Singapore's Indian-origin human rights lawyer M Ravi dies, says report
Singapore (PTI): An Indian-origin former lawyer M Ravi, widely known for representing death row inmates, including Malaysians, in Singapore, has died on Wednesday at 56.
He was found dead in the early hours of December 24, according to a report by The Straits Times. Police are investigating a case of unnatural death, said the daily report.
Ravi, whose full name was Ravi Madasamy, was born in 1969 and was a lawyer for more than 25 years.
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He had also been in the news over his conduct, and was an advocate for the LGBTQ community and supported the abolition of the death penalty. Ravi was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2006.
Lawyer Eugene Thuraisingam, who had previously served as Ravi's counsel, said that he "was a man who stood up for and fought hard in court for what he believed in".
"He was dedicated to his pro bono work and deeply cared for his clients," the Channel News Asia quoted Thuraisingam as saying.
"He was a friend and he will be deeply missed by all in the legal fraternity."
According to the Encyclopedia of Singapore Tamils, an online resource, Ravi was a graduate of the National University of Singapore and Cardiff University and was called to the Bar in 1996.
He founded his own law firm, M Ravi Law, in 2019.
In 2023, he was recognised for his human rights work by the International Bar Association, receiving its "Award for Outstanding Contribution by a Legal Practitioner to Human Rights".
The organisation, according to the Channel report, praised Ravi for his "extraordinary dedication to defending human rights and advocating for the decriminalisation of homosexuality and the abolition of the death penalty in the Republic of Singapore".
Thirty-three offences—including murder, drug trafficking, terrorism, use of firearms and kidnapping—warrant the death penalty under Singaporean law.
Ravi had several brushes with the law, being fined for disorderly behaviour in 2004 and given a mandatory treatment order to address his bipolar disorder in 2018, before he was sentenced to 14 weeks' jail for a string of offences in 2024.
He was handed a five-year suspension from practising law in 2023 for making "grave and baseless accusations of improper conduct" against the attorney-general, officers from the Attorney-General's Chambers and the Law Society.
Ravi was a one-time political candidate, running in the 2015 General Election as part of a Reform Party slate.
He was also an author, publishing an autobiography, Kampong Boy (a boy from a village), in 2013. The book was shortlisted for the Singapore Literature Prize the following year.
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BMC turning blind eye to air pollution issue, says HC; questions nod for over 125 projects in city
Mumbai (PTI): The Bombay High Court on Wednesday castigated the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) for turning a "blind eye" towards the issue of air pollution in the city and for "not doing anything" to mitigate the problem.
A bench of Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Gautam Ankhad also questioned as to how the BMC has granted sanction to over 125 construction projects over Rs 1,000 crore in a small city like Mumbai, stating that the situation has now gone beyond the civic body's control.
The court had warned the BMC that it would pass orders restraining it from granting any further permissions for construction if the air pollution situation persists in the city.
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"How can 125 projects worth more than Rs 1,000 crore be sanctioned in such a small city? That is a lot. Now the situation has gone beyond your (BMC) control. Now you are not able to manage things," HC said.
The court urged the BMC to strengthen its mechanism in such a way that the measures are preventive in nature and not remedial.
The court was hearing a bunch of petitions raising concerns over the deteriorating air quality index in the city.
"The BMC is not doing anything. Even the minimal requirement is not being done. You (BMC) don't have anything in place. There is no implementation plan," the court said.
The civic body has not applied its mind at all, it added.
"The BMC is not working at all. There is no monitoring. The BMC has turned a blind eye to the issue," the HC said, adding the measures taken have to be preventive and not remedial.
The court noted that despite having wide powers, the BMC was not doing anything.
The high court was also irked with the 91 squads of the BMC not conducting inspections at construction sites.
Senior counsel S U Kamdar, appearing for BMC, said on Tuesday 39 sites were visited. The officers of the other squads are busy with election duty, he said.
The bench then said election duty cannot be an excuse.
"You (BMC) can always make an application to the election commission seeking exemption," it said.
Kamdar told the bench that AQI on Wednesday was at 88 which is considered satisfactory. The situation last year was worse, he said.
The bench, however, said simply saying pollution has decreased does not mean the BMC was working.
When the court questioned what the corporation proposed to do in the next two weeks, BMC commissioner Bhushan Gagrani, who was present in the court, said the squads would inspect a minimum of two construction sites per day and take necessary action.
The bench said the squads should be provided with button cameras and GPS devices.
The bench posted the matter for further hearing on January 20.
