Seven staffers of Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport dismissed from service

Seven staffers of the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) have been dismissed from service after they were found guilty of indecent behavior in a departmental inquiry, an official said today.

The administration had launched departmental inquiry after a video showed some staffers, including actor Madhavi Juvekar, dancing in an indecent manner at an event held in the Wadala depot to celebrate the Dussehra festival last September. Juvekar is also an employee of the best which operates public transport buses in Mumbai and suburbs.

"(The departmental inquiry) found that the seven staffers were involved in the indecent behavior which brought disrepute to BEST and has been dismissed from service," the official said.

Responding to a query, he said the punishment handed to the seven staffers was comparatively mild. BEST committee chairman Ashish Chemburkar said the punishment was "very harsh".

"We understand that whatever they did was wrong which can never be justified or defended. However, this is also true that the punishment like dismissal from service is too harsh.

A salary cut or lowering of grade would have been better," Chemburkar said. He said these employees have an option to challenge the order and that he will recommend lighter punishment for them. In the video that had gone viral, some BEST staffers were seen dancing in a vulgar manner with currency notes and throwing them in the air.

Juvekar had justified the act, saying the notes were not real but were dummy currency notes used by children for playing. (This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)