Gujarat HC rejects Lilavati hospital trustee's plea seeking FIR for Rs 45 crore theft

The petitioner Prashant Mehta had sought the intervention of the court for filing an FIR in connection with a theft of valuables around Rs 45 crores belonging to the trustee which were stolen from the basement of Mani Bhavan in Palanpur city of Banaskantha district.

The Lilavati Hospital in Mumbai and a smaller unit in Palanpur, Gujarat are run and owned by the trust.

The petitioner is the grandson of late Kirtilal Mehta who is the settlor of the trust, and the son of Kishor and Charu Mehta who were declared the founder/permanent lifetime trustees of the trust after Kirtilal's death. Mehta alleged that valuables costing more than Rs 45 crore including jewelry, silverware, colored diamonds from the collection of the Maharaja of Baroda were stolen from the Palanpur hospital unit, Banaskantha district in 2019.

Prashant has named his family members and others as accused in the complaint. In a press conference which was held on October 6 in Ahmedabad, the petitioner alleged that the valuables were stolen from a vault in Mani Bhavan in the Palampur hospital unit owned by them, claiming that "unlawful trustee members" and others had "sent some persons for the renovation of the building. The people then allegedly broke the vault and stole the valuables.

Also Read: Lilavati hospital Managing trustee alleges Rs 500 crore scam

However, Prashant was made aware of the theft only in August this year, reports The Indian Express.

Deliberating the plea, Justice Ilesh Vora disposed off the petition while relying on the earlier Supreme Court precedents and points made by the additional public prosecutor.

The HC order dated 29 September held that the petitioner could approach the concerned magisterial court as per the remedies available under the Criminal Procedure Code, who can further pass orders for an investigation.

Medical Dialogues team had earlier reported that the Gujarat High Court had reserved its order on the petition filed by Prashant Mehta, seeking the intervention of the court in filing an FIR for said theft of around Rs. 45 crores.

Also Read: Theft worth Rs 45 crore: Lilavati Hospital Trustee moves Gujarat HC seeking FIR