Mumbai Hoarding Collapse: Chief BMC Officer Gajanan Bellale Summoned

The Mumbai Crime Branch has called in Gajanan Bellale, the chief BMC officer of Ghatkopar East, for questioning about the Ghatkopar hoarding collapse in Maharashtra. This tragic incident, which occurred on May 13 during strong winds and heavy rains, resulted in 17 deaths and 74 injuries.

Earlier, on May 31, the Mumbai Sessions Court dismissed the anticipatory bail plea of Jhanvi Marathe, the former director of Ego Media, who is now declared ‘absconding’ by the Mumbai Crime Branch. Marathe sought relief from arrest in connection with the hoarding collapse case, but the bail plea was opposed by the Mumbai Police Crime Branch. The paperwork for the collapsed hoarding was completed during Marathe’s tenure from 2020 to December 2023, before the current director, Bhavesh Bhide, took over.

The Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Mumbai Crime Branch has recorded statements from 20 people so far. The Mumbai Crime Branch has also arrested Manoj Ramkrishna Sanghu, a BMC-approved engineer, for approving the structural stability certificate for the collapsed hoarding on April 24, 2023. Bhavesh Bhide, the current director of Ego Media, was arrested last week in Udaipur, Rajasthan, and brought to Mumbai. The police are investigating how Bhide was awarded the hoarding contract and his earnings from it.

The Mumbai Police have registered a case under IPC sections 304, 338, 337, and 34 against Bhavesh Bhide and others at Pantnagar police station. Following the incident, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) Commissioner stated that Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has ordered all hoardings to be checked.