Mumbai: Businessman Threatened Over Tender Securing; Case Filed

The Borivali police have filed a case against a businessman for threatening another businessman for securing a tender for a trauma care hospital in Jogeshwari.

According to the police report, the complainant Praveen Joshi, 65, a Borivali West-based businessman, operates ‘SP Industries’ and secures contracts, including those from railway administration, BARC, and the BMC, through online tenders for cleaning and pest control services.

The FIR alleges that another businessman Santosh Gowalkar, 45, representing Swami Samarth Enterprises, also sought the same tender and began threatening Joshi via phone calls to withdraw his tender application.

On March 13, at 1.32 pm, Gowalkar entered Joshi’s office accompanied by two unidentified people. He verbally abused Joshi and threatened to secure the pest control tender for the Trauma Care Hospital by force. Refusal, he warned, would result in harm, including Joshi’s death, and he threatened not to allow him to participate in future tenders.

The trio also threatened to vandalise Joshi’s office if the tender was not withdrawn. Joshi further alleged that Gowalkar threatened to have him abducted by his associates if he were spotted at the trauma hospital tender site.

Consequently, Praveen Joshi filed a case under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, including 323 (voluntarily causing harm), 34 (common intention), 448 (trespass), 504 (provocation of breach of peace), 506(2) (criminal intimidation), and 506 (threatening to cause death).