Mumbai: The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) expanded disciplinary action across multiple levels of its engineering hierarchy in the fatal concrete parapet collapse incident by suspending two more officials, ordering a departmental inquiry against a chief engineer, and moving to terminate its general consultant — signalling one of the strongest internal responses to a construction site lapse in recent Metro project history.On Feb 14, a 6ft×4 ft concrete parapet segment of the underconstruction Metro Line 4 (Wadala–Kasarvadavali) viaduct fell on an autorickshaw and a car passing below on LBS Road in Mulund West, killing a 50-year-old man and injuring three others. MMRDA had suspended executive engineer Satyajeet Salve on the day of the incident and imposed a preliminary penalty of Rs 5 crore on contractor RAJV-Milan Infra and Rs 1 crore on the general consultant, D B Hill–LBG consortium.

Sources said that at the 160th MMRDA meeting chaired by deputy chief minister and urban development minister Eknath Shinde on Monday, the authority decided to suspend superintending engineer Abhijit Bhisikar. He was responsible for ensuring adherence to safety protocols at the site, but allegedly failed to conduct a mandatory inspection after the parapet segment was installed 10-12 hours before the incident.The authority also suspended deputy engineer Snehal Sawant, and ordered a departmental inquiry against chief engineer Madhukar Kharat. Kharat and Bhisikar were part of the special intensive safety inspection team set up to review the entire Wadala–Kasarvadavali Metro 4 corridor, and were appointed deputy team leaders for inspection of the Sonapur-Gainukh and Wadala-to-Sonapur stretches of the corridor.Officials said the general consultant, D B Hill–LBG consortium, was equally accountable, as its role includes supervision of construction quality, certification of safety compliance, and ensuring that contractors follow standard operating procedures before opening work zones to traffic below.At the meeting, MMRDA also resolved to set up an internal vigilance cell to carry out periodic and surprise inspections of project sites, identify safety violations, verify deployment of qualified manpower, and recommend disciplinary action in case of negligence.Mulund police probing the fatal concrete parapet collapse case are looking for welder Ram Ashish and civil consultant Suresh Sai. Police said it was Ram Ashish’s responsibility to carry out welding of the slab, but he allegedly cut the two interlocks between the parapets and left it loose, causing it to fall. Since the incident, the two have been untraceable. “Now only these two persons can clarify why they cut the interlocking and left it loose,” said an officer, adding that police are also awaiting MMRDA’s internal report on the incident.

Photo: File photo of oil vessel Asphalt Star

NEW DELHI: Indian coastal authorities reportedly “seized three US-sanctioned tanker ships linked to Iran” earlier this month, a source informed TOI on Monday. The vessel seizures follow the improvement in India-US relations with Washington announcing recently that it would cut import tariffs on Indian goods to 18% from 50%.In a related development, US military forces boarded another sanctioned tanker in the Indian Ocean after tracking the vessel from the Caribbean Sea, in an effort to target illicit oil trade connected to Venezuela, the Pentagon said on Sunday.‘Shadow fleet’ vessels Stellar Ruby, Asphalt Star and Al Jafzia carrying sanctioned Iranian oil were seized on Feb 6. India’s unprecedented enforcement action took place the same day that Washington and New Delhi unveiled a major bilateral trade framework.Indian coastal authorities said in a post on X on Feb 6 that they had intercepted the three vessels about 100 nautical miles west of Mumbai after detecting suspicious activity involving a tanker in India’s exclusive economic zone. However, the post was later deleted.Stellar Ruby, Asphalt Star and Al Jafzia frequently changed their identities to evade action by coastal states, and their owners were based overseas, it was said.According to Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), a Washington DC-based research institute, “All three were previously sanctioned by the US for their ties to Iran. They form part of a 30-tanker fleet managed by Jugwinder Singh Brar, a UAE-based Indian national designated by the Treasury Department in April 2025 for operating in the petroleum sector of the Iranian economy. The Stellar Ruby was still flying an Iranian flag at the time of the seizure”.Importantly, Iran too had seized an oil tanker, MT Valiant Roar, on Dec 8 with 16 Indian crew members on board. Of the 16, eight have been released, but eight are still in Iran’s custody. Their families have been demanding the release of the sailors.As for US forces boarding another sanctioned tanker in the Indian Ocean, Venezuela has faced US sanctions on its oil for several years and relied on a shadow fleet of falsely flagged tankers to smuggle crude into global supply chains. President Donald Trump ordered a quarantine of sanctioned tankers in Dec to pressure then-President Nicolás Maduro — Maduro was apprehended in Jan during an American military operation.Several tankers fled the Venezuelan coast in the wake of the raid, including the ship that was boarded in the Indian Ocean overnight. The Defense Department said in a post on X that US forces had boarded Veronica III, conducting “a right-of-visit, maritime interdiction and boarding.” “The vessel tried to defy President Trump’s quarantine — hoping to slip away,” the Pentagon said. “We tracked it from the Caribbean to the Indian Ocean, closed the distance and shut it down,” it added.

