Mumbai, Jan 27: Forest department officials were allegedly pelted with stones by a mob while conducting an awareness campaign regarding the removal of encroachments in Sanjay Gandhi National Park at Borivali East.
The windows of a government vehicle were damaged in the attack. A case has been registered against 25 to 30 men and women under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) at Kasturba Marg Police Station on January 26.
Awareness drive turns violent
According to the FIR, the complainant, Mangesh Shinde, 51, is a forest guard posted at Sanjay Gandhi National Park, Borivali East, and works in the Magathane Round Beat. Following a High Court order, action has been proposed to remove illegal encroachments in the national park, and awareness campaigns have been conducted in this regard.
Accordingly, on January 26, 2026, Upper Principal Chief Conservator of Forests Jitendra Ramgaonkar, Director (South) Anita Patil, Deputy Director Kiran Patil, Assistant Conservator of Forests Sudhir Sonawane, and Forest Range Officers Yogesh Mahajan, Pradeep Chavan and Niket Shinde, along with around 40 officers and staff members, conducted a peaceful awareness campaign using loudspeakers in Nawapada, Chinchpada, Dampada, Keldipada and Tumnipada.
Stone pelting during second session
However, at around 3:15 pm, during the second session of the awareness campaign at Nawapada, the situation escalated. Mangesh Shinde, along with forest guards Shantaram Gore, Prashant Ghadge, Savita Kamble, Bhagyashree Balkande, Pooja Rande and others, were present at the spot.
While a team comprising Bhoye, Padmini Shinde, Venkatesh Shinde, Neha Pingale, Shifa Sheikh, Kiran Gaikar, Bhagwan Kutale (forest guard), Kiran Murkar (driver), Raveena Yadav (forest guard) and Umesh Gujar (photographer) was issuing instructions over a loudspeaker, a large crowd gathered at the location.
The crowd turned aggressive and shouted slogans such as, “We will not vacate our houses, do whatever you want.” While officials were attempting to explain the High Court’s directions, Ganesh Sardar, Chhaya Mire, Sangeeta Padwal, Sandesh Dagle, Nanda Khedkar, Dnyaneshwar Sardar, Shyam Baraf, Chandu Rathod, Suryakant Dagle, Sunil Bhangar, Sachin Khedekar, Prashant Potle, Kishore Navghare, Ambadas Pawar, Shevanti Maskar, Geeta Ginjal and Poornima Khedkar, along with 10 to 12 other men and women from Nawapada, allegedly began pelting stones.
The stone-throwing created a serious risk to human life. As the forest officials attempted to leave the area in their official vehicle, the mob allegedly chased them and damaged the vehicle’s windows by hurling stones.
Case registered, investigation underway
Following the incident, Mangesh Shinde lodged a complaint at the Kasturba Marg Police Station. The police have registered a case against the concerned individuals and have initiated further investigation.
According to the High Court order dated October 16, 2025, in Public Interest Litigation No. 305 of 1995 and Contempt Petition No. 9237 of 2023, directions were issued to evict families who had encroached upon the Sanjay Gandhi National Park despite having earlier received rehabilitation benefits in Chandivali.
Accordingly, the eviction of encroachments from 71 houses across eight hamlets under the jurisdiction of the Kasturba Marg Police Station — Nawapada, Ravanpada, Keldipada, Tumnipada, Dampada, Talepada, Malepada and Chinchpada — has been scheduled for January 27, 2026. Public notices have been displayed in all the hamlets, and individual notices have also been served to the 71 families concerned.
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Prior to initiating the eviction process, the forest department had undertaken an awareness campaign to prevent any harm to residents and to inform them about the court’s directions.
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