On Wednesday, a Mumbai court slapped Mayor Ritu Tawde with a Rs 1,000 penalty for skipping a hearing in a 10‑year‑old assault case.
The case dates back to July 29, 2016, when Tawde, then a BMC corporator, and six others allegedly entered a school in Vakola and hurled abuses at management over a teacher’s transfer; police filed an FIR on Aug 11.
Despite a chargesheet being filed in 2017, the court has yet to frame charges, and the judge warned that the accused are using absences to stall the trial, noting a previous fine of Rs 300 for an earlier exemption request.
Bhansali set a Nov 2 hearing and said the charges will likely be framed the first week of November; a failure to appear will result in a warrant and cancellation of bail bonds, with the fine earmarked for the government treasury.
For the students who once walked those corridors, the case underscores how city politics can spill into classrooms; a cancer‑stricken teacher’s transfer remains a symbol of the fight for dignity amid the chaos.