Mumbai: A special court on Friday ordered the repatriation of alleged gangster Kumar Krishnan Pillai to Hong Kong, ruling that he cannot be tried for any additional crimes in India following his acquittal in three specific cases for which he was originally extradited. Allowing Pillai’s plea, special judge Satyanarayan R Navander said, “The commissioner of police, Mumbai, shall take necessary steps for repatriation of the applicant, namely Kumar Krishnan Pillai, to his home country, Hong Kong, and shall report compliance to this court within a period of one month.” The detailed order was made available on Monday.

On Monday, Pillai’s lawyer also moved another court where one of the other matters (not included in the extradition proceedings) against him was pending. The lawyer apprised the judge about Friday’s order. Last month that court had issued an open-dated arrest warrant against “alleged gang leader” Pillai in connection with a 2007 shooting that left one man dead and another seriously injured. While Pillai had previously been extradited from Singapore a decade ago to face charges in three other cases, police recently discovered that he remained a “wanted” accused in a 2007 case involving charges of murder and attempted murder. The prosecution argued that Pillai’s arrest is needed for further investigation. It was also submitted that because he has ties abroad, a formal proposal must be made to the govt of Singapore. The process to extradite him began soon after the detention. A police team visited Singapore with a dossier on Pillai — a record of his fingerprints, list of his crimes and other evidence to be presented before a court. In May 2016, a police team visited Chennai to get information about Pillai’s relatives in the southern city. This information, said the police, was also sent to the Singaporean court. Pillai’s mother runs a school in Vikhroli which her husband had started.Pillai, a textile engineer, allegedly fled the country in the mid-1990s and was detained by the Singapore police in Jan 2016. The 48-year-old former resident of Vikhroli who later acquired Hong Kong citizenship was arrested following a red corner notice. While Indian authorities had sought his extradition for six pending cases, the Singaporean court granted permission for trial in only three. Following his arrival in India, trials were conducted for those specific matters, all of which resulted in his acquittal. Despite this, the prosecution opposed his return, citing several other pending criminal cases and non-bailable warrants. Rejecting the prosecution’s objections, the court noted that the purpose of the extradition has been exhausted. It was observed that the prosecution had not obtained permission from the authorities in Hong Kong or Singapore to try Pillai for any other offences.In Nov 2025, Pillai moved court seeking directions to compel the police machinery to take appropriate steps for his repatriation to Hong Kong. Pillai submitted that despite being cleared of the charges for which he was brought to India, he is being held in a legal limbo, unable to leave the country, yet possessing no valid visa or legal status to remain. “After being acquitted in all the cases, the applicant (Pillai) was not repatriated to Hong Kong and continue to stay in India with no status in India or visa for stay in India. The applicant states that he had applied with the FRRO (Foreigners Regional Registration Office) for exit from the country as well as for valid Indian visa for entering but the same is not yet being approved. It is submitted that it was expected that after he was acquitted of all cases for which he was extradited from Singapore, the concerned police authorities ought to have taken steps to repatriate him to his home nation but despite the same, he continues to be in India,” the plea said. It was further submitted “that the current status of the applicant is not been authorised by any provision of law and due to inaction by the police machinery, the applicant had to face several hardships”.

Attari: As the sun dips over the fields of Amritsar, the road to Attari (India)-Wagah (Pakistan) border — famous for ‘Beating The Retreat’ ceremony — tells a story of decline. There was a time, not long ago, when this stretch of National Highway 3 felt like a pilgrimage. Buses lined the roadside. Vendors waved tricolour flags. Men, women and children painted their cheeks in saffron, white, and green.The buzz is still there, but the crowds have nearly halved after Operation Sindoor, reveals data. According to Attari protocol officer Arun Mahal, the daily footfall was 20,000-25,000 on weekdays and 30,000 on weekends before Operation Sindoor, but this figure has now come down to 10,000-15,000.

