Sacked Leela guard burns himself on premises

MID-DAY (OCT 2001)

By Skimmy Gupta

Alleging injustice at the hands of security officials at the noted five-star Hotel Leela, a 30-year-old watchman yesterday set himself ablaze on the hotel's premises and was admitted to Cooper Hospital, where his condition was said to be extremely critical.

Rajendra Vithalrao Mahahale was admitted to the male surgical ward, where the doctor on duty said, "His chances of survival are very dim. He has suffered severe 100 per cent burns all over his body."

Mahahale, resident of Saibaba Nagar, Powai, burnt himself inside the service gate of the hotel in Andheri (E) at 8.30 pm, after accusing Leela's security bosses of sacking him from his seven-year job there without prior notice. After the incident, there were only some ashes of burnt clothes and about two to three litres of spilled petrol on the scene.

Marol resident Ratan Asware, eyewitness to the burning and a special executive officer for the city, recorded his account of the grisly incident. He said, "At 8.30, Rajendra, a watchman with Hotel Leela, went into the service gate. A tussle broke out inside the hotel's premises. Within 30 to 35 feet of the hotel's main entrance, inside the hotel's premises, he poured petrol on himself and set himself alight, shouting, 'Nair, Nair.' It was very shocking that even after getting burnt he was talking in his senses and shouting about injustice done to him."

The Nair who Mahahale was shouting for was apparently Shivdas Sakuni Nair, a staff security officer at Leela. Nair and others took the burnt man to Cooper at Andheri.

Samuel George, shift manager at Leela, and a hotel duty manager who refused to be named also refused to reveal any information. "We cannot disclose anything at this moment," George said.

A case has been registered at Sahar Police station, where an assistant police inspector (API), who also refused to be named, said, "Rajendra was employed as a watchman with Hotel Leela for the last seven years. On June 27 he was expelled from his job without prior notice. There seemed to be a cold war between the security guards' union and the hotel's security management. Rajendra said they were pressuring him into giving some kind of written statement.

"After being burnt, while being taken to Cooper, in his own words he told us that a security manager was pressuring him to write on a blank paper, 'Union nahin karoge.' Rajendra was repeating these words constantly till he reached Cooper. He also said that 21 people, including him, refused to give the written statement and were expelled from their jobs in June."

The API further stated that Mahahale alleged he had not been paid for one month of service. However, the API added that a hotel security officer said that the sacked staff had been hired on contract and when their tenure was complete was asked to leave. The API said that he denied all allegations by Mahahale.

The API said hotel staff will be questioned as the investigation continues. "We will question the duty managers and some other relevant authorities. The hotel's officials seem reluctant to talk to us."