Crime
Future of Bengal’s Pegasus panel uncertain after SC sets up committee
With the Supreme Court appointing an independent expert technical committee to examine allegations that the government used Israeli spyware, Pegasus, the future of the two-member commission, formed by the West Bengal government three months before, to probe the issue is unclear.
Though the state commission is yet to come out with an official statement, a section of legal experts believes that after the formation of the committee by the apex court, it has lost its relevance.
The two-member commission comprising former Supreme Court judge, Justice Madan B. Lokur, and former Calcutta High Court Justice Jyotirmay Bhattacharya, met on Thursday to decide their future course of action but declined to speak anything on the issue.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had set up the commission of inquiry into the alleged surveillance of phones using the Pegasus spyware developed by the Israeli cyber-intelligence company NSO Group. It was look into the alleged breach of privacy of several individuals – journalists, activists, businesspersons, police officials, politicians – both in the government and the opposition.
According to the notification issued by the West Bengal government, the commission will “enquire into and report on inter alia the reported interception and the possession, storage and use of such information collected through such interception, in the hands of state actors and non-state actors”.
The commission, set up under the Commissions of Inquiry Act, 1952, was given powers of a civil court, while trying a suit under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908. This means that it had powers to summon and enforce the attendance of any person from any part of India and examine him or her on oath, and receive evidence, and it can order requisition of any public record or copy from any court or office.
Under Section 5 of the Act, the commission also has the power to require any person, subject to any privilege which may be claimed by that person under any law for the time being in force, to furnish information on such points or matters that, in the opinion of the commission, may be useful for, or relevant to, the subject matter of the inquiry.
According to political experts, Banerjee’s move to form the commission was an effort to force the Centre to react. Though both the Central and state governments can set up such commissions of inquiry, states are restricted by subject matters that they are empowered to legislate upon.
According to the legal provisions, it matters who orders an inquiry first. If the Central government set up the commission first, then states cannot set up a parallel commission on the same subject matter without the approval of the Centre. But if a state has appointed a commission, then the Centre can appoint another on the same subject if it is of the opinion that the scope of the inquiry should be extended to two or more states.
However, a section of the legal experts believe that the state commission cannot run simultaneously with the committee formed by the Supreme Court.
“The state cannot form this kind of commission legally but the state government has formed the commission under the Commissions of Inquiry Act 1952. The committee the Supreme Court has formed is not under the Act, but it is on the basis of powers vested on the Supreme Court,” former Supreme Court judge Asok Kumar Ganguly said.
“The committee has been formed under Article 142 of the Constitution. If this committee functions, then I cannot understand how the illegal (according to me) commission formed by the state can function. This is not tenable under the Constitution of India,” he added.
However, Trinamool Congress MP and Supreme Court lawyer Kalyan Banerjee contended: “The two can function simultaneously. There is no problem in the functioning of the two commissions.”
Crime
Mumbai Property Owner Alleges Forged Rent Receipts Submitted To Electricity Department; FIR Registered In Colaba

Mumbai: A property owner from Pydhonie has alleged that two tenants submitted forged rent receipts to the electricity department to obtain benefits and falsely establish tenancy rights, following which a criminal case was registered at Colaba Police Station.
According to FIR, Complainant Mohammed Ali Abdul Kadar Patel (51), a businessman residing at Nakida Street, Motiwala Building, Pydhonie, he has been engaged in the property business.
Patel stated that on February 12, 2026, PSI Rohini Dhere contacted him on his mobile phone and called him to Colaba Police Station in connection with an inquiry regarding a complaint filed by him against Anis Umar Wadia and his mother Ruksana Umar Wadia.
Patel said that in November 2021, he had purchased the property located at “13/15, Motiwala Manzil, Kolsa Street, opposite Pydhonie Police Station, Mumbai” from Ajay Hiralal Parakh and others. At the time of purchase, the previous owners allegedly handed over tenant lists and other relevant documents to him. After the transaction, the previous owners issued a “Letter of Attornment” dated November 18, 2021, informing all tenants that Patel had become the new landlord of the property.
Patel further stated that in December 2021, he sent letters by post to all tenants seeking Know Your Tenant (KYT) details. In response, Anis Wadia, son of late tenant Umar Hasan Wadia, visited his office and submitted a written application along with supporting documents. Anis allegedly informed Patel that their surname was “Wadia” and not “Wadhwa” as reflected in the tenant records, and requested correction in the tenant list.
The documents submitted allegedly included old rent receipts from 2020, Aadhaar card and death certificate of Umar Hasan Wadia, ration card copies, electricity bills, Aadhaar cards of Ruksana Wadia, Anis Wadia, and his brother Yunus Wadia, along with a list of family members residing in the premises.
During verification of the documents, Patel claimed he noticed discrepancies as the Wadia family was occupying Room Nos. 13 and 14, whereas their electricity bill and ration card mentioned Room No. 7. When questioned about the discrepancy, Anis allegedly replied that the room number had been reflected in that manner since earlier times. Patel stated that he had instructed him to get the records corrected at the earliest.
Patel also stated that after taking over the building, he renamed “Motiwala Manzil” as “Patel Mansion” and from May 2022 onwards started issuing printed rent receipts to all tenants under the new building name. He said rent receipts for Rooms 13 and 14 continued to be issued in the name of late Umar Hasan Wadia.
According to Patel, he later corresponded with the office of the Divisional Engineer, Consumer Service, B-Ward, Electric House, Colaba, regarding consumer records linked to the premises. He alleged that Ruksana Umar Wadia and Anis Umar Wadia prepared forged and fabricated rent receipts for their wrongful gain and submitted the same before the electricity department authorities. Based on his complaint, an FIR has been registered against
Ruksana Umar Wadia and Anis Umar Wadia Colaba Police Station and further investigation is underway.
Crime
Heartwrenching! Newborn Baby Found Dead In Pile Of Garbage Near Chembur | Disturbing Visuals Surface

