Thane, May 30 (PTI) A court in Thane in Maharashtra rejected the pre-arrest bail pleas of two Mira Bhayander Municipal Corporation officials in connection with a police case on destruction of mangroves.

In his order of May 25, the detailed copy of which was made available now, District Judge PP Jadhav said MBMC executive engineers Deepak Kambit and Suresh Wakhode did not deserve protection from arrest.

The court order said the state has alleged that Kambit and Wakhode had, between January 2 and March 23 this year, issued a tender for construction work in prohibited mangrove area situated near Mira Road in the township.

It said the tehsildar of Mira Bhayander had submitted a report stating that mangroves had been damaged in the area and, therefore, an offence was committed.

The court order said the applicants were likely to obstruct the investigation and tamper with evidence if pre- arrest bail was allowed.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)