Two booked for setting off rockets near Thane hospital

Dnyaneshwar Chavan, Joint Commissioner of Police (law and order), said that since November 5, the Thane police have registered more than 156 cases for firecracker-related violations

THANE: The Thane police on Thursday booked two men for bursting aerial firecrackers near KIMS Hospital along Ghodbunder Road, after a video of the incident began circulating widely on social media platforms, sparking concerns about unruly public behaviour and patient safety at the hospital.

According to the police, the incident occurred around 10.30pm on Wednesday while the accused – 21-year-old delivery boy Bhupendra Singh and 25-year-old Shivam Sharma, a resident of Khevra Circle in Kapurbawd – were identified and traced from the video, with help from local residents.

“On Thursday, senior police inspector NB Kolhatkar directed us to verify the video and trace the men seen in it. We tracked the men down the same day by showing the video to local residents and using our intelligence network,” a police officer familiar with the case told Hindustan Times.

Both the accused were served notices for violating the ban on aerial firecrackers in Thane district, instituted after a fire at a high-rise residential building in Wagle Estate on Sunday. When questioned, they admitted that they had set off rockets and other aerial firecrackers at the spot, police said.

The Kasarwadavali police have the duo under section 51 of the Maharashtra Disaster Management Act, 2005, and sections 287 (negligent conduct with respect to fire or combustible matter) and 288 (negligent conduct with respect to explosive substances) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

Dnyaneshwar Chavan, Joint Commissioner of Police (law and order), said that since November 5, the Thane police have registered more than 156 cases for firecracker-related violations under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita and the Maharashtra Disaster Management Act, 2005.