Mumbai Indians’ Rohit Sharma plays a shot during the match against Lucknow Super Giants’ in the Indian Premier League 2024, at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. File photo
| Photo Credit: ANI

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Friday (January 10, 2025) informed the Bombay High Court that it would clear all its dues to Mumbai, Pimpri Chinchwad and Navi Mumbai police in two weeks’ time for providing their service of police protection during the Indian Premier League (IPL) matches.  

The BCCI was responding to a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by Right to Information (RTI) activist from Mumbai, Anil Vedvyas Galgali on August 29, 2024. Mr. Galgali’s petition challenged the Maharashtra government’s decision to lower the police protection cost and waive arrears of police services provided to IPL T20 cricket matches respectively since 2011.  The High Court in August 2024, had slammed the Maharashtra government’s decision to reduce the rate of police protection fees for IPL T20 cricket matches. 

The petitioner alleged that the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) still owes ₹14.82 crores for police protection during IPL matches held at Wankhede and Brabourne stadiums between 2013 and 2018. 

On Friday, the BCCI responded to the petition in an affidavit and said that it owed ₹1.7 crore to the Pimpri Chinchwad police, ₹3.3 crore to the Navi Mumbai police and ₹1.03 crore to the Mumbai police and said that it undertakes to pay these amounts within a period of two weeks.   

“The BCCI has no intention of depriving the police of the amount owed to them and undertakes to make the payment of the disputed amount not later than 90 days of the reconciliation of the accounts with the concerned police authorities. BCCI only incurs liability for qualifiers, eliminators and final matches of the IPL, women’s premier league matches, and any other match conducted in exceptional circumstances,” BCCI said in an affidavit.  

With this submission, the cricket board sought the High Court to dismiss the petition filed by Mr. Galgali as the question of charges levied for police protection for the cricket matches was a police decision, it said.  

Mr. Galgali’s petition said that as per two Government Resolutions (GR) issued in the years 2017 and 2018, the organisers had to pay around ₹66 lakh to ₹75 lakh per T20 and One-Day International match and ₹55 lakh for a Test match held in the two stadiums. Through a June 26, 2023, circular, the State government had reduced the security charges from ₹25 lakh to ₹10 lakh for IPL organisers with retrospective effect and this decision by the State to waive the arrears was causing a loss to the public exchequer, the petition alleged.  

The petition, which attached information obtained under the RTI, said the Mumbai police had sent 35 reminder letters to the MCA seeking to recover the outstanding amount of ₹14,82,74,177. The RTI also revealed that in the last eight years the MCA had only paid fees of ₹1.40 crore charged towards the IPL cricket matches.   

In November 2024, the Maharashtra government submitted an affidavit that said, the decision of conducting these cricket matches was taken considering the financial benefits to the State exchequer.   

The matter is posted for further hearing on February 11, 2025.  

Thane:

In a significant crackdown, Navi Mumbai Police arrested 20 Nigerian nationals, including 13 women and seven men, who were partying in the Kharghar area and seized Mephedrone drug with an estimated value of Rs 26.77 lakh, officials said on Tuesday.

Acting on a tip-off, sleuths of the Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC), including five police inspectors, 150 constables, personnel of the anti-riot squad and members of a forensic team, raided two food joints on Monday late at night.

Police seized 107 grams of Mephedrone, valued at Rs 26,77,500, and liquor from the possession of the Nigerians, an official statement said.

The arrested persons were produced before a local magistrate court that remanded them to judicial custody.

Police registered an FIR under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, the Prohibition Act, the Registration of Foreigners Act and the Passports Act. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Thane:

Navi Mumbai Police has registered a First Information Report (FIR) against two women working at an autism therapy centre for allegedly burning a four-year-old boy with an incense stick.

Based on a complaint by the child’s father, the FIR was registered under the Juvenile Justice Act at the NRI Sagari police station, an official said.

The boy was undergoing therapy at the centre for the last two years, said assistant police inspector Kishore Khadke.

The accused women, 32 and 35 years old, allegedly burnt him on the palm with an incense stick last week. After the child told the parents about the injuries, a complaint was lodged.

No arrest has been made yet, inspector Mr Khadke said.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Thane, Maharashtra:

The Navi Mumbai police have arrested two persons on the charge of dacoity after a woman was robbed of nearly Rs 28 lakh on the promising of gold at “cheap and discounted” rate, an official said today.

In her complaint, the 36-year-old Nerul resident said one of the arrested persons had got in touch with her claiming he could get her half a kilo of gold for Rs 27.81 lakh, much lesser than the market price.

The man took the complainant to Sanpada station in a car for the deal on May 18 but some people arrived there, threatened the woman and snatched her bag containing the money.

The man and another person who had accompanied them in the car fled the scene, she said.

Working on various leads, the police arrested Thane residents Rakesh Shivaji Shingte (39), who was in touch with the woman, and Roopesh Subash Sapkale (42). Efforts are on to nab the others, he added.
 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Thane:

A 29-year-old man from Navi Mumbai has allegedly been cheated of Rs 20.22 lakh after being lured by fraudsters with an online job offer promising lucrative returns, police said on Sunday. The Navi Mumbai cyber police have registered an FIR in this connection against four persons, they said.

The accused contacted the victim, hailing from Ghansoli in Navi Mumbai, between October 5 and 10 through a Telegram ID and WhatsApp and offered him a pre-paid online task promising lucrative returns. They also asked him to make payments in certain accounts, a cyber cell official said quoting the complaint.

The victim did the job and also made payments worth Rs 20,22,444. After completing the task, when he sought a refund of the amount paid and also returns for the work completed by him, the accused gave evasive replies, the police said.

The victim lodged a complaint, based on which the cyber police on Saturday registered a case against four persons under Indian Penal Code Sections 420 (cheating) and 34 (common intention) as well as provisions of the Information Technology Act, the official said.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)