Shielding the guilty: BJP corporator tears up report on boy's death Chembur in tree crash
When the inquiry report was taken up in the House, opposition corporators protested, alleging the civic administration was preventing a proper discussion despite the mayor publicly rejecting its findings.
Two days after Mumbai Mayor Ritu Tawade rejected the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's (BMC) inquiry report into the June 30 Chembur tree collapse that claimed the life of 11-year-old Vihaan Srivastava, the issue triggered a fresh political confrontation in the BMC General Body on Thursday.
The inquiry report, tabled before the House, was dramatically torn by Leader of the House and BJP corporator Ganesh Khankar, who rejected its findings and demanded a fresh probe, alleging that the report was unacceptable and failed to fix accountability for the tragedy.
Raising serious questions about the report, Khankar said, "It is a one-sided report that attempts to shield the guilty. We demand an impartial inquiry into the matter by an independent agency".
"A student has lost his life in the Chembur incident and hence we should give him justice and strict action should be taken against those responsible".
The developments came amid sharp criticism from the opposition, with Leader of Opposition Kishori Pednekar alleging that there was "connivance" between the BMC administration and Mayor Ritu Tawade over the handling of the report.
As the report came up for discussion, opposition members staged a protest, accusing the civic administration of avoiding a meaningful debate despite the mayor's public opposition to the findings.
"There is connivance between the Mayor and BMC administration. She is publicly opposing the report but not allowing discussion on it to happen," said Pednekar, questioning the manner in which the report was handled in the House.
As soon as the report was tabled, Khankar tore copies of the inquiry report and insisted that the findings could not be accepted.
He said the report sought to absolve those responsible for the incident and demanded an independent investigation.
Meanwhile, Khankar further alleged lapses within the civic administration.
"In 2025, there was a letter from the garden department to the road department about roots of trees being cut for concretisation. The road department didn't take further action and the garden department didn't follow up," she said. "Some BMC officials are indeed working hard. But we will not support guilty officials like previous government did".
11-YEAR-OLD VIHAAN WAS KILLED
The controversy centres around the June 30 accident in Mumbai’s Chembur, when a roadside tree collapsed onto a Universal School bus near Tilak Nagar, killing 11-year-old Vihaan Srivastava and injuring five other children.
The accident occurred around 2.50 pm while the bus was carrying students. Local residents and the bus conductor rescued the trapped children before emergency teams removed the fallen tree using a crane.
INQUIRY PANEL SET UP
A three-member BMC inquiry committee later concluded that the civic body's Roads and Gardens departments were not responsible for the incident.
Instead, it recommended imposing penalties of Rs 5 lakh on the contractor and Rs 2 lakh on the consultant associated with stormwater drain works near the site.
With the ruling alliance, the opposition and the mayor all expressing dissatisfaction with the existing inquiry, pressure is mounting on the BMC to order a fresh investigation into the Chembur tragedy.
The issue is expected to remain politically charged until responsibility is fixed and action is initiated against those found accountable.
Two days after Mumbai Mayor Ritu Tawade rejected the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's (BMC) inquiry report into the June 30 Chembur tree collapse that claimed the life of 11-year-old Vihaan Srivastava, the issue triggered a fresh political confrontation in the BMC General Body on Thursday.
The inquiry report, tabled before the House, was dramatically torn by Leader of the House and BJP corporator Ganesh Khankar, who rejected its findings and demanded a fresh probe, alleging that the report was unacceptable and failed to fix accountability for the tragedy.
Raising serious questions about the report, Khankar said, "It is a one-sided report that attempts to shield the guilty. We demand an impartial inquiry into the matter by an independent agency".
"A student has lost his life in the Chembur incident and hence we should give him justice and strict action should be taken against those responsible".
The developments came amid sharp criticism from the opposition, with Leader of Opposition Kishori Pednekar alleging that there was "connivance" between the BMC administration and Mayor Ritu Tawade over the handling of the report.
As the report came up for discussion, opposition members staged a protest, accusing the civic administration of avoiding a meaningful debate despite the mayor's public opposition to the findings.
"There is connivance between the Mayor and BMC administration. She is publicly opposing the report but not allowing discussion on it to happen," said Pednekar, questioning the manner in which the report was handled in the House.
