Mumbai: Bombay High Court on Friday granted interim protection from arrest till Aug 31 to a former student of Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), who was booked for allegedly raising inflammatory slogans for the release of jailed UAPA accused Umar Khaled and Sharjeel Imam at an unauthorised campus event.Justice Prafulla Khubalkar continued interim protection granted to Kamakhya Das (24) by a sessions court and directed him to join the probe on Aug 19 and 24. He also directed him to remain present “as and when called” and disclose all information including documents.The Oct 10, 2025, event was to commemorate the first death anniversary of the late Delhi University professor G N Saibaba. The Oct 13, 2025, FIR alleged that 10-12 students assembled without permission, lighting candles, reading poems and raising inflammatory slogans. The sessions court granted bail to seven students except Das and another. Therefore, Das moved HC saying there was no evidence he raised the alleged slogans and that this case could “destroy his career.”Senior advocate Mihir Desai, for Das, argued that merely attending a commemoration or using phrases like ‘Rest in Power’ does not constitute a criminal offence. “What happens is sometimes at that age — Gen Z tend to be a little hot-headed and say things that they may or may not understand. Whether they should be jailed for that?” said Desai. He said Das has no criminal antecedents and has fully cooperated with the investigating agency. After the FIR, the sessions court had granted Das interim protection. Desai urged protection from arrest pending hearing of the petition.Public prosecutor Shishir Hiray said the investigation revealed a much deeper conspiracy involving secession of the nation. Forensic examination of electronic devices revealed deleted apps and electronic books advocating secession and the ideology of banned CPI (Maoist). He said Das’s custody was necessary; the material recovered was only a “tip of the iceberg.”Hiray said the nature of the material found instigates and aids illegal activities including division of the country. “This is the biggest sin that can be committed in this particular country. One may have a dispute about the system but that cannot mean that we can advocate the secession of the nation,” he added.Justice Khubalkar noted that since Das was on interim protection since October, HC would examine the material at a later stage. Considering the nature of the allegation and that Das’s laptop and mobile phone were seized, he directed, “At this stage, custodial interrogation need not be insisted upon.” “Hence interim protection granted by the trial court shall continue. The applicant shall not be arrested till the next date, Aug 31,” he added.

Mumbai: The state continues to be number one in industrial presence and NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar should realise that 76% of companies that close down are defunct companies, said chief minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday. He was responding to Pawar’s comment that the situation in the state was concerning as government data showed 36,211 companies had closed down here in the last five years.In a long social media post accompanied by multiple graphics, Fadnavis also explained what defunct meant: “Defunct means dysfunctional, meaning those companies that never even started!”At the same time, Fadnavis agreed that there were “some problems” in Chakan, a manufacturing hub near Pune, and said that he had directed industries minister Uday Samant to pay attention to these.The industrial data provided by the ministry of corporate affairs in Parliament that Pawar cited had also showed 20 companies were shifting out of the Chakan industrial belt due to traffic, pollution and utility deficits, affecting over 2,000 workers.The ministry had also noted a major impact on the city, Thane and Pune across manufacturing and business services.Fadnavis took to social media to put out figures countering Pawar’s claim that the situation was concerning.In his post, Fadnavis said: “In response to a question by MP Rajabhau Vaje in Parliament, some information was provided by the central govt. 36,211 companies in the state have closed, and so on… Some new leaders have conveniently interpreted this and posted on social media, and some media outlets have reported on it. But you are a sensible and senior leader who always thinks of Maharashtra’s welfare, so to ensure there’s no misunderstanding in your mind, here’s a bit of an elaborate explanation!”Fadnavis said there is a standard format for a question asked in Parliament and its answer, as also for a question asked under the Right to Information Act and its answer. He said only if the question is discussed in the house can other details be obtained. He said all information on industries is available on the ministry of corporate affairs website and even provided a link on his social media post.He said the media had created the impression that many companies have closed. “There are over 31 lakh registered companies in the country. Of these, about 21 lakh companies are currently active. In 2015-16, the number of active companies in India was 6,78,768; now it’s 21,17,747. That means in the last 10 years under Hon. Modiji’s leadership the number of active companies has more than tripled,” Fadnavis said.He said the state has the maximum number of companies (3,96,211) that are operational as of June 3, 2026. Delhi came next (2,72,342), and then Uttar Pradesh (1,85,982).Fadnavis said the state continues to be at the forefront of new companies being registered. Around a lakh new companies are registered in the country every year. Fadnavis said in 2025-26 the state witnessed 41,525 new companies being registered as against 20,272 in Delhi, 27,494 in UP, 17,857 in Karnataka, 17,024 in Tamil Nadu, 17,300 in Telangana, 14,666 in Gujarat and 10,598 in West Bengal.Excluding the period during the Covid pandemic, Fadnavis said on average 20,000-22,000 companies shut down every year, the reasons being defunct (76%), amalgamation or mergers (12%), liquidation (2%). He pointed out that in 2019-20 the ministry of corporate affairs ran a special campaign and struck off six lakh companies, adding that the number of closed companies is lower than the number of struck off companies.Referring to the Chakan industrial belt and the problems there, Fadnavis said that on the initiative of the MIDC a meeting was held on August 12 of all authorities concerned and a plan has been finalised with short- and long-term solutions to resolve these.“Our effort will be that not a single industry leaves from there. Maharashtra is industry-friendly after all. That’s why foreign investment keeps coming to the state consistently. We are consistently at number one and we will remain so,” said Fadnavis in his social media post.

