Arya originally from Pune !! .... who held children hostage in Mumbai's Powai studio ... sustained serious injuries during Operation and later died

 Who was Rohit Arya, man who held children hostage in Mumbai's Powai studio?

The hostage situation ended when police breached the premises through a bathroom and detained the man. Airguns and chemicals were recovered from the scene. The children, all around 15 years old, had gone for acting auditions and were handed over to their guardians after rescue.

Dramatic scenes unfolded in an acting studio in Mumbai's Powai on Thursday noon, where a man held 19 people hostage, including 17 children and a senior citizen. The man, identified as Rohit Arya, died of bullet injury after being shot during a stand-off with cops at Powai studio.

Arya was originally from Pune. He had secured a tender for a school project linked to the education department during the tenure of then Education Minister Deepak Kesarkar.

However, Arya claimed that he had not received payment for this project. As a result, he had staged multiple protests outside the residence of the minister while Kesarkar was in office.

Rohit Arya had also started Swacchta Monitor concept in Maharashtra in 2023. 

He had alleged that he was not paid dues and credit for this concept was snatched from him.  

The operation was carried out in just 35 minutes. 

A Quick Reaction Team (QRT) of eight commandos barged into the audition room through a bathroom, a small entry point chosen to preserve surprise and prevent hostages from being exposed at the main entrance.  

The lead commander first carried out negotiations with Arya in a final attempt to resolve the crisis without bloodshed. But Arya, who was in possession of a gun, some chemicals and a lighter, repeatedly threatened to shoot and set the room on fire if police moved in.

When talks failed, Arya opened fire using what appeared to be a firearm, prompting the commandos to retaliate instantly. 

The lead commando himself fired at the kidnapper, injuring him. Only later did police confirm that the weapon Arya had used was an air gun.

"We were not in a position to take any chance," a senior officer said, adding that the decision to open fire was taken the moment Arya shot at police. Arya was detained, evacuated from the studio and later succumbed to his injuries in hospital.

Inside the studio, the situation was perilous. "The room was completely cramped when the team entered," an official said, describing how frightened teenagers huddled in corners as commandos manoeuvred through overturned camera lights and scattered equipment to shield the children and neutralise the threat.

Forensic teams later seized the air gun, the chemicals and the lighter from the studio and sent them for examination to a forensic lab. Officials said the presence of these materials suggested Arya may have planned to cause further harm.

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