Over ten police teams from Mumbai and Gujarat are actively searching for Bhavesh Bhinde, the director of Ego Media, which owned the massive 100-foot billboard that collapsed in Mumbai, killing at least 14 people, as reported by Hindustan Times. Sources indicate that Bhinde fled the city after the incident, switching off his phone. His phone briefly turned on in Lonavala on Tuesday evening, but its location has been untraceable ever since.
According to Mumbai Police’s crime branch, Bhinde, aged 51, was last traced to Lonavala on May 14. Following this lead, three police teams have been dispatched to the hill station to track him down. Officers are searching for Bhinde in Lonavala, Mumbai, Pune, various airports, and his native place in Gujarat. They have also visited his residence in Mulund and the homes of his relatives but have been unable to locate him.
Pant Nagar police have registered a case against Bhinde under sections 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 337 (causing hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others), 338 (causing grievous hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others), and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code.
Investigations reveal that Bhinde has a history of criminal charges in Mulund, including a rape and molestation case filed by a woman in his office in January 2024 and a cheating case registered in 2016. Despite securing anticipatory bail from the Bombay High Court, a chargesheet has been filed against him. Prior to 2009, Bhinde faced 21 fines for various violations under the Mumbai Municipal Corporation Act, 1888. He unsuccessfully contested the Maharashtra assembly election as an independent candidate from Mulund in 2009.
Responding to the tragedy, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani expressed his condolences and emphasized the need for structural stability certificates for all hoardings. He stated that three more hoardings would be removed due to safety concerns and that Chief Minister Eknath Shinde had ordered inspections of all hoardings in the city. The government has announced an ex-gratia payment of 5 lakh rupees to the kin of the deceased and assured that medical expenses for the injured will be covered.
Ego Media Private Limited, the advertising agency responsible for installing the ill-fated 120×120-foot hoarding in Pant Nagar, had applied to the Limca Book of Records to recognize it as the largest commercial billboard in India. Mumbai Police are looking into whether the structure size was specified in the deal between Ego Media and the Government Railway Police (GRP), which owns the land.
While the local police are currently handling the investigation, the crime branch is pushing for it to be transferred to them due to the scale of the tragedy. As the search for Bhavesh Bhinde continues, Mumbai Police are coordinating with billboard contractors to gain insights into industry practices and establish responsibilities for the deadly incident.