Mumbai: A horrific incident has come to light from Mumbai’s Chembur area, where the body of a newborn baby was found in a pile of garbage. The shocking incident took place near Navjeevan Society.
A video of the incident was shared by mumbai.insight on its official Instagram handle. Visuals showed a team of police officers and forensic department officials present at the site near the barricaded area.
According to the report, an investigation has been launched into the case. Police will scan CCTV footage to identify and arrest the person responsible for this inhumane tragedy. The forensic department will conduct a post-mortem to determine the cause of the infant’s death.
Meanwhile, just a few days back, a newborn baby girl was found abandoned on a footpath near Victoria School in Mahim. The infant was discovered behind a water tanker and was immediately rushed to Sion Hospital, where she is currently undergoing treatment and reported to be in stable condition.
Last year in November, Media reported a story where activists stated that around 10 to 15 cases of newborn abandonment occur in Mumbai every year, though the real number could be higher as many cases go unreported. In 2026, Mumbai witnessed a disturbing rise in cases of newborns being found abandoned across various parts of the city.
Activists said that lack of awareness, social stigma, and fear of judgment often lead parents to abandon their babies unsafely instead of seeking legal help. Notably, under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015, parents who cannot care for their newborns can legally surrender them to any authorised adoption agency or Child Welfare Committee (CWC) office.
Crime
Bombay HC Dismisses Plea By Sohrabuddin Shaikh’s Brothers, Upholds Acquittal Of 22 Accused In 2005 Fake Encounter Case, Rejects Retrial Demand.

Mumbai: The Bombay HC on Thursday dismissed the appeal challenging acquittals of all the 22 accused in the 2005 alleged fake encounter case of gangster Sohrabuddin Shaikh and his aide Tulsiram Prajapati.
A bench of Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Gautam Ankhad on Thursday dismissed the appeal filed by Sohrabuddin’s brothers, Rubabuddin and Nayabuddin Shaikh challenging the special court’s verdict of 2018 acquitting all the accused. The detailed order however would be available subsequently.
Sohrabuddin’s brother had in April 2019 approached the HC against the special court’s judgment, acquitting all the accused. The appeal filed by Sohrabuddin’s brothers claimed that the trial was flawed. It cited instances where witnesses later claimed that their testimonies were not accurately recorded by the trial court. The appeal sought for the judgment to be quashed and for a retrial in the case.
Interestingly, the prosecuting agency, Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has not filed an appeal against the acquittal. During the hearing in the appeal on October 8, 2025, Additional Solicitor General Anil Singh, representing the CBI, had informed the HC that the agency has accepted the verdict by the special CBI court, Mumbai, acquitting all the 22 accused, and will not be challenging the same.
The special court, in December 2018, acquitted all the 22 accused, citing insufficient evidence and prosecution’s failure to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt. It observed that the prosecution had failed to establish a cogent case to suggest there had been any conspiracy to kill Sohrabuddin and the others, and that the present accused persons had any role in it. The court also the CBI had failed to prove there existed any nexus between these officers and the local politicians, some of whom were also accused in the case.
Sohrabuddin, alleged to be a gangster, was killed in November 2006 in an encounter near Ahmedabad by the Gujarat police. His wife Kausar Bi was also allegedly killed. Later in December 2006, Prajapati, who was considered as a key eyewitness, was killed in another alleged encounter.
The Supreme Court then handed over the probe to the CBI and transferred the trial in the case to a special CBI court in Mumbai.
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