Mumbai, July 19 (PTI): Shiv Sena councillors have demanded that the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) file a defamation suit against a popular radio jockey and a local FM channel for allegedly making fun of the civic body in a purported video over the poor condition of city roads.
The corporation has also issued a notice to RJ Malishka, working with a private FM channel in Mumbai, after mosquitoes were found breeding at her house in suburban Bandra.
Sadanand Sarvankar and Amey Ghole, Sena councillors and members of party youth wing Yuva Sena, have in a joint letter to BMC commissioner Ajoy Mehta yesterday demanded that a Rs 500-crore defamation suit be filed against the channel. "The channel and its RJ Malishka have knowingly targeted the BMC to tarnish its image for problems that are not under its jurisdiction," Sarvankar said.
"Everyone knows that the maintenance and supervision of big roads like the Eastern Express Highway and the Western Express Highway is the responsibility of state government agencies. But the RJ, in her video, has portrayed that the BMC is responsible for all potholes (on city roads)," Sarvankar added.
He alleged the video had not only maligned the image of Mumbai and the BMC, but has also shaken the confidence of thousands of civic employees who toil to keep the city free from water-logging during the monsoon. Another Sena councillor, Amey Ghole, said BMC commissioner Mehta had promised steps. "We hope the BMC's legal department will swing into action," Ghole said.
In the 1.23-minute video, titled " Mumbai tula BMC var bharosa nai ka (Mumbai, don't you have faith in BMC)" in Marathi and uploaded on YouTube, Malishka purportedly pokes fun at the potholed roads and delays in suburban trains, besides taking a dig at the corporation and other authorities over the problems of traffic jams during the rains.
The BMC has also served a notice to the RJ alleging that mosquitoes were found to be breeding at her flat in the Pali Hill area of Bandra. "We have served a notice to RJ Malishka under the Mumbai Municipal Corporation Act for the mosquito breeding at her house on the 6th floor of a building in Bandra. During a routine inspection, our team found Aedes mosquitoes breeding in a clay bowl kept under a pot as well as indoor breeding in the pots of plants," a BMC official said. The notice has been served to the RJ's mother, he added.
The RJ could not be reached for comment on the issue.
Mumbai BJP president Ashish Shelar, however, termed the civic body's action of serving the notice on the RJ "unfair".
