Moshi Disaster: FIR Targets Two Employees, Questions Mount Over Role of Antony Lara Bosses and PCMC Officials

Reported by Mubarak Ansari

Pimpri Chinchwad, 14th July 2026: In a major development following the catastrophic landfill collapse at the Moshi Garbage Depot, the MIDC Bhosari Police Station (Pimpri Chinchwad Police) on Monday night registered a criminal case against the Project Head and the Safety Officer of Antony Lara Renewable Energy Private Limited. The tragedy, which occurred on July 8, claimed the lives of nine contract workers and left twelve others injured.

The First Information Report (FIR No. 367/2026) was registered at 10:40 PM on July 13 under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including Section 105 (Culpable homicide not amounting to murder), Section 125(a) (Act endangering life or personal safety of others), Section 125(b) (Causing grievous hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others), and Section 3(5) (Joint liability/Common intention).

Details of the Accused

The police have booked two high-ranking officials of the contractor firm:

1. Ashokkumar Siyaram Sharan Gupta (59), Project Head of Antony Lara Renewable Energy Pvt. Ltd., resident of Moshi, Pune (originally from Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh).
2. Vijay Ramrao Sapkal (38), Safety Officer, resident of Chinchwad, Pune (originally from Buldhana, Maharashtra).

The complaint was officially lodged by Sohan Madhukar Nikam (55), a resident of Nigdi Pradhikaran, Pune, on behalf of the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC).

Allegations of Criminal Negligence

According to the FIR, the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) had contracted Antony Lara Renewable Energy Pvt. Ltd. to process municipal solid waste collected across the city. As part of the contract, the operator was legally responsible for inspecting the Secured Landfill (SLF) and implementing robust safety protocols to prevent potential hazards, particularly during the heavy monsoon season.

The FIR states that both Gupta and Sapkal were fully aware that neglecting safety measures on the massive landfill mound could result in a catastrophic slide and lead to the loss of human lives. Despite this awareness, no precautionary or safety measures were implemented.

Consequently, on July 8, 2026, at around 1:30 PM, following heavy monsoon rains, a large portion of the SLF collapsed. The massive slide crashed directly onto an adjacent building and a neighboring road where workers were stationed, trapping several people beneath heavy debris and concrete slabs.

A multi-day joint rescue operation involving the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), the Indian Army, fire brigades, and local police eventually retrieved nine bodies. Twelve others sustained injuries.

Ironically, both of the accused officials—Gupta and Sapkal—are also listed among the injured.

List of Casualties

Deceased (9 Persons)

1. Bhavesh Mohan Vani (33)
2. Akshay Raju Sawant (32)
3. Nagesh Sarjerao Gaikwad (27)
4. Sunil Bharat Korke (36)
5. Mahesh Suresh Kumbhar (32)
6. Sunny Ashok Mane (36)
7. Rahul Dhodiba Gaikwad (37)
8. Ranjeet Jaywant Patil (22)
9. Waman Dagdu Kasabe (54)

Injured (12 Persons)

1. Ashokkumar Siyaram Sharan Gupta (59) (Accused Project Head)
2. Munendra Kumar Sompal Singh (36)
3. Chandrashekhar Sribechan Singh (40)
4. Dadasaheb Kisan Arde (46)
5. Somnath Tukaram Shelke (40)
6. Ranveer Mahendrapratap Singh (49)
7. Rampratap Amar Bahadursingh Chavan (36)
8. Sachin Ramdas Dabadgaon (32)
9. Sujata Santosh Shinde (47)
10. Vijay Ramrao Sapkal (38) (Accused Safety Officer)
11. Mahesh Chandrakant Raut (39)
12. Bhushan Ajay Patil (24)

Police Inspector Ganesh Jamdar is further investigating the case.

Company Management, PCMC Officers Spared?

In the primary FIR registered by the MIDC Bhosari Police, direct criminal liability for the tragic landfill collapse has been pinned on Ashokkumar Siyaram Sharan Gupta (Project Head) and Vijay Ramrao Sapkal (Safety Officer) of Antony Lara Renewable Energy Pvt. Ltd., both of whom have been booked under BNS sections for culpable homicide and negligence.

Beyond these individual employees, the contracting firm itself faces severe vicarious liability; since the service agreement legally mandated the company to execute necessary safety protocols at the Secured Landfill (SLF), its senior corporate management and promoters could face criminal prosecution for corporate manslaughter following the show-cause notices issued by municipal commissioner Dr. Vijay Suryawanshi.

Additionally, several municipal and regulatory officials could be criminally implicated due to systemic supervisory failures and the condoning of unauthorized construction. Senior PCMC Environment Department engineers, including Sanjay Kulkarni and Yogesh Alhat, have already been divested of their charges for gross dereliction of duty in failing to monitor the landfill’s structural instability prior to the monsoon.

Furthermore, there is strong legal basis and public demand to book PCMC town planning and building inspectors who failed to take demolition action against the contractor’s illegal, three-story administrative facility, which was built without authorization dangerously close to the unstable, 30-meter-high waste mound.