Crime
Gag on POSH cases: After 6 months, Bombay HC says it’s ‘case specific’
Nearly six months after a complete ‘gag’ order to media reporting and uploading of judgements on cases pertaining to the Prevention of Sexual Harassment of Women at the Workplace (POSH) Act, 2013, the Bombay High Court has clarified that it was ‘case specific’ and not applicable to all matters under the (POSH) act.
Justice G.S. Patel, who had passed the earlier order of September 24, 2021, acknowledged that “it remained to be specifically noted in that order that “the directions had to be confined” to that particular case and could not have any wider or larger applicability.
Justice Patil further noted that any such rules of general applicability would have to be approved by the full court, and a single judge hearing a particular matter within his rostered assignment has “no authority or jurisdiction to issue any rules binding the entire court”.
“It is only the full court or the Chief Justice which or who can do that. Very possibly, such rules might even have been required to be notified in the official gazette. None of this was in contemplation at any time on September 24, 2021,” Justice Patil added.
The clarifications came on Thursday while disposing an intervention application filed by the Forum Against Oppression of Women under the impressions that the guidelines were general in nature.
FAOW senior advocate Indira Jaisingh contended that these guidelines were not only against the letter and spirit of the POSH Act, but also contrary to the very concept of open courts, which are an essential aspect of judicial determinations globally, and now it was being cited by men in other cases.
In the previous order (IANS – Sept 27, 2021), Justice Patel had said all such matters shall be heard either “in camera” or in the judge’s chambers, orders cannot be passed in open court, or uploaded on the high court’s official website, and the media has been prohibited from reporting the proceedings or the verdicts without the court’s permission.
Virtually making POSH cases at par with the existing guidelines in rape cases, the order warned that violation of the same or publishing the concerned party’s names or other details, even if in the public domain, would be treated as contempt of court.
He observed that since there are no set guidelines for such matters, his initial order would set a working protocol for the future orders, hearings, case file management, and would be revised or modified, as needed.
The ‘minimum guidelines’ issued dealt with the format of filing orders in POSH cases, the filing protocols, grant of access by the registry, hearings, directions to the certified copy department, public access, breach, etc.
“Both sides and all parties and advocates, as also witnesses, are forbidden from disclosing the contents of any order, judgment, or filing to the media or publishing any such material in any mode or fashion by any means, including social media, without specific leave of the court,” the court said on the media disclosure part.
Justice Patel added that it was imperative to protect the identities of the parties from disclosure, even accidental disclosure in such proceedings, in the interests of both sides, and the endeavour would be to “anonymise the identities of the parties”.
The orders came in a hearing of a POSH case involving a major blue-chip company and its woman staffer — who was represented by advocate Abha Singh.
The other highlights were: Parties’ names shall be replaced with “A v B”, etc., the order will mention them as only ‘Plaintiff, Defendant No. 1, etc.’, no reference to any ‘personally identifiable information (PII) like email, mobile or phone numbers, addresses, etc,’ and ‘no witness names and addresses’ shall be mentioned.
All orders/judgements would be delivered in private, not in open court but only in the judge’s chambers or in camera, with online or hybrid facility not allowed, in the presence of the litigants and lawyers and others including most of the court staff to leave the court.
“Orders can’t be published without court’s direction, and if any order is to be released into public domain, it will require a specific order of the court. This will be on the condition that only the fully anonymised version of the order of judgement is let into the public domain for publication,” said Justice Patel in the earlier order.
It forbade both sides, all parties and advocates and witnesses from disclosing the contents of any order, judgment, or filing to the media or publishing any such material in any mode or fashion by any means, including social media, without specific leave of the court, as per the guidelines.
There are strict restrictions barring anyone other than the Advocate-on-Record to inspect or copy any filings/orders, the entire record will be kept sealed and not handed over to anybody without the court’s order, witness depositions would be strictly not uploaded under any circumstances, and so on.
Crime
BMC Employee Booked For 1997 Job Fraud Using Forged Documents; 29-Year Service Under Scanner, FIR Filed

Mumbai: The Azad Maidan police have booked Vinay Jadhav for allegedly submitting forged documents to obtain a job in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) under the compassionate policy (preferential treatment) in 1997. He worked with the BMC for 29 years, and his employment came under scrutiny in January 2026.
As per the FIR, Jadhav’s father, Madhukar Jadhav, died in June 1986; Jadhav’s elder brother, Harshraj Jadhav, had already secured a clerk’s job in the BMC under the compassionate policy in December 1986. As per the rules, only one eligible family member can be appointed on compassionate grounds after the death of a parent.
However, in August 1995, Vinay Jadhav allegedly submitted an application to the BMC under the same policy. Police said he submitted forged documents and, in October 1997, fraudulently obtained a job in the civic body.
According to the FIR, Jadhav worked in the BMC’s Licence Department (C Division) as a licence inspector and allegedly cheated the civic body for 29 years.
The matter came to light when Rajeshree Patil, 57, an administrative officer in the BMC’s Licensing Department, initiated an inquiry into alleged irregularities in the hiring, promotion and transfer of employees. The inquiry revealed that officials at the time had failed to properly scrutinise the documents, allowing Jadhav to take undue advantage.
The BMC administration stated in the FIR that Jadhav drew a salary and other benefits over the years, causing financial losses amounting to lakhs of rupees to the civic body. Following the complaint filed by Patil, the Azad Maidan police registered an FIR against Jadhav on April 28 under Sections 318(4) (cheating) and other relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
Crime
Colaba Police Book 2 For Impersonation In IBPS Recruitment To Secure New India Assurance Administrative Officer Job

