Poll results show yearning for 'BJP-mukt' regime: Shiv Sena

Agencies

December 12, 2018

Mumbai, Dec 12: A day after the BJP received a poll drubbing in three Hindi heartland states, the Shiv Sena on Wednesday said the election results indicate people's desire to have a "BJP-free" establishment.

The Sena, an ally of the BJP at the Centre and in Maharashtra, said people have brought "those flying in the air back to the ground".

Referring to the resignation of RBI Governor Urjit Patel, the Sena, in an editorial in the party mouthpiece 'Saamana', alleged that the country was being run according to the "whims" of four-five businessmen, and this was "breaking" important institutions like the Reserve Bank of India.

The Congress Tuesday dealt a body blow to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan and emerged as the single largest party in Madhya Pradesh.

The Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) recorded a landslide win for a second consecutive term in Telangana while the Mizo National Front (MNF) scripted a spectacular victory in the northeastern state of Mizoram by dislodging the Congress in its last bastion in the Northeast to return to power after 10 years.

The Sena said these results have busted the myth that no party except the BJP can hold ground and people have to depend on it for existence.

The BJP first "drove away" allies and later lost important states, it said, adding that elections cannot be won merely on the back of big talks.

"The results clearly show that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and (BJP president) Amit Shah's dream of making the country Congress-mukt has gone to the dust in BJP's own regime. People of these states have indicated at a 'BJP-mukt' regime," the Marathi publication said.

Farmers in Rajasthan were facing difficulties and when cultivators in Madhya Pradesh hit the streets demanding justice, bullets were fired at them, it said referring to the Mandsaur incident, and claimed tillers exact"revenge" in the recent elections.

In June 2017, during a protest in Madhya Pradesh's Mandsaur district by farmers demanding loan waiver, five cultivators were killed in police firing.

The Sena again hit out at the government's decision of demonetisation, dubbing it as a "farce" which "ruined the country's economy".

"People lost their jobs, inflation increased. At that time, our prime minister was playing world politics and kept on flying. He directly landed for campaigning in four states. His childish talks were filled with issues of faith. This turned against him," the publication said.

It said Urjit Patel, who had initially supported demonetisation, finally resigned from the RBI governor's post "tired of the government's functioning".

Patel, who had a run-in with the government over several key issues including the central bank's autonomy, resigned from his job on Monday, citing personal reasons. He had more than eight months left in his three-year tenure.

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‘Pay the worker before his sweat dries’: Madras High Court cites Prophet Muhammad’s teaching while ordering settlement of dues

News Network

December 21,2025

Invoking the teachings of Prophet Muhammad—“pay the worker before his sweat dries”—the Madras High Court has directed a municipal corporation to settle long-pending legal dues owed to a former counsel. The court observed that this principle reflects basic fairness and applies equally to labour and service-related disputes.

Justice G. R. Swaminathan made the observation while hearing a petition filed by advocate P. Thirumalai, who claimed that the Madurai City Municipal Corporation failed to pay him legal fees amounting to ₹13.05 lakh. Earlier, the High Court had asked the corporation to consider his representation. However, a later order rejected a major portion of his claim, prompting the present petition.

The court allowed Thirumalai to approach the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) and submit a list of cases in which he had appeared. It also directed the corporation to settle the verified fee bills within two months, without interest. The court noted that the petitioner had waited nearly 18 years before challenging the non-payment and that the corporation could not be fully blamed, as the fee bills were not submitted properly.

‘A Matter of Embarrassment’

Justice Swaminathan described it as a “matter of embarrassment” that the State has nearly a dozen Additional Advocate Generals. He observed that appointing too many law officers often leads to unnecessary allocation of work and frequent adjournments, as government counsel claim that senior officers are engaged elsewhere.

He expressed hope that such practices would end at least in the Madurai Bench of the High Court and added that Additional Advocate Generals should “turn a new leaf” from 2026 onwards.

‘Scandalously High Amounts’

While stating that the court cannot examine the exact fees paid to senior counsel or law officers, Justice Swaminathan stressed that good governance requires public funds to be used prudently. He expressed concern over the “scandalously high amounts” paid by government and quasi-government bodies to a few favoured law officers.

In contrast, the court noted that Thirumalai’s total claim was “a pittance” considering the large number of cases he had handled.

Background

Thirumalai served as the standing counsel for the Madurai City Municipal Corporation for more than 14 years, from 1992 to 2006. During this period, he represented the corporation in about 818 cases before the Madurai District Courts.

As the former counsel was unable to hire a clerk to obtain certified copies of judgments in all 818 cases, the court directed the District Legal Services Authority to collect the certified copies within two months. The court further ordered the corporation to bear the cost incurred by the DLSA and deduct that amount from the final settlement payable to the petitioner.

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