz from a young age as a model and began her acting career by doing music videos. Navneet's father was an army officer and her family has been living in Mumbai. Kaur made her film debut with Kannada film Darshan. She went on to act in movies like Seenu Vasanthi Lakshmi (2004), Chetna (2005), Jagapathi (2005), Good Boy (2005), and Bhuma (2008) among others. READ MORE ABOUT HER

In an apparent jibe at the opposition BJP in Maharashtra, NCP chief Sharad Pawar on Monday said some people were getting anxious after losing power. Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of an event, Pawar, whose party shares power with the Shiv Sena and Congress in Maharashtra, said it is a good thing that the state government has decided to call an all-party meeting over the issue of loudspeakers at religious places, and he will be very happy if something good comes out of the meet. After the 2019 Maharashtra Assembly elections, the Shiv Sena parted ways with long-term ally BJP over the issue of sharing the chief ministerial post. The Uddhav Thackeray-led party then tied-up with the NCP and Congress to form the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government in the state.

Amravati MP Navneet Rana and husband MLA Ravi Rana approached the Bombay High Court; their petition for cancellation of FIRs against them have been filed: Mumbai Police.

It's the government's responsibility to maintain law & order. Police will take action if somebody violates it. If Centre makes a national-level rule over loudspeakers, issues won't come up in states. It was decided that an all-party delegation will meet Centre&discuss this: Maharashtra HM

In such a situation, what is the use of going to Home Minister's meeting? Whatever is happening in Mumbai is happening at the behest of the CM. In such a situation, if the CM himself is not present in today's meeting, then what is the use of it?: Maharashtra LoP Devendra Fadnavis

If they feel that by doing such attacks they will stop our fight against corruption, then it is their mistake. BJP leaders are being implicated in fake cases. If the High Court is calling those cases bogus, then they are questioning the High Court itself: LoP Devendra Fadnavis

Further, when I wanted to use the bathroom at the night, police staff paid no heed to my demands. I was again abused in the most filthy language...I was told that we don’t let people from Neechi Zaat Scheduled Castes use our bathrooms: Amravati MP Navneet Rana

BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis said that the Rana couple was being ill-treated in jail. Besides being subject to casteist slurs, Navneet Rana was denied water in jail.

We received an invitation from Maharashtra Home Min Dilip Walse Patil for an all-party meeting today, but we didn't go in view of what has happened in last few days. If someone has taken the role of Hitler, we felt it's better to fight instead of communicate:LoP Devendra Fadnavis

To my shock & disbelief, the police staff present told me that I belong to Scheduled Caste & hence they will not give me water in the same glass. Thus, I was directly abused on the basis of my caste and it is only for this reason that no drinking water was provided. I emphatically state that basic human rights such as drinking water was denied to me on the ground that I belong to Scheduled Caste (Neechi Zaat): Amravati MP Navneet Rana writes to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla

In fact, I had invited the Chief Minister to join me in chanting the “Hanuman Chalisa”. I reiterate that my actions were not against the Chief Minister: Amravati MP Navneet Rana writes to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla. However, looking to the fact that my actions may prove detrimental to law & order situation in Mumbai, I had publicly withdrawn from the said exercise & declared that I shall not be going to CM residence. I was confined with my husband Ravi Rana, an MLA, in my house: Navneet Rana

It's my honest & bona fide belief that Shiv Sena under Uddhav Thackeray completely strayed from its avowed Hindutva principles for obvious reasons since it wanted to betray public mandate&form post-poll alliance with INC-NCP: Amravati MP Navneet Rana writes to LS Speaker Om Birla

MoS Home Nityanand Rai assured us that he'll talk to Home Secy Ajay Bhalla in detail & take a report on whatever is going on in Maharashtra. He also assured us that a special team of CISF or if necessary an officer from the Home Ministry will be sent to Maharashtra: Kirit Somaiya

In the wake of a political row in Maharashtra over the recitation of Hanuman Chalisa, the Shiv Sena on Monday hit out at the BJP and said the Hindutva ideology is a culture and not chaos. An editorial in the Sena mouthpiece 'Saamana' claimed the BJP's "rotten brain" was behind independent MP Navneet Rana and her MLA husband Ravi Rana's earlier call to recite Hanuman Chalisa outside Maharashtra Chief minister Uddhav Thackeray's private residence 'Matoshree', that resulted in angry protests by Shiv Sainiks outside the couple's home here on Saturday. 

