Maharashtra Education Dept Clarifies Payment Row With Rohit Arya Killed In Powai Standoff
Maharashtra’s education department denies owing ₹2 crore to filmmaker Rohit Arya, saying his Swachhata Monitor project lacked proper documents before the Powai hostage tragedy.
Late on Thursday evening, the Maharashtra school education department issued a detailed clarification addressing the controversy over alleged unpaid dues to filmmaker and activist Rohit Arya, who was shot dead by Mumbai Police after he held 17 teenagers hostage during an audition in Powai.
During the standoff, Arya released a video claiming that the government owed him ₹2 crore. However, the education department has disputed this, saying Arya had himself collected registration fees from schools for participation in Swachhata Monitor 2024–25, a state-wide cleanliness initiative. Officials added that his submitted budgets were vague and lacked the required documentation.
Dispute Over Swachhata Monitor Payments
According to the department, Arya was instructed in August 2024 to deposit the collected funds into a government account and then resubmit a detailed, documented budget for approval. “He failed to do so, and the matter remained unresolved,” the statement said.
Records show that Arya’s firm, Apsara Media Entertainment Network, first implemented Project Let’s Change under Swachhata Monitor in September 2022 through the government’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative. The project was approved again in June 2023, with the company receiving ₹9.9 lakh.
In 2023–24, the government sanctioned ₹2 crore under the Mukhyamantri Majhi Shala Sundar Shala campaign for Swachhata Monitor Phase-2. However, Arya’s proposal reportedly contained unclear figures and unsupported expenses related to advertising, technical support, and management. Due to these “technical gaps”, the project could not proceed.
New Proposal and Alleged Irregularities
Later, Arya proposed Swachhata Monitor 2024–25, seeking ₹2.41 crore for implementation across all schools in Maharashtra. While this proposal was under consideration, officials discovered that Arya’s firm was charging schools registration fees through a private website without government approval.
Mumbai: Maharashtra government clarified that the late Rohit Arya and his firm, Afsara Media Entertainment Networks, had no official link with the state’s School Education Department.
— IANS (@ians_india) October 30, 2025
A government release stated that Arya’s CSR project “Swachhta Monitor” was approved only in… pic.twitter.com/7bt95v1TRr
On 23 August 2024, the education commissioner in Pune directed Arya to deposit all collected fees into a government account and to provide a written undertaking not to charge schools further. “Since these requirements were not fulfilled, no further action could be taken,” the department stated.
The Swachhata Monitor initiative was eventually discontinued after the Devendra Fadnavis-led government assumed office following the 2024 Assembly elections.
Former Minister Deepak Kesarkar Responds
Earlier on Thursday, former school education minister Deepak Kesarkar confirmed that Arya had approached him regarding the alleged non-payment. Kesarkar said he personally gave Arya some money after verifying that the filmmaker had not submitted the necessary documents.
“I called a meeting with officials, and it became clear he hadn’t submitted proper bills. No department can release funds without documentation. He was demanding payment without paperwork and refused to cooperate. Out of humanity, I paid him some amount from my personal account,” said Kesarkar, who served as education minister from 2022 to 2024.
Kesarkar added that Arya had once protested outside his residence. “He should have resolved his issues through official channels instead of resorting to such an extreme act,” said the Shiv Sena MLA from Sawantwadi, who is not part of the current Cabinet.
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