Mumbai: The Colaba police have booked two individuals for allegedly someone else appeared in interview to New India Assurance Company Limited to secure the post of administrative officer. The accused, Chandan Kumar, worked with the company for one year and nine months and drew a salary of Rs. 20.16 lakh during this period.
According to the FIR, the office of New India Assurance Company Limited is located in Colaba. On July 27, 2023, the company published an advertisement for the post of administrative officer. The company had outsourced the recruitment process to Institute of the IBPS for selecting candidates. IBPS conducted the selection process in three phases. In the final phase, a panel from New India Assurance Company was also involved in the interview process. After completing the process, IBPS selected 450 candidates and sent the list to the company’s Mumbai office.
The accused, Chandan Kumar from Patna, was one of the selected candidates on the list. He joined the company as an administrative officer on April 1, 2024. Meanwhile, on October 6, 2025, the company received an email from balramkuma2067@gmail.com alleging that three candidates, including Chandan Kumar and two others from Bhopal and Delhi, had secured their jobs through fraudulent means. The email claimed that during the selection process, impersonators had appeared for the examination and interviews on behalf of the candidates. The company took the complaint seriously and initiated an inquiry.
Subsequently, Chandan Kumar went on leave. The company contacted him and asked him to present himself at the office for biometric verification. Initially, he gave reasons for not appearing, but in November 2025, he reported to the office. The company found that his biometric data did not match the biometric records collected during the selection process. Consequently, the company terminated his services on January 6, 2026.
In the FIR, the company stated that Chandan Kumar had worked from March 4, 2024, to January 5, 2026, and had drawn a salary of Rs. 20.16 lakh. Based on the complaint, the police registered a cheating case on May 5.
Crime
Ex bank officer digitally arrested for 54 days on threat of implication in Delhi bomb blast; Rs 40 lakh extorted in Mumbai

Mumbai, In a shocking cybercrime, fraudsters allegedly placed a retired bank manager under “digital arrest” for 54 days in Mumbai’s Bhandup area, extorting Rs 40.90 lakh by threatening to implicate him in the Delhi bomb blasts and a money laundering case, Mumbai Police said on Wednesday.
According to Mumbai Police, the accused impersonated officers from the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) and the National Investigation Agency (NIA), creating an atmosphere of fear and psychological pressure that forced the victim to comply with their demands.
The victim, Rajendra, a former manager at the Maharashtra State Co-operative Bank, was manipulated into transferring large sums of money, including liquidating his stock market investments.
The incident began on March 10, when Rajendra received a video call via the Signal app from an account named “ATS Department.” The caller introduced himself as PSI Singh, claiming to be an officer from the Delhi ATS. He alleged that Rajendra’s name had surfaced in connection with the Delhi bomb blasts that took place in January, as well as in a money laundering case.
The fraudsters further claimed that a bank account had been fraudulently opened in Karnataka using Rajendra’s Aadhaar details and mobile number, through which suspicious transactions amounting to Rs 2.65 crore had been carried out. To intensify the threat, they cited a purported Supreme Court order and warned of immediate arrest and confiscation of his assets.
Under constant surveillance via video calls, Rajendra was instructed to isolate himself in a separate room at home, avoid speaking to anyone, and strictly follow their directions. Acting under extreme mental duress, he initially transferred Rs 2.90 lakh. The fraud escalated when he was coerced into selling shares worth Rs 29 lakh from his stock market investments. Of this amount, Rs 28 lakh was siphoned off into multiple bank accounts controlled by the fraudsters.
The accused further extorted Rs 10 lakh under the pretext of “bail security,” which was arranged by the victim’s wife through a loan. The fraudsters assured Rajendra that the entire amount would be refunded within two days and that the case would be resolved.
However, soon after receiving the money, the accused cut off all communication. After waiting for several days without any response, Rajendra realised he had been duped.
He subsequently filed a complaint with the national cybercrime helpline 1930 on May 3, followed by a formal complaint with the Mumbai Cyber Cell on May 4. Police have launched an investigation to trace the perpetrators and identify the bank accounts used in the fraud.
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