The Bombay High Court has sought the restoration of actor Dia Mirza’s anti-pollution video on the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s social media platforms, while Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said the decision to retain or delete the clip rests with the civic body.
Fadnavis said the BMC manages its own social media handles and therefore has the prerogative to decide whether the video should remain online. The remarks came hours after the High Court called for the video’s restoration, according to a report by The Times of India.
The BMC had not reposted the video as of Tuesday evening. A senior civic official said the administration was waiting for the High Court order. Sources also said the issue had been taken up with the chief minister’s office to seek clarity on whether the video should be uploaded again.
The video was part of a BMC anti-pollution campaign featuring celebrities. Mirza’s appeal focused on pollution control and public health. The removal of the clip triggered a political dispute after Mumbai BJP chief Ameet Satam objected to the actor’s post. Satam said there was no religious discrimination involved and that the objection was linked to what he described as Mirza’s association with “anti-India forces”, “anti-national elements” and the “tukde-tukde gang”.
Satam said the BJP had the utmost respect for the court and would study its observations and their context. He also said there was no objection to any individual on the basis of religion, caste or creed. The statements followed criticism that Mirza had been singled out even though the video’s subject was pollution and public health.
The controversy has also exposed a governance question inside the civic administration: who has authority over official public messaging when a campaign commissioned by a municipal body becomes politically contentious. Mayor Ritu Tawde had said she was not informed about Mirza being engaged by the BMC for the campaign, and had referred to the actor as “anti-Hindu”, according to the report.
Opposition leaders criticised the civic administration and the BJP over the episode. Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Aaditya Thackeray questioned how the mayor and other political leaders could claim not to know about the BMC’s own campaign decisions. Kishori Pednekar, the party’s group leader in the BMC, wrote to the civic commissioner seeking intervention over the video’s removal and argued that Mirza’s appeal was consistent with the corporation’s stated messaging on pollution control and environmental protection.
AIMIM national spokesperson Waris Pathan also questioned why Mirza had been singled out when others had made the same appeal. Congress leader Sachin Sawant called for action against officials whom he accused of acting unconstitutionally and sought an apology from Satam.
The immediate administrative decision now rests with the BMC. The civic body is expected to examine the High Court’s observations and determine whether the video will be restored to its social media platforms.