After Operation Sindoor, carried out to avenge the Pahalgam terror attack, the ceremony had been entirely suspended from May 8 to 20, 2025. When it resumed, the customary handshake between the Border Security Force and the Pakistan Rangers was gone. The gates, too, no longer opened wide enough for visitors to steal a glance of the neighbouring nation.Ashutosh Biswas, who had travelled from Kolkata with his family to see the ceremony, said he had been watching videos of the ceremony, but it was not like what he saw online. “We kept waiting for the moment when the gates would swing open and the jawans would approach each other, but it didn’t happen. We thought the ceremony would have come back to its usual self, but it hasn’t,” said Biswas.Aradhna, a student from Chennai who saw Beating The Retreat with her parents, questioned the rationale behind toning down the ceremony. “They’re playing cricket. Even if they don’t shake hands, they could open the gates for tourists,” she said.Mahal said the footfall might not be like what it was earlier, but had improved over the past few months. “When we restarted after Operation Sindoor, the footfall was mere thousands. The recovery, though slow, has begun,” he said.Ceremony to start at 5pmDue to a change in weather conditions, the timing of ‘Beating The Retreat’ ceremony at the Attari–Wagah border has been revised from 4.30pm-5pm to 5pm-5.30pm. Protocol officer Arun Mahal informed the decision was taken keeping in mind the late sunset during summer.

Pune: The court of additional sessions judge DP Ragit has rejected the bail applications of power-of-attorney (PoA) holder Sheetal Tejwani and suspended sub registrar Ravindra B Taru in the illegal stamp duty waiver on the registration of a sale deed relating to the 40-acre govt land parcel in Mundhwa.A case update on the district court’s website on Monday confirmed the status of the two bail pleas as rejected on Feb 16. “A full text of the court’s order is expected in due course of time,” district govt pleader Pramod Bombatkar told TOI.

Tejwani’s lawyer Deepali Kedar told TOI, “The bail was declined. We believe the merits of the case and the chargesheet filed by the investigating agencies need to be appreciated properly. It is our case that the matter is more of a revenue violation. We have full faith in the higher judiciary and are confident that the matter will receive fair and objective consideration in accordance with law.”Taru is accused of conniving with Tejwani and another suspect to register the sale deed on May 20, 2025, and waiving a 7% stamp duty, which works out to Rs 21 crore for a declared land deal consideration of Rs 300 crore, causing revenue loss to state govt. Tejwani executed the sale deed on behalf of the 272 watandars (original holders of the Mahar Watan land before it was taken over by state govt after the abolition of the Mahar Watan system) in favour of Digvijay Patil, one of the partners in the Amadea Enterprises LLP, which intended to build a data centre at the site.Former deputy CM late Ajit Pawar’s son, Parth, is another partner in Amadea Enterprises, although Parth was not named in the FIR registered on Nov 6, 2025, by the Bavdhan police following a complaint by joint district registrar and stamp duty collector Santosh Hingane.As of now, the land is in possession of the Botanical Survey of India on a lease till 2038. Patil’s anticipatory bail application is pending before the sessions court and is slated for a hearing on Feb 18.On Jan 1, a magisterial court in Paud rejected Taru’s bail application, noting, “The allegations indicated that despite clear indicators of govt ownership and substantial stamp duty liability, Taru proceeded to register the document by charging a nominal amount, ie, stamp paper of 500, resulting in an alleged loss of several crores of rupees to the state. Such acts, at this prima facie stage, cannot be brushed aside as mere inadvertent or clerical mistakes.” The same court had on Jan 13 rejected Tejwani’s bail plea, following which the two moved the sessions court for bail relief.

Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar

PUNE: Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis Monday stayed certificates granting minority status to at least 75 educational institutes across the state soon after the death of former deputy CM Ajit Pawar, who also headed the minority affairs department, in a plane crash on Jan 28. The action followed inquiry demand from opposition members. “Orders have been issued to stay (the permissions) and investigate the matter,” Fadnavis told TOI on Monday. Deputy CM and late Ajit Pawar’s wife Sunetra Pawar, who now oversees the minority affairs ministry, convened an urgent meeting in Mumbai and directed senior officials to take strict action against those who issued these certificates. The issue was flagged by members of Indian Youth Congress (IYC) in Pune, who questioned how the department cleared certificates within hours of Ajit Pawar’s demise. Akshay Jain, general secretary of IYC’s state unit, said the process of issuing minority certificates had been halted by former minister Manikrao Kokate last Aug. After Kokate resigned in Dec 2025, Ajit Pawar took charge and maintained the status quo, he said. Jain said the department, however, abruptly resumed issuing certificates within hours of Ajit Pawar’s death. “He (Ajit) passed away in the morning, and by afternoon, applications from educational institutes were approved. Between Jan 28 and Feb 3, around 75 institutes were granted the minority tag,” Jain told TOI. “This appears to be a nexus rather than the act of an individual. Those found responsible should be punished,” he said, welcoming the CM’s decision to stay these certificates and order an inquiry. The issue was also raised by opposition members, including Congress state chief Harshwardhan Sapkal and NCP-SP MLA Rohit Pawar. “A mere stay on certificates is not enough. A thorough investigation must be conducted. We have information that officials collected Rs 25 lakh for issuing each certificate,” Rohit said. Sapkal said govt must clarify on whose orders the approvals were granted. “Ajit dada had a strong command over the administration. If such a thing happened in his department soon after his demise, the responsibility rests with CM Fadnavis,” he said. Sena UBT’s Ambadas Danve, too, hit out at govt over the issue and demanded a thorough probe. Pyare Khan, chairperson of state minority commission, told TOI that more than 3,300 educational institutes across Maharashtra held minority status and received various govt benefits. “I initiated action against some of these institutes as they operated only to corner concessions under the minority tag, without passing on the benefits to the students. Several cases were also registered against the owners of some education institutes after an investigation by the SIT revealed a large number of bogus teachers,” he said, adding that even education department officials were arrested for aiding these institutes. Khan said minority-status schools were exempted from admitting students under the Right to Education quota and could appoint teachers directly, even without TET qualification. He alleged that management of many such institutes misused this provision to appoint unqualified relatives, harming students’ education.

The defeat against Sri Lanka dragged Australia in front of the exit door of the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2026. Australia started the match well but could not carry the momentum, which eventually gifted them the second defeat in the campaign.

After the match, it was devastating Aussie skipper Mitchell Marsh who said that their chances of survival in the race are completely in the laps of the almighty.

Australia out on a challenging effort vs Sri Lanka

Australia went to bat first at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium and registered 181 in 20 overs. 181 was not a paltry total, but it was Pathum Nissanka, who claimed an unbeaten century, and the top-order Sri Lankan batters who made it easy to claim.

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Mitchell Marsh and Travis Head, the openers of Australia, started off the innings on a positive note. Both of the batters scored a half-century each to add 104 runs for the opening stand.

The way Australia went off, a total over 200 was looking not too far away. As the innings progressed, Sri Lankan bowlers balanced the momentum. Dushan Hemantha took 3, and a brace for Dushmantha Chameera.

Pathum Nissanka’s sublime ton has put Australia on the brink of #T20WorldCup elimination.

Full report: https://t.co/X32rXkliNC pic.twitter.com/Swhxt3gWB9

— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) February 16, 2026

Mitchell Marsh explained why they lost the match

Mitchell Marsh pointed out they might have fallen short by some more runs. He credited the Sri Lankan bowlers.

“I thought it was a competitive total. We probably left ourselves a few short after the start we had. Well played to SL; they outplayed us tonight. We know that at our best we can make big scores. We just lost our way towards the back end. SL bowled really well towards the back end,” Mitchell Marsh said.

Marsh was running out of words as they were standing in front of an unexpected situation. Before the tournament, they were considered a top contender to play the semifinals. In reality, the Australia cricket team can suffer a humiliating exit from the 2026 T20 World Cup.

“We knew we were a few short. Not much else to say except that SL outplayed us. We’re in the lap of the gods now, I think. There are a lot of emotions in the room right now. Haven’t been at our best. Disappointed bunch at the moment,” Mitchell Marsh said in pure disappointment.

Points distribution in Group B

The Aussies are currently at the third spot on the points table of Group B with 2 points in 3 matches. They suffered a stunning loss against Zimbabwe as well. Sri Lanka, with 3 wins in 3 matches, remains on top of the ladder as an undefeated troop in the group stage.

Zimbabwe is placed in the second spot with 4 points. The upcoming match between Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe on February 19 will decide the future of the Australia cricket team.

Read More: Watch: Pathum Nissanka takes a stunner to dismiss Glenn Maxwell in SL vs AUS T20 WC match