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The Mumbai municipal corporation on Monday demolished structures at The Habitat Studio in the city’s Khar area that it claimed were unauthorised, a day after the venue was vandalised by members of the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena. The vandalism followed the circulation of a video showing comedian Kunal Kamra making indirect jokes about Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Shinde, referring to him as a “traitor”.

Kamra did not name Shinde in his act. A police complaint has been filed against the comedian and an MLA from Shinde’s threatened public retaliation unless Kamra apologises. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis claimed freedom of speech has limits and accused Kamra of defaming Shinde.

The Habitat Studio said it was “broken” by the attack and would shut temporarily. Read on.

The civic authorities in Nagpur on Monday demolished parts of the home of Fahim Khan, a Minorities Democratic Party leader accused of involvement in the communal violence that broke out in the city on March 17. Khan and five others face sedition charges and are accused of spreading misinformation online.

The violence followed a protest by Hindutva groups demanding the removal of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb’s tomb in Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar. Officials claimed the demolition of Khan’s home followed due procedure under the Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act after serving him 24-hour notice.

Rights advocates have criticised the growing use of demolitions as extrajudicial punishment in Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled states. In November, the Supreme Court ruled that demolishing properties of crime suspects as a punitive measure is illegal. Read on.

The Supreme Court Collegium has recommended the repatriation of Justice Yashwant Varma from the Delhi High Court to the Allahabad High Court amid allegations that large sums of cash was found at his residence. The unaccounted-for cash was allegedly recovered after a fire at his official bungalow on March 14.

A video and photos released by the court showed a fireman retrieving burnt wads of currency. Varma denied that the money belonged to him. A three-member committee has been formed to investigate and the Delhi High Court has withdrawn his judicial duties.

The collegium clarified that the transfer proposal was not linked to the inquiry. The Allahabad High Court Bar Association opposed his return, calling it an insult to the court. Read on.

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Tempers ran high in Parliament on Monday after Bharatiya Janata Party leaders accused Congress’ DK Shivakumar of suggesting changes to the Constitution to provide reservations for Muslims. Union Minister Kiren Rijiju demanded Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge clarify the party’s stand, calling Shivakumar’s remarks “an assault on the Constitution”.

Shivakumar had spoken at an event about a Karnataka bill proposing 4% reservation for Muslims and other minorities in public contracts. Responding to concerns about constitutional limits, he said “the Constitution will be changing” and referenced court verdicts that had led to amendments in the text.

Kharge countered in Parliament that no one can alter Ambedkar’s Constitution and cited the Bharat Jodo Yatra as Congress’ commitment to protect it. Shivakumar later said he was misquoted and had only made a general comment about legal interpretations. The Rajya Sabha was adjourned amid heated exchanges. Read on.

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