Crime
Kids’ kidnap-murder case: Bombay HC commutes death verdict for 2 to life
Bombay High Court.
The Bombay High Court on Tuesday commuted the death sentences on two prime accused – both step-sisters – to life term till death in jail, in the sensational case of the kidnapping of 13 minor children and murdering at least 5 of them, that rocked the state in the early 1990s.
The accused, Seema Mohan Gavit, 39, and Renuka Kiran Shinde, 45, were arrested by Maharashtra Police in 1996 and have so far spent around 25 years under the shadow of the hangman’s noose, at the Yerawada Central Jail, Pune.
Another prime accused and their mother, Anjana, who was also arrested and charged in the case, passed away in 1998 during the pendency of the trial.
A division bench of Justice Nitin Jamdar and Justice Sarang Kotwal commuted the death penalty, rapping the delays by the government authorities in taking a decision on the mercy pleas of the two.
In 2001, the half-sisters were convicted and awarded the death penalty by the Kolhapur Sessions Court for the stunning kidnappings of 13 children and killing 5 of them brutally.
The death sentence was confirmed by the Bombay High Court in 2004 and then the Supreme Court in 2006.
The sisters had earlier filed mercy pleas before the Governor in 2008 that were declined in August 2013, and later to the President, which was rejected in July 2014, even as people from the USA Japan, Canada, and India appealed to the President for commuting the death verdict, saying that execution of women is extremely rare.
After the rejection of their appeals from both the Governor and the President, they moved the Bombay High Court.
The matter was taken up urgently on August 19, 2014, as the two sisters awaited the gallows that day.
The Public Prosecutor issued telephonic instructions to the YCJ Jail Superintendent Yogesh Desai to stop the hangings till their pleas were heard and the matter came up on the board the following day.
The petitioners contended that the government machinery did not adhere to the rules that required utmost expediency and resorted to a “most casual approach” resulting in a delay of nearly 8 years, which the division bench upheld.
The sisters contended, through their lawyer Aniket Vagal, that the delay was attributable to the executive including the Governor and the Maharashtra Government, the Ministry of Home Affairs, and the President, which was denied by the Centre’s lawyer Sandesh Patil.
The judges noted that from the date of the sisters submitting their mercy plea on September 1, 2006 till it was finally disposed of on July 30, 2014, it took 7 years, 10 months and 15 days.
Justice Jamdar and Justice Kotwal also observed how the chronology showed that there was “nothing but the movement of files, delay, and casual approach demonstrated at each stage” and the state government moved “as if it was a routine file, perhaps even slower than that”, at each stage “officers exhibited utter casualness”.
The court also frowned at how, in the period between 2006-2014, modern electronic communication facilities, email, courier, transportation were easily available to all government officers, and termed as “abhorrent” the movement of files/papers in such a crucial matter within the state or the city after gaps of 15 days, month, six months or up to one year.
It also commented on how the matter was circulated before the court only by the petitioner-sisters in 2021 and not by the government since 2016, and the manner in which the two convicts were kept isolated in the ‘Death Convict Yard’ which has an ominous connotation, and was described as “brooding horror of hanging, daunting the prisoner in the condemned cell” by the late Justice Krishna Iyer.
However, the evidence on record shows the kids were brutally murdered, showing the “depravity” of the two convict-sisters which was “heinous and beyond words to condemn”, the bench said, ordering “life imprisonment is till the life of the convict” unless the competent authority decides otherwise, though the (convicts) were beyond reform for society.
The court also cancelled the unexecuted death warrants against the two sisters and disposed of the petition.
Crime
Delhi Police solve robbery case in 48 hours, arrest two

