New Delhi, Oct 9: The Supreme Court has expressed shock at the status of criminal trials in Maharashtra, having found that hundreds of cases have been pending for framing of charges for over a decade — some dating back as far as 2006.

“Registrar General of the High Court of Judicature at Bombay has filed an affidavit annexing certain documents which we have perused. To say the least, it is a reflection of a very shocking state of affairs, insofar as the conduct of trials before different Courts in the State of Maharashtra is concerned,” observed a Bench of Justice Sanjay Karol and Justice N. Kotiswar Singh, taking note of the affidavit filed by the Registrar General of the Bombay High Court.

The Justice Kant Bench said that despite the filing of charge sheets, trials in at least 649 cases across Maharashtra have not proceeded beyond the stage of framing charges.

“The said affidavit reveals that there are at least 649 cases in which charges are yet to be framed, despite filing of the charge sheets, in certain cases, way back in the year 2006, 2013, 2014 and onwards till the year 2020. The reasons assigned for delay are multiple, including, and most significantly, in almost every trial, either non-production of the accused or non-appearance of the advocate, be it the prosecutor or the defence,” it observed.

Noting that the petitioner has been languishing in jail for over four years without charges being framed, though the charge sheet in his case was filed in July 2021, the apex court said: “The petitioner has been in jail for more than 4 years since 11.04.2021, and today his status remains the same as it was on day one of his incarceration. Charges would have to be framed, the process of trial would take its own time, and by the time a final conclusion is reached, he would have remained behind bars for many years on end.”

The Supreme Court has directed the Registrar General of the High Court to obtain detailed reports from each District and Sessions Judge regarding the steps taken to ensure the timely framing of charges and compliance with earlier circulars on the production of undertrial prisoners either physically or virtually, as per the stage of trial.

The matter will now be heard next on October 17, with the Supreme Court seeking a comprehensive compliance affidavit. “The Registrar General shall also apprise the learned Chief Justice of the High Court of the passing of this order,” it said.

Mumbai: A major human trafficking racket was exposed at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport due to the alertness of immigration officials. The accused, Vijay Kumar Radheshyam Grover (43), was caught attempting to take 28-year-old Kamaljit Kaur to the Netherlands’ Amsterdam by posing as her husband.

Officials found discrepancies during questioning, leading to the discovery of fake documents. The case is currently under investigation by the Property Cell of the Mumbai Crime Branch, and a team has been dispatched to Punjab for further probe. Grover has been remanded in police custody till October 15.

According to police sources, Accused VijayKumar, who works as a travel agent in Delhi, has traveled abroad 13 times to nine different countries including Thailand, China, Dubai, and London.

He is suspected to have facilitated passports and visas for around 30 to 35 individuals. On October 7, he arrived at the Mumbai international airport with Kamaljit Kaur, claiming she was his wife and that they were flying to Amsterdam.

However, immigration officers noticed inconsistencies in their responses during routine questioning. Further scrutiny revealed that the marriage certificate dated December 2023 they presented was fake. Kaur was immediately rescued, while Grover was detained for questioning. Investigations revealed that Kaur’s cousin, Sonu — a Belgium citizen — had introduced her to Grover.

A case has been registered at the Sahar Police Station under sections 143(2), 336(2), 336(3), 340(2), and 318(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) 2023, for human trafficking, cheating, and forgery.

The accused allegedly forged marriage documents to fraudulently obtain a European visa for himself and Kamaljit Kaur and attempted to take her illegally to Amsterdam on flight 6M-21 from Mumbai.

The investigation is being led by Senior Police Inspector Mangesh Desai and PSI Sachin Jadhav of the Property Cell, Crime Branch. Police are now tracing agent Gagandeep Singh Bhinder and others suspected to be part of this trafficking network. Authorities are also probing whether this is part of a larger cross-border trafficking racket operating from Punjab and Delhi.

Mumbai, Oct 8: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Wednesday said it has arrested a Superintendent and an Inspector of the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) in Mumbai, for allegedly demanding and accepting a bribe of Rs 25,000 from a businessman.

According to a CBI statement, the arrested officials have been identified as Superintendent Vikram and Inspector Lav Kumar Chittoria, both posted in the CGST Santacruz Division.

The case was registered on Tuesday following a complaint from a textile trader who had applied online for GST registration of his firm on September 24, the statement said.

The complainant alleged that during a field inspection on October 3, Chittoria demanded Rs 25,000 as illegal gratification for himself and his superior officer.

The officers allegedly warned that the GST registration certificate would not be issued unless the bribe was paid.

Acting on the complaint, the CBI laid a trap and caught both the accused red-handed while accepting the bribe amount inside the CGST West Mumbai Office on Tuesday.

The bribe money was recovered from their possession. Following the arrests, searches were carried out at the offices and residences of both officials, during which several incriminating documents were also seized.

A CBI spokesperson said that both officers were taken into custody for interrogation and will be produced before a competent court in Mumbai later in the day.

“Further investigation is underway to determine whether other officials were involved in the bribery racket and to trace possible links with similar cases,” the official added.

The agency reiterated its zero-tolerance policy towards corruption in government departments and urged citizens to report any instance of demand for bribes through its dedicated helpline and online portal.

Just a few days ago, in its crackdown on bribery in government offices, the CBI arrested two senior government officials of the Ministry of Defence and a railway hospital, in two separate cases of bribery.