1. Fire breaks out in Thane high-rise; firemen evacuate 150 residents
Around 150 people were evacuated after fire broke out in a 26-storey residential building in Thane city on Friday afternoon. No one was injured.
The building, Giriraj Heights at Hari Niwas, is home to late Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Vasant Davkhare’s family, who were among the residents rescued.
Just a few hours before the fire broke out, former chief minister Sushil Kumar Shinde had visited the Davkhares.
“The fire started in the electric duct between the third and fourth floors and went up to the 26th floor,” said Shashikant Kale, chief fire officer of Thane fire department.
Source: The Hindustan Times
2. Lawyers’ Body Files PIL Against CBI in Sohrabuddin Case
A city-based lawyers’ association has filed a PIL in the Bombay High Court against the CBI’s decision not to challenge a lower court order discharging BJP president Amit Shah in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh fake encounter case.
The Bombay Lawyers’ Association, which filed the public interest litigation, termed as “illegal, arbitrary and malafide” the CBI’s decision not to challenge the December 30, 2014, order passed by a court discharging Shah.
The PIL urged the High Court to issue a direction to the CBI to file a revision application challenging the Sessions Court’s order discharging Shah. The petitioner’s lawyer, Ahmad Abdi, said the plea would be mentioned before a division bench of Justices SC Dharmadhikari and Bharti Dangre on January 22.
Source: Mumbai Mirror
3. Drunk GRP Men Misbehave With Female Rly Staffer
Drunk GRP constables allegedly harassed an onduty woman station master on Thursday. The incident came to light after the woman reported the matter to her superiors and lodged an official complaint with the GRP at Vasai.
The woman, while on duty, had gone to the washroom. Since there was a foul smell in there, she alerted the on-duty RPF personnel.
Suddenly two GRP constables came to her office and allegedly threatened her. In her statement to the police, the woman said, “They were drunk and began verbally abusing me and even threatened me.”
Source: Mumbai Mirror
4. A day after losing husband, cancer survivor kills herself by jumping into well in Mumbai
Forty-year-old Sugntha Ravi lost her son in an accident in 2015, beat cancer last year and lost her husband a day before - a final tragedy for her - as she killed herself by jumping in a well on Thursday morning in Aarey Colony. Known to her friends and family as Shakuntala, she used to work as a housekeeping staff and lived with her sister Seeta.
On Thursday morning, she left from her Unit 13 room after Seeta left for work. She called her cousins and her friend before calling her aunt Jayalakshmi Dharmalingam, who was working at Aarey Dairy when she received Shakuntala’s call at 10.15 am.
Source: The Hindustan Times
5. Mumbai Crime: NRI Woman Alleges Assault by Father, Stepmother, Stepbrother
A 47-year-old Indian-American has lodged a complaint against her father, stepmother and stepbrother with the Khar police for allegedly physically assaulting her. The police have booked 10 people but are yet to make any arrests. Senior inspector Ramchandra Jadhav said, "The family is embroiled in a property dispute. We registered an FIR after receiving her complaint. Earlier, her father had lodged a trespassing complaint."
The victim, Sangeet Dhanuka Till, said, "I have been living with my father since last July. On January 12, when I was with my 11-year-old daughter and my maid had gone out, my father, stepmother, stepbrother and their relatives along with three women bouncers came and locked the doors.”
“They first put pepper spray in my eyes and then beat me up black and blue. I managed to reach Bhabha hospital and call the police. My laptop, two cellphones and some documents were stolen after the incident.”
Source: Mid Day
6. Fire at Navrang Studio in Mumbai’s Lower Parel, Fireman Hurt
A major fire broke out at Navrang Studio inside Todi Mill Compound in south Mumbai’s Lower Parel early Friday, leaving a fireman injured, a senior fire brigade official said. Part of the studio, which was shut years ago, was gutted in the blaze.
The building, in which the studio is located is dilapidated and unoccupied, the official said. “At 1 am, our firemen received a call about the blaze in Todi Mill Compound in Lower Parel. The fire brigade jawans reached the spot by 1.17 am with eight fire engines and water tankers,” chief of the Fire Brigade P S Rahangdale told PTI.
Source: The Indian Express
7. Crocodile Spotted 10 Days Ago in Mulund Pit yet to Be Rescued
A baby crocodile spotted around 10 days ago has been stuck in a garbage-filled pit in Mulund since then as the forest department waits for the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to clear the area.
The reptile was spotted in the pit and the civic body has been trying to pump out the water since January 8 as part of rescue operations.
“Once we received the complaint, our team visited the area where the crocodile was seen. There is a lot of garbage and muddy water. Since it requires the use of pumps that are available with the BMC, we have asked them to clear it to enable the rescue. Once they clear it, we can immediately conduct the rescue operation,” said Jitendra Ramgaonkar, the chief conservator of forests, Thane.
Source: The Indian Express
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