Borivali RTO haunted by ‘ghost permit’ allegations and fake renewals

The Borivali Regional Transport Office RTO has come under scrutiny after allegations surfaced that autorickshaw permits and vehicle fitness certificates were renewed in the names of deceased owners raising serious questions over procedural lapses and an alleged nexus between agents and officialsThe allegations were raised by RTO agent Bhupesh Mishra who claimed that several vehiclerelated processes were completed without the presence consent or even knowledge of the registered owners mdash some of whom had already diedAn efee receipt linked to vehicle number MH04HJ5056 registered in the name of Shobha Hulmukh in ThaneFollowing complaints submitted to the Borivali RTO one of the vehicles involved was reportedly seized and an inquiry was initiated into how permits and vehicle passings were processed despite the owners being deceasedWhat the allegations sayAccording to Mishra the issue first came to light while he was handling the sale of an autorickshaw bearing registration number MH47AW0307 The vehicle allegedly belonged to Jitendra Saw who had shifted to Kolkata after defaulting on loan repayments The bank later repossessed the vehicle and sold it onwardMishra claimed he had informed the new buyer that the original owner would need to be physically present in Mumbai for future permit renewal formalities However he later allegedly discovered that the permit had already been renewedAn efee receipt linked to vehicle number MH47D4629 registered in the name of Shobha Hulmukh in BorivalildquoI immediately called Jitendra Saw and asked whether he had come to Mumbai for the renewal process He told me that he had not visited Mumbai at allrdquo Mishra alleged He further claimed that agents operating within the RTO allegedly renewed the permit for Rs 15000 without the ownerrsquos consent or presenceAlleged assault and wider probeMishra alleged that after filing complaints he was confronted by some agents inside the RTO premises who allegedly abused and pushed him during an argument He claimed the incident prompted him to independently examine other suspicious casesldquoDuring my inquiry I found two more cases where the registered owners had already died In one case the permit was renewed while in another the vehicle fitness passing was completedrdquo he allegedRegistration details of vehicle allegedly linked to Shobha Hulmukh whose name surfaced during probe into permit irregularities at Borivali RTOMishra also alleged that he found a case in which a woman was allegedly holding two separate autorickshaw permits issued by two different RTO jurisdictionsFormer corporator seeks auditSheetal MhatreFormer corporator Sheetal Mhatre has submitted a complaint to the RTO Commissioner demanding action against officials and middlemen allegedly involved in the irregularities Calling it a ldquosystemic failurerdquo Mhatre questioned how permit renewal applications submitted in the names of deceased individuals could be processed without verificationIn her complaint she demandedgtgt A detailed and timebound inquirygtgt Strict legal and departmental action against those responsiblegtgt An audit of all permitrelated transactions processed at Borivali RTO over the past three yearsgtgt A public report detailing findings and action takenldquoPublic offices are meant to safeguard citizen rights not become corridors where even the deceased are made to lsquoapplyrsquo and lsquorenewrsquordquo Mhatre statedCase files under scrutinyCase 1 Permit allegedly renewed three years after the ownerrsquos deathVehicle number MH47AJ0334Owner Rakesh Kumar Avadhnarayan GaudReportedly died March 27 2023According to the complaint the vehicle was repossessed by a finance company after Gaudrsquos death and later acquired by driver Deenanath Yadav through an EMI arrangementYadav claimed he spent nearly R60000 repairing the vehicle but the permit had expired He alleged that an agent later offered to renew it for R15000 and completed the process despite the registered owner being dead for nearly three yearsThe vehicle has since reportedly been seized pending investigationldquoWhatever I earned has now gone into expensesrdquo Yadav saidCase 2 Vehicle passing allegedly completed after ownerrsquos deathVehicle number MH47 X4570Owner Rakesh PalReportedly died March 4 2024After Palrsquos death his wife Shiv Devi Pal allegedly rented out the autorickshaw to a driver while planning to legally transfer the permit into her name after clearing pending loan duesShe alleged that when the vehiclersquos mandatory passing became due the driver got the vehicle passed through his own contacts without informing her or completing any legal transfer processShiv Devi currently staying near Allahabad said she now wants the permit legally transferred so she can continue earning an income for her childrenrsquos futureCase 3 Permit allegedly renewed without owner visiting MumbaiVehicle number MH47AW0307Owner Jitendra SawThis was the case that allegedly first alerted Mishra to the irregularities According to him the permit renewal was processed even though the original owner had not travelled to Mumbai or completed the formalities in personCase 4 Alleged dual permit issueName Shobha HulmukhVehicles involvedMH47D4629 mdash Borivali RTOMH04HJ5056 mdash Thane RTOMishra alleged that Hulmukh was holding two separate autorickshaw permits issued by different RTO jurisdictions allegedly violating transport regulations Complaints were reportedly submitted to both the Borivali and Thane RTO offices According to Mishra one of the records was later locked on official portal with remarkldquoLocked by Thane due to others mdash a single person having two permitsrdquoHulmukh declined to commentRTO responseAssistant Transport Officer Shyam Kasar said the matter is under investigation and appropriate legal action would be taken based on the findingsKey allegationsgtgt Permits renewed in the names of deceased ownersgtgt Vehicle passing allegedly completed after the ownerrsquos deathgtgt Permit renewal allegedly done without the ownerrsquos physical presencegtgt Alleged involvement of agents operating with officialsgtgt One individual allegedly holding permits from two RTO jurisdictionsAction so fargtgt Two vehicles reportedly seizedgtgt Complaints filed with RTOgtgt Inquiry underwaygtgt One vehicle record allegedly locked by Thane RTOAuthorities involvedBorivali RTOThane RTOFinance banks linked to repossessed vehicles