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The allegation of false promise of marriage is also not borne out from the record. There is no material to indicate that any promise of marriage was made by the petitioner at the inception of the relationship with a dishonest or mala fide intention. The WhatsApp conversations do not disclose any assurance of marriage, nor does the complaint allege that consent, if any, was obtained on the basis of such promise prior to the alleged incident...

the city of Nagpur confronts itself today as it goes to municipal polls. After a long gap -- whose explanation nobody ever had -- the people will elect their ward representatives once again. The second capital of Maharashtra, thus, will have a ‘complete’ municipal corporation -- free from the bureaucratic grip with no one to listen to the troubles, trials and tribulations of the common people. From tomorrow (January 16, 2026) onwards, the city will have ward members who will be expected to address ..

A USUAL scene, this ! As the twilight of the dawn yields to the crimson morn, a pencil of sunlight sneaks through the slight slit in the curtains ... and draws a broadening line on the floor. The room assumes an azure glow that lilts you out of the last minutes of overnight sleep. That little play of sunbeam on the floor wakes you up fully. You smile, stretch your arms and give out an imperceptible yawn. ‘Good morning’, you say to yourself -- the day has begun ! And it has begun with a sense of promise ..

The police claim that the city of Nagpur saw lesser numbers of fatal road accidents in the year 2025 needs to be welcomed. When a city bursting at the seams reports lesser numbers of fatal accidents in a year, it is obviously a good news. For, it gives a good feeling to the people that they are plying on safer roads. As Dr. Ravinder Singal, the indomitable Commissioner of Police, made a proud announcement of the reduced numbers of fatal accidents on city roads, the people realised the good work the ..

THE picturesque lake ! Surrounded by silent stillness, it glimmers in the mid-day glow -- like a mirror. No breeze. Not a ripple. Nothing moves. One’s heart beats -- whose beats one can hear in that silence. Each beat has a story to tell -- of grief and gladness, of life’s ups and downs, of bright morns and blightful dark nights, of moving forward and getting dragged backward. Those beats go on -- signs of life, also signs of the tumult within. Yet, outwardly, everything is still, like the mirror ..

 By Vijay Phanshikar : IN YEAR 2026, multiple questions and challenges confront Gen Z(ee). Multiple opportunities, too, would waltz into their lives -- ready to be grabbed and utilised. How do members of Gen Z(ee) look at such a scenario? A litt..

EVEN as we say one another ‘A Happy New Year’, we also must ask ourselves a few questions at the start of the year 2026 -- about Nagpur and its upkeep and its public policy and about its civic administration (not administrators as persons). In other words, it is time we asked ourselves whether we really, really, really live in a livable city ! Of course, definitions differ -- from person to person, from political party to political party. But then, there are some standard definitions that are the ..

  By Vijay Phanshikar : OF COURSE, both terms are vastly different -- in dictionary and in life. Restlessness points to an eager spirit all geared up to forge ahead, do things, keep moving, keep dreaming big! Impatience points to a disturbe..

By Vijay Phanshikar :   This fight will take us to another freedom -- from Macaulay. This should have been done long back, but was not even thought about because we used to have rulers whose mindsets, too, were groomed by the Macaulay infl..

THE biggest question the Nagpurians have in their mind is: Is the Government -- political leadership and the bureaucracy -- serious about Naag River rejuvenation ? As per recent developments have only underlined the question once again. We all may recall that the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) has proposed a Rs. 1,900-crore Naag River Pollution Abatement Plan. And just a week later, Bharatiya Janata Party Member of the Legislative Council (MLC) Mr. Parinay Fuke has given a Call Attention Notice ..

A UNIVERSAL symbolism of human aspiration -- the kite ! Flying a kite is every child’s eternal dream. And, why just a child’s; every adult, too, harbours the same dream -- in every geography, in every culture. It does not matter how rich -- or how poor -- you are, but you always harbour the dream of your kite soaring high up in the sky. The kite up their kissing the clouds, creating ripples in the placid blue sky -- occasionally dabbed by cotton-white clouds - - has so much poetry around its dancing ..

It is 7 am. The phone rings - even before the first ring is over, I have already snatched it up. It is, after all, my bestie calling me, and I know for sure she wouldn’t have called me so early, if she didn’t have something juicy to share. There’s this particular tremor I detect in my friend’s voice when she says, “Listen, I have a secret. But you must promise you won’t tell anyone.” It’s not a casual request. It’s delivered in a tone usually reserved for courtroom judges or cricket commentators announcing ..

