Amudan directors sent to judicial custody

Directors of Amudan Chemicals remanded to judicial custody after reactor blast, KAMA protests survey of hazardous units in Dombivli MIDC.

Thane: Two directors of Amudan Chemicals Private Limited – Malay Mehta and his wife Sneha – were remanded to judicial custody on Friday in connection with the reactor blast at their unit in Dombivli on May 23 which claimed 10 lives and left more than 60 injured.

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The duo was arrested after the incident and remanded in police custody for two days on May 29, as the police wanted to get a clear picture of the incident, including details on what chemicals the company had been handling and what led to the blasts. The state government has also constituted a three-member high level committee to probe the incident.

On Friday, crime branch officials demanded custody of the duo for two more days. But the Kalyan court rejected their plea and remanded them to judicial custody as there was no progress in the investigation, said their lawyer Samrat Thakkar. “A bail application for Sneha Mehta has been submitted and the court has scheduled it for hearing on Saturday,” he said.

Meanwhile, 300 members of the Kalyan Ambernath Manufacturers’ Association (KAMA) on Friday morning held a protest at the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) office in Kalyan demanding a halt to the ongoing survey. The survey is being conducted to identify hazardous units which will be moved out of the Dombivli MIDC complex, but traders allege this is being done without their consent or consultation. MIDC authorities have sent closure notices to around 20 companies, and their water and electricity supplies have been cut abruptly, they said.

“The accident has left us in a state of shock and grief, and our members are still grappling with the aftermath. We are also aware of the anxiety and distress this accident has caused among the local population,” said Raju Bailur, president, KAMA. “We have requested an immediate suspension of survey activity. We trust the authorities will take appropriate decisions with the same appeal.”

An officer from MIDC said, “We will have to discuss this request with senior authorities, and accordingly take some decisions.”