Mumbai: Latest updates - Congress to hold agitation against fuel price hike across city from July 7-17

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Monday took cognisance of the suicide of 24-year-old Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC aspirant) Swapnil Lonkar and said the posts for which the MPSC exams were completed will be filled up on a priority basis by July 31.

Speaking on the first day of the two-day monsoon session, Pawar said the government state will consider providing financial assistance to the deceased family and added the state government will try to create such an atmosphere that no one else will be forced to take such extreme steps in future.

Twelve BJP MLAs were suspended from the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly for one year after the state government accused them of "misbehaving" with presiding officer Bhaskar Jadhav in the Speaker's chamber on Monday.

The motion to suspend the MLAs was moved by state Parliamentary Affairs Minister Anil Parab and passed by a voice vote.

The 12 suspended members are- Sanjay Kute, Ashish Shelar, Abhimanyu Pawar, Girish Mahajan, Atul Bhatkhalkar, Parag Alavani, Harish Pimpale, Yogesh Sagar, Jay Kumar Rawat, Narayan kuche, Ram Satpute and Bunty Bhangdia.

A teen "boy" who was brought to a police station in Bhiwandi in Thane district on suspicion of being a vagrant much to the surprise of the personnel there turned out to be a girl who preferred to cross dress in this manner to avoid harassment from anti socials, an official said on Monday.

Sub Inspector Deep Bhavar of Shanti Nagar police station said the teen, who at first gave "his" name as Sameer Shaikh, later admitted she was Maya, who had left her Hadapsar home due to financial difficulties amid the coronavirus-induced restrictions to look for a job.

Candidates belonging to Educationally and Socially Backward Class (ESBC) category who were given a temporary appointment of eleven months in 2014 by the Maharashtra government before the Bombay High Court stayed the quota will be regularised, state PWD Minister Ashok Chavan told the Legislative Assembly on Monday and added the state Public Service Commission (MPSC) has been directed to complete the pending recruitment process by allowing SEBC (Maratha) aspirants to opt either the EWS or general category.

The twelve MLAs of the BJP, who were suspended from the Maharashtra Assembly for one year earlier in the day for allegedly misbehaving with presiding officer Bhaskar Jadhav in the Speaker's chamber, met Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari seeking his intervention and complained against the MVA government for "trampling upon democracy".

The MLAs led by Ashish Shelar, chief whip of the BJP in the state legislature, submitted a memorandum denying "wrong" allegations of misbehavior with the presiding officer.

Congress will hold agitation against fuel price hike across Mumbai from July 7 to July 17, said party Mumbai unit chief Bhai Jagtap on Monday.

"From July 7 to July 17, Congress will hold agitation against fuel price hike across Mumbai. We are going to launch a signature campaign on 100 petrol pumps in Mumbai. There will be agitations in 22-23 wards every day," he said.

The fuel prices continue to soar across the country and have crossed Rs 100 in many states.