As soon as the report was tabled, Khankar tore copies of the inquiry report and insisted that the findings could not be accepted.
He said the report sought to absolve those responsible for the incident and demanded an independent investigation.
Meanwhile, Khankar further alleged lapses within the civic administration.
"In 2025, there was a letter from the garden department to the road department about roots of trees being cut for concretisation. The road department didn't take further action and the garden department didn't follow up," she said. "Some BMC officials are indeed working hard. But we will not support guilty officials like previous government did".
11-YEAR-OLD VIHAAN WAS KILLED
The controversy centres around the June 30 accident in Mumbai’s Chembur, when a roadside tree collapsed onto a Universal School bus near Tilak Nagar, killing 11-year-old Vihaan Srivastava and injuring five other children.
The accident occurred around 2.50 pm while the bus was carrying students. Local residents and the bus conductor rescued the trapped children before emergency teams removed the fallen tree using a crane.
INQUIRY PANEL SET UP
A three-member BMC inquiry committee later concluded that the civic body's Roads and Gardens departments were not responsible for the incident.
Instead, it recommended imposing penalties of Rs 5 lakh on the contractor and Rs 2 lakh on the consultant associated with stormwater drain works near the site.
With the ruling alliance, the opposition and the mayor all expressing dissatisfaction with the existing inquiry, pressure is mounting on the BMC to order a fresh investigation into the Chembur tragedy.
The issue is expected to remain politically charged until responsibility is fixed and action is initiated against those found accountable.
Two days after Mumbai Mayor Ritu Tawade rejected the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's (BMC) inquiry report into the June 30 Chembur tree collapse that claimed the life of 11-year-old Vihaan Srivastava, the issue triggered a fresh political confrontation in the BMC General Body on Thursday.
The inquiry report, tabled before the House, was dramatically torn by Leader of the House and BJP corporator Ganesh Khankar, who rejected its findings and demanded a fresh probe, alleging that the report was unacceptable and failed to fix accountability for the tragedy.
Raising serious questions about the report, Khankar said, "It is a one-sided report that attempts to shield the guilty. We demand an impartial inquiry into the matter by an independent agency".
"A student has lost his life in the Chembur incident and hence we should give him justice and strict action should be taken against those responsible".
The developments came amid sharp criticism from the opposition, with Leader of Opposition Kishori Pednekar alleging that there was "connivance" between the BMC administration and Mayor Ritu Tawade over the handling of the report.
As the report came up for discussion, opposition members staged a protest, accusing the civic administration of avoiding a meaningful debate despite the mayor's public opposition to the findings.
"There is connivance between the Mayor and BMC administration. She is publicly opposing the report but not allowing discussion on it to happen," said Pednekar, questioning the manner in which the report was handled in the House.
As soon as the report was tabled, Khankar tore copies of the inquiry report and insisted that the findings could not be accepted.
He said the report sought to absolve those responsible for the incident and demanded an independent investigation.
Meanwhile, Khankar further alleged lapses within the civic administration.
"In 2025, there was a letter from the garden department to the road department about roots of trees being cut for concretisation. The road department didn't take further action and the garden department didn't follow up," she said. "Some BMC officials are indeed working hard. But we will not support guilty officials like previous government did".
11-YEAR-OLD VIHAAN WAS KILLED
The controversy centres around the June 30 accident in Mumbai’s Chembur, when a roadside tree collapsed onto a Universal School bus near Tilak Nagar, killing 11-year-old Vihaan Srivastava and injuring five other children.
The accident occurred around 2.50 pm while the bus was carrying students. Local residents and the bus conductor rescued the trapped children before emergency teams removed the fallen tree using a crane.
INQUIRY PANEL SET UP
A three-member BMC inquiry committee later concluded that the civic body's Roads and Gardens departments were not responsible for the incident.
Instead, it recommended imposing penalties of Rs 5 lakh on the contractor and Rs 2 lakh on the consultant associated with stormwater drain works near the site.
With the ruling alliance, the opposition and the mayor all expressing dissatisfaction with the existing inquiry, pressure is mounting on the BMC to order a fresh investigation into the Chembur tragedy.
The issue is expected to remain politically charged until responsibility is fixed and action is initiated against those found accountable.
