Mumbai: The Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC) of the Esplanade Magistrate Court has disposed of a theft case registered in 1991 against a 22-year-old IIT Powai student. In its judgment, the court held that since the police have not been able to trace the accused, complainant or any witnesses in the case, there is no point in keeping the matter pending for 33 years and 10 months. The court, therefore, acquitted the IITian of the alleged theft charges filed by the Taj Mahal Hotel in 1991.
While passing the order, the court stated, “The matter is so old that there is no possibility of the accused or the witnesses appearing before the court or even before the police. Hence, abiding by the High Court’s directions, such cases need to be addressed and disposed of promptly.”
The prosecution’s case dates back to July 5, 1991, when a case was filed against 22-year-old Lalit Narayan, a student residing in the IIT Powai hostel. Lalit was accused of allegedly committing theft at the five-star hotel.
The complainant in the case, Veliya Gurucharan Singh, a security guard at the hotel, stated he was on duty when the hotel manager informed him that Lalit had allegedly stolen a key from the reception and used it to stay at the hotel. The alleged theft came to light when Lalit returned the key to the disco manager, who recognized it as belonging to a room that had been locked for renovation.
When the hotel manager and the security guard questioned Lalit about how he obtained the key to the locked room, he allegedly failed to provide a satisfactory explanation. Consequently, a case was registered against him under Section 380 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The case was subsequently registered at the Colaba Police Station.
