MUMBAI: A second-year BTech student at IIT Bombay died by suicide in his single-occupancy room in Hostel No 4 on the IIT Powai campus on Tuesday night, police said.Powai police said they suspected a failed love affair was the reason behind the death of the 20-year-old, a student of Materials Science and Engineering (often paired with Metallurgical Engineering). Police said they did not find any suicide note in the room and seized his mobile phone to gather information on the cause.Police registered a case of accidental death report (ADR) and said they were probing the matter. They also said they registered a case of suicide and were probing the matter under Section 194 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, which outlines the legal procedure for police officers to investigate and report on unnatural deaths, suicides, or suspicious circumstances.The IIT management informed the student’s parents on Tuesday night after a security guard found him hanging from the ceiling in the hostel room, police said. Police said the motive would be clearer after the parents arrived and provided information.“Deceased parents will reach Mumbai today (Wednesday) afternoon from Rajasthan. Four teams has been formed who are probing the matter,” said DCP (West Zone-3) Datta Nalawade.Police said the student was seen in class and on campus on Tuesday, but after 5 pm he did not respond to phone calls made by his parents from Rajasthan. “At 10.30 pm, the parents again called on the deceased mobile but there was no response. This made them to call the IIT security officials who visiting the room no G-4147 of hostel no 4 which was found locked from inside. The guards and other students from adjacent rooms noticed the deceased hanging from ceiling when they looked into the room from the window,” said a police officer of the Powai police station.Police officials said they learnt from IIT and students that the second-year class commenced on Monday and the student died by suicide the next day between 5 pm and 10.30 pm. “It was overheard from students in the campus that the deceased may have taken the extreme step due to failed affair and seemed to be depressed. The team is probing all angles to get to know the motive behind the extreme step,” said the officer.Police said the student took the extreme step a day after the second-year class commenced, and they doubted he returned from his Rajasthan home.

MUMBAI: Actress Rakhi Sawant has hit back at actor-politician Kangana Ranaut over her remarks on Gen Z student protesters at Jantar Mantar, criticising the latter for speaking against those participating in the agitation.In a video shared on Instagram, Sawant slammed Ranaut and called out her comments on the protesters. She used strong words against Kangana and questioned her remarks, calling her a “gutter mouth” and a “witch,” while also asking whether she wanted to be slapped.The over one-minute video, in which Sawant criticised Ranaut for allegedly speaking against the protesters, went viral on social media, sparking discussions among users.The exchange comes after Kangana Ranaut criticised the recent student protests over alleged irregularities in the NEET examination process. She said the use of “obscene language” and personal attacks during demonstrations were “completely unacceptable” in society.Speaking to ANI, Kangana referred to the protests and alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his late mother had been subjected to abusive remarks during the demonstrations.Her comments drew reactions from several quarters, with Sawant becoming the latest celebrity to respond to the actor-politician’s remarks.“Our 75-year-old Prime Minister was targeted, and filthy abuse was hurled at his late mother. We, too, have participated in student protests. But what kind of students are these, and what kind of obscene language are they using? In what way do they resemble students? If these individuals need Supreme Court lawyers or legal counsel in the future, will their parents be able to afford it? They do not have the means to afford it themselves. We have been building our own careers since the age of sixteen. We have never been a burden on our parents. As a society, this is completely unacceptable to us,” Ranaut said.Ranaut also shared a series of posts on her Instagram Stories, calling the protest videos “puke inducing,” the BJP MP criticised the protesters’ style and language.