3 min readMumbaiMay 3, 2016 01:34 AM IST
First published on: May 3, 2016 at 01:34 AM IST
BJP said breaking a pipleline was damage to public property and the police should not wait for a complaint to act. Express photo
Taking note of a report in The Indian Express about unchecked water thefts in the city, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday demanded that police take action against the ‘tanker mafia’ by booking them under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA).
BJP members, including corporator and group leader Manoj Kotak, approached Municipal Commissioner Ajoy Mehta and demanded that the BMC coordinate with police on the matter.
On Monday, The Indian Express had reported that while water thefts are rampant in Mumbai, the BMC often does not file complaints about them and the police say they cannot act unless an FIR has been registered. The report stated that the Wadala TT police had informed the BMC about a pipeline in Sangam Nagar that had at least 12 illegal points from where water was being stolen.
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Chief spokesperson for the BJP Bhalchandra Shirsat alleged that in Kandivli, water was being stolen from the main pipeline. “Apart from Kandivli, where the water mafia has created a branch line from the main line and is selling the water, another FIR has been registered by a nagar sewak in Chandivli with the Sakinaka police. Even BJP MP Kirit Somaiya had caught water thieves red-handed, but there has been no result,” Shirsat said.
Last month, Somaiya and BJP MLA Ashish Shelar had made allegations about a water scam worth Rs 500 crore.
Kotak alleged that water theft is an organised crime and the police are also involved in the scam. “If someone is stealing water in front of the police, they ought to take suo motu action. Breaking a pipeline is damage to public property. Why does the police need a complaint for this?” he asked. He also said that they have asked the municipal commissioner to speak to police and give the department instructions to file complaints.
The BMC has filed only one FIR in a water theft case till February this year, while 11 were filed last year. Officials in the hydraulic engineering department said the process of registering complaints was a long-drawn one and the department doesn’t have the manpower for it.
“The police don’t arrest anyone, but the official who filed the complaint will be called to the police station several times. Our job is to fix leakages and ensure a steady supply of water, and not to spend time registering complaints,” said a senior official from the hydraulic engineering department.
Though 27 per cent of municipal water is lost to leakages and thefts, in the past six years, the BMC has registered only 98 FIRs of water theft.
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BJP said breaking a pipleline was damage to public property and the police should not wait for a complaint to act. Express photo
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