Sitaram Dalvi was a hardcore Shiv Sainik who passed away recently. He was among the thousands of people who regarded the late Bal Thackeray as his God and was fiercely loyal to him. Even when the Shiv Sena split following the revolt by Eknath Shinde, Dalvi remained loyal to Uddhav Thackeray. He had a way with people and made friends across the political spectrum. The interesting thing to note is that his son Sandeep is with Raj Thackeray from the day he parted ways with the Shiv Sena. Sandeep is sharp and has excellent networking skills. Little wonder Raj climbed three storeys to meet Sandeep at his modest Andheri flat and offered condolences. Anil Parab was prominent among the leaders of Shiv Sena (UBT) who called on Sandeep. The big attendance at the citizens’ condolence meeting was a testimony to Dalvi’s popularity.
Police Prove Themselves Once Again
Hats off to the Mumbai Police for providing superb bandobast during the just-concluded Navratri festival. The cops had received a tip-off from intelligence about a possible terror attack on a large garba venue. They kept eagle watches at all venues. Policemen in mufti even mingled among the revelers. The festival was closely followed by two mega Dussehra rallies of the rival factions of the Shiv Sena. Even these went off peacefully. The upcoming Deepawali festival and the assembly elections will put more pressure on these men in uniform. I am sure that commissioner Vivek Phansalkar and his force will acquit themselves well all over again.
A Laughing Stock In Pakistan
A medical doctor from Dongri, Zakir Naik, is currently in the news in Pakistan for all the wrong reasons. He is being majorly trolled in Pakistani social media for his outrageous statements against women and children, all in the name of Islam. Many said he is rendering the biggest disservice to Islam. Naik was a small-time preacher who became big because of his phenomenal memory. His ability to quote the Koran chapter and verse is remarkable. Naik is a fugitive whom the Indian government is determined to bring to India to stand trial in terror cases.
Tailpiece
A wag pointed out that every builder is claiming that his project is only 30 minutes away from the old and new international airports, three minutes from metro station, vegetable market, multiplexes, etc. Mumbai’s geography must have really changed.
Compiled By S Balakrishnan