“Never in my life have I seen so much ugliness in one place. These reels from Gen Z protests are puke-inducing. The way they speak and the kind of language they are using… never in my life have I seen everything in each and every frame so jarring and so crass all at once, “she wrote.“Ewww, who is birthing and raising them?,” she added.Ranaut also noted, “India is a place of diversely beautiful people, draped in elegance and rooted in cultural sophistication. You call yourself cockroaches and look/behave like them as well. There is no paradox or juxtaposition there, just simply subjecting the world to your filth, garbage and ugliness. I am scarred from these reels. I need some healing, digital detox.”She added, “I am scarred by these reels. Need some healing, digital detox.”(With agency inputs)

MUMBAI: Thirty-three years after the Mumbai serial blasts, three properties linked to one of the masterminds, Tiger Memon, including his Mahim office that was set on fire during the 1992-93 communal riots, were put up for auction on Tuesday. The auction saw multiple bidders, but the results have not been declared.The auction was carried out under the supervision of Surabhi Sharma, competent authority & administrator, Smugglers and Foreign Exchange Manipulators (Forfeiture of Property) Act (Safema), 1976. The assets that went under the hammer were a 751 sqft flat with a garage in Mahim’s Al-Hussaini building where the Memons used to live, a 550sqft office Tijarat International, and a 970 sqft flat in Bandra (West).Memon’s Bandra flat had reserve price of Rs 5 croreTiger Memon’s Al-Hussaini building flat had a reserve price of Rs 1.9 crore, Tijarat International Rs 2.05 crore and the Bandra flat Rs 5.2 crore. The CBI, in its chargesheet, claimed that the blasts were meant to avenge the demolition of Babri Masjid. Sources said the attack was also in retaliation to Memon losing his properties during the communal riots. Memon, who is absconding, has been known as a man of revenge since his childhood.Mushtaq Abdul Razzak Nadim Memon, aka Tiger Memon, was born to middle-class parents in Mohammed Ali Road on Nov 24, 1960. He worked as a driver for the Dossa brothers, Mohammed and Mustafa. This is how he came in touch with the Dawood Ibrahim gang.In the mid-1980s, the Memon family shifted to Al Hussaini. Memon was actively involved in smuggling silver and made his name in the smuggling world at the age of 22. During the communal riots of 1992, some hooligans had set his shop on fire. Memon got so furious that he decided to avenge the loss of his property.The govt authorities had attached around one-and-a-half dozen properties owned by Memon and his relatives. “The forfeiture order was passed first by Safema. The Tada court gave order to the court receiver to give the properties to Safema,” said Sharma.Earlier, the other claimants for these properties included CBI and Mumbai EOW. Safema received possession of 17 immovable properties forfeited under the Act in Memon’s case. The office has taken possession of and secured all these properties, and wherever the properties are free from litigation, it has initiated their disposal through auction.“A major achievement has been the successful transfer of a vacant plot measuring approximately 1,200 sqm at Kole Kalyan (Santacruz east) in the name of the competent authority after sustained follow-up with the revenue authorities. The process of removal of encroachment is under way and the property is proposed to be put up to auction positively by Dec 2026,” said Sharma. It belonged to Memons.The physical possession of Memons’ other properties, a 200 sqm plot in Zaveri Bazar, a shop in Dongri, two flats in Kapadia Nagar in Kurla etc, have been taken over by Safema.Memon, along with dozens of others, had conspired and executed 12 deadly bomb blasts in the city on March 12, 1993, that killed 257 and injured 713 others. Properties worth Rs 30 crore were damaged.The Memons did not file a reply in the court when it issued a notice to them regarding the competent authority’s plea to release the properties. On March 11 this year, two flats in Al-Hussaini building belonging to the Memons were auctioned for nearly Rs 2 crore.

