The Bombay High Court asked civic bodies and government authorities in Maharashtra to take firm action against organisations which flout noise pollution rules and pull up the trusts and others that illegally put up pandals during the festivals.

The direction was given by a bench of Justices Abhay Oka and V L Achilya, which was hearing a bunch of PILs on the issue of illegal pandals set up across the state during ‘dahi handi’ and Ganesh festivals with noise pollution rules flouted and inaction by the authorities.

The bench was informed by senior advocate Sanjeev Gorwadkar, appearing for one of the petitioners Mahesh Bedekar, that during the recent Ganesh and dahi handi festivals, several pandals had flouted noise pollution rules but no action was taken against them by police and the concerned civic body.

Thereupon, the bench inquired from state government and Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) lawyers as to what action they proposed to take during the forthcoming Navrati festival this month and other festivals later.

Government pleader Abhinandan Vagiyani informed that the state would issue a Government Resolution a week before the Navarati festival on the issue and carry out inspection to find out the illegal pandals on roads and footpaths.

The court asked the authorities to strictly implement the noise pollution rules during all the festivals so that the public at large is not harassed and the high court orders in this regard are complied with.

The bench had earlier warned of contempt action against officers who do not take action against the offenders who violate noise pollution rules and set up illegal pandals on roads.

Anil Sakhare, counsel for BMC, said 304 illegal pandals were detected during the recently-concluded Ganesh festival and notices were issued to the organisers for recovery of damages suffered.

The court inquired from the government pleader what action had been taken against the BMC officers who did not act against the offenders of noise pollution rules during the Ganesh festival.

“If you do not take any action against such officers, then we shall direct you to do so,” warned the bench.

About noise pollution, the bench asked the authorities to take action not only against pandals but also against the processions of devouts who take Ganesh idols for immersion.

The hearing was adjourned till October 12.

A magistrate’s court extended the judicial custody of Samir Gaikwad, arrested in the Govind Pansare murder case, till October 23, while denying the permission to subject him to brain-mapping test.

During the proceedings, Gaikwad told the court that he was not willing to undergo brain-mapping because his “mental health” wasn’t good.

The lawyer representing the Pansare family said the test can be conducted after his health improved, but Gaikwad remained firm on his stand.

As such tests cannot be conducted without the person’s consent, the court rejected police’s application seeking permission for his brain mapping.

The court also dismissed police’s request for his fresh custody for identification parade.

Gaikwad, a member of right-wing outfit Sanatan Sanstha, was arrested on September 16 in the case. Pansare, a veteran CPI leader, and his wife were shot by two unidentified motorcycle-borne persons in Kolhapur in February. While his wife survived, Pansare died at a Mumbai hospital.

Following strong opposition from environmentalists to the proposed felling of over 2,000 trees in the leafy Aarey Colony for a Metro carshed, an experts’ committee has suggested that Kanjurmarg in north-east Mumbai be used as an alternative site for such a facility.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has accepted the report and will take the final decision in this regard, an official said this evening.

“Many organisations had demanded that the proposed carshed for Colaba-Bandra-Seepz Metro be shifted to avoid tree-felling on a large scale. The CM set up an experts’ committee in March to look for an alternative,” said the official in the chief minister’s office.

The committee had as its members the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority Commissioner UPS Madan, municipal commissioner Ajoy Mehta, Urban Development Principal Secretary Nitin Kareer, scientist Rakesh Kumar from National Environmental Engineering Research Institute, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation’s SD Sharma and Dr Shyam Asolekar, professor at IIT-Bombay.

The committee examined various alternatives, including Backbay Reclamation, Mahalaxmi Race Course, a plot with Mumbai Port Trust, Bandra-Kurla Complex, the Mumbai University campus at Kalina and Dharavi before finally zeroing in on Kanjurmarg.

This would entail an additional expenditure of Rs. 750 crore.

The committee has advised that the work on the Colaba- Seepz corridor and Jogeshwari-Kanjurmarg corridor should be carried out simultaneously if the carshed is to come up at Kanjurmarg.

The Bombay High Court asked Maharashtra government to take a decision within reasonable time on implementation of the nearly four-decade-old law that makes it legal to run casinos in the state.

A division bench of Justices V M Kanade and Shalini Phansalkar-Joshi was hearing a petition filed by law student Jay Satya seeking a direction to the government to implement Maharashtra Casinos (Control and Tax) Act passed by the Assembly and published in the government gazette in July, 1976.

According to the petitioner, the government has till date not issued a notification implementing the Act.

The High court today said it was the executive’s decision on when and whether to implement the Act but asked the government to take its decision within reasonable time.

Satya found out through the Right to Information (RTI) that the Act had received the Governor’s assent on July 22, 1976. In December last year, he wrote a letter to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis requesting him to notify it but there was no response.

The Act provides for licensing of casinos, permitting certain types of casino games, taxation of the money paid or agreed to be paid by the participants by way of stakes or bets, etc.

Goa and Sikkim are the only two states which currently allow casinos, the PIL says, alleging that the government of Maharashtra has “arbitrarily and unreasonably” kept in abeyance the Act by not notifying it.

The sessions court convicted a city-based film professional for flinging chemical at his former girlfriend and sentenced him to five years’ imprisonment.

“The court also imposed a fine of Rs. 20,000 on Jerrit John, which will be paid to the victim,” said Public Prosecutor Kalpana Chavan.

John owned a production house named ‘No Nonsense’ and had produced-directed television serials. He was arrested on November 12 (and is in jail ever since) after hurling chemical at Aryanka Hosbetkar (26), an international cyclist, at her house in Adarsh Colony in Worli area.

The special women’s court judge Vrushali Joshi convicted John under sections 326 (voluntarily causing grievous hurt), 452 (house-trespass for hurt, assault, etc.,) and 342 (wrongful confinement) of Indian Penal Code. However, he was acquitted of the charge of attempt to murder.

According to police, Hosbetkar had returned from a cycling expedition on that day and was with some friends when John barged into house, dragged her upstairs and flung chemical on her face.

The two had had a relationship for some ten months before the incident. But Aryanka had cut him off after learning that he was actually a married man and had a five-year-old son.