New Delhi, Nov 19: In a coordinated operation, the South-West District Police solved a robbery case within 48 hours, arresting two men who allegedly targeted a commuter in the Vasant Kunj area.
According to a press release issued by the district police on Wednesday, the accused, both 22 years old and residents of Mahipalpur, were tracked down through extensive CCTV analysis and sustained field efforts.
The incident took place on November 14 when a PCR call alerted PS Vasant Kunj South about a robbery. Police officials rushed to the spot where the complainant, identified as K.K. from Gurugram, reported that two men forcibly snatched his phone and made him transfer Rs 1,500 from his account before fleeing.
A case under FIR No. 471/2025 was registered under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, and investigation began immediately.
Given the seriousness of the crime, a specialised team led by Sub Inspector Ravi Malik and comprising Head Constable Naveen, HC Nemi Chand, Constable Harish and Woman Constable Suman was formed to track the culprits. The team combed through CCTV footage across multiple routes, including NH-48, Vasant Kunj Road and Mahipalpur Road. Their efforts led them to Ashish, one of the suspects, who was subsequently detained.
Police said Ashish confessed during interrogation that he and his associate Abhishek Dixit, also known as Golu, had committed the robbery. Acting on this information, a follow-up search operation resulted in the arrest of Abhishek from a wooded area near Arjun Camp.
Both men worked in Mahipalpur hotels on a commission basis, according to the press release. One of them, Ashish, is a drug user, while Abhishek is illiterate.
The police recovered the robbed iPhone SE and the clothes the accused were allegedly wearing during the robbery. “Further investigation is in progress,” the press release issued by Amit Goel, Deputy Commissioner of Police, South-West District, stated.
Crime
Mumbai: Anti-Narcotics Cell Seizes ₹1.16 Crore Heroin; 2 Drug Suppliers Arrested In Andheri

Mumbai: In a major action against narcotics trafficking, the Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC) of the Mumbai Crime Branch, Kandivali Unit, seized heroin worth ₹1.16 crore during a late-night operation in Andheri on Monday–Tuesday. Two drug suppliers were arrested while they had allegedly arrived in Andheri West to sell the contraband.
According to officials, one of the arrested accused hails from Uttar Pradesh, while the other is a native of Bihar. Both had been living in the Bandra area for the past few months. Police are now searching for other members of the drug network involved in the case.
A senior officer said that the drug trafficking chain is extensive, and continuous interrogation of the arrested accused is underway to uncover more links.
The ANC Kandivali Unit received a tip-off from a confidential informant that two men would be arriving near Andheri Railway Station (West) for drug peddling. Acting swiftly, the unit laid a trap in the area. Based on suspicion, two young men were detained, and upon searching them, police recovered 292 grams of heroin, valued at ₹1.16 crore in the international market.
Both suspects were immediately arrested. The Crime Branch is now conducting further investigation to trace other individuals connected to the drug trafficking racket. Police said they have already identified some associates and expect to arrest them soon. Initial inquiries revealed that the arrested accused had come to the Andheri area for the first time to supply drugs.
Crime
‘This is terrorism and nothing else’: Owaisi on Dr Umar’s suicide bombing

New Delhi, Nov 19: AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi on Wednesday reacted to the recent viral video of Delhi blast accused Dr Umar Muhammad, alias Umar Un Nabi, where he is justifying suicide bombings and said that killing innocents is “a grave sin” and is “terrorism”.
Days after the Delhi blast, a self-recorded video of the i20 car driver, Dr Umar Mohammad, has surfaced, in which he attempts to justify his malicious plan, and refers to it as “martyrdom operation”.
Reacting to this, Owaisi took to X and posted, “There is an undated video of Delhi blasts accused Umar Nabi justifying suicide bombing as ‘martyrdom’, and that it’s ‘misunderstood’. Suicide is haram in Islam, and the killing of innocents is a grave sin. Such acts are also against the law of the land. They are not ‘misunderstood’ in any way. This is terrorism and nothing else.”
He further questioned the Centre over the Delhi blast attack and demanded accountability for the “failure to detect” the terror module.
“During Operation Sindoor and Mahadev, Home Minister Amit Shah had assured Parliament that no local Kashmiri had joined terror groups in the last six months. Where did this group come from then? Who is accountable for the failure to detect this group?” Owaisi questioned.
In a heavily accented video that went viral on Tuesday, Umar attempts to give his terror plan a religious connection.
He is heard saying, “One of the very misunderstood concepts is the concept of suicide bombing; it is a martyrdom operation; as it has been known in Islam… There are multiple contradictions and arguments that have been brought against it — martyrdom operation.”
He further went on to explain that “martyrdom operation” is “when a person presumes that he is going, for sure, to die at a particular place and time.”
His video has revealed the suicide-bombing mindset, indicating that he had planned extensively on a large-scale terror operation.
The car explosion near Delhi’s Red Fort Metro Station on November 10 claimed the lives of at least 13 people and injured several others. The car was being driven by Dr Umar, a doctor associated with Faridabad’s Al Falah University.
The authorities reported that he went missing on November 9, following police raids in Faridabad that resulted in the seizure of almost 2,900 kg of ammonium nitrate from a storage facility and the subsequent arrests of several of his associates.
During the investigation, law enforcement discovered that Umar and Dr Muzammil, who was apprehended after the police dismantled the terror network, had travelled to Turkey, where it is believed their handlers are based.
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