Mumbai: After the Supreme Court granted interim relief to lawyer Nilima Chavan on Friday morning in a case of abetment to the suicide of ex-corporator Sudhir More, Chavan appeared before the police and expressed her willingness to cooperate with the probe.
Chavan, who is also a member of the Maharashtra State Commission for Protection of Child Rights, approached the Supreme Court after her pre-arrest bail plea was rejected by the Bombay High Court on September 20, with the court observing that there was 'something that needs to be probed.'
Relief till November 29
A bench of Justices AS Bopanna and MM Sundresh passed the direction on Chavan’s petition and granted her relief till November 29.
The judges also issued a notice to the State and granted interim protection subject to Chavan “diligently participating in the investigation” and adhering to other conditions.
More was found dead on the railway tracks between Ghatkopar and Vidyavihar railway stations late in the night on August 31. The next day, More's son, Samar, informed the police that a woman named Nilima Chavan, a lawyer by profession, mentally harassed More, which led to his extreme step. Following this, a First Information Report (FIR) was registered against Chavan.
Despite several searches at her locations, including Mulund, Vikhroli, and Lonawala (farmhouse), the police couldn't locate her. Chavan moved to the Sessions Court and the High Court for a bail plea, both of which were rejected.
The Kurla GRP has gathered all evidence against Chavan, including her phone call recordings and text messages sent to More.
Police sources stated that after the Supreme Court granted interim bail, Chavan appeared at the Kurla GRP and informed the police about her cooperation.
The Kurla police claimed that on the day of the suicide, More and Chavan made 56 phone calls, WhatsApp, and video calls to each other. The police stated that, as per the phone call recordings, Chavan had been harassing and blackmailing More, threatening suicide if he did not talk to her. The calls, recorded in More’s cellphone, revealed an ongoing argument between the duo in the days leading up to More’s suicide. More had spoken to the accused for two hours before taking his own life.
The Sessions Court, while rejecting her plea, observed that custodial interrogation was necessary to investigate the offense properly.