Mumbai: A passenger was deboarded from a Mumbai-Delhi IndiGo flight after allegedly joking that there was a bomb in his bag, delaying the flight by an hour on Sunday last. The airline also deplaned over 100 passengers, and after a thorough check, the flight took off at 9 am. The incident occurred on Aug 9 on flight 6E333, scheduled to depart Mumbai for Delhi at 8 am.Sahar police registered a first information report against the passenger, identified as Anuj Jayaram Suvarna (55), on Sunday after the airline handed him to the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF). Police arrested him after his baggage was thoroughly checked. A police officer said the airline declared him an unruly passenger and his name would be blacklisted for future flying with the airline.Suvarna, a Versova resident who was on his way to Delhi for an official trip, was taken to CISF for questioning before he was handed over to Sahar police for further action. Suvarna declined to comment on the issue when TOI communicated with him and messaged him on Friday. He asked to talk with his lawyer but denied sharing the contact details. He was released on bail after an FIR was filed against him under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita sections 125 (act endangering human life or personal safety of others) and 351 (2) (criminal intimidation).In the complaint, airline assistant security manager Omprakash Rajbhar said: “We were checking the hand baggage of passengers on this flight. We were also inquiring with passengers about the contents of their bags. At 7.25 am, while checking passengers’ bags, my colleague Ravindra Rahul Rokade questioned a passenger, asking if he was carrying a mouse, lighter, scissors, nail cutter, liquid, spray in his bag. The passenger in front stated that there is a bomb in his bag.”A Sahar police officer said, “Rokade informed his assistant manager Ojashree Oak about the incident on the phone. Then they asked the passenger’s name and other details before Oak arrived at the location and decided to offload the said passenger. Subsequently, two bags belonging to Suvarna were removed from the aircraft. Then CISF staff arrived, and the flight was halted. All passengers from the flight were deplaned. After all security checks of the aircraft were completed, the flight took off towards Delhi at 9 am without Suvarna,” said the officer.The airline told the police that an atmosphere of fear was created among passengers, and due to such an act, the flight was stopped, all passengers were deboarded, rechecked, and the flight’s takeoff was delayed, causing significant loss to IndiGo Airlines and mental distress to passengers. Therefore, a legal complaint against the person named Anuj Jayram Suvarna was filed. “Suvarna claimed that he jokingly said there was a bomb in his bag. He was charged with the offence after being deboarded from the flight,” said DCP (West Zone-1) Nimit Goyal.Security has been heightened across major airports in Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad and Thiruvananthapuram for the last one week ahead of the Independence Day.A senior officer said major airports across India are on heightened security alert due to preventative nationwide measures ahead of Independence Day (Aug 15), with restrictions and intensive screening protocols remaining in place until around Aug 20. Passengers face stricter checkpoints, vehicle inspections and longer processing times. Heightened security directives and advisory periods span roughly from Aug 10 through Aug 20 across facilities in Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad and Thiruvananthapuram.

Corporators broadly backed the ‘Pedestrian First’ initiative, but they questioned the way enforcement was being carried out

Mumbai: Corporators cutting across party lines have expressed concern over the manner in which the BMC is carrying out its ongoing action against hawkers encroaching on footpaths, alleging that the drive is arbitrary and suffers from poor execution at the ward level. While corporators broadly backed the ‘Pedestrian First’ initiative, they questioned the way enforcement was being carried out, particularly against hawkers who have been issued QR-coded identity cards by the civic body.BJP corporator Sheetal Gambir said hawkers found occupying excessive space should be asked to reduce their encroachment rather than being repeatedly penalised. “If a hawker is found to be encroaching on the footpath, he should be asked to lessen the space and not be repeatedly penalised. These corporators are coming back to us asking for money to pay the fines as they have been left with no money,” she said.UBT Shiv Sena corporator Deepmala Bhade questioned the BMC’s decision to act against hawkers after issuing them QR-coded identity cards. “QR-coded ID cards were issued to hawkers in our presence, and now the BMC is acting against these same hawkers. Then what was the point of distributing these cards?” she asked.BJP corporator Preeti Satam said civic agencies were themselves creating hurdles in implementing the Pedestrian First campaign. She pointed to the lack of JCB machines during enforcement action and said she was informed that the citywide JCB contract had ended on August 9. “In P South there is only one JCB. Where will it act?” she asked.BJP corporator Makrand Narwekar said there was a clear intent among the BMC’s senior leadership to make Mumbai more pedestrian-friendly, but alleged that the same urgency was missing among officials at the lower levels.Congress corporator Tulip Miranda questioned the purpose of QR-coded IDs if they offered no protection to hawkers. “Then why give them the QR code itself? Mumbaikars who have been doing business for years are being harassed. We have made the provisions but execution is nil,” she said.The BMC, however, defended its approach, saying the action was not selective. Additional municipal commissioner Prajakta Lavangare Verma said wards had been directed to identify priority footpaths around schools, hospitals and metro stations and ensure pedestrian access.“We are not selectively acting against anyone in particular. We are uniformly cracking down against unauthorised hawkers only,” she said, adding that BMC has also created a dashboard to monitor enforcement, with ward officials expected to update details of action taken.