BMC

legal notice

social media

open manhole

Phoenix Mills

Samir Arora and the tweets that have landed him in trouble.

The spot inside Shri Laxmi Woolen Estate, Mahalaxmi, where Arora fell into an open manhole

Arora fell into a manhole in a private office complex in April, but blamed thefor his ordeal in a series of tweets dripping with sarcasm.The BMC, for the first time, has issued ato an individual for criticising its functioning, signaling a new aggressive stance on countering the flak it receives, at times unwarranted, onThe municipal corporation has issued a notice to top fund manager Samir Arora, founder of Helios Capital, demanding an apology for calling it names when he fell into aninside a private property on April 25 this year. According to the notice, Arora continued tweeting sarcastic remarks blaming the BMC for his ordeal even after it was pointed out that the manhole was not the responsibility of the civic body and that a notice had been issued to Shri Laxmi Woolen Estate, Mahalaxmi, where the mishap occurred.Given the Singapore-based Arora’s rockstar status in the investment world, his and his friends’ remarks were retweeted hundreds of times and were also reported widely by newspapers and television channels.The first tweet had come from Neeraj Batra, one of Arora’s friends, on April 26. It said -- “A dear friend fell in an open manhole yesterday outside...fortunately did not go down and was rescued. The public should throw some of these BMC guys down these open manholes.”Responding to the tweet, Arora, a resident of Marathon Innova building in Lower Parel, wrote -- “It was scary as hell (and smelly). Was within micro-seconds of disappearing. Quick reflexes and shape of manhole gave me a second life. Guys and gals, be careful in life and remain safe. Yeh hai Mumbai meri jaan and was close to taking my jaan.”The next day, newspapers carried Arora’s story with the BMC clarification that the manhole in which Arora fell was inside a private commercial complex and thus not in its jurisdiction.On the same day, senior journalist Sucheta Dalal too tweeted about Arora’s ordeal. The BMC responded to Dalal’s tweet and clarified once again that the manhole was not its responsibility.However, paying no heed to the BMC’s clarifications, Arora on April 28 tweeted again. This time saying -- “If BMC finds my Samsung phone in the drain they can keep it with my compliments.”It appears a few days later Arora realised his mistake as stories of BMC threatening to sue him began to appear on some websites. But instead of issuing an apology, he chose to tweet unabashed praise for BMC on May 3. He wrote – “This is to put on record that BMC is the best municipal corporation in the world. We are all very proud of BMC. I hope all Mumbaikars will join me in applauding the services delivered by this very great organization.”This last message, it is obvious, did not have the desired effect on the BMC.The BMC notice says that Arora should have been aware how misleading information spreads on social media. “It is expected of a responsible citizen to be true in his posts,” says the notice, which demands apologies by Arora in all the newspapers that carried his statements.The notice also says that if Arora does not issue an apology within a fortnight, the BMC will pursue legal action against him.In the August 2017 floods, top gastroenterologist Dr Deepak Amarapurkar, 59, had died after falling into an open manhole. Many people retweeting Arora’s messages had drawn a parallel between his experience and Dr Amarapurkar’s death.The BMC’s notice says that Arora called for violent attacks on BMC workers by retweeting his friend Neeraj Batra’s message which asked people to “throw some of these BMC guys down these open manholes.”Batra’s tweet is no longer available.A senior civic official, who did not wish to be identified, said the BMC is serious about initiating legal action against Arora. “We want to set a precedent. False, motivated criticism of BMC will not be tolerated,” he said.Replying to an email from Mumbai Mirror, Arora said he hadn’t received the notice yet. “I have not received any notice yet. Will see what to do after I receive it,” Arora said.