I am a Hindu first, MP later, Ram Mandir is my priority: Nalin Kumar Kateel

Beltangady, Jan 10: Traffic on the treacherous Charmadi Ghat came to an abrupt halt on Friday night after a wild elephant descended onto the roadway between the second and third hairpin bends, triggering over an hour of complete chaos.

The dramatic encounter unfolded around 9.45 p.m. when the elephant reportedly uprooted a tree and positioned itself squarely in the middle of the narrow ghat stretch, calmly feasting while motorists watched in fear. With the massive animal refusing to budge, a long queue of vehicles quickly formed on both sides of the road.

Several motorists cautiously attempted to drive the elephant back toward the forest, but the lone tusker remained unmoved, leaving travellers stranded deep inside the ghat section.

Eyewitnesses stated that the situation became even more distressing as the location had no mobile network connectivity, preventing stranded commuters from contacting authorities or alerting others about the danger ahead.

The standoff finally eased only after the elephant slowly retreated into the darkness of the forest, allowing trapped vehicles to inch forward and continue their journey.

Mumbai: In a shocking development, Shrikant Pangarkar, an accused in the murder of journalist-activist Gauri Lankesh and the Nalasopara arms and ammunition haul case, has won the Jalna Municipal Corporation (JMC) elections as an independent candidate.

Pangarkar emerged victorious from Ward 13 of the JMC, where he was pitted against the BJP. Notably, the Shiv Sena led by Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, which contested the Jalna civic polls independently, did not field a candidate in the ward.

Gauri Lankesh was shot dead outside her residence in Bengaluru on September 5, 2017. A prominent journalist and activist, she edited Lankesh Patrike, a Kannada weekly founded by her father P Lankesh, and later ran her own publication, Gauri Lankesh Patrike.

Pangarkar was granted bail by the Karnataka High Court on September 4, 2024, in the Lankesh murder case. Ahead of the October 2024 Assembly elections, he was inducted into the Shiv Sena and appointed chief of the party’s Jalna campaign. However, following intense criticism, then Chief Minister Eknath Shinde revoked the appointment.

A former municipal councillor in Jalna between 2001 and 2006 from the undivided Shiv Sena under late Balasaheb Thackeray, Pangarkar later became associated with right-wing organisations.

In August 2018, he was arrested by the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) in connection with the seizure of crude bombs and weapons in Nalasopara and booked under the Explosives Act, Explosive Substances Act, and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). He is currently out on bail in both cases.

Soon after the election results were declared, Pangarkar’s supporters celebrated his victory.

After filing his nomination, Pangarkar had said he was returning to politics after a gap and had received an encouraging response from voters. “I have worked for the people earlier and have returned again,” he said, asserting that the cases against him had no bearing on the elections. “The matter is before the court. I stand before the nyay devta. There may be misunderstandings by agencies, but the court will decide. I am 100 per cent innocent,” he maintained, adding that the Lankesh murder case was unrelated to the civic polls and pertained to Karnataka.

Beltangady, Jan 10: Traffic on the treacherous Charmadi Ghat came to an abrupt halt on Friday night after a wild elephant descended onto the roadway between the second and third hairpin bends, triggering over an hour of complete chaos.

The dramatic encounter unfolded around 9.45 p.m. when the elephant reportedly uprooted a tree and positioned itself squarely in the middle of the narrow ghat stretch, calmly feasting while motorists watched in fear. With the massive animal refusing to budge, a long queue of vehicles quickly formed on both sides of the road.

Several motorists cautiously attempted to drive the elephant back toward the forest, but the lone tusker remained unmoved, leaving travellers stranded deep inside the ghat section.

Eyewitnesses stated that the situation became even more distressing as the location had no mobile network connectivity, preventing stranded commuters from contacting authorities or alerting others about the danger ahead.

The standoff finally eased only after the elephant slowly retreated into the darkness of the forest, allowing trapped vehicles to inch forward and continue their journey.