Mumbai Mayor Ritu Tawade and two co-accused have been formally charged by a sessions court in connection with an alleged assault at a municipal school in Shastri Nagar, Vakola, in 2016. Tawade pleaded not guilty when the charges were framed and will now face trial in the decade-old case.
The case relates to an incident on July 29, 2016, at an Urdu-medium municipal school in Shastri Nagar, Santacruz East. The First Information Report was registered at Vakola police station in August that year on the complaint of school headmistress Sharifa Momin.
According to the prosecution’s case, a dispute began after teacher Shahin Khan was transferred to another facility in the Bandra Kurla Complex area. The accused allegedly objected to the transfer, citing Khan’s reported cancer diagnosis, and confronted the headmistress and other teachers on the school premises.
The FIR alleges that the confrontation escalated and that two male teachers, Mohd Yakub Rahid and Nadim Ahmed Shaikh, were slapped. The charges framed by the court invoke Sections 353 and 332 of the Indian Penal Code, along with Section 149. These provisions concern assault or criminal force intended to deter a public servant from performing official duties, voluntarily causing hurt to deter a public servant, and joint liability in an unlawful assembly.
The alleged incident occurred when Tawade was a BJP corporator. She has been serving as Mumbai’s mayor since February 2026. The charges are based on the penal provisions applicable at the time of the alleged incident. The maximum punishment under the invoked provisions is up to three years’ imprisonment and a fine.
Tawade appeared in person before the court after an earlier direction requiring her presence. During the previous hearing in October, the judge had warned that failure to appear could lead to a warrant being issued and bail bonds being cancelled.
The court had rejected Tawade’s discharge plea on March 12. While doing so, the judge observed that statements by the two teachers and other witnesses directly named her as an alleged assailant. The court held that the material was sufficient to frame charges, allowing the prosecution to proceed.
The formal framing of charges does not determine guilt. Tawade and the other accused have denied the allegations, and the case will be decided after the prosecution presents its evidence and the defence responds during trial.
