Mumbai: Thirty years after his birth inside the Buldhana district prison, Sunil Ghule’s battle for dignity and basic rights is far from over. What began as a fight to correct a single word—“Jail”—on his birth certificate has now turned into a plea for his right to live with dignity, free from social stigma. Despite the Maharashtra State Human Rights Commission (MSHRC) acknowledging the injustice and ordering compensation, Ghule continues to face rejection—not only from authorities this time but also from his own village.

Sunil’s story traces back to 1995, when his mother, an undertrial prisoner in an attempted murder case, gave birth to him inside Buldhana District Jail. His father, Nivrutti Ghule, was also lodged in the same prison. “I was born to my mother while she was under trial. My birth took place inside the Buldhana Jail,” Ghule says quietly. His mother, accused alongside his father, was eventually acquitted. But the stigma of his birth never left him. When Ghule obtained his birth certificate years later, it recorded his birthplace as “Buldhana Jail.”

That single word, he says, destroyed every opportunity that came his way. “It followed me like a curse—in schools, in job interviews, everywhere,” he recalls. In 2023, Ghule approached the Maharashtra State Human Rights Commission (MSHRC) seeking correction of his birth records. The Commission’s order, dated May 3, 2024, became a landmark in recognising the emotional and constitutional weight of his fight.

Referring to the Maharashtra Prison Manual, the Commission observed that “births in prison shall be registered at the local birth registration office, but the fact that the child was born in a prison should not be recorded in the birth register.” Holding the authorities responsible, the Commission stated: “Even if the mother of the child is in jail at the time of delivery, the word ‘Jail’ should not appear on the birth certificate. Because of the mistake on the part of the authority, the complainant suffered for years—losing opportunities and dignity.”

The Commission not only directed the correction of Ghule’s birth certificate— now showing the name of his native village—but also ordered the state authorities to pay him Rs3 lakh compensation for the “mental torture and loss of livelihood” he suffered. Ghule’s moment of justice was short-lived. The State government challenged the Commission’s order in the Bombay High Court, arguing that he “was not in need of financial assistance” and had failed to provide documentary proof of mental and financial suffering.

The legal battle, Ghule says, has left him exhausted and hopeless. “I have lost faith in the system. The same State that wronged me for three decades now says I don’t deserve justice,” he laments. “I will argue my own case before the High Court. I don’t trust anyone anymore.” Even after his birthplace was corrected, Ghule says he continues to live as a social outcast. In his village of Nandura, Buldhana district, residents refuse to let him build a house or work. “The entire village has condemned me,” he says.

“I don’t get any job. They say I am born in jail, so I must be a criminal too. Even marriage proposals disappear once people know my background.” “I just want my fundamental right—the right to live,” he says. “I want the government to rehabilitate me in another village, somewhere I can live like a normal human being, without my past haunting my future.” Ghule’s case raises uncomfortable questions about how deeply bureaucratic indifference can scar a life.

A clerical error, perpetuated for decades, has denied him education, employment, and dignity—rights guaranteed by the Constitution itself. While the MSHRC tried to heal that wound with words of empathy and legal redress, the State’s challenge has reopened it—leaving Sunil in yet another limbo. “I was born in jail,” he says, “but it feels like I have never been freed.”

Mumbai, Nov 10: Indian benchmark indices opened the week in the green zone on Monday, amid positive global cues and investor optimism of FII coming back to India due to loss in artificial intelligence (AI) stocks.

As of 9.25 am, Sensex was up 115 points, or 0.14 per cent at 83,331 and Nifty inched up 35 points, or 0.14 per cent to 25,521.

The broadcap indices outperformed benchmarks in terms of gains, with the Nifty Midcap 100 up or 0.37 per cent, and the Nifty Smallcap 100 adding 0.27 per cent.

Asian Paints, L&T and Hindalco were among the major gainers in the Nifty Pack, while losers included Trent, Apollo Hospitals, Max Healthcare, Maruti Suzuki and Dr Reddy’s Labs.

Nifty IT, Metal and Pharma were among the biggest sectoral gainers, adding 0.56 to 0.79 per cent. All the sectoral indices were trading in the green except Nifty Media.

Analysts said that FIIs, particularly the hedge funds, who have been consistently selling in India and taking money out for playing the AI trade, are now likely to pause and slowly reverse the AI trade in favour of non-AI trade in countries like India.

“The strong earnings growth in the US has been a fundamental support that pushed up AI stock valuations to elevated valuations. Countries regarded as AI winners such China, South Korea and Taiwan also have benefited from this AI rally,” said market watchers.

Analysts noted that there are signs of this AI trade losing steam as evidenced by the 3 per cent decline in Nasdaq last week. If this healthy trend persists without high volatility, it will make the US market robust, preempting a bubble formation and its eventual burst, they added.

Further, Wall Street stocks gained as reports suggested the longest shutdown of the US Federal Government might end.

The US markets ended in the green zone in the last trading session, as Nasdaq dipped 0.22 per cent, the S&P 500 added 0.13 per cent, and the Dow inched up 0.16 per cent.

Most of the Asian markets were trading in the green during the morning session. While China’s Shanghai index lost 0.03 per cent, and Shenzhen dipped 0.59 per cent, Japan’s Nikkei added 1.04 per cent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index added 0.57 per cent. South Korea’s Kospi jumped 3.04 per cent.

On Friday, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold equities worth Rs 4,889 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) were net buyers of equities worth Rs 1,787 crore.

Mumbai: The city woke up on Monday morning to clear skies dimmed by a thick blanket of smog, reducing visibility and blurring its iconic skyline. From Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) to South Mumbai, several areas were engulfed in haze as air quality dipped sharply after a brief phase of improvement.

According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), while Mumbai will continue to witness clear skies through the day, the early morning hours saw visibility reduction due to the smog cover. Daytime temperatures are expected to hover around 34°C, with the minimum likely to settle near 18°C.

Just a few days ago, the city had breathed cleaner air following an intense but short spell of rain that had washed away suspended pollutants. The rainfall brought a temporary respite from humidity and particulate matter, but the improvement was short-lived. Within days, Mumbai’s Air Quality Index (AQI) spiked again, signaling a return to unhealthy levels.

Fresh data from AQI.in, released on Monday morning, pegged the city’s overall AQI at 201, placing it in the unhealthy category. The sharp rise marks a major decline from the good to moderate readings seen earlier this month. Residents across the city reported hazy horizons, smudged skylines and a persistent burning smell in the air, particularly during early hours.

Among the city’s key monitoring stations, Wadala Truck Terminal recorded the highest AQI at 327, categorised as severe. It was followed by Colaba (283) and BKC (270), both in the unhealthy range. Other regions like Deonar (267) and Kurla (247) also registered dangerously high pollution levels, indicating dense concentrations of fine particulate matter (PM2.5).

In contrast, relatively cleaner air was observed in certain western suburbs. Kandivali East reported an AQI of 77 (moderate), while Mankhurd (90), Jogeshwari (93), Parel-Bhoiwada (97), and Malad West (143) fell within the moderate to poor category. Despite this marginal variation, most of Mumbai remained blanketed under poor air quality conditions.

As per AQI.in’s classification, readings between 0–50 are Good, 51–100 Moderate, 101–150 Poor, 151–200 Unhealthy and anything beyond 200 is considered Severe or Hazardous. With pollution levels soaring again, Mumbaikars are advised to limit outdoor exposure and use protective masks when commuting.