Mumbai: A routine complaint by Member of Parliament Priyanka Chaturvedi about an interruption in her residential telephone service turned into a shocking discovery when MTNL (Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited) staff found that eight copper cables, worth ₹12 lakh, had been stolen. The incident occurred in Uttam Nagar, Goregaon West, and has led to an FIR being filed with the Goregaon police.
On March 22, MP Chaturvedi reported to MTNL that her landline phone was out of service. The next day, MTNL technicians found that the line near the MTNL office was operational but continued their inspection near the MP’s residence. Upon closer inspection, they discovered that the duct lid was open, and eight copper cables, valued at ₹12 lakh, were missing from the area. These cables, which were laid before 1995, spanned a total of 2,736 meters.
MTNL’s investigation revealed that the theft occurred after the line was interrupted, and staff immediately alerted the authorities. Girish Sawant, a manager at MTNL, filed a complaint with the Goregaon police. As a result, an FIR was registered against an unidentified person for theft under Section 303(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
Police are now investigating the matter and are working to track down the thief or thieves responsible for this significant loss.
