Hoarding crash: HC to pass order on ad director's plea against arrest on August 9

New Delhi: The Bombay High Court on Wednesday, said it would on August 9 pass order on a petition filed by advertising firm director Bhavesh Bhinde, an accused in the Ghatkopar hoarding collapse case, claiming he was illegally arrested and arguing the tragedy that killed 17 persons was an "act of God.”

Bhinde, director of Ego Media who was arrested in May, has sought his immediate release from jail where he is in judicial custody.

A division bench of Justices Bharati Dangre and Manjusha Deshpande, which heard the plea, reserved its order and said it would be delivered on Friday (August 9).

Bhinde has sought that the FIR registered against him be quashed, claiming the May 13 hoarding collapse in suburban Ghatkopar, which killed 17 persons, was an "act of God" and hence he cannot be held responsible for the crash.

Bhinde, booked for culpable homicide not amounting to murder, among other charges, has pleaded for release on interim bail pending hearing of the plea.

The ad firm director's lawyer, Rizwan Merchant, on Wednesday told the court his client was arrested from Udaipur, Rajasthan, on May 16 and then brought to Mumbai.

Bhinde, was, however, shown as arrested only on May 17, Merchant said and submitted this shows his client was in illegal detention for a whole day.

Merchant relied on media reports quoting police as saying that Bhinde was apprehended in Udaipur and arrested.

Public Prosecutor Hiten Venegaonkar argued that Bhinde was only apprehended in Rajasthan and formally arrested on May 17.

Venegaonkar submitted that all procedures for arrest, including signatures of independent witnesses on the relevant document, were followed and urged the court to dismiss the plea.

Bhinde-led Ego Media had erected the giant hoarding that collapsed on a petrol pump amid rains and dust storms. More than 70 people were also injured in the crash.

Citing the India Meteorological Department (IMD)'s bulletin issued on May 12, Bhinde claimed it failed to correctly predict the weather of the next day.

"The IMD bulletin failed to predict the severe dust storms with gusty winds that hit Mumbai on the fateful day (May 13). 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," his plea said.

The "unexpected and unprecedented wind speeds of up to 96 kmph" caused the hoarding to collapse, an event for which neither he nor Ego Media could be held accountable, insisted the petition.

As per his plea, the hoarding was legally installed after securing all requisite permissions from relevant authorities.