Ghatkopar hoarding collapse: Bombay High Court refuses to give relief to Bhavesh Bhinde

The Bombay High Court on Friday dismissed the petition for release filed by Bhavesh Bhinde, the director of the advertising firm, Ego Media Private Limited, that erected the giant hoarding that collapsed in Mumbai’s Ghatkopar area during heavy rains and storm, taking the lives of 15 and injuring around 70 people on May 13. Seeking immediate release, Bhinde, who is arrested in the case, has claimed in his petition that his arrest was illegal.

Passing the order, a Division Bench of Justices Bharati Dangre and Manjusha Deshpande said there are no merits in the case. “We find no legal infirmity. The ground of illegal arrest and detention by the petitioner is nothing but a faux. There is no impairment in the procedure. We do not find any merits in the arguments of the applicant. The petition stands dismissed,” the Bench said. A detailed copy of the order is not made available yet.

Appearing for Bhinde, advocate Rizwan Merchant argued before the Bench and said that Mumbai Police held his client (Bhinde) in a day long illegal custody. Bhinde, who was arrested from Udaipur on May 16, was brought to Mumbai and then arrested on May 17 whereas, his arrest was actually made on May 16, Mr. Merchant argued. He also said that his client was not furnished with the grounds of arrest in written as mandated by the Supreme Court in Prabir Purkayastha’s case adding that his client was in an illegal detention for an entire day.

The petition by Bhinde has urged the judges to quash the FIR registered against him in the hoarding collapse incident that caused death and injury to multiple people and that it was an “act of God” and not his fault.

“The IMD bulletin failed to predict the severe dust storms with gusty winds that hit Mumbai on the fateful day. On account of the aforesaid, the said hoarding collapsed and not due to improper, faulty construction of the same as wrongly, falsely alleged in the said FIR. The unexpected and unprecedented wind speeds of up to 96 kmph caused the hoarding to collapse, an event for which neither Bhavesh Bhinde nor Ego Media Pvt Ltd could be held accountable. Moreover, the hoarding was legally erected with all requisite permissions,” the petition read.

In the FIR, Bhinde has been booked for culpable homicide not amounting to murder.

Countering Mr. Merchant’s claims and arguments, Public Prosecutor, Hiten Venegaonkar contended that the police had followed all the required procedures while arresting the accused, including signatures of independent witnesses on the arrest document. He was only apprehended in Rajasthan on May 16 where he was hiding by changing his identity to escape his arrest. Officially he was arrested on May 17 after he was brought to Mumbai. Bhinde was handed over with the grounds of arrest before he was taken into custody, Mr. Venegaonkar said.