Soni Razdan, Vijay Varma express shock over Mumbai hoarding collapse incident

Mumbai: Actors Soni Razdan and Vijay Varma on Tuesday expressed shock and disappointment after a 100-foot-tall illegal billboard fell at a petrol pump here killing at least 14 persons and injuring 74.

The hoarding collapsed in the Ghatkopar area during dust storms and unseasonal rains that lashed Mumbai on Monday, according to civic officials. The billboard was illegal and no permission was taken to install it, they added.

Razdan tagged local civic body Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on X and demanded an explanation for the alleged oversight.

"Why do they only discover the hoarding is illegal AFTER it’s killed 8 people and injured others ? And isn’t the body or persons responsible then liable for prosecution? @mybmc @zoru75," the "Raazi" actor wrote.

Varma reshared a video of the hoarding collapse on his Instagram Story and captioned it as: "Oh no." Popular host Mini Mathur shared the news update on her Instagram Story, saying life in our country has "zero value".

"Whose hoarding is it? Who allowed it to stand there for years? The blame game this week will lead to no answers and the corrupt nexus that allowed the open flouting of rules will never be taken apart. Disgusting," Mathur wrote.

A case has been registered against Bhavesh Bhinde, the owner of M/s Ego Media Private Limited and others for culpable homicide not amounting to murder and other relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code at Pant Nagar police station, another official said.

Search and rescue operations were underway at the Chheda Nagar-based petrol pump on Tuesday morning, according to BMC officials.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, who visited the incident spot late Monday evening, has ordered a structural audit of all hoardings in the city. He also announced an aid of Rs 5 lakh to the kin of each person killed in the collapse.