Mumbai: The special PMLA court has allowed the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to take the custody of YS Reddy, suspended deputy director of town planning of the Vasai-Virar City Municipal Corporation (VVCMC), in the money laundering case linked to illegal constructions.

Apart from him, ex-VVCMC chief, IAS officer Anil Pawar, and builder duo, Sitaram Gupta and Arun Gupta, have been arrested. They were remanded to judicial custody for 14 days on August 20, however, the ED had reserved its right to obtain their custody for further interrogation.

Reddy was remanded to ED custody till Monday after the agency submitted that he needs to be questioned regarding the huge amount of cash and jewellery found at his residence.

The ED sought Reddy’s after a civic employee allegedly gave a statement that he along with Pawar forced him to collect and deliver bribes to them. The employee revealed that while big architects and builders had access to meet Pawar at his official residence, smaller architects would send their representatives with him to deliver cash to Pawar’s cook or other staff, said the officials.

The employee has also provided a list of 457 commencement certificates (CC) issued for projects in ‘Urban Zone’ and 129 CCs for D-Zone in lieu of bribes, they added.

The agency said that it has also recorded the statement of an architect on September 1, who claimed that Pawar and Reddy sought bribes for granting CCs. The architect said that he has negotiated and facilitated payment of bribes to the duo, as per the statement.

Besides, ED prosecutor Kavita Patil referred to the August 29 statement of a builder, who claimed that he had paid Rs4.28 crore in bribes, which were collected at a rate of Rs30 per sq ft, to the accused. The builder also claimed that he had paid around Rs15 crore to Reddy and Pawar for various approvals granted by them, said Patil.

However, Reddy’s lawyer argued that he has already given explanation to the adjudicating authority regarding the valuables seized from his residence and that seeking custody was the ED’s tactic not to submit its reply, as directed, in this regard by September 10.

Accepting the ED’s contention, the court said, “Considering the statements of witnesses and the list of CCs, the investigation cannot be completed in a proper manner without Reddy’s custody.”

Mumbai: In a swift and coordinated operation, the Mumbai Crime Branch has arrested a 50-year-old man from Noida, Uttar Pradesh, within 24 hours after he allegedly threatened to blow up the city using human bombs and 400 kg of RDX explosives.

According to officials, on September 4, 2025, at 2:57 pm, an unidentified person sent a WhatsApp message to the government-issued mobile number of the Mumbai Traffic Control Room in Worli. The message claimed that a massive terror attack would be carried out in Mumbai using human bombs and explosives.

The threat, which came amid the backdrop of Ganesh Visarjan celebrations in the city, was taken very seriously given the potential to disrupt law and order. Acting swiftly, the Crime Branch used technical investigation and intelligence-based tracking to trace the accused. With assistance from Gautam Buddh Nagar Police in Noida, the suspect — Ashwinikumar Sureshkumar Supra (50) — was arrested. The mobile phone used to send the threatening message has also been seized.

The case has been registered under Sections 196(1)(A)(B), 351(2), 351(3) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) at Worli Police Station.

Mumbai: The Samta Nagar police registered a case against five individuals for allegedly physically assaulting and verbally abusing police personnel, as well as obstructing government work.

On September 2 in Kandivali East, a police team on duty was allegedly abused and pushed by relatives of a drunk-driving accused while action was being taken against him. The incident also involved attempts to obstruct government work.

A case has been registered against five people, including three women. The Samta Nagar police arrested two accused, identified as Ajay Ramesh Bamane and Ganesh Bamane, who were later released on notice. The three women—Vidya Sonawane, Vijaya Bhat, and Varsha Bamane—have been named as co-accused and declared wanted in the case.

According to the police, the incident occurred on Tuesday, September 2, at around 12:45 p.m. near the Akurli Road Subway, Big Bazaar, Kandivali. Local police had increased patrolling and blockades during Ganeshotsav to prevent any untoward incidents. That afternoon, a team from Samta Nagar Police Station, along with traffic police, was on blockade duty in the Big Bazaar area when Police Constable Surwale noticed that Ajay Bamane was driving under the influence of alcohol.

He was stopped, and action was initiated against him. At this point, his relatives—Vidya Sonawane, Vijaya Bhat, Varsha Bamane, and Ganesh Bamane—intervened and began arguing with the police. They allegedly gathered unlawfully, abused the police, and attempted to assault them to stop the action against Ajay. They reportedly tried to attack Police Constable Siddharth Kini, Sub-Inspector Garad, and Woman Constable Tandale, even scratching PSI Garad with their nails while obstructing her from performing her duty. The situation created a tense atmosphere in the area.

On receiving information, additional police personnel from Samta Nagar Police Station rushed to the spot. Ajay Bamane and Ganesh Bamane, who were found arguing with and assaulting police officers, were detained for questioning. A case was registered against all five accused under sections related to obstructing government work, abuse, pushing, and assaulting police officers.