Mumbai prohibitory order in force until 25 October, next one already issued for 27 October to 10 November: what is barred and who is exempt

A prohibitory order is in force across the whole Greater Mumbai Police Commissionerate and runs until the end of Sunday, 25 October 2026. Until then, five or more people may not gather together and no procession may be taken out. Everyday work, weddings and funerals are exempt. Mumbai Police have already issued a similar order for the next 15 days, from 27 October to 10 November.

The order at a glance

• Issued by: Akbar Pathan, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Operations) and Executive Magistrate, Brihanmumbai
• Legal basis: Section 37(3) read with Section 10(2) of the Maharashtra Police Act, 1951. (It is not an order under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita.)
• Period: from 00.01 hours on 11 October 2026 to 24.00 hours on 25 October 2026
• Area: all of Brihanmumbai, the area under the Mumbai Police Commissioner
• Signed on 7 October 2026; posted on the Mumbai Police website on 14 October
• Reason given: the order says information from various sources pointed to a possible breach of peace, disturbance of public order and serious danger to life and property, and that it aims to prevent riots or affrays.

What is barred

• Any gathering of five or more people
• Any procession, by anyone
• Using loudspeakers, sound amplifiers or bands, or setting off firecrackers, in a procession by such a gathering

In the order's own wording, the ban on loudspeakers, bands and firecrackers is tied to processions. Some news reports described it as a blanket ban on firecrackers, but the order says nothing about firecrackers outside a procession.

Who is exempt

• Weddings and other wedding-related functions
• Funeral gatherings and funeral processions to a crematorium or burial ground
• Statutory meetings of companies, clubs, co-operative societies and other societies and associations
• Social gatherings of clubs, co-operative societies, housing societies and associations, and their meetings for routine business
• Audiences at cinemas, theatres or other places of entertainment for a film, play or show
• People at or around courts and government or local-body offices on official or semi-official work
• People at or near schools, colleges and other educational institutions for academic purposes
• Normal trade, business and work at factories, shops and establishments
• Any other gathering or procession that a zonal Deputy Commissioner of Police or their senior officers permit

Next order: 27 October to 10 November

A further order signed on 21 October by Akbar Pathan, DCP (Operations), will apply across Brihanmumbai from 00.01 hours on 27 October 2026 to 24.00 hours on 10 November 2026, a period of 15 days. Its prohibitions and exemptions are the same as in the current order. Mumbai Police said in July that such orders are issued routinely every 15 days, TV9 Marathi reported at the time.

What it means for you

• Offices, schools and colleges, shops, factories, courts, government offices and cinemas work as usual; people gathering there are not covered by the ban.
• Weddings and funerals can go ahead as normal.
• Housing societies, clubs and co-operatives can hold their regular meetings and social get-togethers.
• If you are planning a march, rally or procession, get permission from your zone's Deputy Commissioner of Police first. A procession without permission, or one using loudspeakers, a band or firecrackers, would breach the order.
• The order says investigations, legal proceedings and penalties for any violation can go on even after it expires. It does not name a specific penalty section.

Sources: Mumbai Police: prohibitory order, 11 to 25 October 2026 (posted 14 October); Mumbai Police: prohibitory order, 27 October to 10 November 2026 (posted 21 October); TV9 Marathi (20 July 2026); Navarashtra; Prahaar