They wear bright-coloured, sleeveless vests and stand at road intersections holding up placards with appeals to common people to follow traffic rules. They keep smiling as they approach people on their two-wheelers and four-wheelers urging them to abide by rules on the roads. Most people respect those volunteers, all right. However, there also are many who just don’t care -- and push on with their brazenness. For such haughty people, rules make no sense. So, naturally, those who urge them to follow ..

The instant and humongous ‘daad’ that Rahat Indori Saheb received after pronouncing these lines in his inimitable style vouched for the accuracy with which they gave vent to that general emotion. ‘Pairon ka chakkar…’ January se December!!!’ Just days before we were celebrating the New Year! No, actually months have passed in what seems like days. An age in what seems like years! Has someone pressed that fast forward button? ‘Carpe Diem’, ‘Live life King size’, ‘Savour every moment’ and many more such ..

The Parliament intended section 126 to act as a deterrent. If a person uses electricity for unauthorised purpose, he must not pay the same rate as an honest consumer. Otherwise there would be no difference between authorised and unauthorised use. Higher rate is therefore, not a punishment in the criminal sense...

Each constitutional organ or authority cannot function by itself. The working of our constitutional scheme is premised on constitutional authorities- who are each assigned specific but interdependent roles- performing their duties, akin to cogs that keep a clock ticking. They depend on each other, to keep the Constitution humming, and thus working. They are also constitutionally obligated, to offer checks- and - balances, for the other. Such a scheme, thus, abhors inaction...

Nonsense - It has been a word, an exclamation and at times a complete sentence. Though primarily it deals with ideas and actions, people have gone as far as to use it as an adjective to describe a person. Very technically, it may denote lack of sense. Sense, in turn, is the ability to think and act rationally. After thousands of years into human evolution and humongous efforts for its cultivation, the place where we presently find ourselves today makes it amply clear that sense is not a particular ..

WHEN they come in, the winters are like that -- bringing a paradoxical warmth for the human soul. The mist looks and feels like a light, warm comforter that wraps around the shoulders -- giving the body a welcome warmth. By itself, the mist is cool -- even cold in later days -- and wet. Yet, for those who love the change of season, the mist comes in as a warm envelop to begin with. Welcome in touch and texture. True, later, the winter would assume a biting quality, and hit one’s bones. True, a winter ..

A yogic condition, this ! The inner clutter is always terrible, and of course very noisy. It fills the head and troubles the heart. Silence is the answer, they say. Achieve silence, and the clutter would melt, they insist. Achieving silence ! What a task ! Collecting stray, random thoughts and throwing them out is the start of the process of silence. And that is most difficult. Like a restless, hyper-active child, the thoughts roam and dance and bounce around -- without any discipline, without any ..

WHEN everything is dark -- the room and the mind -- even a spec of light is most eagerly awaited. For, when the eyes wide open see nothing, even a dot of light lights up one’s inner sanctum. That little dot of light, then, shows that there is an opening in the fortification of darkness around -- and through that minuscule opening, a little spec of light has found its way in. What a delight, that ! The stolid darkness is not impregnable, after all. There is hope, thus, that at some point, some more ..

THE process -- of the opening of the bud -- is always silent, and away from anybody’s eyes ! Most buds become flowers in the dark veil of the night -- away from any gaze, away from anybody’s contemplation on how that growth takes place. True, many people have recorded on the celluloid how the buds blossom; modern technology having made the difference. Yet, one remembers keeping awake the whole night to see those countless jasmine buds flower in the morning. In those good old days, summers were special ..

SIGNALS are available in Nature that the rains are on their way out. Now, with Diwali festivities round the corner, it is time for Nagpur -- its administration and the people -- to deck the city up for the healthy season ahead. Soon, the dampness and humidity in the atmosphere will go away and the air would be crispy and cool -- before it turns very cold in the next couple of months...

Simple words, of course, but they communicate the communion between the poet and the Lord within. Mathew McConaughey is much more than an actor winning world acclaim. He is an author, a poet, a thinker and an undeclared torch-bearer of romantic school of living. Tired of logic-focused world view, he felt mesmerised by the enchanting aspects of life -- full of faith and dreams, and of course, poetry as an expression of all those cumulative emotions. The poems in ‘Poems & Prayers’ have been written ..

By Rahul Dixit : For India, the security game has assumed a wider dimension. Pakistan’s willingness to play the errand boy for anyone loosening purse strings makes it a dangerous entity. There is a threat of Pak-backed mercenaries..

What matters more is Mr. Narendra Modi’s leadership method whose description or definition is not found in any book on the subject -- except possibly the Vedas that often talk of men and women of high spirituality glowing like the Yadjnik flame -- giving not just light but giving energy (Urja in Sanskrit). The current surge of India in every field is thanks to that leadership Urja...