16 Shiv Sena workers who were behind the attack on BJP leader Kirit Somaiya have been granted bail. The BJP leader had claimed that a group of 70-80 Shiv Sena workers pelted his car with bottles, stones and footwear with the intent of taking his life.

Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray and former CM and opposition leader Devendra Fadnavis will not attend the meeting called by the state government. Maharashtra Home Minister Dilip Walse and Dy CM Ajit Pawar to chair the meeting.

Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray will not participate in the all-party meeting called by the state government to resolve the loudspeaker dispute, said the MNS leader Sandeep Deshpande on Monday. MNS leaders Sandeep Deshpande, Bala Nandgaonkar, and Nitin Sardesai will attend the meeting called by the Maharashtra government. The Home Minister Dilip Walse on Sunday called for an all-party meeting to be held today. The meeting is expected to be on the discussion about the law and order situation in the state amid the row over loudspeakers.

Maharashtra Home Minister Dilip Walse Patil had on Sunday termed "appropriate" the arrest of the Rana couple. They were arrested on Saturday after they gave a call for the chanting of Hanuman Chalisa outside Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray's private residence 'Matoshree' in Mumbai. 

We had a detailed discussion with the Union Home Secretary on the situation in Maharashtra. He assured us that he is taking this matter into concern and if necessary a special team from Delhi will be sent to Maharashtra: BJP leader Kirit Somaiya

NCP leader Fahmida Hassan Khan has written a letter to Union Home Minister Amit Shah, seeking permission to read the Hanuman Chalisa and Namaz outside Prime Minister Narendra Modi's residence. Khan said she wanted to read the Namaz, Hanuman Chalisa, Durga Chalisa, Namokar Mantra and more outside PM Modi's official residence at Delhi's Lok Kalyan Marg. Khan said that she recites the Hanuman Chalisa and does Durga Puja at her home. FULL STORY

The Mumbai Police slapped the sedition charge on the politician couple (Amravati MP Navneet Rana and her MLA husband Ravi). On Sunday, a Mumbai court remanded the Rana couple in 14-day judicial custody.

On Saturday, Amravati Lok Sabha MP Navneet Rana and her husband Ravi Rana, an MLA, had announced their plan to chant 'Hanuman Chalisa' outside 'Matoshree', the private residence of the state Chief Minster Uddhav Thackeray. Following this, Shiv Sena workers protested outside the residence of Navneet and Ravi Rana in their bid to stop them from reaching the Chief Minister's residence.

Shiv Sena said that the "Rana couple faked their caste certificates in order to contest the election from a reserved seat". "Mrs Rana contested the Lok Sabha election from Amravati on the basis of a fake caste certificate. Navneet Kaur Rana and her father Harbhajan Singh Kundless submitted fake documents for getting a caste certificate. Amravati Lok Sabha is a reserved seat and to contest election from that seat Rana got fake caste certificate," said 'Saamana'.

Slamming Navneet Rana and Ravi Rana for their changing political affiliations, 'Saamana' stated that "there is no assurance over the ideological affiliations of this couple". MP Navneet Rana had opposed lawmakers who were taking oath in the name of Lord Ram in Parliament, it said, adding "it's astonishing that today the BJP is dancing around at the behest of the said MP over the issues like 'Hanuman Chalisa' and other Hindutava issues".

We're going to meet Union Home Secretary regarding terror-like situation created in Maharashtra by State govt. Fake FIR was registered against me, Shiv Sena workers are still giving threats. We'll give a detailed report &demand a special team for inquiry: BJP leader Kirit Somaiya

BJP leader Kirit Somaiya has reached Delhi. He is leading a delegation of Mumbai BJP leaders. The delegation will meet Union Home Secretary Ajay Kumar Bhalla. According to Somaiya, he was injured in the stone-pelting incident by the Shiv Sena workers in Mumbai on Saturday.

Shiv Sena has blamed the 'Hanuman Chalisa' row. It said that the saffron party in its desperation to oust the MVA government is orchestrating the row. "The recent ruckus stirred up by the BJP in the name of Hindutva cannot be supported...the BJP is behind this," Sena said in its mouthpiece 'Saamana'. 

Mumbai Police have shifted independent Navneet Rana to the Byculla women's jail while Ravi Rana was taken to Taloja jail in neighbouring Navi Mumbai. The couple was arrested on Saturday after they gave a call for the chanting of Hanuman Chalisa outside Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray's private residence 'Matoshree' in Mumbai, which had triggered angry protests by Shiv Sainiks.