Mumbai: The food licences of five of Mumbai’s elite clubs, the Cricket Club of India (CCI), MIG, RK Juhu Gymkhana, Aparna Juhu Gymkhana and Willingdon, were suspended after the FDA said it found severe hygiene and structural issues in their kitchens.Almost all five had issues such as pest infestation, unhygienic storage, structural decay like deteriorated walls and ceilings, and a lack of proper food handler hygiene.At the CCI, the FDA found live cockroaches, use of brooms on kitchen countertops, utensils washed and handled directly on the floor, mouldy vegetables, overripe mushrooms, and expired food items.CCI president Madhumati Lele called the FDA findings minor. “They are taking a photo of a small, individual thing and publishing it everywhere. We do hygiene audits every month. There is no cockroach infestation at all. They saw one cockroach and took a photo saying it can lead to an infestation. We are in the process of submitting a compliance report. Ninety per cent of the issues have been rectified,” Lele said.Similar issues were found at the MIG Cricket Club in Bandra (East). The caterer, Nebula Catering Services, did not even have a valid FSSAI licence.Improper cleaning of raw materials, a lack of records for frying oil, and inadequate personal hygiene, such as the absence of gloves, caps, and aprons, were seen at the RK Juhu Gymkhana. At RK, as well as at Willingdon Sports Club, non-smooth and absorbent doors were a matter of concern as they made pest entry more likely.The other issues at Willingdon included inadequate temperature monitoring systems and outdated food and water testing reports.Willingdon Club committee member Anish Trivedi declined to comment on the FDA findings. “We don’t comment on club matters,” Trivedi said.At Aparna Juhu Gymkhana, cooking equipment was found to be rusty and left unsanitised before and after use, with the presence of pests in the kitchen, particularly flies. The FDA found inadequate personal hygiene facilities and a neglect of food handler hygiene — no gloves, caps, or aprons.Bolstered by an increase in manpower with the addition of over 40 food safety officers earlier this year, as opposed to a handful previously, the FDA has been in action mode against iconic and elite establishments. Just a couple of weeks ago, the licence of Parsi Dairy Farm was suspended over hygiene concerns, and K Rustom & Co met a similar fate.“Earlier we had a bakery drive, and prior to that we were looking at prohibited food items, and some of these were establishments that were neglected,” an FDA food department official said. “There are a lot of inputs coming in from complainants as well, and all of the establishments can make an appeal after rectifying all the issues.”

Mumbai: The BMC proposal to lease 15 acres of reclaimed land at the Mulund dumping ground to the Dharavi Redevelopment Project (DRP) for five years to set up a casting yard, precast element manufacturing facility and ready-mix concrete (RMC) plant ran into stiff opposition from Shiv Sena (UBT) and Congress members during the civic improvements committee meeting on Tuesday.The land is proposed to be leased to Navbharat Mega Developers Pvt Ltd, the special purpose vehicle of the Adani Group that is implementing the Dharavi redevelopment project in partnership with the state government.Committee chairperson Sandhya Doshi, a Shiv Sena corporator, decided to ‘not take’ the proposal in Tuesday’s meeting.Shiv Sena (UBT) corporator Sachin Padwal asked why Mulund was being asked to shoulder the burden of another major infrastructure project. “How much should Mulund residents suffer? Salt pan land has already been earmarked for the rehabilitation component of the Dharavi redevelopment. This is a test for BJP corporators and MLAs who had promised voters that Dharavi redevelopment activities would not be shifted to Mulund. Why are they silent now?” Padwal said.He alleged that public land once handed over for such projects rarely returns to the civic body. “Why give precious public land to private companies? The Maharashtra Pollution Control Board’s permission has not even been obtained yet,” he added.Leader of the opposition Ashraf Azmi, a Congress corporator, accused the civic administration of favouring a private developer. “Once again, land is being readied to benefit Adani. At least charge a proper market rate instead of offering it at concessional rates. It is difficult to understand why a casting yard is required so far away from the Dharavi redevelopment site. Gradually, all public plots will be handed over and never come back. This land belongs to Mumbaikars,” Azmi said, directing his remarks at the BJP-Shiv Sena-led ruling combine.Shiv Sena (UBT) corporator Vishakha Raut questioned the proposal, asking why no tender had been floated before handing over the plot. She further expressed concern that the movement of RMC trucks would significantly worsen traffic congestion in Mulund.Congress corporator Raja Rahebar Khan said the government was increasingly using public land for project-related facilities instead of requiring developers to procure land themselves. Referring to previous infrastructure projects like the Bandra-Worli Sea Link, he claimed that land allotted for casting yards had not been returned for public use even after project completion.The proposal seeks to lease 15 acres of reclaimed land at the Mulund dumping ground for five years to establish project support facilities, including a casting yard, precast manufacturing unit and RMC plant, for the Dharavi redevelopment project. The proposal is expected to be taken up for further consideration by the civic body.Committee chairperson Sandhya Doshi said that she believes in taking everyone’s suggestions. “Hence the proposal wasn’t taken up today and will be tabled again in one of the upcoming meetings,” she said.