Following an investigative report submitted by the State Forest Department, the Gorai police have filed a case against Essel Infra Projects and Pan India Private Limited for the destruction of mangroves on the Esselworld plot at Gorai.Mirror had first reported (June 20) on the investigation by the Forest Department and the destruction of the mangroves.Last month, principal secretary of the forest department, Praveensinh Pardeshi, had received a tip-off about large-scale destruction of mangroves, and had asked the additional principal chief conservator of forest, Suresh Thorat, to conduct a spot investigation.The report submitted by Thorat said that at least 13 to 15 acres of mangroves had been “systematically destroyed”.Additional Commissioner of Police (North) Brijesh Singh said that a case has been registered under relevant sections of the Environment Protection Act and Tree Cutting Prevention Act against Essel Infra Projects and Pan India. “The complaint was lodged by the regional officer of the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board, Raju Vasave. Further investigations are on, and no arrests have been made so far,” said Singh.According to the FIR registered, the destruction of the mangroves has been taking place from 2013. The FIR was registered against the directors and managers of Essel Infra Projects and Pan India.The Forest Department report cited satellite data to show that mangroves had been hacked and the flow of sea water to the mangroves was blocked. The report said that to block the view of the plot a 10-ft net was installed around the land.However, at the time of Thorat’s inspection, EsselWorld vice-president R P Tyagi told the team that villagers had been destroying the mangroves, the report said. Tyagi also said that the company had filed police complaints regarding the same.“But the reasoning that villagers destroyed mangroves in a place protected by EsselWorld seems unbelievable. It won't be wrong to say that the police complaints look pre-planned (sic) and is a strategy to save themselves,” Thorat said. On Monday, when Mumbai Mirror spoke to Tyagi, he said, “We have no information of the FIR. We have submitted all relevant documents to the authorities concerned. Someone wants to defame us.”