MUMBAI: The shocking hostage crisis that unfolded in a Powai studio on Thursday, where Rohit Arya held 17 children and two adults captive for over two hours and was shot dead during the rescue operation, seemed to stem from mounting frustration over unpaid government dues.

Arya, originally a teacher, had long accused Maharashtra’s education department, and specifically former Education Minister Deepak Kesarkar, of sidelining him after adopting his ideas for the “Majhi Shala, Sundar Shala” (My School, Beautiful School) project, which he developed in 2013. 

The project, inspired by his self-produced film Let’s Change, which aimed to turn schoolchildren into ambassadors of cleanliness, evolved into the “PLC Sanitation Monitor Project,” which he pitched to the Maharashtra education department during Kesarkar’s tenure around 2023. The department adopted his idea, and the “Majhi Shala, Sundar Shala” campaign was launched on December 5, 2023, in government schools across Maharashtra.

Arya claimed a tender was awarded for his work, with a sanctioned budget of nearly Rs 2 crore, but payments stopped abruptly in January 2024. Frustrated, Arya staged multiple protests outside Kesarkar’s residence, including two month-long hunger strikes in 2023 and 2024.

He publicly named Kesarkar, his personal secretary, Mangesh Shinde, Education Commissioner Suraj Mandhare, and others as responsible if he took his own life. "If I commit suicide, then Deepak Kesarkar will be responsible for it," he warned in one statement during his strikes. 

Kesarkar, who served as Education Minister until mid-2024, acknowledged meeting Arya and providing partial assistance. In his first public response to the hostage crisis, Kesarkar told reporters he had issued two cheques – one for Rs 7 lakh and another for Rs 8 lakh – as "personal assistance" and had advised him to talk to the department to resolve issues. 

Kesarkar also accused Arya of irregularly collecting fees directly from schools, violating department rules, which led to an internal inquiry. "He should have spoken to the department and resolved the issue. It is wrong to hold children hostage like this," Kesarkar said, expressing regret but emphasising that the matter could have been settled administratively.