Mumbai hoarding collapse: Accused Bhavesh Bhinde in police custody till May 26

Mumbai hoarding collapse: Accused Bhavesh Bhinde was arrested from Rajasthan's Udaipur and brought to Mumbai.

Published on: May 17, 2024, 23:16:39 IST

By HT News Desk

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Bhavesh Bhinde, whose advertising firm had installed the hoarding in Mumbai's Ghatkopar that collapsed on May 13, killing 16 people, has been sent to police custody till May 26, reported news agency PTI. Bhinde is the director of M/S Ego Media Pvt Ltd which managed the massive hoarding.

Crime Branch Team arrived along with the accused Bhavesh Bhinde at Mumbai International Airport, Bhinde, the owner of the advertising firm, The 120x120-foot advertising hoarding set up by Bhinde's company in Pant Nagar collapsed on May 13 in Mumbai, India, (Hindustan Times)

On Thursday, Bhinde was arrested from Rajasthan's Udaipur and brought to Mumbai. He was staying using a fake identity card at a hotel in Udaipur, said Lakhmi Gautam, joint commissioner of police (crime).

After Bhinde's arrest, Mumbai Police crime branch produced him before additional chief metropolitan magistrate (Esplanade court) and sought his custody for 14 days.

Since the terrible incident, Bhinde was absconding. Police had registered a case against him under sections 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 337 (causing hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others), 338 (causing grievous hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others) and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code.

ALSO READ| Eight billboards without BMC permission in Dadar belong to Bhavesh Bhinde's firm

Meanwhile, advocate Rizwan Merchant, appearing for the accused, claimed that police did not tell Bhinde the grounds of his arrest which made the remand plea invalid.

In the horrifying incident caused by a dust storm in Mumbai, more than 70 vehicles, including cars, suffered damages after the gigantic 120 feet x 120 feet billboard fell.

ALSO READ| Ghatkopar tragedy: Who is Bhavesh Bhinde, owner of ad firm behind hoarding?

A BMC official has said as many as 73 vehicles, including 30 two-wheelers, 31 four-wheelers, eight autorickshaws and two heavy vehicles all damaged in the crash were retrieved from the site, and handed over to the police as their owners came forward to claim them.

The hoarding defied the permissible size of 40x40 feet and was erected on a 10-year lease. The company had applied to the Limca Book of Records to declare it as the largest commercial hoarding in India.

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HT News Desk
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