Mumbai’s firecracker fires and a disputed civic awareness campaign have triggered a political confrontation, with the NCP (SP) questioning Mayor Ritu Tawde’s commitment to public safety after her remarks about actor Dia Mirza’s participation in a Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation video.
NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) spokesperson Clyde Crasto on Monday asked whether Tawde had considered safety a priority when she said, “We don’t need Dia Mirza to teach us how to celebrate Diwali.” Tawde made the remark after the actor appeared in a BMC campaign urging citizens to follow safety precautions while bursting firecrackers.
The dispute comes after Mumbai recorded 137 firecracker-induced fire incidents on Diwali, according to data shared by the civic body. Two firefighters were injured in the incidents, officials said. The single-day tally was higher than the number of firecracker-related blazes recorded during the entire Diwali period in earlier years: 80 in 2024 and 113 in 2025.
The BMC had included Mirza in a public awareness video appealing to citizens to follow the Bombay High Court’s guidelines on the use of firecrackers. The campaign became controversial after Mumbai BJP president Ameet Satam objected to the actor’s participation. The civic body subsequently removed the video from its social media platforms.
Tawde defended the decision to take down the video and said Hindus did not need Mirza to teach them how to celebrate Diwali. The mayor’s remarks then became the focus of criticism from the NCP (SP), which also questioned Satam’s silence on the firecracker-related safety incidents.
Crasto alleged that the BJP leaders had communalised a public-safety message by targeting Mirza. He said the mayor, who is also a BJP corporator, should discharge her responsibilities as Mumbai’s first citizen and serve Mumbaikars instead of engaging in communal politics.
The Bombay High Court later directed the BMC to restore the actor’s video, observing that an environmental issue should not be given a different colour. The order placed the campaign within the court’s broader concern over compliance with firecracker-use guidelines and the environmental and safety consequences of celebrations.
The latest controversy therefore involves two parallel questions for the civic administration: how public messaging on firecracker safety is designed and defended, and how Mumbai responds when firecracker use results in a sharp rise in fire incidents. The 137 blazes reported on Diwali represent the most immediate operational challenge cited in the report, while the court’s direction addresses the handling of the public-awareness campaign.
The political exchange has not changed the reported fire tally or the injuries to firefighters. The BMC’s data, the court’s direction and the statements by the mayor and NCP (SP) spokesperson remain the key elements of the dispute as the city continues to assess the safety impact of Diwali firecracker use.
