150 booked for ransacking Dadar Kabutarkhana despite HC ban

A police officer said the Dadar police initially asked the BMC to lodge a complaint since the property belonged to the civic body. However, after the BMC maintained that the police were themselves witnesses to the ransacking, the police registered an offence based on video footage from television channels and witness statements

MUMBAI: The Dadar police have registered a case against around 150 protesters, including 50 women, for storming the Kabutarkhana at Dadar and tearing down barricades and tarpaulin sheets that had been put up to block access to the structure.

Mumbai, India. Aug 06, 2025: On Wednesday morning, over a hundred members of the Jain community protested at Dadar. They forcefully opened the Dadar Kabutarkhana, removed the plastic sheet, and offered grains to the pigeons. Mumbai, India. Aug 06, 2025. (Photo by Raju Shinde/HT Photo) (Raju Shinde)

According to police, the protesters were booked for unlawful assembly and mischief under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, along with provisions of the Bombay Police Act, 1951. Those named in the FIR include Bandish Shah, Jyoti Kosambi, Nilesh Tevadia, Rekha Jain, Vidyut Jain, Beena Jain and Harish Jain.

The incident took place on August 6, when about 150 people entered the Kabutarkhana despite a Bombay High Court order prohibiting feeding of pigeons there. The group allegedly shouted slogans, pulled down the tarpaulin and barricades put up by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), and tossed grains to the pigeons. The BMC had erected fresh barricades on August 10.

A police officer said the Dadar police initially asked the BMC to lodge a complaint since the property belonged to the civic body. However, after the BMC maintained that the police were themselves witnesses to the ransacking, the police registered an offence based on video footage from television channels and witness statements.

The FIR was lodged on the complaint of constable Sachin Shirtode, who was on bandobast duty during the protest. “We have registered an offence against 100 unidentified men, 50 unidentified women, and seven named individuals. The accused have been identified with the help of TV footage,” the officer said.

The case has been registered under sections 189 (unlawful assembly) and 324 (mischief) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with relevant sections of the Bombay Police Act.